aHunter4Saken (aHunter4Hire) (2 page)

“I
had to wash them.” Peta and her mother walked to the bed. “They’re torn and
need some mending. When I’m finished, I’ll get them back to you.”

“You
do not need to fix them.” Niail swallowed the lump in his throat. “I can sew.”

“You’re
a man of many talents, but right now I don’t think you would be able to
concentrate long enough to hold a needle.”

He
could not argue with her.

Nothing
was as usual.

The
woman who stood in front of him was evidence of that. He felt her eyes touch
him, almost caressing in their concern. Never had he been aware of a female
before. This shook him to his very core. He was sworn to a life of honor and
duty.

Women
were not a part of his life.

He
forced back the sensation of awareness and looked up at her. She was beautiful.
Everything about her was perfect. She had dark black hair, deep brown eyes,
luscious full lips, and a voluptuous figure. She was a woman a man would enjoy
holding.

What
the hell was he thinking?

Hunters
did not embrace women.

He
looked down at the bed and tried to ignore his body’s reaction to the thought
of touching the beauty before him. That hit on the head had done more damage
than he had thought. He had forgotten his mission; next he would forget he was
a warrior.

“You’re
still in pain.” She let her finger drift over his forehead. “You need more
sleep.”

A
shock of electricity shot through him. It took his breath away. He forced his
heart beat to relax, and glanced up. She was frowning. Had he done something
wrong? Trying to read humans was something he had no patience for.

“You
feel warm. Peta get a glass of water.” She picked up a bottle of tablets and
gave him two. “These should help.”

Niail
popped them into his mouth and took a sip from the glass Peta held out to him.
“I do not know your name.”

“You
were too wounded last night to exchange names. I’m Kimi.”

Niail
nodded. A pain shot through his skull. “I am Niail.”

“He’s
a Hunter.” Wil’s voice held a touch of awe.

“You
mentioned that last night.” Kimi pursed her lips. “You also said that you
weren’t hunting anything. I thought it was just confusion because of the
concussion.”

“He
helps people.” Peta sat on the edge of the bed.

“He’s
a superhero.” Wil joined his sister on the bed. “He ran into a lot of bad
medicine last night, otherwise he would have beaten the evil guys.”

Kimi
pulled Wil into her arms and hugged him before guiding him toward the door.
“You two scoot. Breakfast is on the table. You had better eat before you’re
late for school.”

When
the kids left the room, Kimi turned back to him. Her eyes were clouded with
reproach. “I know you probably thought you were being nice, but I would
appreciate it if you didn’t encourage them.”

“What
did I do wrong?”

“Life
is cruel enough. It’s better if they know the truth rather than have their
dreams and fantasy shattered later.”

“I
do not lie.”

Kimi
tilted her head. “You told them you were a superhero.”

“Wil
said that. I told them I was a Hunter.”

Kimi
rolled her eyes. “I’m not going to get angry because I know that you’re not
thinking properly.”

“I
know who I am.”

“You’re
a hunter who doesn’t hunt animals.”

Niail
nodded. “We only hunt animals if we need food. Hunters are a warrior race.”

Kimi
sighed. “There’s no point in arguing with you.”

“It
is not necessary for you to believe. I speak the truth.”

Kimi
straightened his bedding. “The kids and I need to get to school. You should
take it easy until we get back.”

Niail
could not argue with the advice. His head and body ached. With a grunt of
resignation, he slid back down on the bed. What he needed was uninterrupted
sleep. Then his memory of the mission would come back, and he could leave.

“Your
headache should improve after more rest.” Kimi left the room, shutting the door
behind her.

The
sooner he left the better.

He
was too aware of the woman.

It
was uncomfortable and disturbing. The last thing he desired was a distraction.
His duty was to finish his mission. Just as soon as he remembered what it was,
he would do so.

He
shut his eyes and concentrated on making contact with one of the brotherhood.
Despite the splitting pain that shot through his head, he sent out a mind
connection and waited. Usually communication was instantaneous, but not today.
His head ached from the effort. No matter how hard he tried, or who he tried to
connect with, the result was the same.

Silence.

He
was a Hunter alone.

The
classroom door opened and Kimi looked up from the paper she had been marking.
Sam, her ex-husband, stood in the doorway. Not now, she groaned inwardly. She
had spent the morning arguing with her brother Jake about Sam, and now, here he
was. At least he had enough sense not to go to her house.

“What
do you want?” Kimi wrote a B in red ink on the paper and put it in her pile.

“I’ve
brought those legal documents for you to sign.”

“You
don’t waste any time.” Kimi grabbed another paper. “You just spoke to me
yesterday.”

“Well,
the sooner this is done, the better.”

“For
you,” Kimi whispered under her breath before straightening her shoulders. “I
know I agreed to sign them, it’s just been a heck of a day.”

“Look
if this is a bad time, I’ll come back tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow
is Saturday. You would have to come to the house. That would be worse.” Kimi
threw her pen on her desk. “Jake heard about your visit. I spent an hour this
morning arguing with him.”

Sam
looked up and down the hall before entering the classroom. He shut the door
behind him.

“Does
he know why I visited?”

“He
knows you didn’t see the kids.” Kimi heard the sarcasm in her voice. As much as
she tried not to be affected by Sam’s indifference to their children, it
infuriated her. He was their father and he would rather brush their marriage
and children under the rug. He wanted to pretend it never happened. No matter
how much she convinced herself it was for the best, she couldn’t understand it.
What kind of man walked away from his children?

She
had married the man.

What
did that say about her?

Kimi
blew the hair away from her eyes. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

“It’s
what Moira wants.”

“You
never did what I asked when we were married.”

Kimi
couldn’t resist the dig. The truth was that Sam was seldom around when they
were married. He was off exploring the world and building his career as a
journalist. She had provided a comfortable landing point when he returned.

Sam
pulled on the collar of his shirt. “I know I wasn’t a great husband. I don’t want
to make the same mistake.”

Kimi
stood. “We were kids in college when we married. Someone should have stopped
us.”

Sam
grinned. “Where was your brother then?”

“It’s
too bad he was in the Forces.” Kimi leaned against her desk. “He would have tried
to interfere, but I don’t think we would have listened.”

“No.”
Sam pulled a folder out from under his arm. “We were crazy in love back then.”

“Crazy
is the word.” Kimi smiled. “That’s until reality stepped in.”

“I
want my new marriage to work.” Sam put the folder on the desk. “I know this
seems like the coward’s way out, but right now I just can’t afford child
support. I still have student loans. Moira and the new baby are more than I can
handle.”

“You
haven’t paid support for years.”

Kimi
opened the file. A number of legal papers were inside with highlights where her
signature was needed. She rifled through them. Words like disintegration,
dissolution, and desertion, jumped out at her. Her stomach twisted at the
finality of it.

Sam
held his hands up in a conciliatory gesture. “I’m the first to admit I’ve not
been a good father.”

“What
makes you think you’ll do better with your new son?”

“Moira
won’t have it any other way.” Sam cleared his throat. “You let me slide at
being a husband and a father. You never complained.”

Kimi
crossed her arms. “I can’t believe you just said that.”

“What?”
Sam frowned.

“You
just blamed me for our marriage falling apart.”

“It’s
true. You were too self-reliant. You had to control everything about the kids,
and somehow I didn’t measure up. I wasn’t Blackfeet.”

“When
we married you were all enthused about living the traditional life of my
people.”

“That’s
before I understood what it would entail.” Sam waved his arms around the room.
“I can’t bury myself in this place. There’s nothing here for a journalist.”

These
were the same arguments she had heard throughout her marriage. Sam was still
handsome, with his dark hair and eyes, but that’s all she saw now. There was no
feeling left for him. He was a weak man, who would always take the easy way
out. She shuddered to think what life would have been like if the marriage
hadn’t ended.

She
grabbed a pen and started signing the papers. She flipped through all of them
twice to make certain she hadn’t missed a spot. This was the last time she
wanted to see Sam. He was out of her life forever.

She
pushed the folder toward him. “You’re free. What do you want me to tell the
kids when they ask?”

“I’m
still their father.” Sam picked up the folder. “I care.”

“You’ve
been absent for most of their lives. Those are not the actions of a loving
father.” Kimi sat down and grabbed a paper to mark.

“That’s
not fair.” Sam tucked the folder under his arm. “You know I love them, but
you’re the one who wants them raised in your traditions. I would only
interfere.”

“A
visit now and then isn’t going to corrupt them.” Kimi shook her head. “You
haven’t seen them since Wil was a baby.”

“This
isn’t ideal, but I am trying my best.” Sam walked to the door. “They’re too
young to understand our situation. I think it’s best to leave things as they
are.”

“They’re
children. All they want to know is that you love them.”

“They
know that. Thank you for this.” Sam motioned to the folder. “It’ll be a great
help to me.”

“Goodbye.”
Kimi winced as the door shut.

There
was nothing left to say.

Sam
was out of her life for good.

She
looked down at the test papers with unseeing eyes. She had been young and a
fool. She had believed that love was all that was needed to make a person
happy. She doubted Sam would ever mature enough to make a good father. It was
his loss. He was gone. She could close the door on that part of her life now.

Kimi
continued to work for another half hour. The bell rang and she packed up the
papers and slid them into her drawer. The school day was over. It was Friday
and the weekend promised rest.

Then
she remembered the man sleeping in her guest room.

Kimi
stood and stretched just as a dark-haired woman wearing jeans and a blue blazer
walked into the room

“I
heard you had a visitor last night.”

Kimi
grinned at her friend, and fellow teacher, Ann. “News travels fast.”

“Is
he cute?”

Kimi
gathered her books together. “Why don’t you come by and see for yourself?”

“That
bad huh?”

“He’s
pretty mixed up.” Kimi frowned. “I almost lost him last night.”

It
had been touch and go at first. Bobby had helped drag him into the bed and then
left. The stranger’s shirt was torn and the rest of his clothes were in no
better shape. She had been too busy wrestling his garments off and tending to
his numerous wounds to observe much about him. It wasn’t until later that she
had noticed the man.

What
a man.

He
was a giant in comparison to the men she knew. It wasn’t just his height, which
was at least six feet and a half. He had muscles on muscles. He had jet black
hair and when he had opened his eyes, they were dark obsidian. Then there was
the matter of his tattoo. He wore a number of symbols that her grandfather
claimed were from the Star People.

That
might not mean anything, though. Anyone could have found those symbols on the
internet, and had them tattooed on them. No, there was something else about the
man that was mesmerizing.