Circe's Recruits 2.0: Alex

by Marie Harte

  The women still in the program had kept to themselves. Charlie she knew. Nivia, the telekinetic, seemed to have suffered something she refused to talk about. And the three other women, two clairaudients and another telekinetic, had never tried to be friendly. It was a known fact that Kennedy and Charlie were the strongest psychics there. Had the others been jealous? Angry and confused that they couldn’t leave? Not very trusting, but then, Kennedy understood that.

  She gripped Alex’s huge hand, feeling safe and comforted despite the situation.

  They’re his friends. Good guys. Relax.

  They’re pack. Good, her beast agreed.

  Alex stopped outside a door, looked down at her, and pathed, It’ll be okay. If you get really worried, talk to me in here. He tapped his temple. It’ll be our secret.

  She smiled, but she had a feeling she looked more nervous than reassured, because Alex cupped her cheek and sighed. She had to hand it to him. He seemed to trust her more than Eli did. Eli had been friendly but aloof today, glancing at her with a watchful eye.

  She couldn’t blame him though. For all he knew she was working for Lang. The others might think she was a spy. What if they tried to get her to tell them things about Lang she didn’t know? What if they didn’t believe it when she said she was innocent of everything but being a victim of a sick, twisted man? What if—

  “Stop. You’re giving me a headache,” Alex said his voice gruff.

  “I am?” She’d been thinking all that, not saying it aloud. She hadn’t been aware of projecting anything.

  He shrugged. “I’m hearing a lot of worry, and you’re stirring up my beast. Relax, Kennedy. Anyone wants to hurt you, they go through me first.”

  He meant it. She felt the truth resonate in his words, his mind, and oddly, in his beast.

  Relieved but still tense, she waited while he knocked on the door.

  A blond woman opened it from the other side. She smiled, looking relieved. “Took you two long enough. Get in here.”

  Alex tugged Kennedy with him into a spacious suite decked out with computer equipment and food. A lot of food. Pizza boxes, Chinese food containers, and fruit. She saw bananas, apples, and oranges all over the place.

  Bailey sighed. “Sorry. Carter’s on a fruit kick. Move those bananas and find a seat.”

  Kennedy stuck close to Alex. “Uh, I’m okay here.”

  Bailey took a closer look at her. “It’s okay, Kennedy. I don’t know if you remember me. I saw you guys a few times, but I used to work on the main floor at U-Ground. Now I’m a blond kick-ass weapon and part of these knuckleheads.” She kept her voice gentle. “We’re the good guys. You don’t have to worry about anyone here hurting you.”

  “Unless you’re part of Lang’s plan to take us down. Separate us, take us in,” a big man with dark hair and green eyes approached. Unlike Alex and Eli, his eyes remained fixed with a slit pupil. That and his size showed her he was Circ. Other than that, he could easily pass for human, though a large one.

  Bailey sighed. “Let’s try again. I’m Bailey. This menacing hunk of male is Gideon, my mate. You already know Alex and Elijah.”

  “Eli,” Eli corrected and winked at Kennedy. “To my special friends.” He wiggled his brows.

  She felt herself blushing.

  Alex growled.

  “And I’m Carter,” said a giant of a man. He had dark blond hair and blue Circ eyes, and seemed the most easygoing of them aside from Bailey.

  “Hi. I’m Kennedy.”

  Gideon gave an exasperated sigh. “Okay, can we cut out all the polite bullshit and find out what the hell happened to you? What can you tell us about Lang?”

  Kennedy felt all eyes on her and tried to step closer to Alex, except she was already all but on top of the man, plastered to his side. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder, and his presence helped calm her nerves.

  “Guys, please?” Bailey glared at them. “Give her some space. If she’s even used to being around Circs at all, think about what Circs she’s used to. Lang’s animals. Let’s pretend we’re better than that.”

  Alex chuckled, the first sign of him relaxing since stepping inside. “Yeah, let’s.”

  Gideon growled and stalked to the couch before flopping into a seat. “Fine.”

  “This is why Alex and I work the customer aspect of our business,” Bailey confided with a smile. A pretty woman who put Kennedy at ease, Bailey projected a peaceful though firm nature. The command in her gaze told Kennedy not to screw with her, because in this pack, Bailey was alpha right next to Gideon.

  Kennedy’s beast wasn’t sure about having an alpha herself, but since Bailey seemed in no way proprietary toward Alex, Kennedy didn’t mind feeling as if on a few rungs lower in the hierarchy.

  Eli plopped down next to Gideon. He put his boots up on the expensive looking coffee table, then fiddled with his eyes, removing contacts, apparently, because he now showed the same slit pupils as the others.

  He shoved the contacts into a container he withdrew from his back pocket and sighed. “Oh man, that’s better. Bailey, Gideon’s an ass. We all know that.” He talked over Gideon’s growl. “What about me and Carter? We’re personable, aren’t we, Carter?”

  Carter looked at Eli’s boots and sighed. “Yeah, but we’re not all housebroken.”

  Gideon lips curled. “No shit.”

  “Come on, you two. Come sit down.” Bailey tugged Alex, who still had a hold of Kennedy, and nudged them into the loveseat across from Gideon and Eli. Carter sat on the arm of the couch on Gideon’s other side.

  “Before we get started, anyone hungry?” Bailey asked.

  Requests for food came at her from all sides, and she cringed. “What was I thinking?”

  She returned moments later with reheated Chinese food. Eli had found half a cold pizza and was eating straight out of the box. Gideon and Carter shared the reheated food while Alex accepted some energy bars and a plate of cut fruit for Kennedy.

  Pleased, Kennedy tucked into the food, embarrassed to find herself still hungry after polishing off a plate. Then Bailey handed her a foot long sub, and the scent of meat had her appetite soaring.

  “We expended a lot of energy yesterday,” Alex said in a low voice. “You need it.”

  She didn’t comment, ignoring Eli’s chuckle. The rest of them talked about some sporting event on TV, as well as the amazing pool and weight room in the hotel. By the time Kennedy finished her food, she felt much better than she had walking through the door.

  Gideon leaned forward. “Okay now?” His banked impatience couldn’t be missed.

  She nodded.

  “Then start at the beginning. Tell us everything you know having to do with U-Ground, Dr. Lang, and Duane Fucking Smith.”

  So she did. Kennedy left nothing out, trusting in her beast’s instincts that these people could be trusted. The creature wanted to defer to Gideon on everything, and Kennedy had to fight that need to please. But Gideon had asked for no more than the truth, and she had plenty of that to give.

  Alex shifted in his seat to better look at her. “So you’re like us. No family except your cousin. No boyfriend, husband, lover. Little in the way of friends since you left your job and your house to fly across the country. Right?”

  She felt like a loser when he put it that way. “I guess.”

  He nodded, seeming satisfied. “Just like us. Lang made sure to take Gideon, Eli, and Carter because one, no one would miss them.”

  “Harsh, bro.” Eli frowned.

  “And two,” Alex continued, “he’d seen them fight. He had ready-made warriors who were also psychic.”

  Eli sighed. “I keep telling you, I’m dead space, man. Nothing here to work with.”

  Carter grinned. “Seriously. He’s brainless. Nothing going on there.”

  “Fuck you.” Eli frowned.

  Gideon glared at the pair, and they quieted. He turned back to Kennedy. “Alex is right. There’s nothing wrong with being alone. It just is. But what I’m
really curious about are your abilities, and your cousin’s. She’s precognitive?”

  “She can see short bursts into the future. Sometimes she’s sees farther, but that’s rare. She told me to find Alex. And because of her, I knew when it would be safe to escape.” Thought of Charlie still in Lang’s clutches hurt. “We have to save her.”

  “We will,” Gideon said, and she believed him. Maybe just because she wanted to, but Gideon sounded confident, a strong leader. Good alpha.

  Kennedy shushed her beast and subtly wiped her eyes. Alex squeezed her shoulder, his warmth a weight she welcomed.

  “And you. You read minds?” Gideon asked her. “Do you see things or just hear thoughts?”

  “A little of both. Usually it’s thoughts unless someone is projecting strongly. And I have to be near them to read anything.”

  “Read mine.”

  She paused, but when he nodded, she did. And backed out fast.

  “What did she see?” Bailey asked, her gaze going from Kennedy to Gideon as she sat next to him.

  Eli sat up. “Yeah, Kennedy, what did you see?”

  She bit her lip, not sure she should say.

  “Kennedy?” Alex stroked her back. “It’s okay, honey. Tell him.”

  She didn’t look at Alex. “I saw Gideon with Alex. And they were having sex,” she said in a rush. “Like, a lot. Claws and blood and doing…things.”

  Alex snarled at Gideon. “Asshole.”

  Carter laughed. “Man, was I in it? Where was I?”

  “Probably jacking off with a computer,” Eli muttered.

  Bailey shook her head. “Honestly, Gideon. We just met her. Can’t you be civilized and not scare her away yet?”

  “Hey, if she thinks she’s taking Alex on, she needs to know he’s a package deal,” he said, his warning plain.

  “I’m not taking him,” she protested, though her beast felt she had a claim on him. “He’s been nice to me.”

  “So nice,” Eli had to say.

  “Shut up,” she snapped at him, shocked at her sudden temper.

  Bailey laughed at that. “Ha. It’s not just me telling you that all the time.”

  Eli raised a brow. “What can I say? Women only want a toy, not the whole man with a brain. I’m not just all dick, Kennedy, you know.”

  She wanted to pull her hair out. And somehow she realized she’d gone from scared to comfortable with these people.

  With a group of strangers who felt like…family.

  Chapter Nine

  ALEX THOUGHT KENNEDY was doing pretty damn well getting on with the guys. Bailey had helped a ton. Gideon, not so much. Did the guy really need to emphasize how crazy Alex got when Gideon did him? Not something he wanted to share right away with his new—what? Lover? Girlfriend? Mate?

  Shelving that thought for a later date, he glanced at Kennedy and saw her confusion. “I know. They’re a lot to take in. Gideon especially.” He shot Gideon the finger, and his buddy just smiled. “But we’re honest about who we are. We don’t lie. We’re fucked up. We’re not human. But we have each other, and we’re tight.”

  Gideon took over. “So you can understand why I won’t let anyone hurt any of us. Alex and Eli said you’re good to go. I don’t know you. The fact you can get in and out of our heads is a little disturbing.”

  “Show her the tele-blast,” Bailey said. “Not too hard, but to let her know what happens to those who try to hurt us.”

  Alex blinked. “Bailey?”

  Bailey didn’t bat an eye. “I like her, and I sense honesty, compassion, care for her cousin. I also sense some feelings for you,” she said, exposing Kennedy in front of everyone. Though Alex loved that Kennedy liked him more than the others, he didn’t want that common knowledge to scare her off.

  “But I agree with Gideon,” Bailey continued. “Kennedy needs to know we’re not a bunch of do-gooders who take everyone on faith. We’ve all been used by Lang and his people. We all trusted too much at first.”

  “I didn’t,” Eli said.

  “Me either,” Carter added.

  She spoke over them. “We can be your best friends, Kennedy. Or your worst enemies.”

  Kennedy frowned, gasped, and clutched her head.

  “Gideon, cut it out,” Alex growled.

  Kennedy recovered well enough, her eyes wide. “That hurt.”

  “And that’s only a small part of what he can do,” Bailey said. “I’m sorry, but you need to know we’re a threat.”

  “I believe you.” She sounded shaky. Damn it.

  “A threat to Lang and his people,” Gideon said. “I know Lang has files on all of us.”

  She nodded. “He hates you. And Palmer too.” She looked at Alex, still rubbing her head. “Oh right. Alex Palmer. He really doesn’t like you.”

  “Good.” Because Alex wanted to gut the fucker responsible for so much death and destruction. “I worked his lab security for months, and that man is evil. He hurt people to see how much they could take, for science. His subjects aren’t real to him, just a means to an end. He’s harmed so many for his own gain.” Innocents like his sister.

  I’m so sorry, Alex. Kennedy curled her hand over his, and he realized his claws had come out. Sometimes the rage took him under, the helplessness at saving Katie too much to bear.

  You saved me, she pathed softly.

  He blinked at her, seeing a watery smile, and wiped her tears. “Aw, baby. Don’t cry.”

  Gideon and Bailey exchanged a look.

  He frowned. “What?”

  Bailey said nothing. It was Carter who answered. “She’s good for you. Took you out of your funk right quick.”

  Gideon kept staring at Kennedy, and the more he looked, the more Alex bothered became.

  “Easy, Alex.” Gideon nodded. “Kennedy, you can read minds.”

  “Yes. Mostly.”

  “So if we get you close to Lang, can you find out where he’s keeping a friend of mine?”

  “No.” Alex wouldn’t put her in harm’s way again.

  “Yes,” she said. “I want to help, Alex. I need to save Charlie.” To Gideon, she asked, “Will you help me save my cousin and the other women being held against their will?”

  Eli scowled. “Hell, yeah. I hate Lang. And Smith too.”

  “Smith is mine.” Gideon smiled, and she saw razor sharp fangs.

  Bailey rubbed his shoulder, and he leaned back to sit closer to her. She shook her head. “We all hate Dr. Lang and his scary assistant. But I’m worried about those women, the Level 4 group. You said there are only six of you left?”

  Kennedy nodded. “When the lab in Portland blew, he took us to some island. I remember seeing water from my view in the plane, then we landed. We were taken to an underground bunker. But it was somewhere tropical. Gideon, I don’t know if that’s where Lang has your friend. He has a lot of hidey-holes around the globe, places he retreats to when the government is hot on his tail.”

  “Speaking of government,” Eli said, “what are the Circe’s Recruits guys doing about him?”

  Carter answered, “They were on his trail, but it went cold. Doc gave us all they had on him to get us this far. Then the guys got pulled away by some Circ farm in Venezuela. Besides, Gideon told them we had this.”

  Bailey frowned. “That’s a lot to take on, Gideon.”

  “We have the finances, the support.” Gideon looked around the room, centering on Kennedy again. “A new ace in the hole.”

  “And Lang has resources we don’t,” Alex argued.

  “But you have me. I’ll help.” Kennedy seemed so sincere.

  He knew she was scared for her cousin, hell, overwhelmed with all of it. But she was strong. A fitting mate.

  Alex shoved the animal back down in his psyche, trying to ignore its satisfaction.

  “She can do what she wants, Alex,” Gideon said. “We’re not her keepers, and she’s a grown woman.”

  “Oh yeah. All grown up.” Eli leered.

  Gideon slapped him in the b
ack of the head.

  “Ow. Dick.” Eli gave a low snarl, but he didn’t meet Gideon’s stern gaze.

  Gideon hugged Bailey to him, the other arm snaked around Eli’s shoulders. “Look, Kennedy. We all came together not too long ago, and we work. We’re a team. A unit. Family, pack, all that bullshit. We won’t keep you here if you want to go. And we’re still going to try to save your cousin and those other women from whatever hell Lang has planned for them. So don’t think you need to stay for that. But for damn sure we can use you if you’re in.”

  “I’m in.”

  “But sweetheart, something we’re going to have to settle at some point. If you’re in this pack, you’re in.”

  “Fucking,” Carter said bluntly to clear up any confusion. Because he was good like that. Alex gave a mental sigh. “It’s weird. I’m gay. Proud of it. But I can tolerate Bailey. After the first few times we did it, I’m good just being around her with the others when we get it on. We don’t have massive orgies all the time, but you have to know your beast is gonna want it. It’s sexy and kind of comforting, to tell you the truth. And if you don’t work your beast, you can get really dangerous.”

  Alex felt her tension. “He’s right. You can also exercise it a lot with weights or mat training. Gideon and Bailey are mated, so their time together is different. The rest of us work out our needs, and Gideon and Bailey are there to settle us down. When you feel like you’re with them, you feel safe. It’s hard to explain.”

  “No, you’re doing just fine.” Bailey smiled at him, and he felt her quiet joy that he really did think of her as family. “Kennedy, there’s no rush to jump in bed with anybody.” She gave the guys, including him, a stern look. “Way to ease her into it, fellas.” She sighed. “We’re heading back home tomorrow. I think you should come with us. We’ll plan, find your cousin and the others, and figure out how to finish Lang one way or the other. In the meantime, there’s a lot to learn about the new you. And honestly, it would be nice to have another woman around.”

  Alex felt Kennedy’s indecision. “How about you think about it? You can use my room and just relax if you want. And while you’re doing that, I can get you some clothes.”