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~Dwight Lombardi Part I~
I stared at the flimsy file, frowning at all the information that should be in there but wasn’t. Rhett was good at his job so that meant there really wasn’t much to find in this woman’s past. She was a mystery.
“Is this really it?” I asked, knowing the answer already. It still needed to be asked.
Rhett nodded, and I held back a scowl. I trusted him. If this was what he gave me, then this was all there was. I just couldn’t believe this was it. The supernatural community was so diverse that not much could be hidden. There was a past here, but the applicant found a way to hide it.
The vampire’s spine straightened as he stood tall, eyes not meeting mine to prevent a dominance fight. He’d lose before it even began. “You know it is.”
I glanced back down at the file, at the picture of the girl, no, young woman. Light brown hair, which fell in soft waves, framed a small, narrow face. Intense green eyes with flecks of gold. If I didn’t know better, I’d say she had an alternate form, something very much predatory. The way she stared at the camera, she was challenging the world.
My lip curled in a snarl as my instincts wanted me to challenge her back. I doubted the piece of paper would like it if I shredded it apart, and I didn’t want to explain to my second-in-command why I felt threatened by a piece of paper.
And this woman claimed to be exactly what we had seen. As a true magic-user, she didn’t have another form. There was no shifting, no glamour, nothing. She didn’t have a beast to explain those prowling eyes. She just stared at the world, ready for it to kick her back down. I had no doubt it had pushed her down over and over again. She was well versed in getting back up again. That was practically a requirement in my company. Amusement filled me. She wouldn’t go down without a fight and if anything, she’d get back up swinging.
Interesting.
Dr. Laila Porter.
Nineteen years old.
A foster nobody and yet our top candidate.
Sir, Dr. Porter is here, Ellana reported, her voice a soft whisper through my head.
Send her in, I thought, letting my secretary read my mind.
Ellana was a good secretary, older, proper, and knew how to get what I needed done. I overpaid her just to keep her with me. Her telepathy was a good bonus too. She was better than some of the other options. I had to be careful with who I hired as my secretary. Once, I hired a female who decided to act like she was the boss. Rhett was more than happy to escort her out of the building when we found out she used her position to push people around.
I nodded at Rhett to let him know she was on her way in. Rhett stepped to the corner of the room, the shadows stretching around him, masking him so he could watch the interview.
Interviewees never noticed him. The tell tale feel of his energy wrapped around him, hiding his presence. Even his energy signature disappeared soon after. The door clicked open just as he disappeared from sight and in walked the young woman in my files.
When the doctor strolled in, she automatically demanded attention, and she wasn’t even trying. She went to her seat and sat down, absolutely calm, no nerves to be seen. My other self perked up. She had our complete attention without saying a single word and she knew it too.
Cocky.
She settled into the chair, crossed her long legs, and smiled at me.
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Lombardi.”
I held back a shiver as her low mellow voice filled the space.
Instead, I relaxed and examined her. I had some sensitivity to magic, and I could sense it from her now, just under the surface of her skin. Strong. I’d met a few Level A1 users. She felt stronger and yet A1 was the highest ranking.
“A pleasure,” I responded and continued to stare at her, letting the silence stretch out between us. A lot was said about a person depending on how they reacted to silence. While letting it stretch out, I scanned her.
She wore black slacks with a pale purple button up shirt. Her sleeves were rolled up, nothing inappropriate. Even all her buttons were done up. Her brown hair was down, falling over her shoulders. No piercings, no noticeable tattoos, not that I was against those. Plenty of my employees had them. I would probably have a tattoo if there was a way for it to stay. The moment I changed into my other self, it disappeared.
What I thought was interesting was that she didn’t wear any jewelry. Magic-users were usually covered in rings, bracelets, necklaces, even pins. The stones in the jewelry had different purposes. They could be used to store magic, spells, curses. They were protection charms or helped the user focus, stay calm. It could boost their own magic, or even suppress it.
Dr. Porter dressed plainly, but nothing about her was plain. There was a soft shine to her hair, a roundness of youth in her face, and she held herself with the confidence of someone who was used to being successful. I’d pegged her correctly when she’d walked in. She was cocky. She didn’t fidget; she didn’t show any signs of nerves. She dared to meet my eyes when she spoke. In fact, she was returning the scrutiny, looking me over just as carefully as I did her. And she still had the same look in her eyes like she did in the photo: challenging. In her mind, it was her against the world.
Not a team player.
I briefly wondered who was interviewing who here. She made me feel like I was the one being appraised. Not something I was used to feeling.
Once her eyes met mine, she broke the silence, but not to fill it with nervous rambling. Her words had purpose as she asked, “Is your vampire friend going to join?”
I stilled, refusing to look in Rhett’s direction. I pushed back the shock, refusing to let her see how such an easy question affected me. She shouldn’t have known.
I faked innocence, needing to know how much she knew, how much she sensed. “Friend?” I asked, wondering if she just sensed his presence and made a guess or if she really did see him.
Dr. Porter turned and looked right at Rhett, answering my question for me. The shadows did nothing to deter her.
“I can see you,” she purred.
My gaze met Rhett’s, and I nodded. She shouldn’t have been able to do that. Rhett had hundreds of years of experience and knew how to hide his presence. He had successfully hidden himself from djinn and dragons in the past. There were barely a handful who were as talented as he was in that aspect.
And yet she acted like there was a spotlight on him.
I cleared my throat. “This is Rhett Gale,” I said as my oldest friend took the chair next to her, turning so he could see her. I leaned back into my chair, acting like she didn’t just do the impossible. “So, Dr. Porter. I’m sure we don’t need to get into semantics about my company at this point in the process. You know what we do, what we expect of our lab technicians, and what we would expect out of you if we were to hire you. So, now, I want to know why? Why do you want to work for Biomystic Security?”
Her head tilted to the side, eyes meeting mine, sharpening as she answered. “The challenge. I’m a labbie at heart and this is the place to be. Your company is at the top, adapting faster, paving the trend rather than chasing it. I want to be a part of that. I want to be pushed and challenged.”
“And what makes you think we are the ones to give you what you need?” I asked. “You would be better off in some think tank instead.”
She smirked. “Bureaucratic red tape. If I go to a research lab, I need to create proposals, find funding, report every little step. If I sneeze, they’ll need to know about that. Here, I won’t have those limitations. I can go wherever my imagination brings me without delay.”
I narrowed my eyes. “This job isn’t a joke. You’re expected to produce results, come up with equipment that works and won’t get my people killed. One thing I will not tolerate is half cocked inventions blowing my people up when they go to use it in the field.”
“If that’s your attempt to scare me, it isn’t working,” she replied smoothly. Humor slipped into her voice and damn if it didn’t turn me on. She had one of those voices that could calm a wild beast. I could see it already. The risks if she were to come into my company. Half my men were horn dogs and someone like her would get them worked up.
Briefly, I wondered if that would be a good thing. We had been stagnant for the past year and something needed to change.
I looked Dr. Porter over more slowly, at her youthfulness and cockiness. Maybe she would be the one to change it.
“Tell me what you saw when you came into this building,” I said and crossed my arms. I didn’t expand on what I was asking for, but the way her round lips curled into a smile, she knew what I meant.
“None of the guards held weapons. You’d think in a security company, they’d be tripping over a weapon of some kind, but none of them had them. That’s because they don’t need them. Each one of them is trained to take down an opponent in only a breath of a second, and while weapons allow them to do this from a distance, it would only slow them down. That means whatever they are, they’re extremely fast.” She pointed at Rhett. “Vampire fast. Not the newly turned vampire fast, they’re still clumsy, but ancient. A few hundred years old at least. That means you have an array of shifters, vampires, and other beings with no names attached to them.”
When she stopped, I didn’t say anything. She cocked her head to the side, glanced at Rhett, and then back at me.
“What’s impressive,” she said in a soft voice, “is the fact that none of them are at each other’s throats.” She leaned forward. “That says everything about this company.”
Now I was interested in what she thought. I leaned forward. “How so?”
“Loyalty. They are all loyal to you. They believe in what this company is doing. Fear does not run this company. I have no doubt you’re capable of wiping out this entire building if you were so inclined, but that isn’t who you are. They like you, Black Dog.” She crooned that last sentence, and I had to clench my hands to prevent myself from reaching out to her. What would I even do if I grabbed her? I wasn’t sure. I just knew I wanted to touch her the more she talked. “You’re an employee’s wet dream.”
A surprised bark of laughter escaped me before I could stop myself. I shook my head, not able to believe that she’d just said that. Even Rhett’s lip was curled up into a half smile, amusement flickering in his eyes.
“Thank you, Dr. Porter. I believe we got everything we need from you. This meeting has been enlightening.”
“That’s it?” she asked. “No ‘tell me about your strengths and weaknesses.’ ” Her voice deepened into a fake male voice. “Or ‘expand on the time you turned your female classmate into a man.’ ”
I snorted. “Did you really do that?”
She shook her head. “Too late now, the interview ended. You missed your chance.” She stood up. “It was a pleasure meeting the both of you, and I really do hope you make the right choice.”
With that, she strolled out of the room, head held high, hips swaying with each step. Even after the door closed behind her, we sat speechless for a few seconds.
“I’m hiring her,” I said.
“Not going to ask what her supervisor thought of her first?”
“I don’t care. She’s going to change things, push our boundaries. I’m not losing this chance.”
“She’s young,” Rhett pointed out.
“In your eyes, everyone is young.”
“I think when someone has a ‘teen’ attached to their age, then they’re still a child.”
“But can you really call someone who grew up in foster homes and still managed to get their PhD before they turned twenty a child?” I challenged.
“She’s cocky. That can be dangerous.”
I chuckled. “Everyone in this company is cocky. Admit it. We are all the best of the best. It has gone to all our heads. Are you really surprised she’s just as cocky?” I tapped the folder. “There isn’t much here, but what is here says a lot. She’s already received offers from all the top universities to teach at their school. Private sectors are beating each other up to give her the best incentives. And yet here she is, at a security firm, wanting to work for us. I’d be a fool to ignore that. Plus the contacts she already has from her side projects.”
“I’ve seen what her invention did for the sick kids,” Rhett admitted. “They’re able to get the care they need without having to worry about magic interrupting the machines.”
I nodded. “She did that pro bono. She could have made a fortune off of it, but instead did it as a pet project and then donated it. That says a lot about her. This isn’t just about money for her. She’s passionate. I want that passion in my company. Now, why are you so damn opposed?”
He sighed. “She’s strong. She’s attractive. She’s young. Our profession is dangerous. Every month, we have someone trying to get inside to blow us all up.”
My glare slipped away into a soft smile. “You’re worried for her safety.”
“She’d be safer anywhere else.”
“But she wants to be here. And I want to hire her. The hints we have from her past tell us she’s strong. She may not be a fighter like we are, but she’s a survivor. All you have to do is look at her to see that. She needs to help. That’s why she’s here. We should give her that chance.”
Rhett’s frown stayed, but he finally relented and nodded. “Fine. But I’m putting together a team to watch over her as she transitions into the company.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything less.”
Rhett walked out, leaving me to my thoughts.
I flipped open the file again to stare at her face and those damn eyes.
I wanted her on my side and my beast agreed with me.
She was ours.
