The Recruit: Book Two (19 page)

* * *

Hannah put her arms around Will’s waist and
leaned against his broad back.  She placed a soft kiss on his naked skin and
smiled when he reached down and clasped her hands gently in his.

“Hi.”

“Hi, honey.”  He continued to stare out the
window into the darkness and she squeezed him tightly.

“Are you sure it’s a good idea for you to
stay the night?”

“Don’t ask me to leave, Hannah.”

“I’m not.”  She rushed to reassure him.  “I
just - I don’t want people asking questions that you can’t answer.”

He sighed.  “I’ve been spending a lot of
time away from the facility the last few months.  No one will find it
suspicious that I’m not there.”

She bit her lip and took a deep breath. 
“Will?”

“Yeah?”

“Are you – I mean - are we okay?”

He didn’t reply and she could feel her
heart sinking.  “I’m sorry.  I know this doesn’t make it better but I wish I
hadn’t lied to you.”

He turned around and stared gravely at
her.  “I love you.”

She gave him a trembling smile.  “I love
you too.  So much.”

He brushed her hair back from her face and
kissed her lightly.  “But trusting you right now is very difficult for me.”

She swallowed loudly and nodded.  “I know.”

“I understand that you thought you were
making the right choice and trying to protect me but you lied to me, Hannah.”

She took a step back and crossed her arms
over her torso as he rubbed his forehead wearily.  “After everything we’ve been
through together, the fact that you thought it would be better for me to
believe you were dead…”

He trailed off and she gave him a look of
misery.  “I don’t know what to say, Will.  I made a mistake.”

“Yes, you did.”  He said quietly.  He
turned around and stared out the window again and she swiped away the tears
that were starting to slide down her cheeks.

“I’ll sleep in the library tonight.”  She
said resignedly.  “Just – just remember that I do love you and I’m so sorry.”

He turned and grabbed her arm as she walked
away.  “Why would you sleep in the library?”

“Well, because I – “ 

She paused and gave him a helpless look. 
“I don’t know what to do or say, and I feel so damn bad about hurting you.  I
just want things to be the way they were before and I know they never will be,
and it’s all my fucking fault!”

Her voice was rising and she balled her
hand into a fist and hit her own thigh in frustration.  He took her hand and
soothed her tightly-clenched fingers open before pulling her into his embrace. 
She rested her head against his chest, blinking back the tears fiercely, as he
cupped her head and kissed her forehead.

“I just need some more time, okay?”  He
murmured into her hair.

She nodded and hugged him tightly as he
stroked her back.  “I don’t know what to do or say either, but I do know I don’t
want you sleeping in the damn library tonight.  I’ll have to join you and I
can’t sleep on that goddamn couch again.”

She smiled and stared up at him.  “Are you
sure, Will?”

He nodded.  “Positive.”

She gave him another wavering smile and he
bent and wrapped his hands around her thighs before lifting her up.  She clung
to his shoulders and hooked her feet in the small of his back as he carried her
to the bed.  He dropped her on to the bed and pulled her shirt over her head. 
She unhooked her bra as he unbuttoned her jeans, and she lay back so he could
tug them down her legs.  He stripped his pants off and lay down on his side
next to her.

One large hand cupped her breast and she
made a soft moan of need.  He smiled at the sound and moved his hand to her flat
abdomen, rubbing it lightly before tracing the edge of her panties.  She arched
her pelvis and parted her thighs eagerly but he moved his hand to her ribs and
ran his rough fingers over them.

She smiled at him.  “I’m not really curvy
anymore, am I?”

He kissed her shoulder and traced her arm,
taut with muscle, from her shoulder to her wrist.  “You’re beautiful, Hannah.”

“You like your women with curves.”  She
whispered.

He took her hand, linking their fingers
together.  “I love you.  I love everything about you – your hair, your laugh,
your eyes, and your body.  I’m so proud of you, of everything you’ve
accomplished and how hard you’ve worked to become the person you are.  You’re
the strongest, bravest person I know, and you’re all I’ll ever need.  You have
my heart, forever.”

She stared at him and he could feel a blush
rising in his cheeks.  He wasn’t much for declarations of love, and he wondered
if he had sounded as stupid as he suddenly felt. 

“Sorry.”  He muttered.

She squeezed his hand.  “Don’t ever
apologize for giving a woman the best compliment of her life, Will.”

She propped herself up on her elbows and
gave him a soft, lingering kiss.  He took a ragged breath, immediately
intoxicated by her touch and her scent.  She kissed him again, her tongue stroking
his lips until he opened them.  They kissed deeply, their hands touching and
caressing each other’s heated flesh until they were both panting.

“I need you, Will.”  Hannah whispered
against his mouth.

He helped her peel her panties off and then
knelt between her legs.  She reached between them and guided his cock into
her.  She gave a breathless little moan and wrapped her long limbs around his
waist as he propped himself up on his hands above her.

He moved with long tantalizing thrusts,
rolling his hips in and out as she urged him on with soft cries.  He bent his
head and sucked lightly on one hard nipple.  Her hands clutched at him, pulling
him closer as he buried himself deep within her warm body.  As they moved
together, their hips rising and falling in unison, he stared down at her.  His
eyes were glowing and she smiled at him, her eyes warm and hazy with desire, as
they held each other tightly and lost themselves in the pleasure of their
union.

“You seem happier, Will.”

“Do I?”  Will drummed his fingers on his
thigh and stared at Alan.

“Yes.  It’s been noticeable the last week
or so.”

“Has it?”

Alan nodded.  “It has.  You’ve been
spending a lot of time away from the facility in the last week.  More than
usual.”

“Perhaps that’s why I’m happier.  Maybe I
just needed a break from this place.”  Will responded.

“Maybe.  Do you mind if I ask where you’ve
been going?”

“I do mind, Alan.  You’re my therapist, not
my mother.”

Alan laughed.  “Fair enough.  Although
calling me your therapist might be a bit of a stretch.  This is only the third
time we’ve talked since Hannah died.”

“I don’t have a lot to say.”  Will
shrugged.

“It helps to talk about it.”  Alan said
gently.

“So you keep saying.”

“Are you starting to accept her death?” 
Alan asked.

“I’ve always accepted it.  Hannah is dead. 
I know it, you know it, and everyone in this goddamn facility knows it.”  Will
said moodily.

“Knowing and accepting are two different
things, Will.”

“I’m not going to talk about her.  Do you
understand?”  Will said harshly.  “I have zero interest in speaking to you about
Hannah’s death.”

Alan sighed.  “Richard is worried about
you.  He’s curious where you’ve been wandering off to, as well.”

“I don’t care.” 

Alan changed tactics.  “Do you honestly
believe that being away from the facility is what’s making you happier?”

“I don’t know.”  Will grunted.  “Why so
curious about my sudden happiness?  I would think it would make you and Richard
relieved that I’m feeling better.  No more worries about the big, bad Lycan losing
it and murdering everyone in their sleep.  Isn’t that what you’re worried
about?”

Alan shook his head.  “No, of course not.”

“Sure it isn’t.”  Will scoffed.

“You know what’s interesting, Will? 
Everyone seems happier.  Mannie, Reid, even Selena.  Do you know why that might
be?”

“Nope.”

Alan stroked his beard.  “Ever since the
night of the warehouse, there’s been a different mood in the facility.  Despite
the fact that it was a failure.”

Will shrugged.  “Maybe it’s because we all
knew it was a suicide mission.  The vampires not showing up was a good thing,
as far as I’m concerned.  Richard was insane to think we could try and capture
one.”

Alan didn’t reply and Will glanced at the
clock.  “Are we finished, Alan?”

Alan nodded.  “Yes.  Could we meet again next
week?”

“I’ll let you know.”  Will stood and left
the office.  Alan stared at the closed door for a moment or two, stroking his
beard thoughtfully, before he stood and walked down the hallway to Richard’s
office.  He knocked lightly and at Richard’s muffled, ‘come in’, entered the
room and sat in the chair across from Richard.

“Well?  Did he tell you anything?”  Richard
asked.

Alan gave him a bemused look.  “I can’t
tell you anything about our sessions, Richard.  You know that.  It’s called
patient doctor confidentiality.”

Richard sighed impatiently and shuffled
some papers on his desk.  “I need to know if Will is suicidal, Alan.  His
behaviour in the past three months strongly suggests that he is and if the
Board finds out I’ve been continuing to let him hunt, they’ll have my head on a
pole.”

“I don’t believe he’s suicidal.  At least,
not anymore.  He seems happier in fact.” 

“Yeah, I’ve noticed.  Did he tell you why
he’s suddenly so happy?”

“Again, I can’t tell you that.”  Alan
replied.

Richard ran a hand over his bald head. 
“Christ, I don’t know what the hell to do with him.  He’s acting suicidal
during the hunts and he keeps disappearing from the goddamn facility.  He just
shows up whenever he feels like it now.”

He glanced at Alan.  “Did he say where he’s
been going?”

“Again, I – “

“I know, I know.  You can’t fucking tell
me.”  Richard said irritably.  “I’m almost at the point of just following him
when he leaves.  I want to know where and what the hell he’s doing.”

“I suppose you could ask one of the other
instructors to follow him.”

Richard shook his head.  “If I’m desperate
enough to be thinking about following him, I’ll do it myself.”

His cell phone chimed and he glanced at it
before giving Alan an apologetic look.  “I have to take this.”

Alan nodded and left the room.

***

“You can’t be serious.”  Hannah sat up in
the bed and gave Will a look of shock.

He tucked his hands behind his head.  “I
am.”

“There’s no way it’s Richard feeding the
information to the vampires.”  Hannah argued.  “He hates them.  He’s spent
nearly his entire life trying to destroy them.”

Will sighed.  “I know.  I’m not saying for
sure that it’s Richard, just that I have my suspicions.”

Hannah stared blankly at the ceiling.  “It
can’t be him.”

He reached out and squeezed her thigh. “I
think we need to suspect everyone at this point, Hannah.”

“God, I hate that we can’t even – “

There was a knock on the bedroom door and
Hannah pulled the sheet up around her naked body.

“Come in.”

The door opened and Luther stuck his head
in.  “Yo, we hunting tonight?”

Hannah glanced at Will and then shook her
head.  “Not tonight, Luther.”

The young boy sighed and rolled his eyes. 
“We ain’t gone hunting in days.  You too busy bumpin’ uglies with old wolf boy
here to bother with hunting now?”

“Watch your mouth.”  Will snapped.

“I’m not afraid of you, wolf boy.”  Luther
sneered.  “A collar and a leash is all I need to – “

“Enough, Luther.”  Hannah said sharply as
Will growled warningly.

Luther glared at her.  “Are you at least
going to come to the kitchen and eat with us?”

“Yes.  We’ll be right there.”  Hannah
replied.

“Oh great.  Wolf boy is coming.  Should I
put the dog bowl out?”  Luther muttered.

“Luther!  Apologize right now.”  Hannah was
starting to lose her temper and Luther held his hands out and retreated.

“Alright.  I’m sorry.  We would love the
pleasure of your company at dinner.”  He glanced briefly at Will before
shutting the door to the bedroom.

“I’m sorry.”  Hannah sighed as they
listened to his footsteps fade.  “He’s a little jealous, I think.  Tyrone and
Luther have never really had a mother before, and they’ve gotten used to having
my full attention over the last few months.”

Will rolled his eyes.  “Are you sure they
think of you as a mother?”

Hannah nodded.  “Yes.”

She climbed from the bed and began to get
dressed.  “Come on, honey.  Let’s have some dinner.”

* * *

The man shifted uncomfortably and breathed
a sigh of relief as the sun began to rise over the horizon.  He had been in the
woods for hours, waiting and watching for Will to leave the house.  He glanced
at his watch, took a quick look around, and unzipped his pants before
urinating.

When he was finished he zipped his pants
and glanced at his watch again.  He had followed Will from the facility last
night, being careful to follow at a safe distance, and had continued to drive
past when Will had turned into a driveway.  He had left his car parked a short
distance away and doubled back on foot, moving quickly through the trees until
he was back at the large house.  Will’s car was parked in the circular driveway
and although he hadn’t specifically seen Will go into the house, he was
positive he was in there.  He had waited through the long night but Will hadn’t
emerged. 

Now, he stretched and rubbed his aching
lower back.  Christ, he was too old for this cloak and dagger shit.  His back
hurt, his feet hurt and he was unbelievably tired.  He yawned and rubbed his
eyes.  What was Will doing in there?  Who the hell was he –

The front door opened and he stiffened and
ducked quickly behind the tree before peering cautiously around it.  His mouth
dropped open and he expelled all the air from his lungs in a harsh rush.

Will had come out of the house and Hannah,
dressed in a tank top and jeans, had followed him.

The man watched in disbelief as Will
unlocked the car.  Before climbing in, he turned and pulled Hannah to him.  He
gave her a lingering kiss, his hand cupping her ass and squeezing gently before
he climbed into the car.  Hannah watched him leave, waving when he turned out
of the driveway and down the road, before going back into the house.

The man, his heart thumping in his chest
and his hands trembling a little, leaned against the tree for a few more
minutes before pulling out his cell phone.  He scrolled through the contacts
before selecting a number and dialing it.  He held the phone to his ear and
waited impatiently.

“It’s me.  I need to speak to Samuel.”

He listened and then sighed harshly,
staring at the rapidly rising sun.  “Fuck, he’s already in his daysleep?”

He listened again and then interrupted. 
“Yeah, alright.  Listen, tell Samuel that the woman is alive.”

He paused and then snorted in disgust. 
“Yes, I mean Hannah.  Who the fuck else would I be talking about?  No, I don’t
know how she’s alive, but she is.  I just fucking saw her, you moron.”

He cut the person off again.  “Shut up. 
Tell Samuel I’ll contact him tonight.  I need to get back to the facility
before they discover I’m missing.”

He listened again.  “Yes, I know.  Just
remind the dark lord that we had an agreement.  He’ll give me immortality in
exchange for the woman.”

He hung up without waiting for the other’s
reply and slipped his phone into his pocket.  A broad smile crossed his face as
he began to jog through the trees towards his car.