by Tia Didmon
Brock watched silently as Jane followed Racheal to the far corner of the room. She hadn’t flinched when Racheal had called her a bitch. She was clearly used to adverse reactions.
Hunter bumped him with his shoulder. “You okay, man?”
His cat was mad at Racheal for her rude behavior, yet she had every right to her reaction. “No, not really.”
“What’s got your cat so riled?”
Brock was surprised. “You can tell?”
“Your eyes are lit bro.”
“Shit. I didn’t realize.”
“You’re always in sync with your cat. What’s going on?” Hunter asked concerned.
“I honestly don’t know. My cat is all over the place. He’s interested in her but hasn’t given me a clear mating signal. From what all of you tell me, you knew the moment you saw your mate that she was yours.”
Hunter glanced at the girls. “True, but I smelled mine on Devon and was a total bastard to everyone until I locked her down. That’s not normal.”
“Racheal was experimented on.”
“Are you sure Jane wasn’t?” Hunter asked.
Brock looked at his brother. “I should have asked that. I didn’t.”
Hunter looked at his mate. “Racheal doesn’t like her,” he said without condemnation in his voice.
Brock sighed. “I know.”
Brock was about to walk back to the ladies when Hunter put a restraining hand on his arm. “Do you think it’s possible that Kallan has devised something that allows her to lie to you?”
“The thought had crossed my mind.”
Hunter dropped his hand. “What should we do?”
“Let’s address the elephant in the room.”
Jane watched Racheal examine each vial in the travel case. She shouldn’t care that the newest member of the Cascade family despised her, she was accustomed to combative reactions from Kallan’s business associates when she was sent in to complete a transaction. Everything about this assignment had turned her world upside down and she wasn’t sure how to rectify it.
Racheal began moving the vials to the small cold storage fridge they had set up in the small lab.
Jane cleared her throat. “May I ask how you assembled this lab so quickly? Judging by the various equipment outside this used to be some form of storage facility.”
Racheal didn’t look up. “I have some experience setting up labs on the fly. Comes with the territory when you’re being hunted by Kevin and his men. I also did it with a lot less funding.” She turned to look at Jane. Her eyes flashed. “It’s a lot easier to get what you want when you have unlimited funds, isn’t it?”
Jane took the rebuke in stride. Everyone assumed she worked for Kevin because of the money. In a way, it was true. She didn’t get a chance to respond as the men approached. Hunter went to his mate’s side.
“How’s it going, babe?” Hunter asked.
Racheal’s face softened. “It’s good. Everything I asked for is here.”
Brock put his hands on his hips. “We need to talk about how you ladies know each other.”
Jane listened to the low hum of the mini fridge as the men looked at each other. Racheal looked down. Brock flicked his head to the side before Hunter nodded.
Hunter put his arm around Racheal’s waist. “Honey.”
Racheal looked up with pure vengeance in her eyes. “I’ve seen Jane multiple times. She came into the labs with Kevin on several occasions. Jordan instructed me not to talk to her.”
Brock nodded. “I suspect that’s because she was told you and Jordan were in a relationship and that you were in on the abduction.”
Racheal hissed. “You know the truth.”
“I do but she doesn’t. She was shown a picture of you and Jordan together. It was taken prior to your abduction.”
Racheal looked at Jane in disgust. “You honestly believed I was locked up for four years of my own accord?”
Jane shook her head stiffly. “I had no idea you were in lockdown.”
Racheal’s eyes flashed amber. “Maybe not but you didn’t go looking for the truth, did you? No one who works for Kevin does.”
Jane held herself immobile. She couldn’t deny what Racheal said was true. She had seen the signs, but she didn’t investigate. She couldn’t. It would only make what she had to do harder. “I’m sorry Racheal.”
Racheal huffed. “I bet,” she said sarcastically.
Jane surveyed the room. She was pulling a woman who had been held for years back into Kevin’s orbit. She thought she had tramped down the last vestiges of remorse she’d had over the years she’d worked for Kevin. She’d been party to so many questionable deals she’d lost count. Those however, had been with the most undesirable people on the planet. Guilt was a bitter enemy. She removed all trace of emotion from her voice. “Do you wish to complete the transaction?”
Brock hated the hollow tone in her voice. She had shut down again. This was how she managed to work for Kevin Kallan. His cat was furious at the change. Its aggression and arousal were becoming more unstable. Brock had to find out what was causing it fast or the people around him would pay the price. “Can you tell us about your time in the labs?”
Jane turned to him. “I’m not here as an informant. I am and will remain a loyal employee of Kevin Kallan.”
Brock bristled but kept his composure. “I’m not asking about Kallan. I’m asking about Razel and Talbot.”
“You already know about them,” Jane said.
Racheal frowned. “Who is Talbot?”
Brock pointed to Racheal “That was my next question to you?”
She shook her head. “I never met him.”
Brock turned back to Jane. “Racheal took Razel’s samples, and you provided him with money and weaponry. Who took Talbot’s?”
Jane didn’t flinch. “Talbot was assigned to Lana.”
Racheal startled. “Lana?”
“Yes, I’m sure you met her. You were both assigned to the Florence facility at the same time.”
Racheal’s eyes narrowed. “I never met her. I was on lockdown.”
Jane nodded curtly. “My apologies.”
Racheal looked at Hunter. “It must be the same Lana. The one that died.”
Jane’s mask slipped. “Lana isn’t dead.”
They all looked at her. Brock spoke first. “When was the last time you saw Lana?”
“Eight months ago. We have conflicting schedules but we correspond occasionally by email and text,” Jane said.
The Cascades looked between one another. They were all thinking the same thing. Brock looked up. “Why pretend the woman was still alive. An experiment gone wrong maybe?”
Jane shifted uneasily. “Lana was not part of the trials. She is a doctor, a surgeon.”
Brock looked at Jane intensely. “Do you believe Racheal was part of the trials?”
“Of course not. She was recruited for her brains.”
Racheal’s face softened. She was starting to see what Brock had all along. Jane had been manipulated. “I was experimented on. As a result, my transformation almost killed me. Jordan said there was another like me. That she died. That her name was Lana.”
Jane stood immobile. “It’s a common enough name.”
Brock nodded “Sure, but in the Florence facility at the same time? For the sake of argument say it is the same Lana. Why pretend she is still alive for a co-worker’s sake. Kevin is careful to abduct...” he paused when Jane scowled. “Or recruit people that have little family.”
“You had no family?” Jane asked Racheal.
“I had Sarah, but it sounds like it was pretty easy to discredit her,” Racheal said.
Jane paused for a minute before speaking. “Lana isn’t just a co-worker.”
“She wasn’t?”
Jane glanced at Brock. “‘She’s a... friend. We were recruited at the same time though she’s a few years older than me.”
“So, she’s a genius like Racheal,” Brock asked.”
>
“She did skip a couple of grades in school but she was recruited while she was still in medical school.”
Brock and Hunter looked at each other with concerned looks.
Racheal picked up the by play between the men. “What?” she asked.
“Kevin recruited you and Lana prior to you proving yourselves in your field. Why? It can’t just be your lack of family,” Brock said.
Racheal’s eyes widened. “Jordan said I was tested for the shifter gene. Maybe Lana was as well.”
Brock nodded. “Makes sense but if she had the gene, wouldn’t she have lived through the transformation?”
“It’s hard to say. The soldiers don’t shift and eventually die so maybe there’s a common denominator.”
“Danov’s eyes flashed orange. So, they take on a few of our characteristics besides the strength and endurance,” Brock said.
Jane pursed her lips.
“What is it Jane?” Brock asked.
“You would find out soon enough, so I will tell you. The soldiers aren’t random. They carry the shifter gene as well.”
“What?” all three Cascades said at once.
“Surely you considered that the gay member of your lair would be able to find a mate?”
Hunter’s body went stiff. “How the fuck, do you know about Garrett?”
Brock put a restraining hand on his brother. His cat was going insane with the anger aimed at Jane. He growled low to warn his brother off.
Hunter gave him a hard look. “So, we do have a mole.”
Brock breathed away his cat’s anger. “Yes. Jane knows things about the lair she shouldn’t.”
Hunter’s eyes flashed with anger. “I hoped it was a mistake.”
Brock could see Racheal was processing information. She seemed far away until her eyes came back into focus. “Is there any way we can get a sample from one of the soldiers? I mean if there was a way to know... for Garrett,” she said.
Brock knew there was nothing Racheal wouldn’t do for Garrett. She loved him like a brother and worried about his future. He turned to Jane. “Is there?”
“Possibly,” she said.
Brock looked her over. “Kallan is testing talented young men and women for this gene. Did you test positive Jane?”
She studied him coolly. “Yes.”
Brock closed his eyes. “Fuck.” His cat purred.
Hunter backed up, pulling Racheal with him. “I suggest you take Jane to the Ranch. Liam and Luca are already there. This is going to turn into a shitstorm.”
Jane turned to him. Her cold emerald eyes glimmered with anger. “The Ranch?”
Brock pulled on his earlobe. It was the one childhood habit he’d never been able to break. “We need to talk.”
Jane watched Hunter and Racheal walk away. “What was Hunter talking about?”
“The Ranch is one of Sarah’s properties.” Brock saw the recognition on her face.
“The family home?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“Alright.” His cat didn’t like her easy ascension any more than he did.
Jane realized Brock was suspicious. He should be. Kevin had been looking for a way to gain access to the Marksmen Texas ranch. She had been surprised when the opportunity had come available so easily. Kallan employees couldn’t get near Sarah’s childhood home. She looked out the window of the SUV, watching the road blur by as she contemplated her situation.
Brock turned down the radio. “If you have the shifter gene, then so does your sister.”
Jane turned to look at him, already uncomfortable with the direction this conversation was headed. “Yes.”
Brock frowned. “You aren’t concerned for her life?”
“She won’t be harmed.” Provided I don’t fail.
“Did he say he would help her? Heal her?” Brock asked.
“Yes. He is doing everything within his power to heal her but you don’t believe that do you?”
“Actually, I believe he is. If he’s successful in curing her, turning her into one of us then think of the asset he will have.”
Jane stretched uncomfortably in her seat. “Kevin is trying to help her recover.”
Brock glanced at her. “Did it ever occur to you that yours and Kevin’s definition of recovery isn’t the same? I assume you want the sister you grew up with, back. I guarantee you that Kevin’s definition of recovered is something different.”
Jane felt fear clutch her heart. “He won’t go back on his word.”
Brock kept his eyes on the road. “He wouldn’t be. In his mind she would be better. Not a better person a better species.”
“You’re saying that becoming one of you is bad.”
Brock shook his head. “Being one of us. No. Shifting and having Kevin Kallan to guide you. Disastrous.”
They pulled into the long driveway that led to the Ranch. Trees lined the road with pasture on either side. A multitude of horses grazed carelessly as they drove by.
“I didn’t realize there were horses here?”
Brock looked at a small Shetland pony with its head through the fence. “Sarah has made this a horse shelter in memory of her mother.”
They pulled up to the roundabout located at the entrance of the ornate mansion. “It’s beautiful.”
Brock got out of the SUV and opened her door. He looked her over. “It is now.”
Jane wasn’t sure if he meant her or the fact that Sarah had restored the property to its former glory.
Brock led her inside. The mahogany furnishings matched the accents on the walls giving the interior an upscale rustic look. Jane had never seen anything quite like it but she loved it. “Sarah has amazing taste in furniture.”
Brock tilted his head to the side. “The main dining room set was made by Devon. The rest are from our warehouse. My father and Devon are so backed up with specialized orders it will be awhile before they get to the rest of the house.”
“I forgot about your family business. I knew it was successful. I can see why your pieces are so sought after,” she said.
Brock held his hands up. “Not me. I take care of the business end of things. Devon was the only one of us to inherit dad’s carving skills.” He motioned the stairs. “Your room is upstairs. Follow me.” He started up the stairs.
Jane rushed after him. “We aren’t staying here!”
“Yeah, we are,” he said over his shoulder, as he continued to climb.
Jane put her hand on the banister to steady herself as she climbed after him. Her heels clicked loudly on the wooded stairs. “I have to get back to the hotel at some point this evening.”
“Not happening sweetheart.”
Brock reached the top of the stairs and entered a large bedroom. He motioned the closet. “Sarah said to take whatever you need. “
Jane surveyed the classically designed suite. “This is Sarah’s room?”
Brock nodded.
Jane turned back to him. “It’s lovely but I can’t stay.”
Brock crossed his arms. “We aren’t going back tonight.”
Jane put her hands on her hips. “Are you saying I’m a prisoner?”
“No. I’m planning on scouting the surrounding area later. I was hoping you would come with me.”
This was the opportunity she had been hoping for. Could she do without her supplies for one night? “I have to check in with Kevin in the evenings.”
“I had a feeling that might be the case. I need you away from anything Kevin Kallan including your bodyguard.”
“If I don’t return. Kevin will send Danov to look for me.”
“He can try. My brothers are on site as well as a hired security force. Besides, Kevin has been trying to get inside this place since Brian died. He won’t pass up the opportunity to let you snoop, around will he?’
“No.”
“Since you’re being so truthful. How about you tell me what you’re taking to confuse my cat?”
“Pardon me?” she asked, surprised.
Jane swallowed hard. “It’s just a hormone suppressant. I was told you wouldn’t be able to detect it.”
“Explain,” he said.
“Your species has highly evolved sex drives. Kevin wanted to be sure you didn’t see me as a potential mate.”
Brock’s eyes flared yellow. “You can’t confuse a cat when it comes to his mate. He knows. He sends out pheromones, waiting for his female to respond. Suppressing the natural order only pisses him off.”
“I don’t understand.”
“This compound suppressed your sex drive? Your reactions to me.”
“Yes.” Mostly.
She watched Brock’s eyes narrow. “I thought you were trying to lie to me but you’re trying to avoid mating me.”
Fear rocked her. “I’m not your mate.”
Brock stepped up to her. “You are, and I’m going to prove it to you.”
His lips descended on hers.
Chapter 4
Jane had every intention of standing her ground. The moment his mouth touched hers, she knew she was in trouble. Her body melted. She clutched his shirt as if the thin cotton could somehow save her from her own body’s treachery. Heat and fury raged between them.
He moved slightly, sliding his knee between her legs, to part her thighs. She felt his erection, hot and hard, rub against her stomach. She couldn’t help but press back, reveling in the unforgiving feel of him against her. He pulled the clip from her hair, winding the long locks around his hand before pulling her head back. “You’re mine.”
Her pussy convulsed, soaking her panties. He glanced down her body as if he was completely aware of the affect, he was having on her. Her breasts tingled and her nipples peaked, chafing against the soft lace that contained them. This shouldn’t be happening. It couldn’t be.
It took all her willpower and brought her physical pain but she pushed against him. “No! I can’t.”
Brock pulled her back to him aggressively. “You can and you will.”
Her stance stiffened. “You won’t force me.”
Brock leaned into her. His lips so close, she could feel his words on her lips. “I won’t have to. Will I Jane?”
