The Shadow Zone 2: Winning Madeline (4 page)

Turning back to gaze at the woman sleeping in the bed, the meaning of Rick’s words ran through his brain. Sure, he’d considered that possibility. But he couldn’t even think about it right now. He’d just saved her life. He had no idea what he’d do with her now. He had even less of an idea of what she’d think of him or the situation she was facing.

What if she detested him? What if she never wanted anything to do with him?

“You’ve got a full plate,” Rick pointed out. “I’ll take care of one problem for you. I’ll have my servants take care of the recruiter’s body. It can never be found.”

Maddox appreciated that.

“No one saw you? The Lycans?”

Maddox shook his head.

“They didn’t see a thing.”

“What about this child you mentioned? The child of her neighbor.”

“It was a ruse,” Maddox explained. “They only told her that to get her to accompany them to town. To use her as bait.”

Rick’s expression was thoughtful.

“So it’s just the child and one parent?”

Why was Rick so curious?

“Because the Lycans will want to know what happened to the recruiter they wanted so badly. This woman -- Madeline, is it? -- disappeared at the same time. They know more about her than him. If this child means something to her, they could use her and the parent to try and draw Madeline out.”

“I’d never let her off the property,” Maddox assured him.

Rick cocked a sable brow at him. “What does this neighbor do?”

Maddox shrugged. “Best I can tell, he tries to find work to feed the child. Madeline fed her half the time.”

“Because he was unsuccessful or lazy?”

Maddox hadn’t paid very close attention to the man and his child in all honesty. All he had was his impression of the man.

“He seems willing to go out day after day to look for work. I wouldn’t say he’s a lazy man.”

Rick nodded.

“So they could be brought here? The two of them? He could work for me. He’d be paid well, he could feed his child. They couldn’t be used against her.” Rick tilted his head in Madeline’s direction, his expression thoughtful. “Since she won’t be leaving the property without you, it might even be a small comfort to her. Someone familiar. Her kind.”

Maddox hadn’t considered that. He was grateful. It was a good plan, at least in the short term.

“You’re welcome.” Rick’s mouth curved up into a smirk. “Wait. She’s not attracted to the man, is she?”

Not that Maddox was aware of.

“Was he ever a… client of hers?”

So Rick had picked
that
out of his thoughts? Her profession? Well, her former profession. Very thorough. “Not often.” Maddox knew the answer to that. “He couldn’t afford it.”

Ricked laughed at that. “Good enough. Now, we need to consider how to get the man and his daughter here safely. The sooner, the better.”

Maddox couldn’t agree more. “I’ll go. Right now. Offer him a job.”

Rick shook his head. “Take someone with you. If you have to move against the Lycans, two of you will dispatch them faster. You’ll have a better chance staying beneath the notice of the humans.”

Maddox agreed. He turned to where Madeline was still out, hoping she wouldn’t awaken before he returned. He didn’t want her more scared than she was already bound to be.

“Best get going then,” Rick told him. “And, yes, she’ll be scared. I can’t help you with that.”

Maddox shook his head as he watched his friend lead the way out of the room. After knowing Rick hundreds of years, he wasn’t sure he’d ever get used to his unique style of conversation.

Chapter Four

Madeline stretched, very comfortable and warm where she lay.

Then she started awake. Where was Ivy?
Ivy!
Her heart thumped in her chest as she took in the enormous bed, the rich blue of the fine coverings draped over her body like a caress. She’d never even seen a bed so fine, much less slept in one, but she couldn’t focus on that. She had absolutely no idea where she was.

The room beyond the bed was beautiful, clean, and richly furnished. Blue draperies were pulled closed to only allow a sliver of daylight to filter through. At least it was still daytime.

Madeline just hoped it was the same day. How long had she been here? How had she gotten here? She stretched again, doing a physical inventory. No injuries. She felt fine. Her neck was a little sore at the back.

Shaking, she tried to remember what had happened as she slid to the edge of the bed. On trembling legs, she rose from the bed and headed for that window where a beautiful wooden table and chairs, the likes of which she’d never seen before, sat in an elegant display. Maybe a glance outside would help her determine where she was. She could hope…

No sooner had she reached the curtain to pull it back than the door opened behind her. Barely a whisper but audible in the silence of the room. “Madeline?”

Whoever he was, he knew her name. She didn’t know whether to be comforted or terrified by that. Turning slowly, she faced the speaker, staring at the man who slowly closed the door behind him.

It was an understatement to say he was as beautiful as his surroundings. The man who stood there watching her was incredible. Beyond words. He was tall, nearly as tall as Vincent, with the same wide shoulders and powerful, long limbs. He wasn’t as thick as her werewolf client, however. He was sleeker, elegant.

His blond hair was swept neatly from his face, shining and straight. His hair was pale, his skin was paler. And the blue of his eyes was the deep hue of a summer sky. The features of his face were a study in perfection, all smooth lines and hard angles. His mouth kept his face from being too hard, his lips softer.

Yet, once she got past the beauty of him, it struck her. The instinct that something wasn’t quite right about the man who seemed just as absorbed in staring at her as she was in him.

“How do you feel?” he asked, his voice unlike anything she’d ever heard before. Perfect and silky.

“I’m fine.”
Except that I don’t know where I am and why I’m here
. “Who are you?”

The man smiled then, a gentle smile. Even so, it didn’t make her feel better. “My name is Maddox,” he answered. Madeline waited for him to say more but he didn’t. He just continued to watch her. Had he even blinked?

Well, her other questions were worth a try. “Where am I? Why am I here?”

The smile fell away with a speed that had her wondering if she’d imagined it. “You were in the marketplace with Vincent and his men. Do you remember that?” He kept his tone calm, soothing.

She was anything but soothed. She wanted an answer to her question. “Of course I remember being in the marketplace. Why is that your concern and how do you know Vincent?”

Maddox held up his hands as if to say there was no reason for her upset, he meant no harm. His hands were long and sleek like the rest of him, and for the first time she noticed his nice clothing, his pressed slacks and a deep blue pullover sweater. She’d only ever seen clothing like that in old photos.

“Vincent told you that Ivy was there in the village lost and that her father was taken away. He lied.”

Shocking to have someone state the facts as she knew them and then refute them with such certainty. She stared at him with a million more questions in her mind.

He didn’t give her a chance to ask one. “Ivy is fine and so is her father.”

“How do you know?” Madeline fought against the anxiety that grew more with each second. “How do you know any of this?”

“Everything is fine, Madeline.” He didn’t move but he seemed to be willing her with his eyes to listen to him. Something strange about his eyes…”I’ve been watching Vincent for a while now. You know he’s a Lycan, of course.”

Yes, she knew that. She nodded.

“He’s very dangerous, Madeline. I’m sure you realize that too.”

“Are
you
?” The words came out before she could stop them. If he’d been watching Vincent and
he
was dangerous, what did that make Maddox?

Maddox appeared to take a deep breath. Then he answered her. “Yes.”

Anxiety bled on fear. Her heart pounded in her chest. What did all of it mean?

“You’re safe. Nothing will hurt you now,” he promised. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

“Why should I believe that?” she demanded.

“What reason have I given you to doubt it?” His tone didn’t change, still calm. “Vincent was using you as bait to catch a man. A man who was also dangerous on many levels. He made you believe Ivy was lost in town to get you there and then he tried to use you as bait to catch that man.”

So Maddox was trying to say he’d protected her? Well, she wasn’t there anymore and she was perfectly fine. Yet…”If all of this is true, why did you save me?”

Maddox stared at her silently for the longest time. His gaze on her was so intense it was uncomfortable. He exhaled loudly, the quiet whisper of a sound filling the room around them.

“Because you were… innocent. None of what was happening was your fault.”

Something about his words didn’t ring true and he was still staring at her in such an unnerving way. She didn’t feel threatened. She felt…

Well, she didn’t know exactly what she felt at the moment. “You said Ivy and her father were fine. How do you know?”

“They are here too, for their protection.”

“And that’s why I’m here?”

“Yes.” He answered that just a little too quickly.

“Where is here?”

“It’s actually not my home but the home of an old and trusted friend. You’re all safe here.”

Safe, maybe. But…”Thank you, for saving me and bringing me here… I guess. But…”

Concern clouded his expression. “But?”

“It’s your friend’s home but people like us… Ivy’s father and myself, well… you mean to say that he’s inviting
us
here as his guests?”

“Ah.” Maddox nodded as if he’d anticipated her question. If one could call it that. “Gerald had been looking for work anyway and Rick needs quite a bit of help in maintaining a manor like this. It all worked out, you see. He has a very good job now and he’ll be able to provide for his daughter. And they are out of that village where Ivy could fall prey to monsters… like Vincent. Or worse.”

Madeline felt some of the tension in her body ease at his words. Well, that was a relief if what he said was true. Ivy safe and fed? Her father with a job? That was a blessing for them.

But what about her?

“You have nothing to worry about, Madeline. Please don’t worry.”

Was it that obvious on her face?

And then something occurred to her…

“Gerald is working for your friend who owns this house?”

Maddox nodded.

“Do you think maybe he has work for me?” It was worth a try. “I am good at growing things. If he has need of someone to tend his gardens…”

His gorgeous face was smooth, his expression closed now.

“Are you a gardener by trade?”

Okay, so he hadn’t been watching
her
. If he had, he’d know she wasn’t a gardener. And there was no point in lying. “No, that’s not how I made my living,” she admitted.

“What was your trade?”

There shouldn’t be a reason that she felt so uncomfortable in stating what she did for a living. It had been a long time since she’d felt real shame at what she’d become. Still, here, in the presence of this oddly beautiful man, the words seemed to stick in her throat. “I’m a prostitute,” she told him. Would he throw her out now? How would he react?

His expression didn’t change. “I see.” His gaze lowered finally at that and her heart sank as she waited. “There’s no need for more help with the gardens, I’m pretty sure on that point.” When he looked at her again, his gaze was sympathetic. “But if you’re looking for a safe haven, for work like your friends…”

Madeline had to concentrate to keep the eager
Yes?
from escaping her lips the moment after he said that. But the small pebble of pride she had left, it wasn’t much, kept her from it.

“You could work for me.”

Work for him? “You mean what I normally…”

“Yes.”

“I see.” Her mind spun, trying to work that all out.

“I would be your exclusive client, of course.”

Madeline swallowed hard, heat pooling in her stomach. Sleeping with someone who looked like him would certainly not be a hardship. Depending on what he liked, how he liked to do things…

“I would pay you well, provide for your needs.”

As long as he was here…”For how long?” She had to ask that. Surely he didn’t plan to stay with his friend forever. And when he left, what reason would he have to take her with him?

A smile slowly formed on his perfect mouth. “Indefinitely.”

As an answer it was vague.

“No worries. We won’t be staying at my friend’s residence long term. I’ve already been here a little while. But I have a couple of places that are… comparable.”

A couple of places? Like the place she stood in now? She’d only seen one room and it was a palace next to what she was accustomed to. How could she refuse? If Ivy and her father were really here, then she had the only friends she really had with her. That concern was gone. She wouldn’t have to live in a pitiful shack, in the heat and the cold. Surely there would be food, water…

She couldn’t go back home. If Vincent had used her as bait and this man had saved her…”I can’t go back home because of Vincent?”

Maddox nodded.

“He used me as bait to catch that other man. Did he get him?”

He hesitated a moment before mouthing the word, “No.”

Well, now she understood. If Vincent didn’t catch the man it wouldn’t take a big leap for him to assign her blame. He’d kill her. Not only could she not go home; if it was all true, she’d need this man’s protection.

“Do we have an agreement?” he asked gently.

Slowly, she nodded, having no idea what she was getting into really. She knew nothing about this man, Maddox. Of course, she never really knew any of her clients. Normally they came to visit, got what they wanted, and left. It sounded like she’d be living with Maddox, her exclusive client.

Maddox seemed to release a deep breath he’d been holding. Like he was relieved about something. But she didn’t have time to ponder that as he took a step closer to her.

Instinctively, she took a small step back. Something about him…

He nodded, his gaze on the floor now before he turned and walked slowly to the door.

Madeline felt a small wave of panic. Had she insulted him? It hadn’t been her intention and she hoped it wouldn’t put their arrangement off to a bad start.

“I’ll have some food sent up. I’m sure you’re hungry.”

Hunger was her constant companion. She was always hungry. It didn’t keep her from nodding like an eager child.

“Is there anything in particular you’d like?”

Now she stared at him in wonder. Why was he asking what
she’d
like? And how to answer…”Anything…” Her voice came out with all the awkwardness she felt. “Anything is fine.”

Maddox nodded his perfect blond head. And then he was gone.

* * *

It had been a long time since Maddox had felt anything close to the excitement he felt as he waited to go to Madeline. It was almost comical. He’d been around for centuries and there he was, waiting to see one small human woman. He felt like a child about to receive a long anticipated treat. And the wait was the most excruciating thing he could recently remember.

He’d had Rick’s servants take her some food and given them instructions on seeing that she was able to shower or bathe as she wanted. Allowing her time to do what humans needed to do, he decided to sort through the pitiful few belongings he’d found in her home earlier when he’d gone to bring back the child and her father.

He would almost swear that the heart that hadn’t beat in his chest for centuries had squeezed in something like pain as he took in all she had. There was a cracked plastic comb with teeth missing and a worn old Bible with various dried flowers pressed into its pages. There was something he supposed could have been a toothbrush and a couple of small elastic bands, probably for her hair.

Among the small assortment of simple items, an old faded photograph was the most compelling of her belongings. It was a picture of four people; one of them was her and the others resembled her. Parents? A brother? What had happened to them? How had she ended up living on her own, vulnerable and selling her body for survival?