by A. C. Arthur
“After a while there became turmoil. Lions wanted to lead. Cheetahs wanted to run. Tigers wanted to feast. Cougars and jaguars wanted to kill. The peace once harbored came apart. The separation would come tarde o temprano.”
Baxter continued when Alamar grew silent. “He speaks of the different tribes—the Topètenia, the Lormenia, the Croesteriia, the Bosinia, and the Serfins. We were all once a community of shifters, a group of those that were different. It was those differences that kept us together but ultimately pulled us apart.”
X sat up, leaning his arms on the table as he watched Baxter coming closer. Everything about the man was still the same, and yet it was different. X wasn’t looking at a devoted employee of the Reynolds family any longer. No, what he was seeing right here, right now, was a revelation. One that was going to either make or break Rome, judging from the wary look on his friend’s face.
“You’re saying that cougars, cheetahs, lions, tigers, and jaguars once lived together,” Kalina clarified. “Somewhere in a South American rain forest there was a legion of shape shifters that eventually separated and migrated to other parts of the world.”
Baxter nodded. “The ones who saw this as an inevitability made a plan: Within each tribe a different shifter was placed. Overseers is what we are called.”
“Sonofabitch!” Nick roared. “You’re a goddamn shifter?”
Baxter showed absolutely no reaction to Nick’s outburst. “My father lived in a village near the Gungi. He was a shaman and helped the curanderos from time to time. I grew up with your parents, Mr. Roman. When they moved to the States I asked to come with them. That is when the Elders made me an Overseer,” Baxter stated simply.
As simply as if all that he’d said, all they’d both said would be swallowed and this meeting would go on without pause.
X was already shaking his head. “What about the other Overseers—are they shifters or humans?”
“I am the only human Overseer. It is so because of my father’s abilities and his dedication to the tribe. Others are shifters but they will not shift. Our job is to watch, to teach, to preserve,” Baxter continued.
“To lie and betray,” Nick said. “You’ve been lying to Rome and his family for years.”
“No!” Alamar’s voice echoed throughout the room. “What we do is not an untruth. We have been watching and waiting for the division in our tribes to stretch wider and it has finally begun. No longer are we even fighting on our own grounds. We have moved to these places that are highly populated with humans. We are endangering yet another species and it must stop before there are no more,” the Elder said with vehemence. “No more of any species.”
The room grew silent. Absolutely no one spoke. Kalina had reached for Rome’s hand, clasping it within hers. Ary’s hand rubbed her protruding belly as Nick’s larger hand soon covered hers to make the same comforting gesture. Beside him X could hear Caprise’s slow intake of breath, even slower release. She was absorbing all this information. Taking it in as slowly as she could so as not to become overwhelmed. This had to be even harder for her, the one who did not want to be a shifter. When he turned to her, to do what he wasn’t quite sure, X was a little startled to see her watching Baxter.
She gave the man a close look, a careful scrutiny that couldn’t be easy to undergo. But when X turned his gaze to Baxter, he saw the man leveling his stare at her just as evenly. Almost as if they were communicating on some eerie level.
“So what’s going on now, the drug war this Sabar character is orchestrating, the death and cruelty being left in his path, it was all pre-ordained,” Caprise said to Baxter.
“There was no way to tell in what variation the battle would come. But yes, we knew it would happen someday,” he replied.
She continued to stare at him as if there were some sort of recognition. Until finally she shook her head and cleared her throat. “So what now? How do we stop them?” was Caprise’s next question.
It caught X off guard because last time he checked Caprise wasn’t into the shifter thing and didn’t want to hear about the Assembly at all. Sure, she’d come to this meeting, but he figured that was more out of curiosity than anything else. Now he was sensing something different.
“We find Sabar and kill him,” Rome said with finality. “I’m not about to let this escalate. We take their leader and they’ll scramble, hopefully back to whichever region they’ve come from. But they will not invade our Zones without a fight.”
Nick nodded his approval.
X’s phone rang at that moment. He looked down to see the number was a familiar one. “I’ve got to take this,” he announced, pushing his chair back and leaving the room.
All eyes seemed to fall to Caprise in his absence. She knew what they were thinking: that she was his mate and that all was well with them. They didn’t have a clue. She’d begun to accept the mating thing, since the companheiro calor was so strong she almost couldn’t scent anything else when X was near. But there was still a distance between them, one she thought she’d been close to closing only to be slapped in the face with a note and his disappearance.
Of course he’d returned later that day in a foul mood, giving out orders as if everyone within hearing distance were under his command. That was sort of true, but she didn’t have to like it. One of his orders was that she remain with him at all times. She wasn’t receiving a new guard because X was taking the job. It was crazy even though Zach was big and strong enough to guard them both. Kalina and Ary had advised her to let X have his lead for a while. They all knew he was going through something. But Caprise was getting damn tired of waiting to figure out what.
The Baxter issue seemed to be tabled, for now. Rome had announced that he would speak to Baxter and Alamar privately. He didn’t look at all pleased with these new developments but moved on because he had no other choice.
When the FLs began talking about training and Nick added his opinions about assigning teams and strategies, Caprise excused herself and left the meeting as well. She hadn’t really expected X to be right in the next room. He’d left at least fifteen minutes ago; surely he would have gone farther. But here he was, sitting on one of the dark cherrywood chairs at the table Kalina used for her work area. His elbows were propped on the table, his head lowered, cradled in his hands.
Rage circled him like a storm cloud, its scent clogging Caprise’s throat as she closed the door to the conference room behind her. She went to him immediately but didn’t touch him. She just stood behind the chair watching as his muscled back rose and fell with the rhythm of his breathing.
“What is it?” she asked finally.
“Go back inside with Nick,” he said, pushing the chair out from under him and thrusting his cell phone into his pocket.
“I asked you a question,” she continued, walking right behind him.
He turned so fast she bumped right into his massive chest. He grasped her arms and pushed her back. “Not now, Caprise. You do not want to be near me right now.”
His eyes were so dark Caprise could only describe them as black. He held her so tight she wanted to gasp at the pain.
“I’m not leaving you,” she said in a quiet voice. “Whatever it is, we can deal with it together.”
“No!” he shouted. “It’s my problem. I’ll deal with it alone.”
Behind her, Caprise heard the door open. Of course Nick would hear X yelling and of course he’d come barreling through the door first.
“What the hell’s going on?” he asked.
X let her go so fast she stumbled. Kalina moved quickly to keep her from falling. As for X, he still stood there looking like some sadistic maniac about to go the hell off. Still Caprise moved to his side. She looked at Nick and said in as calm a voice as she could muster, “It’s fine. He’s fine.”
“The hell he is,” Nick said, taking a step closer. “What’s going on, X?”
X shook his head and looked away. “I’m just gonna go for a while. I’ll be back later.”
&
nbsp; “We’ll come with you,” Rome said, standing beside Nick.
Again X was shaking his head. “No. I gotta do this alone.”
“I’m going with you,” Caprise said.
“You’re staying here with Nick,” X said.
She shook her head. “I’m not. Either I’m riding in that truck with you to wherever it is you’re going or I’m getting in one of those jeeps and following you. You’re not going alone and that’s final.”
His curse was long, loud, and fluent, but when X stomped out the door Caprise was right on his heels.
Chapter 25
He hadn’t looked back, hadn’t spoken a word on the long drive from Havenway to his apartment in the city. And as they did the hide-the-truck in the underground parking garage and boarded the elevator, he still remained quiet. Caprise was biding her time. Whatever was ticking around inside of X was about to blow completely. Veins bulged in his arms and hands. The tattoos on his neck pulsed with the rush of blood going on beneath. He walked with long purposeful strides, slid the keycard into the base on the door with a quick motion.
The moment she walked into his apartment Caprise was smacked with the cold. She shivered, hating this place for what it represented and how it made her feel. And yet at this moment there wasn’t any other place she’d rather be. For the first time in her life there was someone who needed her and not the other way around. Of course he wouldn’t admit it—would probably rather pull his eyeballs out than admit that he needed her right now. It didn’t matter. She was determined not to run this time.
“You don’t listen, do you?” he said, heading back to his bedroom. “Every goddamn time I tell you to do something, you do the opposite.”
Following him into the room, Caprise stopped at one side of the bed and shrugged. “Then you should probably stop telling me what to do.”
He turned to her then, his neck snapping around so quickly it was almost comical. His eyes, however, were still ominously black, so she didn’t dare crack a smile. This wasn’t a laughing matter, she knew. X was in deep trouble. Caprise prayed she had what it took to help him.
“Why don’t you sit down and we can talk.”
“I don’t want to talk,” he said, a growl following his words. “You wanted to follow me so you’re gonna get the show you asked for.”
He went to the armoire in the corner. On the side almost hidden was a keypad—Xavier loved his codes and computers. He punched in some numbers, then opened both doors so that the contents were on full display.
If someone had told her this was the type of stuff X was into, Caprise would have never believed them. Then again, she thought, blinking a couple of times, she would have. It said so much about the man standing there, staring into the open armoire. And then, it didn’t say enough.
From where she stood, and looking around his muscled frame, she saw the tools of the trade, knew them because dancing in seedy clubs like Athena’s introduced her to so much. There were leather whips and chains hanging neatly on the insides of the doors. Deeper inside were shelves all lined with red velvet. On them she could see a variety of nipple clamps, vibrators, and plugs.
She swallowed, because damn, she had no idea what she’d been walking herself into.
“I’m not like other men,” he said, not turning to face her. “I’m not even like the other shifters.”
“It’s okay to be different,” she said, demanding her knees stop wobbling. She would not sit down, would not cop out on him in any way. If this was the man she wanted, she would have to stand for him, no matter what the cost.
“I don’t know how to stop what’s inside me.”
Caprise chose that moment to move. She walked up behind him, touching a hand to his back.
“Something happened,” he continued, his words sounding tortured, his voice almost unfamiliar. “It changed everything and I can’t take it back. I don’t want to take it back.”
She nodded even though he couldn’t see her. Both her hands were on his back now, sliding down to his sides as she rested her forehead against him. “I know how that feels.”
“No,” he said slowly. “No, you don’t.”
Then he turned so fast, grabbing her by the arms and pushing her back until she fell on the bed.
“You have no fucking idea what I’ve been through. None! But since you can’t follow simple instructions I’ll have to show you.”
Everything began happening in a blur. X’s hands moved so fast, ripping at her clothes, tearing her shoes from her feet, tossing her belt and bra across the room. She was naked when he lifted her off the bed, pulled back the comforters, then dropped her back onto its center. Her heart pounded, her eyes open so wide she thought her eyeballs would pop right out. But she didn’t run, didn’t even try to fight back.
He put her wrists together, lifted them over her head, then handcuffed her there. Ripples of excitement twisted throughout her body and she bit on her bottom lip. If this was just going to be about sex, she could handle it. But something told her it was about so much more.
X grabbed her ankles next, stretching her legs apart and tying them to the posters at the end of the bed with the softest silk material she’d ever felt. He moved around the room, lighting black candles throughout, remaining absolutely quiet afterward. He looked like a dark knight standing at the foot of the bed, his eyes gleaming, muscles bulging. When he pulled his shirt over his head, Caprise gasped. He unbuckled his jeans and pushed them down his legs. As he stepped out of shoes and the jeans she couldn’t tear her eyes away from him. And when he stood before her totally naked, the golden candlelight illuminating the numerous tattoos over dark brown skin, her pussy pulsated.
“Death,” he said slowly tracing his finger over the tattoo of the moon dripping with blood at the bottom of his neck. “All I could think about was dying. Every time that bastard touched me I wanted to die.”
Her eyes stayed trained on him, on his face, his mouth as he talked. Then up to his eyes as he watched her. She couldn’t tell what he thought looking down at her in this submissive position, but whatever it was, it was enough to keep him talking.
“He said it was what my parents wanted, why they sent me to him in the first place. They wanted him to fuck me. Can you believe that shit? What kind of parents want that?”
Caprise didn’t have an answer, and she suspected X wasn’t really looking for her to answer him.
Instead he bent down and picked up a whip. She hadn’t seen him take it from the armoire but guessed he’d done it before lighting the candles. He held the heavy-looking handle in his hands, wrapping the long strip around so it circled his wrist one time.
“They wanted me to feel pain,” he said, lifting his arm. The whip came down with a snap.
Caprise bit the bottom of her lip to keep from jumping with the distinctive snapping sound. The whip hadn’t touched her at all.
“For days and days afterward all I could remember was the pain. Then disgust would set in. Then shame. I was ashamed of who I was, of whatever my purpose was in this life.”
The whip came down again, this time so close to her skin she’d felt the quick wisp of air as it hit the mattress.
“He didn’t stop. My father said to man up. My mother cried. And I walked over to his house every goddamn time they told me to. I walked right into his arms. Fucking bastard!”
The whip soared through the air once more, landing on the other side of the bed. This time when it hit, Caprise didn’t want to cringe; her nipples hardened.
“Bastard!” X continued to scream, bringing the whip down time and time again until finally a small part of the edge caught Caprise’s leg.
She hissed and bucked up off the bed. Not because of the pain. No, while there was a bit of a sting to her skin, the ripples of pleasure that quickly spread like a disease throughout her body took the pain away. Her pussy vibrated with each strike of that whip. She was so wet her thighs were now damp.
He stopped instantly, as if it had just dawned him
that she was lying there. He looked down at her, his eyes still that eerie darkness.
“I can’t stop it, don’t you understand. I couldn’t stop him,” he said quietly, his arms falling at his sides, the whip hitting the floor with a clank.
“Xavier,” she said, because Caprise honestly did not know what else to say.
He shook his head, fists balling at his sides. “But I could stop him. I did stop him when I killed him. I killed him!” he yelled, tilting his head back to let a vicious roar break free.
“You did what you had to do to protect yourself,” she told him finally. “You had to protect yourself because your parents wouldn’t do it for you.”
“They told me to go over there,” he said.
“They were wrong, Xavier. Not you. You did what had to be done to stop him.”
“I’m a murderer. That’s what that agent says. He told my director that I was a murderer and they suspended me.”
Caprise wanted to touch him. She wriggled her hands futilely in the cuffs. She wanted to wrap her arms around him and tell him he wasn’t a murderer, that he was a good man, a good shifter. Instead she took a deep breath.
“Xavier,” she said, but X had looked away from her. “Look at me, Xavier.”
He ignored her.
“Goddammit, you look at me!” she yelled.
His head turned slowly until those dark eyes were once again trained on her.
“You are not a murderer. You didn’t kill any of those girls. Sabar and his Rogues did that. And we’ll prove it.”
“It’s too late,” he said solemnly. “I’m already a killer. I killed Jeremiah. Then I killed Rolando because he was a bastard, too, and he was scaring you. I’m a killer.”
“You are not! You’re a shifter, a commanding officer, and you are good.” Dammit, she wanted to get up from this bed.
X knelt on the bed, coming over her like a dark cloud. She sucked in a breath and told him again. “You are good, Xavier. You are so good. So good that … I couldn’t help but fall in love with you.”