I can't apologize enough for the long wait on this life is kickin my butt a little at the moment lol.

Hope you enjoy!

and reviews are appreciated in case you hadn't guessed :)

Shalimar watched the interactions between Rei and Parker with extreme interest. The sexual tension in the room was obvious to everyone but them. If only they had met under normal circumstances they could have had the happily ever after romance every little girl dreams of. The two seemed to complete each other and there was no question that Parker would do whatever it took to do what was best for Rei.

That was what worried the blond feral.

Letting Rei go under cover with Mutant X where Taylor could find her, in an already dangerous situation, was not going to sit well with the Special Agent at all. She hoped Rei would be able to convince him and that he would feel confident enough in Shalimar and Brennan to allow them to protect her.

They would find out soon enough. After spending most of the day with various detectives, agents, and officers, Rei had finally convinced Special Agent Landry to talk with her alone in the holding cells. This allowed both Brennan and Shal to listen in on them through the barred windows in the walls.

Rei yawned and leaned her head back against the wall as she waited for Parker to come speak with her. It had been over 24 hours since she last slept and almost a week since she had gotten a full night’s sleep. Her little catnap in the transport van helped a bit, but 20 minutes hardly made up for the hours upon hours she had already lost. As she sat there waiting she pulled on the handcuffs that still held her uncomfortably. In the next second the handcuffs were off and hooked on the corner post of her cot.

She heard a light chuckling to her left and glared at the barred window that connected her cell to Brennan’s. The feral pushed herself off of the cot and sauntered over to the opening with a slight scowl on her face. She pulled herself up onto her tiptoes to make eye contact with Brennan, who was lounging on his cot with a smirk on his face.

“And just what are you finding so entertaining over there?”

The elemental flashed a smile at her. “Nothing really Shal and I just made a bet on how long you were going to leave those on, and now she owes me $5.”

Rei scrunched up her nose at him. “You two must really be bored.” She commented to the two of them as she sat back down on the cot.

This time it was Shalimar who chuckled. “Oh I dunno, watching you and Special Agent Landry go back and forth all day has been quite entertaining.”

The red head immediately felt her face heat up and was thankful neither of them could see the bright shade of red her cheeks had turned. Her eyes went wide and she tried to think of something to come back with but was too flustered by Shal’s suggestive tone.

“It’s not… We’re not… He’s.” Both of the other two new mutants were quietly chuckling at her, which made her take even longer to get past her embarrassment and form a coherent thought. Once she did she stood up and stomped her foot. “We are not like that! And if we were I definitely don’t appreciate the comments from the two of…”

Rei was interrupted by the sound of a certain FBI agent clearing his throat at her front of her cell.

“Parker!” She practically shrieked before feeling her cheeks grow even hotter and slumping back down into her seat, embarrassed.

The Special Agent smiled to himself and stepped aside to let the guard unlock the bared door and pull it back for him to enter the cell. The guard closed the door behind him and then mumbled something about being right down the hall.

One of Parker’s eyebrows rose in a questioning arch when he spotted the empty handcuffs on the cot. Rei flushed even more but simply shrugged her shoulders when he met her gaze.

“12 hours later and I was getting uncomfortable.”

Parker couldn’t help but sigh and shake his head at the young woman in front of him. He sat down in the chair at the front of the cell and just studied her for a moment. A light pink blush played across her cheeks, and her eyes darted nervously around the room occasionally locking with his eyes before immediately shifting down and away. She was sitting all the way back on the cot with her back resting against the wall. Her knees were pulled up to her chest with her arms locked around them.

She was nervous.

The FBI agent decided to get right down to business. “So what is it you wanted to discuss?”

The anxiety in her body language revved up a notch as she seemed to compose her thoughts. He watched her eyes dart up to the windows that connected her cell to the others curiously. Parker was extremely interested in the relationship between Rei and her new accomplices.

Special Agent Parker Landry sat perfectly still in his seat completely riveted by the wild story the young woman in front of him was weaving.

Fantastic as it was, he knew what Rei was telling him was nothing but the truth. All of the bravado she normally exuded was stripped from her very being. She sat hunched, muscles rigid, and her voice shook and cracked with the anxiety she was so obviously feeling.

When she was done silence filled all three of the connected rooms and the only thing that could be heard was Rei’s ragged breathing.

Parker ran through the information she had given him. Sure he had heard the vague rumors of those out there with special talents, but he’d never given any credence to them. Then to find out that not only were they true, but that his Rei was one of was a little much.

In hindsight it explained so much about her that he could never quite put his finger on before, but it also shattered his reality when it came to the young woman.

But that wasn’t the part of the story that unsettled him the most. She had started right from the beginning and had for the very first time given him a truthful view of the horrors he had merely imagined in respect to Taylor. The fear in her eyes as she went over that part of her story was more than he could stand. The law be damned. When he got his hands on Taylor he was going to kill him, powers or not.

As for this little mission Rei was planning on completing with her new “friends” it was far too dangerous, and Parker didn’t like it one bit. He knew though that she wasn’t going to be dissuaded from it so he reluctantly had agreed to help them.

He went to the door and dismissed the guard from the hallway so it would be just the four of them. He brought Shalimar and Brennan into Rei’s cell. Parker took a seat next to her on the cot while Shal crouched at the other end and Brennan took the chair.

The next hour was spent coming up with and going over a plan. Parker only agreed to help once they agreed to keep him in the loop should Taylor show up or on the offhand that they were apprehended once more.

He was still extremely worried about Rei's safety but their plan seemed to be safe enough and they did have several exit strategies should anything get out of hand. At some point during the intense discussion Parker and the older members of Mutant X were having Rei had drifted off.

The special agent was reluctant to move once he realized the redhead was curled into his side fast asleep. He hated to disturb her, but staying any longer was going to raise some suspicion among his coworkers.

Trying his best to not jostle her Parker managed to slide out from under her and lay her onto the cot. He reached to pull the blanket over top of her but Shalimar beat him to it and had it over her. He took one last moment to sweep her bangs out of her eyes. His hand hovered over her cheek and he was lost in thought for a moment before Brennan brought him back to reality by clearing his throat.

He felt his face flush slightly at being caught bit didn't say anything as he led the other two back to their cells and made his way down the hall.

Parker knew in his head that their plan was well thought out and would keep Rei safe. He just couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was lurking in the shadows for the young feral and there wasn't anything he could do to stop it.

TBC....