Warriors of Poseidon 04 - Atlantis Unmasked

mountain of blue jeans and flannel shirt. The top of his head brushed the top of the doorway, and his shoulders were so broad he had to turn a little sideways to come into the room.
     
    “Are you a shifter?” She blurted out the question and then felt like a total idiot when he did a double take. “I‟m sorry, it‟s none of my business. If Sam trusts you, that‟s good enough for me.”
     
    The man—Tiny—laughed, and it was a wonderful, rolling rumble of a laugh. It was a laugh like Santa Claus or a favorite grandfather should have.
     
    “He better trust me. After what he did for me, I‟d follow him into hell to give him a drink of ice water.”
     
    Curiosity burned through her for a moment, but it, like her need to prove her toughness to Alexios, faded away in light of the utter physical exhaustion sweeping through her.
     
    “Grace, meet Tiny. Tiny, meet Grace Havilland, the commander of this group,” Alexios said formally.
     
    She waved a hand, brushing off the introduction. “Commander of what‟s left of this group,” she corrected, unshed tears clogging her throat again. “We were hit hard tonight.”
     
    Tiny nodded, and his bearded face went from amiable to deadly. “Sam told us what happened. We‟ve been trying to keep an eye out for shifter attacks, given what‟s been going on across the country, and the fact that the top bloodsucker himself puts his head on coffin pillows not too far from here.”
     
    “Vonos,” Alexios said.
    Atlantis Unmasked - Warriors of Poseidon 04
    Page 181 of 314
     
    Tiny nodded again. “Vonos. And no, little lady, I‟m not a shifter. Big enough to be a bear, though, aren‟t I?” He laughed that wonderful laugh of his again.
     
    “I‟m sorry. I didn‟t—I just—I‟m sorry,” she repeated. “You‟re not seeing me at my best.”
     
    “Well, from what Sam said about you, you‟re good people. He said you took on a panther all by yourself with nothing but a bitty knife. Took it down, too. That‟s nothing to sneeze at.” Tiny‟s radio crackled from its place on his belt and he held up a hand to them while he answered it. Grace couldn‟t catch everything, but she did hear the all-clear given from the man on the other end.
     
    Tiny signed off and returned his radio to his belt, his face somber again. “Doesn‟t look like we‟re going to get another wave tonight. We‟ve cleaned up your fallen attackers, and there won‟t be any sign of a battle by morning.”
     
    Grace leaned forward and grabbed Alexios‟s hand for support. “What about my people?
    There were two, a man and a woman—” She had to stop for a moment and try to breathe before she could force the words out. “What did you . . . where are they—”
     
    “Per Sam‟s orders, those two had a car accident tonight when they were out enjoying the sights of St. Augustine with the other tourists,” Tiny said gently. “They need to get back to their families, and this is the best way.”
     
    Grace nodded, then leaned forward until her forehead rested on the back of Alexios‟s shoulder.
     
    “Thank you for everything,” Alexios said, his voice a rumbling vibration against her forehead. “Will you stay?”
     
    Atlantis Unmasked - Warriors of Poseidon 04
    Page 182 of 314
    “We‟re not going anywhere until Sam gets back and lets us know what he needs. I‟m going to make a big pot of coffee if you don‟t mind. Needed to get here in kind of a rush and didn‟t have time to stop anywhere.”
     
    Grace lifted her head, which suddenly seemed to weigh a thousand pounds in an eerie echo of her thoughts earlier. “Of course. Please make yourself at home with anything we have. Thank you so much for everything.”
     
    Alexios turned and scooped her up off the table, ignoring her feeble protests. Whatever burst of adrenaline had burned through her during the battle, it was long gone, and exhaustion, blood loss, and bone-deep sorrow had all taken a toll on her last reserves of energy.
     
    “You have my thanks, as well,” Alexios said to Tiny. “I will get Grace settled so that she can rest, and then I‟ll join you on patrol.”
     
    The big man nodded and moved aside so that they could leave the room. “There are plenty of us to handle the patrol, but I know about needing to make sure yourself. If you want to get some rest first, though, I‟ll stand watch for you. We‟ll check in on your man and your prisoner, too.”
     
    Alexios repeated his thanks and headed down