“Penny, I know you don’t want to hear this from me, but I think it’s time you called the police back. This is escalating. I’m afraid from you,” Tori said, her eyes full of concern.
It had been three months since that crazy morning when her life was forever changed. Changed by a lucky four dollar find, and a lucky machine that played the six numbers needed to win an almost billion dollar lottery prize.
Her life had substantially changed. There was no big fiasco of her claiming the money. Lucky enough, her state did not require that she claim it publicly, and she was able to obtain a trustworthy lawyer who assisted her in coming forward. She’d waited two weeks before claiming her winnings at the advice of the lawyer.
She had opted in for the annuity payments. She was twenty-nine years old and figured she would live twenty-six years more to be able to collect a hefty payout every year, guaranteeing that she got as much of the money she could. It wasn’t that she was being greedy. She wanted to make sure that her future children, and their children, would forever be taken care of.
With the money she had won, she planned to start her own business after traveling, paying off bills, and buying her first home. Just that morning she had turned in her resignation to Steven. She would work the next two weeks, just so she would not burn any bridges. Steven tried to get her to change her mind, but she didn’t want to let on that she had won the lottery and didn’t need the job. She knew that Lydia had some suspicions, but she hadn’t been ready to disclose it to anyone but Tori. She’d made plans to give money to people she considered friends, but first, she needed to get her life in order.
One would think that winning enough money to last a lifetime would make life easier, but in fact, it was quite the opposite.
She officially had a stalker, and she didn’t really know if it was because of the money, or just someone choosing to stalk her.
“I know.” She blew out a deep breath. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear as she stared at the small box on the floor between them.
First, it started with the phone calls. Random calls where the person on the other end wouldn’t say anything. The calls came at all times of the day and got annoying real fast. She had her cell phone number changed.
Whoever this person was, escalated to sending her photographs that were taken of her. She’d received a photograph of herself getting out of her car in her apartment parking lot. She immediately went to the police and filed a complaint, but the officer told her that there wasn’t much they could do since the envelope originated from a random post office around town.
But then the manila envelopes began arriving weekly with no note or letter, just pictures of her, following her every move, letting her know that he, or she, was watching her.
And now here she sat on the living room floor with a box in front of her. This was the most disturbing of all of them, and she knew it was time for her to move. She’d received her first stipend from the lottery, and now she had the means to move anywhere in the world.
In the box was a perfectly gifted, red anal plug, decorated with a satin bow. A photograph of her smiling as she was leaving her favorite coffee shop was tucked into the box with a small card with the word, ‘Soon,’ written in perfect calligraphy, which brought a chill down her spine.
“I’m just going to move. I have the means now and I’ll relocate. The police can’t protect me full-time, but if I leave he won’t know where I am. I’ll be safe.”
“Move where?” Tori snapped, throwing her hands in the air. “You can’t let this sick fuck win by running away. Call the police again.”
“You can come with me. I have more money than any person will ever see in their life. We can travel the world for a while, just you and me.” Penny turned to her best friend with hopeful eyes. It would be fun to share the experience of exploring the world with the one person who had always been at her side.
Tori shook her head and sighed. “That would be fun for a few months, but then what?”
“I don’t know,” Penny whispered, staring at the package. Anything right now would be better than having to look over her shoulder at all times. She didn’t want to go back to the police. With the money that she had just won, sooner or later, it would get out that she was the lotto winner. She shuddered, thinking of the media frenzy she was sure would follow. That was why she opted not to publicly accept her winnings. She had read enough on the internet to know what would have happened had she claimed it publicly.
“I knew that you wouldn’t want to go back to the police. My brother gave me a card and told me to give it to you.” Tori brandished a small business card from her purse and held it out.
“You told Tommy?” Penny’s eyes flew to her friend’s.
“You’re damn right I did. You need help, and if you’re not going to go to the police, then you need to go to someone who can protect you.” Tori stared at her, as if she would challenge her decision. She knew that Tori loved her and wanted the best for her.
Penny reached out and took the card. Imperial Knights was displayed across the pristine white card in bold lettering. She flipped the card over, and it held an address on it, but no phone number. In the corner of the card was a small symbol.
“Where did he get this from? Who are these people?” She traced the name with her fingers, still not convinced that these Knights would be able to help her.
“You know Tommy has connections from his time in the Navy. He said they would help you.” Tori’s pleading gaze met hers. She glanced back down at the card and jerked her head in a nod.
“Okay. I’ll go here, but if they can’t help me, then we do this my way.”
“From what Tommy said, that card is special. They will help you.”
Drake blew out a deep breath and ran a hand along his tired face. The fucking dream had been coming to him every night for the past few months. Only now, it was getting more intense. For the first time, a vision of a woman entered the dream, but he was unable to see her face. He would be able to see flashes of her silhouette, her hair color, her smile, and her eyes, but he never saw her face. After having the dreams for so many nights, he had memorized all the snippets of her.
Was this his subconscious telling him someone needed him? Someone named Penny? Did she mean something to him?
He would wake up now, not only drained of energy, but sexually frustrated. Morning wood had taken on a whole new meaning for him. Even if he had all-night relations with one of the countless women that he frequented, he would still wake up from the dream with a raging erection. None of the women satisfied him.
He turned to his computer and tried to concentrate on the screen in front of him. It still amazed him how far technology had come. He could remember having to use pigeons for communications. During WWI, it was a form of communication that had been frequently used. Now with a push of a button, someone around the world could receive a message from him within minutes.
Throughout his life, he’d had to adjust to the world around him. Fighting wars had definitely changed. It used to be fighting hand-to-hand combat with knives and swords, where now the military was so advanced, most fighting was done behind a computer, sending in drones to bomb the enemy.
The phone on his desk rang, grabbing his attention.
“What?” he growled into the phone.
“You sound like shit,” his brother Doru announced.
“And you sound like a breath of fucking fresh air,” he retorted with a snort.
“The dream?” Doru’s voice dropped.
His brothers knew of the dreams and how they affected him. Even they had been puzzled over the years of what they meant. He refused to go see anyone for help in regards to the dream. Drake didn’t want to appear weak in front of anyone, knowing that he was strong enough to take on whatever was coming for him, but the addition of the woman left him confused.
“Yeah.” He blew out a breath. “What did you call for? I’m sure it wasn’t to see how I’m sleeping at night.”
“Log onto the video of the lobby. Spencer called me and said that a woman came in and presented a card.”
Doru had Drake’s full attention now. He tapped a few keys on his keyboard and brought up the lobby on his monitor. A curvy woman with long dark hair stood in front of the desk, speaking to Spencer, their receptionist.
Who was this woman, and how would she have gotten one of their cards? He studied her, only able to see her back, and looking at her, she had a delicious back side. Her curves had him loosening his necktie as he silently pleaded for her to turn toward the camera.
“How did she get a card?” he asked. Imperial Knights had only handed out a few business cards over the past few decades. The significance of the business card was major. Whoever held a card in their possession would never be turned down. Only someone a Knight trusted would be given one.
“Not sure, but it’s one of yours,” Doru announced.
“What?”
“Want me to go down and check her out?” his brother asked.
“No, I’ll take care of it.” The longer he stared at the woman, his gums burned as his incisors tried to break through. He had to fight to prevent them from descending. His wolf snapped, demanding that they go to investigate the woman.
“I can have Spencer send her away, and she can set up an appointment for later.”
“Nonsense. If she has my card, she must be in trouble. Someone gave it to her for a reason.”
“Fine. Let me know if you need me,” his brother said before the line went dead.
Drake clicked over and dialed an extension.
“Yes, Mr. Ransly?” Cynthia’s answered. If she was using his surname, his next appointment must be sitting out in the waiting area. She was always a professional in front of their clients. They were paying his company large sums of money, and Cynthia was the consummate professional when it came to business.
“Cancel my next appointment,” he announced, still staring at the monitor.
“Yes, sir,” she acknowledged before disconnecting the call. He knew that she would take care of the client. Right now, he didn’t care what she did with them. If they were important, she would have one of his brothers deal with the guest.
He stood from his desk and grabbed his suit jacket. Throwing it on, he made his way out the back door of his office. Being the CEO of a major corporation such as the Imperial Knights came with benefits. A security firm’s own building would be one of the most secure buildings in the city. He could leave from the building without a trace and no one would know any better. He walked down his private hallway to his elevator and hit the down button. Immediately, the doors opened. He got in and pushed the button for the main lobby and peered at his reflection in the steel doors while fixing his tie.
This would be unusual for him to meet a potential client in the lobby. He was Drake Ransly and could do as he pleased, and if greeting a client in the lobby was something he wanted to do, then he’d damn well do it. But he knew in the back of his mind that this was different. Not only did one of his trusted associates give this female his card, there was something about her. The image of the curvy woman left his wolf pacing. It wanted to get close to her, breathe in her scent.
He shook his head to clear his thoughts. This was a potential client. Someone had sent her to them because she was in trouble, and he would find out the who and the what soon enough.
The elevator opened and he stalked through the doors, making his way toward the lobby. He nodded to people in the halls as he finally arrived at the main lobby. The air escaped his lungs as he stopped and took her in. She had yet to see him, and was tapping her fingers on the countertop.
“Ma’am, again, I just need to know where you got this card from. You can’t just barge in and demand to be seen,” Spencer announced.
“But I was told that if I showed this card, you people would help me,” she said. Her hand reached up and tucked her thick hair behind her ear, and Drake took an unconscious step toward her.
His wolf slammed against his chest.
It was the woman from his dream. He would recognize her silhouette anywhere.
He cleared his throat and walked toward them, ignoring the gasps of shock and surprise. It was rare that he made an appearance in the lobby.
“I’ll take it from here, Spencer,” he announced, nodding to the receptionist.
The woman turned to him, and he became captivated by her eyes.
It was his dream woman.
Here in the fucking flesh.
“Yes, Mr. Ransly,” Spencer said, relief flashing in his eyes as he sat back in his chair.
“Hello, I’m Drake Ransly,” he greeted her with his outstretched hand.
“Penny. Penny Berkey,” she announced, her smaller hand taking his in a firm shake. Her lips curled into a familiar smile, and her eyes held a brief hint of hope in them as she studied him.
After all these years, he had finally found his penny.