My Protector (Bewitched and Bewildered Book 2) (23 page)

Meryn turned to them. "What could I possibly do for you?" she asked.

"We want to learn from you!" Noah blurted.

Meryn blinked. "Huh? I'm not a warrior trainer," she pointed out.

Jaxon wheeled closer. "No, but you easily bypassed our sub-routines to take control of the city camera's last month. As you can see, we're not exactly warrior material." Jaxon nodded to his legs. Noah held up his arm pointing to a puny bicep.

Jaxon continued. "You can teach us what you know about hacking. We can help you," he offered.

"It's internet security..." Meryn started.

"Hacking," both Jaxon and Noah said together.

Meryn looked to her. Elizabeth shrugged. This was beyond her. She could organize and run a city but she didn't know the first thing about computers beyond how to get her reports.

Meryn then turned to Ryuu who was nodding. "I think this is a good idea,
denka
. Teaching others is very humbling and grounding, you need both. Plus, considering your condition, you may need the help."

Jaxon turned to Meryn, concern in his eyes. "Condition?"

Meryn shrugged. "We just found out that I'm preggo."

Jaxon and Noah looked at each other confusion on their faces. Noah turned to her. "How did that happen?"

Meryn shrugged. "Aiden has this thing he likes to do that I just can't say no to..." Ryuu placed a hand over her mouth. Both men blushed furiously.

Without removing his hand Ryuu turned to them. "If you're to study with Lady Meryn you'll have to get used to her bluntness. To answer your question, she is human. She can get pregnant at any time, which is why she is pregnant out of season." Ryuu removed his hand.

"Oh, that's what they wanted to know." She turned to Ryuu. "I'm hungry."

Ryuu bowed. "Gentleman, we have plenty of breakfast leftover if you haven't eaten," he offered.
 

Noah licked his lips. Jaxon laughed. "He's a bottomless pit and is always hungry. But I could eat too. I was so nervous about coming here today I couldn't eat this morning. When we heard that trainees from the academy were allowed to move to the Alpha estate we thought that it wouldn't be that much different if we came here during the day to learn."

"This way." Ryuu led the way to the dining room.
 

Elizabeth followed. She wouldn't be of any use outside in the cold carrying gear and she was craving another cappuccino.

When everyone was seated with food in front of them she pointed to her empty cup. Ryuu nodded and left for the kitchen.

"So, can I ask you something?" Meryn said turning to Jaxon.

He grinned ruefully. "You're going to ask how a shifter can become paralyzed when we can heal so quickly aren't you."

Meryn nodded not even looking embarrassed.
 

Jaxon blinked. "I fell out of a tree when I was very young, before I could shift. Unfortunately it has inhibited my wolf so I'm stuck like this. It doesn't bother you does it? My affliction?" he asked.

Elizabeth could only imagine the kind of life he had led living in a predominately shifter city with a handicap.

"Why would it bother me? I'm kinda jealous; you always have a place to sit." Meryn took a huge bite of her breakfast sandwich.

Elizabeth swatted at her arm. "Meryn!" she admonished.

"Wha?" Meryn asked with her mouth full.

Jaxon surprised her when he began to laugh. Noah grinned shaking his head. Finally Jaxon spoke. "No one has ever looked at me and seen an advantage. Not once. I wasn't sure how this was going to go, but I'm not above begging. Please let us study with you. We'll do whatever you say. We want to learn how to help the warriors like you do." His eyes blazed with passion.

Elizabeth could see that had life been different he could have easily been one of the trainees outside getting his gear. His body though seated was large and muscular. She wondered how many times he had been dismissed and shunted to one side.

"I have minions," Meryn whispered in awe.

"Gods above save us," Elizabeth muttered.

"Ryuu!" Meryn yelled.

He appeared in the doorway almost immediately. "Yes,
denka
?"

"I'm calling dibs on one of the guest suites downstairs for my minions, can you make sure the meatheads know?" She started rubbing her hands together. He bowed and walked out towards the front door.

"You'll teach us? We can actually stay here? Like the trainees?" Noah stuttered his questions.

"Yup! And don't think I'm going to go easy on you either. The things we'll be able to do with three of us." Meryn's eyes shone with excitement.

Minutes later Aiden a frown on his face walked in with Ryuu. "What's this about using a guest suite?"

Meryn nodded. "It's been reserved for my minions. I want them to get the larger guest suite next to the media room, which we will later be tricking out as our command central." Meryn reached down to her ever-present backpack and pulled out her laptop.

Aiden just stared then shook his head. "I'm not going to ask." He turned to Jaxon and Noah. "Welcome aboard and good luck." He walked out yelling to Colton to move Lennox to another room.

"Just like that?" Noah whispered.

"I told you buddy. I had a good feeling about this, like we were supposed to be here." Jaxon punched his friend lightly in the shoulder.

Elizabeth felt a sliver of ice slide down her spine at his words. She looked over to Ryuu and saw that he too had felt something. Jaxon was more right than he knew, they were meant to be here.

"Meryn..." Elizabeth started.

Meryn waved a hand at her. "Shush for a second, my brain is working. I think I have designed a new program, each unit in the future will get a sixth man. He'll be the unit's eyes and ears, their communication link and relay." Meryn tapped away furiously.

"So mote it be," Ryuu whispered from the other side of the room.

Elizabeth clearly saw the important role these two underestimated and overlooked men would play and why Meryn was so necessary to be, who she was, where she was, and who she was mated to.

"Ryuu, I think a bottle of champagne is in order," Elizabeth said sitting up. She was watching history unfold right before her. She also realized why she was brought to Lycaonia. Meryn may be the one creating and teaching this program but it would need someone like her to organize it and keep it running.

"I do believe you are right," Ryuu said and went to the kitchen.

Meryn, Jaxon and Noah stared at her as if she lost her mind.
 

Ryuu walked back in with five empty flutes glasses and an open bottle. He poured a glass for each of them handing Meryn half a glass.

They had just lifted their glasses to toast when the warriors and trainees walked in from carrying in all the luggage. They looked around in confusion. Ryuu nodded to Elizabeth.

She responded the only way she knew how.

She stood and lifted her glass to the room before reciting one of her favorite quotes of all time. "
I wish the Ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened. So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. There are other forces at work in this world, Frodo, besides the will of evil.
"

"May we perform the jobs given to us well." Ryuu lifted his glass in salute. Together they both downed their glasses. Meryn, Jaxon and Noah grinning, drank theirs.

"I love that movie! You're like my Yoda and my Gandalf," Meryn said, easily finishing off her half glass.

Elizabeth smiled, she could think of no higher praise from Meryn.

"Whatever needs doing, Noah and I can help." Jaxon said confidently.

"Beth, love, what is going on?" Gavriel walked over to her, taking her glass from her hand and pulling her into his arms.

For a moment she simply enjoyed the feel of him. His solid frame seemed to anchor her. She thought before she spoke. She had to be careful of what she said, she didn't want to disrupt Meryn's train of thought. She looked up at her mate and shook her head smiling. "Meryn is making history. She has just changed the structure of how units will be run."

"What?" Aiden and Colton asked in unison.

Aiden walked up behind Meryn. "Baby, you can't just change something that has worked for thousands of years, this, whatever it is, needs to be discussed with the council. You need to ask permission before you try to implement changes." Aiden waved at her laptop.

Meryn looked up at him from her laptop. "You mean where I go in and visit with your father the Shifter Elder, who loves me, Celyn the fae Elder, who adores me and Rowan the witch Elder, who admires me and I tell them I have this stupendous idea to save lives. That sort of thing?" she asked.

Aiden groaned. "They have spoiled you too much. Even if you were to get their blessing, this goes beyond Lycaonia. This type of unilateral change needs to be accepted in every pillar city."

Meryn patted his chest. "Which is why as Unit Commander you're going to tell them you support me one thousand percent. You can make changes to the units, I know, I looked it up last week just in case I had to pull rank again."

Aiden ran a hand through his hair. "It will never get the support from all the other cities."

Elizabeth faced Aiden. "My uncle will support it if I tell him to and I will. Her idea to add a sixth man to every unit to act as its own command central will save lives, I'm sure of it."

Aiden looked from Meryn to her back to Meryn. "That's just Lycaonia and Noctem Falls."

Darian cleared his throat. "Actually if Meryn were to suggest it, my queen would also support her. She likes Meryn and has already invited her to the fae city, which is no small feat. She finds Meryn's new outlook refreshing and inspirational. She would have the support of Éire Danu as well."

Aiden looked around a bit wild eyed.

Colton stepped forward and clapped him on the back. "Aiden, it's a good idea, in fact, it's a great idea. I know I, for one, would feel a hell of a whole lot safer if I knew someone like Meryn was watching out for us when we're called out on a mission. Hell! Do you know how much red tape she could slash through by hacking the local law enforcement systems? This could literally save lives,
our
lives. And I don't know about you, but knowing that my mate is on the way, I want to be around to meet her. And you have Meryn 2.0 to raise." Colton elbowed his friend.

"Meryn, can this actually work?" Aiden looked down at his mate with a serious expression.

She nodded and met his eyes. "Yes. I have my first two trainees right here. I'll get them up to speed and then train others. I'm sure there must be more men or even women that will want to join the program." Meryn looked up at Aiden resolve written on her face for everyone to see.

"Not to speak out of turn, but I'd be interested in learning as well, sir. Even when we were at the academy there were times we were laid up for a few days healing. If I could spend that time watching out for my brother warriors I would rather do that than stare at the TV waiting for bones to mend," Lennox said taking the initiative to speak. Behind him all the trainees nodded.

"Okay, Menace. You create this program and make it airtight and I will get the support of the other councils. If you and Elizabeth feel this strongly about it, then I can do no less than make it happen," Aiden said.

Meryn bounced out of her seat and jumped up and down trying to kiss his face.

Laughing, Aiden picked her up. "Why do you hop around like that, you know you can't reach?"

"But I can reach, I just need your help." She peppered his face with kisses.

Blushing, he cleared his throat and turned to the trainees. "Time to start drills."

Grinning at each other the trainees nodded. "Yes Sir!" they called out and jogged for the front door.

Aiden groaned, his badass image tarnished. Meryn laughed and nuzzled her nose against his. "My teddy bear."

Colton made the mistake of laughing. Aiden's head swung to him. "Alpha Unit to join the trainees. Let's show them how it's done gentlemen, we go until they drop," he said, smiling at Colton's chagrin.

Gavriel shook his head and turned to her. "Try not to take over the world while we poor grunts are training."

She flipped her hair off her shoulder. "We make no promises."

She sat back down and picked up her champagne, they were definitely living in interesting times.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Elizabeth listened in as Meryn started describing the different operating systems and computer languages that her new 'minions' would have to learn. She jumped from topic to topic excitedly. After an hour Elizabeth took pity on Jaxon and Noah who had started to look a little shell shocked and put a halt to Meryn's 'teaching'.

She stood and clapped her hands together, all three looked up at her.

"How about this? Since the two of you will be moving in let's make arrangements to get your things here. I'll put together a rough curriculum with reading materials and Meryn will be on hand for any questions." She almost laughed out loud at the enthusiastic nodding from the men.

"Sounds good to me, I'm not very good at organizing stuff," Meryn admitted. Elizabeth watched as both men looked away, not saying a word.
 

Bless their hearts.

Noah looked at Jaxon. "We don't have much. I can run to the apartment and get our stuff and come back. We pay monthly so we don't have to worry about breaking a lease."

Jaxon frowned and looked down at his chair before sighing. "I wish I could help."

Noah shrugged. "It's not a lot."

"Maybe Sydney and Justice can help. They live in the city." Meryn interjected.