Ryleigh had to stop for a minute. At the time, she didn’t know that her circumstances were wrong or different. It was the way she had always lived. She remembered how pleased doctors and scientists were when they discovered her abilities. Like any child, she wanted to please. She could remember thinking if finding the patterns made all these people happy, then she would do her best to keep them that way.
She had always been confined, but before her talents came to light, she was permitted to leave the lab on occasion. An assistant would take her to play in the yard when the weather was favorable. When the weather was bad she was allowed to hang out in a day room. There were comfy couches, books, and a few toys. She cherished those small indulgences.
But once she became useful, the Incubators kept her locked up regularly. The Incubators wanted the people in their circle to attribute their newfound success in the stock market to their own ingenuity and intelligence. They took no chances with letting their little secret out of the bag.
Yeah, there was no way she would tell these people how bad things had gotten after that. Ryleigh was sugar-coating her story. No one needed to hear all the details, and she definitely didn’t want to talk about them, this was bad enough. She didn’t even talk to her Dad about those things.
Chapter 9
Jacks had to keep a firm grip on the armrest of his chair. His bear was clawing at him to go to Ryleigh. He wanted Jacks to put his arms around her and keep her safe, remove her from the room and the other Alpha’s, and keep her all to himself. But none of that was right. He shouldn’t be thinking those things or even wanting those things. She was Senior’s daughter, and it was his job to keep her safe. He watched as the old man took her small dainty hand in his. Jacks was jealous, probably for the first time in his entire life.
He could tell they had a close relationship. Jacks was glad to know she had her Dad’s support. The men in the room were wired to protect, so they were moved by her story. He could smell the scent of sympathy and disdain, but he also sensed anger. Their sympathy did not diminish the concern over the larger matter of their potential exposure. They maintained a strict code of silence in their community. A parent could tell a non-shifter child about their ability, so technically Senior hadn’t done anything wrong, but the more people who knew about them, the bigger the risk.
“The Pandora Group deemed my inability to shift a scientific failure,” Ryleigh continued after some subtle encouragement from Senior. “They grew less interested in my case and withdrew from any direct involvement in my upbringing. My Incubators had entered into a contract with the Pandora Group that stipulated among other things, if the experiment yielded a viable child, the parents (and I use that term loosely) remain responsible for raising and providing for said child. The Pandora Group reserved the right to monitor, test, and perform additional experiments at their discretion, until said child reached the age of eighteen.
“Their interest diminished to annual reviews. Moreover, there was a non-disclosure clause that prevented the Incubators from revealing that the experiments had ever been done in the first place. This did not make the Incubators happy. They wanted their trophy. As far as they were concerned, my value was directly tied to the ability to shift. They had no intention of being saddled with another child, so they decided to take matters into their own hands. They hired a team of scientists and doctors to pursue the shifter attribute without the Pandora Group’s knowledge. Despite all their efforts, I’ve never been able to shift.”
“I had blocked or forgotten much of what I’m telling you now. My team was involved in a rescue that didn’t make sense several weeks ago. I’ll provide each of you with a full report, but the jest of it is that we found a young girl strapped to a table in a medical facility. She had been kidnapped and held without ransom or any contact of any kind. While in the facility, one of my operatives decided to gather as much intel as possible by downloading a virus that would ultimately open up any and all information in the facility.”
“This intel contained the history of The Pandora Breeding program as well as another experiment conducted shortly before its conception, including videos of test subjects. Those videos are what sparked my memories and provoked my group to pursue further testing. Many of us had experienced the same things that girl went through, but we hadn’t spoken freely about the events of our past. The memories lead me to question other things I had noticed in my childhood, mainly Senior and several unnatural qualities he has. We ran my DNA first along with five of my team’s DNA. We discovered a commonality and pursued it. Again, I’ll give all of you a full report of the process.”
“We now know I have no less than three shifter strains in my DNA. I ran Senior’s DNA and that’s when I was able to determine a familial connection, and that he wasn’t what he seemed. So, I presented him with my results, and he told me he was a Shifter.”
This time the chaos was not controlled. Every man in the room, except for her Dad, jumped to his feet and started talking, their vehemence and anger directed everywhere. Ryleigh couldn’t speak, it was almost like the pressure in her head, neck, and shoulder was preventing the action. She tried to move, but her body wouldn’t cooperate. She could feel her panic, but there was no way to express it.
When Senior roared, “Sit!” it only seemed to exasperate her condition. She needed air, she needed to get out of the room and away from the Alpha’s, but she was stuck.
“Everybody needs to calm the fuck down and get your animals under control, or I will make you. Look what you are doing to her, damn it,” said Senior, motioning toward her.
Ryleigh was still stuck, but as the seconds went by the thickness lessened and she was able to breathe easier, then slowly she felt the tension leave her shoulders and neck, until finally, she finally had control over her limbs. That was scary, and she was sure she never wanted to experience it again.
“To end the fucking story,” Senior said, “her team doesn’t have all the details, but had enough to pursue further testing.”
“I’m sorry for everything you went through. Really.” Jacks broke the silence. “But our shifter genes do not combine. Your claim to have three strains doesn’t jive.” His voice was calm and measured, but he was clearly agitated. “Our animals join with us. One man. One animal.”
“Whether you believe it or not, it has happened,” interrupted Ryleigh. “I am proof of that. So is each and every woman in the Holly Group. The Pandora Group had a hand in each of our conceptions. From what we’ve determined, few females survived to viability, but survivors do exist. Cassie Larson is one of them.”
“From what we can gather, a former employee of the Pandora Group continued the breeding program after the Group canceled the project. It’s our belief that he is responsible for the births of hundreds of genetically engineered children. My group is still trying to determine the extent of his output and whether or not he continues to be active. Cassie’s parents conceived her using IVF. Their fertility specialist was Dr. Albright Franklin, the same doctor who created me, the same doctor who went rogue.”
This conversation was starting to take a toll on Ryleigh. She was a private person. She wasn’t accustomed to talking about herself to her family or close friends, let alone with a room full of men she barely knew. Her story wasn’t pretty. She didn’t want their pity. She would have kept all this information to herself and the members of her own group, but they needed help and the men needed the information.
But more than that, the men had a right to know. Most of them were visibly affected by what she had said, all of them looked angry. Dad had warned her that this was a possibility. She had effectively raised the stakes for finding Cassie Larson. Ryleigh knew deep down the girl’s DNA didn’t matter. They would have helped anyways, but it did open up possibilities none of them had ever thought feasible before this meeting.
“We obtained some of Cassie’s DNA from her toothbrush. Our expert was able to determine that she has one strand of Shifter DNA, Tiger. We confirmed that
Cassie’s parents do not have Shifter DNA. We believe that she was taken to support a breeding program.” Ryleigh knew Kayden Walker would take that information the hardest, he was the only Tiger shifter in the room. She wasn’t surprised when he jumped out of his chair and started pacing. She needed to get the rest out quickly because it wasn’t going to get any easier for any of them.
“As you know, not all Shifters produce Shifter children. In fact, most Shifter offspring are non-shifters. But according to our research, a mating between a female with one strand of Shifter DNA and male of that same species increases the chances of producing Shifter children exponentially. So, if Cassie breeds with a Tiger Shifter male, then the odds that she’ll produce a Tiger shifter child are high. From the bits and pieces of data we’ve been able to get our hands on from the Pandora Group, we know that they plan on making this happen as naturally as possible to increase the viability of the fetus. This means she will be manipulated, coerced, or forced into having intercourse with a male tiger shifter.”
“No fucking way! None of the men in my clan would ever hurt a child. She is only 17 years old, a baby. There isn’t a single Tiger Shifter in my clan would agree to such a thing,” Kayden hissed.
“They don’t need help from your clan, Kayden. According to our intelligence, Dr. Franklin has successfully produced many children, female and maybe male, we can’t say for sure,” Ryleigh explained. “They have been doing this for at least thirty years now. I am twenty-eight years old. Who is to say that they don’t already have an adult male in captivity? There are so many what if scenarios? There may very well be multiple victims to rescue.”
“Yeah, well, if we hadn’t been playing this game of chase our tails, we might be further along now,” Kayden interjected. “Senior, why the hell would you set us up like this? Christ, this is fucking unbelievable. I need a minute.” Kayden stormed out of the room, slamming into the door, cracking the frame before anyone could answer. Milo following behind shortly after that. The men who remained looked shell-shocked.
“Honey, let’s give the guys a minute for everything to soak in,” Senior said to Ryleigh. “Gentlemen, we will reconvene in a half hour. Please let Kayden and Milo know when they come back.” He continued, “Ryleigh, let’s go to my office for a while.”
Jackson couldn’t believe what he had just heard. Damn, females with shifter DNA. The clans needed to be informed. This changed everything. And what the hell was up with his Bear? Ever since Ryleigh walked into the room, his Bear had been restless and scratching to get to her. When Ryleigh walked out of the room, he had to resist a strong urge to follow. Even now, after Ryleigh was gone, his beast was raging.
Jacks was still processing everything he had learned. And, unbelievably, he was having a hard time focusing on that crucial task. Ryleigh was a total distraction. She was beautiful, but she was not the type he usually went for. Nonetheless, he was drawn to her. He didn’t get it. There was something different but special about this woman. His bear paced under the surface, prowling back and forth in Jacks' brain. He wanted this woman. The beast wanted to claim her as a mate. But, hell, how was that going to work? She had been abused as a child. They had yet to make eye contact. Most importantly, she was also Senior’s daughter. No way was his hard-nosed CO going to let Jacks and his adventurous prick anywhere near his daughter. How could he forget that part? Shit, talk about FUBAR. When the hell had he ever noticed highlights in anyone’s hair? What the fuck was wrong with him?
“Jacks what do you think about all this?” Liam asked.
Jacks only grunted. He wasn’t ready to acknowledge his thoughts to himself let alone to everyone in the room.
“The Elders tell us there are no shifter females.” Liam continued. “Now some chick who just happens to be Senior’s daughter says otherwise. Who the fuck do we believe? Then to add the proverbial cherry on top, these women are being produced by some mad scientist who wants to start a breeding program.” Liam looked repulsed.
Jacks wanted to laugh at Liam’s Reader’s Digest version of the events Ryleigh had explained, but this was no laughing matter.
“Shit, do you think that this opens up the possibility of fated mates?” Jacks questioned. “We’ve all heard the legends. I always thought it was a bunch of bullshit aimed at teenage girls. If anything, we’ve heard today is true, it opens up some intriguing possibilities for our race. I don’t want to put a woman through what most of our mothers went through. Our animals make it almost impossible for us to be faithful. These women could be the answer, but where is the fucking proof?”
“Shit, man, you need to slow the hell down. We don’t even know if mating with these females is possible,” Carter spoke up.
Under his breath, Jacks said, “Yeah, man, I think it’s very possible.” Things were starting to click into place for Jacks, but he had to admit that, much like Liam, he wasn’t ready to accept any of it just yet. Carter and Liam didn’t indicate that they’d heard him, but Jacks was pretty sure they had.
Chapter 10
Senior was looking at Ryleigh attentively. He had expected most of what went down in the meeting and tried to prepare her as much as possible beforehand, but now he was wondering if he did enough. She was flushed and fidgety, not her normal sedate, chewing her thumbnail to calm restlessness. It was almost like she had been electrocuted and all her circuits were firing at once. Her face was red, her posture was tight, and she couldn’t stand still. In all their time together, he had never seen her this way. Ryleigh was contemplative, nothing really flustered her. Sure, she got mad, sad, and all the other emotions, but this was different.
“What is going on, honey?” he worried. “I haven’t seen you this tense in a long time, maybe ever. I know those guys didn’t intimidate you, even with the Alpha vibes that were flying around. So, what is it?”
Dang. Ryleigh was never good at hiding things from her Dad. But the truth was not her friend today. She could hardly confide in her dad that Jackson Thorp did something to her on an intimate level, or that she had become thoroughly aroused for the first time in her life. Yeah, not topics you typically discuss with your dad. What could she really say, anyway? Well, Dad, I really had this strong urge to climb that Solider Badass Dude like a tree or maybe sit in his lap for a while. I can’t really decide which would be better. I also had the unseemly strong urge to lick his strong thick neck and other places maybe even take a bit or two. Yeah, not going to happen.
She thought back to the time he had tried to have the birds and the bees talk with her. He explained the mechanics. She asked a question. He told her not to worry about it because she was never to do it. End of conversation. Yeah. No. He would not respond reasonably if she told him what was on her mind. She needed a diversion.
She wished she had asked more questions about the guys. Unfortunately, her Dad had only provided vague descriptions in their pre-meeting. Some of them were unique which made it easy in some cases to peg a face to a name, like an eye color and build. For instance, her Dad had mentioned that Kayden had purple eyes and an affinity for body art.
He mentioned that Jackson was the biggest, but he never once said he was also the hottest with thick, lush, dark hair, and vivid, panty melting, green eyes. Or that he wore his t-shirt so tight she could see the definition of his pecs and abs which would make her check her chin for drool more than once. He also didn’t mention that the man’s ass was so tight in his fatigues she was pretty sure she could bounce a coin off of the luscious globes. No, he didn’t mention any of those things. Just that he was the biggest.
Never once had he said what teams they belong to. Damn, she hoped the guy that she was lusting after wasn’t on the Alpha team. That would be a disaster since she would be working closely with them for the foreseeable future. Ryleigh had no idea how to act around a man she was so very attracted to. The one thing she was fairly sure of is she would be awful at it. Christ on a cracker. She couldn’t even keep eye contact with the man. His green eyes flashed brilliantly when
he spoke, and damn, his eyelashes framed them perfectly. They had to be the longest eyelashes she’d ever seen on a man. She had been compelled to divert her eyes. Ryleigh didn’t understand her reaction. She was pretty sure she would see his image in her dreams for a very long time.
Solider Badass was simply gorgeous in a rough and rugged way. He was definitely doing something for her. His raw magnetism intimidated and made her wet at the same time. The man was a contradiction, everything she could want and everything she didn’t need. At least, that was what her mind was telling her, but her soul was called to him, wanted him close, wanted everything.
“Honey, what the hell is going on?” Senior grumbled.
“Sorry Dad.” Ryleigh snapped herself out of it, “I was thinking about the case. I’m a little jet-lagged today. Mexico to New York is a bit much for one day. It has been a long three weeks.” Ryleigh attempted to regain her composure. Yeah, she had lied to her Dad, but what else was she supposed to do? “I wish we could have briefed the men differently.”
“Sorry, honey.” Senior conceded and even looked a little sheepish. “I know you’ve been working your ass off. You seem different, maybe a little off. I can’t put a finger on it.”
“Dad, what are we going to do? We haven’t even shared the most damning information yet?” Ryleigh lowered her voice, looking around to make sure their private conversation would remain that way. This was her Dad’s domain. She had always felt safe here before, but this information was so volatile she couldn’t resist the urge to make sure visually that one of the Alpha’s wasn’t lurking.
NAC & The Holly Group - Box set: Alpha Team Page 7