Sid (The Protectors Series) Book #4 (13 page)

Hearing footsteps rushing her from behind
, Jill turned just in time to be grabbed by the throat and picked up off her feet.

“You think you won
, you bitch?” Alice squeezed Jill’s throat tighter. “Grab her arms.” Alice ordered her friend who did what she asked.

Darkness edged Jill’s vision, but she still fought with everything she had,
and just as her eyes started to fade, she heard the click of a gun.

“Let her go
. Now,” Lana held the gun to the back of Alice’s head.

Jill felt the hold loosen on both her neck and arms. She tried to warn Lana.

“You’re human?” Alice hissed after sniffing the air. “Another pathetic human.”

“With an attitude that matches my gun and silver bullets.” Lana’s voice was serious and to the point. “Now
, let her go.”

“Gladly.” Alice
’s smile was evil.

As if in slow motion
, Jill felt Alice let go as she raised her hand speeding toward Lana, who Jill knew couldn’t take a hit from a vampire. Anger so deep enveloped her body and soul.

“No!” Jill screamed, her hand shooting up at Alice
. Without one touch, Alice was flung against the side of the building, held by an invisible force from Jill’s hand, which was aimed toward Alice.

Everyone had rushed outside at the screaming.

“Put me down, you fucking freak!” Alice screamed.

Shocked
, Jill pulled her hand back against her chest and watched with everyone else as Alice hit the ground hard.

Popping up quickly
, Alice growled and screeched at the same time as she started to run toward Jill.

“Freeze!” Lana raised her gun. “Don’t even think about it.”

“Lana, no!” Sid yelled running up, but knew he was going to be too late.

“Fuck you
, human!” Alice’s laugh was crazy as she lunged again toward Lana, but Jill threw her hand out, this time sending Alice tumbling across the parking lot.

Jill was pissed and it showed in her every move.
She held her hand out, holding Alice down. She didn’t know how the hell she was doing it or how long it would last, but she was done with Alice’s crap, and it was going to stop now.

When
Alice’s friend started to rush her, Jill looked her way with a snap of her head. “I have two hands, and I will nail you to the wall if you come one step closer,” she warned her even though she didn’t know if she could or not.

“Let me up
,” Alice hissed, but some of the fire had gone out of her.

“I’m going to let you up, but if you try one more thing
, I am going to twist you into a knot with my bare hands,” Jill growled down at her then dropped her hand.

Alice stood up with as much
dignity as she could. “You better watch your back, bitch.”

Jill didn’t reply, but she did flick her wrist
, making Alice jump, before walking quickly to her car, her friend running after her. Once they left the parking lot, Jill looked down at her hands amazed. Turning around, she found everyone looking at her.

“Well
, that was new.” She lifted her hand and was shocked when everyone hit the ground like she was aiming a gun.

Chapter 13

“Put that thing away.”
Sid placed his body in front of Lana. Once Jill dropped her hand, he stood helping Lana up. “Hot damn, what the hell was that?”

“I don’t know?” Jill stood looking as confused as they were.

“That was freaking awesome.” Steve threw up his hand, aiming toward Damon.

“If I even feel a breeze
, I will kick your ass,” Damon warned Steve with a growl.

Steve pulled his hand back so fast he smacked himself in the face. “Sorry.”

Sid walked up to Jill. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I think
so.” Jill’s eyes were wide and a little frightened.

“You better let
Doc check you over.” Sid wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “You look pretty shaken up.”

Slade was already there by her side, but
he had been silent, just watching and taking everything in.

“No, I’m fine.” Jill didn’t look at any of them
, her hands shaking uncontrollably. “I just need to…”

Lana walked up
, grabbing Jill’s hand. “She needs a minute, boys.”

Sid watched as Lana took control
of the situation, leading Jill inside. “Looks like our Jill has grown up and come into her powers before our very eyes.”

“She needs to learn how to control it
,” Sloan frowned. “I’ll call around and see if I can find anyone who has the same power that can help her.”

“That won’t be necessary.” Slade
, who had been quiet to this point, spoke up. With a curse, he threw up his hand aiming it toward the dumpster at the end of the parking lot. Within seconds, it lifted and moved a few feet before banging to the ground, all under his complete control.

“Damn, you’re like Carrie on steroids.” Sid looked impressed.

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Sloan glared at Sid.

Steve stepped up
, excitement on his young face. “Dude, I thought the same exact thing when Jill did that to Alice.” Steve looked at Sloan. “The movie
Carrie
. Stephen King….
Carrie
. When she goes crazy and kills all those people at the prom. But she didn’t use her hand; she just gave this intense stare, and BAM, they were thrown all over the place.”

They all watched Steve as he tried to duplicate the parts in the movie. No one f
ound it humorous other than Sid who stood, arms crossed, and grinning.

“She could even control things like a fire hose and electric
al cords. Hey, you think Jill can control things like that with her hand? Make anything her weapon.” Steve’s mouth was going a hundred miles-an-hour, but stopped at the look Sloan was giving him. “Guess you didn’t see the movie.”

“No, I didn’t see the
fucking movie,” Sloan growled. “And I suggest you stop hanging out with Sid.”

Sid ignored the jab, his stare going to Slade. “Well
, hell, bro, guess you and Jill are a match made in heaven.” Sid’s grin grew larger. “You can make beautiful holes in the wall together as well as skip a moving crew when you buy your first house together, save a few bucks.”

“Shut the fuck up
, Sid,” Slade growled, walking away toward the warehouse.

“Ah
, and there it is,” Sid sighed, closing his eyes. “Music to my ears.”

“Why do I even keep you around?” Sloan growled
, actually rolling his eyes.

“Because I lighten the place up.” Sid headed toward where Jill and Lana disappeared. “I put smiles on the faces of
Warriors, and deep down in your secret place, you love me, boss.”

Sloan glared at Damon
, who had a grin on his face. “What the fuck are you grinning about?” Sloan’s face was frozen with frustration. “Don’t you have someone’s head to remove or something? Jesus, if I have to deal with any more shit, it might be mine you decapitate with my wishes.”

“Just let me know
, boss,” Damon tossed out a rare teasing when Sloan walked away. “Always happy to help a friend in need.”

Sid
, who was just opening the door to the warehouse, laughed loudly hearing the whole exchange. “Nice, Damon,” Sid called out. “I’m going to get that stick out of your ass one day.”

“Fuck you, Sid
,” Damon growled.

“Fuck you to
o, brother.” Sid nodded as he disappeared inside.

******

As soon as Lana and Jill walked into the warehouse, Jill lost it. Tears and hard sobs wracked her body. Lana looked around not knowing where to go. “Come on.” Lana looked back at the door. “Where’s the bathroom?”

Jill headed toward the
opposite end of the warehouse with Lana following. After entering a large bathroom with showers, Lana walked over, and turned on the faucet.

“Here, splash some cold water on your face.” As Jill splashed her face
, Lana rubbed her back. “Scared you a little, didn’t it?”

Jill raised up
, looking at herself in the mirror. “Terrified me.”

“So, obviously that was the first time you’ve ever done that.” When Jill nodded
, she turned the faucet off and looked at Lana through the mirror. Lana smiled in understanding. “You know, the first time a dead person contacted me, it scared me so bad I peed my pants.”

“You did not
,” Jill snorted, wiping her face.

“True story.” Lana crossed her heart. “
Though I was only six-years-old; still it scared me to death. Whenever it happened, I would run and try to hide, but they always found me. No matter what I did, they would find me. I never said a word to anyone. But then when my grandfather died I was at his funeral, I walked up to the casket and he looked like he was just sleeping like he always did in his big chair at home. So I reached out to try to wake him up, just to make sure.”

“What happened?” Jill had calmed down
; her tears stopped.

“I relived
his last moments of life.” Lana gave Jill a sad smile. “Most of my family thought I was nuts because here I was holding onto my dead grandfather’s hand, staring up at the ceiling in a weird trance. My mom wouldn’t let anyone touch me and the whole funeral was put on hold until I came out of it. I was seven when that happened.”

“So your mom knew what was going on
?” Jill seemed to have forgotten her issues for a moment, which had been Lana’s plan.

“Yeah, she did. My grandmother has the gift which was passed to my sister and
me,” Lana replied.

“Wow, that’s crazy that both you and your sister
can do that,” Jill nodded looking wistful.

“We’re twins
,” Lana smiled. “Neither of us knew what the other was going through, and we didn’t know until the day at my grandfather’s funeral. Neither of us wanted to tell each other for fear of the other running and telling Mom and Dad.”

“Well, at least you ha
ve someone who understands and you can talk to,” Jill sniffed. “I would love to have that right now.”

“My sister is lost to us
,” Lana cleared her throat.

“I’m so sorry.” Jill’s eyes widened.

“
It should have been me. She didn’t really like using her gift, but in my line of work, I use it a lot.” Lana looked at Jill, realizing this was the first time she had really talked about her sister to anyone other than her parents. “My sister wasn’t prepared emotionally for the read. One of the officers on the scene thought she was under distress during the reading and broke her away from the girl who had been murdered.”

“
And that killed her?” Jill gasped, touching Lana’s arm, sorrow in her eyes.

“It probably would have been better if it had.” Lana grabbed Jill’s hand squeezing it. “She is a resident at the Adult Psychiatric Unit a
t UC where she relives the last hours of the girl’s life before her death.”

“Oh, my God.” Jill hugged Lana. “
That’s horrible.”

Lana hugged her back. “
Even though it has only been a little over a month, I miss her so much.”

“Aren’t you afraid that can happen to you?” Jill pulled back
, looking at her. “You shouldn’t be doing it anymore.”

“It’s my gift.” Lana shook her head,
and then smiled. “I use it to help solve crimes and to help families find closure. I use it to help others, and that is how you need to look at your own gift.”

“I didn’t use it to help anyone.”
Jill’s face fell. “I plastered someone up against the wall and then sent her flying across the parking lot.”

Lana thought for a minute. “If you think about it
, you only did that when she was coming after me.” Walking over to the garbage can, she grabbed it and moved it to the middle of the bathroom. “Try to move it.”

Jill looked at her like she was crazy, but finally lifted her hand. Nothing happened. She dropped her arm, sighed and then tried again. “It’s gone.” Jill
looked confused. “I can’t do it.”

“Maybe because you were trying to protect me.” Lana had no clue if that was the case, but it made sense. “And she was a nutty bitch.”

Jill smiled with a chuckle. “Thank you.” She hugged Lana again.

“You’re so welcome.” Lana hugged her
. Pulling away, she continued, “Now, get out there and let them know you’re okay. You’re strong, Jill. I know being a half–breed, and now having this new power, is overwhelming for you, but use it to help others.”

“You’re right.” Jill stood up straight. “I love what I’m doing and no one is going to stop me from doing it.”

“You’re going to make a great Warrior,” Lana said proudly. “Even though you are in with all these alpha men, you’ve got the power to keep up with them. If not, just plaster their asses to the wall.”

Jill laughed at the thought. “I can do this.”

Lana smiled with a nod. “Now, go out there and do your thing. Girl power and all that crap.”

After she left
, Lana sighed, leaning against the wall, feeling a heavy weight slump her shoulders. Even though her sister was always in the front of her mind, she didn’t talk about it.

“Girl power?” Sid walked in with a smile, but there was something else in his eyes.

“Damn straight.” Lana gave a firm nod. “Nothing more powerful out there.”

Sid leaned against the sink
, staring down at her. “You are a special woman, Lana Fitzpatrick.”

“No, I just understand. Nothing special about that.” She frowned
, “How much did you hear?”

“Ah, pretty much all of it.” Sid cocked his eyebrow at her. “Not only am I the cook, comedian, handsome, witty and charming Warrior
, I also excel in eavesdropping.”

“That’s a pretty long
, conceited list.” Lana rolled her eyes with a laugh. If she wasn’t careful, she could easily fall for this man, and not just in bed, which she knew was going to happen. Why fight the inevitable? She’d already made peace with that, but that didn’t mean she had to lose her heart in the process.

“
Just stating the truth,” Sid replied with a confident grin, but then his teasing look changed. “I’m sorry about your sister, Lana.”

“Yeah, so am I.” Lana frowned
, “It should have been me. I was supposed to be the one, but I was in the middle of a deal and couldn’t make it. I called her to step in for me.”

“I don’t see how that cou
ld have been your fault, Lana.” He tipped her chin up. “You didn’t know what was going to happen.”

“She was a school teacher
, Sid. She wasn’t a cop and had no business there, but because I asked, she dropped everything and went.” Lana pulled away, shaking her head. “Today’s her birthday, so I have to quit a little early.”

Sid nodded
, noticing she didn’t mention that it was also her birthday, but let it go for the time being. “Not a problem.” He glanced at her neck. “Someone attacked you during your read, didn’t they?”

“Yes, and it’s never happened before
,” Lana replied with a frown. “It was the man Jill drew. I have no idea how he did it, but he’s strong.” Subconsciously, she began to stroke her neck.

Sid cursed
as his eyes were drawn to her bruises, “You need to be more careful.”

“I know
,” she agreed as they both stood deep in thought.

Lana’s phone interrupted the silence. “Yeah
?” she answered. After a second, her eyes met Sid’s. “We’ll be right there.”

“They found Ben Foster.” Sid knew before she even had time to hang up.

“They found Ben Foster,” Lana repeated, a frown on her face. “Dead.”

“Shit.” Sid pushed away from the sink. “
Where’d they find him?”

Lana looked puzzled. “The same place the two girls were found.”