Lizzy Ford by Damian Eternal) Xander's Chance (#1 Page A

about anything.”
    Definitely not an assassin. She was too … nice to slash a man’s throat. She didn’t have the edge an assassin would. Or maybe, she was a damned good one, able to throw him off the scent.
    “Done!” she exclaimed. She wrung the water out of his shirt and walked down the hallway towards the laundry room. “If I still have a job, I’ll see you in the morning?”
    She paused at the edge of the hallway and living room, gazing at him expectantly.
    “Show up at eight. We’ll see what happens,” he replied.
    “It’s been interesting.” She frowned then walked through the kitchen to reach the stairs rather than cross through the living area, where he stood.
    She was as uncomfortable with him as he was with her. As soon as she was more than three feet away, she disappeared from his enhanced senses.
    Xander didn’t like the idea of letting someone who was able to evade him – and possibly connected to Jonny – just leave. He’d never be able to find her again to know why she was there in the first place.
    “You need a ride?” he called as she started down the stairs.
    “What do you drive?” she asked.
    “Does it matter, if it gets you home?”
    “I don’t need a ride. I’m just curious.”
    “None of your business.”
    “Jackass.” The whisper wasn’t meant for his ears, but his enhanced hearing picked it up anyway.
    “Great way to end the day with your new boss,” he said, amused.
    “If you don’t fire me, I might just quit.” She didn’t sound convinced of her words, and there was something in her voice he couldn’t name.
    “You won’t quit,” he assessed. “I’ll wait to fire you until I figure out why you’re working for me in the first place.”
    “This is gonna be a long week.”
    He felt the same way. She left.
    Xander had the urge to follow her to her car to ensure she left and didn’t hide out on the main floor, waiting for him to appear, so she could kill him. His house was invaded by some sort of human he’d never dealt with before and never predicted he ever would. All the right angles she abhorred weren’t taking the edge off of him this night. He realized what bothered him: If the unassuming woman turned out to be some sort of well-disguised assassin, he’d never know or sense her, until she was in front of him. Worse, she had the code to enter any time she wanted.
    Fortunately, no human-made weapon was able to hurt him. Guns and knives were worthless, and he was pretty certain he could wrestle her down, if she tried any sort of hand-to-hand combat.
    He pulled out his phone and texted Ingrid. What’s the name of the babysitter?
    April Madera, was her instant response. OMG, did she come by after cancelling? WTH?
    He didn’t answer. The woman in his condo said her name was Jessi. An unmistakable Natural with a unique talent, she was likely in the Guardians’ databases. They tracked all Naturals. He was hungry, but dinner was going to wait a few hours. He had a new hunt to embark on.
    Xander Traveled to the front doorstep of the local Guardian station, a ranch-style house located in a lower middle class area of Buena Park, south of LA. A decal with the symbol of the White God – a sun and moon with an arrow through it – was in the corner of one window. He sensed the ward he triggered and waited. When the door opened, there were weapons trained on him from the Guardians watching from the windows.
    “Evenin’,” he greeted Gerry, the station chief.
    “We’ve got no training ops tonight,” came the brisk response.
    “I’m not bringing in any stragglers,” Xander replied. He discovered their whereabouts when he hand-delivered the first round of trainees – minus a few pints of blood – who were stupid enough to challenge him instead of backing off like the experienced Guardians did. “I have a question for you.”
    The Guardian hesitated then opened the screen door, wary but cognizant that if Xander was at the door, he wasn’t there to