©Merlin's Chosen Book 8 Programmed *published work*

Chapter 1 First Impressions

"Well, that ended well," he muttered before he went back inside, threw on a t-shirt and sweat pants, and went to his office where he flipped the computer on and tapped at the keys. He smiled when a tiny blip appeared on the screen. Well, he'd know what she was up to, at least until she changed clothes. He was glad he'd thought to grab the tiny tracking device from the drawer beside his bed before he followed her to the office. He kept them stashed all around the house because he was a paranoid bastard. He bent and pulled his other laptop from the drawer, opened it, and waved his hand over it while he muttered the spells needed to unlock it. He tapped the keyboard and opened several files. He watched the blip on the other screen out of the corner of his eyes while he worked.

***

Brandissa's heart raced as she pulled to the side of the road at the predetermined rendezvous location and prayed she wasn't late. She was sure she'd broken a multitude of traffic laws on the way over here. She should have taken her motorcycle instead of the car, it would have been much faster, but she had thought a car would appear less suspicious. A nondescript black sedan sat on the side of the road waiting for her. Two men in black suits stood in front of the car waiting for her to arrive. She flung the door open, jumped free, and ran to where the men waited.

"I have the file. Where are my parents?" One of the men stepped forward and held his hand out. She shook her head. "No, not until I see my parents."

He emitted a growl, grabbed her hand, hauled her forward, and searched her pockets with his free hand. He pulled the little memory drive from her pocket and handed it to his partner before he flung her away from him.

"Hey, you can't do that, we had a deal! Where are my parents?"

"Plans have changed, the boss will contact you with further instructions."

"That wasn't the deal we made! I want my parents back now! He promised! Where are they?"

"Plans change," the man repeated. The men turned and walked around the car to climb inside. The engine started and she ran to the driver's door and pounded on the window.

"No, you can't do this! I got your damn program for you! Give me my parents back!"

The car's tires spit gravel as it pulled away from the side of the road and drove away. She sank to the ground and stared after them until the taillights vanished from sight. They had no reason to change things! She'd only been a couple of minutes late! It was that stupid man's fault! He had made her late! She rose and ran back to her car, flung her body inside, and started the engine.

"I'll wring his neck!" She had the skill to do it with or without magic. She peeled away from the side of the road, made a quick u-turn, and sped back toward his house. The drive back to his house was a blur. This time she parked in front of his house instead of two blocks away. It took her little time to cross the yard this time because she made zero effort to remain hidden, she climbed up and flung her body over the rail of the balcony.

She stopped with a frown and stared at his empty bed before she turned and went into the hallway. The light in his office was on so she stalked down to the door.

"If you have returned to complain about my treatment of you then I'd like to remind you that you did break into my home," he said without looking up from his computer screen.

She stopped. "I didn't break anything, you left your door open, you imbecile."

He looked up at her with a chuckle. "That's an interesting argument but my screen door was locked. Just because the glass door was open it doesn't mean you have the right to go slinking through my home."

"And if you go take a look at it the lock is still functional. I broke nothing and I don't slink." A shiver had run up her spine at the way he said the word slinking. It had been like an intimate caress. "I'm not here to discuss the skills that allowed me entry to your home. You made me late and now the bastard has changed the plans! I'm never going to get my parents back and it's your fault! What are you going to do about it?"