Heart Ward

Chapter One

I couldn't remember my last full night of sleep. I was investigating yet another financial firm in downtown Manhattan when the call came in, robbing me of any hope that tonight would be any different.

"Ward," I'd answered. Dressed in a custodial outfit and carrying a bottle of glass cleaner, cloth chamois sticking out of my back pocket, no one gave me second glance as I weaved through the cubicles. This late at night, only grunts and lackeys were working, too busy trying to make a good impression on their bosses to care about someone like me.

"Situation report?" the cool voice came over the line, laced with the static of a bad connection.

"Clean."

A frustrated sigh broadcasted clearly. "Dammit. The Morrigan's got everyone tightening their nets."

"I know. Everything's been wiped here." We'd been searching for a paper trail to the research facilities of the Morrigan for months, and still had nothing to show for it. The leader of the Shades had been attacking our people with some sort of anti-serum that threw Light fae into comas, and our scientists had no idea how to counteract it. We needed to find a cure, and we needed it yesterday. The medical facilities in Valhalla were starting to fill up, and everyone was worrying about what would happen if Mikael Morrigan decided to escalate and do something on a larger scale.

It wasn't really a question of if, but when.

"Just as well, I suppose. Amber and Ewan have reported in, they're on a flight back from Vancouver getting in later tonight. I'm going to need you to stop on your way back north to pick someone up at Vala's and bring them in." Mitch Slaight's voice faded in and out, and I wasn't sure I heard him right.

"Did you say you want me to stop at Vala's? Sorry, this connection is pretty crappy."

"Yeah, a faeling seems to have gotten herself in trouble with the Shades. They took the girl's mother, but she managed to get away somehow. Find a place to lie low overnight and get there as early as you can in the morning to pick her up."

"You want me to bring some kid all the way up to Montreal on my bike? I don't know, isn't that illegal or something?" I put the glass cleaner down on a desk as I walked and ran a hand through my hair, considering.

"No, not a kid. A teenager. Vala says she has all her papers, so crossing the border should be no problem. Just start making your way up to Vermont, get some rest, and get her to the safehouse in one piece. She might have intel that can help us."

"Not holding my breath here," I snorted.

A frazzled looking brunette looked up from her computer screen and gave me the once over. Her mouth opened just a little and her eyes widened in appreciation, following me as I passed. If I'd had some time to kill, maybe I would have taken her up on the invitation clear in her eyes. She might be working in a banking firm with Dark affiliations, but chances were she was just another clueless human. Still, maybe I could come back another time and see if I could hit her up for some information. Sometimes, it was the people lowest on the ladder who noticed things, simply because they were motivated enough, or jealous enough, to pay attention. But, duty called. No time for fun. I winked at her and headed out of the office to the elevators.

"Look, Alec, this girl, she's a V.I.P., make sure you treat her like one." I rolled my eyes, barely listening. "You've met her mother, Frederika Alvarsson."

"Fred?" The name snapped me back to attention. "I didn't know she had a daughter." I'd attended several training seminars with Frederika Alvarsson, learning human fighting techniques like Krav Maga and Aikido. She'd made a big impression on me each time, with her easy manner, big smile, and hard-hitting punches. I'd learned a lot from her.

"Vala thinks this girl is important, so until we know otherwise, we treat her that way."

I grunted impatiently. It didn't really matter either way to me. I just wanted to get on the road, sleep in my own bed. "Right, and we know Vala's never wrong."

"Not often enough for anyone to remember, anyway. So you get that girl here in one piece."

The elevator dinged its arrival.

"Okay, ride's here. I'm going to lose you in a minute. Don't worry about the girl, I'll protect her with my life, whoever she is."

"I know you will, Ward, that's why I called you. I have some things to take care of here in Chicago, but I'll be back up to Montreal the day after tomorrow. We can talk more then."

Mitch hung up and the line went dead, just as the elevator started descending.

"Nice talking to you, too," I said, sticking the phone back in my pocket. I rode down to the building's underground garage without incident and walked over to my motorcycle. Well, okay, it wasn't my bike, not really. It belonged to the Light Guard, just like the safehouse and most of the furnishings associated with it. After all, Light fae operated on a fairly socialistic model, providing for everyone's needs and sharing as needed. But Mitch had let me pick out the bike myself, and no one else rode it. Ever.

I smoothed my hand over the smooth matte black paint, taking a moment to appreciate the naked beauty of the all-terrain Ducati Monster. I didn't have much to call my own, had never really wanted a home or a family, not since I was a young kid, so the bike was about as close as I ever expected to come to true love.

A bike would never let you down. A bike would never leave you. And, instead of making promises she couldn't keep, she purred like a tiger.

I ditched my lightweight coveralls, stuffed them behind a nearby support column and opened the small storage hatch on the front of the bike where I always kept an extra helmet and travel essentials like toothpaste and clean t-shirts. I'd learned the hard way that it paid to always be prepared. Plus, chicks dug it when I pulled the gentleman card and handed them the spare headgear, caring about their safety and all that.

I put my phone and wallet inside the compartment, climbed on the bike and gunned the engine. Pulling out of my parking space, I made my way through the garage feeling resigned. Normally I loved visiting Vala, but this time it was as appealing as a bowl full of Brussels sprouts. As much as I liked Frederika, the word V.I.P. had put me on edge. I didn't have time for some snotty over-privileged faeling and her drama. We had real problems on our hands, and it wasn't like the Dark were going to call a time-out. Not that anyone would ask my opinion on the matter.

Still, Frederika was a friend, and I really respected her as a Guardian, one of the Light fae who watched over the human world above Aeden. If she was in trouble with the Shades, then I owed it to her to take good care of her kid.

I left the garage, flashing my comped parking pass as I left, and pressed play on the helmet's micro-radio. The furious flute solo of Jethro Tull's "Locomotive Breath" washed over me, picking up where it had left off a couple hour ago. I took a deep breath, readying myself, and blasted out into downtown traffic, the bike sounding its own roar of approval.

Time to go meet the princess.