She gingerly got off the man she’d knocked out. “No. You don’t exactly hide your feelings.” Then she looked at the prone bodies. “You killed them.”
“Yeah. Humans,” he muttered. “They attack, they die.” He reached down and hauled up the guy who’d fought with her. “Stay here, Dessie. I’m going to ask our friend a few questions.”
Panic seized her around the throat. “I am not staying here with dead bodies.” Her voice rose.
A muscle visibly pounded in his neck, and his face looked harder than any granite wall. “Follow me. You can stay with Honor and Sam. I won’t be long.”
* * * *
Dessie paced back and forth as Honor flipped through the channels on the bulky television set in the room she shared with Sam. “Why aren’t you more upset?”
Honor looked up, her brown eyes mellow. “Honey, they attacked you. This new world you’re living in has different rules, and you’ll drive yourself crazy if you try to hold on to the old ones. Trust me.” She stretched her impressive body. “You’re pale. Are you okay?”
“No.” Dessie inched toward the door. If she wanted to leave, now was the time. But her body kept shaking so hard it was difficult to move.
“He’ll just find you,” Honor said quietly. Then she smiled. “He won’t hurt you.”
Dessie rested her back against the wall, acutely aware of the knife in her bag on the floor. “Are you a shifter?”
Honor snorted. “No. Enhanced human and now mated, so I’m immortal.” Her smile was genuine. “It’s pretty cool, really.”
“I’m not enhanced.” The idea of living forever was a dream Dessie couldn’t reach. Not with her brain tumor, and not without an enhancement. “What is your enhancement?”
“I can discern lies.” Honor shrugged. “Came in handy when I was working for Homeland Security. I still use it to help with investigations for the Realm, and sometimes I consult with humans.” Her expression softened. “I promise that nobody wants to hurt you.”
The door opened. “Except for the three guys who just busted into my motel room,” Garrett said, walking inside, bringing the wind and rain with him. His wet hair curled around his ears, and he looked solid and strong with the storm behind him.
Dessie swallowed. “Who were they?”
“They were just freaking humans. What a waste of a night.” Sam walked in behind Garrett, went to Honor, and lifted her for a kiss. “Did you miss me?”
“Definitely.” The woman kissed him back, wholeheartedly.
Garrett sighed. “They were just human.”
Sam snorted.
Apparently there wasn’t time to deal with humans.
“Come on, Dessie. Honor and Sam have already forgotten we’re here.” Garrett took her hand and led her outside, making sure she stayed beneath the eaves as the rain blew in. “I rented the room next to ours and called for friends to replace the window and fix the door tonight, so the management won’t know a thing happened when they return to work tomorrow.” He unlocked the next door and nudged her inside a room similar to the one they’d had earlier.
She stumbled and righted herself. “Where are the…I mean, the bodies?”
“Gone,” he said simply.
“But, Garrett—”
He shut the door and wiped water off his chiseled face. “It’s no longer your concern. Forget about it.” There was no give in his words or expression.
Her eyes felt gritty, and her back ached. She’d hit the floor harder than she’d thought. “Did you torture that man?” Her legs trembled, so she sat on the bed.
“Not really. He gave it up pretty quick.” Garrett crossed his arms. “You fought well. I want to know all about your training. That was more than simple self-defense.”
It was her physical education class for ten years. “That one man had been following me in town, although he didn’t make a move until today.”
He took her measure and then finally spoke. “The men were hired by your aunt to kill you so you can’t inherit what your father left for you. She apparently doesn’t know about your diagnosis.”
“Wait—what?” She blinked, trying to make sense of the words. “You knew there was a hitman after me?”
