“I can’t. My car and my personal belongings are being brought to the gate. I don’t even have my purse.”
He shrugged and smiled coldly. “It’s not our job to protect you anymore. You’re an ex-employee so fend for yourself and back away before we have to force you.” He paused. “And roughing you up would be my pleasure. We heard you want us all fired so those New Species can take our jobs.”
“What is going on here?” An angry male voice came from above, from the catwalk.
Ellie peered upward. She didn’t know the New Species by name or by face. His features revealed him to be one though and he also wore a black SWAT-type outfit with the letters NSO across his chest.
“Nothing,” the security guard called up.
The New Species frowned as he met Ellie’s gaze. “I’m an NSO officer and I’m in charge. Why are you out there?”
“I’d been fired.” Ellie glanced over her shoulder at the crowd behind her. “I have to wait for my car to be brought to me before I can leave. Security refuses to allow me to wait inside and I’m really kind of in a jam here.” She looked back up at him. “I’d really like to be safe while I wait.”
Someone threw something and hit Ellie on the side of her arm. She winced and spun around to see what had nailed her. A soda can lay on the ground and dark liquid sprayed from where it had ruptured. Ellie backed away from the protesters, inched along the gate as someone else threw something. She barely ducked out of the way as a full water bottle bounced off the metal bar next to her head.
“Get her inside,” the NSO officer ordered. “Now!”
“She’s been fired,” the security guard explained. “She’s not our damn problem.”
“I am ordering you to do it now,” the NSO officer snarled. “Secure her to safety. Don’t make me say it again.”
Relief flooded Ellie as one of the security guards glared at her but pointed to the entry section of the gate. Something else flew and hit her shoulder. She didn’t see the object but it hurt. The gate opened as the crowd pitched something else but it missed this time, barely, as she lunged to get on the other side of the fence. She rubbed her shoulder where she’d been struck and looked up, intending to thank the NSO officer, but he’d disappeared.
“Stay by the gate,” the security guard closest to her ordered.
She nodded. She’d happily wait there for her car while she watched the protesters from safety. They glared at her and still hadn’t resumed their circling protest. Assholes, she thought, and turned her back on them. She wished she could sit down but the ground didn’t appeal to her. She closed her eyes, hugged her body, and hoped she wouldn’t have long to wait.
“Ms. Brower?”
Ellie opened her eyes, surprised to see Fury approaching with the NSO officer who’d ordered the security guards to allow her back inside the gate. Fury wore jeans, a black long-sleeved shirt, and a pair of boots. His hair had been pulled back into a ponytail and he looked furious. Her heart immediately started to race at the mere sight of him. Despite his angry, tight expression, he looked sexy in his casual outfit that displayed his broad shoulders and trim waist. He stopped about four feet in front of her with the NSO officer on his immediate right.
“What is going on? Slade here informed me what happened outside.” His gaze ran up and down her body, examining her. “Were you hurt by anything they threw at you?”
She shook her head, deciding not to mention her throbbing shoulder. She forced her gaze away from Fury to glance at Slade. The NSO officer who’d saved her just peered at her curiously.
“Thank you for making them allow me to wait here for my car. It was getting ugly out there.”
He nodded. Ellie’s attention returned to Fury. She bit her lip, indecisive for seconds, and then made a decision. He needed to be warned and she wanted him to know what had gone down inside the director’s office. She also wanted to say goodbye to him.
“Can we speak privately?” She glanced at the security guard standing very close to them who obviously listened to every word.
Fury frowned but nodded. “Is this a private matter between you and I or can Slade be included?”
Ellie smiled at Slade. “He’s more than welcome to be a part of this conversation.”
Fury spun around. “Follow me.”
The security guard next to Ellie suddenly grabbed her arm. “She stays right here. I’m under orders from Director Boris that she is to be kept outside. I’m already in violation of those instructions by allowing her on this side of the perimeter. She goes no further.”
Fury spun back around. “Get your hand off her.” Fury growled the words. His irritation showed. “I give the orders above your director. The woman walks with us and you stay put. Understand? Don’t touch her again.”
The security guard looked stunned but he released Ellie to step back. Fury waved her to walk in front of him and Slade. She took about twenty steps before she faced both men who were right behind her. She darted a glance around the area to make certain no guards were close enough to eavesdrop.
“What is it you wanted to say privately?” Fury’s gaze met hers, softened, and his tense, angry features relaxed.
“I wanted to warn you that Director Boris has it out for your new security teams. He tried to make me file a bogus complaint today against you and your men. I’m sure if he did that with me, he’ll try to do it with other people. He’s really pissed that you are taking control of your own community. I just wanted to let you know.” She paused. “You guys saved me the other day and I think you’re better than the present security. I believe you were dead-on right about how he’s going to try to keep command of Homeland. I just wanted to give you a heads-up.”
Fury studied her but nodded after a few long moments. Slade’s expression turned stony. He didn’t reveal what he thought. She may as well have been talking about the weather. Fury took a deep breath.
“What kind of report did he want you to file against my team?”
The ground suddenly became really interesting to Ellie. She was unable to look at him. “He tried to make a big deal about you helping me clean up inside the dorm bathroom. He implied some pretty messed-up things.” She glanced up at him before focusing on the ground again. “I refused to write the complaint and told him he couldn’t make me commit perjury. I just wanted to warn you what he attempted.”
She could sense Fury watching her as the silence stretched. She finally looked up at him to see a few frown lines around his mouth. “Is that why you were fired? I was just informed that happened.”
Word sure travels fast. “That and it may have had something to do with me calling him some not-so-nice names when he got really angry about my refusal.” She smiled sadly. “He probably would have let me pack up my own belongs before I made some choice insults.”
Fury’s lips twitched but he didn’t smile. “I see.” He paused. “I need your address and your home phone number in case Justice wants to have a word with you. Just tell me and I’ll remember the information.”
Ellie’s shoulders slumped, hating to admit her situation to him. “I’m going to get a motel room in town and go job hunting. I moved from another state when I relocated here to work. I’m homeless right now. I can give you my cell phone number though if they pack it with my things. Otherwise I could always call the office to leave my motel number for Justice if you really think he’ll want to speak to me. I have no idea what motel I’ll be staying at yet.”
Dark eyes blinked and Fury’s mouth tightened into a firm line. He stared down at her, seemed to be studying her for some reason she couldn’t fathom. She forced her gaze from Fury’s when Slade spoke.
“I’m sure that will be fine, Ms. Brower. Please don’t forget to call the office with your contact information.”
Ellie nodded. “Well, again, thank you for making them let me back inside.” Her gaze returned to Fury. She realized it would be the last time she’d ever speak to him and sadness filled her over that fact. He stared down at her
mutely. She wanted to say so much to him but could only think of one thing that summed it all up.
“Please be happy and thank you for deciding I shouldn’t die.” She gave him a sad smile before she returned to the waiting security guard by the gate. She sensed his gaze on her the entire way but she kept her back turned. She didn’t want to watch him walk away for the last time. He had his freedom now and they were even.
Half an hour later her car arrived at the gate. She took the keys, noticed they’d put her purse on the front seat, and climbed in. Depression hit her hard. She’d never return to Homeland or Fury. She had no idea where to go or what to do with her life at that moment.
The guards opened the gates and pushed back the protesters to give her access to the street. Someone threw something and it hit the side of her car. She flinched but drove away without checking to see if they’d caused any damage. That was the least of her problems.
* * * * *
“You did the right thing.” Justice put his hand on Fury’s shoulder. He stared at the gate his friend had been watching for nearly forty minutes. “I know it was difficult for you to let her go.”
Fury fought his emotions, a complex thing to do, and met his friend’s concerned gaze when he turned his head to end his vigil. “I did as you asked when you informed me she’d been fired. I allowed her to walk away. She’ll be safer now that she’s not at Homeland, in case more assholes attack us.”
“Our enemies could have killed her,” Justice reminded him. “I know this is difficult for you.”
“I can’t imagine never seeing her again,” Fury admitted. “I feel pain.”
Regret tightened Justice’s features and he squeezed the shoulder he gripped once more. “I didn’t know it was that strong.”
“It is.”
“I’m sorry.”
“I realize she’s better off in her world than here. She said she has no home though. What will she do? Maybe I should have asked her to stay. We could have forced the director to keep her on at the dorm.”
“We can’t make waves right now, Fury. There’s a time and a place for everything. You did the best thing for our people. I’m sorry that it comes at such a price since she means so much to you. The only thing I can say is you can offer her a job again when we’re ready to totally take control of Homeland.”
Some of the pain eased inside Fury’s chest. “I want her to come back.” He needed her. To never see her smile again or hear her voice―that concept left a bitter taste in his mouth. A bleak future loomed in his mind’s eye. “I believe she was fired for standing up for us. It doesn’t feel right not to do the same for her.”
“Then definitely offer her the job she held as soon as you’re able to. It won’t be too much longer. We just need to learn enough to do things right. There’s so much though that we don’t know yet. Every day brings us one step closer to controlling our own destiny.”
“What if she doesn’t want the job? What if she never wishes to return? She could find another job out in her world.” A flash of grief sliced through Fury. “I might never see her again.”
“Then you let her go, Fury. You try to get over your feelings.”
Fury said nothing but the burning pain inside his chest spread. He didn’t want to let Ellie go and he sure didn’t believe he could ever get over the emotions he experienced when it came to her. She was in his blood, a part of him, but now she would no longer be a part of his life.
“Come,” Justice urged softly. “We’ll take a walk together. You shouldn’t be alone right now.”
Fury hesitated, glanced at the gate, but knew she wouldn’t be back. He nodded.
“Thanks.”
* * * * *
Ellie cursed viciously while staring at the spray-paint job on her car, knowing that one of the protesters must have followed her to the motel. She’d looked for a tail but hadn’t seen one after she’d left Homeland four hours before. Those assholes are sneaky, damn it. And obsessed jerks. They knew what motel she’d checked into and had vandalized her car because of her association with the NSO. She really hated bigoted idiots.
Ellie stomped to her room, angry that she’d have to call the police, file a report, and contact her insurance carrier. She sure couldn’t drive a car around town with those bad words sprayed in large letters along the side of it. It would make for a really bad impression when she showed up at job interviews. She snorted and gripped the bag of fast food tighter as she fished for the motel-room key in her back jeans pocket.
Ellie pulled the key out and tried to shove it into the lock but something prevented it from going inside. She bent to peer at the small keyhole, her eyes narrowed as she examined what appeared to be green gum crammed where the hole should be, and wondered what kind of troublesome kid would go around screwing up doors that way. The door next to her room suddenly banged open.
She turned her head in time to watch three big, mean-looking men step out onto the walkway to glare at her. Fear slammed her when she realized they were totally focused on her. She released the handle of her door and stumbled back. Ten feet of space separated her room from the next one, not nearly far enough, in her opinion, from those guys, and it was confirmed when the lead man lunged fast.
“We got you,” he gasped and grabbed Ellie when she tried to run.
“Drag her in here, Bernie,” one of the men muttered urgently.
“What the hell is your problem?” Ellie latched onto the railing with both hands while panic gripped her as tightly as the cruel hands on her hips. “Let me go!”
“My problem,” the man hissed against her ear as he slid his arm around her waist and jerked, attempting to yank her free from the rail, “is we got word you’re screwing one of those animal things and we’re going to save you. You’ve been brainwashed.”
Save me? At least they weren’t trying to kill her. That’s something, she thought. The idiots believed she’d been forced to change her way of thinking. She screamed and kicked hard at the bigger man. Her gaze frantically darted around, seeking help. She saw a few people lingering in the parking lot below and they gaped up at her. Someone yelled from the distance for the guy to let her go.
“Damn,” a man yelled from the next room. “People are seeing!” He sounded panicked. “Run.”
The arm around Ellie suddenly released her waist. All three of them bolted the opposite way. She panted, hurting from the struggle, and sagged against the railing. The big crazy jerk who’d assaulted her had been strong. She twisted her head and watched while the three men reached the far corridor, nearly fell down the stairs in their haste, and fled from the parking lot to disappear around the building. She nearly crumpled to the walkway but managed to lock her knees to keep upright. She trembled all over. A door opened and she spun toward the noise, expecting another threat. A woman holding a baby stood there looking pale.
“Were they muggers?”
Ellie relaxed. “No.”
“The police are on their way,” a man shouted from the parking lot. “Are you all right?”
Ellie had to clear her throat. “I’m fine. Thank you!” She saw her fast food bag on the ground where she’d dropped it when she’d grabbed the railing. She leaned down to pick it up and winced at the ache the movement caused around her sore middle. She cursed under her breath, hoped the jerk hadn’t left bruises with his little tug of war with her body, and staggered back to the stairs. She sat down hard, darted glances at the people staring at her, and noticed a crowd gathered to gawk at her. Her heart pounded still from her scary ordeal but she was safe and hungry. She reached inside the bag. She might as well eat while she waited for the police.
Ellie munched on her burger and twisted the lid off her flavored water, glad she hadn’t bought a soda since it wouldn’t have survived being dropped. She wiggled her fingers into her back pocket to dig out her cell phone. She’d already left a message just an hour before with Homeland to let Justice know her cell number but his secretary had insisted on her leaving an address
as well. She could no longer stay at the motel since the nut jobs knew where she’d rented a room. She hit redial to connect her to Justice’s office. She wanted to reach someone before they left for the night and her watch stated she only had minutes before five o’clock.
“Hi,” Ellie said after finally getting transferred to a woman who claimed to be Justice’s secretary. “I think we spoke before. I’m Ellie Brower. I left my motel information in case Mr. North wanted to contact me but I’m afraid that information isn’t any good anymore. I have to switch motels. I guess I’ll call you tomorrow morning with the new information. You have my cell number so you can reach me still, right?”
The woman on the other end of the line went silent for a moment. “Why would you change motels?”
“Uh…” Ellie spotted a cop car turn into the parking lot. “I had some problems. I promise I’ll call in the morning with my new address. I really need to be going now. The police have arrived and I need to pack quickly to get a safe escort out of here when I leave. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” Ellie hung up.
* * * * *
Fury paced his office. Ellie wouldn’t ever come back, he’d never see her again, and he needed to get a grip on that painful bit of reality. A knock sounded on his door. He took a deep breath, schooled his features, and cleared his throat.
“Enter.”
Brass, his friend, and the man he’d placed in charge of scheduling classes for the Species to learn different skills, walked in. He closed the door behind him and leaned against the wood.
“We have a problem.”
“What else is new? What is it this time?”
“Some of the human guards have been flirting with our females. Our males are very protective of them.”
A grin curved Fury’s mouth. “Our women can handle a human. I’ve yet to meet a human who could take down a Species, male or female, when they are angry.” The smile died. “Is it harassment or just typical flirting?”
“Typical flirting but our males may start fights over it. None of the women feel threatened or have filed a complaint. I wish to avoid conflict between the humans and us. If our males start busting the heads of humans who wink at our women it may cause a lot of tension.”