Going Under (12 page)

He spun her, backing her against a nearby wall where he could ease into another level
of the kiss. He slowed it down, kissing her deeply until he felt her spine ease as
she gave in and let him taste.

She smelled so good. Her perfume was one thing, but as they kissed and her skin heated,
her magick began to warm as well, scenting the air between them. His rose to respond,
swirling around them, making him dizzy.

The phone in her pocket began to buzz and she sighed softly, breaking the kiss.

He was unable to tear his gaze from her mouth as she answered, his body still caging
hers to keep her in place. Once she finished that call he had some more smooching
in mind.

“Yes, yes. I’m going to look now. Thanks for the heads-up. He’s here with me. I’ll
tell him.” She hung up and looked up, her lips swollen from his kisses. Christ.

“You’re going to tell me something that’s totally going to kill the mood, aren’t you?”

She nodded. “Several windows in the lobby of the building have been broken. The protesters.
They discovered the back exit too and are now blocking the driveway. Meriel’s car
was damaged. That was her calling. I need to update the website. We’ve already been
urging people to travel in pairs. I’ll have to reiterate that.”

His phone started buzzing too. Lark, he realized when he pulled it from his back pocket.
He answered and slid into hunter mode as she began to give him details.

Molly’s hands shook a little as she fixed her hair and got her makeup reapplied.

Holy hell, Gage Garrity was an Olympic-class kisser.

She was a sucker for a good, slow kiss. It was like he read her mind as he’d crowded
her against that wall and his mouth had found hers. His arms around her were tight
but not restrictive. And he meandered. Tasting. Teasing. Seducing. He even made several
deep moans of appreciation as she’d held on tight, giving as good as he gave.

He’d also apologized. Genuinely. Shown her a bit of the man behind all that anger.
Something else she was a sucker for.

And really, she realized as she blotted her lipstick, she was apparently a sucker
for Gage.

She sighed.

Her computer was booted up and she issued a brief statement about the new information
about the Borache family’s condition and also the recent violence and vandalism at
the Owen building, urging all of Clan Owen to remain vigilant and to travel in groups.
She then called Gennessee to let them know. They didn’t really have their own media
person so she’d done some stuff for them as well. She had an assistant of sorts down
there so Molly gave her the URL for the update she’d just given.

The news from Los Angeles wasn’t any better. There’d been a record number of assaults
and harassment complaints that week. Since PURITY had started outing Others, they’d
also created a gallery of sorts on their websites and had joined with multiple affiliates.
And now they were including information like home addresses and work information.
Two Gennessee members were currently in jail for a fight they’d gotten into outside
a popular nightclub. At least the humans involved were also in jail.

Small things. She needed to hold on to the small things.

* * *

HE
came to her as she was finishing up.

“I’m sorry for the interruption. I have to go. We’re going to help the cops canvas
the area around the crash to see what we can find out.”

“Of course. I hate to be the bearer of more bad news, but did you hear about the stuff
in Los Angeles?”

He blew out a breath. “Yes. I checked in with Lark and she told me.”

He paused and she realized that if he apologized for the kiss, she would have to kick
him in the shin.

“I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“No. I’m flying to Sacramento tomorrow. I’m going to a luncheon and then testifying
at the state house. There’s a dinner reception deal that night so I’ll be back day
after tomorrow. I’ll check in with you then.”

“I’m going with you. The protesters . . . well, they know you’re here. I’ve taken
the room on your other side here tonight.”

My.

“I like to be at the airport nice and early.” It stressed her out to even contemplate
being late for something. But he didn’t need to know that part.

“Oh shit, did no one tell you?”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “What?”

“Cascadia is loaning us one of their planes and a pilot. She’s apparently hot shit.
A veteran and a jaguar shifter too. Anyway she’s flying us down.”

Private plane? Well, that would make things a lot easier, she supposed. But she didn’t
like that she hadn’t been consulted or even notified of this change until that moment.

“Nice to be told of such things.” Rita was usually better than this.

And then he just kept talking like he hadn’t been busted. She had to give him points
for sheer will to pretend she hadn’t caught him meddling in her business and not telling
her about it.

He even leaned in a little, crowding her. Goddess help her, it totally worked and
it was sort of hard to remember she was annoyed at him.

“It’s far safer and quicker too. I don’t know if my office told Rita. That’s my fault.”

It was the jaunty smile that pushed her back into annoyed. It would not do to let
him get away with such a thing or he’d do it more. He was bold that way and he liked
to be in control even more than she did. And it was entirely too tempting to let him
take control, to take over and make things happen.

“You’re damn right it’s your fault.” Molly stood, to get some space and a breath he
didn’t fill up with his magick. “You can’t just make all these choices for me without
even consulting me! This is my job. Pretty much every minute of my day is scheduled
so I need to know this. Rita needs to know this so she can keep my calendar.”

“Hey look, my office is busy!”

Oh, he had to make it easy. “
You’re
the one who takes the calls. A call about
my
transportation should come to
my
office, not yours. You treat me like . . . like I don’t even matter. I’m not your
charge, for goodness’ sake. I probably could have fit a meeting in tomorrow morning
before I flew out. I turned several down because I thought I had to be at the airport.
This isn’t just courtesy, this is part of my job. As such I expect to be kept in the
loop.”

He growled and parts of her tingled. Her brain and the logic part of her body had
to constantly wrestle with the senses, who really, really liked Gage Garrity.

“It’s my job to protect you. You
are
my charge in that way. And I forgot. Sue me.”

“Sue you? Is that all you have for me?”

“You’re determined to be mad. Maybe I should kiss you again to shut you up.”

“Is that right? Well, give it a try if you’re feeling particularly brave.”

He got very still and focused on her with such intensity it made her rather dizzy.
She’d just pushed him and she waited to see how he’d respond. It was so irresponsible
of her. She should be all business but man, oh man, he was like Fran’s salted caramels.
He made her mouth water and she knew he was bad for her in large doses but she was
going to eat that next piece and she knew it.

His anger washed away as he took a step toward her and swept her into his arms, the
warmth of his mouth settling against her lips. She sighed, giving over to the pleasure
of it, making a mental note to continue her point later. First it was time to kiss.

Her mouth was heaven. So soft. Her lips opened to him immediately as she wrapped her
arms around his neck. Her body against his lit him up. He wanted so much more than
this kiss. Wanted what he should not even be contemplating. But he couldn’t stop thinking
about it as her taste slid through his senses, taking over.

Need beat at him and he wanted to back her to the couch and get down to a little bit
more than kissing.

But he had to go.

Damn it.

Reluctantly, he broke the kiss and gave her another—just a quick one. “I like that.
Maybe I need to make you mad more often to get a little of this.”

Her smile was genuine and he felt a little better. “Saucy. Seems that once you put
your lips on a gal you loosen up a bit.”

He snorted a laugh, liking this side of her. “Well, it tends to do me that way. Your
lips anyway. Faine is here so I’d like it if you left the connecting door open once
you were ready to go to sleep. I’ve also got some people outside who’ll patrol past
several times a night. Don’t open your door to anyone but people you know.”

She blew out a breath but didn’t argue. While he was relieved, he was sad too that
she’d come to accept that as reality.

He licked his lips and shoved his hands in his pockets before he reached for her again.

“I’ll see you tomorrow morning to take you to the airport. And I promise to be better
about coordination with your office.” He paused.

“That wasn’t hard at all now, was it? Stay safe, Gage.”

If only she knew just how hard it,
he
, was just then . . .

Chapter 13

SHE
hadn’t realized how fortunate she was to live in Seattle until they got closer to
the state house in Sacramento. The crowds scared her.

Gage looked her way. “I’ve touched base with some local Others. They’re working with
the police to handle our security. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

Admittedly, she felt better.

“This is . . .” Molly didn’t even have words for it. There was so much energy humming
in the air. So many passionate feelings in one place. The volume of it began to build
as they drove through. Precarious.

“Why aren’t there more police?” There had to be thousands of people on both sides
of the Other issue. And not nearly enough police. Already things were tense, she wasn’t
sure how they could hold a riot off if one should break out.

“There should be. Lark’s sister, Helena, is coming up for the day from Los Angeles.
She’s a hunter too. Anyway, she’s coordinating with the local shifters. We’ve got
a good personal detail.” Gage held her gaze the entire time and while she was reassured,
she couldn’t stop thinking about how he kissed.

“I trust you.”

He nodded. “Good. If and when I tell you to do something today, I need you to do it
immediately. Even if you think it’s stupid. All right?”

She blew out a breath. “All right. Just don’t tell me to do anything stupid.”

A smile hinted at his mouth. “I’ll try.”

Maybe they were understaffed there at the capitol, but it really just felt like they
didn’t care. She let out a long sigh and went back to her notes. She had a lunch meeting
with a few key legislators, then she would testify and then later that evening she
had a dinner to attend. She needed to get her head in the game. It didn’t matter why
there weren’t more police there. She just had to put it out of her mind.

They pulled the car as close as they could. When Gage opened her door and got out
first, she heard it. The tone buzzed in her head. So much anger in the crowd. It surged
and then moved back and she shoved her fear as far away as she could. It was go time
and there was no place for fear in what she had to do that day.

“I don’t like this.” He got closer to her, keeping at her side to shield her body.
Which was difficult, as the crowd seemed to move like the tide.

Just a few steps from the main doors and the crowd surged again, seeming to suck Gage
away with great force. It was during her alarm for him that she lost her focus. Until
she nearly fell. Hands touched her. Some trying to help, Others, not so much.

It was hard to keep track of everything happening because it all seemingly happened
at once. Molly heard the sound first, the ripping of her suit jacket and then felt
the cold on her skin. Then the pain as her hair got pulled. In those seconds of confusion,
Gage shoved his way forward, pushing the crowd back, managing to grab the person who’d
thrown . . . whatever it was. He’d been so strong and so fast, his magick had seem
to rush off him, nearly scalding hot. A moment of panic chilled her as she took in
his ferocity. It calmed her even as she worried he’d really hurt someone because they’d
harmed her.

The police managed to get her into the building, closing the doors, and the noise
of the crowd dimmed enough that she could hear the pounding of her pulse and her strained
breathing as she attempted to get herself back together.

“Are you all right?” Helena—Lark’s sister, it was clear from the resemblance—shouldered
over while Gage had a very terse conversation with the police as he handed the person,
still screaming insults at Molly, off. His rage billowed from him and even the police,
who couldn’t see his energy, could sense it. One kept touching his side arm.

But then they turned their attention to the woman who’d attacked Molly and their distrust
of Gage eased back enough that she was relatively sure no one was going to get shot.

With a slightly shaky sigh, Molly looked at herself in the reflection of the glass
doors. “No, as it happens, I’m not.” She pulled her jacket off. Covered in white powder
of some sort as well as ripped in several places. Ruined. Damn it, she loved that
suit. “This was a favorite.”

“I’m sorry. This shouldn’t have happened. It’s a great jacket. Color is perfect for
you. Dumb cow.” Helena looked toward where the cops had the woman.

“I don’t expect you to be perfect.” Even as she spoke to Helena, Molly couldn’t tear
her gaze from Gage.

“It’s our job to protect you.”

She did turn back to Helena then. “You did. There are thousands of people out there.
When the crowd surged it was impossible to keep any space around me. That’s when she
grabbed me. You have to trust that on some level the human authorities did their job
too. You can’t be everywhere. I’m not physically injured so that’s a plus.”

“I don’t think the human authorities did do their job.”

“What if it was some sort of bio agent!”

They turned to take in Gage as he got right in the cop’s face and Molly realized she’d
never even considered that. Her stomach dropped and she clamped her teeth together,
breathing through her nose.

“This person threw white powder all over Ms. Ryan. How do we know what it is? Why
are you not arresting her?”

“It’s flour. She’s disturbing the peace but your boss wasn’t injured.”

Molly was now angry. Far more angry than scared. She stalked over, pushing her way
between them. “You’d know that how? As far as I can tell you’ve not even asked after
my condition.”

The cop looked her over, his disgust clear on his features.

She pulled her pad out and uncapped her pen. She needed to control something. So why
not her job? She could do this and maybe give this asshole a little fear of God while
she was at it.

“You look just fine to me.”

“Oh well, that’s an accurate measure I’m sure. You are? I’ll need your badge number
as well.”

“I don’t need to tell you anything.”

She raised her brows and then looked to Helena and Gage before turning back to the
cop. “Well, as it happens, you do. I’m a citizen requesting this information.” She
peered at his name tag and wrote it down. “So, Officer Phillips, how about it? Your
badge number?”

He rattled off a number and made sure to sound extra insolent.

But he wasn’t done. “You’re not a citizen. I don’t owe you shit.”

Molly cocked her head. “Oh, but I am. I’m imbued with all the rights and responsibilities
therein. Your
personal
opinion of me is of absolutely no concern. You either do your job, or you don’t. I
don’t know how your department is run, but if any of my staff doesn’t do their job,
they get fired.” She held his gaze, letting him know just exactly what she meant before
she moved on. “Now, I plan to press assault charges so you’ll need to do your job
or I can certainly find someone else who will. It’s your choice, but I will not be
ignored or bullied into letting you turn this person back out into that crowd.”

Another police officer burst into their circle.

“What the hell is going on here, Phillips?”

Molly turned to that officer and told him.

“Excuse me, ma’am.” That officer yanked Phillips off to the side, clearly chewing
him out.

Phillips shuffled away without even a look over his shoulder. The other officer returned
to them. “Now, Ms. Ryan, I’m sorry you had to go through that. I’m going to take your
statement. Would you like to freshen up? The building is secure inside.”

“No. I’m going in now. Can you take my statement as we go? I don’t want to be late
for the luncheon.”

The officer nodded. “More than likely there’s also video footage. She also admitted
what she did to Officer Phillips.”

“I’d also like it known, officially, that your officer was rude and refused my request
for his badge number. I do not give a fig what anyone thinks of me. I do, however,
give a very large amount of importance to people managing to do their sworn duty.”

“Yes, ma’am. I agree.” His manner was solemn and she quite liked that.

She began to recount her memory of what had happened outside the doors and then the
situation with the cop. Before he left, Officer Lynde gave Gage and Helena his card,
urging them to contact him so they could better coordinate any other events they’d
be involved in while Molly was in the city.

Gage watched her as she walked down the hall, her head high even though her hair had
been partially ripped from her usual chic bun thing. Her jacket had been a ruin of
egg and flour but she held it, folded over her arm.

He’d come very close to punching the stupid bitch who’d attacked Molly. In fact, he
had used his magick to shove her away from Molly and then to bring her close enough
to grab and haul into the building so she could be taken into custody. He’d never
had that sort of power and range in a spell before. Again he thought about the way
his power had ramped up since the Magister. Thank goodness he had it then, though
he’d had to use all his control not to leave the bitch a bloody, twisted mess.

He leaned in close. To a casual observer, she looked together, though disheveled.
But he saw the cracks in her demeanor and knew she was struggling with her composure.
“You sure you don’t want to fix up?”

She kept her voice down. “I want them to see me this way, Gage. They need to be confronted
with this insanity. They can’t be in the hospital to see Eric Borache’s daughter.
They won’t be at the funerals. But they should not be able to avoid all evidence of
just what is happening out there.”

Damn she was smart.

“I’ll need a new suit; there’s one in my bag back at the hotel. After the lunch I’ll
go back to get it.”

“No. You’ll tell me where it is and what you need and I’ll have someone get it for
you. I don’t want you running that gauntlet out there again.”

“I won’t argue with that. Thank you.”

“I’m sorry.”

They arrived at the luncheon room and she turned before going in. “For what?”

“I told you I’d protect you and I didn’t.”

“I didn’t get shot. I didn’t get stabbed or otherwise physically harmed. I said the
same thing to Helena, but I want you to listen because I get the feeling you’re taking
this personally. You can’t protect me from everything. Especially in these types of
crowds.”

“No one should be allowed to do that to you.”

She smiled. “No, but it happened.” She shrugged. “Let’s be glad it wasn’t worse.
You’re
the reason why. I know you used your magick to get her back, to protect me. You did
your job and I’m thankful for it. Now, let’s go in. Keep your fingers crossed for
cheesecake.”

* * *

THE
people in the room took one look at her and stood immediately. “What’s going on? Is
everything all right?”

A tall man in a navy-blue suit approached. From the news, Gage knew this was Toshio
Sato, one of California’s two members of the United States Senate.

“A scuffle outside with an unstable woman armed with hate, eggs and flour. There’s
quite a large crowd out there still with not too many police to keep them in check.
I do hope the security will be heightened for our hearing later. For now, please tell
me there’s some coffee.” She smiled up at Sato and Gage fought his frown. She wasn’t
flirting in any way. There was nothing intimate or sexual about how she was acting.
But Gage liked it when she smiled at
him
, not other good-looking and successful dudes.

“I’m going to have my aide connect with the police here.” Sato nodded at Molly. “For
now, sit. We’ll get the salads out and definitely a cup of coffee.”

“Thank you. Oh, Senator Sato, this is Gage Garrity, he’s the head of security for
Clan Owen. Helena Jaansen, who holds the same job only down in Los Angeles for Clan
Gennessee.”

Gage shook the man’s hand, as did Helena. “Perhaps I can speak with your aide regarding
security?”

The senator looked up and indicated that the man in the far corner come over. Sato
made the introductions.

Molly put her ruined jacket on a chair and sat at one of the tables, tucking her hair
back up quickly as she was introduced around to the others. Gage moved to a corner
of the room with Helena and the rest of the team to coordinate with the senator’s
aide.

When they left, some four hours later, it was after a truly wonderful lunch and some
pretty good testimony in front of the joint committee Sato had begun to set up. The
members were made up of state and federal legislators, most of whom seemed to want
to make peace between Others and humans. It was the first tangible step that had given
her real hope since she’d started this job.

* * *

THEY’D
been able to get her out a back door and to the car without any further insanity.
And when she got back to her hotel room and had a moment alone she called her mother
to tell her about the events of the day before she saw it on television.

“I don’t like this, Molly. You could get far more than flour thrown on you. These
people . . . Rosa’s going to kill me for telling you, but you need to know.”

Molly sat. “Tell me.”

“Their house was broken into and trashed. Windows broken, graffiti all over the place.
Moll, they shot the dog!”

Molly gasped. “They shot Jellybean? Is she all right? Is Rosa all right? Was anyone
hurt? When did this happen and why didn’t anyone tell me?”

“Jellybean is dead, honey. I’m sorry. Rosa is physically fine. She’s staying with
Anthony Junior for the time being. It happened last weekend. She didn’t want you to
know because she knows how stressed you already are. She did decide to take the offer
of early retirement, so that’s a relief to her at least.”

Molly tried very hard not to cry. “And you? How’s your job?”

“The union isn’t going to let them screw me over. Not until or unless they have no
choice.”

“I read about the proposed new rules.” There was a new law moving its way through
state legislatures across the country, barring Others from holding teaching jobs at
public elementary, secondary and postsecondary schools without a waiver. All Others
had to declare their
origin
and agree to an entirely different set of employment rules before they’d be hired.
Molly knew it was a way to fire teachers whose positions were protected from this
sort of nonsense.