Critical Intelligence

by Critical Intelligence(lit)

  Missy turned to face him. “Get the bullets out of me. I can feel my body trying to heal over them.”

  Eadan put his hand over her chest and forced magik into her. It wrapped around the bullet and yanked it free of her, making a sickly sucking noise as it went. He moved to her shoulder next and did the same thing. When he reached her thigh, she hissed. “Ah, Damn it. I hate it when they shatter a bone.”

  “Excuse me, ma’am,” Jon said, softly. “But how many times have you been shot?”

  “I don’t know. I lost count. But considering my ‘job’ for the bad guys I’m amazed it’s not more. They shoot each other for fun.”

  Eadan backed away fast and when Missy saw Roi running straight at her, she knew why. Roi’s blue eyes stayed glued on her the entire time. He moved in fast, went to hug her and stopped. Smiling, Missy touched his check. “I’ll be fine.”

  “They wouldn’t let me get to you, baby. I tried. Gods, I tried.” His eyes glistened and Missy moved into his arms quickly, letting him hold her as her body healed itself. Roi kissed the top of her head and hugged her. “I’m so sorry, doll baby. I…”

  “How much did you see?” she asked, unsure she wanted an answer.

  “They saw all of it, Melissa.”

  Peeking out of Roi’s warm embrace, Missy stared at her father. His eyes narrowed as he glanced towards Eadan. “You lied to me, Melissa. You swore it wasn’t Eadan. You looked me in the eyes and told me that he wasn’t the one.”

  Cringing, Missy tried to pull out of Roi’s embrace. He’d never be able to handle the knowledge that she’d bonded with another man instead of waiting for her true mate or that she’d carried another man’s child.

  “Why did you lie to me?” her father asked. “I had a right to know, Melissa. You’re my daughter and I almost lost you. And I did lose my grandson because of it. How could you not…?”

  Missy pushed on Roi’s chest. “I told you not to bite me. I told you that I could get it taken care of. You wouldn’t have to be in this now.”

  Shaking his head, Roi looked at her as though she were crazy. “Missy, I would have liked to know all of this but it doesn’t change the way I feel about you. I love you. I’m sorry about your son. That had to have been hard on you, honey.”

  Hard didn’t even begin to cover it. Not wanting to lose it in front of all of the I-Ops, Missy simply nodded and stroked Roi’s cheek gently.

  “It sounds to me, doll baby, that your dad did some lying himself. I’ve always existed and he’s known it. Had he told you the truth…”

  Missy drew in a sharp breath. “Eadan and I would have never bonded.”

  “She’s right,” Eadan said, shocking Roi. “Had either of us known you really did exist we would have kept our relationship from going to that level. I can’t undo the past.”

  “I didn’t ask you to.” Roi stared over the top of Missy’s head at Eadan wanting to keep hating him but finding it harder and harder to do. “And I won’t ask her to ever forget what it is the two of you have been through.”

  “Do you love her?” Eadan asked.

  Roi nodded. “More than life itself.” Staring down at Missy, he lifted her chin and met her gaze. “I love you, Melissa Carter.”

  “Hey, why doesn’t she have your last name, General?” Wilson asked, with a slight smirk.

  “Because I insisted she be given my mother’s maiden name in the event that…”

  “You were afraid that if someone found out you were the head of PSI they’d go after your family if they knew you had one,” Green said, so soft that Roi almost missed it.

  The General nodded. “Yes. My family means the world to me. My wife and I weren’t able to have children of our own and we firmly believe that Melissa is a gift from the gods.”

  “I vote we go torture Rex if he’s still breathing,” Wilson said, laughing slightly and lightening the mood significantly.

  A chorus of men agreeing with him followed. It was clear to see that they wanted to get out of the way and allow Roi the privacy he deserved. It was also too easy to see that they loved him. So did she.

  “Melissa, answer me. Why did you lie to me?”

  Sighing, Missy turned a bit in Roi’s arms so she could face her father head on. “Because you wouldn’t have just separated me from my handler, Dad. You would have killed Eadan for something that wasn’t his fault. If he hadn’t come down to help me, I would have died a horrible death at the hands of Pierre Molyneux. Eadan went against direct orders and came for me when he was no longer able to contact me.”

  “He made you weak to normal ammunition, Melissa. He left you and the baby vulnerable to…”

  “And you sent the baby and I into the belly of the beast, Daddy. Or do you forget how much pressure you put on me. How no one but me could get the job done? No one but me could get close enough to kill him. No one but me…”

  The General looked away. “I didn’t know you were with child, Melissa.”

  “Neither did we.” She let out a soft laugh. “Do you honestly think I would have gone had I known? Do you think I would have willingly sacrificed my baby for the greater good? Sorry, Dad but even I have a line I won’t cross. Eadan would have never let me go had he known that I was pregnant or that my genetic makeup had been altered. The man worries about me as much, if not more than you do, Dad.”

  “Yeah,” Eadan said softly. “Though, I think your husband may actually worry more than me and I didn’t even know that was possible.” He bit his lower lip and nodded. “He’s the one you’ve been looking for, Missy-bean. He’s the one who gave you Suzie.”

  “Suzie?” Roi asked as he cradled her in his large, safe arms.

  Missy’s eyes widened. “Ohmygod, the doll. I have a micro chip full of information on the locations of hundreds of children from the Asian experiments hidden within her.”

  “You what?” the General asked. “Why wasn’t this given to the I-Ops?”

  “Because you told me they weren’t real. How was I to know exactly where the information would end up? I turned over the group that was with me only because I’d rather sacrifice myself than others.”

  He drew in a sharp breath. “You knew that agents were turning, didn’t you?”

  Missy nodded. “Yeah. I’d overhead some of the bad guys discussing key intelligence locations here and I knew that information had to come from sources on the inside. I didn’t know who, though, and I wasn’t about to risk innocent lives. There is a ton more information in their South American headquarters but I wasn’t able to stay in long enough to retrieve it. That’s part of the reason I put in the next visit. I need the rest. We all do.”

  “Eadan, retrieve the doll and the chip. Get it to Lukian and stay on to aid with whatever Missy and I-Ops may need. Keep me abreast of the situation. Now, we need to debrief the Ops on what we know so far.”

  “Missy needs to let Green check her over, get cleaned up and then rest. I’m not about to let her do anything else today,” Roi said, kissing her head again. “I’m pissed enough that she took off on me this morning. She needs to sleep. Whatever the I-Ops need to know can wait.”

  Eadan cleared his throat. “Umm, I still think you’re a dickhead but I think I should warn you that Missy doesn’t take kindly to being ordered to go home and rest.”

  Missy was about to comment when Roi turned her in his arms and lifted her chin slightly. When he dropped his head down and captured her lips with his, she was powerless to fight him. Not that she even wanted to.

  * * * *

  Green put his hand up. “Excuse me, but are you telling me that Krauss has somehow managed to introduce supernatural DNA into the bloodstream of an adult human and not kill them?”

  Roi just stood there in silence as Missy nodded. “Not exactly. From what I can gather he’s been able to introduce small quantities of it, increasing physical strength and so on but not leaving them with the ability to shift or be immortal. He has, however found a way to enhance those who are already supernatural.”r />
  “That explains the tests done on the arm.”

  “Test?” Missy asked.

  Green handed her a file. “Yes. When you were attacked outside the compound Roi managed to sever an arm from one of the assailants.”

  Missy cast him a small smile and wagged her brows. “That’s just one of the reasons I love you, baby.”

  As neutral as he tried to stay around her, it was nearly impossible. Her scent alone drove him mad. Seeing his team work with her as though she were one of their own only intensified it. The need to bury himself in her and fuck away the visions of her being tortured at the hands of the traitor PSI agents was almost all consuming.

  Wilson snorted and all eyes went to him. “What?” he asked, shrugging nonchalantly. “No one else found the one armed bandit thing funny?”

  Jon shook his head, his amber eyes locked on Wilson. “Anyone want me to smack the rat?”

  “Don’t the rat jokes ever get old?”

  “Nope,” the team answered together.

  Roi was about to tell the team to focus when he noticed Missy sway a bit. Holding her hand out, she seized hold of Green’s shoulder and held it tight. “Whoa, I’m a little dizzy.”

  “Missy?” Roi moved to her side quickly, fearing the worst.

  Taking a big breath in, Green smiled as he looked to Roi. “Let’s leave these two alone for a little bit.”

  “Leave us alone? Check her. She was hurt worse than she thought,” Roi said, ready and willing to hold a gun on Green if need be.

  Jon grabbed Wilson’s arm and pulled him towards the door. “We’ll tell the Captain that you’ll meet us back at our headquarters in a couple of hours.”

  “We will?” Wilson looked as confused as Roi felt.

  Jon nodded. “Yep, we will.”

  Roi looked to Green for help. “What’s going on? What aren’t you telling me?”

  Missy’s hands began to shake as she covered her mouth. “Oh gods, it’s not possible. I can’t have…”

  “Melissa, they knew what and who you are from the files you stole to show us. It stands to reason that they also know due to the moles in PSI that you lost a child. Why would they inject you with that much of a hormone stimulant and try to take you if they didn’t think it would somehow repair your reproductive organs?”

  Roi’s mind raced to keep up with Green’s words. Why was the injection important again? “I don’t understand. Speak English.”

  Missy turned to him, her wide brown eyes locked on him. Her lip trembled as she caressed her lower stomach. “Roi … I think I’m…”

  “You think you’re what?” he asked as panic began to seize hold of him. Losing Missy wasn’t an option. “Missy-doll, please tell me what’s wrong.”

  “Nothing is wrong.” Green smiled. “Well, not unless you consider being a father a bad thing.”

  “Being a father?”

  Green let out a soft laugh. “I need to run some tests but I’d be willing to bet my life that you’re going to be a daddy, Roi.”

  “I’m going to be a…” Darkness swallowed him whole as he passed out cold.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “Would you get off me!” Roi shouted, giving Green a good shove. The man had spent the entire night poking and prodding him with every needle he could find.

  “I’m just trying to make sure that the finding out you’re about to be a daddy hasn’t left any lasting effects,” Green said, ignoring Roi’s request to leave him alone. “In truth, I think the sedative you forced us to use on you had taken its toll. Combine that with the stress of watching your wife be tortured and then turn into a lethal killing machine before your very eyes can’t help. Toss in the fact that you are going to be a father and we end up with an out cold Roi.”

  Roi jerked his arm away from the stubborn redhead and sat up. “Where’s my wife?”

  Green shook his head and nodded towards the door. “She’s down the hall, asleep. She refused to leave your side. We had to wait until she fell asleep in the chair by your bed to move her.”

  She stayed with me. The thought warmed Roi.

  “Roi, I need to advise you to stay in bed and get some rest. You may be immortal but your coping skills suck and your stress levels are through the roof. Uncontrollable shifting could be a side effect.”

  Roi shot Green a look, daring him to try to stop him. Green laughed and turned back to his work. “Have it your way, and tell your mate that I tried to make you rest. She scares me.”

  Roi knew it was a joke, but he could see some truth in it. Missy, when pushed wasn’t someone to mess with. He’d watched her take out a room full of the enemy by herself. So did the rest of team. All of them had a newfound respect for women after that show.

  “I take it that the tests you ran were positive.”

  “They were. She carries your child and couldn’t be happier, Roi.” Green ran his hand over the counter near him and smiled. “We’re all happy for you.”

  “She could have been killed or the baby could have been hurt during that stunt the General let go on to prove Missy’s on our side. When I get my hands on him I’m going to…”

  “Roi,” Green said, softly. “Neither Missy nor the baby sustained any lasting damage. The baby was never touched. I think Melissa’s natural senses knew she was expecting and went out of their way to keep it protected.”

  What Green said, while the truth, did little to calm Roi’s nerves. Suddenly, the idea that Missy had run out on him in the middle of the night only to be taken into the hands of the enemy was not acceptable. Jerking up fast, Roi ripped the cords from his body and went towards the door.

  “Would you at least like to get dressed?” Green asked chuckling as he did.

  “No.”

  As he stalked down the hallway, he grew more and more agitated. He could sense her now, lying in the room just beyond him. So peaceful, yet so close to death only hours before. Losing Missy wasn’t something he’d ever recover from. She was his mate, his other half. Without her he had nothing to go on for. So many years he’d spent trying to stay numb, fuck away his needs with women that he knew he could never want a life with. Now that he’d found the perfect one, she foolishly put herself in harm’s way.

  Roi slammed the door open and Missy jolted upright on the bed. Her large brown eyes locked on him and for a second, he almost forgot that he was upset with her. The horrible feeling of having thought he’d lose her resurfaced and he set out to do what he should have done the moment he met her--show her who was the Alpha in their relationship.

  “Roi, you’re okay, and still very naked,” she said, climbing out of the bed and running towards him. “I was so afraid for you, don’t ever do that again. I never in a million years expected you to pass out.”

  “No,” he said, his voice deepening in anger. The wolf within slammed against his restraints, warning Roi that it was just below the surface and more than willing to show itself. “Don’t you ever do that again!”

  “Roi?” Missy asked with something akin to fear in her eyes.

  Roi quickly fought to maintain his hold. “I love you.” It came out without thought but seemed to do what needed to be done--ease Missy’s fears.

  She ran her hand through her hair and sent it cascading over her tiny shoulders. She was so beautiful, so perfect, so lucky to be alive.

  Snatching her tiny body up, Roi quickly pinned her against the wall, careful to cause her no harm. He knew that his eyes were swirling, but he didn’t care. He couldn’t fully control the wolf within and Missy all at the same time. Since there was no possible way he’d allow her to be injured, Roi didn’t care if fur sprouted all over his body. He just wanted her to be safe and to understand that he would never allow her to take such risks with her life again.

  “Roi,” Missy whispered. “What…?”

  He let a claw extend from the tip of his index finger. Placing it against the cotton material of her shirt, he yanked downward, tearing it open. As her caramel colored skin became visible hi
s cock twitched madly, wanting desperately to be permitted to enjoy her silken depths yet again.

  The smell of her arousal drove him onward. He snapped the bra she wore in two with but a flick of his nail, freeing her breasts to him. Unable to hold back, he bent his head down and took one in his mouth. Missy responded instantly, her nipple hardening. He tugged at it, not being near as gentle as he should have been.

  She cried out under him. “Oh, Roi … they’re sensitive now.”

  Of course they were. She was pregnant with his child. How could he have forgotten that? Fighting the beast down a bit, Roi mentally scolded it to be gentler with her. The wolf fought back hard. Roi’s skin began to ripple and it took everything in him to keep from shifting. It wanted to proclaim its dominance, and he’d have no choice but to let it. However, he could do everything in his power to assure Missy’s safety.

  “Mis-sy,” he said, forcing the words out. “Don’t fight me … it will only make it worse.”

  “Make what worse?”

  He could smell her fear. The wolf within soared, causing his cock to harden and his muscles to burn for the change. Roi fought back, not letting himself shift, but powerless to do anything about the rock hard erection he was now sporting. He placed his clawed finger between Missy’s legs and tore her pants open, careful not to hurt her.

  “Roi,” she said, wiggling against him and cupping his cheeks as a smile spread across her face. “Fuck me, Geoffroi. I want this, baby. Don’t fight your nature. Give me all of you. The wolf. The man. Geoffroi.”

  The wolf sensed the challenge for dominance and rose in an attempt to accept it. Fearing for her safety, Roi did the only thing he could think of--he rammed his cock into her tight opening, and breathed a sigh of relief to find her wet and welcoming. He knew the wolf would lose its need to display raw power if its cock was sated. All he had to do was bring Melissa to her peak and come. The wolf would rest then. If at any point it tried to take over, Roi would simply kill himself rather than cause her an ounce of pain.