Black Ghost Runner Read online

  Beth put the unused items away, dropping the knife in the sink. She pushed the cutting board with the sandwiches on it forward on the counter, just in time to see that he had her laptop on the other side of the counter and was opening it.

  Beth couldn’t believe the question he asked.

  “I am logging into your bank account. What is your user ID?” He was looking down at her laptop.

  “Boy, are you a loser.” Beth looked over at him in disgust. “I told you, I lost everything. I have seventy some dollars in there before they enter the service fee.”

  He slammed his fist on the counter. “Beth, your user ID.”

  She couldn’t help it, she jerked as the large hand hit the counter. Okay, he had a short leash on that temper. Maybe it wasn’t a good idea to get on his bad side. “My first name with one two three four inserted behind each letter, every other letter upper case.” Then she pulled over a pad with a pencil to jot down the password.

  He glanced up. “Clever. I need something to drink with that.”

  Beth turned to the refrigerator, pulling out two bottled waters. “No beer.” She was surprised her voice was steady, because her stomach was in knots. “Are you satisfied that I don’t have enough in there to steal?”

  He looked up from the computer screen to give her a slightly wicked grin. He turned the laptop around so that she could see the screen. Beth glanced down at it, pulling it over to look closer.

  First, she was sure he hadn’t opened the right account so she checked the account at the top. As usual the top showed only the last four numbers of the account, which were correct—still it could be an error or matched to someone else’s account. She looked below that line where it said Welcome, E. Donald. She still felt there had to be a mistake because the balance said Two Hundred Fifty Thousand Seventy-Nine Dollars Eighty-Five Cents.

  Beth opened up the detail section of the account where she saw the impossible. She knew it was impossible because she had logged in several times over the last couple of weeks. This wasn’t what she had seen before or what was on the screen now. It stated that over the last month she had received deposits from her prior employer directly into her account. The final total was Two Hundred Fifty Thousand Dollars.

  “You’re a hacker?” He didn’t fit the mold, but what did she know?

  “Let’s just say I can get electronics to cooperate. I need the two hundred thousand and you can keep fifty thousand. They owe you that much anyways, since you didn’t have anything to do with what happened at the clinic. Your bank is open tomorrow until noon, even though it is Saturday. They will only let you have Fifty Thousand in cash. They will give you the rest in a Bank Draft. When you get that for me, I am gone. You get some extra cash to go on with your life.”

  Beth heard this all come out in that sexy low voice, almost without any emotion.

  She took a deep breath. “You must be crazy. I almost got arrested the last time you were in my life. This money will get me put away for sure.”

  He shook his head. “It is clean, so you won’t be in any trouble. There are even taxes paid on it already. Take another one of those deep breaths. You can get through this. We have twelve hours before the bank opens. After that, your life goes on.”

  He reached over to pick up the sandwich and took a large bite. He stepped back, grabbed her remote, and turned on her TV. She watched as he found the local news station. He leaned against the counter as he ate and watched.

  “What is your name?” Beth was not sure why she asked, but she felt he seemed to know a lot about her, while she knew nothing about him. Maybe this time, she could learn something to tell the police.

  “Noble.” He didn’t turn around, seemingly comfortable in her place.

  Did he often go into peoples’ homes just taking over? He had the strength. With that gun, he could probably force his way into whereever he needed to go. What was with the funds in her account? Beth looked again at her screen. One of those small warning tags had come up saying the computer was going to disconnect in one minute due to inactivity. She decided to let it knock her out of the session. Maybe later, she’d go back in on her own to see if the funds were still there.

  “Why me?” Her voice was almost a whisper. When he didn’t say anything, she thought he hadn’t heard her. He turned to look at her. She was almost sorry she had tried to talk.

  Beth found his stare too intense.

  “The first time was an accident. You were just there, but you liked animals. You weren’t as afraid as you should have been. You smelled special. I never got you out of my mind. I’m not sure why. I kept track of you to make sure you were okay. When it looked like that disgusting man who was with you might tell lies about you to the police, well, I felt I had to give you some protection, so I had a talk with him. That is how I learned more about you, yet I stayed away. Now, I need access to some funds. It was too hard for me to resist contacting you and, well, now I am glad, because I see you need some money so I got it for you.”

  Beth stood there in complete shock. She forgot to be afraid, storming around the counter.

  “Are you totally out of your mind? Listen to yourself. I smelled special? I use the cheapest perfume from the local drug store. You had a talk with Reggie? He is the biggest coward in the world. You probably took years out of his life. He probably left the company right after they fired me. You come into my life, ruin it then you keep track of me. What are you, some type of special terrorist?” By this time, she was in front of him with her hands on her hips. She had her head tilted back. It finally dawned on her she was yelling at a seven foot tall, very strong man who broke laws as if they were written for everyone but him.

  Beth realized he hadn’t moved. He was still leaning backwards against the counter.

  “Not terrorist, think darker.” His voice was as quiet as his words.

  Her anger was slowly leaking away. She did take a step back. She didn’t want to think about his words, she didn’t want to think darker. “Look, I don’t want your money. I don’t want you in my life. Just get out. Go find someone else to put the funds into their account. You can get it from them. Hundreds of people out there will jump at the chance to give you your money for fifty thousand. Just leave. My keys are on the end of the counter. Go!”

  He looked at her as if he was totally fascinated.

  She stood there breathing hard, one hand on a hip, the other pointed strongly at her door, her head back, glaring up at him.

  Chapter Three

  Her anger got her this far. Beth looked at where her finger was pointing. She saw the jacket covering the ugly black weapon. What the hell was she thinking? She looked back, biting her bottom lip. She watched him rise up from the counter and started to move towards her. His movement was like a proverbial jungle cat, all the muscles in his long body flowing together, a slow graceful motion that was without sound, but with amazing strength.

  Beth knew when she saw real danger, and real danger was approaching her now. Not only that, his eyes had changed. She backed up, not daring to look away. She felt the corner of her couch brush one leg. She moved sideways so as not to fall. She gasped—he’d moved so fast, he had her pinned against the wall, his hard body supporting her, feeling as solid as the sheetrock in the wall behind her.

  Beth was staring into those strange eyes and everything in her mind had quit working. Later, she would rethink this whole situation wondering if she was under some thrall, but at this moment, looking at the eyes that had changed, she knew it wasn’t contacts. No white showed, only that old gold with the radiating black lines coming out from the center black slits that were like cat eyes.

  Beth was breathing, yet she felt she wasn’t taking in enough oxygen to fill her body. She felt a tremor start from everywhere they touched. She couldn’t even fight. He had pulled her up as well as holding her tight. She didn’t think her feet were on the floor.

  Beth didn’t know when her arms had slipped under his, to hang on
to his back. She could feel his ribs expand as he took in a deep inhalation. She understood that he was drawing in her smell for some reason. He had his face deep into her hair, just above her ear. She heard the sigh he made. It was so soft so different from the hardness of his where he held her.

  Beth felt the heat of his body. It felt warmer, as if he had a fever. She felt the growth of his cock as it filled out pressing into her belly. To her surprise, she also felt her own response. A heat began to emit between her legs. The tips of her breasts were knotting up almost painfully.

  He shifted, shoving a muscular thigh between her legs. Beth felt the seams of her jeans pushed deeply into her cunt. Her mind had shut down, leaving her body in charge. This wasn’t Beth. Beth was a computer accountant who didn’t get much fun from sex, didn’t really like sex, but this body was feeling the hot thigh that she was almost riding, the rough material causing a pulsing into her lower lips. She knew moisture was slipping from her body.

  She looked up as he lifted his head. He took a deep intake of air through his nostrils, making them flare. She was frozen, watching that beautiful male face.

  “Yes.”

  That was his voice. She felt the one word rumble deep in his chest, her breasts flattened against it almost throbbing. Again, later, she would wonder what scent he had caught in the air. Could he have found the smell of her juices—the ones his thigh was causing?

  Suddenly Beth was lost, because he opened his eyes. She had nowhere to go, except deep into that rich old gold. She knew she was hanging on desperately to knots of his shirt in the back of him as she was trying to resist the reactions going on in her body. He leaned his shoulders back, but didn’t relieve the pressure of his hips. He pulled her shirt off her shoulders and down her arms as far as it would go. He slipped one side of the straps of her tee and bra down one arm as far as it would go. Her shoulder with the round top of her breast on that side was now exposed.

  Beth felt him lean back in as he drew a circle around her ear with his tongue. She felt electricity go from that hot tongue through her ear to her breast on that side where the nipple became a tight pebble, down to her cunt, down to everything between her legs, where she knew heat was accompanying moisture of a wonderful type that she had never felt before. This was all new, as sublime feelings attacked her, yet it was all her own body reacting.

  That hot mouth came around and slowly claimed her lips. At last, she could close her eyes, sinking into the erotic emotions that his lips were bringing. He was gentle, which was the opposite of the hold he had on her. The soft lips glided over hers, asking, not demanding. The hot tongue, rough and delicious, stroked her mouth, first the upper lip, then he drew her lower lip between his teeth in a soft bite. Beth opened her mouth in a soft gasp. It was as if this was what he was waiting for, he had entry.

  How had he known this was what she wanted? That tongue took everything, knew everything, and tasted everything. When it withdrew, it took something of her with it. He continued with the soft wet kisses down her chin. His lips followed around her neck. Beth felt his strong large hand on her chin, tightly holding her head to one side as he continued to kiss her neck, her shoulder, down to the top of the round curve of her breast. She felt the pain, as he sank his teeth into her, right at the top of the mound.

  He brought up his thigh, pushing hard, causing the rough jean seam to ride the swollen nub. She went over the top in an orgasm. The climax was not just any orgasm, but an emotionally screaming, mind-bending one where every muscle in her body was pulling as she finally released. She felt blackness follow as she fainted.

  Beth was aware of drifting through consciousness. She knew she was in her bed. She knew she was having nightmares. One time, she felt Noble lift her, insisting she drink some water.

  Beth felt people didn’t really drink in dreams. She tried to turn her head, but he forced the glass to her lips. She drank, and it felt so good on her tongue, going down her throat. The cool liquid give her relief as it slowly went across her tongue, then down her throat.

  The worst part of the nightmare was the large jungle cat. A huge midnight-black jaguar with old gold eyes was over her, four immense paws straddling her body, two on each side. Staring into the gold eyes, she was unable to run from the monster. There was only escape into blackness.

  The next thing she knew, she rolled over to find it was daylight. Beth was confused for only a second. She remembered Noble and jumped up on all fours on the bed. She was in her room by herself. She looked over at the clock. It was eight, so it was morning. What the hell had happened? She sat back on her heels looking down at herself. She was in her panties and bra with her hair undone.

  Beth slowly got up and padded barefoot out to the living room. Noble was in the kitchen, eating cereal from a large mixing bowl.

  She heard his voice sounding so normal. “Good, you’re awake. Get a shower. We need to make it to the bank when they open.”

  Beth looked at him, then looked at the door of her apartment that drew her eyes to the jacket hanging over the weapon. She looked down and realized she was standing there in just her thin underclothes. This was when she saw the mark on the top of her left breast.

  “You bit me.” It came out in a whisper, but anger was building behind it. Anger was good. It helped with the fear.

  She felt his eyes on her, but he continued to eat, not answering the obvious.

  “You bit me, you bastard.” Now, she was letting the anger grow. Maybe she could get mad enough to stop this whole weird business.

  In her anger, she watched him as he finally turned to rinse the large bowl, evidently having finished off all the cereal. He looked over his shoulder. “Sorry, it was a one-time thing. Got carried away. Do you need help with the shower, or can you manage? We are leaving in twenty minutes.”

  By this time, he had turned back around, folding his arms across his chest. Beth remembered him smothering her against that chest in many different ways. To keep her from talking, to feel her breasts flattened. No, don’t think about that.

  Beth looked at him for only a moment longer, then finally turned to go back in the bathroom. She gathered clothes as she went. She locked the bathroom door. She was surprised, as this was the first time she had ever done that. She had never had guests in the small apartment.

  Beth made the shower a short one, tying her hair on top to keep it dry. She put on fresh underclothes and a loose shirt over a pair of jeans, all actions quick. She came out leaving her hair up with the banana clip she had used, then slipped her feet into a pair of sandals and grabbed her belt purse that she was surprised to see on the table next to her bed. Her cell phone was also lying there so she slipped it into a back pocket, pulling the shirt over it.

  Taking a deep breath, she went back into the living room. He was leaning on the wall near the door with the jacket under his arm. Beth knew he had the weapon wrapped up in the leather. He held out her keys. She just looked down at the floor as she went past him, taking the keys as she stomped out the door.

  There was not much traffic on Saturday morning, so they got to the bank before it opened. She found a quiet spot in the parking lot in the shade under one of the large trees the bank was smart enough to protect. They sat there in silence, watching as a couple of bank workers pull in and enter through a side entrance.

  Beth was getting really nervous. She needed to talk or do something. “Can I ask you some questions? I mean, will you tell me the truth?” She wasn’t looking at him, just at her hands clutching the steering wheel.

  She felt the jeep move as he shifted to look at her. “I will tell you the truth if I can answer.”

  “Is the money in my account stolen? Will I be implicated in some money laundering scheme?” She did glance over at him this time.

  Beth saw a slight smile as he nodded. “The money is clean. Believe me when I tell you not only that it is clean, it can’t be traced back. I would suggest you draw out the fifty thousand. Put it somewhere safe. F
orget that you saw me.”

  Beth sat in silence for a few more minutes, rolling over the information repeatedly in her mind. She was good on computers and knew there were hackers out there that scared the US government. She supposed that the money could be clean, that he didn’t want IRS to know about it. Yikes, IRS would know it had hit her account. Taxes. What were the taxes on Two Hundred Fifty Thousand? He said the taxes were paid, what did that really mean?

  “I am going to be hit with taxes. Shit.”

  Beth heard him chuckle. She looked at him from the sides of her eyes not wanting to turn to face him. “What?”

  “Just that of all the things you faced in the past fourteen hours you are worried about taxes. Well, don’t, since the Two Hundred Thousand will seem to be a mistake, so the Fifty Thousand was yours already with the taxes out before you got it originally.”

  Beth mulled this over. It might work. She tapped a finger on the wheel. “Noble, what are you, I mean how come your eyes change color? How come you smell me? Are you some kind of mutation that went wrong, or some experiment?” Now, she was sorry that she had asked these questions. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know the truth.

  “The bank is open. I can’t answer that question right now.”

  Beth sighed, guessing she really didn’t want to know. She got out, but was surprised when he came around the front of the jeep.

  “Wait, I saw that last guy go in. Let’s distract him.”

  She gritted her teeth as he reached for the clip in her hair. Using his fingers, he drew her hair down around her shoulders. Her hair was so long—she really should cut it. It reached below her waist in back. He next addressed her shirt. Rolling up the bottom, he tied it up under her bra to bare her waist. He finally unbuttoned a couple more top, buttons, stood back and smiled.

  “You really are a beautiful woman, Beth. I wonder why you try to hide it.” Beth let him turn her towards the bank as he gave her a slap on her ass.