Riss (12 page)

It was another cop. This one was a woman and she had her hand on her gun like she meant business.
Dan didn’t open the door this time either, but waited for her to either come in (which he supposed was possible since he’d just realized he forgot to lock the door) or go away. He really hoped she’d just go away until his head felt better. Dan didn’t do well when his head pained him like this.

“
Mr. Carey? Are you in there?” Dan wasn’t sure her knowing his name was a good thing but kept his mouth shut. “Mr. Carey? I need for you to come down to the station with me. There’s a few questions we want to ask you about your mother’s murder.”

Murder?
Before he could think not to, Dan tore open the door and jerked the cop inside with him. She was sputtering at him when he slammed her against the wall and put his hand over her mouth.

“
My momma is dead?” She nodded, and when he felt her hand move he removed his hand from her mouth, grabbed both her wrists, and jerked them up over her head and held them there. That’s when he noticed she had her gun in one hand. “Drop it or one of us might get hurt. I don’t want that, do you? Please, just drop it on the floor and I’ll do what you want.”

She didn
’t do as he told her, and Dan was suddenly afraid. He just knew that she’d killed his momma and had taken his Kala away, too. He’d reason with her, he thought. Ask her where his Kala and Momma were, and if she didn’t know, see if she could help him find them. The gun was only out to protect herself from him, and he wanted to assure her that he was harmless, that he’d learned his lesson a long time ago.

When he stepped back from her
, he watched as she dropped to the floor. Dan took several steps back again until he felt the couch bump him in the back of the knees. Someone had killed her. Shot her to death. Sitting down, he stared at the blood as it pooled beneath her and stained the carpet. His momma was really going to be upset when she came in to see this. Then Dan remembered that she was murdered.

“
Who killed her, do you know?” The body didn’t offer up any suggestions, and Dan started to cry. Whoever was killing these people was trying to make it so he never got answers. These people were watching him and waiting until he was nearly ready to have something, some little titbit of information before they snatched it away. Dan whimpered when someone spoke loudly near the woman.

It took him several minutes to realize she was wearing a two way.
Someone by the name of Anderson was trying to reach her, and he kept saying her name. Officer McKay didn’t answer him, and Dan was about to tell him someone had murdered her like they had his momma when Anderson said his name.

“
Carey? We know she was coming to see you today. If you can hear this, then pick up the mike and speak to me.” Dan shook his head as the man continued. “There are cops all around the place. If you’ve harmed McKay, then there will be no place for you to hide because I will find you. Just pick up the mike, or give it to McKay so she can tell me she’s all right. Please?”

“
I didn’t do anything to her. She just got murdered by someone and it wasn’t me.” He realized the man couldn’t hear him but continued anyway. “What the hell am I supposed to do? Tell me. All these things are happening to me, and I don’t know how to make them stop. I’m afraid for Kala. Will they hurt my wife if I go near her?”

Kala was the most important thing to him right now. He needed her
, more than he ever had his momma. And the house needed to be cleaned now, as well as food cooked for him. Kala, he knew, was the only person who could do that for him. And she was gone to somewhere he didn’t know. Dan wanted this to end now.

Dan started to pace around the room when he looked down at his body.
Everything he had on was sprayed with a fine mist of red spots. It took him several seconds to realize it was from Officer McKay. He was covered in her blood. It was happening again. Someone was trying to frame him for another murder.

Going to the bathroom
, he looked in the mirror, and all he could see were his eyes shining back at him. At first it startled him, because he didn’t even recognize himself, but when he leaned in, Dan was shocked at how he looked.

His hair was mussed up
, so he tried fixing it with his fingers. Turning on the tap resulted in nothing, so he began looking around for something, anything that would help him. Finding a brush buried at the bottom of one of the darkened drawers, he ran it though his hair and brought it to some order.

His face was covered in the blood
, too, and scrubbing at it only made it worse. Dan was beginning to feel like he was stained now. That the person who had killed the officer was making sure that everyone thought it was him. Dan went to the officer’s body again and listened to Anderson try to get her to answer him. Dan knew it was time to leave.

A long time ago
, he’d been locked in the basement. His momma had said it was for his own good, but he’d never understood that. She’d given him all his food through the basement window outside, and he’d given her back the dishes the same way. And if he didn’t do as he was told, she’d hold his food from him until he did. Dan had escaped twice before she figured out how he was getting out. While she’d never put him down there again, he had gone to great links to make sure if she ever did, he could still get out. Going to the basement, he closed the door behind him and set the lock. Hurrying down the stairs, he thought of something his momma had told him.

She
’d told him that he’d killed his father. But Dan knew that wasn’t true. As far as he could remember, it had only been him and his momma. She’d taken care of him when he was little. And then when he got bigger, he’d taken care of her. Of course, she still had to keep the house and cook, but he gave her use of his free cable.

The dankness of this part of the house had always scared him.
His momma had told him that she’d buried him down there because she needed his pension check. Dan had never doubted that she had. He had wondered how she thought he’d killed him, but had never asked her. She seemed to be really upset when he asked about how people died. Going to the far wall, he moved the large cabinet out of his way and opened the smallish door behind it. Picking up the other flashlight that he’d put there, he made sure it worked before he closed himself in.

He
had no idea why the little doorway had been put in here. His mom hadn’t told him, and he’d never been able to ask anyone else. He supposed that was good, because now that nobody knew, he could get away from whoever was killing those people. Pulling the door closed, he reached up to the chain that was hanging there and pulled it until he heard the cabinet move back into place. He heard a loud crash just as the small hallway got completely dark. Dan thought maybe the police were in his house.

Dan followed the small
, dirty hall. He’d had to stop twice and go back because he’d gotten turned around, and all the bread crumbs he’d left for him to follow long ago were gone. He knew it was the killer. The man was trying to mess him up at every turn.

“
Not anymore.” Dan’s voice echoed along the empty hall, and it scared him enough that he stopped and turned off the light. He didn’t want to get caught down there, and he certainly didn’t want to be murdered there either. “Kala would be heartbroken if she couldn’t see me one more time.”

Nodding to himself
that he was okay, he started on his way again until he saw the small beam of light at the end. Smiling, he nearly started running to it but was afraid that the murderer was trying to trap him again, so he began to watch for traps. It wasn’t until he pushed the small door open that he felt better. He moved into the neighbor’s garage and closed the door behind him as quietly as he could. Dan was safe. For now.

Going to the ladder that had hung there since he
was a kid, Dan used it to get into the attic part of the garage. Up there was where he’d hidden a backpack, and he pulled it down. Putting the ladder back from where he’d gotten it, Dan went to the door and noticed the new car sitting where there had always been a very old and dirty one. He had no idea why he’d not noticed it before, but now that he could see the shininess of it, he wanted to drive it. Going over to it, he wondered if they’d care if he borrowed it for a few hours.

Dan started to the house when he saw that the police were all over his yard
. He ducked back into the garage before anyone saw him. Getting in the car, he tossed his pack in the back. Now he had to find the keys. Smiling, he remembered something from one of his shows. Pulling down the visor, the keys fell in his lap. Pressing the garage door opener that hung where the keys had been, he pulled out of the door and drove in the opposite direction of his house. Dan turned on the radio and started singing to the tunes. He was home free.

Chapter
11

Kala wasn’t sure what to think of the house. They’d come here late last night just after the news broke that Dan had murdered a cop, and she’d not had a chance to look around. Now she sat in the dining room and tried to get her pounding heartbeat under control. This was just too much.

She looked up when Lily sat
down across from her. Kala had met her just an hour ago and had come in here to get away from them all. Lily’s smile did nothing to make her feel better. Kala started to ask her to go away, but she spoke first.

“
It’s too much, isn’t it?” Kala nodded. “I thought so. But I have to tell you, you’re doing better than Benny did the first time he met all of them. He freaked out and had to be locked away for a time.”

“
I most certainly did not.” Benny sat down next to his wife and kissed her on the cheek. He pushed a glass of water at her. “Drink this and I’ll tell you what’s going on. Unless you’d rather talk about Carey.”

“
I don’t think so.” She knew that Benny had told Riss and Michael, but she had walked away when he started talking. “I guess you’re a protector too.”

“
No, Lily is. She mostly teaches at the college, but she helps them out when they need her to.” Benny looked at his wife with so much love as he continued. “She was my protector before I met her. She’d been assigned to me from about my teenage years on, and knew what I was to her for years. It wasn’t until Michael came to me that I saw her. After that it wasn’t all roses and chocolates.”

“
You didn’t like her?” Kala found that hard to believe, looking at them now. “I think I loved Riss from the moment I saw him.”

Kala felt her face heat up when Benny winked at her.
She supposed they all knew what had happened with her and that fucking feather. She was going to have a little up close and personal time when she saw Boss again. He shouldn’t be telling stuff like that.

“
Have you looked over the book they gave you?” Kala nodded at Lily’s question. “If you have any problems with the more personal stuff, just let me know. I can come here anytime you want. This house, like all of the protector homes, is warded so that we can be safe here.”

“
All of you? How many of you are there?” Lily looked at her husband, who got up to leave. Kala was slightly embarrassed to have blurted out the question, but when Lily smiled at her, Kala smiled back.

“
No one knows really. You and Riss are the first couple that I’ve been told about and met. But over the decades I’ve seen a few that I heard about. We mostly keep to ourselves for some reason unless there’s a mate.” Lily leaned back in the chair and smiled. “You’re going to have a child.”

“
Yes.” Kala blushed again. “I guess Riss can even tell the exact date he’ll be born. I don’t want to know yet.”

“
You can too if you want. I’ll show you when you’re ready. You can do all sorts of things now that you’re a protector. Or I should say a Mystic. You and Riss are going to be extremely busy, I think, once this gets off the ground.” Kala nodded. “Did anyone say when the field would be complete?”

Michael had taken her and Riss out to
a large, wooded area earlier that morning where men and women were working, cutting down trees and other shrubbery. He told them that a large building would be put up and the grounds modified to accommodate the walking tracks and the basketball courts. It was to keep the new Mystic and Protectors in shape.

“
I heard next week. Is that even possible?” Lily laughed and told her that a great many things were possible when they had the Boss helping out. “Do you like him? Boss, I mean? He seems a little…I don’t know. I was going to say exhausted all the time but I think it’s more than that.”

“
He is. When I was with Him last, I noticed it, too. But since you and Riss have come together, I’ve noticed a change in Him. He seems to be happier. Did you know that He has six more sets of wedding bands? Benny asked Him who was getting them, and He said that time would tell. By the way, that’s His answer for everything when He wants to be all secretive. Boss is very good at that, too.”

Kala nodded and thought about what she wanted to ask Lily before she made a fool of herself.
“I don’t know how to be what they want. Will they take all this away from us if I fail? I don’t…I’m not like you guys.”

“
But you are.” Kala started to shake her head, and Lily took her hand. “You are, Kala. Just like all of us. Come on. Let me show you something.”

They went through the kitchen and out to the backyard.
Every time Kala came out here she wanted to kick off her shoes and run barefooted through the grass, her grass. When Lily smiled at her again, Kala had a feeling she knew just what she was thinking and felt her face heat again. There didn’t seem to be any secrets between any of them, and Kala was having a hard time with that. She had kept to herself for the better part of her life, and now there were so many people around her all the time it sort of frightened her. She looked at Lily when she cleared her throat.

“
Okay, I want you to close your eyes and think about a bird.” Kala looked at her and tried to think what the hell she was talking about. “Just trust me. Think of a bird. Any bird will do for this.”

When she did as she was asked
, a falcon popped into her mind. She had no idea where that came from and nearly opened her eyes when Lily laughed. It was a bird but a big frigging one.

“
No, don’t open your eyes just yet. This is going to work, you’ll see. I want you to think of her feathers, the softness of them, and the way they seem to spread open when she’s in flight. Are you seeing her?” Kala told her she was and was surprised at how detailed the image was becoming. “Good girl, now think of her talons, the sharp points and the long slender legs. The way she looks when she’s sitting on a branch. Think of anything and everything you can about her.”

The harder she thought of the bird the more details came to her. Soon she could see her flying in the sky, a dark spot so high up. When Lily asked her to open her eyes, Kala looked at her and Riss
, who was now standing beside her. Kala started to take a step forward but felt…odd.

“
Riss?” He came to her instead and took her hands. He was looking at her strangely, and she thought something had happened. “What’s wrong? Dan hasn’t come here, has he?”

“
No, love. You’ve done it.” She frowned at him, not sure what he meant. “Your wings, they’ve come out to play. I knew that if you didn’t think about it they’d appear. You’re the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen. Look at them.”

Turning just a little
, she could see them. They were large and full, as white as the clouds above, and looked to be as soft as a baby’s skin. She pulled her hand from his and touched the upper ward curve of her right wing and realized she could feel it through her body. Kala looked at Riss.

“
I have wings.” He laughed when she did and nodded. “What the hell am I supposed to do now? Can I fly?”

“
Whatever you like. As of right now, you’ve taken the steps necessary to be a Mystic. Having your wings will open all the other things you can do. As well as your immortality.” He kissed her mouth and pulled back slightly. “I wish we were alone. I’ve been practicing with my ties, and I think I have a knot that will keep you safe and secured to our bed so that I can explore every inch of you.”

Kala felt her knees tremble and her body react to him.
Looking around him, she saw that at some point Lily had gone and now it was just the two of them in the open field. Moving her hand down his chest to his cock, she cupped him in her hand and held him. He moaned as he rocked forward.

“
I thought I was going to go first.” He shook his head and leaned into her throat. She loved it when he nipped at her, and she wanted to pull him down so she could do that same to him. When he growled low, she wrapped her free arm around his waist and held him for support.

“
I’m going to enjoy taking you when they’re all gone. I plan to strip you naked and touch parts of you that I’ve missed. I think there is a great deal more of you to lick and kiss that you denied me the other day.” She doubted he’d missed anything of her, but before she could say it, he continued. “When I’m finished with your body, I plan to take you hard and fast while you’re still tied down. I want to be able to release inside of you without you touching me. You distract me from my purpose.”

“
There are people in the house, and I think they’ve overstayed their welcome.” His laughter seemed to skim along her skin. “Seriously, I think you should tell them that we’ve had enough today and need some quiet time. Some really quiet time on the bed. Can you do that?”

“
Or we could do this.” She felt him wrap his wings around her and felt cocooned by it. Then when he opened them again, they were in their bedroom. Riss picked her up and laid her gently on the bed.

“
What about the rest of them? Won’t they wonder what the hell happened to us when they go outside to get us?” He told her they had to get their own wives. “Really, Riss, we can’t just come up here and have sex because—”

Her mouth watered when he ran his hands
down his chest and his shirt disappeared. Then when he touched his pants, they, too, were gone, and he stood before her in a pair of silky boxers and nothing else. She could see that he was hard, and there was a small stain on the front where his cock was. Kala decided that she could care less what the rest of them did, and as far as she was concerned, she had all she needed right there.

“
Spread your arms and legs for me.” Nodding, she did as he asked. “I’m not going to harm you. You know that, correct?”

“
I know.” She watched him as he moved to her arms and tied a bright blue tie around her wrist. “You do know that this is going to ruin them, don’t you? You have some really pretty ties. Are you sure you want to do this?”

“
Oh yes.” When her left arm was secure, he moved to her left ankle. “And I have thousands of ties, and if it takes us lifetimes to ruin them, I will simply purchase more of them.”

When he had her tied to the bed
, she looked at him. He was looking at her as if she were a feast and he was going to gorge himself. As soon as he put his first knee on the bed and started up her body, Kala felt her pussy soak.

“
Riss, I’m not going to last long. And with all my clothes on, you’re not going to enjoy this as much as I am.” He put his hand on her pant leg, and she felt his bare touch. Looking down, she saw that her pants were gone and she was laying there in her panties. “You can do that to me, too?”

“
You can as well. Strip me naked and yourself with just a touch.” He would tell her this after he tied her up when there was no way for her to test out this new thing. “Do you want me to let you go?”

“
Yes. No.” He grinned as he touched her pussy. “Riss, please? You’re killing me. Just let me come and I’ll be able to take more of your play.”

“
Oh, I will play. I have a lovely body here to explore. And I plan to take all the time I can with you.”

That
’s what she was afraid of.

~~~

Tasting her as he licked along her thigh, Riss could feel her muscles move under his tongue. Every quiver of her skin made him want to do more to her. And her scent was almost more than he could bare. Licking along the top of her panties, Riss heard her begging him again and slid his finger under the elastic and along her gate. She nearly bucked him off when he buried his nose in her wet heat.

“
Come for me, Kala. I would love to taste you as you do.” Her body reacted to his request by doing just as he’d asked her to do. He touched the silk and removed it as he lapped hungrily at her. When she came a second, then a third time, Riss sat up. It was time to get serious about exploring her. Moving to the end of the bed, he touched his fingers gently to her ankle and started telling her what he was finding.

“
Do you have any idea how lovely your ankles are? This one I love the most because of the art you’ve had put here.” He kissed the small angel and moved his mouth over her tiny toes. “And these little gems are so beautiful. The way you paint them bright red, yet hide them away so that no one but you and I know what you’ve done. Why do you do that?” He didn’t expect an answer so wasn’t really surprised when she didn’t give him one. But moving up to her calf had him pause. He loved a woman’s legs, and these were exceptional.

“
I’ve watched women walk before and wondered how they did it. Their hips swing back and forth, feet in small shoes with such high heels.” He kissed the back of her leg and then licked a path up to the back of her knee. “But you’ve got walking down to perfection. The way your body seems to have mastered it long before any other person has. It moves and sways like it’s a form of art. And it’s all mine now.”

Her knee held a special interest to him because he found a small scar there.
Running his finger over the long-ago wound, he was surprised at how badly he wanted to go and find the reason it was there and harm someone for it. But when he ran his tongue over the wound, he discovered that she’d done it herself falling from an apple tree.