grime that faded down the flanks of the warehouses and stores were age lines. Pockmarks made by rot or accident or vandalism marred what once had no doubt been smooth facades and bright, fresh paint jobs had faded, the bloom of youth long lost to the elements and to time’s passage.
And indeed, the humans who were propped up in the shadows were in no better condition. Wearing wrinkled clothes in the colors of pavement and asphalt, they appeared to be weighted down from above, as if an invisible bar had forced them all to their knees—and was going to keep them there.
“Don’t worry,” Manuel said. “The doors are locked.”
“I am not afraid. I am . . . saddened, for some reason.”
“Urban poverty will do that to you.”
They went by yet another rotting, barely roofed box attended by two humans sharing a single coat. She never thought she would find any value in the Sanctuary’s oppressive perfection. But mayhap her mother had created the haven to protect the Chosen against sights like this. Lives . . . like those.
The environs soon improved slightly, however. And shortly thereafter, Manuel pulled off the road into a lot that ran parallel to a sprawling, new facility that appeared to cover a great plot of land. All around, lights on towering, craned arms cast peachy illumination upon the low-slung building and the shiny tops of the two vehicles that were parked and the clipped shrubs that bordered the walkways.
“Here we are,” he said, stopping their ride and turning to her. “I’m going to introduce you as a colleague, okay? Just roll with it.”
She grinned. “I shall endeavor to do that.”
They got out together and . . . oh, the air. Such a complex bouquet of good and bad, of metallic and sweet, of dirty and divine.
“I love this,” she said. “I love this!”
She put her arms out and swung herself in a circle, pivoting on a foot that had been booted just prior to their leaving the compound. As she halted her spin and her arms came to rest at her sides, she found him staring at her and had to laugh in embarrassment.
“I am sorry. I—”
“Come here,” he growled, his eyelids dropping low, his stare hot and possessive.
Instantly, her sex was aroused, her body flushing. And somehow, she knew to take her time as she approached him, knew to draw it out and make him wait, even if it wasn’t for long.
“You want me,” she drawled when they were face-to-face.
“Yeah. Hell, yeah.” His hands grabbed her waist and pulled her in tight. “Gimme your mouth.”
As she did just that, she wrapped her arms around his neck and melded into his solid body. The kiss had ownership all over it, on both sides, and when it ended, she could not stop smiling.
“I like it when you demand of me,” she said. “It takes me back to the shower, when you were—”
He let out a groan and cut her off, putting his hand gently over her mouth. “Yeah, I remember. Trust me—I remember.”
Payne gave his palm a lick. “You will do that to me again. Tonight.”
“I should be so lucky.”
“You shall be. And so shall I.”
He laughed a little. “You know what? I’m going to need to put one of my coats on.”
Manuel reopened his door and leaned into the car. When he reemerged, he drew on a pressed white jacket that had his name in cursive by the lapel. And she knew by the way he closed the two halves that he was trying to cover up his body’s response to her.
Pity. She liked to see him in that condition, all proud and hard.
“Come on—let’s go inside,” he said, taking her hand. And then under his breath, he seemed to add, “Before I come inside . . .”
As he didn’t finish the sentence, Payne left her smile right where it was, front and center on her face.
Upon closer examination, the facility seemed to be fortified for a siege, with discreet bars on its windows and a tall fencing stretching far down into the distance. The doors they approached were also barred, and Manuel didn’t test their handles.
Logical to secure the building, she thought. Given what the greater part of town had looked like.
Manuel pushed a button and immediately a tinny little voice said, “Tricounty Equine Hospital.”
“Dr. Manuel Manello.” He turned his head toward a camera. “I’m here to see—”
“Hey, Doc. Come right in.”
There was a buzz and then Manuel held the door open for her.