Zane’s Redemption by Tina Folsom Read Free Book Online Page A

his cage. You’ll report tomorrow after sunset to relieve Oliver. Good luck.”
    A click in the line confirmed that Samson had disconnected the call, giving Zane no chance to comment. He slammed the receiver down.
    “Asshole!”
    The dog yelped. “Not you!” Zane stroked his hand over the dog’s head and snout. Instantly, the dog rolled sideways in his arms, exposing his belly. Zane got the hint and rubbed his knuckles along the dog’s fur.
    A few moments later, he reluctantly set the dog on the floor and retrieved the file from the cage.
    As he read through the detailed instructions, rage instantly boiled over.
    “You fucking jerks,” he cursed. “You want me to babysit?” They couldn’t have simply relegated him to a desk job to punish him? No, they had to turn him into Nanny McPhee to a volatile, spoiled, and probably suicidal girl who was seeking attention.
    “Oh, I’ll show you, assholes!”
    The dog tilted his head, giving him another dose of his puppy-eyed look. Zane crouched down to him and shelved his snout on his palm. “You’re probably gonna get hungry, aren’t you? So unless you like Mrs. Hernandez’ home-canned plums, I suppose we have to go shopping for dog food tonight.”
    His neighbor, Mrs. Hernandez, had cornered him in the backyard a few times and palmed off some jars of plums from her garden on him. Instead of instantly tossing them in the trash, he’d stashed them in one of the many empty kitchen cabinets, not knowing what else to do with them. He wasn’t used to people giving him things.

Chapter Six
     
    Portia folded her arms across her chest as she leaned back in the passenger seat of the black limousine her bodyguard Oliver was driving. Bodyguard, her ass! More like a jailor! Did her father really think she was stupid enough to believe that he’d hired this guard to protect her while he was gone on another long business trip? His claim that there was some crazy murderer on the loose who only a few nights ago had killed a young man in the Mission, rang hollow. As a hybrid, she was as strong as any vampire and could easily defend herself against any assailant. Even though she’d never trained in hand-to-hand combat, her instincts told her that she knew what to do if the situation demanded it.
    Hell, she could take down the guy they’d assigned her as a bodyguard. She gave him another sideway’s glance. His tousled dark hair seemed to point into every possible direction, and any comb Oliver had tried had probably lost the battle against his unruly hair. His eyes were sharp and focused, and his body muscular. It was clear that he was in great shape and capable of fending off any attacker. Not even his fresh face could detract from that fact. If anything, his youthful looks—for he could be no older than twenty-five—most likely fooled any would-be assailant into thinking they’d have an easy target in him. At first, she’d been fooled too, but then she’d spoken to her friend Lauren.
    According to Lauren’s father, Scanguards bodyguards were the best-trained bodyguards in the nation, and apparently the most lethal. She’d gleaned from Oliver’s ID, which he’d presented when he’d picked her up to take her to her classes, that he had a class A clearance. It had meant nothing to her until Lauren had explained that it was Scanguards’ highest security ranking, and only the best of their guards, and those who knew about the existence of vampires would receive such honor.
    Portia snorted. She could still take that kid and lift him right out of his fancy shoes. After all, Oliver was human. It appeared even Scanguards, which employed not only humans, but also a large number of vampires, didn’t have a hybrid on staff to assign to her. And that put her in the stronger position. Whenever she was ready to make her move, she’d leave her human bodyguard in her wake while she went off to find herself a suitable candidate to take her virginity. Bodyguard or not, her father