Hear Me
Chapter One
Erik groaned as he opened his eyes.
A week of sleeping in his car, no matter how luxurious it claimed to be, was enough to put a bad crick in his neck.
The headrest wasn't quite situated for a man of his height.
He supposed six foot three wasn't quite what they had in mind when they designed it.
He started to get out and felt like all his joints were rusted.
Almost every part of his bone structure popped as he stretched just outside his car.
Only two hundred more miles to the city his quarry hid in.
Part of him still argued with himself for taking this job.
Alright, it was his inner Dragon arguing with him.
It hadn't liked the idea of leaving the region he had grown up in.
Several thousand miles now he'd travelled at the request of a couple men.
Both wanted his service in completely opposite ways.
One wanted him to drag the girl kicking and screaming back to the small town where her father pretty much owned everything in sight and was a benevolent caretaker of his people with a very strong and much beloved heir.
The other wanted him to deliver her an envelope he had watched the old man seal himself after he and his heir had signed the documents inside.
Erik had the fortune, good or bad, of being a certified notary for anyone he was around.
He wasn't quite sure which side of the job to actually finish.
His Dragon blood hated the very idea of harming a woman and dragging her kicking and screaming certainly sounded like harming to him.
If she had run away to begin with, then obviously she wanted to stay away.
He could tell the old man had been sick, and his heir had asked Erik privately to see if he could convince the girl to come back in secret if she could.
To be there when her father died.
He groaned again as he put both hands on the roof of his car and pushed himself up to pop his back.
He slid into the seat again and started the engine.
The purr made him grin.
After this trip, his old baby still loved him. He only hoped she stayed happy.
He pulled back onto the highway again from the turnoff resting place and headed for the city in the distance.
As good as business was for him, being a Private Investigator with a bit of supernatural skills, he didn't want to have to replace this car. Though he knew he'd have to in a few years no matter what. Technology was getting so much better and she just couldn't keep up with the new cars on the road.
Not to mention the price of gas killed him.
xXx
Erik looked at the clock nearing one as he pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant his target worked at.
Her brother had said that the few letters they got said she was here, but that had been months ago, almost eight in fact.
He stepped out, rolling his shoulders and adjusting his dark maroon mid-thigh jacket. His hands reached up to settle the dark purple trimmed collar back again and he sighed as he faced the building.
It was obviously popular enough. Several cars and trucks sat in the parking lot around his, mostly cheaper end vehicles, but still more advanced than his.
His leather boots let him feel it as the gravel under his feet shifted as he walked.
The large building looked like a jumble of other buildings conglomerated into one through ghetto construction. Like a white trash trailer house with several additions.
Not that he thought it was bad, in fact he had a couple friends who lived in such accommodations even though they could afford better by far.
He stepped through the main doors and was startled.
Outside it looked like shit, but inside was actually pretty nice.
The floors were polished hardwood covering at least a thousand square feet of seating area, and a nice bar area set a few feet above it towards the back of the room with even darker wood on the floors and what looked like a gleaming mahogany bar counter shaped like a crescent.
To the left and in front of him all the way to the bar, where most of the seating was, there were at least a dozen of the four or five dozen tables filled up. Slow for lunch time, but he could have just missed the rush.
On his right, where there was an equally large area sunk down several steps, he could see pool tables, a dart area, and more seating. With even more seating above it on the large second floor just a bit above the bar height.
And that was just the restaurant and bar area. From the look outside, the building itself housed several of its workers or patrons.
Yes, Fairy Tail was an odd place for sure. But he kind of liked it honestly.
Spiff it up on the outside to match and no one would be able to tell the place had looked like crap before.
"Can I help you?" He heard a cheerful feminine voice call from the bar.
He started to head for the tall white-blond woman. Her skin was pale as well, causing her blue eyes to be shocking against it. But she was beautiful.
Just not his type.
"I'm just passing through town and looking for someone." He said as he leaned on the bar.
"Well, Fairy Tail is a good stop to make. Our Guild does a lot of jobs around the city, so we know quite a bit of it and a lot of people."
"Guild?" He frowned.
"Yes, mostly people who've been down for a bit and need work, we get contracts for everything from lawn mowing to major construction to book editing to animal care. You name it, we can usually get that job for you."
"Well, I'm not looking for a job, more just trying to get one done." He settled on a stool as the woman offered a mug of one of the on tap ales. He nodded and pulled his wallet out. "I'm looking for a woman named Kinana."
He took note of the fact that her hands shook as she pulled away from his glass.
"What for?"
"I've got a letter for her and a verbal message to pass along."
"Well...I don't know about the message, but I could get her the letter."
He shook his head. "Sorry, I was instructed to deliver it personally. Is she still working here?"
"Well..." The woman looked nervous. "Later tonight, in a couple hours."
"It's fine, I'll wait for her." He said.
She nodded and started to head towards the other end of the bar as a muscled blond sat down.
He hadn't even seen the man come in. Must have come from upstairs, Erik figured.
xXx
Kinana hurried down the stairs as she fixed the scarf around her waist on her long dress.
Mira had said the dark red pulled the natural red from her hair. In daylight it was blackish brown, but in the bar the red was a bit more visible.
She walked across the open area tucked inside the ring of buildings known as Fairy Tail.
Nearly every member of the Guild lived inside, and most the bar workers too.
Her flats tapped the ground as she made her way across the stone path.
As she pulled open the back door, she came up against a familiar brawny back.
The thick mane of black hair told her exactly which man she'd run into.
Gajeel stepped out of the way, holding the tray in his hands above her head.
"Sorry Kin, just heading back up."
"It's no problem. Wasn't expecting you there." She smiled at him.
His build and red eyes could scare anyone, and had her for months over the past year and a half.
But as rough and violent as he could be, he was a sweetheart inside.
He spoiled his small, delicate, pixie of a wife. She'd heard his wife had grown up here with her cousin when their family was killed, then several years ago the gang he'd been in had attacked the building and members of the Guild. He himself had hunted down little Levy when she ran away from the fighting at the time.
Kinana had heard from Gajeel's oldest friend and fellow defect gang member Juvia, that the brutish man had nearly raped Levy that night but something in him had just stopped when he had seen the faint scars from the fire that killed her family on her back and legs.
She watched Gajeel carry the tray through the courtyard towards the entry to the apartment building that she'd come from. He was so sweet these past few months, carrying food back to his pregnant wife while the resident doctor had ordered her to stay in bed as often as possible and not work while carrying twins.
Kinana hoped the birth went alright. Levy was so small she already had complications carrying the babies.
She shook her head as she headed into the bar through the back door.
She moved to the counter and found the flip-down section had already been lifted for her.
She smiled at Laxus as she slipped through and he set the counter back slowly.
"How long have you been here?"
"Couple hours. Mira cut me off already. Said I couldn't go to work drunk tonight."
"I should think not. Wouldn't you need full faculties to rewire that old building?"
He shrugged. "It's not a hard job. Bick and I are just wiring all the rooms and then testing them before the sheetrock crew comes in at nine in the morning tomorrow."
"Will you be able to finish it tonight?"
"Yeah, it's just a kitchen, living room, bath and half, and three bedrooms, with a small laundry room. Not much really. They've left the wall and ceiling open for us and the insulation crew are going to show up a couple hours in to come behind us and finish."
Kinana nodded. "Well, speaking of work, I'm going to clock in."
"Have fun. Can you get me some more soda when you get the chance?"
She nodded an answer as she headed for the kitchen where the office was a tiny box just to the right of the door.
As she was coming up to the kitchen doors, she watched Lucy come out with a tray of steaming food. Burgers and fries and wings.
The place didn't do much variety, craziest she'd ever seen the menu get was the taco salad added several months ago.
Normally it was different burgers, wings, chicken strips, and steak on the weekends, all served with fries.
The blond waitress was only one of four in the building and worked almost every night. Her boyfriend Natsu was one of the resident cooks, who made a killer perfect steak ninety-nine point nine percent of the time she'd been there. Jellal and Gajeel also worked the kitchen when they weren't specifically taking requests for jobs. Then Macao filled in for one of them.
She liked the older man, but he didn't have quite the flare for food the way Gajeel and Natsu did.
Jellal was also a good guy. Erza, the resident manager with Mira, had dragged him kicking and screaming back here when he'd found himself hitting an all time low point. The man had been accused of several murders, had a strangely terrifying yet fascinating tattoo covering the side of his face, clearly done in pen ink, and was addicted to some dangerous substances, on top of having severe depression.
Kinana had been here only a couple months when Erza had literally dragged him through the front doors, high on cocaine and losing blood from where he had tried to cut his wrist. She had helped the redheaded woman settle him in Porlyusica's medical bay and had been present to see the past year of his recovery and rehab.
He hadn't once stepped out of line or fallen back, simply because Erza had told him she couldn't bear losing him again. Finding him that time in the alley had been the first time she'd seen him since they were children and their old caretaker had given him the tattoo on his face.
Now he was clean, the real murderer had been caught and put away, and he was working a steady job even if it didn't pay much. He got free room, all the food he could eat, and a group of people to call family. And, as Kinana glanced at the year calendar on the wall of the office, a wedding in just a couple months.
She was glad to finally be able to have a safe place.
"Ah, before you sign in, there is someone here for you." Mira said from the doorway.
Kinana turned to the white haired woman. Far from old, she could, and used to, be a model.
Mira motioned to follow her and she stepped back out of the office and ducked as Lucy came back in with the other night bartender following this time to clock in herself.
She enjoyed having Cana helping at night. The outgoing woman helped her manage the entire bar counter and kept an eye on the game area.
Mira led her towards the end of the bar farthest from Laxus.
The man sitting at the counter didn't look drunk, or familiar.
xXx
Kinana stared down at the envelope in her hands.
He had motioned for her to follow him out into the courtyard area before handing the yellow thing to her.
"My name is Erik. I'm a Private Investigator hired by your father and brother to get that to you as well as a request that you maybe come back with me to see your father again before he goes."
She watched the tall man rub at the back of his neck for a second.
"I was also hired by your ex to bring you back, but then again, he did lie to me, said he was still married to you. Mirajane told me you had filed for divorce the moment Fairy Tail took you in over a year and a half ago."
She looked at the ground instead of at him. But she so did want to look at him.
She had seen plenty of men here, some pretty damn good looking. Laxus had a scar over his eye too, but somehow, Erik pulled it off better. He could obviously open his eye still, but she couldn't tell if the paler red-brown of his eye was an indication he was blind in that eye. His other eye looked quite sharp and attentive, at her, as well.
His red-brown hair was nice too, darker than his eyes.
He towered over her by almost a foot, but she didn't feel scared like she had with John.
She looked up at Erik.
"I...you saw my father? And my brother?"
"Yes, your father requested me personally from Oracion Inc."
She moved to sit on a bench and he followed.
Kinana tried to tear open the package and suddenly found a knife offered to glanced at him long enough to see the soft look on his face before taking the knife from his fingers and cutting open the seal.
He took it back as she opened the envelope to pull out the letter.
It was more than just a letter.
This was her fathers will.
Lucas was his heir, but he had left her an equal portion of his finances and the house, should she want it, was hers. Lucas would get the smaller gatehouse, which he'd always loved.
She looked at Erik.
"How was he when you last saw him?"
"Well, when I saw him, he was on bedrest, but when I called your brother several hours ago, he was still doing good. The cancer isn't hitting so hard right now, but your brother said he doesn't have more than a few months more."
"I...I want to see him. But..."
"You don't want to see your ex." Erik said with a knowing tone.
She nodded.
xXx
Erik couldn't believe the stories Mira had told him about Kinana once she had accepted that he wasn't going to take her by force.
When the girl had run away almost two years ago, her husband had tried following. Even caught up to her long enough to beat her.
She had only been saved by the fact that Laxus had found her getting beaten near his job site.
He felt admiration for the man who had picked up a piece of pipe and visually threatened and intimidated her ex into running.
Kinana had run to him instead of away and Laxus had brought her back here when he left that town when his week long project was done.
Ever since, the Fairy Tail family had pulled her to its bosom.
Mira had shown him the pictures the doctor had taken of the extensive bruises and he had felt rage.
His Dragon wanted blood.
No man should ever hurt a woman.
He watched as Kinana tucked away the letter.
"How long are you staying?" She asked him.
"Depends on whether you'll be coming back to see your father. I'll bring you back after you visit if you'd like, even though that isn't really included in what I was asked to do."
"I...I do want to...but..."
"It's alright, I would never let your ex hurt you under my care."
"You...would do that? Even though you don't know me?"
He nodded slowly.
Before seeing the fragile looking woman in person, he had considered bringing her back and making her brother arrange for her to come back to Fairy Tail.
None of those pictures had shown her completely, but now that he could see for himself how sexy she was, he would gladly drive several thousand miles to have her beside him the whole way.
For the first time in almost seven months, he actually felt himself harden at the sight and thought of being around a woman.
"I'll go pack I suppose." She said softly.
"I'll talk to Mira for you while you pack. It'll take about a week to get there."
Kinana nodded. "So I'll be gone at least two. Unless we fly."
"I...don't do much flying." He mumbled.
"Motion sickness?" She sounded as if she'd understand it, dealt with people who had it.
He shook his head. "No...more, I won't do it." He stood up. "We'll drive. It's not so bad."
He started to head back for the bar as she stood up and hurried towards a far door.
Her long dress fluttered on her beautifully.
Hell, what had he got himself into?
Getting attracted to a case was never good.
Ever.
xXx
Erik sighed as he finally put her bag in his car.
She had decided they should leave immediately, before she got scared.
Mira and everyone at the bar fretted over her like a child.
Laxus had hugged her and told her she shouldn't be scared, he had taught her how to protect herself.
He had even taken the headphones from around his neck and put them on her. 'For good luck,' he had said.
Erik climbed in as she was buckling up and pulled his own belt on as he turned on the car.
He was out onto the road, halfway to the highway when he saw her tense up beside him.
"Scared?" He asked gently. She nodded. "Want to go back?" She shook her head and reached for his right hand on the shifter. He turned his to hold her hand.
"It's just my first time out of the city in so long." She said shakily.
He could understand that.
The first time just after he'd turned eighteen Oracion had sent him out of the city they were based in, Gerald had said it was time to spread his wings.
He hadn't been back in years now. Not since he no longer needed their support in cases. Every once in a while Gerald called him with something big, but he wasn't on their books anymore.
It was half an hour before she seemed to settle, but she hadn't let go of his hand and now it was in her lap with both her own.
An hour in, he glanced over to see her asleep.
He edged his hand away and put it on the wheel to rest his left.