On Jason's Watch [Paladin Protection Agency 2] (Siren Publishing Classic)

by Hayes, Susan

  “That is one seriously fucked-up family,” Val observed as the door was bolted from the outside.

  “Yeah, and if we don’t get out of here, they’re going to be my in-laws.”

  The two women looked at each other, and Jazz grabbed Val’s hand, squeezing it hard. “Let’s hope the cavalry gets here soon.”

  Chapter 11

  Someone was holding his hand, and he tightened his fingers around theirs. “Jazz?” His voice was hoarse, and his tongue felt thick in his mouth. He turned his head and groaned as pain spiked into his temples.

  “He’s awake, thank god.” Michelle’s voice seemed too loud, and he wondered why she felt the need to yell.

  “Jason?” Another voice, this one not as familiar, but still he knew it. “Jason, I need you to open your eyes for me.”

  He cracked his lids and found himself staring up at Richard Stamp, Paladin’s resident doctor. “Hey, doc. Mind talking a little softer? I’ve got a bitch of a headache right now.”

  “Welcome back.” Richard placed a restraining hand on Jase’s chest, preventing him from sitting up. “You need to go very slowly. I’m not even sure why or how you’re alive and breathing right now, never mind awake and talking. You should be dead. I want you to remember that and try not to strain yourself.”

  “It was a knock on the noggin, doc.” Jase turned his head, trying to find Jazz’s face. “Where’s Jazz?” He looked at Michelle, but she just bit her lip in silence and he swore there were tears in her eyes. “Someone better tell me what the hell happened, and where Jazz is. Right the fuck now.” Ignoring Richard’s advice, he sat up and waited for the room to stop spinning before he looked around again. She wasn’t there, but damned near everyone else was. Michelle, Sin, even Remington, all crowded into the smallish space. Jase caught a flash of red hair and realized Anya was there, too. That wasn’t a good sign. They wouldn’t have called her unless it was an emergency. Anya was a powerful clairvoyant, and she only worked for Paladin when the situation required it, like when they needed to find someone. Fuck.

  “She’s gone?” he asked, already knowing the answer. Deep in his mind, something stirred, and for a moment he could have sworn he heard a low, rumbling growl.

  Sin stepped to his side, his expression as serious as Jase had ever seen it. “They got her and Val, too. Tara was telepathically screaming for us so loudly I suspect half of Paladin has a headache right now. By the time we got to the site, they were long gone. They must have had two vehicles, the one they used to take out your SUV and a getaway vehicle.” Sin cleared his throat and gave Jase a grim smile. “We thought you were dead. Tara insisted she could still sense your thoughts, but it was a near thing.”

  “You guys keep saying that.” Jase gestured to his body in annoyance. “But clearly I’m fine. Barely a scratch on me.”

  “When we found you, half your throat was missing and Dirk couldn’t find a pulse.”

  “What?” Jase reached up to touch his neck, feeling nothing but healthy, normal skin. “That’s impossible. I’m fine.”

  “Not impossible.” Sin frowned and ran a hand through his hair. “Not if you were a werewolf.”

  “Now you’re just being insane. I’m not a…” Jase paused, remembering the night before, the bite Jazz had given him. He lifted his arm and looked. There was no trace of the bite. Not even a bruise marred his skin. “Oh shit.”

  Anya moved to Jase’s other side and patted his shoulder. “I told you your destiny was coming for you.”

  “You could have given me a little warning!” Jase complained, easing his way out of the medical bed he was lying on. “And will someone please get me a change of clothes? Unless you want me to lead the rescue mission in this.” He gestured to the hospital-style gown he was wearing.

  His legs weren’t one hundred percent steady yet, but he was feeling better by the moment. The voices around him were still too loud, but he was getting used to it. He took a deep breath, and the chemical smells of the small medical center stung his nose. This is definitely going to take some getting used to.

  As the others made way for him, Richard raised a hand in protest. “I think you—”

  “Not a chance, doc. I’m fine. And I promise when I come back I will submit to all the tests you are dying to run on me. But right now I need to go get my mate.” He hadn’t meant to use that word. It had come from the dark corner of his mind, the same one he’d heard growling earlier. Everyone stopped dead and stared at him, most of them trying and failing to hide their amusement.

  “You heard me, she’s my mate. Well, our mate. That was the wolf talking, not me.” He closed his eyes and groaned. “How the hell does Jazz live like this?”

  A gentle hand touched his arm, and he turned to find himself staring into Anya’s deep green eyes.

  “Jasmine will help you come to terms with the changes. I know where she is, and I know you’ll find her in time. She’s waiting for you, Jason.”

  “Thank you.” The darkness in his mind stirred again, and he heard the wolf howl. It was eager to start the hunt, and so was he. “But I still think you could have given me a hint about just what my destiny was going to be.”

  The team had been busy while he’d been out of it. Anya had given them as much information as she could from her visions, and they’d managed to narrow down the location to the port sector of the city. Extra support had been called in from the few members of Paladin who weren’t currently away on assignment, and they were all out combing the area. Sin was confident they’d have an address soon.

  “They’re awake!” Tara’s announcement raised eyes all around the control room as she punched the air in triumph. “I’m too far away to read them properly, but I know they’re all right.” She paused, her eyes glazing over briefly as she pushed her psychic abilities to their limit. She snapped out of it a few seconds later, and she grinned from ear to ear. “I told them help was on the way, and even with the distance I was able to pick up a bit of Jazz’s mood.” Tara shot Jase a knowing look. “She is seriously pissed off. If you actually want prisoners, I’d keep her away from the guys who took her and Val.”

  “That’s my girl.” Jase felt the gut twisting tension inside him ease up just a little with the knowledge both Jazz and Val were all right. More importantly, they knew help was coming. Jazz had been fighting her battles alone her whole life. He needed her to know she wasn’t alone anymore.

  “Can you help us pinpoint their location, Tara?” Sin asked, and she nodded in the affirmative. “Good. Then we’re hitting the road. Tara, you’re with Remington and his team. Jase, you’re with me and Dirk.”

  Remington’s vehicle led the way, with Tara prepared to give directions once they got close enough. Dirk, the newest member of Division S, drove, giving Jase and Sin a chance to talk.

  “Are you really up for this?” Sin asked once they were on their way. “Two hours ago you didn’t have a pulse. I’ve seen some weird shit since we started this job, but, Jase, you were dead.”

  “I was just mostly dead.” Jase managed a passable imitation of Billy Crystal in The Princess Bride. “There’s a big difference between mostly dead and all dead. Mostly dead is slightly alive. And I feel fine. Only thing wrong with me is a headache.”

  “You are not seriously going to quote movies at me right now, are you?” Sin shook his head in disbelief. “Dying didn’t improve your sense of humor, that’s for sure.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with my sense of humor. I’m hilarious.” Jase reached out and lightly punched Sin in the arm. “And don’t worry about writing up my eulogy just yet. If anything, I seem to have just gotten a whole lot harder to kill.”

  Sin’s smile faded, and he looked pointedly at his watch. “Yeah. And that means you’re at the mercy of the full moon, just like Jazz. So when we get there, keep your emotions in check and don’t take it personally if I shove you in a room and lock the door behind you at some point.”

  “Shit.” He hadn’t considered what would happen a
t midnight. There hadn’t been time to really deal with the fact he was now a goddamned werewolf. “Do whatever you need to, just keep the rest of the team safe. I haven’t exactly had long to test-drive the new upgrades.”

  “Upgrades, is that what you’re calling what happened to you?” Sin snorted with laughter. “Doc wants to have you and Jazz undergo complete examinations when we get back. He’s convinced this is some sort of elaborate hoax.”

  “I’m good with it. Jazz may not be. She’s a pretty private person, and she’s used to keeping this all a secret. Hell, we’re going to need to keep it a secret, too. I don’t want everyone knowing what happened.”

  “Fair enough.” Sin nodded. “We’ll have to figure out how to deal with your new upgrades later.”

  Jase couldn’t help teasing his best friend. “Do you think our HMO covers lycanthropy?”

  Sin just rolled his eyes as Jase’s laughter filled the cab of the SUV. “I’m starting to think being dead actually made your sense of humor worse!”

  * * * *

  “Did you hear her?” Jazz kept her voice low.

  Val nodded as her lips curved into a chill smile. “Yeah, I did. I just wish we could do something besides sit here. I have never been very good at waiting around.”

  “I know the feeling,” Jazz whispered back. “But I’m not exactly dressed for an all out assault either.” Her only covering was Val’s jacket, which didn’t do much to protect her from the chill in the room. They were both shivering as they huddled together for warmth, their backs to the wall and their eyes on the door.

  The night dragged on, and Jazz knew they were running out of time. She didn’t need a watch to know that the moment of transformation was nearly here. She could feel it, a shimmering itch that flowed just under her skin. Their captors had taken Val’s watch, a petty torture that ensured neither of them knew exactly when she’d change. If the others didn’t come soon, it would be too late. No. I will not hurt Val. I will stay in control.

  “I’ll do my best to stay in control tonight. But if I can’t, don’t let me hurt you, Val. I’ll be stronger and faster, but I can still be hurt…or killed.”

  Val just shook her head. “I’m not killing you. I don’t want to live with that any more than you want to live with killing me. So you just stay in control until they get us out of here. You can take it out on the sons of bitches that did this to us.” Her eyes turned flinty. “Make them pay for Jase.”

  Fresh grief stamped on the pieces of her broken heart, crushing it down to splinters. Jase. Even if she survived tonight, she knew she’d already lost the best part of her life. He had given her hope that there was more for her in the world, happiness, adventures, love. They hadn’t had enough time. Not nearly enough.

  “We’re coming in,” Tara’s voice sounded inside her head, distracting her from her dark thoughts. “Get ready.”

  Jazz didn’t have to ask if Val had heard Tara’s telepathic warning, Val was already getting to her feet, her hands closing into loose fists at her sides.

  “It’s going to be close,” Jazz whispered as the beast inside her began to stir, pushing at the limits of her control.

  “I bet that was the plan. By now the bastards are probably all locked up and waiting to transform. It’ll make this easier.”

  Somewhere in the distance, Jazz caught the sound of movement and then gunfire. “They’re here! Be ready to get out that door as fast as you can.” She reached out and squeezed Val’s shoulder and then shoved her toward the door. “You need to get away from me. Right now.”

  Her last word twisted into a low howl as the moon crossed the meridian and the monster inside her was set free.

  As the wolf took over, Jazz stayed calm, letting it happen. She was surprised to realize that the pain was far less if she didn’t fight it. She used her claws to tear away Val’s jacket, letting it fall away in a shredded mass. She scented the air and snarled at Val, who was staring at her in amazement.

  “Holy shit, Fluffy. You’re huge!”

  Thoughts of attacking filled her mind, and Jazz resisted, pleased she could manage even that much control. Beyond the door, she could hear men shouting and running, and she knew that Val would be safe if she could just hang on a little longer. She managed to force her body to take a step back, and then another.

  “You’re still in there, aren’t you, Jazz? Hang on, girl. I know you can do it.” Val kept up a gentle litany of encouragement as the noises outside grew louder.

  When an ear-splitting howl filled the air, her control slipped as the wolf screamed back a challenge and lunged toward the door. Val was forgotten as Jazz found herself pounding on the door hard enough to dent the steel. One of the men who had taken Jase away from her was out there, and she needed to get to him, to hurt him. He had to pay.

  Something hit the other side of the door with a crash that made the entire frame shudder. The other wolf howled again, and the door flew inward, sending Jazz staggering back from the force of the blow. The doorway filled with a towering mass of white fur and bared fangs, and Val stepped back with a strangled curse.

  The monster charged into the room, ignoring Val completely as it made straight for Jazz. She lashed out, raking her claws down its chest just as a familiar scent struck her nose, and she stopped midstrike. Jase?

  The creature was moving too fast to stop, its momentum taking them both across the room and slamming her hard into the wall. This couldn’t be Jase. Jase was dead. She drew in the scent again, and his spicy musk flooded her senses. Confused, she looked up and found herself staring into a pair of pale-green eyes that gleamed with intelligence and something more.

  The wolf part of her nature howled with joy as it recognized him, and she buried her muzzle into his pale-silver fur with a yip of pleasure. Powerful arms locked around her and held her so tightly they’d have bruised her human form. She fought to breathe, wishing there was some way she could speak.

  She ran her clawed hands over his body carefully. She was hardly able to believe he was real and standing in front of her, transformed but alive. He was taller than her by nearly a foot, his claws and fangs as deadly as her own. His body was covered in thick fur the color of moonlit snow. His face was distorted by the transformation, but it was still him beneath those animalistic features. She heard the scrape of metal and glanced up to see what was left of the door being tugged back into place. They were alone. Val was safe with the others from Paladin.

  Jase whined and nuzzled at her cheek, and she heard him growl her name. It was broken and rough, but it was clear enough that there could be no doubt. She tried to speak, but it came out as a whimper instead. Frustrated, she did it again and managed a low, rasping growl that approximated his name.

  Dozens of questions filled her head, but there was no way to ask them. How was he alive? Why was he a werewolf? It seemed impossible. She’d seen his body and tasted the scent of death that covered him. Now he was like her, a monster. His breath was hot against her neck, and she buried her face into his chest, clinging tightly. His scent was warm and soothing, and she realized that no matter what he looked like, this wasn’t a monster. It was still Jase.

  His hands smoothed down her hips, tugging her closer, and she realized that he was aroused. She could feel his cock, thick and erect where it pressed against her. Her breath caught in her throat, and lust spiralled out from the center of her being, filling her with heated need. Razor-sharp talons brushed through her fur, leaving a trail of tingling fire in their wake. She reached for his shoulders, straining on tiptoe to reach high enough to wrap her arms around his new, larger, and more powerful frame. He growled in approval, and the sound made her insides quiver.

  His claws stroked over the curve of her ass, and then he was lifting her, dragging her body across his. His hips rocked into hers, and she was pressed into the wall behind her, his cock grinding against her pussy.

  It was strange to feel the silken touch of fur beneath her fingers as she stroked him. It was stranger still
to know that despite everything, they still wanted each other. I guess love truly is blind. The thought made her laugh, though it came out as more of a strangled chuffing sound. The gentle press of teeth against her shoulder drew her attention back to the moment, and she wrapped her legs around Jase’s hips, her unnatural strength making it easy to lock them together.

  She arched her hips and whimpered as his cock rubbed along her clit, making the already sensitive flesh swell and ache with need for him.

  Their bodies bucked and shuddered as they teased each other, building up each other’s passion until they were both panting and more than half wild with desire. Again he drew himself along her opening, missing her entrance by the barest of inches. That was when Jazz’s control broke. With a snarl, she flexed her legs and wriggled, managing to join their bodies at last. As his cock filled her, she howled, the sound bouncing off the walls of the room. His voice rose to blend with hers, and he drove himself inside of her, burying every inch of his impossible length deep in her body.

  The moment they came together, all semblance of control was gone. Instinct took over and she rode him with unrestrained eagerness. Every part of her was ablaze with raw need, and she took what she needed without hesitation. Over and over, he filled her, thrusting hard and claiming her body just as completely as she claimed his.

  Care was forgotten in their passion, and the stinging bite of claws across flesh added another layer to the pleasure she was feeling. The walls reverberated with snarls and howls as she spurred him on. Every part of her had the same focus, the same driving goal. She needed to mark Jase as hers, forever. Her teeth closed on his shoulder, and she bit just deep enough to draw blood. She howled in triumph and then growled in frustration as he lifted her off of him. She thrashed, reaching for him again, and they fell into a battle of wills. He struggled to untangle himself from her limbs and snarled as he finally won free. Without warning, he wrapped powerful arms around her and then dragged her to the ground with him.