Page 23 of Bodyguard Wolf's Fated Mate
There was no pain, but the damage to the outer layers of the skin was quite extensive. It could've been shock or something far more disturbing taking a hold of me and not letting go. This had to be the power that thing had referenced and somehow it gave me a brief glimpse behind the curtain of my future.
I didn't like what I saw staring back at me with its jaws unhinged.
Maybe it was better to steer clear of the powers he mentioned. Was it that simple? Could I really just make a conscious decision and have my life back? The temptation was strong, but I was curious to learn more before I made an educated decision one way or the other.
They all thought something bad had happened and that I was completely unaware of my injuries. That was the furthest thing from the truth. Just because I didn't feel the pain didn't mean it wasn't there on the fringes of my consciousness.
It made me wonder what would happen when the effects of the power diminished until I was able to think clearly. It would've been nice to have Luke holding my hand, but he was forbidden to set foot in the house.
I had this funny feeling he was going to be at the party whether I saw him there or not. He would never let me go through this alone even if my father beefed up security to make sure he didn't crash the festivities.
CHAPTER 13
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LUKE
Two battles were being fought on two different fronts. Coming to that conclusion made me understand the importance of having people I trusted around me.
I had no interest in fulfilling my obligation to Jules, but it was a matter of principle.
Mercedes understood better than anybody how we had to complete the mission without his permission.
"I've done my due diligence and there's something you should see. We might have a problem." She directed me to the laptop in her lap as she punched the keyboard repeatedly to bring up the required information.
"I don't have a lot of time. The party is tomorrow, and I need to be there to oversee every single detail. Nothing can escape my observation. Jules doesn't have to believe me but that doesn't negate the fact she still needs our help. I don't think this is going to change anything, but this is something I promised, and I don't back down from a challenge." I turned the corner and came to a stop at the curb in front of a very tall building made of tinted glass.
A man was busy cleaning the windows with a squeegee. Nobody could hear the screech of the glass, but the two of us twitched. It was painful and caused my knees to buckle.
"It's always the sounds that get you. We are so hypersensitive that it's hard to drown out the normal everyday music all around us. The whistle of the wind through the trees. The honking horns and people screaming obscenities to get to where they want to be. Dogs howl for their masters to come home. They don't hear the distinct tones, but we do." Mercedes kept pace with me to the front door but stayed a couple of feet away to indicate she was my assistant.
She was far more important than that.
"I don't need to be reminded about things that I can't control. That's what bothers me the most. You said you had something to show me before we go in." I pulled on the glass door and was hit in the face by a cool blast from the air conditioning.
The wolf inside whimpered from the change in ambient temperature, but it remained vigilant, ready to act when I called upon it. This was a different tactic involving words as weapons.
"I stumbled on a contract to assassinate Jules Stratus. The amount of the bounty is $5 million. People have done a lot more for far less. Humans are so damn predictable. There is no paper trail. Everything was done anonymously but there is an expiration date," she said before bringing up the date of the party, which incidentally would have some of the most influential people on hand.
"I have to wonder if there is more than one on the hit parade. This gives an assassin the golden opportunity to hit fast and hard to take out multiple targets. I want you to comb the Internet for any names associated with attempted assassinations in the past six months." I signed in at the front desk, and the guard didn't look up from his steaming cup of coffee.
"One thing at a time. Let's go and talk to Stuart Adams. He's going to need some convincing to help us, but I think I found something useful. I'm running a program right now in conjunction with my research into Stuart Adams. The program is of my own making and is primarily a rootkit to dig out what others are trying to hide in the dark web where people fear to tread for obvious reasons." She had two windows open with her lacquered red nails moving seamlessly from one task to another.
"Don't look now but we have already overstayed our welcome. Somebody must be watching us on a closed-circuit television somewhere in the building. They thought it was a good idea to sic security guards on us. Silly boys pretending to be men with guns and a baton. They have a license to use extreme measures," I announced when I turned on my heel to address the issue.
Mercedes stood with me, but I shook my head to indicate this was my fight.
"We shouldn't separate. That's what they want us to do, and we are playing right into their hands. It looks like the origin of the assassination comes from this building. It explains why it was so readily available to me." Mercedes twirled locks of her red hair around on one finger.
"Go on without me. If anybody can get through to Stuart it's going to be you and not me. Your methods are your own, and I would never pry to know your secret. I think it might have something to do with a certain body of work." I stressed with my hand making direct contact with one man's sternum.
His whole body vibrated with the impact, which propelled him into one of the other guys coming up from the rear holding onto a baton. They must've been ordered to be discreet and to take us some place private for an intense conversation.
I jumped on the wall and brought my leg out with not-so-surprising results. This man's job was to detain me, but he was going to be eating out of a straw for at least a couple of weeks.
"Fellas, you really should know your audience before you attack from behind. I'm well-versed in many techniques of hand-to-hand combat." I spoke at the same time, disarming one man of his taser and placing it in his midsection at the highest setting.
I retrieved his baton and swung it in a wide arc to take out two at the same time. They both went down in a heap, searching for their front teeth. One looked at me incredulously as if I was some alien able to predict their every move.
