Kate Corcino - Portals: Volume Seven

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Chapter One

N othing says Home , Sweet Home like an abandoned gas station.

The words came with a muffled snort from one of the two men following Lena. He probably hadnt meant for her to hear themprobablybut the rich, husky tone of his voice carried them to her.

Lena rolled her eyes, her back still to the client and his assistant. Does my home offend you, Mr. Reyes? She kept her tone even and pleasant. It took effort. A lot of effort.

No, no, he answered from behind her. Im just trying to understand what would make someone see this place and say, Now thisthis is the place I want to call home. He paused. Miss Gracey, he added, mimicking her formality.

She could hear his amusement. It was nothing she hadnt heard from other clients before. As far as she was concerned, he could keep trying. She highly doubted hed get it.

When shed arrived at the ancient gas station nine years before, shed been fifteen and full of rage, fear, and pride over making her escape from a life of hiding in the city. The empty building still stood firm against the onslaught of the world. Buckled, collapsed pavement at the far end of the lot showed where the tanks below ground had ignited during the cataclysm two centuries before. The void was filled with sand pushed by the winda shifting, fatal trap for the unwary. A tumbleweed bounced across the rubble of the road, smashing against teetering pump fourteen, shedding thorns and seeds as it rolled off again.

The desolation was a reflection of Lenas grief. Shed staked her claim on the station and carved her home out of drifted sand and weeds. She didnt expect those who lived in the comfort of a relo-citysurrounded by people and walls to keep the world at bayto understand why it mattered to claim a corner of the wild as hers alone. The cities that had grown out of the post-disaster relocation centers were the last hope of those clinging to the old ways. They were willing to give up a lot to live in safety. She knew safety was relative.

Now her client, and the assistant whod powered the electric vehicle to get him out here, sized her home up as they followed her inside. The visual examination of the home shed built for herself, the life alone, was typical of every client, every time.

This time the examination, and the judgment it implied, rankled. She spun around, mouth opened to snap at them.

She stopped. Alejandro Reyes had removed his antique sunglasses, and his dark eyes were focused on her. She tried to escape the intensity of them by looking down, but that was a mistake. Instead of a heated gaze, she caught his wide-chested, lean-hipped body as he slid closer to her like one of the big cats of the desert, stalking prey.

Hes not a hunter, Lena. Just another indolent client looking for a black market charge to make his easy life easier.

She cleared her throat, turning to his assistant. The other man, Lucas, was busy inspecting every detail of her home. She doubted Reyess attention had ever left her back. It certainly didnt leave her face now that she had turned to the other man. She could feel his focus still, the itch of attention that always made her self-conscious. He wasnt interested in the room.