“It’s too soon to make those type assessments,” Mason said frowning.
She didn’t look at him as she spoke. “I can’t have children so, even if I was your mate, I can’t fulfill your need. You need to find a mate who can.”
Mason ran his finger down her cheek. “Angel, look at me.”
She shook her head no.
“Yes,” he insisted as he used his finger to tilt her chin up. “I want you. If that means we don’t have children, then we don’t. Frankly, I would be afraid of what would happen to a child, considering all my genetic tampering.”
She wasn’t accepting that answer. It would be greedy and wrong of her. She wanted, even needed, Mason, but there was more than her needs to be considered. “Find your mate, Mason, so the future can be bright with your heritage.”
He stared down at her, his heart in his eyes. “I have found my mate, Holly Heart.” Then he lowered his voice, “You.”
“No,” she whispered. “I won’t do whatever has to be done to make it so. I know there is some sort of ritual or something. Sterling said so. You need to find someone else compatible who can give you a child.”
Finality in his voice, he held her gaze. “It’s too late. What is done is done. I chose you.”
“I won’t do that to you,” Holly whispered, trying not to cry.
Mason leaned down, brushing his lips over hers. “There is much we need to discuss, Angel, but not now. I have to go. Just know this,” he said with a husky quality to his voice, “I choose you. There is no other I can mate with. I should have talked to you about this before now.” His fingers laced into her hair. “I wanted you to choose to be with me despite what I am, not to force the ritual on you.”
Then he kissed her, slanting his mouth over hers and dipping his tongue into her mouth. Holly sighed into his mouth. He tasted of love and desire and made her feel cherished. When he pulled his head back, they stared into each other’s eyes.
His hand slid along her body, his desire to touch her, to please her, taking over. It hadn’t been his intent. There was no time. But he raged with a sudden need to please her. To hear her call his name in pleasure. His hand moved to her thigh and inched between her legs, stroking her. She whimpered into his mouth and it only served to drive his need to a roar.
His head lifted, his eyes locking with hers. Long seconds were spent staring at one another before he lifted her. Somehow his desire to simply bring her pleasure had turned into a burning flame that he no longer controlled.
He was leaving her tonight… Who knew what would happen. He had to go knowing she was his. At least, for the moment. He pulled her pants down even as he turned her to lean over the chair. “What if someone comes,” she whispered.
He didn’t even consider her words. “I need you, Holly.” He released his throbbing cock and then molded his body to hers. Animal need was controlling him. He slid inside her, hearing her gasp, a mix of shock and pleasure.
He felt like tilting his head back and yelling with a possessive claim. His hips pressed into her round, perfect ass, even as his hands held her hips. Each stroke was like a rocket of sensation. He sunk deeper, and harder, and she pressed against him with equal impatience.
She was making loud sounds of pleasure and he felt the animal in him answer with the rage of pure need. Harder, faster, more…closer. He wrapped his body around hers, filling his palms with her breasts, and his body shook with release.
Holly cried out his name…and then she spasmed around him. And slowly, he calmed, the beast inside now fulfilled, as was the man.
He helped her get dressed, kissing her cheek, her lips and her hair. Finally, he cupped her cheeks. “There is something important I need you to remember,” Mason told her. “If you should get into trouble and can’t get to the computer, reach out to me with your mind.”
“What do you mean?”
His eyes met hers. “Our bond is strong, Holly. You already know we share much more than other couples.”
“Why is that? It’s true, I know. Are we… I mean, is it because I am compatible as your mate?”
“Of course you are. We both knew we belonged together the moment we met. As I said, there is much to discuss, Angel. The ability to communicate in our minds is not something I could do with anyone else, nor could you. If you get into trouble, focus your energy on reaching out to me and you will.”
* * * * *
Holly sat in the lab, analyzing the Arion blood against a few formulas she had put together. Her resources were so limited, it was frustrating. There were ideas bouncing around in her head, good ideas to deplete the vitamin C in the Arions bodies, but she simply didn’t have the resources to test them.
When Mason left, she had buried herself in her work, trying not to think about the danger he was in. It was unnerving, thinking about him against those creatures. He wasn’t like them. They were evil and that changed the whole way they approached battle.
And what if Michael had been betrayed and now Mason was walking into a trap?
Holly looked up, staring into space, willing herself to stop worrying, to be calm. But she wasn’t calm. The gun she had sitting on the table next to her was proof of that.
A loud sound made her jump, her hand flying to her chest.
She knew that sound.
It was the alarm.
Holly grabbed the gun, pushing her chair back so quickly, she stumbled forward and had to catch herself on the table. She looked down at the gun and gulped. She didn’t need to be bouncing around with a weapon she hardly knew how to fire.
She needed to get to the equipment room. She whirled and took off in a jog toward it, holding the gun so it pointed at the ground, aware of its cold steel presence in her hand, silently giving her some semblance of comfort.
In that moment, she decided she was going to learn to master using a gun and any other weapon she could. Not just use them, master them. It wasn’t in her nature to sit back and became a victim. She wouldn’t do it.
The minute she stepped into the equipment room, she centered in on the problem. Mason had left a camera set up to monitor Roger. She could see smoke surrounding him as he pounded on the door.
Fire.
Holly sat down the gun, the threat of intruders gone, and started toward the elevator. A strange feeling, black and ominous, made her turn back and grab the gun. The extra time only made her more frantic. She had to get to Roger before he burned to death.
She punched the elevator button over and over. “Come on,” she yelled at it. “Come on!”
It felt like a million years before it actually opened though it was only seconds. Holly ran inside the car and punched the close button the instant it was in view. There was no way to get to Sterling’s cavern without going to the main level and then taking another elevator.
By the time Holly stepped off the second elevator into Sterling’s living room, smoke had funneled under Roger’s door and was forming a cloud inside the cavern. Holly started coughing, her throat and lungs burning almost instantly.
“Hold on, Roger,” Holly screamed in a raspy voice as she moved toward the room Roger was being held in. “I’m coming.”
Unlocking the door with shaky hands, she shoved it open and jumped backwards in case flames might surge outward. Roger fell forward, onto the ground, coughing and choking.
He was covered in black soot and his lungs were filled with far too much smoke, but clearly he was okay.
A fire extinguisher hung by the elevator door, as it did on all floors. She couldn’t get a grip on it without getting rid of the gun. In a matter of seconds, she battled a desire to hold onto the weapon and the need to put out the fire. She shoved the gun in her pants but it didn’t fit and she was afraid she would end up shooting herself.
With no time to analyze the intelligence of her decision, she sat the gun down at her feet. In the next instant, she yanked the extinguisher off the wall and moved toward the flames. Pulling the release, she began shooting a white wash of spray eve
rywhere she saw fire. Holly wanted to scream out with joy as the flames turned into smoke, inch by inch, disappearing and taking away the threat.
When the fire was finally out, she dropped the extinguisher to the ground, exhausted and breathless. She wiped perspiration from her forehead with the back of her hand and then pressed her palm against it. Her skin felt too hot to be normal and her eyes burned as if she had acid in them.
The flames had been like a living thing, scorching with intent. God, they could have died.
She smiled, but just barely. It took too much energy. It always felt good to prevail. It would feel better later when she got cleaned up.
“Holly.”
Something about the way Roger said her name made dread snake through her veins. Slowly, she turned and brought him into focus. He stood facing her, the damn gun in his hand.
She looked at it and then raised her eyes to his. “Now I know why I didn’t want to put the gun down.” A bitter laugh escaped her lips. “In the midst of saving your life, I forgot I was dealing with a traitor.”
His eyes flashed with anger and something she couldn’t quite identify. “It didn’t have to be this way. I loved you but you chose Mason.”
Jealousy. That was the other something in his eyes. “You set that fire, didn’t you?”
“Where are the others?” he asked, ignoring her question.
Holly’s eyes narrowed. “You’re a fool, Roger. Mason will kill you for this.”
He back stepped toward the elevator. “Get in the elevator, Holly.”
Holly shook her head. “I don’t think so, Roger.”
“If you think for an instant I won’t shoot you in the arm or the leg, and even kill you, you’re wrong,” he said. “I’m through with you, just like you are with me. They prefer you alive but they’ll be fine if you are dead. You choose.”
Holly stared at him, hardly believing this was the Roger she had considered a friend. Gone was the soft, nice man she had known. Had his whimpering the night before been an act? It must have been, because this was not the same person. Holly believed he would kill her. She saw it in his eyes.
She had never been afraid of dying but she wasn’t overly fond of the idea. And Mason needed her. Deep down, her doubts about their relationship weren’t justified and she knew it. She had to live for Mason, for the Black Knights, and to make a difference in the battle to save humanity.
“Fine,” Holly said bitterly. “Let’s go.”
* * * * *
Mason sat in the bushes, one mile west of Area 51, thinking about Holly, though keenly alert to his surroundings. Something about leaving her had really bothered him. Maybe it was guilt, because he had been holding back information from her. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it.
He felt Michael before he saw him, his senses alert and alive like they had never been. The wind shifted, at first slightly. A sudden gush of air produced Michael and two men Mason had never seen.
Mason and Michael made eye contact. To Mason’s astonishment, there was a mental awareness between them. He saw understanding in Michael’s eyes. Michael stepped forward, motioning for the others to stay where they were. Privacy was an issue with two Arions, who could both be traitors, so near. Options were limited. Mason walked several feet, with Michael following by his side, before he turned to face him. “We have trouble.”
“So I guessed,” Michael said, his tone calm but his eyes alert.
“Roger was a setup. He’s been injected with the first level of enhancements.”
Michael frowned. “We knew something was wrong.”
Mason’s expression was grim. “Yes, but since we killed both Arions, I hoped we had sidestepped whatever it was.”
“I won’t ask how you know this. I assume you’ve been thorough. Someone fed me bad information. How far up the chain is the question. Do you have any idea who the traitor is?”
“Besides Roger? No.”
“Roger was a willing participant?”
Mason gave a quick nod. “He’s lucky to be alive.” He nodded toward the other Arions. “I’m reluctant to trust your men.”
“These two I have no doubt about. Lucas and Diego are leaders, each with their own teams.” Michael sighed. “The problem is, to take over the 51 facility we have to trust their men.”
Mason’s jaw tensed. “Which is a death sentence.”
Michael seemed to contemplate. “Maybe. Maybe not.”
Mason’s brow inched up. “Meaning?”
“Meaning, my friend, that two can play this game of deceit.”
* * * * *
Holly’s mind was racing furiously as Roger nudged her forward. Her first step outside the cavern came with an overwhelming sense of finality. As if she would never return to the cavern.
The thought made her insides chill to icy levels. She felt a growing sense of dread, of a forbidding event to come. “Roger—”
Before she could finish the sentence the wind whipped against them, dirt swirling like a mini funnel cloud. Holly knew it was bad news. Roger was no threat. The wind brought the real danger.
She squeezed her eyes shut, focusing on Mason. He said she could communicate with him. Now, she prayed, he was right. With all her strength, she focused on Mason.
Her hair blew around her face, dirt stirring so heavily she could taste its bitterness. And then it was no more. Which could only mean one thing.
They were no longer alone.
Silently, she willed the seemingly impossible, putting her trust in her only hope.
Please hear me, Mason.
Slowly, she opened her eyes, tilting her chin up defiantly as she looked into the blackest eyes she had ever seen. And she knew who she now faced.
He smiled at her but evil lurked in the action. His voice, a deep, sultry tone, held malice he could never hide. “Well, well, Holly Heart. Finally, I meet my brother’s mate.”
* * * * *
Mason stood with Michael and the two Arion men he had brought with him. Together the men discussed options to deal with their unknown traitor.
Michael was halfway through a sentence when Mason felt Holly’s fear. It ripped through his heart like a dagger of death. Her danger was real, the evil near her… Malice was the word that came to mind, clearly, as if Holly had spoken it to him.
David.
“What is it?” Michael asked in a soft, seemingly calm voice but it held an underlying urgency.
“David has Holly.”
* * * * *
Mason stepped out of the trees with Michael, Lucas and Diego in position beside and behind him. Holly stood to the right of David, a defiant look in her eyes, and Mason couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride. As scared as she had to be, she was not willing to cower to David or anyone, for that matter.
Roger was nowhere in sight. Probably hiding like the coward he was. He was thankful he had gotten to her before she was transported. It would have been harder to free her once David had her within his tightly held world of underground caverns.
David waved him forward, turning his body to face Mason, giving Holly his profile. “So good of you to join us, my dear brother.”
Mason took several more steps, not daring to meet Holly’s gaze, though the temptation was strong. It was enough to know she was alive and within reach. She stood too close to David for his comfort and Roger held her at gunpoint.
He regretted ever going after that man.
Assessing the situation, he noted five Arions, none of which he knew. They were fairly evenly matched, one thing in their favor, at least.
The two men Michael had brought with him had earned Mason’s loyalty. Now that they had exposed themselves to David, they could never go back.
“And Michael,” David said. “Always good to do business with you. I see you have recruited a few followers.” His eyes brushed Diego and Lucas as he made a tsk sound. “So few of you against so many. What are you thinking, Mason?”
Michael’s voice was like a knife slicing through the
air. “There are many who will follow us, David.”
An evil smile played on his lips. “Everything is not always as it seems, Michael. You of all people should know this.”
The wind stirred and from the trees stepped a man. Not just any man. Tad. Arion and dangerous. He walked forward. “Michael,” he said with a nod. “I hear you played hardball with my look-alike.” He laughed. “Those damn clones really aren’t much of a match, are they?”
Mason knew something had been wrong when they managed to kill Tad so easily. “Good thing,” Mason said dryly. “I was disappointed I didn’t get to kill you myself. Today seems a good day for you to die, Tad.”
Tad focused on Mason as a sound, much like a growl, escaped his throat. He took a step forward. David held up a hand, instantly halting Tad’s steps.
“Enough,” David said, in a voice as deadly and quiet as the slice of a knife.
Mason and David locked gazes. “What game is it you’re playing, David? Why involve Holly?”
“I didn’t have to involve her,” he said with preciseness to each word. “You did a fine job by completed the mating ritual. As your mate, she is a part of what dictates your actions. Perhaps, if I make her see the light, she will make you do so as well.”
Mason could feel Holly’s eyes on him, sense her confusion, her emotions running wild. Now she knew what he should have already told her. She was his mate. The ritual was complete.
Mason’s tone held the threat he intended. “Leave Holly out of this.”
“She is in this to stay,” David said without hesitation. “Join me and I will ensure her safety. I will pledge to protect her with my life.”
“No, Mason,” Holly said quietly, but with conviction. “Don’t follow him for me.”
Mason had no intention of following David but he damn sure wasn’t going to let him leave with Holly either. “Give me a week to think.”
David smiled. “Of course, Mason.”
Mason let out a silent breath of air.
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