“Whatcha talkin’ ‘bout? When did you get a woman?” Duke asked, kicking the shit out of another of Helmuth’s men. He barely paid any mind to the men as he spoke. “This a mate thing?”
“It is.”
He whistled through his teeth. “Sucks to be these guys.”
Eadan throat punched another man, and once he was down, he grabbed him by the top of his hair. “Where is Helmuth?”
“G-gone,” the man stammered as best he could, holding Eadan’s wrist. “We were to take you to him at a new location. You and the bitch.”
Eadan twisted the man’s head fast, snapping his neck. His breathing was harsh and heavy. “My woman is not a bitch!”
“You ran off to be one of those I-Ops,” Duke said harshly. “They left you to fend for yourself, huh?”
No sooner did the words come out of his mouth than the next enemy trying to come at them dropped, a crimson dot appearing on his forehead, right between his eyes.
Jon.
Eadan laughed. “Nah, they were just late to the party too.”
“That their doing?” asked Duke, tossing away a puny shifter.
Eadan thrust magik at more of Helmuth’s men, wondering how many the seedy asshole had. Apparently, a lot. “Yep.”
“Nice.”
Jon took out two more. There was a flash of black and suddenly Lukian and Roi were next to him. Lukian looked to Duke and nodded. “Duke.”
Duke’s forehead crinkled. “Wait, Lukian, you’re one of the I-Ops?”
“I am.”
Roi laughed. “Sucks finding out the guy you call king lowers himself to manual labor, huh?” Roi dove at two shifters and tackled them to the ground.
He was having way too much fun with this.
Wilson and Green rushed in next. Green held a limp vampire by the neck.
“This one spilled everything,” he said, dropping the vampire. “Molyneux has a den of vampires near here. They’re in league with Helmuth.”
“They appear to be one vampire short,” Lukian said.
Wilson drew his lips back. “Actually, they’re about a den short. Sorry, Green and I got held up killing already-dead guys.”
The bodies were piled up around the area. The remaining bad guys shared a look and took off running in all directions. They looked like scattering rats. Eadan would have said as much out loud, but Wilson took enough shit for being a wererat. He didn’t need any more.
“Wait!” he heard Jinx yell.
Eadan spun around to find Inara running right at him. She ran right past two of Helmuth’s men Eadan had assumed were fleeing.
They’re going for Inara, he thought.
No, beautiful, he pushed with his mind. Run the other way!
Inara faltered in her step and stumbled forward. Before Eadan could so much as blink, one of the men had hold of her and was ripping her off the ground. Eadan’s magik went wild and nearly burst free of him. He had to fight to control it as he ran in her direction. He could harm her by mistake if he wasn’t careful.
Inara stunned him as she came up fast, ramming her hand into the nose of her attacker. She rolled over the man’s back and kicked out with both feet at the other, hitting him in the chest and sending him flying backward. She landed on her feet, crouched and stared up at the man who had blood gushing from his nose. She looked like a predator.
A woman ready to kill if need be.
He couldn’t have been a prouder mate if he tried. Though, he’d rather she never have to lift a finger to defend herself again.
He made it to her and killed the men quickly before pulling her into his embrace. Jinx appeared next to him, looking winded. “I tried to stop her.”
“I know. Thank you,” he said. He held his woman to him, happy she was alive. He kissed the top of her head. “I’m fine, beautiful. You should have stayed with Jinx.”
Inara sobbed openly. “I was afraid for you.”
“Shh.”
Suddenly, Eadan was ripped back from her. He prepared to attack the person with magik but stopped when he realized it was Roi.
Roi looked livid. “Keep your goddamn hands off her!”
“W-what?” Eadan asked.
Lukian came to a stop next to Roi and Eadan waited for the captain to rein in Roi as he always did. Instead, Lukian’s posture went rigid. “Step away from the girl.”
Duke strolled past them both without a care in the world. Typical Duke. “I say take her home and fuck her.”
“I agree with that one,” Inara said, stunning Eadan.
“Absolutely not!” shouted Lukian.
Eadan stared at them and Jack’s words came back to him. They’ll see her as a sister. Sighing, Eadan loosened his hold on Inara, knowing if he didn’t, things would only go from bad to worse. He held her hand instead. “Beautiful, we’ll get you to safety.”
Duke stopped next to Jinx. “Want to grab a drink?”
“I want to grab a bottle,” she said.
“What about Helmuth?” asked Eadan. “He has to know you double-crossed him.”
She shrugged. “I have friends in high places. He should be scared of me.”
Duke laughed and put his arm out to escort Jinx from the scene full of dead bodies.
Eadan looked around. “We made a huge mess.”
“A cleanup team will handle it,” Green said. “We should get a move on.”
Chapter Nine
Inara wasn’t sure what a secret government facility would look like, but this wasn’t what she had in mind. Too many movies and too much TV while growing up had given her a false sense of what she might find. She thought armed guards, all looking cookie-cutter, would be lining the area. She assumed there would be a checkpoint with several of those same guards, demanding to see their credentials.
Something.
Nope.
Nothing.
They’ll let anyone in.
Eadan laughed softly, squeezing her hand more. “No, beautiful, it’s secure.”
“Hmm?” she asked before thinking better of it. He’d done it again. He’d guessed her thoughts. Whatever kind of Fae he was, it was powerful. Was he why she’d heard his voice in her head before?
They drove up to an automatic fence that didn’t really look that imposing. Green rolled down his window, keyed in a number and then put his thumb to a pad. It had to be a good sign if that sort of technology was involved, right? The fence slid open, allowing them to pass through. The SUV behind them followed close.
She wondered if they ever got the hot-tempered guy named Roi calmed down. Probably not. Seemed like he had some anger issues.
They all sort of did.
“What is it you all do?” she asked.
They all looked to man in the passenger seat. He was in charge. She’d gathered that much on the pier and then in the jet on the way there. He cast a warm smile in her direction that faltered when he spotted her hand in Eadan’s. “We do things others can’t. We don’t exist, therefore, we don’t follow the same rules. And we deal with things humans couldn’t possibly understand.”
“Captain is right,” Green said. “Think of us as ghost soldiers, almost.”
“Okay, if you want to freak me the hell out,” she mumbled, partially under her breath.
Eadan and the others laughed. He kissed her temple. “They’re all safe. I promise.”
“I know, but still. This is all kind of a lot to process.” She leaned into him.
The captain guy growled and she knew a warning when she heard one. She had half a mind to slap him on the head. She stared wide-eyed at him. “Would you please stop? It’s uncalled for.”
She wasn’t sure why she said it.
Green stiffened and then his shoulders moved up and down. He was laughing at her.
Jerk.
“Lukian,” Eadan said. “You and Roi have been acting strange.”
That was putting it mildly. Lukian had piloted. Roi had to be taken to a back room by Wilson while Green and the one with amber eyes were
left to babysit her and Eadan. These men were so weird.
Lukian grumbled and then faced forward. “I don’t know. I just don’t like you holding her hand. I don’t think any man should be touching her.”
Green laughed so hard, Inara wondered how he could see where he was driving. Whatever he found funny was lost on her. They sat in tension-filled silence as Green pulled the SUV into an underground parking garage. They exited and Eadan stayed close to her, his hand in hers. She didn’t want to let go of him. She was damn happy he seemed to be suffering from the same problem she was.
The elevator was large. Biggest one she’d ever seen. The other men from the SUV that had followed them from the airport joined them. The hot-tempered one snarled, showing fangs when he spotted Eadan holding her hand.
Inara leapt in front of Eadan and stunned herself by stomping on the snarling guy’s foot. He yelped and backed away.
Eadan tried to lift her but she elbowed him, holding her ground. She pointed at the snarly man. “Knock it off.”
He pursed his lips. “I will if he stops touching you.”
“You’re not my boss.”
“Children,” Green said, still laughing. “Let’s get upstairs and get this all sorted out with Colonel Brooks. I’m guessing he’s not pleased with us at the moment.”
Wilson eased up alongside her. “I’m fine with you and Eadan touching. I think it’s great he found his mate.”
“If you say so,” mumbled the amber-eyed man as he went to the back corner and put an unlit cigarette in his mouth.
She looked up at Eadan. “He’s got a lot of angst.”
“You get used to it.” Eadan bent and kissed her chastely on the lips.
Hot-temper snarled again.
“Roi,” Green said, motioning to the elevator control panel. “Would you do the honors?”
Hot-tempered Roi pushed the button for level one.
Inara stuck her tongue out at him when they exited. He did a double take and then shook his head. He nudged Lukian. “You tell her she can’t be with him.”
Wilson put his hands up. “Whoa! You’re acting like she’s family or something. Calm down. She’s a grown woman. She can do who and what she wants.”
Jon had to push into the mix to protect Wilson as both Lukian and Roi went at him. A gentleman with black hair but salt and pepper temples stepped out of a room and into the hall. He lifted a brow at the scene. “Lukian?”
“Colonel Brooks, tell Inara she can’t be near Eadan,” Lukian said, sounding very young.
Brooks surveyed the men and then focused on Green. Wise man. Seemed the most level-headed choice. “Care to enlighten me?”
“I read the test results PSI had on Inara on the flight home. Let me get her checked over first, sir, and then I’ll brief everyone.”
“In the meantime, Eadan and the rest of you, come with me.” The man motioned to them all.
“I go where Inara goes,” said Eadan.
“No. She is going for a checkup and you’re coming with me. General Newman is on the way.” Brooks crossed his arms over his chest.
Inara allowed Green to lead her down the long corridor. It was high-end with fancy lighting and paintings on the walls that she knew cost big money. She loved art and spent time in so many art museums that she’d lost count. Art museums didn’t charge to enter, and since she had no money, it worked out great.
Eadan remained behind, nodding as she glanced back at him. He made a move to come with her, but the one they’d referred to as Colonel stopped him, shaking his head. The other men remaining behind converged on him, keeping him held there. Eadan didn’t look too pleased, but he remained in place all the same.
“What are they doing to him?” she asked.
“He doesn’t want to leave you. I can read it all over his face but I’m guessing he’s having a hard time processing everything that has gone on. And I think he wants to give you time. That would be a very Eadan thing to do.” Green touched her shoulder gently. “It will be fine. I promise. I just need to get you all checked over. While I’m doing that, Eadan and the others will be debriefed.”
She watched him carefully, wondering what his deal was. She couldn’t smell anything about any of the I-Ops team. They had no discerning scents. It was strange. Only Eadan did. Thinking of his scent, the way she smelled nature around him with the smell of man, made her pulse speed and her heart race. She felt her cheeks flush. In an effort to avoid making a fool of herself in front of Green, she decided to go with a joke. “What are you? Some sort of doctor for the weird and wacky?”
He smiled and she felt more at ease. “Yes. That is exactly what I am. Right this way.”
She followed him into a large room that looked part of a state-of-the-art medical facility. Her jaw dropped. “You know how to work all this stuff?”
“I do. So does my mate,” he said as he handed her a gown from a shelf. He pointed to another door. “You can change in there.”
“You’re mated?” asked Inara, needing to know more about mates.
“I am.”
She held the gown close to her chest. Curiosity got the better of her. “What does it mean?”
Green took a seat on a stool, putting him closer to her level. “What does mate mean?”
She nodded.
He looked at her with compassion and scientific interest. Yeah, he’d picked the right profession. “Did Eadan tell you anything about mates?”
“He said they were two halves of a whole,” she answered. “Or something along those lines.”
Green chuckled as if he’d heard a very funny joke. Maybe he just thought the stripped-down explanation she received was amusing. “That would be correct. It would seem that each supernatural is gifted one perfect match. One person who fits them and them alone. With them a bond is formed and the unions can often produce children where children are normally difficult for paranormals.”
She tugged at her lower lip, her mind full of endless questions for the man. “Eadan says we’re mates. How do you know if someone is or isn’t your mate.”
“It’s inborn. Your gut tells you that without them you couldn’t go on.”
Thinking back, she remembered how she’d felt on the pier when she’d had to leave Eadan. She also remembered the buzzing bees between them. “Do you feel energy of sorts?”
“I believe two people with enough magik or Fae in them would, yes.” Green folded his hands before him on his lap, as if prepared to answer any questions she had for hours if need be.
It was hard not to like him.
“He claims I’ve got magik in me. I can’t. I sneeze when I’m around a full-blood,” she blurted.
Green’s lips drew back. He remained pleasant as he spoke, “I’ll do some more testing, but the information I was able to obtain via PSI already tells me quite a bit. I believe you’re not allergic to magiks so much as your body craves it and suppressing that side of you causes this reaction to others of full-magik descent.”
She mulled over his words, letting them soak in. “You’re saying I have magik in me, and because I don’t use it, I sneeze around people who do?”
“In a nutshell,” he replied.
“Can you read each other’s thoughts?”
Green nodded.
Well, that explained that then. She wasn’t crazy. Eadan could hear what she was thinking and she could hear him.
She had one more question. “Is it strange to love your mate when you only really just met them?”
Green stood slowly. “Not at all.”
Good, because I think I do love him.
He watched her. “Inara, you should know that between mates, there is a very high chance you will conceive a child regardless the precautions you take.”
She gulped. She wasn’t ready for children just yet.
Green smiled. “When it happens, it happens.”
She held up the gown and walked past him to the door he’d pointed at. “I’ll change.”
The exam was qu
ick and painless.
Green patted her shoulder. “All clear. I can give you some fluids. That might be best, just to be on the safe side.”
“I’m fine. Eadan has promised me much in the way of food and drink,” she joked.
“See to it you eat or I will not hesitate to haul your backside in here. Got it?”
She didn’t doubt he would. She nodded. “Got it.”
Inara drew back as Lukian and Roi burst through the door to the clinic area.
“What is taking so long?” Lukian asked, his voice hard.
Green barely seemed fazed by the two. He looked up from his computer screen and sighed. “I wondered how long it would be before you both showed up. I thought Eadan would beat you to it.”
The men shared a look that screamed guilty.
Inara gasped. “What did you do to him?”
Roi whistled and looked upward. “No idea what you’re talking about.”
Green swiveled in his chair. “Roi, did you do something to Eadan?”
Roi pointed to Inara. “He wanted to touch her. She’s too young to be touched. She’s just a baby.”
“She’s twenty-three,” corrected Green. He’d saved her the trouble of needing to point it out to them.
She had no idea why they kept behaving so strangely around her. They acted as if they were her father or something. She put her hands on her hips, annoyance making her take leave of her better judgment. “What the hell did you do to my man?”
Roi looked at Lukian. “She called him her man. We should kill him.”
“What?” she demanded.
Lukian nodded. “I think you might be right.”
Green shot out of his seat and went at them both, pushing them into the room and away from the door. “No one is killing anyone. Take a seat.”
They glared at him.
Lukian puffed out his chest. “Move. That is an order.”
“Sir, with respect, shut up and sit down,” Green said, not budging an inch. He was hardly a small guy. Not that Lukian or Roi were either, but Inara had no doubts who was going to win if it came down to it.
Green.
The geeky science guy wasn’t to be messed with.
He took a long, deep breath. “Sit.”
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