Dashing Devil Omnibus 2: Books 4-6, page 82
Now that sounded like a calling, even if it was born from a crush.
“Your Power is impressive and more than a little terrifying,” Boyd allowed. “But the short range it has, combined with your lack of physical enhancements would make even a field support role incredibly dangerous for you. I’m not sure you could even qualify as combat capable.”
For a moment, the stare returned, along with the pout. But then something must have occurred to her because Laura’s lips turned that pout into a smirk, though her pale green eyes remained firm.
“You could change that,” she said.
“I’m still not sure I will be Enhancing any more women,” he admitted.
Boyd shook his head. Hope had been clingy, and what little time he spent away from her was in the company of one of his other loves—though he was not complaining. He didn’t worry that he was spreading himself too thin, he worried that they each received enough of his time and attention.
When he admitted as much, Laura rolled her eyes.
“Hope has promised to help get me in once she’s done ‘being greedy and monopolizing your time for a short while’… so I’m not too worried about it.”
That was news to Boyd, but it did fit his angel—so he didn’t question it. Unfortunately for Laura, Hope didn’t make his decisions.
“It’s not her call,” Boyd rumbled. “And one’s Power is only one part of being combat support capable. You lack the years of training it takes to make a Hero.”
Laura frowned. “I thought the training program was only six months?”
“The basic training program barely qualifies as a good start.” Boyd rolled his eyes.
“I’ll grant you that. But years?” Laura’s expression bordered on a pout again. “There has to be a faster way.”
Boyd felt the urge to give his most devilish grin, but resisted it. “Well… I suppose I could train you. I have the certification, and you’re already in great shape which would save time on conditioning.” He leaned back in his chair, studying the woman in front of him. “I won’t promise a timeframe, but I can probably compress the essential basics—which is a hell of a lot more than they teach you in basic Hero training—into months instead of years.”
“Alright, let’s do it.” Laura nodded, determination in her eyes.
The big demon was glad to see it there, because she would need it. He might not have the insight into Laura that he did with his loves, but he had lived with her for some time. One did not climb to her position at her age without enjoying, or at least embracing, challenges.
Plus, there was the way she’d aggressively pursued a man who caught her interest despite his continued attempts to evade her.
“When do we start?”
‘Oh, the poor thing does NOT understand what she is signing up for,’ Mindy sighed into his thoughts.
‘No, she doesn’t,’ he replied. ‘We never had a choice… but I wonder how long her conviction will last.’
‘Kuh-he!’ Mindy giggled into his mind. ‘I’ve seen this movie. She’s the plucky young trainee and you’re the seasoned Hero. And by the end of it all you’ll be giving her more than just Hero tips!’
Boyd resisted the urge to face-palm. Briefly, he considered if everything—including Laura’s ill-advised heroism—had been a setup. They had just watched that movie the other night, and although the ages had been reversed, the roles were spot on.
After a moment’s consideration, he decided it was unlikely. The odds of him finding out were too high and he would be much angrier at any of his loves—who knew better than to expose what was ultimately a civilian to that level of danger—than he had been with Laura right after she’d pulled her stunt. And he’d been furious.
“I’ll send you some basic reading material when we return to base.” Boyd tilted his head back in his command chair and studied the ceiling as he considered where to start.
Normally, it would have been the laws and regulations of The Authority. But seeing as he fully intended to change many of those, it seemed less vital. He wasn’t interested in holding any prisoners in what had become his home. Which meant he would have some time figure it out on the flight to Glorith where they would drop off their current cargo.
“I expect you to have the material memorized by six in the morning when you report to the gym for training.” He arched an eyebrow at her. “You will be quizzed.”
“Six in the morning?” Laura frowned. “I thought training started after breakfast.”
“Don’t worry,” Boyd finally let his devilish smile show, “training will continue after breakfast… and after lunch… and after dinner.”
Laura’s pale green eyes took up his challenge and she gave a firm nod. “Then make me the best Hero I can be.”
“Alright, Laura.” He nodded, keeping his thoughts from his face, “we’ll see if you have what it takes.” Boyd would find out if she had what it took. And, if she lasted long enough, he might just see what his Enhancement could do for her. It’s not like he had to make a lifelong commitment to bring her to the first level.
Laura visibly swallowed so he added some challenge to his golden eyes as he continued, “Becoming a Hero is a major commitment. If you want me to train you, I will start by testing you. Are you ready to find out what your limits are, Laura?”
Chapter 28
The transport and interrogation went without issue. Raev and her illusionary duplicates were able to move the non-Powered prisoners from cell to tiny cell and questioned them while their Mind Powered pulled the information they needed. While they did that, Silvie, Hope, and Laura entertained the Changed they had rescued—mostly by recounting recent events from their perspective.
Boyd, dividing his attention between both groups, played the dual role of entertainer and warden as he walked between the kids they had rescued and along the rows of temporary cells they’d installed in the Osprey’s cargo bay. The Changed, especially the younger two—who reminded him of Connor—seemed drawn to him. The duck-billed woman was shyly enamored, blushing furiously each time he so much as glanced her way. He complimented her hair on the way out, knowing it would make her month, and figuring she could use a little pick-me-up after all she had been through.
After safely delivering the civilians to The Tower and the non-powered prisoners to a secure facility in another section of Glorith, the team achieved their covert goal. Unbeknownst to the world, eighty-seven influential figures had vanished, mirroring the disappearances from Kayla’s list.
This was a strategic hit, a small but significant dent in a larger scheme.
The information gleaned from the captives’ thoughts as they refused to answer any questions promised leads to their nefarious ‘social group’. Still, it was far from a knockout blow. Boyd knew their next move needed to be decisive. Mindy’s intel pointed them towards a grander target: an intercontinental gathering in a week’s time.
It would be in a hotbed for the world’s elite and their illicit activities. Among the prisoners had been a software mogul whose technology managed high-stakes, anonymous gambling transactions at the event. Accessing this system during the gathering could expose some of the Ascended’s members and their illegal finances.
All they had to do was infiltrate a highly secure facility during an event attended by a large number of the world’s elite. It would be a high-risk, high-reward mission given how it was expected to be attended by many more Heroes than the little ‘party’ they’d just broken up.
Davis had taken some convincing but had agreed in the end that it was the first and possibly last chance they would have to do so much damage. Once word got out that the Ascended Coalition was being targeted, everyone was sure much of the group would go to ground—and they had the resources to disappear. Once Davis was onboard, he promised support.
They wouldn’t have the forces necessary to arrest everyone who attended the event, but they hoped to at least arrest a number of high-profile individuals. Rescuing the Changed present should be achievable, but the systems they expected to gain access to remained the primary target. If they could access those systems before they were disconnected after shutting down the event, they could identify members of the Ascended, gain actionable evidence of their involvement, and legally seize a ton of credits from their enemy.
With their next mission approved, Boyd was already focused on the early planning stage. The others were careful not to disturb him as they returned home for a very late dinner. This meant the flight back to the base from Glorith City was oddly quiet. The emotions Boyd got over his Bonds were subdued after what had happened with Laura—and their trauma nurse kept largely to herself.
Mindy had pulled useful information out of several skulls, enough to select the next target for a mission that would deal a larger blow to the Ascended. So Boyd had focused more on his initial planning than worrying about how he was going to start Laura’s training. He knew he’d have to come up with something—and sooner rather than later—but kept putting it off.
Things had remained rather subdued until they returned to find Daisy had cooked a large meal to welcome them home from a successful mission. She had really gone all out again, and they came home to a feast. Everyone was hungry and they’d tucked right in after changing into their preferred comfortable around-the-base clothes.
Eventually, the sound of utensils on plates stilled as the team satisfied their hunger. Boyd was the third one to sit back in his chair. Tinker, with her smaller portion—though bigger than it had been before her recent growth spurt—had finished first. She’d been followed by Raev, who managed to edge Boyd out in speed this time. Then came the big demon.
“So, tell me what happened,” Kayla blurted out immediately after Boyd sat back in his chair. “I’ve been patient and let you unwind and get something to eat, but now I must know how it went… and on the record, please.”
Her camera drone came from the far side of the room and hovered over the reporter’s shoulder. Several other drones floated up at different angles to join it. It appeared Kayla wanted to capture the scene of them all sitting down for a meal, as well.
If Boyd didn’t know better, he’d say their normally professional reporter had lost her unbiased calm. She sat poised on the edge of her seat, recorder in hand, prepared to point it—and the drone’s cameras—at whoever spoke next.
Silvie regaled Kayla with a mostly unembellished telling of the mission, with each of his loves contributing moments from their perspectives throughout. Hope had the most to contribute, having witnessed the ‘big fight’ from start to finish. His wonderful angel made him sound quite a bit more heroic than he’d probably been. Boyd tried to downplay this as fighting a worthy, if fortunately unimaginative foe.
Atlas would have been a worthy opponent if he’d been more intelligent. But Laura was correct when she described him as almost bored with the fight itself. In truth, it hadn’t been very exciting—once Crystallize was under control and his squishiest loves were away from the worst of the danger, that is. The account of their tale spanned the remainder of the meal, with frequent pauses as the storytellers found themselves passing the telling of the tale to the next person as they were distracted by the culinary delights of their dinner.
Everyone paused when Daisy brought out an ice-cream cake for dessert.
“That was wonderful, Daisy,” Boyd complimented the fairy woman.
A round of compliments for the chef circled the table after Boyd delivered the first into the comfortable silence that signaled everyone was full and content. Daisy smiled and accepted most of them, but Hope’s praise struck a nerve.
“That was an amazing meal, thank you,” his angel sang sweetl. “There’s something special about your cooking, I could taste the love you put into every dish.”
“Wh-what? What do you mean? Love?!” Daisy’s brightly colored swirl of hair fanned out as her head snapped to face the angel.
Her matching iridescent eyes, always large, went wide as saucers for a moment before she schooled her expression and continued, “Don’t be silly. I just followed the recipes. It’s not like I put any special feeling into it. I cook because it’s my job, nothing more.”
Hope’s smile filled with warm understanding. “But it’s more than just a job, isn’t it? There’s care in your cooking—I can taste it. It’s what makes it so wonderful. We’re all so lucky to have you as part of our family.”
“Family?” Her eyes went wide again, then she cleared her throat and reigned her expression before glancing at Boyd. “Ehem, I… well… I’m just here to cook and clean. It’s not like I’m one of you.”
Hope was undeterred. “You may not see it yet, but you’re as much a part of this family as any of us. Your presence here? It changes things for the better.”
Daisy ducked her chin, her hair falling forward to hide her face before she replied. “I don’t know about all that… I mean, I’m glad you liked the food. But… family? That’s… that’s nice of you to say.”
“Ehe-hee!” His angel giggled. “It’s more than nice, it’s the truth. And whether you admit it or not, I can tell you care about us—just as we care about you. I may only have been here a short time, but even I can see it.”
“Well, maybe I don’t hate being here… but don’t get the wrong idea, okay?” the spitfire mumbled shyly. Then, her chin lifted and she glared at Boyd with flushed cheeks. “And you—don’t you start thinking this means I’m interested in… in whatever you all have going on. I’m just here to cook, not join your… relationship.”
“I understand,” Boyd stated with a nod. “We all respect your choices and your space. That is, unless someone has been pressuring you without my knowledge?”
His eyes drifted to Silvie, who caught his look and returned it with a pout. The big demon’s heart clenched, but he fought through it. That pout’s effect was vicious.
“No, she hasn’t pressured me. No one has.” Daisy shook her head. “And I can handle myself just fine. It’s not about that. I just… I want to be clear about where I stand.”
“Completely clear,” Boyd confirmed with a smile. “And that’s perfectly fine.”
“Since we’re engaging in healthy communication already, I think it would be best for some of us to have a conversation tonight,” Mindy said as she rested her hands on the table. A calm smile quirked her darkly painted lips up at the corners. “We can’t put it off if we want Laura to participate. Since she asked Boyd to train her to become a Hero, she’ll either be preoccupied or exhausted for quite some time, starting in the morning.”
“She did what?!” Silvie and Daisy asked loudly together, shock and concern clear in their tones.
Boyd hadn’t said anything about it, and Laura hadn’t brought up her pending training after leaving the Osprey’s bridge.
“Oh, LuLu,” Silvie continued, using her recently chosen pet name for Laura, “if you wanted Hero training you should have asked Raev or me… anyone but Darling. I love him, but he’s a training terrorist.”
While his silver-haired love delivered her warning several hours too late, Daisy grabbed Laura’s arm and gave her a shake. “What happened to becoming a doctor? You can’t become a Hero. It’s way too dangerous!”
“He he he!” Raev let out her velvet chuckle, then added with a knowing tone, “Smart move… genius, really. But I guarantee you’re totally going to regret it. He’ll make you pay for it.”
“My Power will allow me to soothe your tired muscles and bruises.” Hope smiled gently. “But there is little I can do for the mental and emotional exhaustion you will experience.”
Laura smiled and shook her head as she let out a short bark of a laugh. “Well, I’ve survived double shifts in the E.R. while earning nearly perfect marks in med school; how much harder can Hero training be?”
She turned to Boyd, a challenging cast that was becoming all-too-familiar clear in her eyes. “But seriously, I’m prepared for whatever it takes.”
Boyd believed her. One did not achieve all she had at her age without drive, especially while maintaining her level of fitness. It had granted her a physique that was particularly well displayed in the thin-strapped tank top she had chosen for the evening. The big demon blinked a few times to get his thoughts back on track.
Laura had the determination that was required, but determination and grit were only part of what made a Hero.
“We’ll see.” Boyd returned her challenging look.
He knew that part of what drove her decision was a belief that becoming a Hero increased her odds of snaring him. He also accepted that this was not an unwarranted belief. Even if he hadn’t reached his limit with Hope, Boyd knew he did have a limit. And logic dictated that he save as many spots as there were in his heart for Heroes, especially given the benefits this granted to team cohesion.
Their team still had empty slots. In particular, they needed more combat supports. He had to admit that Laura’s Power had a lot of combat potential and utility as it was. She could take him down in seconds, and he was officially an S-Ranked Hero—or would be in the near future. She was only limited by two things: her Power’s range, and her squishiness.
Boyd knew these were things that his enhancement could possibly fix.
Part of him was already wondering what potential an Enhancement might unlock in her—which probably meant he should start recategorizing Laura from an ‘if’ to a ‘when’. He remained determined to wait until Hope had settled in before announcing anything, and their team dynamic would need to settle as well, before doing so.
Boyd held her determined gaze until Kayla interrupted the undeclared staring contest.
“Well, I for one look forward to reporting on your future exploits, Laura. Have you chosen a name yet?” the reporter asked.
“Thank you,” Laura replied as she turned to favor the reporter with a smile. “And no, I haven’t chosen a Hero name—not yet. To be honest, I never put any thought into becoming a hero until recently. You’ll be among the first ten to know once I pick one, though.”
