Page 97 of Cooper’s Passion

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“Chief Donnelly wants to see us now?” Anita asked, staring at Samson and her father. They were in Samson’s office. “But Cooper could wake any minute. Maya said he’s almost completely healed. And Yvette is already awake.”

It was early evening again, and Cooper had been out for well over twenty-four hours already. According to Maya, he’d received several pints of human blood, which he’d consumed in a semi-conscious state. Now it was just a matter of time.

“It won’t take long,” Samson assured her. “Let’s go.”

Reluctantly, she followed Samson, her father by her side. In the garage, they got into an SUV with darkened windows, and left headquarters. It took her several minutes to realize that they weren’t driving downtown to the Hall of Justice on Bryant Street, but farther north toward some of the fancier San Francisco neighborhoods.

“This is not the way to the police station,” Anita said from her seat in the back of the car.

She noticed Samson and her father exchange a conspiratorial look.

“What’s going on?”

Her father smirked and addressed Samson, “She’s got quite an inquisitive mind. You sure about this? Hope you can handle her. Just saying she doesn’t always play by the rules.”

“Don’t worry, José. She’s just what we need. Besides, I won’t be the one who has to handle her when she steps out of line. I leave that up to Cooper.”

They were talking about her as if she wasn’t even in the car. She leaned forward between the two front seats.

“I’m asking again: what is going on? And what does Cooper have to do with it?”

Both men chuckled. Her father looked back at her. “Relax, honey. We’re almost there.”

There was something they weren’t telling her, and it made her nervous. However, since both men seemed to be in a good mood, whatever they were keeping from her, was probably nothing bad.

When Samson turned into the driveway of a large Victorian home, and the garage door lifted, Anita leaned forward again.

“That’s not the police station.”

“No, it isn’t.” Samson drove into the huge garage where several cars were already parked. “But then I didn’t say that we’re meeting Donnelly at the station.”

Samson parked his car, and they exited. He ushered them to the stairs that led up into the house. When he opened the door on the first floor, Anita found herself in a large wood-paneled foyer. An open arch ahead of her led into a large living area, and a majestic staircase rose to her right. The living room wasn’t empty. In fact, she recognized several faces. All the people who’d taken part in the take-down of the serial killer and Cooper’s rescue, as well as others she hadn’t met before, were present. She spotted Wesley and Virginia in the crowd, as well as Luther and Katie, who’d brought their toddler.

A beautiful petite woman with dark hair walked toward them. “Welcome to our home, Anita.” She offered her hand, and Anita grasped it. “I’m Delilah, Samson’s blood-bonded mate.”

“It’s so nice to meet you, Delilah.”

When Delilah turned to her father to greet him, Anita noticed Chief Donnelly in the crowd. He smiled at her and approached.

“It’s good to see you, Anita,” he said with a smile.

She returned his smile. “So this was just a pretense to get me to come to a party?”

“Actually,” Samson said from behind her, “it’s more than that. Mike has a proposition for you.”

Anita looked over her shoulder and noticed that her father appeared to smile proudly. She looked back at Donnelly. “What kind of proposition?”

“There’s a job vacancy. The SFPD needs a liaison officer to identify and funnel cases involving vampires and other preternatural creatures to Scanguards. And we could really use somebody with your skills.”

Anita’s heart began to pound out of control. “You want me to work for you?”

“Actually, you’d be working both for the SFPD and for Scanguards. Ultimately, Scanguards would be paying your salary, but you’d have a police badge, and all the powers of a police officer. Your starting rank will be Detective. At the SFPD, you’d be reporting directly to me.”

Anita turned her head to look at her father. “You knew about this?”

Her father nodded. “Cooper spoke to Samson about it a few days ago. And Samson talked to me about it. Considering that it’s unlikely that you’ll move back to Elko, I figured you’d need a job, and you’d be perfect for this. You’re a great investigator.”