He gathered up his clothes in silence and carried them into the living room before getting dressed. Lucan slipped on his shoes and made his way to the door of Jamie’s apartment.
Lucan stepped outside and closed the door as quietly as he could manage. If he could hide from the military at Luna Lodge, he should be able to get away from Jamie’s place without waking her up.
That didn’t mean he had to like it. He was a piece of shit. If she asked him later, he wouldn’t deny it. There was no doubt in his mind.
They’d shared something wonderful, and now here he was slipping out in the early morning like some sort of criminal ashamed of what he’d done.
Meanwhile, Jamie slept naked and comfortable in her bed. A piece of him ached to go back and snuggle into the warmth of her body. He’d certainly done so over and over the night before.
No. It didn’t matter. He shook himself, trying to keep focused on why he was leaving to begin with.
Now wasn’t the time for a mate. The incident in town only proved how dangerous things had become for anyone connected to the hybrids.
Jamie might have gotten away from the woman, but the next time it could be more than one, or they might have a gun.
Lucan bit back a growl at the thought of Jamie being killed.
Right now, the best way to protect her was to stay away from her. Maybe it was too much to ask for the Group to be destroyed before they could be together, but at least they needed to get the mind-control crap figured out.
Something in the back of his mind kept needling him, telling him that she was strong enough for this, but he pushed that voice back down.
It didn’t matter how strong she was. He could never forgive himself if she was hurt.
As he crept down the stairs, he thought about A.J. Kinkaid. He had no real memories of the man, other than vaguely remembering the name.
It was strange, really, to have someone he barely knew have so much influence over his life, to have someone who had been responsible for causing him so much pain be a mere ghost in his thoughts.
The scientist would pay. The entire damn Horatius Group would pay.
Lucan lingered for a moment at the bottom of the stairs, peering around the area and listening intently. He was leaving to help protect Jamie.
The last thing he wanted to do was leave if some enemy was nearby waiting to snatch her up. A few long moments of searching revealed nothing suspicious.
He sniffed, but didn’t smell anything surprising. Even the unusual scents of Leah and Jamie were familiar by now. Nikon’s scent lingered, but weakly.
Now, more confident in his actions, he headed over to his bike.
Lucan hopped on. He needed to head to his hideout in the old mine. He needed to clean up before he met with Cato and Colonel Hall.
* * *
By the time Lucan showed up, the room held seven people, several hybrids along with Colonel Hall and Sergeant Morris. He was surprised to find Nikon sitting in the corner. A part of him hoped Nikon would drown his sorrows in a night of pleasure.
The other hybrid’s stone face didn’t reveal anything about what happened between him and Leah. Lucan doubted anything really had, though.
He’d heard nothing like a car pulling away when he awoke, and Nikon’s scent was already weak over at the apartment building, suggesting he’d left much earlier, if not the night before.
Light chatting filled the room, but the small size led to it forming a surprising din.
“Okay,” Cato said at the head of the conference table. “Let’s get this started.”
Everyone grew quiet as they stared at the current leader of Luna Lodge.
“This is my elite group,” he said. “You are the only ones to know the truth about Lucan and Rollo. It needs to stay that way for now to protect their safety and the mission. We all know how ruthless our enemy is. They’ve proven it time and time again. The bombing was a bloody reminder.”
Several men turned to him and mumbled their understanding. He wasn’t really one who like having the attention of the room and seemed grateful when Colonel Hall rose.
“Thanks to the intel found by Nikon and Lucan,” she said, “we might have a lead on who caused the explosion. We were able to compare the name with people who moved into the area within the past year. And then those that were of the right age.”
This was all news to Lucan, but maybe he shouldn’t have been surprised. Having the military on their side meant that they had access to their resources as well, something they had only been able to gain temporary access through hacking before.
“The two teachers who left after the bombing seem to have been targeted by another mind-controlled person, but it was two towns over,” Cato said. “We don’t think that this was random. We checked out the people living in that general area and came up with two possible addresses.”
Lucan sat up in his seat. They could catch this bastard. Maybe he could be with Jamie sooner than he thought.
“I’m sending in both soldiers and hybrids too work together as a unit,” the colonel said. “We need to show unity if we’re ever going to change the opinions of anyone higher up.”
Surprise struck Lucan. This wasn’t in direct violation of her orders, but it was clear that she would be hearing about this from her superiors if it didn’t pan out like they hoped, especially given how skeptical the general already was about the whole mind-control story.
“Nikon and Calix will form a squad with myself, Sergeant Morris and one of her men,” Cato said. “Lucan and Colonel Hall with her men will form the other squad.”
Lucan nodded and looked over to the older woman. It seemed she wasn’t above putting herself out on the field with the rest. He could admire that, along with everything else she was risking by helping the hybrids.
“This isn’t an assault mission,” Colonel Hall said. “This is an intel-gathering operation. I know all about your past treatment and how some of you may want vengeance, but if you’re planning to go in there guns blazing and ready for a show down, think again.” She stared down every hybrid in the room. “We need calm heads. We need evidence. We need to take these people alive so they can be interrogated.”
The gathered hybrids nodded.
Despite his thirst for vengeance, the plan made sense to Lucan. If the hybrids were ever going to clear their names, it wasn’t going to be done by busting into places and blowing shit up. Much of the public already thought they were ruthless out-of-control killers.
They needed to show everyone just how far the Horatius Group and even people in the US government were willing to go. Even though the government had done a lot to downplay the Group attacks on Luna Lodge, the part not under the control of the Group would be forced to acknowledge how dangerous the Group was to everyone once the hybrids found their mind-control evidence.
“What about the local authorities?” Lucan asked.
“We can’t be sure they’ve not been compromised,” the colonel said. “It’s better to ask forgiveness than permission. I’ve arranged to have them contacted shortly after the mission starts, that way they can’t come and interfere if they are compromised, but are still informed. I’ll worry about the clean up.” She stared at him. “Let’s just hope that this turns up something. Otherwise I’ll have a lot of explaining to do.”
Lucan nodded, again impressed with her willingness to take chances to help the hybrids.
“Now everyone gear up and be ready in ten,” Colonel Hall barked.
Lucan stood and caught the eye of Nikon. The other hybrid seemed oddly calm after yesterday.
“Looks like we’re going to get this guy,” Nikon said. “I mean if this is the guy behind the mind-control, then he’s directly responsible for a lot.” A muscle in his jaw twitched as he spoke.
Lucan lifted a brow. “You going to be able to do this? The colonel’s right. We need the bastard alive at first.”
Nikon stared at him, his expression calm. “I want to see that bastard pay. If we catch him,
we’ll get every last piece of information out of him, and then I’m sure he’ll pay. I have faith that he will.”
Faith. He wasn’t even sure if he knew what that was anymore. It seemed like they had faith that things would get better and kept getting fucked over.
Lucan didn’t truck with faith. He dealt with things that he could put his hands on, and the bastard A.J. Kinkaid was one of them.
Chapter Twelve
The bright rays of the sun filtered through Jamie’s blinds, annoying her. She’d been totally comfortable before Mr. Big Ball of Heat and Light had forced her awake from her peaceful slumber. She wished for about the millionth time that she could throw a shoe at the sun, because the bastard star totally had it coming.
Her head throbbed. Too much late-night fun with Lucan, too many drinks, and not nearly enough water only made her mouth dry and a little scratchy. Not that she would trade the previous night for anything.
Jamie had never experienced that kind of pleasure. She didn’t even know you could.
She smiled just thinking about everything they had done. Over and over and over again, Lucan had brought her to the brink. She didn’t even think it was possible to go that many rounds. No man she’d ever been with before had. Then again, Lucan was a hybrid and not a normal man.
When she tangled herself in the sheets, she could still feel the tenderness that great sex always brought. And this wasn’t just great. Best ever and mind-blowing might be more accurate descriptions.
Jamie was glad she didn’t realize what she was missing out on before. It would have made Lucan avoiding her earlier much more painful.
Maybe she needed to give him a playful punch in revenge, but after a little more fun. She hoped he was ready for a morning round or two. She didn’t care about her throbbing head.
If he were still asleep, she’d just have to wake him up with the help of her hands and mouth.
Jamie reached an arm out on the bed, expecting to find a huge, solid man lying next to her. Instead, cold and empty sheets met her hand.
Jamie opened one eye and stared at the other side of the bed.
Empty.
Huh. So much for her morning fun. Maybe Lucan was in her kitchen cooking up breakfast in bed.
She sniffed the air. Nothing delicious. She didn’t hear any water running in her shower.
Jamie frowned, and her stomach tightened. No. It couldn’t be.
“Lucan?”
No answer came from the apartment.
“Damn it.”
Normally she would have gotten out of bed and looked around, but Lucan wasn’t a normal man. He was a hybrid with super hearing, and it wasn’t like she lived in a big place. If he were nearby, he would have heard her.
The implications made her stomach knot even more.
Jamie glanced around the room. He’d dropped his clothes on the ground the other night, but now they were all gone.
A runner, a damn runner.
“Son of a bitch,” she grumbled, and squished her face back into the pillow.
After all that super-sex, the super-human hybrid had skulked off like any other normal man in the end.
Jamie let out a loud groan.
Really, she should have expected it. Lucan hadn’t exactly promised her roses or breakfast in bed. In fact, she remembered him distinctly saying that she was his for the night.
She’d thought at the time he was just being passionate, but apparently he was just making his expectations clear.
That was it? One night? One lousy night?
Jamie sat up and glared at the room. She wanted to throw something, but that wouldn’t do any good. She rubbed her temples.
No. It was too damn unfair. There was no way she was going for that. Not with how amazing that one night had been, not after she’d finally caught Lucan’s attention. She could go a lifetime, or ten, and not meet another partner like him.
To top it off, she was fairly certain they were now mates or whatever. That’s what she’d overheard about the way hybrids worked. They weren’t supposed to be able to have just one-night stands. At least, that was what she’d thought.
Mates? The term was still so animalistic to her, but she knew it had meaning to his people. She wasn’t totally sure what it all entailed, but the quick way Wendy had gotten so wrapped up in Cato now made sense.
Wendy had been a bit evasive about some of what had gone on with Cato, but she’d let a few things slip. Jamie always sensed there was something more than just finally meeting the right guy. Of course, if she was having mind-blowing sex like that every night, it’d be explanation enough.
Jamie couldn’t deny though that she felt a deep pull to Lucan that went beyond just sex. It felt like it was the most logical thing in the world, and it really wasn’t. Her brain screamed at her about how she should be taking it slowly, but her body and very soul told her that Lucan wasn’t just a boyfriend, he might be her soulmate.
In any other situation, with any other man, she would be slapping herself and telling herself that she needed to get a grip, but with him, she didn’t want to.
The hybrid world was different. It moved in different ways than any of them could ever guess. Just because they looked like men didn’t mean they were fully human.
The more she thought about what had happened, the more she grew frustrated and confused. Everything she felt seemed right, but that suggested Lucan felt the same strong pull. Why in the hell was he running away like some guy she picked up at a club? Especially if they were mates?
Jamie sat up in bed and let the blanket fall off her. The feel of the cool air conditioning was refreshing after such a long night.
Maybe she needed to fight for Lucan to show that she really did feel the pull. It could be some weird hybrid cultural thing they just didn’t talk about. God knew normal men and women had all sorts of stupid rituals.
Whatever the truth was, she wasn’t going to let Lucan run away without feeling a little pain.
Jamie threw the covers to the side and climbed out of bed to find the sexiest lingerie she owned: a black see-through corset with matching panties and garter belt with stockings. The ultimate seduction weapon.
She slipped the soft lace material on and stared at herself in the mirror.
Oh, it was perfect. A little makeup and some heels would put the whole thing over the top.
“Run out on me, will he?” she said, and grinned. “Wait till he sees what he’s missing.”
Chapter Thirteen
The two raid squads stood just outside the target house near their vehicles, checking their weapons. The humans wore full tactical gear, including helmets. Other than communications equipment, the hybrids kept to just their weapons.
Lucan’s phone buzzed in his pocket. He frowned and pulled it out, worried that Jamie might be being tailed by some other mind-control townsperson, if not worse.
It wasn’t a call or a panicked text. It was a picture.
“Damn,” he mumbled, staring down at his phone.
Yeah, Jamie was about far from trouble as possible, though damn close to being trouble herself. The little vixen had sent him a damned photo of her looking hot as sin. He could already feel himself grow hard at the sight of her. A raid against a possible Horatius Group scientist was definitely not the time to be looking at pictures of your woman in lingerie.
He pocketed his phone and looked around to see who might have noticed.
Colonel Hall raised a brow. “Don’t remember her putting that on her resume when she applied for the job at the Lodge.”
Lucan frowned. He had a job to do. He needed to focus on the mission if he wanted to have any chance of actually being with his Vestal.
The colonel spoke to the men in hushed tones. “Surround the building. Look for anything strange,” she said. “If you find it, we go in unison. That way we make sure no one runs. Remember, this is an intel mission, not search and destroy.”
Everyone nodded and performed a final check on their weapons.
&
nbsp; Lucan took a deep breath. There was a good chance they’d capture a Horatius Group scientist, if not the man behind the mind control. His inner beast called for vengeance, but he pushed it down. He’d settle just for a good win against the Group. They’d been few and far between.
Weapons ready, the hybrids and soldiers hurried away from their vehicles to quickly surround the house. Lucan moved toward the side of the house, flattening himself against the wall next to a window.
After a few moments without gunfire, he peered into the window. He scanned the room as best he could from his vantage point. It didn’t take long before he spotted something that marked it as a Horatius Group house.
His heart started pounding. He had found two photos pinned to a corkboard hanging slightly above a large desk. Photos of Jamie and Leah.
Lucan keyed his throat mic. “I’ve got a visual of the teachers’ pictures on a desk.”
He waited a moment for confirmation.
“We’ve got visual,” Colonel Hall transmitted. “Move in on my mark. Three, two, one, mark.”
Heart pounding over the chance to catch A.J. Kinkaid, Lucan crashed through the window and then leveled his gun, searching the room for hostiles. There were no enemies in the room.
He could hear doors being kicked in, and the rushing of the other soldiers and hybrids, but he remained focus on his immediate environment.
“We’ve got civilians here,” a soldier reported over his mic. “They are being mind controlled.” No gun shots rang out. A few seconds passed. “They have been neutralized.”
Lucan smiled. The Group, even if it was just a small team, had been taken by surprise. He doubted they would have met so little resistance otherwise. Honestly, he’d half-expected something like a monstrous Glycon to be released from a hidden basement or something.
He quickly walked over to the desk where he’d spotted the pictures. A quick search revealed thick files containing pictures and piles of notes and reports concerning Jamie and Leah.
He let out a low growl. The Group obviously knew they were Vestals.
Lucan: #14 (Luna Lodge) Page 6
