Skin Walkers Conn (11 page)

“Hey
,
” Cindy’s laughing tone intruded on his thoughts, “
drink this, it might help
.”  She slid a rocks glass filled with ice and amber liquid across the bar
and motioned with her chin to
ward
the
drink
.

Conn lifted the glass and drank down the contents in one swallow.  His throat burned and his eyes watered as he fought to keep from retching.
  He swallowed several more times before he was confident the spirits would stay down.  Then he pointed at the glass indicating he wanted a re-fill.
  
 

Wordlessly, Cindy
topped off
the glass, a knowing smile tilting her lips. 

Conn tossed back the second drink and slammed the glass on the
bar before clutching a hand to his abdomen.  His body was rebelling against the forced
consumption.  He sucked in a breath against the pain even as Dr.
Arkinson’s
words
tumbled around his mind
, ‘
Often times, a bull Elk will be so pre-occupied with the rut, the need to mate, and the protection of his harem, that he often foregoes eating
, drinking,
even
sleeping for days
.’
 

She’d said that a rutting Elk would forego eating or drinking due to his pre-occupation
.  S
he hadn’t warned t
hat
for afflicted Walkers eating and drinking would
actually
be
physically painful. 

It doesn’t make any fucking sense.  None of it does!

He pointed to the glass again and Cindy grabbed the bottle hesitantly, “You sure?”

He didn’t look up, simply pointed to the glass again.

Cindy re-filled the glass then set the bottle on the bar next to Conn’s
arm.  “Well Commander, we’re all delighted to have you and Aries here at
StoneCrow
.  I’m sure you’ll both adapt well.”

Conn lifted the full glass to his lips and eyed Cindy warily over the rim as he took a cautious sip then winced and set the glass back down.  “I’m not staying.”

Cindy, who’d been moving away from the Commander stopped and turned to stare at him, her brows hiking in disbelief, “And Aries?”

“She wishes
to go home.”

Cindy walked slowly back to the bar and leaned on it, “Home?  I understand that no one’s quite sure where exactly her
home
is.
”

“
South America.”
Conn answered gruffly.

Cindy leaned her elbows on the bar and smiled at him, “She’s not from South America.  That may be where she’s been hiding, but it’s not where she’s from
.  It’s not
her
home
.”

Conn’s angry eyes met the small brunette’s, “And you know this how?”

The woman
shrugged
carelessly, “
RedKnife
says she smells of winter, which means she’s from the North.” 
Her
eyes slid to the snow that still fell heavily outside the window
’s that lined one wall of the pub
.  “From here maybe
.
”

Conn gritted his teeth and kept his mouth shut.  The thought of
RedKnife
getting close enough to scent anything on Aries had his hackles rising.  “Regardless,” he bit out, “South America is where she’d like to return to.”

Concern marred Cindy’s perfect features, “And you’re going
with her
to protect her
right
?”

Conn felt his anger rise.  “Protect her from what?”

Cindy shook her head in disbelief, “
RedKnife
says she’s being tracked. 
It wasn’t just us
.  Someone else is hunting your woman.”

Conn fought to control the anger and fierce possession that seared through him at the thought of
another hunting his Aries
.
  “She is
not
my woman, and s
he is not mine to protect.” 

The
beasts within him raged
in contradiction
at the proclamation.  They demanded a claiming, but Conn refused.  He wouldn’t be linked to any one person indefinitely regardless of what his animal spirits or Monroe wanted.
  He was a man, he had free will. 

He looked up to
find
Cindy staring at him, her expression sad.  “I feel bad for her.  Forced so far from
her
home and on the run all alone.  It must be hard for her.”

Conn
choked down the remaining liquid in his
glass before rising, “She’ll be back home soon enough.”

Cindy’s expression hardened, “
That’s not the home I was referring to.”
She frowned up at the Commander for several moments before h
er
features softened
, her brows lifting mockingly.  “Well, if you’re sure you don’t want her I think I’ll introduce her to Remy
McCabe
.  He
’
s
been s
earching
too long, and she’s too pretty to be left undefended.
  She needs someone to protect her, and she’s so beautiful it won’t
be difficult for me to find a
Walker
willing to claim her
.
  Remy’s a good man, a strong man, he’ll do just fine.
”

Conn’s fingers closed so tightly around the rocks glass he still held that
it
creaked under the pressure before it shattered.
  He hated Remy, despised the Walker. 

Every
Walker
knew of Remy as a lady’s man.  He was
ever on the hunt for his angel, more pre-occupied with finding her than with anything else.  He’d sampled more flavors of women than Baskin Robins had flavors, and it was sickening.  It was even rumored that Remy often attempted to seduce other Walkers’ angels.  Conn gritted his teeth.  He’d always wanted an
excuse to bash Remy’s teeth in, and if the man came near Aries it’d suffice.

Cindy looked at the glass in mock surprise, “Guess you’ve had enough Commander.”

Conn didn’t respond, simply turned and left the pub with all eyes watching his departure.  In the elevator
,
he tried to calm himself.  He’d
only ever
met Remy
once before, and knew from stories told of the Walker that he’d
great pleasure in protecting and seducing
his
Aries. 

Before he could control
his rage
he spun and slammed his fist into the back wall of the elevator, shattering the mirror and sending glass in all directions. 
Fucking Remy…I’ll
kill him!

He turned as the bell chimed signaling his floor.  When he caught a glimpse of his reflection
in the mirrored interior doors
, he froze in shock.  He’s craggy features were drawn so tight that he barely recognized himself.
The white scar that
slashed across his face seemed more pronounced by the
fierce expres
sion on his face.  His shoulder
s were pulled back and his fists
were curled into tight balls,
ready for battle.  He looked like he was going
in
to combat rather than heading to his suite to try and get some sleep. 

Forcing
himself to relax,
he willed the tension from
his body as he watched the scowl leave his brow. 
Aries.
  He knew she was the cause.  Dr.
Arkinson
had been right.  He couldn’t eat or sleep around her.  And now he was ready and more than willing to track down poor Remy
McCabe
and erase the poor man from the face of the earth simply because another had
implied
that he
might
be interested in
Aries
should the two ever be introduced
. 

Conn exhaled slowly and shoved a shaking hand into his short hair. 
What the fuck is wrong with me?
 

“Everything all right in there?”
 
RedKnife’s
voice carried to Conn through
mist, the t
elepathic means Walkers used to communicate with one another.

Conn’s eyes lifted and locked on the surveillance camera that was positioned in the corner of the elevator.  He didn’t respond, simply thrust his hand forward and caught the elevator doors
before
they slid closed.  He forced them back open and exited the elevator before stalking the length of the corridor back to his suit
e,
back to Aries.

Once inside the suite he stalked to the refrigerator and yanked the door open causing condiments to rattle in the door.
  He wasn’t hungry in the
least
, but he knew his body needed the nourishment.  He hadn’t eaten in days and the alcohol he
’d
forced down
was having a strange effect. 
At least he prayed it was the alcohol.  He’d been fighting the urge to rush back to Aries since the moment he
’d
stepped
out of the suite earlier
.  He’d decided to fight his instincts and go to the Crow’s Nest for a drink, but now he was regretting the decision, because for some odd reason
that
he couldn’t explain he was seriously contemplating stalking down the hall to Aries’ room, kicking the door in, and claiming her.

He slammed the fridge door shut and paced to the hall before the scent hit him. 
Fuck! 
Had he not been so preoccupied when he’d first walked in, he would have noticed it right away. 

Rushing down the hall he threw open the door to Aries’ room.  Her window was wide open, screen missing, with a small pile of snow forming on the carpet just beneath it.  His eyes darted to her empty bed and he didn’t even try to control the fierce growl that escaped his lips.

C
hapter
12

Instantly,
Conn
reverted back to mercenary mode.
 
While he’d been out trying unsuccessfully to get sloshed, Aries had escaped.

He crossed the room and peered out the window into the wintry darkness.  He knew better than to question how she’d gotten down
. 
If determined,
Aries would have found a way.  He cursed under his breath, slid the window closed, and turned to
summon
his men.  He was halfway across Aries’ room when
a
faint
familiar
scent
wafted gently to
him. 

His steps
stuttered then
stalled
completely
in the hall
.  H
e crossed to his door and inched it open.  There curled in a heap of blankets in the center of
his
bed was Aries. 

Silently he entered the room leaving the door open just a f
raction to allow some light to pour
in.  He stood and simply stared at her for long moments.  Her cheeks seemed slightly flushed and the familiar
faint scent
of her pain lingered in the room
.  A
Walker
that didn’t know her might miss it, but he wouldn’t.  He knew her
now
, and he wanted to fix whatever it was that caused the scent to emanate from her
s
light
frame
.

He lifted a black barrel chair from where it sat next to his dresser and carried it
quietly
placing it silently next to
the
bed.  He took a seat, resting his elbows on his knees and leaned forward.  He couldn’t take his eyes off her.  The long white streak in the front of her hair reminded him of the
thin white scar that marred his face.  She could have easily covered it up, dyed it, hid it, but she didn’t.  She was apparently willing to accept who she was, which left him wondering why she
refused to admit she was a
Walker
. 
Clearly
she didn’t know
what
she
was but did she know how to use her abilities?  Probably not, otherwise she’d have shifted when he and his men had been pursuing her in the jungle. 

Fuck she looks so peaceful. 
He’d give anything for a thirty-minute nap.
The lines of his frame were as taught as a bow-string, and he felt ready to snap from the tension.
He
sat silently cursing himself for not asking Dr.
Arkinson
the important questions.  Like, how long would it be before he would eat or sleep again, how could he expedite the process, and more importantly, was any of this going to adversely affect Aries.