Leopard's Run

by Christine Feehan

  “It’s nice in here.”

  “It is.”

  The way he looked at her, his blue gaze wholly focused on her, was a bit disconcerting. He always saw too much, and right then she was feeling extremely vulnerable.

  “Ashe, how did your female know there were other males in the house? Was she able to smell them?”

  “No, I asked her that question. I was a little shocked that she knew, but then thought maybe the scent-blocker didn’t work on females. She indicated otherwise, but then she didn’t elaborate. Obviously, I have a connection with her, but I don’t always know how to ask questions to make her understand what I need from her.”

  “Ask her again, Ashe. We need to know.”

  Ashe wandered around the room, mainly to put a little distance between her female and Temnyy. She could feel her female’s attraction to the big cat and didn’t want the leopard’s hormones raging, not when Fyodor and Evangeline would be there any moment, presumably with bodyguards close.

  Godiva, how did you know the others were here?

  The silence stretched for so long Ashe was afraid she wouldn’t answer. Eventually the little female gave the impression of stretching. I sense them with my whiskers. My fur. They rub against furniture or walk on the floor and the scent isn’t there, but that doesn’t mean I cannot feel their passing. They aren’t ghosts. They leave behind a trail.

  Elated, Ashe swung back to Timur. “She says they aren’t ghosts and they leave behind a trail. If she can sense them, even with the scent-blocker, we should all be able to do so, especially the leopards.”

  She couldn’t help the excitement in her voice. “We’re relying on our normal senses because we’re programmed that way, but from having a leopard, I know there are other senses we haven’t yet tapped into. Their fur and whiskers act like radar for them, telling them something’s close and what it is. Our hair does the same because we’re shifters, right? So, if other leopards touch anything or even walk on the floors, they have to leave something of their passing. That’s just the way it is.”

  He nodded slowly and went to the small table where a decanter of scotch sat with four glasses. He poured himself a small drink and sipped at the amber liquid. “She has something there. It’s a way to track them when they think they’re invisible. I’ll give that some thought.”

  She liked the way he gave weight to Godiva’s remark. It wasn’t as if her female had given him a lot to go on. There was nothing all that specific, but Ashe knew she was telling her the strict truth as she saw it.

  The door opened and Fyodor came through, followed by Evangeline. Ashe could see Evangeline was doing her best to get around her husband, but his hold on her was very secure and there was no way for his wife to break free. When he had assured himself that Timur and Ashe were alone in the room, Fyodor released Evangeline. She rushed to Ashe and hugged her tightly.

  “I saw what happened, Ashe. We were watching on the monitors. I’m so sorry, that must have been terrible for you.”

  “I hate to say this, but it was easier shooting the man than the leopard,” she admitted, grateful to get the truth off her chest. “Leopards are so beautiful, and although Godiva didn’t want him to harm us, she thought him magnificent.”

  Timur nearly dropped his glass of scotch. “Magnificent? Temnyy is already royally pissed at her, I can’t imagine what he’ll think about that.”

  “He wouldn’t think anything if you didn’t have a big mouth,” she pointed out.

  “Why Godiva?” Fyodor asked.

  Ashe tried not to squirm. She’d just called her cat “baby” for a long while, when she didn’t know her and the leopard wouldn’t respond. She tried to coax her to come out and visit, especially when she was lonely, but that hadn’t happened. Then, the first blazing hot, urgent need for a man hit. It was wild and uncomfortable, and Ashe had stripped naked and tried to alleviate the terrible burn that refused to stop.

  She shrugged, rather than tell on herself. She had been Lady Godiva, running around nude, because she couldn’t stand material against her skin while trying to figure out how to put out a fire that was only partially hers. She felt Timur’s eyes on her and tried not to look at him. When she did, those blue flames were back. He knew. He might not know exact details, but he knew. Godiva, the little hussy, had probably ratted her out and told Temnyy.

  “You did good, Ashe,” Fyodor said. “I didn’t expect you to be such a good shot or have such quick reflexes. I thought that leopard had you.”

  Ashe shook her head. “I wasn’t about to let him have my female. She might have enticed him there, but she didn’t want him and she wasn’t ready.” She couldn’t help the indignation in her voice.

  Timur smiled at Ashe and then switched his attention to his brother. “They got that scent-blocker from someone.” His gaze flicked to Evangeline. “And they knew the layout of the house, with the exception of the safe room. They’d never been here before, and yet they knew.” He was careful. Fyodor was very protective when it came to Evangeline and wouldn’t want any accusations made against her family, especially if she was trying to reconcile with them.

  Fyodor didn’t respond. That could be good or bad, but Timur continued. “I’m head of security and if I’m going to protect both of you, I need to know everything going on in this house. Fyodor, you know that. You can’t tie my hands like you have.”

  Both women turned toward the men. Evangeline sank into one of the deep chairs. “It’s my fault, not his, Timur.”

  Timur shook his head. “No, Evangeline, it isn’t. Fyodor knows what it means to protect others. If he wants to stay alive and wants me to keep you alive as well, I have to know everything, down to the smallest detail. There can’t be secrets.”

  Evangeline’s eyes met Fyodor’s. Fyodor nodded. “He’s right, baby. I’ve tied his hands and so have you. It has to stop. Now, more than ever, we have to be careful. Once I received your texts, Timur, I realized we were under more threats than one.”

  Timur nodded. “That’s very clear.”

  “Not to me,” Ashe said. “I knew I was being followed when I came here …”

  “Apostol Delov is a messenger. He was hired by Lazar to find your parents,” Fyodor said. He looked at his brother. “I haven’t had a chance to tell you yet, but Drake got back to me and said that a war is brewing between Ashe’s grandfather and Lazar. Her grandfather is really upset that his son, and only heir, was murdered and that a hit team was sent after his granddaughter. Apparently, he had agreed to the killing of his daughter-in-law, who stole his son from him, but not her husband or daughter. Lazar apologized and blamed the team in the field, but the apology wasn’t accepted.”

  “From now on, have Drake include me in all communication,” Timur ordered, half expecting his brother to give him trouble.

  “Yes, of course, it’s already done. A meeting has been set up for three days from now. It was the soonest everyone could get here,” Fyodor said. “It also gives Drake more time to tap into his sources to find out if more opium is being shipped out with perfume orders. We need to know if the factory is being used again in spite of the fact that it was shut down. We also need to know whether or not an alternate route has been set up.”

  “Do you think my uncles are involved?” Evangeline asked.

  Timur saw his woman put her hand over Evangeline’s to comfort her. “It’s possible, even probable that one or both might be. Has either of them been to this house?” He had to ask, and he didn’t look at Fyodor as he did. He knew, because his men communicated with him, that her father had been there.

  Pain slid into Evangeline’s expression. Not just pain. Sorrow. That got him in the gut, but Timur had to know everything. He was responsible for her, Fyodor and Ashe. As far as he was concerned, he was responsible for all of his men as well. Quite a few of them had abandoned the lairs and followed him to the United States. That made them his responsibility.

  Evangeline’s chin went up. She didn’t break easily. She was a strong
woman and she’d faced adversity head-on. Timur not only adored her, he was proud of her toughness.

  “My father and Uncle Gilbert came with my brother, Ambroise. Uncle Gilbert and my father stayed in the poolroom while I visited with my brother,” she said. “If someone betrayed me, it was Ambroise. We weren’t raised together. I barely saw him when I was a child. I’d hoped he would become part of my family here.”

  “Did you show him the house?”

  She nodded. “He asked for a tour and I didn’t think anything of it. Lots of visitors ask for a tour.”

  His eyebrow shot up. “Lots of visitors? Who comes here, and why the fuck don’t I know about it?”

  Evangeline winced. Ashe glared at him, and Fyodor spun around and took a step toward him as if he might actually swing at him.

  “The women. You know. Saria, Drake’s wife, came one day with him. They brought their son. Siena, Elijah’s wife, came with the triplets. I had Jake’s wife here one day when he was talking business with Fyodor. You were here at all times when they were. Emma, Jake’s wife, brought all three of her children. Catarina came with Eli and their son. He was here the same day as Elijah to talk with Fyodor.”

  “Who else?”

  “Jeff asked for a tour, but I told him not under any circumstances.” She tapped the arm of the chair with nervous fingers.

  “What the fuck was he doing here?” Fyodor demanded. “And when did he show up?”

  “You and Timur were out, and he wanted to talk. He’s actually very sweet, Fyodor. He didn’t ask a single question about you. He wanted someone to bounce things off of, and we get along very well.”

  “Your husband doesn’t get along with him and I don’t want you alone with him in this house or anywhere else for that matter.” Fyodor all but hissed the words. Cold. Like a snake. Timur knew that tone. It wasn’t a good one. If Jeff didn’t leave Evangeline alone, he was going to disappear one day.

  “I was hardly alone with him, honey,” Evangeline said. “I made certain Gorya stayed in the room with us every minute. He was across the room, but he’s leopard, he could hear every word said.”

  “And why wouldn’t my cousin report to me or Timur, the head of security, that a cop had come to visit you?” Fyodor asked, his voice even colder.

  “He did, and so did I,” Evangeline said. “We both referred to him as the detective. You asked if he was specifically questioning about anything and I said no. So did Gorya. Gorya said he had no idea why he came and I did as well, because neither of us did.”

  “Don’t give me that load of crap,” Fyodor snapped. “If you’d said Jeff Meyers, I would have known exactly who he was and you know it.”

  Evangeline shrugged. “I’m not getting a good man killed because you’re jealous.”

  Fyodor turned away from her, his eyes on Timur’s face. Timur nodded without hesitation. He would be paying the cop a visit and one way or another, the matter would be closed.

  “Let’s get back on track, Evangeline,” Timur said smoothly. He didn’t glance at Ashe because he had the feeling she saw the look that passed between his brother and him. “Who else came to visit recently that I might not know about?”

  “Charisse Mercier is a friend of mine from when I was a teen. I was very alone, and Saria introduced us one day. After that, she would come to see me, and she brought books and food. She’s one of the few friends I have. She was in San Antonio on business and she came with her brother, Armande. That was about three weeks ago. You were visiting Mitya, and Gorya was on Fyodor when he went to see someone.” She waved her hand at him dismissively. “Vitaly was here and he watched very closely.”

  “Was it an arranged visit?” Timur dug deeper, not liking all the suspects. He could dismiss Saria and Drake, Eli and his wife, Elijah and his wife, they were all allies. He knew Jake Bannaconni was also an ally. That gave him Charisse and Armande Mercier, Jeff—but he was a good cop and it was absurd to consider him—and Ambroise Tregre, Evangeline’s brother.

  “No, as I said, she had business in San Antonio and she came to see me.”

  “With her brother.”

  “Yes, they often travel together. They’re good people, Timur.”

  “Good people tend to drop friendships when they believe their friend is married to a gangster,” Timur pointed out. “That goes with the territory.”

  “Not my friends. I only have four, aside from the women I’ve recently met through Fyodor. Those four friends, Saria, Charisse, Bijou and Ashe have stayed loyal to me. Bijou, by the way, is married to a cop. They came to visit as well, but you know that because you and Fyodor were both here.”

  That was true. He’d discounted them because Remy, a detective, was Drake’s brother-in-law and a good man. They had ties to the swamp, but he couldn’t see Remy or his wife, Bijou, a very famous singer, being involved with the sale and distribution of opium.

  “Then your brother Ambroise came to visit.”

  Evangeline nodded. “It was the first time I’d seen him in two years. He said he wanted the chance to get to know me. He hated that he’d gone along with our father and pretended I was dead. He sounded very sincere and I couldn’t detect any lies. Although, Timur, I wanted him to be telling the truth, so maybe I didn’t listen as well as I should have.”

  “What does he do?”

  “He works for Charisse’s company right now, designing their labels. He’s very artistic and has paintings hung in galleries. He said he likes his job. He did tell me that Christophe wanted to come but couldn’t because he was busy that day. He asked me to invite them both for dinner one night so they could meet Fyodor and you and maybe Christophe could get a job with you.”

  Timur sighed. He hated crushing Evangeline’s dream of her family becoming closer to her. He also had to protect her—even from herself. She might hate him after, but he would know she was safe. He risked a look at Ashe, hoping this exchange, where he was interrogating his sister-in-law, hadn’t made her want to run even more. She sent him a look from under her heavy lashes, but he couldn’t interpret it. She also wasn’t a woman to keep quiet if she believed someone was out of line—even him—and she remained quiet.

  “Does Ambroise have a good memory?”

  Evangeline ducked her head, and he knew he wasn’t going to like her answer. “He didn’t need to. He sketched pictures to show Christophe,” she said. “He showed a couple of quick sketches to me. He’d drawn them on a Post-it note I had by the coffee table and the drawing was extremely accurate. I love the house and was proud of it,” she added in a little rush.

  “Of course, you are,” Ashe said. “I would be. No one is going to blame you for showing off your home, least of all Timur, right?” She looked up at him expectantly.

  “I think that’s natural, Evangeline,” he forced himself to agree. Mostly he thought their women should be locked up somewhere safe where no one could ever get to them. Bars on all windows and doors seemed reasonable.

  “Charisse has nothing whatsoever to do with opium and neither does Armande.” Evangeline rubbed her temples. “My head is killing me. I know Charisse wouldn’t do this. Ambroise, I hope wouldn’t, but I don’t know. Honestly, if he’s anything like my uncle or father, he might. Charisse and Armande were heartbroken over what their mother had done, using their factory to distribute drugs, so they monitored it very closely. I just don’t see how …” She trailed off, pressing a hand to her mouth as if she couldn’t say another word.

  Fyodor went to her immediately. “I think we’re done for a while, Timur. Evangeline needs a break. She’s been sick quite a bit lately. She can’t seem to keep any food down.”

  “The cleaners are taking care of the house,” Timur said. “Gorya is overseeing that right now. Kyanite and Rodion are both here. Vitaly is here. I’ve got men patrolling the grounds. You should be safe. I need to take Ashe somewhere private but still stay close. Her leopard could emerge at any time, and I don’t want Temnyy to have to fight off half my men and possibly kill them in or
der to keep his mate.”

  “Take the guesthouse,” Fyodor said instantly. “It’s a distance from the main house, and you can instruct the men to keep their leopards away when patrolling that side of the property. For once, they can patrol as humans, not cats.”

  “They aren’t going to like that,” Timur said. He turned his brother’s solution over and over in his mind. While doing so, his gaze fell on his sister-in-law. She looked abnormally pale and she’d definitely lost a few pounds. Concern washed through him. “Evangeline, have you seen the doc?” He looked at his brother for the answer, even when he put the question to her.

  Fyodor shrugged. “I made her go last week.”

  “And?”

  Fyodor and Evangeline exchanged a long look. Timur waited, his heart racing. They couldn’t lose her. She centered them all. Even Mitya gravitated toward her and Mitya seemed to be a lost cause.

  “I’m pregnant,” Evangeline said after a long pause.

  Elation swept through him and he found himself smiling like an idiot. “That’s good, that’s good, isn’t it?” Somewhere along the line it occurred to him that neither his brother nor Evangeline seemed happy.

  “I have some complications,” she admitted. “That’s why we weren’t telling anyone.”

  “Should you be in bed?” Now Timur was back to looking at his brother. Fyodor might be wrapped around her finger, but her health and safety were everything to him and he wouldn’t hesitate to use whatever means it took to make his woman stay in bed if the doctor ordered it.

  Evangeline shook her head. “Not yet. Mostly, I’m just sick all the time. I’ve already lost fifteen pounds and I’ve been dehydrated several times.” She shrugged. “Other women have the same problem, Timur, I’m not unique.”

  “What causes it? Or is it normal?” Timur asked.

  Fyodor scowled at the thought that some illness dared to come to Evangeline. “It’s normal to be nauseous, and have sickness in a pregnancy, but this is more than that. There are several causes. In this case, it’s a multiple pregnancy. That’s why Siena was visiting. To talk to Evangeline about what it’s going to be like.”