Twice Bitten

  "Dear God, stop!" Mortimer barked suddenly, and then, shaking his head, he asked with disbelief, "Jolly Titty Fondlers?"

  Flushing with embarrassment that he'd caught that one even as he'd interrupted her, Elspeth shrugged helplessly. "Well, I don't know what it stands for."

  "Joint Task Force," he said abruptly.

  "Oh." Elspeth shifted on her feet and then sighed. "Some kind of think tank?"

  "No, Elspeth. They're like navy SEALs in the States," Mortimer said wearily, and then frowned when she continued to look bewildered, and said, "Like the British SAS, but made up of Canadian soldiers."

  "Oh," she said with understanding. She knew the British SAS were super soldiers who handled the more dangerous things that cropped up in the world, like coups, hostage situations, and so on. The idea that he belonged to the Canadian version of the same thing was more than a little surprising, though. Wyatt seemed like just your average nice guy. Although he did have a pretty awesome physique, and that air of command, she thought, eyeing him.

  "Elspeth, Sam is in the kitchen," Mortimer said, moving around his desk, headed for the door. "Why don't you go see if Alex has arrived yet while I take Wyatt to the outbuilding to look at weapons?"

  Nodding, Elspeth watched the men leave the room, and then sighed and turned back to the desk. She'd come expecting to work, but Mortimer thought she should take a day or two off to "recover" . . . under the watchful eye of his wife and her sister, apparently. At least until dawn, and then Lissianna and Rachel would take over. Her mother, however, would be there around the clock, she was sure. Elspeth didn't think for a minute that Sam was going to be able to make Martine move down to the basement apartment. It was more likely her mother would make Sam, Alex, Lissianna, and Rachel stay there . . . without her.

  Picking up the bag holding her ruined purse and its contents, Elspeth headed out of the office and along the hall to the front of the house, where the kitchen was situated.

  "Good evening, Elspeth," Sam greeted her cheerfully. "Looks like we'll be hanging out for a while."

  "Looks like," Elspeth agreed with a smile, her eyes widening slightly as she looked her over. Sam was dressed in black jeans, a black T-shirt, and black boots. She had a gun holstered on one hip, a TASER on the other, and a knife strapped to her leg on top of her jeans. "Looks like you're armed for bear."

  "So is Alex," Sam announced with a grin. "She's in the bathroom. Should be out in a minute."

  "I'm back."

  Elspeth turned to see Alex entering the room, also dressed all in black and prickly with weapons. The woman had large eyes and a full mouth like Sam, but Alex wore her shiny brown hair in a bob while Sam's darker hair was long and wavy.

  "Cale says, 'Hello, little sister,'" Alex told her with a smile.

  "He doesn't mind you playing babysitter to me?" Elspeth asked with a faint smile.

  "Nope. He'd be here with us, but he's helping Mortimer with a job," Alex explained.

  Elspeth nodded solemnly. "A lot of nonhunters are helping out right now."

  "And those who aren't are freaking out and going rogue," Sam said dryly. "Honestly, I've never seen it this bad. It's like going rogue is contagious and we're having an outbreak."

  "And yet Mortimer benched me," Elspeth pointed out with irritation, dropping her garbage bag of possessions on the marble top of the island that took up the center of the kitchen.

  "Your lunch?" Alex asked.

  "My purse," she said dryly. "It got destroyed during my accident."

  "Being pushed in front of a moving vehicle is not an accident," Sam said solemnly. "And you've only been benched until you've finished healing . . . or maybe until this mess is cleared up," she added, looking uncertain. "I'm not sure."

  "So, you need a new purse?" Alex asked, moving to her side to open the plastic bag and look inside. Eyes widening, she murmured, "Ooooh. You need a new phone too. And a wallet . . . was that a compact? I'm pretty sure that pink goop was lipstick, and the loose powder looks like . . . blush?"

  "Yes, blush," Elspeth said on a sigh. "I don't bother with face powder, but will put on a little blush when I'm without blood and a bit pale."

  "Ah." Alex lifted her face from the bag and grinned. "You need to go shopping."

  "Well, I guess I know what you're doing today, Wyatt," Mortimer said almost sympathetically, drawing their attention to the men's arrival.

  Elspeth glanced over her shoulder at them, and then did an about-face to gape at Wyatt. His jacket and the dress shirt he'd been wearing earlier were off and over his arm, leaving him in a tight T-shirt that clung to an extremely muscular chest . . . that presently sported a shoulder holster with two guns, one on either side. He also had a gun strapped to his hip. He too was loaded for bear, but Elspeth was a bit distracted by this glimpse of his chest. He dressed to hide it, but as she'd noted before, the man was in impressive shape.

  "Wyatt's coming with us?" Sam asked with surprise.

  Mortimer nodded. "He has some special skills that may come in handy. He was a soldier, and has worked as a bodyguard for the last four years since leaving the army."

  "You have?" Elspeth asked, turning to Wyatt with surprise.

  He nodded abruptly, looking uncomfortable with the attention he was receiving.

  "So," Mortimer said, turning away. "I'll leave you to your shopping and go back to work."

  Elspeth watched him leave with a wry smile. The man seemed more than eager to escape and she couldn't blame him. With everything else going on, this situation was the last thing Mortimer needed added to his plate. Her mother could be a difficult woman at the best of times, but with one of her children under threat, she was no doubt unbearable.

  "Well, where do you want to go shopping?" Sam asked once her husband was gone.

  Elspeth considered the question and then said, "I don't know. I need to hit an Apple store, I guess. I can get a new phone there, and then maybe Walmart? There has to be one between here and the apartment."

  Alex's eyebrows rose. "I was expecting you to want to go to somewhere a little more . . ."

  "She was thinking a designer store," Sam said with amusement when Alex's voice trailed off.

  "Like I could afford that," Elspeth said with a snort. "No. Walmart is good."

  Alex's eyebrows rose, but she shrugged. "Sensible. Nice to know you aren't blowing the money your parents gave you."

  "What money?" she asked with amusement, and when Alex looked confused, Elspeth explained, "Yes. Mom and Dad have a lot of money. And they have given stocks to my brothers, but my sisters and me . . ." Grimacing, she shrugged. "Mother wouldn't even consider doing the same for us. We might use it to run away. Not that I mind," she added quickly. "I can make my own way."

  "So," Wyatt said into the silence that followed. "Phone or purse first?"

  "Walmart is closer," Sam said at once.

  He nodded. "And Mortimer said we would be taking one of the SUVs from here?"

  "Yeah. Donny prepped and moved one to the house garage earlier today," Sam explained.

  "Prepped?" Wyatt asked.

  "Gassed it up and stuff." When Wyatt's eyebrows rose with curiosity, she explained, "The SUVs have UV film on the windows, as well as a blood cooler and weapons chest. Donny made sure the film was in good shape, that the vehicle was full of gas, and that the cooler and chest were stocked."

  "Everything a vampire could need," Wyatt said wryly, and then grimaced. "Sorry. Immortal."

  "No problem," Sam said lightly, coming around the island. "Just don't slip up in front of the old ones. They get testy about it." Pausing in front of him, she pulled out a set of keys and raised her eyebrows. "I was going to drive, but now that you'll be with us, I suppose you'd prefer--"

  "No. I'm good with you driving," Wyatt interrupted, waving away the keys.

  "Wow. A man who doesn't have to be at the wheel. Impressive," Alex teased lightly.

  "I haven't lived in Ontario since I was a teenager. I don't know where anything is," he sai
d with a shrug. "Besides, not driving leaves my hands free to handle defense if necessary."

  "All righty, then," Sam said lightly, turning to lead the way to the door to the garage. "Let's go."

  "Do you want the front seat, Elspeth?" Alex asked as they followed Sam out into the garage.

  "No," Wyatt said before Elspeth could answer. "The front seat exposes her from two sides, the front and side window. The back only exposes her to the window on her side of the vehicle. She'll be more protected in the back seat."

  "Oh, I never thought of that," Alex admitted, her eyes wide.

  Wyatt shrugged. "Like Mortimer said, I'm a bodyguard by trade. It's my job to think of these things."

  "So, you're the brains on this job," Sam said with a smile.

  Alex raised her eyebrows. "What's that make us? The muscle?"

  "I guess it does," Sam agreed with amusement.

  "Yeah, well, I know it does," Wyatt assured them with amusement, and when they glanced to him with curiosity, he explained, "Sofia picked up G.G. and carted him around like he was a toddler the other night. If you two are as strong as her, you're definitely the muscle, and I'm content to be the brains."

  "Wow," Alex said again. "Doesn't have to drive, and doesn't feel his manhood is threatened by being around women stronger than him. I think I'm impressed."

  Elspeth didn't say so, but she was rather impressed herself. She was quite sure Wyatt wasn't used to thinking of himself as the physically weaker one in the group. Especially when that group consisted of women . . . but he was handling it well.

  "So, exactly how strong do these nanos make you?" Wyatt asked with interest once they were in the SUV and had pulled out of the garage. "Is someone G.G.'s size the limit, or could you pick up two guys his size? Three? Could you pick up a car?"

  Elspeth noted the blank look Sam and Alex exchanged in the front seat, and said, "I don't know. I've never tried to pick up two big guys like G.G. Or one, for that matter, let alone a car."

  "Neither have I," Alex admitted, turning slightly in her seat. "I've picked up a stove to move it once, but have never had reason to pick up two or three guys or a car." Shifting her gaze to her sister, she asked, "Sam?"

  Sam shook her head. "The heaviest thing I've had to carry was Mortimer once when he got injured. I'm not sure what I can lift."

  "We should test it out sometime," Alex suggested as the gate began to open.

  "Yeah, we should," Sam agreed, waving at Frances and Russell as she drove through the gates. "How?"

  "I don't know. Maybe hit a gym with weights, pile on a ton, and see if we can lift them," Alex suggested.

  Sam snorted at the suggestion. "Oh yeah, like that wouldn't raise any eyebrows."

  "Yeah, I guess," Alex agreed with a grimace and then shrugged. "I'll think of another way."

  Silence fell briefly in the car, and then Alex twisted around to peer at Wyatt and said, "So, you're a bodyguard by trade?"

  Wyatt nodded.

  "Have you ever guarded anyone interesting?" she asked with curiosity.

  Wyatt shrugged. "Depends on who you think is interesting. I've worked with actors, actresses, musicians, politicians, and the wealthy."

  Alex looked impressed, and then asked, "Who was the most interesting?"

  "Elspeth," he said at once. When Elspeth turned to him with surprise, he smiled wryly and pointed out, "The others were all mortal. You guys are the most interesting people I've ever met."

  "Ah," Alex said with a grin. "What a sweet talker."

  Wyatt smiled faintly, but asked, "So Elspeth is one hundred forty-two. How old are you girls?"

  "Okay, so not such a sweet talker," Alex said on a laugh, turning forward in her seat.

  When Wyatt frowned slightly and glanced to her, Elspeth reminded him gently, "It's rude to ask a lady her age."

  "Even an immortal?" he asked with surprise. "I mean, since you guys all look young and hot, I didn't think it would be an issue."

  "Nice attempt at a save," Sam said, smiling at him in the rearview mirror. "And while that may be true for Elspeth and others born immortal, those of us who were turned still tend to be a little self-conscious about our age. Give us a century or two and that might change, but right now . . ." She shrugged and returned her attention to the road.

  When Wyatt glanced to Elspeth, his eyes wide, she raised her eyebrows. "You look surprised. You thought Alex and Sam were born immortal?"

  "They're sisters. I just assumed . . ."

  Elspeth nodded. "Sam was turned first. She met Mortimer while at their family cottage up north. Mortimer and a couple of other hunters were in the cottage next door. They were on the job at the time looking for a rogue immortal in the area."

  "And then I spent ages trying to find life mates for my sisters," Sam told him with a wry shake of the head.

  "Sisters?" Wyatt asked at once. "There are more of you?"

  "One more," Alex told him. "Our youngest sister, Jo. She found her life mate next."

  "Yeah, and that nearly gave me a heart attack," Sam muttered.

  "Why?" Wyatt asked with curiosity.

  "Jo's life mate is my cousin, Nicholas Argeneau," Elspeth told him with a smile and then explained, "He was kind of considered rogue at the time."

  "Fortunately, that was all cleared up," Alex told him lightly. "And then I met my life mate, Cale."

  "My brother," Elspeth told him, and when his eyebrows rose, she shrugged. "I have a lot of family."

  Sam snorted at the claim, and said, "The Argeneaus were one of the original Atlantean families. They've been making babies for millennia. You can't turn around without tripping over one."

  When Wyatt turned to her with curiosity, Elspeth shrugged and admitted, "I have relatives I've never even met yet." Noting his shock at the comment, she quickly added, "But then, until recently, I didn't get out much."

  "That's an understatement," Sam said dryly. "And in point of fact, you haven't really got out much since moving to Canada either."

  "What?" Elspeth met Sam's gaze in the rearview mirror with surprise.

  "Well, you haven't," she pointed out. "You've mostly worked, shopped for furniture for your apartment, and spent your downtime relaxing with Meredith."

  Elspeth frowned. What Sam said was true, but--"I've only been here six weeks," she pointed out defensively. "And I had to buy the furniture. Besides, once I'm done with work and shopping, I'm usually tired and Meredith is soothing and . . ."

  "I wasn't criticizing you," Sam said gently. "There's nothing wrong with being a homebody. It's probably why you were able to withstand your mother's overprotectiveness and controlling for so long without going crazy."

  Elspeth turned to peer out the window as she considered Sam's words. She wasn't a homebody. Was she? She wanted to go out and party with the girls. She wanted to go to movies, and shop, and . . . well, do whatever it was normal people did when they didn't have a mother hovering over them and restricting their every move. Didn't she?

  "Here we are."

  Elspeth glanced up at that announcement from Sam to see that they were pulling into the Walmart parking lot.

  "So," Wyatt said, glancing out the window as Sam found a spot near the back of the lot. "The sun's still peeking over the horizon. I thought since you were out a little earlier than this when I followed you to The Night Club that the sun wasn't a problem for you. But Sam mentioned the sun-filtering film on the SUV." Raising his eyebrows, he asked, "Is the sun a problem? Is having to walk so far in it going to be an issue?"

  "No. We're fine," Elspeth assured him solemnly. "It's not like we burst into flame when sunlight touches us. It just does the same kind of damage it does to mortals, only a little more of it. At least, for those of us who were born immortal," she said and explained, "We're trained from childhood to avoid the sun, so having had minimal exposure to it, our skin tends to be more sensitive."

  "Then why do you avoid the sun?" he asked as he pulled on his jacket. "I mean, if your skin reacts the same wa
y as ours--"

  "Because unlike mortals, the nanos immediately repair the damage," she explained.

  "And they use blood to do it," he said with understanding.

  "Exactly. We try to avoid anything that will force the use of more blood."

  "Cold has the same effect," Alex announced now. "The body tries to keep the body temperature regulated and uses more blood to do it."

  Sam added, "A lot of things do that. The heat in the summer means more blood is used to cool the body. Exposing ourselves to lots of people and the germs they carry means the nanos work to remove those before they can make us sick, and so on and so forth. Basically, pretty much everything forces the nanos to work harder and use more blood."

  "Then we'll make this shopping trip a quick one," Wyatt announced, opening his door, and letting the cool air in.

  They didn't just walk quickly through the parking lot; they were quick in the store too. Elspeth had never been a browser, meandering the aisles and looking at all the things she didn't need or couldn't afford. She knew what she wanted, and found them fast--a purse, a wallet, new lipstick and another blush, hairbrush and perfume. They were headed for the till when she saw the pocketknives. Pausing, she looked them over quickly and then selected one with a black blade and handle.

  Wyatt was at her side the entire time, always with one hand on her arm or at her back. But she didn't mistake that hand as anything but all business. She knew it was so he could move her where he wanted if something happened, because his other hand hovered constantly by the front of his coat, ready to slip in and whip out one of his guns. This man wasn't the Wyatt she had met in Meredith's hall and kissed on the back porch. This Wyatt was a soldier--straight, stiff, and braced for action. His gaze was narrowed, examining each passing shopper and searching the surrounding area for trouble. Actually, it was kind of disturbing, causing her tension level to ratchet up several degrees. Elspeth was glad to be done and head to the checkout.

  The Apple store followed, but was an equally quick trip. Elspeth was able to get a new phone, but left it turned off until she could charge it properly.

  They were just leaving the store to head for the car when Sam's phone rang.

  "It's Mortimer," she announced after glancing at the screen. Pressing the button to accept the call, she said, "Hello," and then her eyebrows rose as she listened . . . and listened . . . and listened. Finally she said, "Okay. I love you too, honey," and put her phone away.