Part 2 (2/2)
She walked over to the window, needing a few minutes to collect her thoughts. ”Prioritize, Sasha, prioritize.”
Yeah, right. Great idea, but every department head she'd spoken to had pointed out how crucial the missing items were. The real difficulty was in determining which requests were more urgent than others, and who could be counted on for sound advice on the subject.
All things considered, Devlin Bane was the obvious choice. After all, he knew firsthand what directly impacted his men's ability to fight and survive the devastating injuries they were subject to. She would've talked to him before now, but so far he'd avoided setting a time and date for their first one-on-one meeting.
Granted, she couldn't blame him for the instability of the barrier, but her gut feeling was that he was determined to duck her as long as possible. Okay, she got that he had no reason to love the Regents interfering in his business, but the situation wouldn't improve if he didn't even give her a chance.
She didn't want to come down too hard on him, though, not if she could avoid it. After weighing and discarding several possible approaches, she'd finally decided it would be best if she invited him and Dr. Young to her suite for drinks, safe from the prying eyes that followed her every move here at the office.
Rather than extend the invitation by e-mail or by phone, she'd deliver the invitation in person. Maybe she was being a bit paranoid, but everyone knew there were several world-cla.s.s hackers among the Paladins. With the current atmosphere of mistrust, she wouldn't really blame them for illegally monitoring her e-mails and phone calls. There'd been no sign of that happening, but she sure wouldn't put it past them.
She'd grab some lunch along the way and then go knock on Devlin Bane's door. The Paladin might not appreciate her showing up unannounced, but he'd get over it once she made it clear that she needed his input on how to further improve things for his men.
So far, she'd barely spoken to Devlin, but he and Jarvis, his Missouri counterpart, both had reputations of fighting long and hard for those who served under them. If anyone knew what the Paladins needed, he was the man. The fact that Bane's wife, Dr. Young, was one of the more forward-thinking physicians among the Paladins' Handlers was a definite bonus. If Sasha couldn't trust their judgment when it came to the Paladins, they were all screwed.
She grabbed her jacket and headed for the door.
Chapter 3.
Larem leaned against the wall, honing his boot knife and listening to the ongoing discussion. So far no one had said anything of much use. Finally, Devlin held up his hand, signaling it was time for everyone to shut up and pay attention.
”Okay, here's how I see it. I've been ducking Ms. Willis, but eventually I'll have to meet with her. By all reports, she's spent her time doing exactly what she said she'd do: reviewing personnel files, meeting with department heads, and scheduling more of the same. It's too soon to tell where all this is going-”
Before he could finish that thought, his phone rang. Grabbing the receiver, he barked, ”Bane here, what's up?”
He listened briefly before responding, ”Thanks, I owe you one.”
”Speak of the devil. d.a.m.n it, just what I needed.” Devlin slammed the phone down and looked around at the men gathered in his office. ”Sorry to break up the party, but we have seconds at best to clear out before Sasha Willis gets here. That was the guard calling to say that he just let her in through the alley door.”
Devlin immediately shoved a stack of paperwork out of sight into a file drawer. Then he glared at everyone, making it clear they weren't moving fast enough.
”d.a.m.n it, make yourselves scarce. I'd just as soon she not see all of you here. Don't want anyone to get the impression we're plotting against the establishment.”
Although they had been. Devlin had called them together to discuss emergency plans in case the Regents decided to come down hard on anything, especially on the subject of the Kalith living among the Seattle Paladins. Trahern led the parade out the door, followed by Cullen and Lonzo, leaving Barak and Larem bringing up the rear.
By the time Sasha Willis was due to appear, the Paladins were all back at their desks and looking busy. Larem, on the other hand, had some time to kill before heading to the shelter. He followed Barak across the office.
Barak picked up on his situation. ”If you need a place to hide, you can join Lacey and me in the lab.”
Larem shook his head. ”That's all right. Cullen set me up with a desk where I can hang out until I need to leave for the shelter.”
”Okay, but the offer is always good.” Barak quickly disappeared, going the opposite direction from the lab, probably taking the long way around to avoid pa.s.sing Sasha Willis in the hall.
Larem poured himself a cup of tea before settling in at his desk with one of the medical texts that Sworn Guardian Berk had been slipping across the barrier from Kalithia to him. Hunter had brought him the latest stack when he'd driven down to Seattle for the first meeting with their new administrator.
Normally, Larem found the writings of other Kalith who shared his rare healing abilities fascinating, but right now, he could hardly force his eyes to stay focused on the page. Instead, his attention kept wandering toward the other side of the office.
He would've been torn over the idea of cultivating the administrator's friends.h.i.+p under false pretenses no matter what, but he was especially so with Sasha Willis. He hadn't seen her again since that first day and so avoided making a decision one way or the other. He suspected his time had about run out unless he took the coward's way out and hid. But the others were depending on him, so given the opportunity, he'd have to act.
d.a.m.n it, why did she have to show up while he was still there? More importantly, why hadn't he left while he had the chance? The answer was simple: he wanted to see her again, to see if his memory of her held up to the reality.
That she'd want to meet with the head Paladin wasn't a surprise, but it was clear that Devlin hadn't been expecting her. Glancing around the office, Larem realized he wasn't the only one staring down the hallway. Several of the Paladins, even those whose desks weren't in this particular area, were hanging around and pretending to be busy.
As soon as the woman came into sight, all pretense of getting any work done ended. Larem had to give her credit. Once again, having all those male eyes focused solely on her didn't faze her in the least. She calmly headed straight for Devlin's office door and knocked. While she waited for him to answer, she did a little staring of her own.
Her gaze swept across the room. Her mouth briefly softened into a smile when she spotted Cullen, one of the few who'd actually spoken to the woman. When the Paladin jerked his head in a sharp nod of acknowledgment, she smiled more broadly before her eyes continued scanning the men.
When she spotted Larem, there was a brief flare of recognition, and he could've sworn he felt a brief surge of warmth from all the way across the room. Once again, he was struck by her beauty. The deep green of her blouse set off not only the red in her hair but also her creamy complexion. Was her skin as soft as it looked?
After a second, her expression settled into a puzzled frown. Had he stared too long, or had she suddenly figured out who-or rather what-he was?
Either way, it wasn't his problem. He deliberately broke off the silent exchange and forced his focus back to the book he was reading. Far better that he spend his time satisfying his curiosity about his gift of healing than worrying about the opinions of one human female, even if she was a beautiful one.
And if he tried hard enough, he might just convince himself that was true.
”Don't just stand out there pounding on the door. Come in.”
At Devlin's bellow, Sasha tore her attention away from the men scattered about the office and back to the one she'd come to see. Even so, she found herself reluctant to look away from that guy seated in the back corner. He was one of the two men who'd helped her find her way out of the building on that first day.
Now that she was working her way through the Paladin files, she readily recognized Cullen. From what she'd read, his nickname of ”The Professor” certainly fit with the first impression she'd had of him. He'd been quietly helpful when he'd shown her the exit, making sure to introduce her to the guard stationed out in the alley.
But it was the other man who aroused her curiosity. There was just something different about him. Even from a distance, he stood out from the crowd. She didn't know why, but he did. Eventually she'd run across his file and perhaps find some answers.
Rather than get caught staring, she opened Devlin's door and poked her head in. He glanced up from the pile of papers spread out on his desk and tried to look surprised to see her. Cute.
She hadn't missed seeing the guard hitting a number on speed dial as soon as he let her into the building, although she didn't fault him for making the call. It was his job to monitor who came and went. Her only concern was what Devlin had been up to when the guard called to warn him of her approach.
Now wasn't the time for inquisitions, so she'd let it pa.s.s-this once.
”Ms. Willis, come in and have a seat.” He rose to his feet. ”Can I get you a cup of coffee or tea? Or maybe a bottle of water?”
”Water sounds good. I've already had way too much caffeine today.”
While he got two bottles out of the small fridge in the corner, she sat down, choosing the chair that offered a clear view of the door. Odd that it seemed important, but it did. Safer somehow, although she didn't sense any kind of threat coming from Devlin himself.
He handed her the water and then returned to his own side of the desk. After popping the top on his own bottle, he asked, ”So what brings you to our neck of the woods?”
”I wanted to discuss something with you, but not over the phone.” She took a long drink of water, giving him time to consider the unspoken message behind her comment.
His dark eyebrows shot up in surprise. ”You think someone has bugged your line?”
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