“I can’t, sweetheart.” He kissed her forehead and the corners of her eyes. “I know it hurts. I’m sorry.”
“What are you doing?” Ian’s angry voice cut through the pain, but Quinn’s torturous pressure didn’t lessen.
“Get Erin back here. Now!”
The panic in Quinn’s tone sent dread rippling through the agony. She was dying, and there was nothing they could do to stop it.
“Look at me.” She forced her eyes to open and dove into his velvet-black gaze. “You are not going to die. I won’t allow it. We have unfinished business, you and I.”
Deep within the throbbing pain a spark of hunger ignited. The flicker sent soothing heat washing over her body, combating the harsher sensations.
“That’s right.” He kept his weight centered over the hand pressing down on the towels, so he could touch her with his other. “Our journey together has just begun. I have no intention of letting you go.”
She whimpered, tears escaping the corners of her eyes. “I need a hospital. A doctor, at least.”
“You need a healer, and Ian went to find one.”
“Erin is… Why am I…” A moan overtook her voice as a fresh wave of pain burned reality away. It lapped at her skin and sank into her flesh until she was a massive stinging flame, surrounded by the stench of death.
* * * * *
Gage stood beside his truck, hands clasped behind his back, expressionless features masking his fury.
Team Leader made no attempt to hide his anger. “How could you let this happen?” His booming voice echoed in the empty parking lot and Gage looked around. There were no surveillance cameras and no residential buildings nearby, but it wasn’t like Team Leader to be careless even for an instant. His voice dropped to a menacing whisper as he went on. “Why did you take the shot when Carissa was so close to the animals?”
He hadn’t been there, he hadn’t seen the look in her eyes when the jaguar demon transformed into a man. “They meant to defile her. It was clear. If I hadn’t acted, we would have lost her forever.”
“Instead we get to wait and see if those creatures can save her life! And they’ll be on guard now. And they’ll still try to defile her, so how has our situation improved?” Team Leader’s voice rose again, growing louder with each new point.
“I’ll find a new vantage point and—”
“You will do as you’re ordered.”
Gage clenched his jaw and muttered, “Yes sir.”
The small show of deference seemed to calm Team Leader. He shoved his hands into his pockets and sighed. “Direct surveillance is too dangerous right now. They’ll have patrols out combing the woods. We’ll have to rely on my contact for updates. They can’t defile Carissa until she’s recovered from this mess. That should buy us a couple of days at least.”
“Yes sir.”
“Go get some sleep. You look like shit.” Gage nodded and turned toward his truck. “But don’t fool yourself for a minute, if Carissa dies, Nehema will come after you.”
Chapter Four
Tearing her gaze away from the bank of surveillance monitors, Dr. Carly Ides glanced over her shoulder and motioned her partner into the observation room. “You’re late.”
“It was unavoidable,” Osric muttered as he closed the door behind him. If his haggard appearance was any indication, his tardiness was the least of his worries.
She’d been an ambitious molecular biologist fresh out of grad school when Osric approached her at a popular bistro in Boulder. Her in-depth study of a rare genetic anomaly in the Rocky Mountain cougar population allowed her to network with a select group of scientists Osric needed to access. At first she’d thought he’d been hitting on her, but his frequent requests for technical information and obscure lab tests developed into a sort of undefined partnership.
Then four years ago their casual partnership became a whole lot more complicated when he presented her with “the opportunity of a lifetime”. He promised to make her part of a world beyond her wildest imagination, but first she had to sign an elaborate nondisclosure contract. Many of the things Osric brought to her previously had been intriguing and impressive, so she’d reluctantly agreed to his condition.
Hidden somewhere in the Rocky Mountain wilderness, the facility she’d been taken to was most easily reached by helicopter so she wasn’t sure of its exact location. Part high-security prison and part state-of-the-art laboratory, Carly hadn’t known what to make of her new home. She headed one of six teams housed within the closed complex. They weren’t allowed visitors and all their outside communications were monitored. Except for the scientific personnel, everyone was military. However, the soldiers wore no rank designation or branch insignia. Carly wasn’t even sure which country or countries were funding the unusual project.
Osric was treated with deference by the military personnel, but he frequently referred to the “backers”. Carly didn’t care about the power structure as long as it didn’t interfere with her research, and the things she had learned since coming to the complex were staggering.
Shapeshifters weren’t just fabled stories meant to entertain adolescents or frighten rebellious children. They existed right here in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. The project seemed focused on feline shifters, though they had three wolf shifter cubs who had been orphaned shortly after their birth.
If she could figure out a way around the damn nondisclosure contract, she would be the most famous scientist since Madame Curie! But two of her coworkers had attempted to leave the program and they had fallen victim to a mysterious accident. These people didn’t bother with threats and ultimatums. They just made their disloyal employees disappear.
She glanced at Osric in time to see him scrub his lower face with his hand. What had the backers promised him, or with what had they threatened him? Why would he sell out his own people? She’d never actually seen him shift, but the only way he could know as much as he did about these creatures was if he were one of them.
Pushing the disquieting facts to the back of her mind, Carly returned her attention to the monitors. “I presume by your expression that you were unable to secure the all-important twins.”
“Sarcasm is wasted when you don’t know what you’re talking about. The Seymour twins could advance this project by years.”
“Only if they’re available for testing.” She looked at him pointedly. “Are they?”
“Not yet.” His lip curled in a silent sneer as he glanced away. “I still have men working on it. The situation is far from over.”
“And how long do you anticipate this process taking? You’ve been adamant that I not proceed any further with Devon until the twins are underway. How long am I supposed to wait?”
He looked at the monitors and snarled, “What the fuck are you doing? No one was supposed to touch Devon until I approved the procedure.”
“They’re not hurting her, I assure you.” Carly fought back a grin, her attention fixed on the erotic scene playing out on the screens in front of her. Carly had known heightened libido was a side effect of the drugs they were using to condition Devon’s mind. She had even planned to use Devon’s desire as motivation during her training. But when Devon had spent most of the morning frantically masturbating, Carly recruited three healthy young men from among the guards. Each had been given specific instructions. They could touch Devon with their hands and mouths, but under no circumstances were they to penetrate her.
Silence descended, tense and charged, as they observed Devon and her eager volunteers. All four were naked and physically fit. Devon’s long black hair and slanted green eyes gave her an exotic appearance that contrasted sharply with the military bearing of the three young guards.
“Did you anticipate this level of…sexual hunger?” Osric whispered, moving closer to the monitors.
Devon reclined in the arms of one man, kissing him deeply, while the other two caressed her round breasts and supple legs.
“I knew she would become sexually aggressive,
but this is a bit surprising.” Carly crossed her legs, trying to ignore the pressure building between her thighs. If Osric hadn’t interrupted, this experiment would have been far more enjoyable. “If frequent doses create this sort of frenzy, it will be a serious challenge. However, if her body adjusts to the chemicals and the demands become more manageable, her heightened appetite will work to our advantage.”
“If she follows orders, we’ll give her access to eager young men, but if she disappoints us, we’ll bind her hands and let her burn?”
Carly chuckled. “Basically. You warned me that she’s stubborn. Somehow, I don’t think she’ll be nearly as challenging as you feared.”
One of the guards knelt between Devon’s thighs and traced her slit with his fingers. She wiggled and squirmed, rocking her hips as he continued to tease her. Another knelt at her side, sucking one nipple as he squeezed the other with his fingers. Carly squirmed on her stool, wishing Osric would leave so she could give herself a good, hard orgasm. The guard between Devon’s thighs bent her knees and leaned down, tracing her slit with his tongue. Each time his tongue tip flicked her clit, Devon cried out and shivered, but the guard holding her in his lap kept her relatively still.
Carly heard the distinct clicking of a metal zipper and looked at Osric in horror. His gaze was narrowed and bright and fixed on her mouth. “Suck me, baby, and I’ll return the favor.”
Lust clenched her inner walls. She loved having a hot, skilled tongue moving over her folds and teasing her sensitive clit. But the thought of having Osric anywhere near her was disgusting. The man had the morals of an alley cat. And he wasn’t human! He’d never admitted that he was one of these creatures, but she knew he was.
“I’m on duty, and so are you.” She punctuated the reminder with a sharply upraised brow. “If you can’t maintain professional decorum, please leave the room.” Her chin rose as she turned back to the monitors, praying he’d take the bait so she could enjoy the display.
“I think you just like to watch,” he muttered as he zipped up his pants.
There was more truth to the claim than he realized. Carly was a confessed voyeur, and the scene before her now was a feast for the eyes. Devon straddled one guard’s face while she pumped the other two with her fists. She looked like a pagan fertility goddess accepting worship from her lowly subjects. With her head thrown back, black hair streaming all around her, Devon undulated and rocked.
Carly looked at the young woman’s face and groaned. Rapture. Devon’s eyes glowed with golden light and her skin was deeply flushed. Her breasts quivered as she ground against the guard’s eager mouth. She was abandoned, unashamed, utterly sexual.
The pulsing heat of an orgasm gathered deep in Carly’s sex. She crossed her legs and clenched her inner muscles. All it would take is one careful pinch and she’d go off like a rocket.
“Come on. You can’t pretend you don’t want it,” Osric growled. “I can smell you from here.”
Stubbornly focusing on the monitors, she refused to let him intrude on her pleasure. Devon had brought two of the guards to climax with her hand and the third was trying to convince her to suck him off. Carly grinned. She had a much better use for that impressive erection than an unappreciative hand.
“The exercise is over, men,” she said into the microphone. “Dress and return to your posts.”
“But, Dr. Ides—”
“Samuels, report to my office.”
A knowing smile curved his lips and he acknowledged the order with a subtle nod.
“I don’t have to ask why you want to see him.” Osric reached for her breast, but she twisted away. “You really think that pup can satisfy you better than I can?”
She ignored his rude behavior. The sexually charged atmosphere was her fault. “Why wouldn’t Devon put him in her mouth?” The question was meant to divert his anger, but she was interested in the answer.
“He’s not Therian. Even drugged and partially conditioned, she instinctively rejects his seed.”
She tried not to let her fascination show, but the more she learned about these Therians, the more she realized how much more there was to know.
* * * * *
Reality returned in stages. Quinn’s familiar scent wrapped around Carissa, soothing her as tangibly as any hand. Or were his hands caressing her, patiently easing the pain? He’d kissed her so tenderly, his tongue possessing her mouth while his lips moved and meshed with hers. She licked her lips, hoping his mouth would descend and rekindle the magic. But she was alone.
She rolled to her side and groaned as pain erupted in her left shoulder. Memories rushed through her mind—Quinn’s transformation from jaguar to man, the distant crack of gunfire and pain like she’d never imagined. And yet she lived.
Slowly opening her eyes, she peered into the darkness, trying to blink away the shadows. Uncertainty loomed all around her, threatening to overtake her momentary calm. Despite Quinn’s scent surrounding her, she was in an unfamiliar bedroom, stripped down to a baggy t-shirt and a pair of panties. Who had undressed her? How long had she been unconscious?
She carefully sat and explored her shoulder and the upper portion of her chest. Though the flesh was tender, and the stiff muscles protested each movement, there was no bandage, no ragged scab or row of stitches. Ian had gone to fetch a healer, not a doctor. Therian ways were not human ways.
The door opened and Quinn slipped into the darkened room. “You’re not supposed to be awake yet.” He smiled, obviously pleased by her progress. “How do you feel?”
Her heart gave a little flutter in response to his presence, but there was no overwhelming urgency, no breath-stealing ache. Had the healer stabilized her hormones, or… no, she could detect the distinct scent of the nasal spray lingering in her nose.
“I’m still pretty sore.” She tentatively moved her shoulder, testing the accuracy of her claim. “But that’s a significant improvement from how I was when I passed out.”
“Erin’s amazing.” He sat on the edge of the bed, his expression tense and watchful. “But you owe Ian your life. Without his wings, Erin would have been too late.”
She studied his face for a moment, fascinated by the conflict twisting beneath his calm exterior. “And you don’t want to owe Ian anything.” It was a statement of fact. Resentment and hostility crackled in the air every time they were in the same room. “What’s with you two? What caused the bad blood?”
His gaze narrowed and his lips thinned. Not a good sign. “It’s a long, involved story that I have no interest in getting into right now.”
In other words, “butt the hell out”.
“All right.” As soon as she agreed to drop the subject, he scooted closer and reached for her hand. She was curious to see how her body would react to his touch, so she allowed his fingers to close around hers. His skin was warm and she was undeniably aware of the fact that they were alone in a bedroom, but the burning was banked, smoldering, easily controlled. Thank God for Erin’s rebellious streak! “What’s going on with Ava?”
“Nothing new. Kyle would have called if she’d been found.”
She pulled her hand out of his grasp. That wasn’t what he’d told her before. “Why does she need to be found? I thought Osric had her.”
“She gave him the slip.” His gaze shifted from her face with the admission.
Carissa caught her bottom lip between her teeth. Ava was out there, alone, being chased by God knew how many determined hunters. “Where’s my phone?”
“Her calls are still going to voicemail. Calling her is a waste of time.”
She knew he was right, but it didn’t ease her trepidation. “They said Osric can sense us because he’s our father.” Actually they’d said Osric could sense his daughter, as if only one of them was actually his child. The detail didn’t matter right now. She needed to focus. “Can I sense Ava, maybe contact her telepathically?”
“Have you ever sensed what she was thinking or known instinctively where she was?”
“Are you identical or fraternal?”
“Fraternal. We still look a lot alike, but we’re not identical.”
“The full scope of your abilities will be released when your animal nature is defined. Until then, you need to concentrate on regaining your strength. You lost a lot of blood last night.”
“Last night?” She tossed back the covers and crawled out of bed. The t-shirt only came to mid-thigh, but she was too upset to care. “It’s not still night. It’s night again?” She opened the blinds and looked out at the moon-bathed yard. “Are we still at Ian’s?”
“Unfortunately. Erin put you in a healing trance. It was supposed to last through this night as well, but apparently it wasn’t quite strong enough.”
Questions pelted her mind, each a detail needing her attention. “What about our store? We have employees and suppliers. Breckenridge is a small community. People will notice if we just disappear. Reality isn’t going to stop because we’ve—”
“This is reality, Carissa. You need to accept it.”
“That’s not what I meant.” She released the plastic wand that controlled the blinds, but remained by the window. “What if one of our employees reports us missing? I thought you didn’t want the police involved in this.”
“Good point. So call them and give them some excuse for why you’re closing the shop for the next few days.”
“I need my phone.”
“It’s two o’ clock in the morning, sweetheart. We’ll come up with something believable and you can make the calls in the morning.” He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “Do I need to carry you back to bed and find a way of keeping you there?”
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