The Recruit: Book Two (9 page)

“I don’t know why you gave up on the gun
training, Hannah.  You’re not terrible at it.  In fact, you’ve got a pretty
good eye for it.”  Reid removed his ear protection, flipped the switch that
drew the paper forward and examined it carefully.  Six out of the seven shots
fired were directly in the chest.  The seventh had hit just below the right
shoulder.

Hannah shrugged, checking the gun before
setting it carefully on the small table in front of her.  “I prefer swords.”

They were in the facility’s indoor shooting
range, standing in one of the small booth, and Reid ducked his head out and
scanned the room.  They were alone and he leaned against the wall of the booth before
reaching out and running his fingers over the scars on her forearms.

“I can see why.  Guys dig scars you know,
sweetheart.”

She snorted.  “Sure they do.”

“Any other scars you’d like to show me?”  He
wiggled his eyebrows at her.

“Really?  That’s your pick-up line?  I can
see why you’re single.”

He shook his head.  “Nah, I don’t use
pick-up lines.  I prefer the direct approach.”  He pushed away from the booth wall
and pinned her gently against the other side of the booth.  He cupped her face and
pressed his mouth against hers. 

His lips were warm and gentle and, Hannah
thought, nothing at all like Will’s demanding kisses.  He pressed up against
her, sliding one arm around her waist and moving his other hand to the back of
her neck before trailing kisses down her neck.  His closely-shaven skin was
smooth against her throat.  She preferred the rough feel of Will’s dark stubble. 
It had always scratched and reddened her skin in the heat of their passion. 
Afterwards, when the lovemaking was done and they were warm and drowsy in his
bed, he had fretted over the marks on her body.  He would whisper apologies and
rub them softly with his fingers. 

Secretly she had enjoyed seeing the marks
on her pale skin.  They were a sign that she belonged to him, and that only he
had the right to touch her.  Although outwardly she had often expressed
annoyance over his Neanderthal behaviour, there had always been a small, secret
part of her that was flattered and a little turned-on by his fierce need to
show other men that she was his. 

He was still attempting to keep other men
away, still trying to claim her as his own, but she knew with time that would
fade.  He would find another - a Lycan - to fall in love with and she would
spend the rest of her life alone.  It was the first time she had allowed
herself to articulate the thought that she would be apart from Will forever,
and she blinked back the sudden tears.  Despite her anger over his betrayal, the
thought of being without him filled her with a black depression.

Reid sighed and pushed away from her. 
“Nothing huh?”

“Sorry.”

He shook his head.  “Still pining for the
wolf.  I get it.”

“No, that isn’t it.”  She lied.  “I’ve just
learned my lesson about sleeping with an instructor.”

“You’re not a recruit anymore.”  He pointed
out.

“Still, I think it’s better if I stay away
from the instructors.”  She gave him a wan smile and picked up her gun.  “Shall
we practice some more?”

“Sure.  But listen, if you ever get lonely
and just want someone to warm your bed for the night - my door is always open,
sweetheart.  No questions asked.”

She laughed.  “Classy, Reid.  Truly.”

He winked at her.  “Just wanted to give you
some different options.” 

He sobered for a moment.  “I think we could
be good together.  Think about giving me a chance okay?”  He leaned forward and
placed another gentle kiss on her mouth and she gave him a brief kiss in
return.

“Thanks, Reid.”

* * *

“It’s been nearly a week, Richard.  I’m not
waiting any longer.”  Hannah said firmly.

Richard gave her a solemn look.  “You don’t
have to.  The Board is just as anxious as you are to lure this Marcus in.”

“Good.  I’ll go tonight.”  She stood up to
leave his office and he held his hand up.

“You’re not going alone, Hannah.  We’re
sending a team in with you.”

She shook her head.  “They’re not stupid,
Richard.  They won’t attack if they think they’re going to lose.”

“They’ll have no idea the others are
there.”

She laughed bitterly.  “Richard, do you honestly
believe that the vampires or their familiars aren’t watching my parent’s house
every minute of the day?  I know you have your “team” on watch but trust me,
this Marcus has his own team.  He’s just choosing to wait for me to show up.”

Richard shrugged.  “We’re sending a team in
with you; there will be no argument on this.  If the vampires choose not to
attack, so be it.”

“Who are the team members?”

“We’re sending Chen and Reid with you, as
well as Jeremy, Ryan and Danny, plus the five that have been watching your
parents for the last month.”

“I want Selena.”  She said immediately.

“I’m not sure that Selena is a good
choice.  She’s still shaken over what happened at the factory.  Mannie said she
had a hard time at the last hunt.”

“She’s fine.  She’s got a lot to work
through.  Cut her some slack, Richard.”

“There’s one other thing, Hannah.” Richard
paused and she gave him an impatient look.  “Will has requested to go as well.”

“No.”  She shook her head.  “I don’t want
him there.”

“Hannah, I think you should let him go with
you.  It would be best if you put your personal feelings aside and recognize
that he is a very ruthless and capable vampire killer.  You can only benefit
from having him go with you to your parents.”

“No.”  She repeated coldly.  “You owe me,
Richard.  You kept the murders of my family a secret for weeks and now you’re
going to repay me by not allowing Will to join us.”

He hesitated and she gave him a look of
disdain.  “If you’re too scared to tell him, I’ll do it myself.”

He bristled at her words.  “I’m not too
scared.”  He checked his watch.  “Get packed and ready to go.  You’ll be having
a family reunion in less than five hours.”

* * *

“Humans are so stupid, are they not?”  The
vampire grinned to his companion before staring down at the frightened couple
bound to chairs. 

“They send five to protect you.  FIVE!  As
if five would be nearly enough when the dark lord wants you.”

He knelt in front of the woman and traced
her tear-stained cheek with one long nail.  “We’ve been watching you for
weeks.  We’ve been watching
them
for weeks.  We learned to know their
habits, their signs of weariness, and their shift changes and we used it to our
advantage.  Our dark lord taught us to be oh so patient and watch.  He is a
tricky one he is.”

He stared at the woman thoughtfully.  “I
suppose that isn’t entirely the truth.  We did, after all, have some help from
our friends.” 

He bounced to his feet and paced back and
forth in front of them.  “Of course, even the dark lord’s patience does have its
limits.  It’s why we’re here now.  We grow tired of waiting for her.”

He leaned in and smiled at the woman, and
she turned her head at the smell of his rotting breath.  “It’s why we’re going
to kill one of you and use your blood to call for her.  We’ll leave the other
alive of course – she has to have some motivation to come home.”

“She’s dead!  Don’t you understand that? 
Our daughter is dead!”  The man cried angrily. 

The vampire was standing in front of him
before the man had realized it had moved.  He leaned in and breathed deeply.  “I
would like just a taste of you.”

“Don’t.”  His companion warned.  “The
master will not be happy if you do.”

“Shut up.”  The vampire hissed at him.  “He
won’t know if I take just a small sip.”

He stared at the man and then his wife.  “We’ll
kill the woman.”  He decided.  “I bet she’s a daddy’s girl and will come
running to comfort him in his time of grief.”

He stepped towards her and the man
struggled against his bonds.  “Don’t you touch her!”

The vampire grinned at him, and the man
shrank back as the vampire’s teeth lengthened into sharp points.

“What are you?”  He whispered.

“Yes, just a small sip.”  The vampire
murmured.  “I’m so terribly thirsty.”

He leaned towards the man, the fangs
lengthening until they were protruding from his mouth.  Before he could sink
them into the throbbing vein in the man’s neck, barking could be heard from
outside.  As the barking continued, he sighed and rolled his eyes, straightening
and glaring at his companion.

“What?”

“Go outside and kill the fucking dog, you
idiot!”

His companion turned and left the room. 
Faintly, the vampire could hear the back door slamming and he sighed
dramatically and turned back to the couple.

“It’s so difficult to find good help these
days.”

* * *

The vampire stood on the back porch and
stared into the yard.  His night vision was excellent, and he quickly spotted
the small, scruffy dog standing at the edge of the yard.  It was staring into
the bushes that flanked the yard and barking repeatedly.

He wondered briefly where the others were,
but the shrill high-pitched barking was making it impossible to think clearly.  The
vampire winced and then flew across the yard, pouncing on the dog.  It gave a
painful yelp as he snatched it from the ground and lifted it up until it was
dangling in front of his eyes.

He sniffed, his face wrinkling with
distaste.  “I prefer human but you’ll do for a quick snack.” He muttered.  He
opened his mouth, his fangs popping out, and lowered his face towards the
frightened animal.

There was sharp pressure on his back and a
cold voice spoke, “Put my dog down, asshole.”

He hesitated and a gun was cocked and put
to his temple.  “You’d better listen to her.”  A tall, blond man said
cheerfully as a dark-haired woman, dressed in a long trench coat and leather
pants, circled around him.  There was a sword in her hand and it gleamed softly
in the moonlight.

He lifted his lip and snarled at them, and
the blond man made a tsking noise under his breath.  “I wouldn’t do that if I
were you.  I’m all for letting you live, because I’m just that kind of guy, but
the hottie standing in front of you?  Well, she’s been in a bad mood all day. 
She’ll probably kill you just for shits and giggles, you know?”

The vampire dropped the dog, and the woman
in front of him caught it neatly with one hand before it could hit the ground.

He stared at her, a touch of fear trickling
down his cold spine at her quickness.  He had thought he would use his speed
and his strength to overpower them but there was something in the way she held
her sword, something in the way in which she had caught the dog with a silent,
spooky speed that made him hesitate.  He swallowed and forced himself to sound
unafraid.  “A gun won’t stop me.”

“That’s an excellent point.”  The blond man
nodded cheerfully and the woman gave him a look of irritation.

“What?  It is an excellent point.  Guns
don’t kill vampires.  Guns kill humans.  Now, guns loaded with UV-filled
bullets?  They kill vampires.  And in a rather nasty way too.”

He cocked his head and gave the vampire a
charming smile.  “Have you ever wondered what it’s like to burn from the inside
out?  I could show you.  Just make one wrong move and I’ll be happy to
demonstrate.”

The vampire licked his lips nervously.  “There’s
no need for violence.”

The woman laughed bitterly.  “That’s rich
coming from you.  Turn around.”  She handed the dog to the blond man who took
it without removing his gun from the vampire’s temple.

The vampire turned around, feeling the
muzzle of the gun drag through his hair.  “What are you – “

He stopped, a look of shock coming over his
face as the woman thrust her sword into his back.

“It’s only inches from the slab of meat you
call a heart.  Do you hear me?”  She whispered.

He nodded.

“If you make one wrong move, if you even
try to escape, I will puncture it.  Now – move towards the house, nice and
slow.”

“Finally!”  The vampire shook his head at
the couple as the sound of the back door opening was heard.  “Seriously, how
difficult is it to kill one small dog?”

He stopped and gave them a look of false
sympathy.  “Sorry about your dog by the way.”

He turned, throwing his hands up, as his
companion shuffled into the room.  “It’s about time.  Did you get lost in the –
“

He stopped.  “What the hell is wrong with
you?  Why are you – “

His companion gave a sudden, sharp gasp,
his back bowing, and then exploded.  The vampire threw his hands over his face,
crying out and falling back against the wall.  Ash and blood rained down and
before the vampire could stagger forward, she was standing in front of him, one
hand gripping the collar of his jacket and her other holding a blood-drenched
sword pointed directly over his heart.