Page 36 of A Lion's Heart
CHAPTER 10
This was the world Nisa did not see often enough. It was the place her father had been sure to keep her away from.
Upon emerging from a different door that had led into yet another heavily forested area, Nisa, Gold, the two Central Zone guards, Jordin and Zion, climbed into a black vehicle that had been waiting for them. The top of the vehicle lifted slowly, revealing six captain’s chairs. Once inside, Gold waved his hand over the shiny silver steering wheel and Nisa watched with wide eyes as the entire front dashboard came alight in a neon green color. It resembled her holodeck with its screen-like appearance and different modes of control. He reached an arm forward and touched a button on the screen. Seconds later there was a clicking sound and Nisa felt herself being forced back against the seat. While she could still move her arms and legs, the rest of her body was momentarily stilled as she suspected the automated seat belts were engaged.
She hadn’t seen any wheels on the vehicle when she’d first approached but now she heard them as they began to move, the spheres screeching over the dirt terrain. They traveled quickly even though there was no sign of motion except for the flash of lights along the cityscape as they moved further away from Oasis, deeper into the human world. Nisa tried not to ogle the fluorescent light. The blue, pink and white that seemed to glow from every building. The sky was pitch black, something she’d noticed on the times she’d come above ground. Her mother used to talk of clouds and stars, a sky filled with emotion when she’d lived above ground. Yet, Nisa had never seen any of that.
They traveled over a narrow bridge with its towers and suspension cables fashioned in a bending curve which gave it an animated feel. The water beneath was also dark with reflections from the buildings and bridge above making it look like a glittering pool of gems instead. Coming off the bridge they rounded a corner and continued down a long street with more buildings and vehicles. But none as opposing as the one at least fifteen hundred feet ahead. It was a slender building, tall—at least one hundred stories—but flat like an envelope. Frosted white beams formed the main structure of the building, with iridescent windows on both of its flat sides. That’s where they were going, Nisa thought. Or rather she felt it. Her cat was alert, her body poised for whatever came next as the vehicle they were in came to a stop directly in front of the building.
They each stepped out and for endless seconds stood on the sidewalk looking up at the building.
“What’s the plan again?” Zion, the six-foot seven-inch tall jaguar shifter asked.
He was a lanky guy with brown hair that was spiked to one side. Jordin stood next to him and answered his question when everyone else remained silent.
“We get in, sniff around and get out with more information to take back to the FL.”
She was a much shorter guard, coming in around five-feet three or four inches. Her jet black hair fell in heavy waves around her shoulders, cupping a pretty face with a hint of make-up that showcased her Korean heritage.
“All while keeping Nisa within our sight,” Gold added.
He was standing close to her, so it took almost no effort at all for him to touch her elbow and begin to lead her toward the door. Golden Harris was a six-foot tall, two hundred and thirty pound white lion with eyes so gold they actually appeared to glow. A fact which would certainly be a dead giveaway to his shifter status, which is why he wore dark framed glasses with brown slacks, beige shirt, bow tie and brown jacket.
As she walked through the glass doors that had automatically slid open for them, Nisa looked back to make sure Jordin and Zion were with them. It was habit. She didn’t want to lose sight of any of her team this evening, so she’d been committing everything about them to memory. Zion had bent his arm and Jordin had slipped hers through it so that they moved like a couple on a date. Jordin wore all black like Nisa—a cropped jeweled top that bared the creamy skin of her midriff and a sheer jeweled skirt that hugged her hips and legs down to its short train. Black silk shorts worn beneath the skirt were the only thing that kept the outfit classy. Jordin sported deep red lips and walked like a runway model, while Zion wore a collarless charcoal gray jacket over a heather gray shirt and darker gray slacks. The pair looked young and hip. Not animalistic and deadly.
A glass elevator took them up to the fifty-first floor, where they stepped out onto a silver specked floor. Gold led them toward an entryway where he paused and reached into his inside jacket pocket to pull out an envelope. A man wearing a white suit and standing in the doorway accepted the envelope and after looking at it gave Gold a nod. They continued inside, moving into a large room flanked in candlelight and yards of sheer white material draped from the ceiling. There were long tables covered in crystal dishes, tall centerpieces filled with water and flashing lights inside. And the people, there were hundreds of people. Humans.
Nisa took a deep breath and attempted to act like this wasn’t a big deal. But it definitely was. She’d never been around so many humans before in her life. She wondered if they could smell the cat in her. Of course not, humans didn’t have a heightened sense of smell the way Shadow Shifters did. They wouldn’t be able to tell just by looking at her that she wasn’t one of them.
With that thought in mind, Nisa walked with a little more confidence, smiling as men and women looked at her, giving slight nods by way of greeting. She’d been so busy doing this and taking in every aspect of this world that she felt she’d missed, that she hadn’t noticed the cheetah until her scent filled Nisa’s nostrils. Nisa paused and turned around just as Kyss was lifting a hand to touch her hair.
“You made it,” she said. “I’ve been waiting forever for you to get here.”
“Why?” Nisa asked. “I didn’t know it had been confirmed that you were coming.”
She hadn’t been told that Kyss would be here. Sure, she’d been the one to tell them that they should keep suspected enemies close, but nobody had bothered to confirm final plans with her. Kyss’s original reason for showing up was to give Decan information on Lial and the murders. Nisa still didn’t trust that was Kyss’s only goal here, which was why she planned to keep an eye on her.
“Oh yes, I’m always on the job,” Kyss continued and then shifted her attention to Gold. “Hey big guy. How’s it hanging?”
Gold did not reply but continued to move his head as if he were looking around the room.
“Not speaking to me tonight?” Kyss asked when he declined to respond. “That’s cool. We ah…did enough last night.”
She’d said that as she rubbed a finger over the skin beneath her bottom lip. Nisa tried not to think about what Kyss was referring to. She didn’t want to concern herself with who the shifter slept with. Still, she would have thought Gold would have been smarter than to fall for Kyss’s charms.
Said charms that were now wrapped in hot pink sparkly shorts that rode so far up her legs they could have been considered underwear and a white halter top. Her shoes were pink also, with straps that wound in a crisscross fashion all the way up to her knee. Her hair was once again in that long straight tail that swung dramatically each time she moved.
“There’s someone over there I need to see,” Gold told Nisa. “Come with me.”
“No,” she replied. “From here I have a view of the entrance and all three of the side doors that could be used as exits. You go ahead. I’ll be right here when you finish. Unless who you’re going to see has something to do with us finding the rogues in this room.”
Gold didn’t immediately answer, but stood still looking at her. Contemplating what he should do, no doubt.
“Look, I’m just gonna stand right here and Kyss is going to stand here and keep me company. You do trust Kyss don’t you?” she asked with an arch of her brow.
Kyss had folded one arm over her chest and brought the other one up so that she could dip the tip of a shiny red fingernail between her teeth. She was looking at Gold like they’d definitely done some things last night so she was basically daring him to say he didn’t trust her now. Nisa wanted to shake her head in disgust, but she’d been feeling her own bouts of lust lately so she decided not to judge anyone else who had the opportunity to scratch that persistent itch.
“Stay right here,” he said evenly. “Both of you. I’ll just be over there.”
