Repercussion: The Clandestine Saga Book 3 (13 page)

Cadence stared at her own face in the mirror, and crossed her arms.
"No, you can't just tell me to come back whenever you feel like it just because I am seeing someone and you don't..."

             
"It's Giovani. It's not me. I am unbelievably happy for you. I hope that you and Dr. Ryan live a long, joyful life together, that you get married and have a butt load of beautiful babies. But as for right now, I need you to help me figure out what to do with this proposition of Laura's. I know that Elliott has mentioned it..."

              "Yeah, he mentioned it,"
she admitted.
"But what do you need me for? Can't you just tell her to go to hell yourself?"

He sighed loud enough that she easily picked it up over the IAC.
"I can--if that's what we decide to do. But if what she is proposing is accurate, we could potentially kill a lot of birds with one stone here, and I need your help in determining whether or not it's legitimate."

              "I can help you with that from here. It's not. She's a liar. If I ever see her again, I'm going to shoot her in the freaking face."

              "Tell me how you really feel..."

"She shot me!"
Cadence reminded him.
"How long did that ass who shot you last? Not even two seconds. She deserves to go to Hunter prison..."

              "That's not a thing..."

"And I don't believe a damn word she says,"
she finished, conclusively.

             
"All right, I understand all of that. But she says she'll surrender if we release her to her sister's custody, which could give us the opportunity to convince her to re-Transform and get rid of her once and for all,"
he attempted to explain.

              Cadence was not on board. "
She doesn't deserve that. Hell, Laney doesn't deserve that."

              "Cadence, she says it was an accident. And we don't have any proof right now to show otherwise. Maybe if we agree to work with her, she'll give us some evidence that it was intentional, and then we can do something about it."

              "It sounds to me like you've already decided. So what do you need me for?"
she asked, angrily running a brush through her hair.

The hesitation was there, and Cadence picked up on it immediately. She stopped her beauty routine and waited. After a long pause, he said, "
I just want a second opinion, Cadence, and I value yours more than anyone else's."

              She wasn't exactly sure what it was she was picking up on in his voice--but something sounded different. For the first time, he sounded unsure of himself, and she had no idea why that might be. There was no hesitation in her response.
"Fine. When do you need me?"

              After a sigh of relief, he replied,
"In a few hours. We have a Skype meeting set up with Laura and Cowboy Sam this evening. Eliza will be arriving this afternoon, as well."

"Ugh,"
Cadence exclaimed, instantly feeling nauseated.
"Never mind. Do it yourself."

             
"The plane should arrive in Reno in about an hour, and I'll send a car to your hotel to pick you and the girls up,"
he continued, ignoring her remark.

             
"Oh, no, wait. I have to go talk to Cale first. I can't just go out of town without telling him,"
she replied, picking up where she left off with her makeup.

"Because that would be rude?"
he asked, pointedly.

              She slammed her powder brush down on the counter.
"Hey, Cale and I are seeing each other. You had just broken up with me to date a Satanic whore!"

             
"Okay, okay,"
he said defensively.
"I didn't mean to upset you. Fine, go tell him goodbye. I'll have the car pick you up at the hospital."

              She felt bad for yelling at him. He had a way of bringing raw emotion out of her. She didn't apologize, though.
"All right. But I'm going to need more than an hour. Wait!"
she said, a skeptical look on her face.
"What kind of a plane are you sending here that can make it an hour?"

"The kind that left two hours ago,"
he admitted.

              She shook her head. Of course, he knew she would say yes.
"You're such an ass,"
she mumbled.
"Sometimes I wish you would just go away..."

              At first she wasn't sure if he was even going to respond. Finally he said,
"Maybe I will someday. But for now, I'll see you in a little bit. Have a nice flight."

With that he was gone, leaving her contemplating whether or not she should have apologized. She couldn't force him back on, though she could request a conversation with him. "Surely he knows I was just joking," she said aloud to herself. There were definitely times that she wished she felt that way--that she really wanted him gone. But she had momentarily faced a reality without him when he was shot protecting her early on, and the thought was unbearable. Ultimately, she decided he had to know she was just being a bitch, so she left him alone and contacted Cale instead to let him know she wasn't going to be able to see him that night after all.

              "
I'm in a consult right now. Can I get back to you in a bit?"
he asked when she requested to speak with him via the IAC.

              She was getting dressed, wondering how much time she might have, though she didn't really care if she made the driver wait outside the hospital for her. "
Actually
," she replied,
"I have some bad news, and I was kind of hoping I could see you."

              There was a pause.
"Oh, okay,"
he finally replied.
"Wow, that was quick. I normally make it to at least date two."

              She would have laughed if he didn't sound sincere.
"It's not that, silly,"
she responded.
"But something has come up. If I head over there now, can you spare a few minutes?"

              "Absolutely."

              It didn't take her long to make the trip on her bike, and absently she wondered if he would let her keep it at his headquarters, which was also the hospital, until she got back.

Unlike the larger LIGHTS complex in Kansas City, many of the area headquarters were housed in one building, and the team members lived in apartments or houses nearby. Some of them, like Cale, actually had other jobs as well. Since he had opened the hospital, and was its primary financier, he kept his headquarters in the same building, as well as his apartment. The hospital was not large and mostly handled elective surgeries, though it was equipped to handle emergencies as well, and since Cale had purchased two helicopters recently, the number of calls had increased. Cadence had never been there before, but he was very proud of what he had built and spoke fondly of it often in the short amount of time they had known each other. As she pulled up, she was impressed with the architecture of the high-rise. Leaving her motorcycle in the parking garage, she made the short trip into the lobby, unsure of precisely where she was going.

"May I help you?" a thin, older woman dressed in a sharp navy blue uniform asked from behind a receptionist desk in the foyer.

              Cadence smiled. "Hello, I'm here to see Dr. Cale Ryan," she replied.

"Oh, yes, you must be Cadence. He's waiting for you upstairs. You can take the elevator up to the fifth floor. You'll see the offices there on your left," she explained with a polite smile.

"Thank you," Cadence replied before turning and making her way to the elevators. Stepping in and pushing the button for five, she glanced down at her outfit one more time. White capris and an off-the-shoulder coral colored top with strappy sandals. It was cute, but not uncomfortable, something that would be important on the plane. She'd taken a few minutes to throw the rest of her belongings in her bag and hand it off to Aurora before she left so she could put it in the car to take to the airport. Normally, they traveled very light, generally buying new clothes in each new town and donating the old ones before they left, but if she was going home, she may as well take what she could.

              She had no trouble finding the office, and she could see through the glass door that he was waiting with the receptionist for her arrival. She pushed the door open with a smile, which was warmly returned. "Hi," she said, stepping into his open arms. He returned her greeting and kissed her on the cheek.

              "Wow, it is such an honor to meet you," the girl behind the desk said, with a large grin on her pretty face. She was young, possibly about eighteen or nineteen, with long red hair piled atop her head, and wore pink scrubs.

Cadence was confused. She had no idea whether or not the staff in Cale's medical practice was aware of what else went on there. There were rules about what humans were allowed to know. She smiled, but glanced at him, waiting for some sort of clue as to what she should say. "It's okay," he explained. "Adrian is the daughter of a Hunter and is actually thinking about Transforming soon."

              "Oh, that's great!" Cadence exclaimed, taking the girl's outstretched hand. "I hope you decide to do so. You'll never get bored, that's for sure," she added, raising her eyebrows.

              Adrian laughed. "From what I've heard, that's true. And Dr. Ryan has told me so much about all of the amazing kills you've had. It's just really cool to have the opportunity to meet you in person."

              Cadence reddened. She wasn't used to such accolades, not yet. "Well, thank you," she said with a shy smile. "I hope to see you in the field soon."

              Cale took her hand and led her down a hallway as she waved goodbye to the beaming teenager. "She seems nice," Cadence said as he opened the door to what she assumed must be his office.

"She's great," he replied. "My entire medical staff is amazing."

              "Do they all know?" she asked, rather than commenting on how different that disposition was from his other team.

              "Yes, they have to, or else this wouldn't work. But they all have a reason to know," he explained. "Most of them are related to a Hunter or a Guardian, and it's that family member who sends them in. A few of them are retired," he added.

              She had been so focused on his handsome face, she hadn't even noticed the view at first. Once she did, she quickly walked to the window. "Oh, wow! You can see everything from here. Look at that amazing skyline!"

              He laughed, walking up behind her and putting his arm around her waist. "It's not bad."

              "How do you ever get anything done?" she asked, squinting to see if she could see Lake Tahoe from there, which she couldn't.

              "I honestly don't spend too much time in here," he replied. "If I'm in the building, I'm usually downstairs in the hospital consulting or operating. If I'm not there, I'm usually in the field or volunteering at the larger hospital on the other side of town. But, if I'm here, it's usually because I have a patient, which would put me in one of the examining rooms. Some of them have pretty good views as well, though not as good as this one."

              "So do you have another office upstairs in headquarters?" she asked.

"I do, but it's on the other side of the building, so it's not so great. That's why I wanted to meet you here. I thought you'd appreciate the view."

              His hand was on her arm now, and she turned her head to smile at him. He seemed to want to lean down and kiss her, but he hesitated, and she looked away. Things suddenly seemed weird.... She wasn't sure why. After a moment, she cleared her throat and said, "So, I have to leave town in a few minutes."

He stepped beside her then, and she turned to face him. He nodded, as if he had ascertained that. "Is it Giovani?" he asked.

              "You know me too well," she smiled. "Yes. Aaron has requested that I return to help determine whether or not this plan that Laura has come up with is legitimate. Do you know about that?"

"Bits and pieces," he admitted. "I'm not sure I know as much as you do. I actually have been hearing some chatter myself that he's not far from here."

              "Really?" Cadence asked. "I thought he was in Eliza's territory."

              "Well, if these sources are correct, and who knows if they are or not, he would be in her territory, but it borders mine. I'll show you." He pulled up a map and shared it with her utilizing the IAC. "According to what I've been hearing, Laura's information is that he is somewhere in this area." He indicated a large perimeter near Sierraville, California, right across the border. "So, while, yes, he is in her territory, he could easily end up in mine, particularly if he hears that you're in pursuit."

Cadence looked at the map carefully. "Wow, that's like, an hour by car. With your helicopters, you could be there in..."

              "Twenty minutes. With my helicopters," he interrupted.