The B*E*A*S*T* Within

by Rebecca Goings

  "Ah, yes, the woman. Are you sure you haven't lost sight of your mission chasing after this ... Lanie Erickson?"

  "I have not forgotten,” Tam said, turning around, yet keeping his head bowed. “I want nothing more than to see Noah's throat ripped to shreds."

  Dr. Carver strode across the floor, coming face to face with the brutal man who could shift into a panther at will. He was one of the only men who didn't fear Tam, and that made Tam respect him. The doctor's hair was thinning on top, turning a salt-and-pepper grey, and the round spectacles he wore hid wizened, dark eyes behind them. At first glance, Dr. Carver did not appear to be a formidable man. But Tam knew better.

  "Must I remind you that killing experiment #121 was never part of the plan? Mr. Covington wants him alive. He's invested too much money to watch it be thrown away. Noah can be reprogrammed."

  Tam growled with fury but nodded, knowing he couldn't go against a direct order. “I have a plan for retrieving him."

  "Oh? And what's that?"

  "Abduct the woman and he will follow."

  "You are so sure?"

  Tam nodded, licking his lips. “When he comes, you will have your prize. And I will have mine."

  Dr. Carver clasped his hands behind his back and appeared deep in thought. “If he does come, you can have the woman. If he does not, then perhaps it is you who needs reprogramming, Tam. I am tired of your failures. Best you start showing results."

  A shiver raced down Tam's spine. He had no doubt this man would live up to his word. Tam bowed low and strode from the room, determined to complete his mission.

  * * * *

  Lanie watched Noah sleep for the better part of an hour. They'd gotten up only once for dinner—a pizza delivery—then they'd returned to the bed after the meal, where they'd remained ever since. The clock on the side table read 11:58 p.m. and the moonlight filtering in through the crack in the drapes was just enough to illuminate Noah's face.

  He was truly a beautiful man, and Lanie tried hard to think of one she'd ever met who was better looking. His features were strong but not overpowering—straight nose, full lips, rounded cheeks. She longed to touch him but didn't dare for fear of waking him.

  He'd told her that he loved her. She was giddy at the memory. This man had been through so much hell that he deserved a little tenderness, and she was going to be the one to give it to him. She was his mate now, akin in the animal kingdom to being his wife. More than lovers or fiancées, they were mates, bonded to each other through their love.

  Lanie supposed her deep feelings could have sprung from the need to cling to someone while running from B*E*A*S*T*, but she didn't believe that. What she felt for him was real, not something fleeting. The days that had passed since they'd first met seemed like an eternity. She didn't even feel the aches and pains from her car accident any longer. She couldn't remember when she'd stopped hurting.

  Soon the clock changed to midnight, and Lanie smiled. A new day. According the clock, it was now Thursday, January 6. As she stared at it, she realized something. The woman she'd spoken with on the phone—Patricia—had told her that Anthony Mercer's birthday was January 24. He'd have a birthday in just eighteen days.

  A sudden warmth overcame her. They'd be celebrating it together ... somewhere. God only knew where they would be. Would they still be on the run? Trying to stay one step ahead of the agency that hunted them? Would they ever have peace?

  With a sigh, Lanie glanced at the shadows on the ceiling. She hoped they didn't have to live the rest of their lives in hiding. Her family would never understand.

  The sound of a truck passing on the nearby highway reminded her of something, and she groaned. When they'd found the motel on the side of the highway, Noah had turned so sharply into the parking lot that the tires had actually squealed, and when they'd reached the room, he'd hopped out of the truck without even taking time to grab the keys from the ignition.

  "Damn,” she said under her breath, gazing once more at the sexy man in bed next to her. She had half a mind to leave it until morning, but the longer she lay there, the more it weighed on her mind. Anyone could come along and steal the Hummer, which was now their one and only lifeline to safety. If that happened, they'd be sitting ducks. Biting the inside of her lip, Lanie groaned and tossed the covers aside, then she slipped on her sweater and jeans and wondered if she should wake Noah.

  Once that crossed her mind, she scoffed at herself. The car was parked right outside the door. All she had to do was go outside, grab the keys and come right back in. It would take all of ten seconds. Besides, the man had had quite the workout this evening and deserved his rest. She smiled and decided to let him sleep.

  She unlocked the door to their room and slipped out quietly into the night.

  Twenty-Four

  Tam's chopper had landed just a few miles away where a car had been waiting to take him to the exact coordinates of Rogan's signal. Now it was a few hours later, and Tam sat on the side of the road waiting for something to happen.

  It was obvious that Rogan's vehicle was parked at the truck stop. Tam could even tell that both Rogan and Justin were inside sleeping. He would have killed them both without a thought, but something caught his eye: across the street was a small motel, and in the parking lot sat a pristine red Hummer that looked oddly like a vehicle owned by B*E*A*S*T*. Could it be one of theirs?

  The moon shone down as Tam exited his car and stood a few yards away from it, his nose wrinkling from the stench he detected. No doubt about it, both Lanie and Noah were there. His heart beat faster at the thought of finally putting an end to everything here and now.

  Just then, one of the motel room doors opened, and a woman stepped out. Tam couldn't believe his good fortune. It was Lanie! Her sweet scent drifted to him, driving him mad with lust. His entire body hardened and he crouched, wanting to pounce on her and take her savagely right there in the parking lot.

  But something was wrong. Noah's scent permeated the air as well, and Tam's skin crawled as he realized what he smelled.

  They had mated.

  A growl rose deep in his throat and would have become a mindless howl of rage if he hadn't forced himself to focus his attention on the beautiful woman before him. Walking briskly to where she stood, he tamped down his jealousy and tried his best to put a smile on his face. He knew it must have looked more like a sneer, but Tam was far beyond caring.

  * * * *

  "Excuse me, miss?"

  Lanie gasped and whipped around with her fingers still on the handle of the car door. Her heart was in her throat as she gazed into the dark Asian eyes of the man behind her. His black hair shimmered in the moonlight, and he towered over her head. She chanced a glance back at the motel room door, willing Noah to wake up. What the hell had she been thinking coming outside all alone?

  When she didn't answer the man, he continued on his own. “I seem to be lost and was wondering if you could help me."

  Lanie shook her head. “No, I'm afraid not. I don't know anything about this area.” She tried to walk past him, but he grabbed her arm. Painfully.

  "I didn't say you could leave."

  The timbre of his voice made Lanie's skin crawl, and the way he looked at her made her feel as if he were fantasizing about her. A sudden panic welled up inside her heart.

  "Let me go!” she demanded, trying her hardest to break his hold on her arm.

  "I think not."

  His eyes flashed in the same exact way Noah's did, and Lanie's heart suddenly stopped. This man was a shifter. This was Tam!

  "Noah!” she cried out, twisting this way and that to no avail. “NO—"

  With lightning speed, the man enclosed her within his powerful arms and covered her mouth. She couldn't do more than writhe futilely against him as he dragged her away. Her muffled screams went unnoticed in the still of the night.

  * * * *

  "Rogan, wake up! Holy shit, wake up!"

  Cracking open his eyes, Rogan glared at Justin. “What is it?”
he said behind a yawn.

  "Tam just took Lanie!"

  Rogan sat up straight, his gaze immediately spying two figures struggling next to a car in the motel parking lot.

  "What the f—"

  "Come on!” Justin climbed out of the car. “We've got to go help her!"

  Ripping open his own door, Rogan leapt out and began running, but it was too late. Tam had already managed to stuff Lanie into his car and was speeding off, almost hitting Justin in the process. The dust from his tires swirled above the pavement.

  "Son of a bitch!” Justin yelled, chasing the car for a few strides.

  Rogan looked from Justin to Noah's room and ran the rest of the way across the highway. He crashed through the locked door and barged into the room.

  "Noah!"

  Noah's head popped up, sleep clouding his eyes. “What the—"

  "Christ, Noah, wake up! He's taken her!"

  "Rogan, what the hell? Get out of here, Lanie's—” He broke off and his eyes widened at the empty place on the bed beside him.

  "She's gone, Noah!” Rogan shouted. “He's got her!"

  "What?” Noah ran his fingers through his hair, everything clearly still not registering with him. “When? How..."

  "It doesn't matter, just get up! We might be able to catch him!"

  * * * *

  Noah bounded off the bed, his emotions raging as it all finally sank in. What the hell was going on? How could Tam have Lanie? He didn't take long to ponder the thought before he'd thrown on his jeans and was out the door.

  Outside he could smell for himself the familiar scent of the black panther. It was all he could do to fight the urge to shift and kill. Tam had taken his mate. There was no way in hell he would simply let him get away with it. The urge to shift was strong, but he didn't let it take control. Not now, and not here.

  Noah refused to think about what might be in store for Lanie; he had to get her back. He had to save her! He'd told her he wouldn't let anything bad happen to her, and he'd meant it. It was a promise he was determined to uphold. She was the one woman on Earth who accepted him for what he truly was, and he'd be damned before B*E*A*S*T* took that away from him.

  Not again.

  Climbing into his Hummer, he barely waited for Rogan and Justin to get in too before the engine roared to life. Within moments, he had the truck on the road, driving like a madman.

  "They went that way!” Rogan yelled, pointing out the windshield. The truck lurched as Noah hit the gas.

  "I'm coming, baby.” He growled under his breath. “Hold on."

  * * * *

  "Look—there!” Justin pointed at a car on the side of the road that sat open and empty a few minutes later. “That's the car."

  Slamming on the brakes, Noah jumped out of the Hummer before it had come to a complete stop, but he was too late.

  A helicopter had just taken off, the familiar sound of its rotors still echoing in the sky. The scents of Tam and Lanie were swirling through the air, and Noah had no doubt that they were on that chopper.

  "What the hell are we gonna do?” Justin exclaimed as he watched the helicopter fly away with his mouth wide open.

  "I've got to go after her.” Noah's voice was low, but he knew both men would be able to hear him over the commotion.

  "Wait a minute,” Rogan said, holding up his hand. “Tam's taking her back to the B*E*A*S*T* compound, Noah."

  "I know."

  "But you'll be walking back into the lion's den! You can't possibly go back there!"

  "And what's going to happen to her if I don't, Rogan?” Noah yelled, grabbing the collar of his friend's shirt. “They're going to make her one of us. I can't let that happen. Tam wants her for his mate. But she's my mate—MINE! Do you understand?"

  Rogan nodded and took a step back, his eyes wide.

  "We have to go back,” Noah said. “We have to."

  As the men watched the chopper drift away, Rogan placed a hand on Noah's shoulder and squeezed. “We'll get her back, Tiger."

  Noah hoped to God his friend was right.

  Twenty-Five

  "How did he find us? How did that sonofabitch find us?” Justin fidgeted in the passenger seat as Rogan crouched low in the back of the Hummer.

  "How did you find us?” Noah wanted to know, speeding into the night.

  "After we let you escape in the forest, we gave Tam some false information,” Justin said. “I told him you'd been picked up by a blue truck with Iowa plates. I wanted to throw him for a loop, you know? I guess he went back to the compound to check out my information, but before he did, he told Rogan and me to continue on to Arizona just in case you doubled back, and I guess we were traveling on the same road. We saw your Hummer parked outside that motel and decided to keep watch at the truck stop across the street. But, damn it, I fell asleep! I had the night watch, and I fell asleep. Christ!” Justin ran his fingers through his hair, clearly beating himself up over it.

  "You couldn't have known this was going to happen,” Noah said, gripping the steering wheel tightly.

  His emotions still raged inside of him, but along with the anger came an insurmountable fear. They were going to torture Lanie just like they'd tortured him. He had to find her. Losing her to B*E*A*S*T* was not an option. Noah pressed a little harder on the accelerator.

  Rogan groaned and covered his face with his hands. “Oh, God."

  Noah glanced at him in the rear view mirror. “What's wrong?"

  "Tam must have found out we lied to him back at the agency. He must have used B*E*A*S*T*'s computers to put a lock on where we were. Jesus, how could we have been so careless?"

  "What are you talking about, Wolfe?” asked Justin.

  Rogan looked at him and shook his head. “We ripped the GPS locator out of Noah's truck, but we forgot about our own!"

  "Oh, shit. Oh, God...” Justin closed his eyes and banged his head on the seat. “We led him straight to you!"

  "Noah, I'm so sorry,” Rogan said. “We were stupid, we were careless—"

  "What's done is done!” Noah growled, his face set in stone. “You only did what you thought was right. Now we've got to concentrate on rescuing Lanie."

  A short silence followed before Rogan spoke again. “There are three drivers here, so we should drive straight through until we get to the compound. We'll only stop for gas. Whoever's not driving can rest in the back."

  Noah nodded. “Does Tam know you're both traitors?"

  "He might, but I really don't know. It was Justin who gave him the false information, so I'm pretty sure he knows he can't be relied upon. He might assume the same about me since I work so closely with Justin."

  "Well, one thing we do know,” Noah said, “Tam's not an idiot. If he found you guys through your GPS locator, then it's a safe bet to say he knew you both were there. And if you were sleeping, you would have made ridiculously easy targets, yet he didn't kill you. Which means he was after Lanie all along. I think he's counting on me coming for her and bringing you two along. It's the perfect way to get us all back to the agency without killing us."

  Rogan sighed and shook his head. “Damn."

  "There's a slim chance that you might be able to convince him you're not a traitor, Wolfe,” Noah said, glancing again into his mirror.

  "Oh? What's that?"

  "Return to B*E*A*S*T* with Justin and me as your prisoners."

  Justin turned to look at Noah with his eyes wide. “You can't be serious!"

  Noah gave him a hardened stare. “I'm completely serious. It's the only way we can get into the compound. Even if Tam believes Rogan is a traitor, he'd still let us in if only to have us in custody. But I have an idea."

  "What?"

  "We free the other shifters."

  Silence permeated the air.

  "This could work,” Rogan said, sitting back on his haunches. “If we free the others, there would be—"

  "Total chaos,” Noah finished for him. “We know plenty of guys who can remember glimpses of their live
s before. Some want revenge against the scientists who made them what they are. I say we give them the opportunity."

  "But how are we going to get past security?” Rogan asked. “Once we're inside, they'll capture us and inject us with that damned serum that won't allow us to shift."

  Noah chewed the inside of his lip and remembered the times he'd been injected with that serum. They'd used it on him as both a human and as a tiger. No matter which state he was in, he could not shift back. He couldn't count the times he'd been scared shitless as a tiger, thinking he'd never be able to become human again. But eventually, the serum had always worn off.

  "No, they won't inject us with anything,” Noah said under his breath.

  "How do you know?” Justin swallowed hard.

  "We're shifters, J,” Rogan told him. “He means we'll shift before they have the opportunity."

  "And we're going to kill every single person we see.” Noah stared straight ahead at the road and shivered at his own thoughts. He'd always prided himself on believing that he wasn't a killer, but those bastards at the compound deserved to die.

  Oddly, he felt no remorse. B*E*A*S*T* needed to be destroyed. And he was going to see to it personally.

  * * * *

  Noah couldn't rest despite his exhaustion. He'd been driving for most of the day, but when Rogan had insisted that he take over, Noah had climbed into the back of the Hummer and simply stared at the ceiling.

  B*E*A*S*T* had Lanie. The bastards had stolen his mate! He could feel the familiar crawling of his skin as his body ached to shift. He wasn't just angry that B*E*A*S*T* had her; his instincts were beginning to take over. Every hair stood on end as he shivered, breathing through his teeth and trying like mad to control the urge.

  Closing his eyes tightly, he rubbed them with his fists. Damn, he needed sleep. But all he could see behind his eyes was Lanie's soft smile and her willing body as she'd made love to him not more than a few hours ago. Memories of their shower bombarded him, and he rolled over as if he'd been punched in the gut. Stopping the tears that rolled down his cheeks was impossible.

  He knew Justin and Rogan could smell his change of mood, and he was grateful that they said nothing as he silently cried his heart out. He'd tasted her, been with her for one glorious night only to have that bliss shattered and taken from him. She'd admitted her love for him, and that's what haunted him the most. Her words still rang in his ears: “I love you, Noah."