A Hunter Within (The Alliance of Power Duology, Book 1) Read online

  I turned to run, frightened by not only what I heard, but also at the prospect of getting caught snooping around, even if it was with good intentions to help.

  As soon as I could get my legs moving, a chilling, ripping sound came from behind me. I turned back and saw the man from earlier, only this time he looked much more haggard than I remembered. And he definitely was not strapped to anything that prevented him from escaping. I refocused my attention in front of me, wondering where I could run.

  Before I could make that decision, something grabbed my arms roughly and threw me up against the wall. I stared down into the face of what didn’t look like a man at all. I frowned. His hair hung over his eyes—eyes which were a strange crimson red color. The veins in his face were unnaturally defined, as if something was pumping through him like a steroid. A very bad steroid.

  His lips curled back as he came closer to my face, and he took a deep breath.

  “Are you okay?” I asked with a shaky voice.

  Seriously? Are you okay? That was what I could come up with when I’m being attacked by a madman? The patient must have been surprised at my response as well, because he dropped me, and with a wary look in his eyes, tore down the hallway toward an emergency exit at the edge of the building.

  Shit.

  I was sure there would be security footage somewhere of me, even if there wasn’t a camera in this particular hallway. I was already screwed, and if this guy was in trouble, he shouldn’t be wandering around in the woods alone. I rolled my eyes and decided to chase after him, hoping he wasn’t dangerous and was simply scared.

  I ran through the emergency door as well and saw the direction he had run off in. It wasn’t hard to tell. There was gravel knocked about as if he’d been dragging his feet along abnormally.

  “Hello!” I called out, receiving nothing in response. “I don’t want to hurt you, sir. I just want to help,” I tried again, walking farther away from the building and closer to the edge of the woods.

  A deep, intimidating laugh rang out from the shadows. “Help? I will be the one helping myself to your pathetic, little figure, pretty girl. What an easy target you are. Coming out here all alone.”

  They must have given him some heavy sedative or hallucinogen if he thought lurking around in the shadows made more sense than being around our doctors and pharmacists. I still couldn’t put eyes on him in the darkness he’d disappeared to. I shivered once but tried to disregard his creepiness and said, “Please, if you’d just come back with me I know we can assist you.”

  The man suddenly emerged from the shadows, a smile etched onto his face that looked as wide as a cartoon. His teeth looked funny, like they had been filed to points on his canines. I squinted but realized I might not have time to study him at the moment. He stalked toward me before he started moving in a slow, deliberate circle. I crossed my arms over my chest to try to hide my trembling at not just the cold, but at the realization of how bad this situation might be.

  “I’m much better, now. And the first thing I’m going to do is rip you apart and savor the fresh, innocent blood I’m sure is flowing through those delicate veins.”

  I frowned, stumbling back a few steps as I came to terms with the fact that chasing after a mad man alone was a very stupid move.

  The hairs on my neck stood up again, but this time I felt a strong hand touch the small of my back. A moment later, another touched my arm and a strange spark ran through my body, both warming and calming me all at once.

  “Run,” a voice said softly in my ear.

  I turned to look into the ice blue eyes of a stranger. I backed up, and he furrowed his brow for a minute, as if he’d felt the electric shock too, before refocusing and letting go of me.

  “Are—Are you security?” I asked, slightly stunned not only by the jolt I felt, but the smoldering eyes watching me as well.

  “Something like that.” His lips quirked into a small, devilish smirk before his eyes darted back over to the man who had suddenly started rushing toward us. “Go, now. Get inside,” he said more urgently and turned to face the deranged patient from our facility.

  Despite my worry about this stranger facing off with a clearly unstable man, I started to back away. Why would our company have only one guy on hand for security?

  The two of them started fighting, and I yelped, terrified by the strength with which they brawled. Their movements were quick and appeared deadly. The strength with which they were hitting each other seemed to be much more than either was letting on. I kept backing away, slowly.

  The troubled man took notice of me again and came rushing in my direction, reaching out to grab at my arm. The blue-eyed stranger, quicker than I would have thought possible, twisted the patent’s outstretched arm behind his back and slammed him down onto the ground.

  He looked back up at me, with a fierceness in his eyes that hadn’t been there before. “Please, you need to go,” he urged as his blue eyes intensified in color.

  My fight or flight senses finally kicked in, and I obeyed. I ran back to the emergency exit I came out of and slammed the door behind me.

  I looked around and remembered my training on the first day about building security and integrity. There was a red button on the side that would lock down the facility. I looked around for some sort of sign that the guard outside would be getting backup, but the hallways were still quiet. The fight raging outside was still going strong, and both men appeared to be getting farther away from the building. I debated whether I should push the alert or not and then was overcome with frustration. For a man who had six technicians on him earlier, how was he left alone and no one had noticed he was gone?

  I decided I’d rather cover my ass than be questioned later for hiding anything. As soon as my hand touched the button, the sirens sounded throughout the building, indicating a shutdown had been initiated. I turned from the windows and the exit and ran, trying to find someone who looked like they were in a position of authority that I could explain the situation to.

  As I came around the corner, I bumped into men who looked much more like guards than my savior had. “Miss, you’ll need to come with us,” one of them said, annoyed. He was stocky and shorter than I was.

  “Gladly,” I replied, hoping they’d take me to their boss. “But your man outside, he might need—”

  The other guard, a taller male held up his hand and silenced me before I could let them know they really needed to get outside. “Just come with us,” he said in a high-pitched voice.

  We walked along a few corridors and took an elevator up one floor. I knew we were heading somewhere important, and I was glad I could finally speak to someone. The stranger outside was going to need backup, and who knew what was going to happen to that psycho patient. I shuddered and wondered if he would have been strong enough to succeed in hurting me if no one else had shown up.

  The guards led me into the executive suites. It was a beautiful office area, circular shaped and open. The entryway desk was huge, and there were hallways leading to various rooms to the right and left of the desk.

  “Have a seat,” the stocky guard commanded.

  I listened to him. The palms of my hands were sweaty, and I rubbed them along my skirt, opening my hands wide to try to air them out.

  “Name?” A beautiful woman with glasses came out from behind the reception desk and appeared in front of me.

  “She was in the passage where the shutdown was initiated from,” the guard with the high-pitched voice answered.

  The girl popped a large bubblegum bubble and stared at the guard over her glasses for a moment before continuing. “I still need her name, love.”

  She turned her attention back to me, raising her eyebrows expectantly.

  “Jules Parker. I can explain. I think one of the guards outside may need some help,” I started, but she just nodded and jotted something down. Then she turned and walked back behind the desk.

  I sat in the cushioned visitor’s chair, my stomach churning the longer
the quiet wait continued. I wondered who I‘d have to talk to. Probably someone in security, or maybe operations. Maybe the man who saved me would turn up here, and I could get a name to thank him. I shook my head. Really, Jules? Stop thinking about the hot guard.

  Finally, the receptionist stood from behind her desk again. “This way, Ms. Parker. Gentlemen, that’ll be all,” she said as she waved the guards away.

  I had no idea whom she was taking me to see or what they would say. I ran through my story in my head a few times. I was heading to lunch when a man shoved into me and ran out. I thought he looked troubled and went to help. That was plausible and mostly the truth. I’d make sure the guard who helped me had brought the patient back safely, and then I’d get back to work and keep my head down. Serves me right for poking around and trying to help a stranger.

  We kept walking farther and farther back. The more offices we passed, the more nervous I got. Whose office could we be heading to? Why was it taking so long to be seen for this? We finally stopped outside a large set of double doors. The receptionist smiled at me before opening them up.

  “Ms. Malcovey will see you now.”

  My eyes widened. “Did you just say, Ms. Malcov…” my voice trailed off in fear as the doors opened and a tall, elegant woman in a perfectly tailored skirt suit stood with her arms by her side, a small smile gracing her face.

  “Ms. Parker, won’t you please join me?” She motioned to the seats in front of her ornately decorated desk, and I unsteadily made my way forward into the plush executive office of Falcone Industries President & CEO, Marissa Malcovey.

  CHAPTER 2

  “Ms. Parker, thank you for joining me,” Marissa Malcovey said, smiling as she sat down in her leather chair.

  “It’s an honor to meet you, Ms. Malcovey,” I stammered, embarrassed. I was face to face with the woman whom I’d followed for years, watching her company and dreaming of working there—the number one company in the country led by a woman who had been on every talk show and business program, discussing success and how hard work had gotten her to the top—and I was stammering out an introduction. Pull it together, Jules.

  “I understand that you initiated a building lockdown today? Normally, we don’t worry too much as most of the time it’s curious interns and accidents. But, I saw some disturbing footage that made me realize I simply must speak to you in person,” she said, leaning forward on her desk with her hands clasped in front of her face.

  I gulped slightly and ran my now extremely damp hands along the top of my thighs in a futile effort to stop my nervous sweat.

  “Are you all right, Ms. Parker? If I saw correctly, it looks like one of our patients may have harmed you in some way,” she said, looking concerned.

  Whew. It seemed like she saw the attack and exit of the patient and hopefully not the other stuff.

  “I’m a bit shaken,” I said, hoping that would give enough of a reason for my nervousness. “He seemed very upset and angry.”

  She nodded, looking at me with a sort of commiserate understanding. She stood and walked over toward her overelaborate bookshelf and reached down to open the door to a hidden mini fridge. She pulled a bottle of sparkling water out and handed it to me. “Why don’t you start from the beginning,” she said, taking a seat in her chair again.

  I opened the bottle and took a small sip before weaving my tale. “When I left my cube for my lunch break, I thought I heard a noise. It seemed quiet and sounded strange so I just wanted to make sure everything was okay.” I shifted slightly, rubbing my hands again slowly to not cause a distraction. I could handle almost anything but when it came to jobs and my work, I was always so nervous.

  Ms. Malcovey watched, with a smile that looked kind enough on her face and beckoned me to continue. So, I did.

  “A man came out of nowhere and shoved me against the wall. I tried to ask if he was okay but he dropped me. He was clearly not all right, and I thought it would be best to convince him to come back, so I followed. Once we were outside, he started threatening me and saying some strange things—”

  “People do tend to say some pretty incredible things when they are scared. I’m sure he meant nothing by them,” she said, pursing her lips slightly.

  I watched her, trying to keep my face as neutral as I could. I hadn’t even told her what he had said. Why would she interrupt just to try to convince me he hadn’t meant anything by what it was that came out of his mouth?

  “Well, then security showed up and told me to get back inside,” I continued, only to be stopped again.

  “Security?” she questioned.

  I frowned. “Yes, the gentlemen told me to go back inside and seemed to be handling the patient, er, man,” I replied. “I did as he said and then pressed the lockdown button to try to get him some help. And well, then I was brought here.”

  “And you said it was one of our guards?” Ms. Malcovey questioned, attempting to furrow her brow. Her tightly pulled back hair looked as though it was making her ability to do so difficult.

  “Right, I mean I’m not sure who else it would have been out there. And he said he was, I think,” I answered, trying to remember. He hadn’t actually admitted that he was security, though. “Brown hair, blue eyes, most likely around six feet tall,” I said, standing and holding my hand a few inches above my own head.

  “Yes, yes. I know who you’re talking about.” She pursed her lips again and smirked, almost triumphantly. She was starting to make me more uncomfortable in person than I thought she would.

  “Well just rest assured he has been brought back for the remainder of his treatments, and he will be good as new again. He is a part of a private treatment program. He has fully consented, of course, to this new drug and reacted very poorly to it. I’m not sure why he lashed out at you the way he did.” She made a tsk sound with her tongue.

  “Now, I must say I have reviewed your files, and you are quite an impressive young lady,” she said, walking around her desk and standing in front of me. “You’ve proven yourself an asset to this company already, and it’s still very early. Your reviews from your superiors have been quite stellar.”

  I watched her carefully, confused at the sudden shift in our conversation. I kept quiet, waiting to see where she was going.

  “I usually tend to snatch up one or two interns for a special project close to my heart. If you stay on the right track here, we might be working together very soon, Ms. Parker.”

  “It’d be an honor,” I said. It sounded hollow to me, but Ms. Malcovey didn’t seem to notice the change in my tone at all.

  She smiled and casually added, “And, Jules, if you see this man again outside of the facility, just be safe.”

  “Hasn’t security caught up to him and brought him back to get treated?”

  “Yes, of course dear. Nothing to worry about. Now I must go, but I hope to be seeing much more of you here in the future, Jules Parker.”

  I nodded, suddenly apprehensive about what had transpired between us. If the stranger hadn’t been security, then who was he? And where was the patient, really? What the hell had just happened?

  I went back to my cube farm to an uproar of commotion.

  “Oh my goodness, Jules, did you hear? The lockdown was from our corridor. I wonder what happened!” Angie gossiped.

  “No idea. Let me know what you hear.” I smiled at her, refocusing and staring at my screen.

  The rest of the day was quiet, which was a stark contrast to my adventurous morning, but I wasn’t complaining. I had a date with my books at the library to finish a paper I had, and I knew Henry would be working. He always knew how to cheer me up. Although, I wasn’t sure he’d be willing to help me this time. Henry was very anti-big corporation, at least when it came to Falcone. I’m sure he’d use this adventure as another reason why I should ditch the corporate machine and go work for a small-town research facility, like he had.

  None of what was going on at Falcone was making much sense, and the conversation with Ms. Mal
covey this morning hadn’t done anything for my uneasiness at everything surrounding the patient and whatever experiment it was I stumbled upon. Though I wasn’t sure where to start, I had to find out more. I didn’t want to risk my future in this industry, but I also wasn’t going to stand by if something untoward was going on. I’ll tell Henry everything, I thought to myself. He’ll know what to do.

  ***

  A soft tapping on the old wooden table my books were strewn across startled me. I jumped in my seat and looked up. I hadn’t realized I’d fallen asleep on my papers and research material.

  “Sorry.” A pair of warm, green eyes playfully met mine. “I was trying to get your attention for a few minutes there.”

  I let out a relieved sigh. “Sorry, Henry. This week has been insane.” I smiled. “What’s up and where have you been? I was hoping to talk to you tonight.”

  “Lost track of time again?” he asked, smiling and setting a cup of coffee down in front of me.

  I sat up and rubbed at my face. I noticed the chaos around me and started adjusting the ten different books I had open, shuffling the papers back together that I had messed up by lying on top of them. I took in the slightly dusty scent of the tucked away corner of the library I had deemed to be “mine” ever since I started school. Henry always knew to find me here when I hid away to work on my papers. I loved the quiet seclusion back here.

  “What has you all worked up?” Henry laughed.

  “A paper on molecular biology, and this internship.” I rolled my eyes.

  “Ah yes, your fantastic job,” he teased.

  I wrinkled my nose at him. “I met the CEO today,” I started, thinking I’d ease into my wild thoughts on strange experiments.

  Henry raised his eyebrows and looked stiff, but it faded so quickly I wondered if I had imagined it.