Chapter 2

Sasha stretched sleepily across her eighteenth century four posted bed. She so didn't want to get up. The feel of the five hundred count linen sheets against her skin was definitely a huge deterrence to starting her day. Actually, in Sasha's case, it's her night. Sasha was working the nightshift at a local bail bonds. Really, she was the sole owner of an establishment called "Java Jail and Bail". She thought the name appropriate since the business was located in the city which was known for coffee, not to mention she loved the beverage. She usually handled the dayshift at the office, but unfortunately her nighttime bondsman, Tom, was away visiting family for the holiday season. She couldn't find a temporary replacement with it being so close to Christmas and she did not want to close up the office due to the lack of employees. For some strange reason, the night shift was a productive time for a bail bondsman. It was probably the fact that so many people tended to do more stupid and idiotic things at night than they did during the daylight hours. Maybe they thought the guise of darkness would camouflage their behavior. There were the people who would drive under the influence, the occasional bar fights, and not to mention the public indecency. Of course, all the holiday parties brought out the majority of the lawbreakers.

Sasha yawned and rubbed her hands over her emerald green eyes as she threw her long toned legs over the side of the bed. She hesitated on pushing herself off of her comfortable warm bed. Oh, I don't want to get up! Five, no ten more minutes, that's all I need. Yeah, keep telling yourself that, Sash. She was having a hard time getting used to these nocturnal hours. It was the third night since Tom left on his holiday vacation.

Tom regularly worked the nightshift at the bail bondsman and was also Sasha's trusted friend. Sasha and Tom grew up together in Spokane and he was the big brother that she never had. He was definitely a protective, loyal companion and employee. She loved him dearly for it, yet a little part of her was thankful he was out of town so she could have a little break from his sometimes overbearing ways that tended to smother Sasha's independent side. She realized Tom's easy going nature seemed to help him stay in balance with his over protective one, so his reprimands were never cold or hurtful, just loving.

Sasha smirked over her thoughts of Tom while she reluctantly pushed herself off her haven. Oh, this was going to be a long night. She could tell already. She scuffled across the hardwood floor and entered her bathroom. Next to her bed, Sasha's bathroom was her next oasis. She did quite a bit of remodeling after she bought the early twentieth century house. She made sure all of her feminine desires were fulfilled when she updated the bathroom. It looked like something from the temple of a Greek god. In the center of the bathroom, there was a sunken whirlpool tub. There were four pillars on its four outer edges. An etched glass skylight adorned the ceiling above the tub. Etched in it was a mountain landscape silhouetted in the night sky. The etching indicated the snow top covered mountains with the stars and moon above them. There was also a lake in the etched window along with a slight blue coloring to signify the water. The window's artist did an excellent job demonstrating the moon's reflection in the lake. Sasha didn't know why she had this particular window commissioned. She just knew she always dreamed about these mountains. When ever she soaked in her luxury bath, she enjoyed the beautiful display. It had a soothing effect on her, especially when she was depressed or stressed. Unfortunately, she didn't have time to soak in it before she headed to the "Java Jail and Bail".

She hurriedly took a shower, which was still a messaging relief to her. The shower had ten showerheads located in various spots. All of them sprayed on Sasha's toned muscles and helped ease her into waking up. If she couldn't enjoy the whirlpool tub, then she guessed she would settle on this. After all, one of the perks about having pulsating water beating on her body was that it helped release her frustrations. All of her frustrations. Hell, it was better than any man she ever encountered. Unfortunately, she didn't have the time to participate in that particular pleasure.

The shower was built so a person could just walk right into it without any doors or shower curtains. There was just a half tile wall to provide some privacy and keep the water from splashing over the rest of the room. She really didn't need to concern herself about privacy though; she lived alone and she liked it.

Sasha grabbed a plush terrycloth towel when she emerged from the shower. She quickly toweled off her creamy olive colored skin and wrapped her long dark auburn hair in another towel. She rubbed coconut butter all over her skin. She wasn't the type of female to do a lot of primping but she did take care of herself. She didn't really need to wear make-up being the natural beauty she was. Men seemed to always gravitate towards her no matter how she presented herself. Her long years of mastering martial arts and running definitely had some benefits on her physique.

While Sasha was getting dressed, she mentally went through her mind the projects she needed to complete when she got to the office. She put on her red lace bra and panties and a grey sweatshirt hoodie. She picked up her favorite pair of Levi jeans to wear as she left her bedroom and proceeded downstairs to the kitchen.

She was so deep in thought with her "to do list" that she didn't notice the glass cut French doors, which led to her backyard, were wide open as she walked through the living room. A sudden breeze blew into the room and Sasha froze as goose bumps prickled her bare legs. She slowly turned and saw a frightened adolescent sitting on her couch.

"Scott, what are you doing here and how did you get in my house?"

"I'm sorry, Ms Sasha, I didn't know where else to go, but I need help and you're the only one I could think of!" stammered the boy. "I knocked several times but you didn't answer so I thought I would wait here til you got home." He quickly continued.

"Well, as you can see, I am home!" She was upset but she didn't want to berate the youngster in his current state of mind. She slowly exhaled to help clear her mind. "Scott, please tell me what's going on. I'll deal with you breaking into my house later."

The boy displayed signs of being agitated as he looked around nervously and sweated profusely. He locked his arms around his waist as he rocked back and forth on the edge of the couch like he was mad.

"Scott, SCOTT, look at me!

The boy reluctantly looked at Sasha. It was obvious he didn't want to look her in the eyes. Sasha couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. She had previous dealings with Scott over juvenile misdemeanor charges. Her business had regular cases such as juveniles doing things like shoplifting or vandalism. Scott's case was shoplifting. He hadn't been in any trouble since he went to court and served his community service. Sasha checked on him from time to time to see how things were going for him. He was keeping his nose clean and doing well in school. He seemed to have gotten his act together, so she thought. However, right now he was not demonstrating a well-polished teenager. His current mood was different from what Sasha had seen in quite awhile.

"I can't stay here! I have to leave! I'm sorry Ms Sasha for bothering you. I shouldn't have come!" Scott then ran quickly out the open back doors.

"Scott, wait! Sasha ran after him without thinking about being in only a sweatshirt and red panties. She hadn't put on her jeans during the weird encounter with Scott.

As Sasha darted out the door, she thought she saw a dark figure move from the left corner of her eye. She ignored it while she continued to scream at the boy. Scott ran through the bushes and climbed the oak tree next to the fence. He used the branches to help with his escape. He was out of the yard before Sasha could reach the fence line.

Sasha stopped abruptly at the bushes and screamed at the top of her lungs. This is so not how I want to start my work night! She was steaming mad and confused. What the hell just happened?

Before Sasha could turn around and walk back toward the house, a hand grabbed her hair and yanked her head back. The movement caused her to lose her balance and she flailed her arms to help regain it. "Hey, let go of me! NO! Stop it!" screamed Sasha. She noticed the hand which held her hair had long fingernails. At first, she thought her attacker was female, but then she heard a thick Italian male's sinister voice.

"STOP! commanded the voice. "Don't move!"

Out of instinct, she elbowed her attacker in the ribs. She was always strong for a female, so she wasn't really surprised when he grunted and let her go. She took off toward her house.

Before Sasha realized it, the attacker was on her again. It was as if he just flew across the yard and pounced on her. What the? He roughly picked her up from the ground with one hand.

"ENOUGH! Don't move!" the male's voice was like acid to her ears.

"Who the hell are you?" Sasha's breathing was ragged. She was definitely feeling the affects of being out in the cold December night air with just her undergarments and a sweatshirt on. She knew she was not in a good predicament

The male's face leaned forward and Sasha's green eyes grew wide as she came face to face with possibly one of the most gorgeous men she had ever seen. The male had aqua blue eyes and pale almost translucent skin. The cool night breeze blew his long dark hair out away from his face. She would have thought he was a GQ model if it wasn't for the fact he attacked her in her own yard. Yeah, he's not the kind of guy a girl brings home to meet the family!

The male spoke again and this time his voice was low and soothing while his eyes were fixed onto Sasha's eyes. She started to feel relaxed but not all together comfortable. She realized that something was wrong.

"What are you doing? Stop it!" She screamed frantically at the muscular man.

He was trying to get into her mind. She felt him brushing into the outskirts of her thoughts and trying to maneuver his way through her memories. She fought his intrusions and put up a mental block. He pushed harder and this time without any finesse. He became brutal and ruthless.

"Damn it, stop it!" Sasha's head pounded and she screamed in agony. She knew she needed to get away, yet she was having a difficult time focusing on anything.

I need to focus! I need to get to the house and call for help!

Sasha thought the best way to get out of this situation was to let the guy think she was an easy target. He was a muscular man and obviously had quick reflexes, so she needed to outwit him. She began to relax and allow him access into some parts of her mind, but not anything too important. She still had a block on private matters, such as family and definitely her fighting strategies.

She remembered the garden rake leaned up against her back porch. If she distracted him and got to it, then she could use it as a weapon. She then heard a second Italian male's voice. This one had a deep sexy baritone sound to his accent.

"Ermanno, that's enough! Let her go!"

"But I haven't gotten what we need." came the attacker's reply.

"No? Obviously she has a strong mental block, or she doesn't know anything of value to us."

"What should we do with her then, Nico?" asked Ermanno.

"Hmm, good question, Ermanno." Nico sounded thoughtful in his reply. He gave Sasha a good look over. His dark golden eyes continued to roam over her body. He left nothing unnoticed. A small grin began to form on his face as he came back eye to eye with Sasha. He could smell her fear, yet he also sensed her courage. She was definitely a fighter. She was not the damsel in distress type of woman! Nico's nose flared as he breathed in her vitality. He found it intoxicating and arousing. Oh, but not now. Maybe later, la bella donna.

Sasha was entranced by Nico. She was actually scared shitless. She knew not to be fooled by his sexy accent. Both of these men were dangerous, very dangerous. She realized that even more now. While Nico was mulling things over, she decided to take advantage of this opportunity. She noticed that Ermanno loosened his grip on her. He probably came to the conclusion that she wasn't going to try anything. Fat chance! Ya snooze, ya loose!

Sasha elbowed Ermanno again, yet this time when he let go of her hair, she kneed him in the face as he doubled over. He was taken completely off guard. The impact caused him to stumble backwards away from her. Sasha ran to the back porch as if she was an Olympic runner. As she leaped onto the porch, she grabbed the yard rake in the process.

Sasha heard a frightening noise during her mad dash to the house; it was a low snarling growl. This reminded her that she definitely needed a weapon. While she ran up the back porch, she accidentally knocked the rake over with her arm and it snapped in two. On instinct, she grabbed the broken handle and quickly swung around to fend off another attack. The handle was clutched tightly in her hands and extended from her body; she continually sliced it through the air from side to side.

"Ermanno, NO!" shouted Nico.

She didn't even notice Ermanno flying in the air towards her when he abruptly landed on the rake handle. It plunged deeply into his broad chest. Dead center literally.

Sasha gasped and dropped the handle. She ran into the house, slammed the door, and locked it. Oh, no, no, no, no! I killed a man! No, no, no! Think, Sasha, think!

She turned to look outside and noticed Nico starring at her. His eyes were no longer the golden color, but a blood red. Oh, shit!

"I will be back, la Bella Donna! You are definitely someone we underestimated. That will not happen again!" Roared Nico.

She stood motionless as she watched Nico pick up Ermann's body and then disappeared. What?! That can't be! I know I didn't just see a person vanish!

Sasha bit her nails and paced the living room floor. I know I'm having a hard time adjusting to these night hours, but this, this can't be happening! She started to pick up the phone to call the police, then realized they would never believe her story. There's not a body or anything here! It's like the whole ordeal never happened. Great, just great! I have to deal with this all by myself. Tom is out of town. He's usually the first one I call when something happens. Aiden! That's it! I'll call Aiden. He's a good kid and he's always been a big help to me. I may not sound coherent but at least he'll let me vent!

As she replayed the night's events through her head, she picked up the phone to call the young man who was like a little brother to her, Aiden McFadden. She punched in his cell phone number and waited for the call to go through.