Was it food?
No, he and the wolf found a quick understanding. The woman was not prey.
Far from it.
The wolf pushed up more, wanting free, wanting to investigate the woman. James gasped and touched his chest, the biting pain in his leg lessening somewhat as he stared, totally enamored, with the female across the street from him.
She smiled and James nearly lost his footing. When she laughed at whatever it was she was reading on her cell phone, James’s cock hardened. This was not the time or place for that.
She’s in danger.
He’d sensed it and seen it for himself in his vision. His cock didn’t seem to compute the severity of the situation because it hardened more. It wanted in the woman and the wolf was in total agreement with his cock.
Ganging up on me. Great.
The woman, decked out in dark attire, was not what he’d normally find attractive. He tended to like his women refined, dressed in high-end clothing, and to have an air of elegance about them.
However she’s dressed and whatever her hair looks like, she will be beautiful.
Guilt crept over him as he thought about Laney and the fact that he was meeting her soon. He’d established a deep connection with her and here he was panting over a stranger.
This wasn’t like him.
He didn’t collect women. He wasn’t Striker or Boomer. For fuck’s sake, he’d had one serious relationship in his life. Elsbeth had been a shifter as well and her death had shaken him greatly. He’d known she wasn’t his mate, that they could never truly be bonded. Yet, he’d been loyal to her even far beyond her passing.
He couldn’t help but look back at the girl from his vision. He was drawn to her in a way he’d never been drawn to Elsbeth. The only other woman he’d experienced anything similar with was Laney. Their conversations were like drugs to him—he couldn’t kick the habit.
He didn’t even want to.
The woman from his vision approached the coffee shop he was to meet Laney at and then entered. When she was just inside the door he saw her texting.
His cell phone buzzed and he pulled it from his pocket. He read the —Unless you’re in a clown suit, I’m guessing you’re perfect. If you are, in fact, in a clown suit, I might bail. They freak me out.
James looked from his phone to the woman who had just entered the coffee shop. The woman who was on her phone, smiling. It couldn’t be.
No.
He dialed her number, needing to know. The phone rang and James watched, a rush of adrenaline spiking through him, as the woman in the shop with the purple streaks in her hair lifted her phone, putting it to her ear.
“Hey, sexy, which one are you? I’m in here, and don’t take this the wrong way, but there are nothing but hipsters hanging in here. Are you a hipster?” she asked, turning, facing him. “Say it ain’t so. I have standards. I’d rather date a clown.”
James watched her mouth move, syncing up to the words he was hearing. As he put it all together, fear raced over him. He’d had the vision of her being in danger and he had a deep connection with her.
“You there?” she asked.
James took a step forward, and the moment his booted foot touched the street, his sensitive hearing returned tenfold, taking him to his knees. He twisted, dropped his phone and covered his ears as the sounds of the city crashed into him. Through the fog of it all he heard the distinct sound of squealing tires and smelled exhaust fumes.
He blinked open his eyes open, his hands still on his head as he turned just enough to see two large black vans speeding in his direction. For a moment, he could do nothing, realizing who they were—the Corporation. They were just like the vans that had come when he’d been ambushed and taken prisoner. Just like the ones that had changed his life, and they were back. It would have been so easy to permit the panic welling to overtake him.
But something tugged at his gut, forcing his gaze to Laney, who was standing at the door of the cafe, about to head out, her phone pressed to her ear, confusion on her beautiful face.
He heard it then—her voice coming from his cell phone on the street. “Hagen? Hagen, are you there? What’s wrong? Something is wrong. I can feel it.”
She stepped out of the cafe and her gaze whipped across the street to him. He shook his head as the vans came closer. The realization hit him that they weren’t there for him. They were there for Laney.
No, his beast roared from within.
“Laney, run!” he shouted.
She froze in place, looking stunned, her phone moving from her ear as she stared across the street at him. “Hagen? Ohmygod, what’s wrong?”
She didn’t run from the area. Instead, the crazy fool of a woman ran at him. He forced himself to his feet and pulled his hands from his head. “Go! Run!”
She kept coming, hitting the midway point of the street just as the vans lined up with her. They weren’t going to stop. They were going to run her down. Something snapped inside him.
She was not to be harmed.
With a speed that shocked even him, James shot forward, going at her head-on. He wrapped his arms around her gently, the sweet smell of her filling his head as he swept her up and off her feet, racing forward with her in the direction of the coffee shop. The racing vans buzzed right past him, exactly where she’d been standing, before they screeched to a halt.
James didn’t stop. He kept running, right past the coffee shop. He darted into a side alley with her. Raced down it, reaching out with his senses, hoping they wouldn’t fail him.
The telltale sound of weapons being prepped for firing reached him. Whatever the Corporation had done had left his abilities and his wolf feeling supercharged and out of control. He couldn’t worry on that now. His only concern was Laney.
Twisting, he pushed her body against an alcove in the building, using his own body to shield hers as bullets whipped past them. One grazed his shoulder, the bite of it stinging slightly. Within seconds the sensation was gone, his body hopped up on adrenaline and testosterone.
His senses on overdrive, he zeroed in on the enemy’s location. With one hand and countless years’ worth of muscle memory he grabbed for his ankle holster and realized he wasn’t wearing his weapon. It was in his car, which was parked across the street from the coffee shop. He’d not wanted to scare the shit out of Laney by packing heat. He didn’t want her running screaming from him thinking he’d arranged a face-to-face with her, only to bring a weapon.
Fuck.
James reached out via the mental pathway he’d established with his teammates long ago. One he’d not used in over ten years. He wasn’t even sure it would still work. Normally, Striker would have been the teammate he connected with first because of their long-standing bond. But at last check Striker was still coming down from the Mercy-Juice, and James couldn’t risk the message going astray.
Duke.
There was a tingling and then familiar energy pressed over him.
James? responded Duke.
We’re taking fire.
Who is we? asked Duke.
My date and me.
Son-of-a-bitch! I knew this was a bad idea. I knew that hacker was trouble. Where are you?
Mugs coffee shop. Alley next to it,” he pushed out with his mind, his body on fire and his wolf wanting free, wanting to be let out and allowed to kill all those who had threatened their woman. I’m unarmed and unable to shift.
On it, returned Duke. Stay safe, brother.
What is your ETA?
Duke’s silence hit James like a ton of bricks. He knew Duke had left PSI headquarters to take Mercy home and get her settled in for the night. He also knew that Corbin had left as well, with Boomer and Striker, intent on making sure they went home and not out on the town, since they weren’t totally free from the aftereffects of the Mercy-Juice.
Shit.
We’ll be there as fast as we can, brother. Do whatever you have to do in order to survive, pushed Duke.
Chapter Eight
>
The connection slammed closed on James as the smell of gunfire, sweat and adrenaline filled the air, but the scent of death crept over it as well. The men had killed someone.
Probably an innocent bystander.
The authorities had more than likely already been called by others who heard the commotion. His teammates would know that—they would know to intercept the calls and to assure the responding officers were supernatural, not human.
It was amazing the number of supernatural-related crimes that happened in the world daily that were covered up so humans wouldn’t learn the truth of it all. They’d never handle knowing there was bigger and badder shit out there than them.
James was so focused on the bad guys that he didn’t notice the screams at first. When he was able to draw into himself enough to realize who they were coming from, he paused, his gaze moving to Laney.
She screamed again, trying to get away from him, but he didn’t understand why. He’d just saved her life. And he certainly wasn’t the one who tried to run her down with a van before using her as target practice. That was the other guys.
“Laney, stop. It’s me. I won’t hurt you,” he said, trying to keep his voice low and reassuring without drawing the attention of the men down the alleyway. They were busy taking turns popping off shots.
Laney’s brown eyes were wide with fright as she stared at his arms. What the hell would scare her about his arms? James glanced down and froze. He was partially shifted—long, dark fur coating his now larger arms. Clawed hands held Laney pinned to the wall.
Shit!
He’d not cut her, thank the gods. He tried to force himself to shift back but couldn’t. Not with the bullets still buzzing by. Whatever had been done to him had changed his makeup enough that he was basically learning what it was to live with his wolf all over again. Like it had been when he’d gone through puberty and the first full shifts had occurred. His pack wasn’t exactly big on caring or sharing so he suffered through it alone.
He locked gazes with Laney, trying to convey with his expression how connected he felt to her. How protective he felt. How much she meant to him and that he was safe to be around.
Claim her.
Okay, maybe convey to her that he was mostly safe to be around. Setting aside his body having lost its ability to rationalize who was and wasn’t his mate. It certainly didn’t help any that she smelled like heaven to him. That only confused his senses more.
Not that they needed much help.
“I swear. I can explain. I’m not the one trying to hurt you. The guys with guns are.”
She stopped screaming and with shocked, wide eyes, looked up at him, her bottom lip trembling. Confusion covered her beautiful face and she tugged at her ear. “Guys with guns?”
James would have found humor at the absurdity of her missing the detail that they were being shot at, but it wasn’t the time or place for that. “Yes, sweeting, guys with guns.”
Her attention went to the end of the alley where the gunfire was coming from. Several more shots went off, making her jolt beneath his touch. Her mouth formed an “O” right before her forehead crinkled in question. “Why do they have guns and why are they trying to kill us?”
James swallowed hard, the knowledge of it all settling into his bones. The Corporation had sent a hit team after her. He wasn’t sure how they’d found her or how they’d known what she looked like when, according to the information PSI had, the Corporation had only expressed a limited interest in her.
His gut clenched.
Thoughts of traitors in PSI hit him hard. Had they altered the information PSI had received on the Corporation? Had they left out certain details? Or was something or someone else at play in this?
Whatever was going on, the Corporation wasn’t messing around. They wanted her dead. That meant she’d hit pay dirt with her data mining on the Corporation. “Not us, Laney. You.”
She tensed. “Me?”
He nodded.
She exhaled slowly. “It’s because of my research, isn’t it?”
“Yes.” There was no reason to continue to lie to her. She needed to hear the truth. Needed to hear why she was being hunted.
She trembled and moisture welled in her eyes. If she dared to cry he wasn’t sure what he’d do—or what his wolf would decide it would do. He had a feeling it would involve totally and completely wolfing out and probably going on a killing spree—much the same way Duke had weeks prior when he thought his mate was dead. No one wanted that. And covering up a rabid werewolf tearing through the city streets leaving a wake of bodies in its trail would be a tall order even for the skilled cleaners PSI possessed.
She clutched his arms, her fingers caressing his fur. His muscles tensed beneath the weight of her touch. “And you’re not human, are you?”
“No, but I won’t hurt you,” he said quickly, realizing just how small she was in comparison to him. She came to his shoulder at best. He had to seem imposing to her, not to mention he was partially shifted. That would scare the ever-loving shit out of just about anyone who wasn’t aware shifters were real. “I swear to you.”
She put her palm to his chest and he waited to feel her start to push him away. She didn’t. Some of his anxiety eased. The notion that she might reject him had gnawed at his gut. He wouldn’t handle her turning away from him and shutting him out of her life. He’d bounced back from other losses, some quite serious, but a part of him knew down deep—soul deep—he’d not come out the other side in one piece if this woman rejected him. The sureness of that knowledge puzzled him.
Whatever had been done to James during his time in captivity left his head a mess and his body responding to someone it shouldn’t. He was acting like Laney was his mate. She was human. Humans weren’t mate material.
Period.
The gunfire ended and James heard the men’s footfalls as they stepped into the alley. One stepped on broken glass, and the sound of it crunching beneath the sole of the man’s shoe seemed to be jacked up to eleven on James’s hearing scale. He’d feared long-term hearing loss because of the tortures he’d endured. One device in particular had been extra damaging to his ears. It was some sort of an ultrasonic wave emitter. The noise from it couldn’t be heard by a human, but to an animal or a supernatural it was ear splitting and could cause deafness.
Now his hearing not only seemed to be back, it was back with a vengeance. He could even hear the shallow breaths the men were taking.
“You see them?” asked one with a distinct Jersey accent to his voice.
“I can’t see shit back here,” replied another in nothing more than a whisper, yet James heard it as plain as day. “Think we got the bitch?”
My woman is not a bitch.
He nearly lost his cool and rushed out of their hiding place just to have it out with the thug for daring to say such a thing. He wisely thought better of it. He’d be of no use to Laney riddled with bullets, and with how slow he’d been to heal injuries since being tortured, he’d probably bleed out and die before he could get her to safety.
Not that he cared about himself. His only worry was her. He would gladly give himself for her safety.
She’s mine.
Laney’s fingers kneaded at James’s shirt as she pressed herself closer to him, despite him being in partially shifted form. She was accepting him. The comprehension eased over him, rejuvenating him. His cock perked and he nearly groaned at how much it seemed to not care about their circumstances. All it wanted to do was find its way into the sexy woman before him. It didn’t give a rat’s ass that they were in danger. And he had zero control of it. Apparently, it had a mind of its own and an iron will.
“Ah fuck, they’re gone,” said Jersey, his voice even closer than before. “They must have slipped into that other building. Let’s go search it.”
“Why didn’t he tell us the man would be with her?” asked the other.
James turned his head slightly, listening, waiting to strike if they moved any closer. He�
��d not permit Laney to be harmed. He didn’t care who he had to kill to protect her. She was his.
His?
What? Why the hell do I keep saying that?
Whatever they’d done to him must have been a doozey.
“I don’t know, but the boss is gonna wanna hear about it. He was right. The guy protected her,” stated Jersey. “Call for backup. A team isn’t far from here. They can splinter off and send some of those fucking freak things to help track these two.”
By freak things James knew the man was talking about the hybrid mercenaries the Corporation was creating to fight its own private war. James had his first run in with them the night he’d been captured by the Corporation. He’d lasted nearly an hour, fighting alone against fifteen of the Pet Projects, as he liked to call them, before he’d finally succumbed.
It had been one hell of a fight.
“Bertrand is going to flip his lid,” said the other.
The mention of the name Bertrand set James on edge. The scientist had been the leader of the torture bandwagon when James had been locked up in Donavon Dynamics’ holding facility in France. Bertrand was a sick bastard. The type of person who derived great pleasure out of another’s pain. The kind of guy who got off on it and his ability to try to exert power over another. James would see Bertrand dead soon enough. He’d pledged that to himself months ago.
Get revenge later. Protect Laney now.
“Let’s go,” stated Jersey.
James waited until they were long gone from hearing range before he stepped back, releasing Laney, and even then it was only with reluctance that he let her go. He had to struggle with himself to keep from laying claim to her then and there—to make his mark on her so all knew she was under his protection. That she belonged to him.
She’s not yours. Your head is fucked up. Now, step back more from the sexy little goth gal. The more distance the better. He sighed. What the fuck is she wearing? It smells fantastic…
His willpower sucked. He could only hope Laney had better sense than he did. He fully expected her to run from him. He wouldn’t blame her. It wasn’t everyday a young woman found herself pinned to a wall by a wolf shifter while people shot at her.
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