“Tell me everything you know about project Genesis.” She ordered. This time around, Raoul wouldn’t get the easy way with her using her powers on him, this time she was going a different route.
“I don’t know what you're talking about.” He insisted.
“He’s lying.” Robert chimed in roughly. “I can smell it.”
“Me too,” Doyle attested.
Shooting a glare at first Robert and then Doyle as they regarded him wish stiff expressions, Raoul finally turned back at Aria. Sitting up straight, though fear lingered in his eyes, he scoffed at the gun within the tight confines on her hand.
“You’re not going to shoot me, so just put the gun away.”
Slowly, Aria allowed her arm to lower the gun to her side. Her gaze turned to look at all the faces fixed on her. Robert stood close to fearful Gabriella with his arms folded over his wide chest. At her side, Doyle regarded her in the same fashion. Deep in his eyes she could see the anger he hid and at the same time he worried what she was planning to do. Tapping her firearm against the side of her thigh, she turned her attention back on Raoul.
“You know; these past few months I've discovered a lot about myself and the person I used to be. But you know what else I've discovered?” Not waiting for a response, she raised the gun and shot Raoul's left knee. Jumping, he screamed out in pain as he held his bleeding limb. Beside her she could hear Gabriella gasp in fear at what she’d done. But she didn’t care. It was time for answers and she was going to get them. “You don't know what I will do to get to Malca and if you continue to jerk me around I will personally break every bone you possess, wait for you to heal and then do it again.”
As the floor creaked with movement to her side, Aria spun and raised her gun as Doyle approached to intervene. Pointing the gun at his face, she glared up at him. “Back off. We're doing this my way.”
“How many times do I have to take guns from you, Mate?” He smirked, raising his hands up in front of him in surrender.
“Clearly not enough,” Robert mumbled with humor.
Not finding the situation humorous at all, Gabriella fought against Robert’s retraining hand as she attempted to go to Raoul. “Do something!” She hissed at both Doyle and Robert.
Robert remained silent as he kept his mate out of the line of fire. Doyle’s eyes flicked back to his mate’s determined gaze. Dropping his hands to his sides, he took a step back. Silently demonstrating to his mate had his support and that she was in control.
Keeping his eyes locked on his mate’s hard blue eyes, he addressed Gabriella. “Aria is my mate and as such; that makes her the Alpha female here. I am with her in any decision she makes.”
Softening somewhat, Aria nodded at Doyle’s words. Turning back to Raoul she watched as he deeply inhaled through his nose as the snapping sound of his shattered knee cap quickly mended. Glaring up at her smirking lips Raoul sat motionless in stubborn silence.
Aiming at his other kneecap she stepped closer to Raoul with pure intent burning in her eyes. “Let's try this again. What do you know?”
Pain swimming in the depths of his black eyes, Raoul shook his head in denial. “I don't know anything—”
"Maybe I'll shoot this next." She mused with a slight smile, turning to aim at his crotch instead. “Will this heal too?”
Jerking his hands up in surrender, Raoul exclaimed, "Alright! Alright!" Lowering her gun, Aria took a step back as Raoul glanced cautiously between her and Doyle. Silently hoping that Doyle would renege on his decision and step in to take control of the situation, but Doyle stood firm beside his mate.
“Talk or you really will lose your favorite body part.” Aria said, unyieldingly.
Sighing heavily, he held up his hands in front of his chest. "I don't know much so I don’t know what I can tell you that will be of use."
"How about explaining why we saw files on Aria and you in a file marked "Genesis". Not to mention the images of people strapped to tables with their heads sliced open while Malca and her scientists did God knows what to them! Or even the photos of Malca’s soldiers slaughtering people!” Doyle snarled out as he stormed closer.
"Project Genesis was—is Malca's final initiative. It’s what she’d been working toward all these years, but before she could bring it into the light she needed access—government access. To get the access she needed she needed to throw some shiny enticements at some powerful people. That’s where the enhancement serum and cloned soldier came in. It was just a small step in the direction she was headed in."
"What exactly is project Genesis?" Aria asked with a grim expression, relaxing her aim she lowered her weapon to her side.
“As I’m sure from the files you’ve seen pictures of a massacred village?”
Aria’s lips thinned at the mention of the hundreds of horrifying images that Gabriella and Robert had shown her. “I saw pictures of soldiers killing woman and children without mercy.” She bit out.
Hesitating, Raoul swallowed before he answered, “That was the mission that Malca sent your brother on. It was a test run.”
Breathing heavy with emotion, Aria’s hand tightened around her gun. “A test run? My twin—my brother died on that mission! You bastard!” Lunging at Raoul, Aria was jerked back as Doyle decided to step in. Wrapping both of his arms around her, jerking her off her feet he carful took possession of her gun. “He died!” She cried out with anger. “So did other good men that were like my family!” Breath shuttering, Aria relaxed against Doyle’s arms as she fought for control.
"Don’t you think I know that? I knew some of those men. Do you think I like knowing what really happened to them? The purpose of the mission was to test the rebirth serum.”
“Rebirth serum? That doesn’t sound like something to enhance the soldiers.” Robert commented.
Raoul shook his head. “No. The rebirth serum was…” He trailed off unable to put it into words.
Shrugging off Robert’s retraining hand, Gabriella stepped forward to explain. “According to the file, it’s a specially developed serum that is injected through the center of the forehead and straight into the cerebrum of the brain, where amongst other things; thoughts and muscle control is. The researchers used to refer to the serum as the clean slate drug. It dulls the senses of the brain putting the subject into a strange, mindless trance. Subjects under the influence of the injections would obey orders the second they received them.”
“Exactly, imagine what Malca could do with an army of mindless enhanced soldiers or even if she used the serum on someone powerful.” Raoul stated
“Malca could have an army of super soldiers to wipe out every source of authority on this planet except for her own, if she wanted. There’d be no stopping her then." Doyle said with a horrified look.
“If what you say is true,” Aria began, stepping out of Doyle’s loosened embrace. “Why does Malca need me for this or you for that matter?"
“The rebirth serum can adapt to any person’s brain, but the enhanced soldiers that have breached or evolved, the serum has no control over them, which explains your Jedi mind tricks that you have. You and I were meant to be her generals when the time came.”
"Why didn't you tell us this from the beginning?" Doyle asked as he took a threatening step forward.
Shrugging, Raoul replied. "I was hoping to find a way out before it became an issue."
"So you were going to tuck tail and run—again." Aria stated with a scoff. Reaching out, she took her gun from Doyle before she tucked it back along the waistline of her jeans.
"No, I wasn't." Raoul denied with a shake of his head.
Resting her hand on her hip, Aria smirked coldly at him. "I don't believe you."
"Believe what you want, Aria. But the truth is you need me for this.”
“And why is that?”
Turning to look at Gabriella, Raoul stiffly rose to his feet while gripping his chair as a crutch. “You want to tell her or shall I?”
Biting her lip with indecision,
Gabriella flicked a glance to Robert before turning back to Aria’s waiting gaze. “In the files I read, it mentions a military base in White Plains, New York. I’ve been there once. It’s a heavy guarded base more than the White House or the Pentagon. There is no way that we could break in and get out of there alive.”
“What’s this we that you are revering to?” Robert growled out from beside her.
Turning to look up at Robert’s scowling face; Gabriella pushed her shoulders back as she lifted her chin defiantly. “This is my fight too. I’m going.”
“No, you can do your fighting right here, where you are safe.”
Holding up his hand, Raoul interrupted Gabriella before she could speak. “The point is; Malca may not know that I’ve defected. I could bypass the security and get us in.”
“And then what?” Doyle asked mockingly. “You plan to just break in and steal the serum? Am I the only person that see’s the facts here? Malca has had her researchers create this stuff before, us stealing or burning down that facility won’t stop her.”
Agreeing, Aria nodded her head unsatisfied, she raised her eyes to the other three. “Doyle is right. We can’t just risk our lives to destroy just one ant hill out of a whole colony. It won’t do us any good. Malca moves from facility to facility. As long as she’s alive; those places will continue to imprison people and mutate them into killing machines. There’s only one thing we can do to end this all.”
“What is that?” Robert asked, regarding her with a wary look.
“We kill Malca.”
18
Storming into his room after Gabriella, Robert slammed the door closed with enough force to shatter the windows. Spinning around to look at him with surprise, Gabriella could see how angry Robert was. The reason why was clear.
For most of the day, he’d been brooding after the incident in the security office. At dinner with his parents and other members of the pack, he’d sat stiffly beside her, refusing to speak to her. The only time she had heard him utter a word was when Aria, Doyle, and Raoul began to make plans for storming Malca’s facility the next evening.
During the planning, Robert had eyed her with a look of anger as she offered her own insight. She wouldn’t admit it to him, but the way he was acting hurt her. She wanted back the Robert that had claimed her with passion and tenderness. She wanted the man that had vowed to be there for her no matter what.
No matter how much she wished she could, she refused to back down now. This was her fight too and he would just have to pull on his big boy panties and accept it.
“What the hell did you think you were doing?” He snarled out, flashing his teeth at her.
“I’m not discussing this with you while you’re acting like this.” She stated calmly as she moved to the dresser.
Charging up behind her, Robert fumed when she made no move to say anything else. “We damn will discuss it now! What did you think you were doing volunteering to go take down Malca? Have you forgotten what happened to you not but a week ago?”
Spinning around with a long t-shirt clenched in her hand, Gabriella fought to keep her expression neutral. “Of course I haven’t forgotten. But this is my fight too. Plus; Doyle said I could go and that they may need me there.”
“Doyle isn’t your mate! I am! And I refuse to allow you to risk your life just so you can prove something to yourself!”
“This isn’t about proving something to myself.” She argued while unbuttoning her blouse with angry movements. How dare he tell her what she would and wouldn’t do! She wasn’t a child! She had as much right to fight Malca as Aria did. Why couldn’t he understand that?
“The hell it isn’t!” He shouted. Cursing, he spun away from her as he paced across the room.
Pulling over one of Robert’s t-shirts over her head, Gabriella removed the remainder of her clothes. “I don’t recall seeing Doyle act like this toward Aria. At least her mate trusts her abilities.” She mumbled.
Spinning around, his face a mask of rage, Robert strode towards her. Coming to a stop in front of her, he held up a single finger. “First off; you are not Aria. Aria is not only an enhanced soldier like Raoul, but she can control people’s minds at will.”
Shocked, Gabriella’s neck arched back at his revealing words. “I didn’t know that. Was that what Raoul meant when he said she’d breached? She never said anything about it.”
“It’s not something she likes to advertise. Trust me if it wasn’t for that fact and that she would hunt Doyle’s butt down with a shotgun and a flamethrower, my brother would insist that she remain behind too. As your mate, it is my job to protect you and take care of you. You will stay here while the rest of us go after Malca—and that is final.” He bit out firmly.
Outraged and with eyes blazing at his words, Gabriella cursed in Spanish so fiercely that Robert’s hard expression melted away to a startled one. “You can’t stop me! I’m a grown woman and I am capable of making my own decisions! I did so before you put your stupid mark on me and I will do so now.”
Narrowing his eyes at her, Robert rested a heavy hand on the dresser behind her as he leaned into her personal space. “Be careful what you say next, my mate. This is a fight with me you will not win. I love you more than my next breath, but hear me in what I say. Our relationship isn’t a partnership or a democracy. If I must take steps to ensure you listen to me—I will.”
“Typical; you don’t get your way and here comes the threats. I’m not scared of you, Robert. I know you would never hurt me.” She pointed out, shoving at her fallen hair.
With his free hand, Robert reached out to cup the side of her face with a touch so tender that it startled her in the mist of their argument. “Of course I would never hurt you. You are everything to me, Gabriella. Because of that I won’t sugar coat things for you. We don’t know what could be waiting for us when we go after Malca. It’s because of that reason that I won’t permit you to go. How many times do I have to say it? You are mine and I won’t let anything jeopardize that.”
“I am so sick of hearing you say that like I am a toy for you to claim possession of. I will be going with you to fight Malca.”
“You’re playing with fire, my beauty.” He warned as his stormy eyes began to burn into something else that gave her pause. “Perhaps it time I show you, what fire you are playing with.”
Threats don’t work and now he moves on to sex? Men!
“Don’t even think about touching me if you think you can walk all over me, idiota.”
Smirking down at her, he lowered his lips to skim across her forehead, down the side of her face to stop at the shell of her ear. “I would never want to walk all over you.” He whispered huskily. His warm breath teased the sensitive skin of her ear with each lowly uttered word. “But I am going to touch you. I’m going to touch and kiss and claim every part of you to show you how much you belong to me and me to you.”
Pointing a finger at him in warning, Gabriella’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t you even—”
Before she could finish her sentence, Gabriella found herself thrown across his shoulder before he made his way across the room and to the bed. Pushing up against his back, she fought the sensual electricity that hummed through her at his possessive touch. He thought he could change her mind with sex; he would be in for a surprise.
Two can play this game. She thought smugly to herself.
The moment her back touched the mattress, Gabriella gripped Robert by the back of his skull, preventing him from pulling away as she claimed his lips. Groaning into her lips, Robert’s hands reached down to take hold of the back of her knees. Jerking her legs up, he settled between her open thighs with a hungry growl.
Sliding her hands from around his head, she trailed her nails down the hard muscles of his chest; she smirked against his lips as his hips thrusted against her in response. Jerking away from her dancing mouth, Robert came away panted for air. Above her, his eyes glowed with the presence of his bear as a growl vibrated through his chest int
o hers. The sensation caused her nipples to pebble as her channel clenched with need. Fisting his hands in comforter beneath her, he pressed his forehead against hers as he attempted to reel in his beast.
Planting open kisses and small nips along his jaw, her lips made their way to his ear before pulling the lobe into her mouth. Beneath the material of his jeans, Robert’s cock jumped with response. Allowing the plump lobe to slide nearly from her lips, at the last instant Gabriella latched her teeth around it.
Groaning in painful desire, Robert’s breaths began to escape his lips in rushed pants. “You need to stop.” He warned, half heartedly.
“Why should I? And what if I don’t want to?” She murmured against the side of his neck.
Clawing at the comforter, Robert snarled as she bit down on the side of his neck, causing his cock to pulse harder with need. “Because my beast is too close, I cannot control him if you continue.”
“Then don’t.” She countered. “Give me everything you are if I am truly yours.”
Jerking away from her teasing lips, he captured both of her wrists to pin them above her head as he snarled down at her. “You doubt me still?”
“Then prove it.” She knew that she was pushing him too hard, but she was loving every second of it. Never before had she felt like this. The need to push him over the edge of his control consumed her. Whether it had been their heated fight or the bond between them, she couldn’t explain it. For the first time she forced her calculating mind to take a back seat as her body took over.
Rising above her, Robert jerked the front of his jeans open before shoving the offending material down his powerful legs. Kicking the material aside, he gripped her hips with both of his hands. Sliding her further up the bed, he came to settle between her splayed thighs once more.
She quivered with excitement as he held her gaze before lowering his face to her exposed sex. Without hesitation he covered her clit with his unrelenting mouth. Sucking at the tiny bundle of nerves, he dove in like a starving man. As she thrashed against the sensation of his hot mouth, his hands tightly pinched into her buttocks as he held her close to his face. Releasing her clit, Robert tongue began to torment her, sliding down the lips of her labia only to return to flick at her clit. Several times he repeated this, driving her need for him higher and higher.
Big, Bold & Bearing (Grizzly Affairs Book 2) Page 21
