The senator took deep breaths to calm himself but still appeared angry. “You’re right. That’s Jessie.” His mouth tensed. “She’s fired. I never thought it would be so dangerous that she’d have to kill three men or get shot. She’s not going back. I’ll find a replacement on the team immediately but it won’t be her anymore.” His gaze turned to Justice. “I’d like to request one of your people to take her place temporarily until we can find someone trustworthy. I don’t care if it’s a male or a female but the team needs someone your women won’t be terrified of. Who better to tend to any of them than one of your own?”
Justice didn’t want Jessie going back to work either considering the males on her teams had allowed her to be nearly killed. “I’ll find a replacement.” He studied the men inside the room who belonged to Jessie’s team until he stared at her team leader, Trey Roberts. “Which would work better with your team? One of our males or a female?” He paused. “Keep in mind our females would get testy if any of your men harassed them or sexually bothered them.”
Trey blinked. “Definitely male. We tease Jessie all the time but she knows we’re kidding. It’s a stress breaker. I don’t know if one of your women would understand the jokes and one of my guys might slip.”
“Done. I’ll ask for a volunteer and have him contact you within the next few days.” Justice gave his attention to the senator. “We’ll have to sort out where he lives and what would be safest. I won’t put any of my men out in the open to be targeted by hate groups. He has to have secure living arrangements.”
“Done.”
The door opened to admit a nurse. She gawked at the New Species. Long seconds ticked into a full minute. The senator moved forward, drawing the woman’s attention.
“Yes?”
She forced her gaze to him. “Uh, your, uh, daughter. She is ready to leave. Her tests all look good and she refuses to stay for observation. They are…” She turned her head to gape at Tiger.
“They are what?” The senator snapped.
The nurse’s attention flew back to him. “She is leaving AMA. They’re releasing her as soon as she’s dressed.” The woman spun and fled.
“Should I carry pictures of us and just pass them out?” Tiger chuckled. “That way they could stare as long as they want.”
“I doubt that would work. They would only want you to autograph them.” Justice smiled to soften his words.
Tiger flinched. “I say I don’t know how to write my name when they ask me to do that. A lot of humans figure we can’t read so they buy it.”
Trey laughed. “You get that often, huh?”
Tiger nodded. “Yes. We were invited to the Governor’s Mansion two weeks ago and had to deal with a lot of humans at the event. They wanted us to sign things, kept trying to touch us and asked us to pose with them for pictures. Women passed their numbers into my palm when we shook hands.”
Mike laughed. “Man, I wish women would give me their numbers. It doesn’t sound so bad.”
“You wouldn’t wish it if you lived it,” Justice stated softly. “You are no longer a person but are viewed as a thing. An object. Something not sentient.”
“But the women…” Mike winked.
Tiger grinned. “They are too fragile.”
Mike openly studied Tiger from head to foot before glancing down at his own body. “We’re about the same.”
“No. We’re not. I’m stronger.” Tiger laughed, flashing his fangs at Bob. “I have sharp teeth. Your women are too fragile.”
“Oh. Your women enjoy sharp teeth? Wow. That’s kind of cool. Yeah. I can see where you couldn’t do that with ours. I nipped one on the ass once and she dumped me, claiming I was a freak.” Mike showed his teeth. “Mine are smooth and straight and for the two grand I paid the dentist they’d better be. She did have a mighty fine ass though. That was one to sink your teeth into.”
Justice sighed, sending the senator an apologetic look. The senator smiled in return, both of them seeming to understand sometimes their men had conversations that they probably shouldn’t. Justice ignored Tiger and the team member’s conversation. He really wanted to leave and go find Jessie.
“Stay and talk to your new friend, Tiger. I’ll be outside the door,” Justice stated, moving toward it.
“Don’t forget me,” Tiger joked.
Justice glanced around the hallway as he stepped out with his other male guards. The senator stayed next to him. Justice’s mind worked overtime as he realized seeing Jessie might not be the best thing at that moment. Humans were watching, gathered in groups up and down the hallway to stare at him. Some withdrew cell phones to snap pictures, not bothering to hide their intent.
Anger gripped him strongly when he realized the danger it posed to Jessie. Any photograph or video clip of him reacting strongly to her would be sold to the local news stations. By midnight it would hit every media outlet worldwide, gossips would speculate that they might be dating and she’d become a target for reporters and New Species’ enemies.
They weren’t dating—that implied she wanted to ever see him again and he wasn’t sure that was the case. He hoped she did but that didn’t make it fact. He might do something foolish, probably would if he had the chance to touch her and he needed to avoid that. His desire to talk to Jessie though wouldn’t be denied. One way or another, he wanted to get access to her face to face but under safer conditions. He refused to put her in danger. He met the senator’s gaze, a solution snapping into place.
“Jessie needs a job and I have a safe one to offer her. It is the least I can do since she was harmed rescuing one of our females. She can still work with them but under stable conditions.”
The senator smiled. “That would be great, Justice. To be honest, she’s going to be pissed as hell when she finds out I fired her. You’d be saving my ass. My daughter has a temper. What kind of job is it?”
Justice hesitated. He was making it up as he went. “She will live at Homeland. It is secure and safe for her there. We have a segregated dorm where we are housing our females. Jessie would be wonderful for them to have around and I’m sure she’d be a tremendous help.”
The senator nodded. “It sounds good.”
“She can start as soon as she’s well.” Justice had to smother a grin. He would get to see Jessie often if she lived at Homeland. Hell, he could get as much access to her as it took to persuade her to return to his bed. The thought helped ease his urge to see her immediately. “We’d be lucky to have her.”
I’d be damn lucky to have her. An image of her under him on his bed the night before flashed but he pushed it back before he was tempted to storm down the corridors to locate Jessie and throw her over his shoulder. Don’t do it. Too many damn humans, the press has probably already arrived and you can’t let your people down. You’re the face of New Species. You’ll see her soon. Very soon.
“That would probably be today, knowing my daughter.”
Today. Justice couldn’t stop the smile that spread across his face. “I’ll make all the arrangements immediately.”
Justice’s cell phone rang. “Excuse me. I have to take this.”
The senator spoke. “I understand.”
Justice walked off, taking the call. It was about the new female Jessie had rescued. He listened. “Keep her sedated. I want her moved to Homeland immediately.”
Justice walked back to the senator. “I must leave. It’s the female that Jessie rescued. She is in bad shape inside her mind. She just woke, refuses to be calmed and the medical staff had to sedate her again when she tried to flee from them. When Jessie wants to work we’ll have her help us with that female first. You give me a call and we’ll arrange transport for Jessie to Homeland.”
“I have it. I’ll bring her myself. I’ve got a private plane at my disposal.”
Justice held out his hand. “I’m grateful she is well.”
“Thank you for coming.”
In minutes Justice and his men left the hospital. News vans waited outside
and Justice sighed in frustration as reporters rushed at them and yelled questions but he still heard Tiger’s grunted curse.
“Our lives suck sometimes.”
Justice nodded in agreement. He’d done the right thing by leaving, despite the gnawing regret that twisted his gut at not being able to make sure Jessie was truly all right. As much as he wanted to hold her, to assure himself she lived, he wouldn’t destroy her life in the process.
Jessie resisted the urge to cry. She touched the bandage on the back of her head, winced and hated that they’d shaved part of her hair. The nurse gave her a sympathetic look.
“No one will know if you pull it into in a ponytail or leave it down. It’s at the back of your head so someone will only see it if you part your hair or wear pigtails. It will grow back in time but with that length, I know it’s rough. Once it grows out some it will mingle with the rest of your hair and be harder to see. You need to keep those stitches dry.”
“I know.” Jessie let the woman help her out of the hospital bed. She curled her lip at the sweats she’d been handed. Her father had bought them in the gift shop and they beat scrubs, her other option. She hated sweats in general but the fact they were stamped with the hospital’s name and logo made it worse. “I have the paperwork telling me how to care for them.”
“You have to sit in the wheelchair. It’s hospital policy for an orderly to escort you to the front door.”
“Great,” Jessie snorted, keeping her comment clean since the nurse had been kind. She sat and meekly allowed the woman to push her out of the room after setting her bag of bloodied clothes on her lap.
Jessie spotted her father and Tim as soon as they entered the hallway. Some of the team had shown up too. Mike, Trey, Jimmy and Bob leaned against the wall watching her with grins. Shane was the only absent member of her team.
Senator Jacob Hills grinned when he spotted her, cutting off his conversation with Tim and rushed down the hallway. “How is my baby?”
“Yeah,” Trey grinned, leading everyone closer. “How are you, baby?”
Jessie’s finger itched to flip him the bird but she forced a smile instead. “I’m great. I’m ready to go home.” Her gaze met Tim’s, not a good sign that he grimly held her glare. It meant he was still mad at her for not following orders. “How is Beauty? I was told she wasn’t hurt. Did she make it where they wanted her sent all right?”
Tim hesitated. “We had to tranquilize her, Jessie. She was hysterical after you were shot and couldn’t be calmed. We called the NSO right off the bat after you were taken care of. Shane stayed back with her since he said you’d want one of your team with her until she was dropped off. The NSO sent a helicopter to pick her up and he transported with her to Reservation personally but he’s on his way home now. They have her safe and she was sleeping like a baby last time he saw her.”
Bob chuckled. “Shane filled out her paperwork and put Beauty for her name. We thought you’d be pissed if he wrote down Mud or Monkey.”
The senator gasped, shooting a glare at Bob. “You called her those names?”
Bob’s smile died. “No. That’s what they called her. Jessie renamed her Beauty.”
“Oh.” The senator relaxed. “I thought I was going to have a nightmare on my hands. You never call them derogatory names. I’ll fire you if you ever do. You always treat them with respect, as though they are family.”
Jessie smirked. “You mean like how I call Jake a butthead and ass breath? That’s what you call family. You might want to tell them to treat them like anyone but family.”
The senator grinned. “Your brother hates those names, Jess. If he were here instead of in Afghanistan, he’d tell you himself.”
“Jessie,” she corrected, smiling. “I’m glad you came, Dad. I’m ready to go home and get back to work.”
Tim cleared his throat and jerked his thumb at the men. Jessie frowned as the team quickly walked away, leaving her with her father. He looked grim when she stared at him, confused.
“About that.” His blue eyes narrowed. “You’re fired.”
“What?” she yelled.
“Quiet, Jessica Marlee Dupree,” he ordered in a stern voice. It was the same tone he’d used all her life when she was in deep shit. “You disobeyed orders last night and killed three men. You did the right thing, protected your fellow team members and I know that. But you killed three men.” His voice broke and tears flooded his eyes. “You’re lucky to have your brains intact. Do you know how I felt when I got the call that you’d been shot?” He took a shaky breath. “You are fired. I love you but I can’t live with knowing I’m putting you in a position to have to kill more men or have them kill you. You have a new job so listen to me before you lose your temper.”
Jessie was in shock. Her father was more upset than she could ever recall seeing him except once. He’d cried when her mother had died and had never fully recovered from the loss. She eased back into the wheelchair, her tense body relaxed and guilt ate at her as she stared at him. He’d gone through hell over her getting shot and she knew it. It hurt to lose her job but she loved her dad more.
“What new job?”
He hesitated. “No screaming and telling me I can’t fire you?”
She shook her head. “You’re crying. I’m sorry, Dad. You lost Mom and she meant the world to you. You almost lost me and I get it. I hate it because I love this job and I love those guys on the task force but I do understand the hellish position you’re in. What’s the new job and forget about it if you tell me you’re sticking me in an office.”
He leaned down and grabbed Jessie hard, hugging her. She hugged him back and wished she could breathe. She wiggled in his arms and he finally let go. He straightened, wiping at tears. He smiled at her though and it made it all worth losing the job and almost turning blue from lack of oxygen.
“I got you a job at the NSO Homeland, Jessie. How is that for a consolation prize for losing your job with the task force? You’re going to be working directly with the New Species Organization still but at a safer location.” He grinned. “Justice North flew here to make sure you were fine and he offered the job himself!”
Shock tore through Jessie. “Justice is here?” Her head turned, searching for him.
“He received an emergency call regarding the woman you saved last night. He had to leave but he said you could start at any time you’re ready. I knew you’d want to get right back to work.” He laughed. “I know my girl and you’d want the job so I hope you don’t mind but I sent someone to your apartment. It’s being packed up as we speak, just your belongings will be sent and all your furniture will be stored. The guys I ordered to pack your stuff are going to ship everything to you there. It might take a few days but it will come pretty fast.”
“Thanks. That was great thinking.” She forced a smile to hide her surprise at the drastic changes in her life. “You know I want that job.”
Justice had come and gone but he hadn’t seen her. She masked her emotions from her father, afraid he’d be confused by the sadness that she felt knowing that Justice had come but he hadn’t stayed long enough to see her. She felt a little anger too but let it go.
He had flown all the way from California to come to the hospital. That has to mean something, right? He could have stayed and said hello. Maybe made sure I was fine. She sighed.
“What about my Gift Female? What was the emergency?”
“I don’t know but when you get to NSO Homeland I’m sure you’ll find out. He ordered her moved there and said that would be your first job.”
Jessie pondered that. Justice might be angry at her for leaving, a reason why he hadn’t stayed. She’d split on him. It was work though and she’d had to leave. He should understand that. Well, to be fair, she thought, he’d had to leave for work too.
“I’d like to say goodbye to my team.”
“You do that. They are in the waiting room. I have a car waiting outside to drive us to the airport. We’ll stop and buy you some clothes to
last you a few days on the way.” He glanced at the sweats. “I know you hate those but it was all they had unless you wanted a summer dress in a bright orange flower print.”
She made a face. The senator laughed.
“I know. I haven’t seen you in a dress since you graduated high school and had to wear the gown. You wore cut-off jeans and a tank top under it if I remember right.”
She grinned. “It wasn’t a tank top. It was a sports bra.”
He reached out and cupped her face. “That’s my girl. You always have to be different.”
Justice’s image flashed through her mind and she wondered if maybe it was part of the reason she was so drawn to him. She did like different and she liked him a hell of a lot. She only wished he’d stuck around to see her.
Chapter Eight
Jessie was nervous as she stepped out of the cab and lifted the gym bag to her shoulder. The sight of protesters marching near the gate angered her instantly. Don’t they have lives? Something better to do than harass a bunch of people who have never done anything to them? Jessie paused next to the cab window and handed the driver three twenties.
“Keep the change.”
“Thanks.” He backed the vehicle away.
Her gaze studied the men and women as she headed for the gates. The NSO Homeland was the main home for New Species and they also had a huge wooded area they’d bought and named Reservation. She’d been here before but she’d never had to walk through the front gates. She’d come in a helicopter, dropped off females and had promptly been flown out, having never stepped past the heliport area. Now she was going to live and work inside Homeland. It was rumored Justice lived there full-time and that meant she’d probably see him sometimes.