Jesse nodded. Tonya smiled at him. “Have fun, but not too much” she teased.
Kindal wiggled her brows. “Go get her, tiger.”
Jesse growled in annoyance and headed off toward a part of town that he very rarely visited.
*****
Lacey was breathing so hard that she had to stop running to catch her breath. She bent over and rested her hands on her knees. She couldn’t believe what she just did. She used her powers out in public and probably injured that man at the market. And for what? A couple bottles of water and some fruit. She slammed her fist against her knees, disgusted with herself.
After taking a couple of deep breaths, she looked around to see where she was. While she was running, she hadn’t been paying attention to where she was going. The only thing she was thinking about was getting as far away from the market as she could. And now, looking around at the empty streets and abandoned buildings, she realized that she was no longer in downtown and had no idea how to get back.
Lacey started walking down the road she was on. There were no cars in sight, the buildings were rundown and now that the sun had gone down it was so dark she could barely see anything. The streetlights hardly gave off any light at all. Only one of every three actually worked.
The scene before her, gave her a sense of déjà vu. It reminded her of last night when she left the bus station and got lost, then attacked. She immediately put her guard up and scanned the darkness around her. She walked faster and prayed that she would come across a busy street if she just kept going.
She was almost to the end of the street when she heard what sounded like a dog growl. It sounded close. Lacey stopped and glanced around but didn’t see anything. She took a few more steps. The growling got louder. She froze where she stood, her heart hammered in her chest. Her first thought was that she was about to be attacked by a stray dog. But when two men stepped from the darkness in front of her, she knew that she was in much more trouble than a dog attack.
She immediately recognized the men as being the same ones from the alley. One of them; the taller one with dark curly hair, was the man that had followed her to the hospital. And the shorter, stockier man was the one who had grabbed her in the alley after she brought their leader to his knees with a well placed strike to the groin.
Lacey turned around to run in the opposite direction but stopped when three really big dogs stepped in front of her. She stared at them and realized that they weren’t dogs, they were wolves. She stood locked in place between the men and the wolves.
“We’ve been looking for you, Lacey” Kevin said and stalked toward her with a hard look on his face.
“How do you know my name? Why won’t you leave me alone?” she yelled.
Zack laughed. “Our boss wants to talk to you. You might remember him, he’s the man that you nearly castrated last night. He’s a bit pissed about that.”
Everything in Lacey told her to run, but she couldn’t. The wolves surrounded her, nipping at her legs but not actually biting her. She pulled her backpack off and held it in front of her. She unzipped it and pulled out an apple and hurled it at one of the wolves, hitting it in the head. The wolf took a step toward her and growled.
Zack chuckled. “You really shouldn’t anger Stella. She has a really bad temper and a great memory. She’ll get you back for that sooner or later.” He reached out and grabbed Lacey by the arm, digging his nails into her skin.
She tried to pull away but he was too strong. He laughed at her inability to fight against him and her anger grew. She was tired of being afraid of everything and everyone. The last two days had been the worst in her entire life and she wasn’t about to let him take her anywhere. Zack jerked her away from the circle of wolves and started dragging her down the sidewalk. Lacey narrowed her eyes at him. “Let me go or you’ll be sorry” she warned.
Zack looked at her with amusement. He opened his mouth to say something but it was too late. Lacey opened herself up to her powers and yanked her arm away from him. Zack flew backwards across the street and crashed into one of the streetlight poles. He fell to the ground in a heap. The three wolves charged toward her and she turned her attention to them. The air around her sizzled with power. She narrowed her eyes at the wolves and tossed her head to the side. They soared through the air and landed about fifty feet away.
Kevin tried to sneak up behind Lacey but she spun around just as he was about to grab her. “Don’t make me hurt you too” she yelled as a steady stream of blood flowed from her nose.
“I have to take you to my boss” Kevin said and lunged for her.
“Wrong answer” Lacey said and threw him away from her. The sound of his head banging against cement echoed in the air. Lacey spared him a quick glance to see that his body laid limp in the middle of the street. Then one by one, the wolves came at her again. Lacey was quickly losing her strength. Using her powers took a lot out of her and she was starting to feel weak. She picked up the first wolf and threw it into the ones behind it. All three of them crashed to the ground.
The pain in the back of her head was intensifying and she was struggling to stay on her feet. Lacey looked around to see if anyone else was coming for her. No one was. She took a few steps on her way to escape, but everything around her suddenly started to spin as dizziness overwhelmed her. She lost her balance and fell to the ground, so weak that she could barely move. The last thing she saw before passing out was a man running down the sidewalk toward her. Damn it, she missed one.
Chapter Five
A knot formed in Jesse’s stomach when he saw Lacey fall face first onto the ground. He picked up his pace and ran over to her. Kneeling down, he gently turned her over onto her back, then pushed her hoodie from her head. The blood on her face shocked him. He brushed her hair back from her face and took his shirt off to wipe the blood from her nose and mouth.
Lacey moaned and Jesse placed his hands on her face. “It’s alright. You’re safe” he said.
Lacey opened her eyes just slightly and looked up at him. As soon as she saw his face, she panicked. She pushed at him weakly. “Get away from me.” She tried to yell but it came out as barely a whisper. She struggled to get to her feet but dizziness claimed her again and she fell through the air toward the ground again.
Jesse caught her in his arms. He looked down at her and felt a twinge of sadness at how weak and helpless she appeared. Lacey forced her eyes open slightly, “please don’t hurt me,” she whispered before her body went limp in his arms and she lost consciousness.
The sound of her voice was so soft yet filled with so much pain. Her words echoed in Jesse’s head and he couldn’t help but feel protective of her. He glanced over his shoulder at his brother’s pack members. Two of his men were unconscious on the street alongside several others in their wolf form. He had never in his life seen a human go up against that many werewolves and survive. He looked down at Lacey with admiration in his eyes. There was something very special about her. Normal humans couldn’t do the things he saw her do. He lowered his head to hers and sniffed to try and detect whether or not she was more than she appeared to be, but her scent didn’t hold any traces of anything but pure human blood. There was something odd about the smell of her blood but it was human, nonetheless. Lacey squirmed in his arms as she started to come around again.
Knowing that he didn’t have much time before she would be fully awake and ready to fight him off, Jesse held her close to his chest and headed off at a dead run toward the warehouse he called home. His brother’s men would be waking up soon and the last thing he needed was a confrontation with them.
*****
Lacey instinctively lifted her hand to her head as she started to wake up. The pain from her headache was slowly fading away. She forced her eyes open and found herself laying on a bed. She sat up slowly and looked around the room she was in. There was nothing feminine about anything she saw. The bed she was laying on was covered with a black silk comforter. There were no pictures anywhere. A huge flat s
creen television hung on the wall across the room in front of a black leather couch and two gaming chairs. A massive stereo system took up most of the wall to her right and a guitar rested in the corner.
She jumped when she heard something hit the floor. Her eyes immediately went to the closed door to her left. The sound of running water suddenly stopped and she knew that must be the bathroom. Beside the bathroom door was a closet and the door was open. She could see men’s clothes hanging up and black leather biker boots on the floor. Lacey covered her mouth with her hand when she realized that she wasn’t alone in the room. The memory of the men who attacked her came rushing back and her first thought was that she was in the room with one of them now.
She scooted over to the edge of the bed and got to her feet. She started for the bedroom door just as the bathroom door opened and a man stepped out wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. She gasped.
Jesse looked over at her and smiled. “You’re awake.”
Lacey stared at him wide-eyed for a second then made a run for the door. He got to the door before she did and stood in front of it. “Hey, it’s okay. I’m not going to hurt you. You’re safe here.”
“Like hell I am” Lacey yelled as she searched the room for another way to escape. “Why did you bring me here? Why did you attack me?”
Jesse looked at her confused. What the hell was she talking about? He could see that she was frightened. He held his hands up in front of him to show that he wasn’t going to hurt her and slowly moved toward her. “Lacey, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I didn’t attack you. I helped you.”
“How do you know my name?” she shouted and backed away from him.
“I found the piece of paper that you dropped at the market, it had your name on it.”
Lacey narrowed her eyes at him. “You were following me!” she said accusingly.
Jesse shook his head. “No, it’s not like that. I...” He kept walking toward her as he spoke despite the fact that she looked like she wanted to hit him.
“Don’t come any closer!” Lacey yelled and tried to concentrate on her powers. She needed them to keep him away from her. But she was still too weak. She could barely form a thought much less use her powers. She strained to throw Jesse across the room but nothing happened. The buzz of electricity on her skin was barely noticeable. Frustrated, she squeezed her eyes shut and tried again. The television screen cracked and the lamp by the bed wobbled, fell off the table and hit the floor. But the man in front of her didn’t budge. She tried one last time but swayed on her feet as blood began to drip from her nose.
Jesse grabbed her arm before she fell. “Please let me help you” he whispered in a gentle voice.
Lacey looked at him with tired eyes and reluctantly nodded. She couldn’t fight anymore. She didn’t have the strength to. Jesse scooped her up in his arms and carried her over to the bed. He laid her down and covered her up before going over to the closet and pulling out a shirt and a pair of jeans. He glanced over at his television. The crack in the screen went all the way across it. He didn’t know how Lacey had done it but he knew that she was responsible for the damage. He had a lot of questions for her and he was eager to hear the answers. But they were going to have to wait because it was clear she was in no condition to talk.
Jesse stepped into the bathroom and quickly got dressed before sitting down in the chair by the bed. He watched Lacey as she laid in his bed with her eyes closed. He knew she wasn’t asleep. A tear fell from the corner of her eye and rolled down into her hair. He reached out and rubbed his thumb across her soft skin to remove it. “Are you okay?” he asked.
Lacey opened her eyes and glared at him. He was just as handsome as she remembered from the first time she saw him in the alley. His dark black hair, now shining with moisture from his shower clung to his forehead as he looked down at her with those amazing green eyes. Her gaze landed on the scar on his neck. It started under one ear and went across his throat to the other. It looked like someone had cut his throat. For just a second, she felt sorry for him. But that feeling quickly faded. “Why do you care?” she snapped.
“Because I want to help you” he answered.
“Why do you keep saying that? I don’t need your help. If you’ll leave me alone and stop following me, I’ll be fine.”
Jesse leaned forward with his elbows on his knees and shook his head. He was starting to understand her anger toward him. She thought he was Cole. “I’m sorry for what you’ve been through, but you seem to think I’m someone that I’m not.”
Lacey sat up in bed with her elbow supporting her. “I know exactly who you are. You’re the bastard who attacked me in the alley and had your friends follow me. Now my question is, what the hell do you want with me?”
Jesse was caught off guard by the hostility in her voice. “I didn’t attack you. It must have been my brother. We’re twins and he’s...”
Lacey laughed out loud, cutting him off. “Oh, that’s original. I’m sure you can come up with something better than the identical twin story. Everyone uses that one, even me and I’m an only child.”
Jesse pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. “I’m telling you, it wasn’t me.”
“You are such a liar!” she yelled. “You got right in my face. I got a real good look at you.”
“Really?” Jesse said and pointed to the scar on his neck. “Then I assume you were close enough to see my scar. Because that’s the only way anyone can tell the difference between me and my brother Cole.”
Lacey’s breath caught in her throat. He said his brother’s name was Cole. That was the same name she heard some of her attackers call their boss. She looked at Jesse’s neck and tried to remember if the man who attacked her had a scar. It didn’t take her long to remember that he didn’t. His skin had been flawless.
“What’s your name?” she asked him, still a little doubtful.
“Jesse.”
Lacey laid back on the bed and eased her eyes closed. Things were getting confusing. Apparently, they were twins and one of them wanted to hurt her while the other one swore that he wanted to help her. What had she gotten herself into?
Jesse waited patiently for Lacey to say something. When she finally spoke, he wished that she hadn’t asked the one question he hated answering.
“How did you get the scar?” Lacey asked and turned onto her side to look at him with her arm resting under her head. She knew it was rude to ask that kind of question but she wanted to know and after everything she’d been through, she didn’t care about her manners.
Lacey’s question brought back memories that Jesse wished he could forget. He didn’t want to answer her but she was finally talking to him instead of yelling and he wanted her to feel better. And for some reason he didn’t understand, he wanted her to trust him and feel safe with him. He was shocked to realize just how much he wanted that. Normally, he didn’t care what humans thought of him. Whether they liked or feared him, he didn’t care.
He had spent most of his life saving humans from werewolves like his brother, who liked to hunt them down and kill them for sport. But he always looked at it like his duty, his job so to speak. He’d save them and send them on their way, never bothering to get to know them. To him, humans were a weak species. He didn’t dislike them but he didn’t go out of his way to befriend them either.
“My brother tried to kill me” Jesse said flatly and looked at Lacey to see her reaction.
She stared at him for a second then shook her head. “And I thought I had family problems” she said and gave him a small smile.
“You have no idea” Jesse said. Relief that she didn’t ask him anything else settled over him. He decided to change the subject. “Are you hungry?”
Lacey looked away, not wanting to admit that she was. “No, I’m fine.”
He raised his brows. “Are you sure? There is plenty of food downstairs.”
“I’m good but thanks anyway.” She was starving but her pride wouldn
’t let her admit it.
A few seconds later, her stomach growled. Jesse smiled and pushed a button on the wall by the bed. It looked like some sort of intercom.
“Tonya, can you send some food up to my room?” he said into the device.
“One plate or two?” A woman’s voice came back at him.
“Two, and make sure you bring Lacey’s apples up with you. She went through a lot of trouble to get them.” He winked at Lacey and she quickly looked away.
It took her a minute to realize how he knew about the apples. “It was you...in the market. You were talking to the cashier.”
Jesse smiled and Lacey covered her face with her hands, feeling embarrassed. “You saw me steal the fruit, didn’t you? I don’t normally do things like that but...”
“You don’t have to explain anything to me. I’m just glad you got away.”
Lacey slid her hands slowly down her face. “Thanks for helping me.”
A knock sounded at the door and Jesse went over to open it. A tall, slender redheaded woman walked in carrying a tray of food. Lacey couldn’t take her eyes off of her. The woman’s face was pretty but it was her hair that caught Lacey’s attention. The thick red curls reminded her of Cindy.
She tried not to think about Cindy but it was so hard not to, especially when she looked at the woman standing in front of her with a smile just as kind as Cindy’s had been. A tear slid from Lacey’s eye before she could dry it up.
“Oh, honey, what’s wrong?” The woman asked and shoved the tray toward Jesse before sitting down on the bed.
Lacey looked up at her and shook her head. “Nothing, I’m fine” she said in a cracked voice.
Neither Jesse nor the woman looked like they believed her but they didn’t say anything. The woman gave her a warm smile, “I’m Tonya. If you need anything or if you just want to talk, I’ll be here.”
Lacey smiled back but avoided looking at her again for fear that seeing her hair would trigger her to start crying.
“Thank you for the food, Tonya” Jesse said and nodded toward the door. She took the hint and left, closing the door behind her.