Chapter 10

 

“Welcome, everyone.” Jordan smiled at the crowd of people who had gathered in the main training gym.

“I thought it would be best if I introduced myself to everyone. I’m Jordan Hart and I’m the new director of the facility. I know the last few weeks have been a difficult time but we’re doing our best to get things back to normal.”

He paused and smiled at the large crowd. “I’m sure you’ve noticed the crew who have been working outside. They’ll have our new surveillance system set up tomorrow afternoon. This will help ensure that what happened here at the facility, will never happen again.”

Hannah, standing near the back with Will and Selena, made an unladylike snort and Will squeezed her hand warningly as a few of the recruits glanced back at them.

“There have been a few changes to the program. We have a new group of recruits joining us in the next few days. Constance, one of our weapons instructors, will now be working solely with the new recruits. As well, Hannah will be taking over the training of the kenjutsu until our regular instructor, Chen, is back on his feet.”

Hannah smiled faintly as the group of people turned to look at her. She could see Alex and Paul standing together near the side and she grimaced at the looks they were giving her. She would have to speak to them about being their sparring partner and nothing more.

Jordan clapped his hands and the crowd turned back to him. “I’m sure that over the next few weeks, you’ll have plenty of questions. I want you to know that my door is always open and I’m available for questions or comments whenever you need to talk. As well, please feel free to talk to any of the instructors if I’m not available. That’s it for now. Again, if you have any questions or concerns, please talk to myself or one of the instructors.”

He stepped back and the crowd of people began to slowly disperse, talking quietly among themselves. Mannie joined Hannah and the others and sighed loudly. “Well, that went better than I thought.”

“What did you think was going to happen?” Selena asked.

Reid appeared beside her and a blush crossed her cheeks as she inched away.

“I thought for sure there would be questions about why we allowed this attack to happen in the first place.” Reid frowned. “Everyone seems remarkably calm about what happened.”

“I think they’re still in fucking shock.” Mannie grumbled. “No one can quite believe it happened. There will be plenty of questions in the future.”

“Does it matter though?” Hannah questioned. “Do you really think Jordan or the Board of Directors is going to care if the recruits or the instructors are upset? If what you and Will told me is true, they’re more concerned about increasing the number of recruits to fight the vampires. If their current batch is unhappy, what do they care?”

“They’ll want to keep as many people in the program as possible. Pumping out the new recruits is great but what they really need are the people who’ve already graduated and proven themselves capable of slaying vampires.” Will replied. “With the training period accelerated, the program will need people like you and Selena and Mallorie and Ryan to help the babies during the actual hunts.”

“Fuck!” Mannie suddenly snapped. “They’re making a big mistake in changing the program. If they think – “

“Keep your voice down, Mannie.” Selena said nervously as she glanced at the few people who were still milling about the gym. “If the babies or recruits hear you talk that way, they’ll lose the little confidence they have left.”

“Yeah.” Mannie muttered. “I’m going to grab a bite to eat. You guys coming?”

Will and Hannah nodded and followed Mannie to the door of the gym. Reid grabbed Selena’s arm and tugged her to a stop.

“Hi, Selena.” He grinned at her and she gave him a nervous look.

“Hello.”

“I was thinking maybe you and I could have dinner at my apartment tonight. What do you think?” He stroked her arm lightly and she cleared her throat before tugging her arm free.

“That’s not a good idea, Reid.”

“Sure it is. I make a mean spaghetti sauce.”

“Reid, I’m sorry but what happened in your apartment was a mistake. I was drunk and I shouldn’t have done what I did. I’m really embarrassed about it.”

He frowned at her. “Then why did you do it, Selena?”

“I – because I was drunk.” She stammered.

“Really? You weren’t drunk in the gun room.” He replied. “What’s your excuse for that?”

She sighed with frustration. “Listen, obviously I’m attracted to you, but that doesn’t mean us sleeping together is a good idea. In fact, it’s a really, really bad idea.”

He winced. “You sure know how to make a guy feel good, Selena.”

She flushed. “I’m sorry. I’m blowing hot and cold with you and I know how that makes me look, really I do, and I don’t mean to mess with you. I just – I think it’s best if we stay away from each other.”

He sighed angrily. “Yeah, you keep saying that. And then you show up at my apartment begging me to fuck you. You get why I might be a little confused, right?”

She stared down at the floor. “I do. I’m sorry.”

“I didn’t take you for a tease, Selena.” He snapped.

She pressed her lips together and gave him her own look of anger. “I said I was sorry. But maybe you could take some responsibility for it as well. It wasn’t me who came into the gun room and started talking dirty and sticking my hand down your pants.”

“No, I guess it wasn’t.” He scowled at her. “You have to be drunk to do that.”

“You asshole! I should have known apologizing wouldn’t work. And for the record? I’m not a damn tease. I was drunk and people make stupid mistakes when they’re drunk.”

Her face was bright red and he could see tears welling in her eyes as she gave him another look of frustration. “I am sorry for – for leading you on like that. But trust me – it won’t happen again.”

“Selena, wait – “

He felt a wave of guilt at the look of shame in her eyes and snagged her arm as she moved away from him. She yanked it free and hurried out of the gym.

“Fuck! You’re such a goddam idiot, Reid!” He muttered.

* * *

 

“Chen? Are you decent?” Andrew called through the curtain.

“Mostly.” Chen replied softly.

Andrew peered around the curtain and frowned. “You’re supposed to be dressed, Chen.”

Chen stared silently at him. He had pulled his briefs on, struggling to do it one-handed as his anger and depression grew, and then had sat back down on the bed.

“I’m tired.”

“Nonsense.” Andrew said cheerfully. “Here, put your pants on.”

He held the pants out, frowning again when Chen didn’t move. “Come on, Chen. We’ve got work to do.”

“Not today.” Chen replied.

“Yes, today.” Andrew said firmly.

Before he could stop him, Andrew had knelt at his feet and quickly slid his pants up to his knees. “There, stand up and do the rest.”

Scowling at him, Chen stood and awkwardly caught his pants with his right hand. He yanked them up and fumbled with the button and zipper, his face growing progressively redder, as Andrew watched quietly.

When they were buttoned, Andrew nodded. “Good. I’m going to help you with your shirt only because it’s going to be a bit painful for you.”

He picked up Chen’s t-shirt and smiled reassuringly when the sword instructor flinched backwards. “I don’t bite, Chen.”

An image of Andrew’s straight white teeth nibbling at his throat flooded through Chen’s mind and he bit the inside of his cheek and stared at the floor. Christ, he had to get a hold of himself. He didn’t even know if the man was gay.

He is. You know he is.

He cleared his throat as Andrew tugged the shirt over his head. “Ready?” He grinned at him and Chen nodded, shuddering a little at Andrew’s warm touch as he gripped his arm just above the stump.

“Did that hurt?”

“What?” Chen said hoarsely. He tried to breathe shallowly. Andrew smelled delicious and he was itching to touch the dark chest hair he could see peeking out from above his shirt. For the first time since he had woken up in the infirmary, he wasn’t thinking about the loss of his hand, about what the vampire Samuel had taken from him, and he unconsciously leaned a little closer as Andrew touched his chest lightly.

“Chen?”

“Sorry, what?” He cleared his throat as Andrew gave him an odd look.

“I asked if it hurts when I touch your arm. You’re shaking a little.”

Chen shook his head. “No, it doesn’t hurt.”

“Good. Unfortunately, this probably will.” Andrew said sympathetically. “Raise your arm, please.”

Chen turned his head away and tried to lift his arm. It sent a bolt of pain into the end of the stump and he made a soft gasp before lowering it. “I can’t.”

“I know it hurts but it’s a good exercise.” Andrew said softly. “Try again.”

Gritting his teeth, Chen lifted his arm and ignored the pain as Andrew gently pulled his stump through the arm of the t-shirt. He helped him struggle into the rest of the shirt and Chen was embarrassed to realize he was sweating and shaking by the time they were done.

He flinched back when Andrew reached out and casually smoothed his hair down for him.

“Sorry, I’m kind of touchy-feely.” Andrew grinned at him. “Comes with the territory of being a physiotherapist.”

He led Chen out into the main part of the infirmary. “Barb, we’ll be back in a bit.”

“Sounds good.” Barb smiled at them as she ducked past the curtain surrounding Ryan’s bed.

“Where are we going?” Chen asked.

“For a walk. I thought you’d like to get out of the infirmary.” Andrew replied.

“I don’t!” Chen snapped.

“That’s too bad, because we’re going anyway.” Andrew took his right arm in a firm grip and led him toward the door. “It’ll be good for you.”

He ushered Chen out into the hallway. There were a few recruits walking by and they smiled nervously at Chen, their gazes shying away from his missing hand.

Chen, his face red, tried to jerk free of Andrew’s firm grip. “Let go of me. I don’t feel like being gawked at and I’m tired and I – “

“Master!” Hannah, Will by her side, hurried down the hall toward them. She hugged Chen firmly before kissing him on the cheek.

“What are you up to?”

“Nothing.” Chen grunted as Will introduced himself to Andrew. “I’m going back to the infirmary.”

“No, you’re not.” Andrew argued. “You’re going for a walk.”

“No, I’m – “

“Great! I’ll come with you.” Hannah linked her arm with Chen’s and smiled at Will. “I’ll see you back at the apartment, alright?”

Will nodded and squeezed Chen’s shoulder. “I’ll talk to you later, Chen.”

He walked away as Hannah grinned at Chen and Andrew. “Why don’t we go to your apartment and I’ll make us all some tea. Douglas says tea makes everything better and I’m starting to think he’s right.”

Andrew blinked in surprise when Chen allowed Hannah to lead him down the hall. The sword instructor obviously had a soft spot when it came to the woman, and he moved quickly to Chen’s left side and listened quietly as Hannah spoke.

“So, we started training Henry this morning.”

“We?” Chen raised his eyebrow at her.

“Alex, Paul and I. I thought it would be better if we did more of a team effort with him.” Hannah replied.

“Until Henry picks up on Paul’s tendency to raise his sword too high.” Chen said grumpily.

Hannah grinned. “Paul knows he does that and he’s already cautioned Henry about it. Don’t worry, master, we’ll try not to screw Henry up too badly until you’re back.”

“What do you think of Henry’s abilities?” Chen asked curiously.

Hannah shrugged. “It’s his first time with one-on-one training so I think it’s a little too soon to tell. I mean, he’s obviously got skill or you wouldn’t have chosen him to continue but – I don’t know – he seems a bit timid.”

“You were timid once.”

“Yes, I suppose I was.” Hannah stared down at the thin scars on her arms. “I got over it quickly though.”

Chen didn’t reply but a brief smile crossed his face as Hannah looked around him at Andrew.

“So, what do you think of our facility, Andrew?”

“It’s nice.” Andrew replied politely.

She laughed. “I’m imagining the New York facility is a little nicer. Are you homesick for the city yet?”

“It’s different.” Andrew grinned at her. “But there’s something to the small city living that a man could get used to. Last night I sat outside and stared up at the stars for nearly an hour. I don’t think I’ve seen that many stars since I was a child and lived on my grandfather’s farm.”

“Are you originally from New York?” Hannah asked.

“No. I grew up in a little town in Iowa and moved to New York when I was a teenager.”

“That’s quite the move. What prompted it?”

“Leeches overtook our farm one night and murdered my parents and grandparents.”

“I’m sorry.” Hannah said quietly.

“Thank you.”

“How did you survive?” Chen asked abruptly.

Andrew made a small, humorless chuckle. “My grandfather was big into war re-enactments. He had a collection of various weapons and I used one of the swords he had hanging in his study to kill the leech.”

“Impressive.” Hannah said solemnly.

Andrew shook his head. “Lucky, that’s all.”

“Were you bitten?” Chen asked.

Andrew nodded. “I was. I had an uncle and an aunt who lived in New York and after my parents died, they took me in. But it didn’t take long for the vampires to find me. I didn’t know at the time that I smelled differently, you know?”

Hannah nodded as Andrew sighed softly. “I had a couple of close calls with the leeches. I really thought that I was going crazy and, in fact, my uncle had me put in a mental hospital for a few months. I had told the police and anyone who would listen that vampires had killed my parents and grandparents but they, of course, didn’t believe me.”

“They put you in a mental hospital?” Hannah gave him a horrified look.

“They did. It saved my life actually. I couldn’t go out but the leeches couldn’t get in either. There was a man in the hospital who knew about the vampires. He’d been bitten himself and truthfully, he had actually gone a little mad from it. Anyway, he knew about the facility in New York. They had tried to recruit him but mentally he wasn’t strong enough. When they released me from the hospital, I immediately went to the facility.”

He rubbed absentmindedly at his goatee. “I wasn’t strong enough to be a recruit, I was just a scrawny, scared-shitless teenager, but they put me in admin and after a few years, they approached me about moving into the medical program. I became a physiotherapist and worked mostly from the New York facility but I’ve visited a few of the other bigger centres. Not often though. They don’t like to release those of us who have been bitten and have no fighting skills, into the general public.”

He grinned at Hannah and Chen. “When they asked me to come here to work with Chen, I said yes immediately. I figured it would be nice to get back to my country roots for a while.”

They were at Chen’s apartment and Hannah opened the door and flicked the lights on. Andrew stared around curiously as Hannah led Chen to the couch. He collapsed on it with a soft sigh and she smiled happily at him before going into the kitchen.

Andrew studied the swords hanging above the fireplace. They gleamed in the light and he touched the handle of one lightly before moving to the bookshelf. He studied the picture of Chen with a young, smiling Asian woman before glancing back at Chen.

“Is this your sister?”

Chen nodded. “How did you know?”

“You look alike.” Andrew smiled at him and Chen felt another one of those small bites of lust go through his belly.

“What’s her name?” Andrew asked.

“Amy.”

“She’s a nurse.” Hannah said helpfully as she put the kettle on the small stove.

Chen glared at her and she gave him a deliberately innocent look before reaching for the tea bags in the cupboard.

“Does she know what happened?” Andrew sat down next to him on the couch, his lean thigh touching his, and Chen shifted away.

“No.” He muttered.

“You should tell her.”

“Tell her what exactly? That I got my arm chopped off by a vampire?” Chen snorted.

“Well, it’s more like your hand that got chopped off. But unless you’re planning on never seeing your sister again, you’re going to have to come up with something.” Andrew replied.

He studied Chen carefully. “You could tell her you lost your hand rescuing a woman from a burning building.”

“Or a kitten!” Hannah piped up. “Chen loves kittens.”

Chen gaped at her as Andrew laughed. “Nah, we need something more badass. I know – you can tell her you lost your hand in a motorcycle accident.”

“I don’t drive a motorcycle.” Chen blinked at him.

“Really? I’m surprised by that. I could picture you dressed in leather and driving a motorcycle.” Andrew replied.

Hannah plopped down in the armchair across from the couch. “Yeah, I could see that. But I think we need to work a kitten in there somewhere. Maybe he swerved to avoid a kitten on the road?”

“A whole pack of orphaned kittens!” Andrew leaned forward eagerly. “And even though his hand was torn off, he still managed to gather them up and take them to the animal rescue before they were smushed on the road by a nerd in a mini-van. He’s badass but tender hearted.”

“No one gets between the master and his pack of kittens.” Hannah said solemnly.

“One,” Chen said through gritted teeth, “it’s called a litter of kittens, not a pack, and two – my affection for cats was meant to be a secret, Hannah.”

She gave him another innocent look. “Was it? My bad.”

She bounced up from the chair and headed to the kitchen as Andrew grinned at him. “I knew you were a cat lover the moment I met you, Chen.”

“You did not.” Chen snapped. “And I am not telling my sister I lost my hand rescuing a litter of kittens. That’s ridiculous.”

“Don’t worry,” Andrew replied as he took his cup of tea from Hannah with a small nod of thanks, “I’m sure we’ll be able to come up with something more inventive.”

Hannah laughed softly as Chen scowled and stared into his cup of tea. Weirdly, Hannah’s and Andrew’s joking and their casual attitude about the loss of his hand was making him feel a little better. It shouldn’t have been. There was nothing funny about it, but for the first time in days he could feel the cloud of depression lifting a little. It was kind of nice, he mused inwardly, to not have others feeling sorry for him.

Andrew set his tea on the side table and reached for Chen’s arm. “Since we’re just sitting here, I should probably do my job.”

He began to pull and massage Chen’s arm gently as Chen winced.

“Does that hurt, master?” Hannah asked softly.

“A little.” He grunted.

She sat down next to him and took his cup of tea from him before holding his hand. “Squeeze my hand if you need to, alright?”

He didn’t reply and she kissed his cheek again before resting her head on his shoulder.

“Mom wants to see you. She asked me if you were feeling up to stopping at the farmhouse for a visit.” Hannah said softly.

Chen shook his head. “I don’t think that’s a good – “

“That’s a great idea.” Andrew interrupted, ignoring Chen’s dirty look. “Chen can get some fresh air and it’ll do him some good to get out of the facility for a bit.”

“Good.” Hannah gave him a pleased look and Chen closed his eyes in defeat. “We could go this evening and see them.”

She hesitated. “Shit. That’s not going to work. I told Selena I would hang out with her tonight. She’s been going through some stuff.”

She didn’t elaborate further and Andrew hesitated before clearing his throat. “I can take Chen out to the farmhouse. If you don’t think your mom would mind.”

Hannah shook her head. “She loves meeting new people. Thanks, Andrew.”

“No problem.”

Chen made a soft curse under his breath and Hannah squeezed his hand. “She misses you, Chen. She’ll be upset if you don’t visit her and trust me, you don’t want that. You should never make a hippie angry.”

Andrew snorted laughter as Chen rolled his eyes. “Your mother doesn’t have a mean bone in her body.”

“Tell that to the ballet teacher who told me I was too fat to continue in dance.” Hannah grinned at him. “Mom ripped her a new one, and I think the woman is still cowering in fear in her dance studio to this day.”

A faint smile crossed Chen’s face as Hannah put her head on his shoulder again. They sat in silence as Andrew rubbed and massaged, and Chen did his best to ignore the tingles of pleasure from his warm touch.