Marcun (Sky Warriors Book 1) Read online

  “No. Do you not think I could get him to stop?” He almost sounded insulted. Right, so she had insulted him just not for the reason she’d thought.

  “Oh, I know you could get him to stop if you really wanted to.” She shook her head. “I’m starting to feel like Alice. I guess that’s fitting given the name of my bakery.” Alice in Wonderland had been her favorite story as a child. It was why she’d named this place Mad Batter.

  “What?”

  “Nothing.” She shook her head. “Is everything all right? Do you need something?”

  “I have finished.”

  She felt her eyes widen. Finished? Surely not. She rose and moved out of the room. He stepped aside as she reached the door but she still brushed against him, her skin tingling where it touched him.

  She looked around the storeroom. Everything was in the correct place.

  Wow. That job would have taken her hours and he’d completed it in less than twenty minutes. She eyed him. “Either you are going to be my secret weapon or my greatest problem, aren’t you?”

  “You wish to use me as a weapon.” He almost seemed interested by that idea and she suddenly got the impression of coiled energy. Violence. But that soon disappeared and she wondered if she’d imagined it.

  She shook her head. “No, I didn’t mean that. Not exactly. Got to remember you’re very literal. Thanks for doing this. I don’t really have anything else for you today. You might as well head back to your apartment once the pollution drops.” She moved to her pollution monitor. She pressed the button to bring up the reading. “In another thirty minutes.”

  “Why do your workers not return?”

  “Oh. We don’t do any baking in the afternoon. I run the shop myself.”

  “You? Alone?” He looked skeptical.

  She placed her hands on her hips. “Look, buddy. I don’t know where you come from, and

  I don’t know exactly how you view women in your culture, but I’m perfectly capable of working here on my own, all right?”

  She could tell he wanted to protest further but he pressed his lips together.

  Jeez, Eden. What was wrong with her? He was her neighbor and employee, plus he didn’t grow up here. He was probably trying to learn about their culture as he went and having her bite at him wouldn’t help. “Sorry, I don’t mean to snap. Guess I’m just tired of people telling me how to run my business.”

  “Someone has been telling you what to do?” He followed her out to the front room. She checked the cash register was on.

  “Telling me what to do? Yep, someone always seems to be doing that. First it was my husband. He loved to point out how terrible all my ideas were. And then he wiped all my accounts clean and took off to parts unknown.”

  “He robbed you.” His face grew cold, ruthless. Just for a moment. Her breath caught.

  Then that look disappeared and she could breathe easily again.

  “Um, yes.”

  “He does not sound a good person.”

  “No, he’s not. He’s a complete bastard.”

  “His parents were not married?”

  “No, they were. In fact, they’re really quite nice. They’re friends with my mother. Or they were until Barry took off on me. Now my mother doesn’t talk to them. Barry has caused them a lot of shame and problems.”

  “You were upset when he left?”

  “Well, yeah, of course I was. He left me in a huge financial mess. He took everything. I didn’t even have enough to pay wages. I had to pawn my grandmother’s jewelry. My mother still doesn’t know about that, by the way.”

  As if he was ever going to meet her mother. She never came to the bakery or her apartment, which is how Eden liked it.

  “Could your family not help you? Why did they not go after your mate and insist that he return the money?”

  Mate? That was a slightly odd way to put things. In fact, there were a lot of odd things about Marcun. Mostly he seemed harmless but every so often he got this look in his eyes that made her blood chill. And she knew that English was his second language yet he never hesitated over his words or used words incorrectly.

  And yet there were things that he didn’t know about that she just thought everyone would know. Like mind-reading devices or brownies.

  Now, that’s not fair, Eden. There are countries that don’t eat brownie or watch television. That held different views on males and females.

  Although she couldn’t think of any that would call their husband or wife mate or that referred to their family as a pack.

  Maybe he was a shapeshifter. She snorted. Yeah, right.

  “Um, we say husband or partner not mate.”

  “Of course. That is what I said.”

  No. It wasn’t. But she didn’t bother to argue. “And even if we knew where Barry was, there is only me and my mother left in our family. My dad died years ago. We don’t exactly have the means to make Barry give us anything back. Even if he does still have it, which I doubt. Barry enjoys the finer things in life and he’s not interested in working to get them.”

  “So there is no male heading your family.”

  “What country did you say you came from again?” she pressed.

  His face went blank for a moment then cleared. “From the middle.”

  “The Middle East?” She guessed it was possible. Except she couldn’t place his accent. It was such a strange accent. Not that she knew every accent, of course. And most of the time she got them wrong.

  “What—”

  A knock on the front door interrupted her.

  “Drat. That’s a customer; I need to open up. Feel free to go home. I’ll see you at four in the morning.”

  “I shall stay.”

  She bit her lip as she made her way over to the door. “I’m sorry, I really can’t afford to pay you.”

  “It is fine. I will stay.”

  Okay then. She plastered on a smile then opened the door to her first customer for the afternoon.

  5

  When Eden locked up a few hours later, it was dark. Not pitch-black but getting close. Normally, she’d stay even longer, but it seemed Marcun wasn’t leaving until she did and she felt guilty about making him stay when she couldn’t afford to pay him. He’d spent most of the last few hours watching everyone who came through the door. She’d worried for a minute that people might find him intimidating, but he’d mainly stuck to the shadows and most didn’t even notice him.

  When a couple of younger guys who’d obviously decided to start drinking early came into the bakery, she’d known they would be trouble. She’d had some issues with young drunk idiots before, but luckily she’d always had other people in the shop. As soon as they entered, they started in on the crude comments. Their gazes lingering on her chest, making not-so-subtle comparisons between her body and the lemon meringue pie she’d created earlier. Something about the crests on the meringue looking like breasts and the inside being gooey and tart.

  Ick.

  Just as she’d been about to tell them to take a hike, Marcun had stepped forward. They’d taken one look at him and froze. She didn’t know what it was they’d seen on his face to make them look so scared. When she’d turned, he looked like he always did. But the boys had completely switched gears. After they bought her out of cupcakes, they thanked her politely then ran off.

  “Thanks for staying, I appreciate it. I just wish I could do more than offer you a few cookies and some loaves of bread.” It was all she’d had left and she’d been hoping to have something for her own dinner. Oh well, she had some ramen noodles in the cupboard. Those things never went off.

  He glanced down at the box of goodies she’d made up for him. “It is too bad there was no brownie left.”

  “That usually goes pretty quickly. I made some for you special.” Now why did she go and tell him that?

  They walked along for a few more minutes in silence.

  “You walk home alone every night? When it is dark?”

  She blew out a breath.
“Yes, I do. It’s perfectly safe.” Well, not really, there was a reason she carried a stinger in her bag. “I’m armed.” She pulled the stinger from her bag, careful not to aim it at him even with the safety on.

  “What is that?”

  “It’s a stinger. You haven’t seen one before? It’s nice and light and small, designed to fit in a handbag. When you aim it at someone, it emits a sharp electrical current that paralyses a bad guy while you run away. Kind of like the Tasers they had years ago, only it packs more juice and it doesn’t have any prongs. So you see, I’m not unprotected.” She smiled up at him, proud of herself. She’d had to live on leftovers from the bakery for a month to afford the stinger, plus she’d bought it on the black market since permits were so expensive. But she was glad she had it.

  She seemed so proud of herself. Did she really think that tiny … what did she call it? A stinger? Would protect her? Her naivety astounded him. Did she really think that small weapon, that did not even shoot to kill, could keep her safe?

  It was not his business.

  He should not care.

  He certainly should not get involved.

  He was here for one reason only and he could not forget the mission. He would protect her while he was watching her. But only because they knew the courier had been instructed to hand the package to her, not because he wanted to keep her safe.

  And after he was gone, it did not matter to him what happened to her. Or at least, it should not matter. But she had tried to help him. And if she was telling the truth, she had suffered a great deal of hardship at her mate’s hands. He had cheated her, hurt her. She could be as she appeared. An innocent. Marcun did not harm innocents.

  He did not go out of his way to protect them either. What was wrong with him? Where was the ruthlessness he was known for? He had never become involved in a female’s safety before.

  He’d simply never cared that much.

  But there was something about her that called to him. The way she worried over not being able to provide him with payment. How she gave him all the food that was left in the cabinet. How angry she was on his behalf at the amount he had to pay to live in that hovel. He had seen the way she’d snuck some extra food into people’s bags, those who did not look like they had much to spare, with worn clothing and tired eyes.

  She was a soft touch and these people knew it. No doubt many had taken advantage of her good nature and kindness and used her.

  Like her mate.

  Like him.

  The thought made him feel uncomfortable. He was not using her for his own gain. He needed her to get the Lichon jewel back to its rightful owner. That was all. Best he keep his silence and mind his own business, just as he would on any job.

  Staying this afternoon had been a miscalculation on his part. He should have left and watched her from a distance. Obviously spending too much time in her presence was affecting his good sense.

  “What will you do if there is more than one?” he bit out. Stars. So much for keeping quiet.

  “What?”

  “What if there is more than one attacker?”

  “Then I will shoot them all,” she boasted.

  It was painfully obvious how ill-prepared she was to defend herself. She had probably never shot that pitiful weapon she carried around.

  “Oh, so they will just stand still and allow this? What if they swarm you? What if you do not have time to pull the stinger from your handbag? What if it is knocked from your hand?”

  She was silent as they walked along. “Well, what would you suggest then?” She sounded slightly disgruntled.

  “I would suggest you not walk alone.”

  “I start work early, I can’t avoid going out in the dark.”

  “You misunderstand me. I did not say you should not walk alone in the dark. You should not walk alone at any time. This is not a safe place.”

  “Look, I’m guessing that wherever you came from is dangerous, but—”

  “Everywhere is dangerous, including here.” And she was foolish and delusional to believe otherwise. “I have seen no less than five attacks on people walking alone since I have been here.”

  She sucked in a breath. “You have? What did you do?”

  Do? Why would he do anything? He had taken care of the two males who had snuck up behind her, but that was because keeping her alive was in his best interests. Not because he truly cared.

  The thought of her being hurt stirred something inside him. Anger. He should not have gotten close to her. This was a bad idea. He should have kept his distance. He was losing his perspective.

  “You did do something, didn’t you? Of course you did. You couldn’t stand by and see someone attacked or wait for the police.”

  “By the time the authorities arrived it would be too late.” He did not correct her assumption of him. It served his purpose for her to think well of him. The truth was, he had done nothing. Why should the lives of others be of interest to him? He was not soft-hearted like she was.

  “So do you think I should get another weapon? There’s not much else I can do. I can hardly hire a bodyguard.” She laughed.

  “You have me.”

  Her laughter stopped. “Um, that was a joke. Only famous and important people can afford bodyguards. Nice as the offer is, I can’t afford you nor would I want you to act as my bodyguard.”

  They entered their apartment building as he pondered that. She kept her head down as she walked along beside him.

  “You do not think I would do a good job.” He felt insulted.

  She looked up, piercing him with those blue eyes. He had to work hard not to show the affect she had on him, the way his body stirred, how much he longed to pull her close, to press her up against him. The couple of times they’d touched today had been near torture. His body had grown hot, almost feverish. And his mind had been consumed with the thought of taking her, tasting her.

  Making her his.

  He growled and she jumped.

  “Is everything okay?” she asked, staring up at him.

  “Yes. Forget I said anything.”

  She headed towards that contraption called an elevator. He grabbed hold of her arm, his skin almost sizzling as it touched hers. He quickly let go of her.

  “What is it?” she asked.

  “Where are you going?”

  “Ah, to take the elevator.”

  “No.”

  “No?” She looked up at him as though he were speaking another language.

  “It is not safe.”

  She sighed, putting her hands on her hips. “Got a real thing about safety, don’t you?”

  He’d never thought that he had, but when it came to her he was doing all sorts of strange things.

  “It is held up by cables. They could snap, be cut through, worn away, and you would plunge to your death.”

  She shrugged. “Elevators have existed for a long time. Have the cables ever snapped on some of them? Maybe. But I doubt it happens often.”

  And that was a good justification to continue using them?

  “I’m tired.” She glared up at him. “I don’t want to walk up three flights of stairs.”

  “It is not safe.”

  “Fine.” She pointed at him, waggling her finger as she glared up at him. “But if you tell me that taking the stairs is better for my health I am going to lose my shit.”

  His eyes widened with alarm. She would need to use the toilet? That was strange. And rather unsettling.

  They walked up the stairs in silence. He had to move at half his usual pace to match her steps.

  Halfway up the first flight of stairs, they met the male who had rented him his rooms coming down. The male paused and looked as though he wished to turn around and run back up.

  “Ah, there you are, Joe. I want to speak to you,” Eden said determinedly. “You’ve charged my friend, Marcun, here, too much for his apartment.”

  “It’s market rates.”

  “It is not. It’s highway robbery.”<
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  “He agreed to the price,” the male whined, looking uncomfortable.

  “Because he didn’t know any better. He’ll pay two-fifty.”

  The male’s eyes bulged open. “Now who’s doing the robbing? Four-fifty.”

  “In your dreams. Three-fifty. Final offer.”

  The male nodded. “Deal.” He stepped past them, giving Marcun a nervous glance.

  “And we’ll expect a credit against next month’s rent,” Eden called down.

  “Fine. Fine.”

  The male disappeared and Marcun turned to her. She grinned at him. “There you go, I just saved you a hundred and fifty bucks a month.”

  He was still astounded when they reached the third floor. Eden was breathing harder, her face red.

  “Happy now?” she grumbled. “Jesus, I am seriously unfit. Maybe I should be walking up the stairs more often.”

  “Yes, probably.”

  She shot him a dark look. “Be nice to me, I just saved you some money.”

  He opened his door.

  “You keep your door unlocked?” she asked, sounding shocked.

  He stared at the door. “Yes, the lock is ineffectual anyway. It could easily be broken.”

  “But at least someone would be delayed and what about insurance? Wait what am I saying? You won’t have insurance. But still, you must have things you want to protect.”

  “I have nothing inside to protect.”

  “There has to be something. And if Joe finds out you’re not locking your door he’ll flip out.”

  Flip out of where?

  She ran her hand over her face. “You should lock your door. Just a few days ago my place was broken into and I definitely don’t have anything worth taking. Seems like it was a waste of their time since nothing was taken. But even if you don’t think you have something to steal you could come home to find your place trashed, or worse, that someone has decided to play goldilocks in your bed. You do not want a squatter moving in. I mean, that watch you’re wearing has to be worth something, right?”

  He looked down at his communicator. “I always wear this.”

  “But what if one day you forget to put it on? It could get stolen.”