Riss (8 page)

~~~

Riss waited for Robert to come into the office with him and Tholan, but he was running behind, Tholan had told him. Riss didn’t care, he just wanted to get back to the house and watch over Kala. She hadn’t been sleeping well, and he wanted to comfort her while she did so. When the door opened just as Riss was going to ask again if he could leave, he knew something had gone terribly wrong. As soon as Robert walked in the door, Riss had to sit down. It was that or fall over.

“
He’s killed two more people.” Riss looked at Tholan when Robert didn’t continue right away. Tholan didn’t look any better at the news than Riss felt. The man, Daniel Carey, needed to be stopped.

“
What have you done to get him help?” Help? Riss looked at Tholan when he asked. The man didn’t need help, he needed to be brought over so he could be dealt with.

“
I’ve done all I can, but he is thinking on a plane that is no longer one I can reach. Today when he took a knife to a man’s head and removed it from his shoulders, I felt my connection to him sever as well. He is all alone now, and I’ve no way to reach him.”

Riss had heard of this before
, but in his experience by the time they got this far from them, the protector had already made arrangements to get help. Before he could ask Robert who he had brought, Tholan answered his unspoken question.

“
We’re so shorthanded now. I’m so sorry that I couldn’t get you someone sooner, Robert, but I did try. I’m guessing that Arryn couldn’t do much either?” Robert shook his head. “I’m not sure what else we can do. I’ve done all I can from here. I’m sorry. I truly am. Perhaps our best bet now is to make sure that he doesn’t get to the girl. At all costs, we must keep her safe. Do you suppose he knows where Miss Marrow is?”

“
No, he doesn’t know. But he is obsessed with her to the point of thinking that all the things that he’s imagined between them are real now. Before, he would have days where he could reason with himself that they were not a couple, but he’s beyond that now. He’s even gone as far as to tell the restaurant that he’d been to with his mother that it was Kala that had been with him. He’d been there to see if they’d seen her, and all they could recall was him and an older woman. Mr. Carey got very upset with them until they called the cops. But he was long gone by the time they arrived.” Robert looked at him. “Riss, I’m so sorry about this. I’ve tried my best to get him to understand, but he was gone long before this. If I could have gotten through to him today I would have, but he is stronger than me now. His mind is no longer open to suggestions that I can use to get him to see reason.”

Riss wanted to go to Kala even more now. But he knew that without enough information as to where this man had gone
, he wouldn’t know how to protect her. Instead of asking Robert why he didn’t ask for help sooner, he nodded his understanding and asked him if he remembered anything else. He thought about what Robert had already told him, and he was more afraid for Kala now than ever before.

“
I’ve asked Sheppard to have the neighbors call the police. He’s the protector watching over their new baby, and was nearby when I came away from the house. When I left, he was having their neighbor go over with the thought of borrowing a cup of milk. It was all we could think of. The front door is unlocked and standing slightly open, so hopefully she’ll see enough to call the authorities but not go inside. It’s a mess.”

A mess.
Riss tried not to think about the mess that had been made in killing two people. He did think about the one and only time he’d been assigned a serial killer. Even as a child, he had been hard to control, but as he grew older and stronger, there was little that Riss could do on his own. He’d left bodies of women everywhere he’d gone, killing them in such a brutal way that it was hard for the humans to figure out who they might have been. Finally, he and Tholan had decided to bring in Michael. It didn’t end well for any of them. The man had finally killed himself and became beyond their realm then. He was sure this wasn’t going to end well for a great many people, either.

“
Do you suppose we should bring in Michael? He would be able to connect with him more than we could.” Tholan was shaking his head even before Riss finished speaking.

“
We’ve tried that already. Michael went to him just yesterday. All the man kept doing was rocking back and forth and saying a nursery rhyme over and over…the one where the cow jumped over the moon.” Tholan got up to pace, and Riss watched him as he continued speaking. “We’ve tried all we can think of. That’s why I’ve brought you here, Riss. I need for you to take someone with you from now on to watch over Kala. It’s important that she live.”

Riss knew that to be true.
She was carrying his child, but he thought maybe Tholan meant something else. But he thought of something before he could ask about what he’d meant…the house.

“
She will have a better chance at the house I’m purchasing for her.” Robert looked at him oddly, but Riss didn’t care. This was his woman and his babe. “There I will be able to watch over her without anyone knowing that she lives there. The police are doing a fine job so far, but I believe she will need more than they can offer before this is finished. At least this home is protected in a way that the police cannot.”

“
But you’ve not closed on anything, have you?” Riss shook his head. The people selling the home he wanted were being too slow. He was nearly ready to move on to another house if they didn’t respond about his offer. But this one he loved for his child and Kala. “Then we’ll have her stay where she is for now. They may not have your power, Riss, but they will do better than you can alone if she is not in an enhanced home.”

Riss had been given permission to have the home he was purchasing for Kala secured
, meaning that some of his power was surrounding the house and property at all times….including after he was gone. Riss tried not to think about his own death now. It hurt him in ways he’d never dreamed it would. And it was no longer the thought of leaving behind his child. To leave Kala was more painful than the thought of his friends he’d had since the beginning.

“
Riss?” He looked at Tholan and realized he must have been talking to him for some time. He also noticed that Robert was gone. “You okay?”

“
Yes. No.” Riss took a deep breath and let it out slowly before answering again. “I honestly don’t know. I feel good when I’m with her and empty when I’m not. Am I supposed to feel this way in this new program that we’re in? If so, then I don’t think it will work. It’s much too painful.”

Riss hoped so
, but he had a feeling it was all him. He wanted to hold her, to touch her again. Keep her in his arms for all times. The child would be his, and he found that he wanted to watch it grow within her belly, touch him when he moved. He wanted to play with the babe, take him on long walks with his mother, and do things that he’d seen humans do with their own children.

“
It’s not. I’m sorry, Riss, but what you’re experiencing is just something you have done on your own. I’m not sure that it’s love, but it is something very close.” Tholan sat down as he continued. “How is she doing with all this? I know that you can’t speak with her, but you must hear what she says to the others around her.”

“
She is…she is Kala. I’ve never met a stronger woman. All this going on around her and she seems to be doing well. There are times when I can feel her sadness, but before I can speak to her about it, she brings herself around and is better for it.” Riss smiled. “I think she is doing better than I am, if you want to know the truth.”

“
And have you stayed out of her reach?” Riss nodded. “Good. I am still trying to think of ways for you to be with her before you die, but I’m not having any luck with it. Michael said that things are in motion, and changing them now would have too much of a ripple effect on other things.”

The same thing he
’d told him the other morning. Riss had made a mistake with this quitting thing, several as a matter of fact, and now he was going to have to live with them. He wished so many times that he’d not met Kala, but he also thought of how much richer the last days of his life would be because of her being in it. When Tholan’s phone rang, Riss left him. It was about time for him to go back to earth anyway.

Chapter
8

Kala sat at the table. She had gotten up from the bed for some reason, and now all she could think about was feathers. Stupid thing was that all the pillows in the apartment she was staying in had foam in them, not a single feather to be found anywhere. She had even tried the comforter and found that it was made with some sort of thick padding. Things were going from weird to weirder all the time. Then there was the box that she’d found that morning. She had a vague idea that she’d talked to someone about it, but for the life of her couldn’t think who it had been.

Within it were all sorts of things she knew didn
’t belong to her. There was a man’s shirt, as well as a medallion on a gold chain. But it was the medallion that she continued to think about. It was gold with small jewels surrounding it. Most of them she knew, but there were several that she did not. And in the center of it was a man dressed in what appeared to be something from ages ago, an outfit that she knew was something he would have worn to war, complete with a breastplate and helmet. He held a shield in one hand and a sword in the other, and around his head, it appeared that he had a halo, one made of gold.

She had put the long chain around her neck and hadn
’t been able to take it off since she’d put it there. For some reason it made her feel warm and safe. The shirt now lay on her bed, and she’d not even bothered to wonder why she’d had the urge to sleep in it. She knew that as soon as she retired for the night it was going to be the only thing she had on. And if those two things weren’t strange enough, there was the file.

In it were houses
for sale…not just pictures, but specs for each of them. One of them, the one she had loved the moment she’d seen it, was a nice, big farmhouse with a hundred acres around it, with five bedrooms, four baths, and a kitchen she could see herself baking all sorts of things in. The entire house had been updated too; big closets in every bedroom, the bathrooms with all new showers, and the master bath had a large claw-foot tub, just like the ones she’d seen as a kid. And the yard. She could see a swing set in the front, a large sand box in the rear, dogs and cats running through the barn, and fields with the children.

Sighing heavily
, she closed the folder on the pipe dreams and put it under the place mat. Kala knew that things like this were never going to be in her cards, and she might as well give up on it now. Getting up, she went to the fridge to get a glass of water and turned to see a man standing in the kitchen with her. As freaky as it was, she wasn’t afraid of him or the fact that she had no idea how he’d gotten into the apartment with her.

“
Hello. Do I know you?” She’d been introduced to all the cops before they started watching her. Just last night she’d met the newest man, and he’d not been overly fond of her, she could tell. There was something so…she wanted to say evil, but that wasn’t right either. As much as she’d hated to do it, she’d asked Benny to have him removed from her detail.

“
No, you shouldn’t. My name is not important. What is important is why I’m here. Did you pick out a house yet?” She glanced at the folder and then back at him. “I need to get things started for the other end. Could you tell me which it was?”

“
Other end?” She looked again at the folder, then back at him. “I’m sorry. What does me liking a house have to do with anything? It’s not another safe house, is it? I like this one very much, and I’m afraid if you took me to any of those houses there, I’d never want to leave.”

“
It won’t be necessary for you to. Things are progressing quickly now that I have narrowed it down.” She was slightly confused by his statement, but when he reached for the folder, she waited for him to say something else as he looked over the different pictures. “This one?”

She nodded
, and he smiled. “I don’t know why they’d let me pick out my own house. It’s not as if I could afford it or anything.”

The folder seemed to disappear
, but she didn’t comment. Actually, she was sort of afraid to. Not that this man looked like he was going to harm her…just the opposite as a matter of fact. She found she wanted to be with him in an “I need you to keep me safe” sort of way. When he smiled at her, she flushed.

“
What the fuck is going on?” He laughed but didn’t answer her. “I mean, I have all these weird feelings over the past few days, like I need to be held. I’m not a person who generally feels the need for people to hug me. And then there’s the houses and me picking them out. The shirt on my bed is another thing I don’t understand. Whose is it? And where did it come from? And feathers. I need a feather.”

“
Feather?” the man asked. Kala nodded. “I see. And this need for the feather, do you have any idea what you would do with it once you had one?”

She felt her face heat up
, but he didn’t seem to notice, or if he did, he didn’t seem to be going to comment. Sitting down at the table, she waited for him to either pop out of her life or sit with her. Either way, she was having a nervous breakdown soon.

“
I have the strangest dreams, too. Of a man making love to me.” She looked up at him when she realized what she’d said. “I’m sorry.”

“
No worries. You need someone to talk to, and your protector is unable to do it with you.” He seemed to look over her shoulder, and she turned, too. When she looked back at the man, he was smiling at her. “I think he loves you very much.”

“
Who?” She felt her body heat up…not sexually, but with a warmth all the same. When she looked back, there was no one there, of course, and turning back, the man was gone as well. And so was the paperwork on the house.

Kala sat there for a long time.
She heard the doors open and close down the hall, and then one of the men came in to use the bathroom. But still, she sat. Benny came in a while later, and she grinned at him. The man had a way about him that had her wanting to tease him into a smile.

“
You’ve been absent from my daily watchers.” He nodded at her and smiled back as she continued. “I’ve been thinking that this whole thing isn’t necessary. I think that as soon as it could be arranged, I’d like to—”

“
There’s been another two murders.”

Kala felt her skin tighten on her body.
She was wishing now that she’d not told Benny to stop treating her with kid gloves and to tell her straight up what the hell was going on. She didn’t want him beating around the bush anymore. “A couple was killed in their home not a block from here. We’re not sure if it’s just a coincidence or planned, but we’re tightening our circle around you.”

“
He killed a couple? Are you’re sure it was him?” Benny nodded. “I can’t believe he’s doing this. Dan always seemed so…well, I guess normal. But that’s not quite right either. I think in the back of my mind I sort of knew he was a little stranger than normal. But I guess I didn’t want to believe it of him. And now he’s chasing me, and no one seems to have a fucking clue as to why. Do you know? Do you know why me?”

“
I’m sorry, Kala, I don’t know. And if asked, he more than likely doesn’t know either. It could be that you were in the right place at the right time in his life. Or it may be that you reminded him of someone long ago. It’s hard to tell.” He laid the newspaper on the table between them, but she didn’t reach for it as she had every time he brought her one. “If it makes you feel any better, I’ve taken the front section out and only left you the ads.”

Taking the paper
, she nodded her thanks as he got up to leave. She was looking for the help wanted section when she heard him say her name. Looking up, she could see that he was as exhausted as she’d ever seen anyone look.

“
Don’t open the door for anyone. And my men will no longer be coming in here to use the bathroom or for any other reason except for when you call them. I don’t want to leave you in a position where you simply don’t know.” Kala thought about asking him if ghosts counted, but didn’t. He would have her locked up if she did. He continued as if she were as sane as he was. “Kala, we’ll have to work together on this. All of us. Once he’s caught, and he will be, we’ll need to keep you out of the papers or others will come for you too.”

“
Come for me? What do you mean ‘others will come for me’? Why?” She thought she knew the answer to her own question, but he answered her before she could say it.

“
Because there are a lot of sick people out there and they’d love to have their name attached to his, no matter what the circumstances are surrounding it. Fame is fame to some of these nut balls.” Kala nodded. “Lock the door with the chain. And when you retire tonight, make sure that you put a chair under the knob. It won’t keep him out if he’s determined to come in, but it will slow him enough that my men can get here. There is no reason for you to take chances.”

After Benny left
, she decided to take a long, hot bath. Whatever jobs might be out there for her were not going to wait on Dan getting caught. She didn’t want to think of what was in store for him now. After killing so many people, he would be lucky if he ever made it to jail, much less a trial. She hoped that someone caught up with him before he got to her., because now she knew that it was no longer an issue of if he would get to her, but when. As she slipped into the hot water, she started talking to herself.

“
Can you imagine me having that house? All those lovely trees and so much yard?” Giggling, she thought if anyone could hear her now, they’d think she was just as looney as Dan. Minus the murdering, of course. “And that kitchen. I know I keep coming back to it, but I have always wanted a big kitchen. With a window over the sink. The lady at the orphanage used to tell me when I would sneak in there that having a window over the sink is like having a window to the world. I guess she could see things I couldn’t out hers, but that’s okay. It made her happy.”

Shaving her legs
, she felt the water slide over her skin, and her body heated with need. The man in her dreams would know what to do, and she wanted to close her eyes and wait for him. But there was no way she was going to sleep now. She’d be awake way before the sun if she did.

“
Kala girl, you’re not used to all this idle shit. You need a job.” Laughing, she thought about something crafty to do, and for the life of her couldn’t think of a single thing. There had been this girl at the cable company that could take other people’s pictures and put them in an album that seemed to come alive with stickers and stuff. She could barely remember to print hers when she wanted a copy of them, and had simply kept them on her old cell phone. Which reminded her, she had to see about paying her bills soon. Even though she no longer had one thanks to Dan, she still had bills to pay.

“
I wonder how I can do that. Pay my bills, I mean. Do you think they have a courier service that will take my money to get money orders so I don’t get…wait, I don’t have an electric bill anymore.” Giggling again, she lay back in the water and closed her eyes. “I guess all I have is the cell bill and my car insurance for a car that will have to be junked if I have to do any more repairs on it.”

After about another hour of just relaxing, Kala got out. She
’d been putting in more hot water every fifteen minutes or so, and now she was all pruney. Getting out, she dried off and pulled the shirt that she’d found over her head. As soon as she did, a man appeared with her.

~~~

It took him a few seconds to realize that she could see him. Riss took a step back when she put out her hand to touch him and bumped into the dresser behind him. Kala put her hand on his arm, and he felt it all the way to his toes.

“
Riss?” He nodded, not sure what to do now. He’d not revealed himself to her, but somehow she could still see him. “Is this your shirt?”

“
I think it might be.” He touched the button on the front and felt her warmth seep into his fingers. “How did you get it?”

“
I don’t know. It just showed up.” Kala took another step to him, and her body was nearly flush with his. Before he could think he was going to pay for touching her, he cupped his hand on her bottom and pulled her closer still.

“
I shouldn’t be doing this.” She nodded as she nuzzled her nose into his throat. “Kala, love, you need to take a step back from me.”

“
No. I want you. I don’t know why I do, but I want you more than I’ve ever wanted anyone before.” She rocked into his hard cock and moaned before continuing. “Please, Riss. Take me.”

His mouth touched to hers
, and he felt her tongue run along his lips. Opening for her, he turned her when her mouth seemed to devour his. Now that her back was against something firmer, he picked her up and felt her legs wrap around him. Riss lifted his head to look down at her.

“
I can’t leave you.” She nodded and reached for the buttons on his shirt. As soon as she had the first two opened, she kissed his flesh, heating it to the point where it was almost painful. The more skin she exposed, the more she tasted of him.

The buttons on his shirt she had on didn
’t stand a chance against his need of this woman. They pinged all over the room and dresser until there was none left on the shirt. Opening it slowly, he watched as it caught on her hard nipple and made him whimper.