by Ashley Shay
“Females?” Ty asked, edging closer to the table. If looks could have unlocked the secrets the man held, Tyler would have known everything about him. “Not just Carly?”
“No, not just your precious little Carly. True, he wants your mate dead, alpha, but he wants your brat dead too. Both of ’em…ding-dong dead. Boohoo.”
Tyler drew his fist back and smashed it into the shifter’s face. The scorpion went out like a light, sliding over the edge of the table and crashing onto the tiled floor.
“Call Homeland,” Tyler said to Gabe. “Get this piece of shit out of my house.”
* * * *
Talon tilted his head to one side and watched Viper. He was ready to take to the air at a moment’s notice if he had to. “They had Harley in chains. Took him away in an armored prisoner transport van.” He shrugged, wincing at the pain in his shoulder. “I couldn’t do anything about it.”
“No, I suppose not. Did you find anything else out that might be useful?”
Talon nodded. “The alpha is bringing in reinforcements. They’re hiring anyone that might be able to help guard the ranch. The Tomcats are checking credentials, but there’s going to be a lot of new faces around the place.”
“Then it’s probably time for phase three,” Viper said cryptically. Talon didn’t know anything about a phase three, but he rather hoped he wasn’t involved. He was beginning to feel the noose tightening around their necks. No one could screw with federal agents this long and not get fucked. He, for one, liked to choose his own dancing partners.
Viper continued to stare at him like a long-lost son or something. That look on his face gave Talon the willies.
“You’ve done exceptionally well in the last few weeks, Talon. I have a little present for you.” Talon cringed for a moment, not knowing what to expect. Viper reached inside his collar and flipped a gold key out onto the black shirt.
The key glittered like the precious metal it was, but it gave Talon an uneasy feeling. He knew there were cursed objects for the buying, and Viper sure had enough dough to get anything he wanted. He lifted the chain over his head and held it toward Talon. “Go on. Take it. It’s not going to bite.”
Sure about that?
“A key?” he asked quietly.
“Yes, a key,” Viper said curtly.
Talon felt that stirring of unease in his belly grow into a turmoil. Viper had an odd look on his face. Sometimes the snake’s gifts were as deadly as his temper. Talon wasn’t usually one to look at a gift horse or whatever the fuck that saying was. This gift, however, might have fangs. He reached out tentatively, feeling as though he were putting his hand into a serpent’s mound, then stared at the key pinched between two fingers.
“You’ll find your twin back in Miami at headquarters. Lower level.”
“Raptor?”
“Do you have another twin?” Viper snapped.
“No. No, of course not,” Talon said softly. He wrapped his fingers around the key tightly. No one would ever take it from him.
“He’s not in the best of shape,” Viper said, “but he’s alive. He’s under a binding spell, but when the shaman sees the key, he’ll know what to do to break it. I’m sure you can nurse Raptor back to health. Regretfully, he may not fly again, but time will tell. You can leave after the mission.”
Talon kept his head bowed because if Viper saw the tears in his eyes, he’d consider taking the key back and killing them both for weakness. “Thank you, sir.”
“Dismissed,” Viper said. “Prepare for a trip to Catamount.”
* * * *
Carly returned to the kitchen after putting Suzie to bed. She noticed her mates looked tired, and the day’s strain showed on their faces. Lucia and Rosa had long since retired to their rooms, leaving the men to have a few beers before retiring for the night.
Tyler looked the worst. It couldn’t be easy having the burden of securing the safety and well-being of both the family and the community. He looked as though the weight of the world rested on his shoulders. He leaned back against the kitchen counter, the neck of his Shiner hanging loosely between his fingers, long forgotten. Carly went to him and took the beer bottle from his hand. His head snapped up, and he seemed surprised to find her there.
“Penny for your thoughts,” she said softly.
“Got a couple dollars?” he asked with the ghost of a smile.
“For you, my love, I’d borrow some if necessary.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him down for a long, passionate kiss. His hands skimmed down her back, fingers resting on her ass, pulling her closer. Instantly, she felt his cock jump to attention. At least she hadn’t lost him entirely to his thoughts. She pressed against him for a moment, reveling in the feel of his hard length against her. Then she pulled back and cupped his face.
“You need to get some sleep, alpha,” Carly whispered. “As much as I’d like to feel you buried inside me, tonight isn’t the night.”
Reluctantly, she pulled herself away from Tyler and turned to Cougar, who leaned against the French door, staring out into the darkness, searching for bad things in the shadows. He, too, looked as if the weight of the world was ready to come crashing down on his head. She ran her hand down his arm to get his attention. His face swiveled toward hers, and she tiptoed up to whisper in his ear. “I’ve been a bad girl today. I had an orgasm without my mates.”
His eyes widened, and a sultry smile played about his mouth. “You did, did you?”
“Yes, I watched myself in the bathroom mirror. It was very hot. You might have to take me back to the club and discipline me for that.”
Cougar growled, the sexiest sound she’d ever heard, and his eyes glittered with suppressed passion. He pulled Carly into his arms, nearly crushing her in his embrace. His kiss was brutal, leaving her lips swollen and wanting more.
“When this is done,” he said quietly, “we’re going to spend a whole evening in our playroom.”
“I’m counting on it, darlin’.” She put her hand on his chest, feeling his steady but slightly escalated heartbeat. She gave him her most alluring smile before pulling away to go to Gabe.
Gabe didn’t wait for her to kiss him. He pulled her into his arms and held her, dropping a kiss on the top of her head. He drew in a deep breath, and Carly realized he was filling himself with her scent. She raised her head up to give him a gentle kiss before moving on to Dusty.
In his usual playful fashion, Dusty grabbed her hand and made a run for the French door, acting like he would run away with her. Carly loved his good humor. She playfully swatted him on the ass. “If you don’t behave, Dusty Lucas, I may have to spank you.”
Dusty immediately fell to the floor on his knees. “Please, please,” he begged. His antics sent the whole group into gales of laughter. Carly bit her lip trying to look severe, but she couldn’t pull it off, and Dusty’s comic act had lightened the atmosphere considerably.
She ran her hands through his wild strands of honey-blond hair, brushing them back from his forehead to see his bright eyes. He stared at her for a few moments, his eyes sparkling with merriment. Then suddenly, his arms went around her waist and his eyes grew serious.
“Don’t you ever leave us,” he said. “I couldn’t take it.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Carly whispered. “You can count on that.”
He pressed his face against her stomach, and she held him tightly, murmuring soft, comforting sounds as she caressed his hair. When he rose, he gave her a boyish smile and dropped a kiss on top of her head.
“How can you always make me feel better?” Dusty asked.
“Because you do the same for me,” Carly said.
As always, Shane waited quietly, watching her with eyes full of love. She sat down on his lap, facing him, and put her arms around his neck. “You’ve been so quiet, Shane. Are you doing okay?”
He put his forehead against hers and held it there. “I don’t like being afraid for you, Carly.”
She
drew back to look into his eyes. “Nothing’s going to happen to me, Shane. I promise.” Carly didn’t know how she could make that promise, but from somewhere deep inside she knew it was true.
Crawling off Shane’s lap, she looked around at the men.
“The house is crawling with Tomcats. Why don’t you all shift and go for a run?”
All faces swung toward her, and for the first time in days, they all looked simultaneously relieved. Who knew that was all it would take?
“Really?” Tyler asked. “You’d be okay with that?”
“Of course,” Carly said. She nodded toward the patio where two Tomcats stood keeping vigil. She heard several others talking beyond the kitchen door. “I couldn’t be safer than a baby in her mother’s arms. Besides, you guys need to relieve some stress.”
Dusty wiggled his brows. “Don’t we use sex for that?”
“We do,” Carly said with a laugh. “But I’m thinking there are some unhappy cougars and a discontented coyote in this room right now. And we can easily remedy that.”
Cougar ripped his shirt off and tossed it to the floor. “I don’t need a better invitation than that.”
Shane toed off his cowboy boots. “Neither do I.”
Dusty was already naked, standing impatiently near the French doors. Gabe tossed a shirt toward him, and it fluttered around Dusty’s face. “How do you get naked so fast?”
“Lots of practice,” Dusty said.
Tyler’s jeans hit the tile, and he walked toward her in all his naked glory. He grabbed her and lifted her into the air. “Thank you, darlin’. This is exactly what we need.” He kissed her quickly on the mouth then set her on the floor.
She felt the hairs on her arms prickle and lift as a misty radiance enveloped the room. Within a moment, four cougars and a coyote stared at her, their eyes glowing with a soft yellow incandescence.
“I’ll be waiting upstairs.” She opened the French door and stood aside, laughing. “Now go out and roar. When you’re purring, come back to me. I want all of you close to me tonight.”
She watched as they loped off into the night, waved to one of the Tomcats, then closed the door to wait for her men.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Viper glanced at his Rolex. Four-fifteen. The man should fucking be up preparing for the day. “Press it again,” he snapped.
Talon jabbed his finger against the doorbell, this time leaning on it. Much better. From the interior of the dark ranch home, Viper heard a man’s furious voice moving closer and closer. “I’m fucking coming. Get your finger off the goddamn buzzer, you idiot!”
The door was yanked open at the same time a light switched on in the foyer. The door bounced against a piece of furniture as the man continued yelling at the top of his lungs. “I said lay off the buzzer, you piece of—”
The man’s mouth dropped open as Talon removed his finger from the buzzer and stepped back. Viper took a step forward and let his gaze travel from the man’s wide horrified eyes down the open robe, which revealed a pair of satin boxers, to his bare feet. He lifted a brow as the man quickly swept hands over his bedhead then scrabbled for the ties to the robe. He fumbled for a moment, but finally, the boxers disappeared beneath the cotton.
“Sir, I…” He ran his hands through his long hair again then straightened up and stared straight ahead. “Sir. Welcome to Catamount, sir.” His glance tentatively fluttered to Viper then shot up to stare into the distance again.
Viper nodded. “Alvarez. I hope we’re not intruding.”
“No, sir. Of course not, sir.” He tugged at the robe’s belt.
Talon took a step toward the door and tilted his head. “Then why are we still standing on the porch?”
Alvarez swallowed, nearly gulping as he lurched backward. “Please come in, sir. Excuse my manners.”
Talon went in first, his head swiveling right then straight to peer down the darker hallway. “Anyone in the house?”
“No, sir,” Alvarez said. “Not tonight.”
Viper stepped over the threshold and closed the door. “Not tonight, eh?” He chuckled. “Does that mean you get lucky on a regular basis, Alvarez?”
The man smiled tentatively. “Fairly regular, sir.”
“Well, that doesn’t surprise me,” Viper said. “You’re a good-looking man. It’s why I chose to station you here in Catamount.”
“There is a pretty strong resemblance between us,” Alvarez said with another smile, this one a bit more confident. “I imagine you get your share of tail too, sir.”
Viper lashed out and gripped the man by his hair. He yanked him forward then down. The man fell to his knees, and the sound of a crunching bone vied for prominence over the man’s cry of anguish.
Viper leaned down to stare into the man’s face. “My sex life is none of your business,” he hissed. “Is that understood?”
“Cl–clearly, sir.” He ended his small sentence with a moan.
Viper lifted his chin in Talon’s direction, and Talon, being the good soldier he was and knowing his place, knew exactly what to do without a bunch of jibberish and small talk. He grabbed the man under the arms and hauled him upright. Alvarez wobbled for a minute but didn’t fall down. Viper chuckled at his thought. He’d always liked those little Weeble people. He’d played with them as a child. Now though was not the time to think of childish things.
Alvarez’s eyes were a bit hazy. Viper regretted having been so rough. Alvarez looked like he might pass out from the pain. Well, he’d just have to make this quick. Talon seemed to sense Alvarez’s instability because he physically manhandled the injured man into a more upright position.
“How long have you been working Catamount security?”
“Seven months, sir. It…it…” He drew in a deep breath then gritted his teeth. “It took me six months to get in the inner circle. To be…trusted.”
“You’ve been cleared for Cattail security in the last day or so?” Alvarez blinked a few times. Viper snapped his fingers in front of the man’s face. “Anyone home?”
“Y–yes, sir. Sorry, sir.” He licked his lips and tried to focus. “I was called by security yesterday. I went and got my cr–credentials and pass. I’m to r–report this morning at six.”
“Good,” Viper said. “That fits in nicely with my plans. Where is your pass?”
“In the drawer.” Alvarez nodded to the small foyer table tucked behind the door. It was askew after the door pounding it had received earlier.
Viper tugged the drawer open and found a security badge, a gate pass, and a small earbud he assumed was for communication. He snapped on the table lamp and studied the credentials. Jorge Alvarez, age thirty-seven. Viper had to admit the photo looked almost exactly like him. But the hair was shorter. Damn. He’d just gotten his hair the length he liked best.
“Fuck,” he muttered. “Why is my life filled with fucking complications?”
Below the photo was a thumbprint.
That was not a problem.
“All in a day’s work,” Viper murmured to himself with a smile.
He tapped the pass against his palm for a moment then slid it and the badge into his pants pocket. He put the earbud into the inside pocket of his black jacket.
“Any uniform required for this assignment?” he asked.
Alvarez nodded. “In the closet. There are two sets.”
Viper rolled his eyes. Wasn’t it just like the Lucas brothers to require the hired help to wear a uniform? Well, he could go along with it for one day since, by the end of it, he’d have accomplished what he’d set out to do. He opened the closet door to find two pairs of black pants and two shirts in a nauseating goldenrod color tucked inside a garment bag. “Fuck. They’re cougar colors. What a bunch of self-absorbed pricks. It’s like high school all over again. Go fucking Cougars.”
He turned back to Alvarez after hanging the garment bag on the doorknob. The man wasn’t holding up very well. Apparently his knee hurt quite a bit.
“You’ve bee
n preparing for this a year, Jorge. The time’s come for you to fulfill the mission. Are you ready to do that?”
“Yes, s–sir. Anything for you, s–sir.”
“Glad to hear that.”
He nodded toward Talon, and his soldier took a step backward. Alvarez swayed.
As he lurched forward, Viper only had enough time to see Alvarez’s eyes widen in fear. His jaw extending double its usual size, he snapped his mouth closed and pierced his victim’s skin, locking his teeth into the man’s throat. He hissed in pleasure as the venom exploded from his fangs, entering the man’s bloodstream and killing him before he could draw a breath to scream. Alvarez dropped to the floor, and Viper wiped a finger across his mouth then licked at the venom on his finger.
“That was easy enough.” He turned to Talon. “See if you can locate a pair of scissors. The bastard cut his hair recently, so we’ll need to take care of mine.” Talon started down the hallway toward the kitchen. “Oh, and, Talon…”
He turned sharply. “Yes, sir?”
“Make sure they’re sharp. I’m going to need that thumb.”
* * * *
During breakfast, the five men discussed security plans, and then Carly saw most of her men off to various locations around Cattail. Each would conduct an orientation concerning security with smaller contingents of specially selected temporary personnel. Dusty had headed off to the stables to organize perimeter patrols, Shane to the ranch office to make plans on guarding the stock, and Cougar would man the security building. Gabe was going into town to meet with several Homeland agents about potential fallout. All four would be providing information about the threats, possible infiltrations, and recommended measures for dealing with an incursion. Tyler remained behind, and when she’d closed the French door and turned toward him, he tucked his hands around her face, his thumbs caressing her cheekbones.
