Shadow Falling (The Scorpius Syndrome #2) Read Free Page A

flower. Not even close.
    Whispers tickled through her mind in different voices and she shoved them away. Her heart rate picked up. The drugs the president had forced on her had affected her brain, and this was just another aftereffect. The voices would be gone soon.
    They had to be.
    Or maybe the drugs had changed her brain chemistry enough that she’d go insane from the misfiring of neurons. Totally possible.
    She’d studied the insane partly out of curiosity and partly because her aunt had killed herself after a horrible bout of depression. Vinnie had been five years old and hadn’t understood the facts until much later in childhood—and then she’d been fascinated with psychology in general.
    That fascination was turned into determination by the brutal death of her mother at the hands of a serial killer.
    Raze came into view from around a corner, moving in that smooth lope that fascinated her. She had no doubt he’d purposely let her see him just to keep from startling her. If Raze Shadow wanted to sneak up on a person, he’d do so without any warning.
    She shivered and yanked open the door with one hand. The glass fought her, scraping along small rocks and dirt until finally giving in with a shudder.
    He reached her, still wearing the dark jeans and black shirt from the night before. The clothing accentuated hard muscle and long lines, and the gun at his hip gave him the look of a vigilante soldier.
    Which was who he’d become in this new world.
    “You ready?” he asked, stopping a few feet away.
    She swallowed.“Yes, but I need more details.”
    One dark eyebrow rose. “I’m escorting you to headquarters, where you won’t be so alone and can deal with your issues. You start work there today anyway.”
    She shook her head. “No. I meant, where am I sleeping?” Warmth climbed into her face. Yes, she could’ve worded that better, but her skin heated whenever the man was near, and she couldn’t help her thoughts. Hell, she couldn’t stop any of the thoughts zinging through her drug-addled gray matter. “Is there an apartment at Vanguard headquarters available?”
    His gaze darkened. “They’re trying to find you a place, but if they can’t figure it out, you can have mine. I’ll bunk with another soldier.”
    She blinked. Well, geez. Talk about not even trying to get into her pants. Not that she wanted any pressure right now, but it’d be nice if the guy at least noticed she had working girl parts. “That’s perfect. Thank you.”
    He gestured her ahead of him after quickly scouting the area. “Let’s move.”
    She deserted the tenement building without a backward glance, stepping through the damp weeds to follow him onto the road heading north along the fence line. Stacks of tires, turned over semis, and old vans lined the street outside the fence, forming a makeshift barrier from attackers.
    The minute they reached the end of the building, Raze turned her onto another old road toward the middle of the territory. Away from the boundary and danger. They moved past more apartments and barrels set out to catch rainwater before reaching an old gymnasium that now served as a mess hall. The main medical facility was located next to it in a weathered brick building that had once been an elementary school.
    At this early dawn hour, only patrolling soldiers wereup and about. Raze gave a guy nod to a couple and they returned the gesture.
    Men of few words, definitely.
    She stepped over a large puddle as they turned again, maneuvering down a street between row houses and a rambling building now serving as training facilities. It used to be a bunch of old businesses. The silence began to wear on her. “Are you training scavengers today?”
    “No.”
    She nodded and tried to let the silence stand. Nope. “What are you doing today?”
    “Probably scouting outer territory for threats.” He blinked several times, as if finally sensing her discomfort. “Um. So, you’re a profiler? I mean, you
were
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