Giles rose from his chair, his usual grace absent as he approached with obvious reluctance.
“Wrist,” Bryn said, extending his left arm.“And Giles?Gunnar’s got excellent reflexes and, as you may have noticed, very little patience when it comes to people hurting me.More than they already have.”
The pointed comment made Giles wince.“Understood.”
“Two minutes,” Gunnar said.“Not a second more, and if you traumatize him the way you did during training, I’ll hunt you down and feed you your own fangs.”
The bite was quick and clinical, nothing like the dramatic neck wounds of vampire movies.Giles pierced the skin below Bryn’s wrist, and Bryn felt the familiar but strange sensation of feeding.Not quite pain, not quite pleasure, but something that made his skin prickle and brought back unwelcome memories.Gunnar’s grip on his shoulder tightened to the point of pain, and his free hand hovered inches from Giles’ throat, ready to make good on his threats.The protective fury radiating from him was palpable, and Emmett had unconsciously scooted further away.Bryn didn’t blame him.
The feeding lasted maybe two minutes before Gunnar’s patience snapped.“Enough,” he snarled, his hand shooting out to grab Giles by the throat.“Get off him.Now.”
Giles pulled back immediately, already looking better with color returning to his face and the tension around his eyes easing.Gunnar didn’t let go, his fingers tightening on Giles’ throat as he leaned in close.“If you ever ask for this again, I’ll stake you myself.Find another way to manage your feeding, or find another donor.He’s not your fucking personal blood bank.”
“Better?”Bryn asked, rolling his sleeve down with a jerk, unbothered by Gunnar’s reaction.
“Much.Thank you,” Giles managed, once Gunnar finally released him with a shove.
“Don’t mention it.Seriously.To anyone.Ever.I don’t need to get a reputation as a vamp’s snack dispenser.”
Gunnar remained tense, his eyes never leaving Giles as the vampire moved back to his chair.“This was a one-time exception, Delacourt.Don’t mistake necessity for forgiveness.”
Before anyone could respond, there was another knock at the door.This time Gunnar answered it, returning with Warden in tow.
“How are you feeling?”Warden asked, taking in the scene.
“Like I was the one that got thrown out a window,” Bryn said.“But alive, so there’s that.”
“Good.I wanted to speak with all of you before you turned in for the night.”Warden settled into the chair Giles had vacated.“I’ve been on the phone with Washington for the past hour, briefing them on today’s events.”
“And?”Gunnar prompted.“Are we getting medals or official reprimands?”
“And they’re impressed.Disturbed by the implications of Russo’s enhancement program, but impressed by how we handled it.There will be an investigation into the source of some of his funding.”Warden’s gaze shifted to Giles.“They were particularly flattering about your contribution, Giles.”
Giles straightened.“I didn’t do anything special.”
“Apart from saving my life, probably Gunnar’s too, along with a whole load of FBI agents and half the Kozlov crime family,” Bryn contributed.
“Which brings me to my next point,” Warden said.“I’d like you to move here on a permanent transfer from The Facility.”
Bryn gaped at his boss in horror.“A what now?”
“You mean it?”Giles looked surprised.
“Was anything I said unclear?I’m offering you a permanent position with this team, Giles.You’d be working with them exclusively.”
The room fell silent.Giles stared at Warden, clearly processing the offer.Bryn scowled like he’d been offered a root canal without lidocaine.
“You want him to transfer permanently?”Bryn asked.“Here?With us?Every day?”
“I want him to consider it,” Warden said.“Giles works well with this team.He understands your abilities and…history.And after today, I think we need someone with his particular skill set on a permanent basis.”
“What about Giles’ current workload at The Facility?”Emmett asked, shooting nervous glances between Bryn and Giles.
“The work can be picked up by others.There are no augurs in need of specialized training at the moment.Other staff can handle routine processes.”
Bryn looked around the room, at Emmett, who was clearly torn between excitement and worry; at Gunnar, who looked resigned rather than pleased; at Warden, whose mind was made up.“Fantastic,” he said.“Because what this team needs is more complicated history and awkward silences.”
“Bryn,” Gunnar said, “maybe we should…”
