Free Claimed by Cammie Eicher

reclusive genius would keep her from being dragged off to serve Odin forever.
    “We need help,” Creed announced in what Chiana considered masterful understatement.
    “Physical, metaphysical or somewhere in between?” Lillian asked.
    “I’m not sure.”
    “Oh, I do love a challenge.” Lillian leaned forward in her chair. “Can you give me a description of the problem in twenty-five words or less?”
    “She was promised by her mother to Odin, her mom reneged and she’s been taking happy shots to keep her under the radar. Now she’s been found, she went all Xena Warrior Princess on me, and I used a Sumerian binding spell to keep her from whacking on me.”
    Lillian tipped her head and considered Chiana for a long moment before returning her attention to Creed.
    “More than twenty-five words, but covered the basics,” she said. “As I see it, you’re dealing with two distinct problems. Actually, more like three.”
    Ticking them off on her fingers, she said, “Since I assume she prefers not to ride the battlefield or serve a bunch of oafs in Valhalla, Chiana has to keep from being taken from this plane. Secondly, it would be helpful to know what concoction she’s been given, and thirdly, you need to understand the particulars of a binding spell, especially a Sumerian one.”
    Chiana was concerned by the furrow between Lillian’s eyebrows and the way she tapped a finger against her front teeth, as if she was studying some complex and foreign problem. She had a feeling there was a lot more to Dr. Lillian Lansing than she was being allowed to see.
    When Lillian and Creed launched into a language she couldn’t follow, tension began to build inside her. This was her life they were talking about, her future. She’d be damned if she was going to sit here like a stone while they determined her fate.
    Cold anger filled her. She was a fool, trusting this man with her life. What had he done for her so far?
    Eliminated any chance of her being found by Mick or the agency, that’s what.
     
    As Creed watched the change come over Chiana, his hand slipped down to pat his pocket and the slim syringe Wil had given him. His voice didn’t falter as she slid to the front of the chair, her eyes narrowing. As Lillian asked questions in Latin, he passed along as much as he knew.
    “I hope your spell works,” she said in the dead language while Chiana stood and began to pace behind Lillian’s chair.
    “Yeah, me too.”
    Chiana stopped behind Lillian and dropped her hands onto the older woman’s shoulders.
    “Why don’t we have a conversation we all can enjoy?” she drawled, her eyes on Creed.
    He forced back an impulse to jump and rush Chiana. He didn’t dare forget she was trained by the same agency as him, that she knew how to counter any move he might try. He was still trying out options in his head when Lillian tipped her head back, looked into Chiana’s face and said, “We have been rude, haven’t we?”
    “Damn right.” Chiana’s hands tightened.
    “I must apologize. The opportunity to chat with someone in my favorite language comes so seldom that I forgot myself.”
    She motioned toward Creed.
    “You need to apologize as well.”
    Creed rose, his motions slow and careful. He closed the space with deliberate steps until only a few feet separated them. The nearer he came, the more Chiana relaxed. She moved away from Lillian, her attention fully on the man walking toward her.
    “Hey, big boy.” Her voice was low and sultry, her tone seductive.
    “Hey yourself.” Creed braced himself for whatever might come next.
    She moved closer, until only a slice of space separated them, and ran her fingers down his chest. Her touch was light, yet Creed felt as if he’d been touched by flame.
    “We about done here?”
    The words came on a whisper, meant for him only. He braced himself against the lust she exuded, cursed himself for getting involved in the first place.
    “Not yet.” He turned away, too aware of the