“The good doctor has misunderstood me, Victrixa. Perhaps you could explain it to him. I’m late for a meeting across town.”
Across town? Ana thought. With Batiste?
“I’m afraid Cerberus has confused you, Doctor. I want the formula to produce only rogues. I want it to yield as few of the other mutated shifters as possible.”
“So, essentially, you’d like me to do the opposite of what was just done.”
“Yes. Is that problematic?”
“No. In fact, it should be rather easy, considering your latest scientist has already done much of the leg work. My concerns lie elsewhere.”
“Oh?”
“Madame, I don’t wish to insult you, but neither do I want my intelligence insulted. Roman was a very well-known and respected researcher. He disappeared somewhere in the depths of your organization and, even though it appears his work here is complete, he has yet to be seen by anyone. As you can imagine, there has been talk and I do not wish to put myself at risk for being the subject of similar commentary.”
Wow. Ana wondered how he was managing all that while staring into her mother’s ruined face.
“The last I knew, Roman took the large sum of money he made while working for us and retired. But you see, we made a mistake when we hired a human. Once our work was done, there was no way for him to move up in our ranks. We were forced to simply pay him what he demanded.”
“And, so, being a shifter, what assurances do I have that when my work is complete, I will have the freedom to choose whether I wish to stay and work further or go into retirement?” The male had an edge to his voice when he said that last word. This guy obviously had some stones.
“If you complete the work, I will make you an offer you won’t be able to refuse.”
Yeah, I’ll bet.
“But, nor will you want to. You see, Doctor, this is all just the beginning.”
James gleamed into the basement floor of the addy X gave him to be sure he wasn’t seen, then walked down the corridor of the San Juan Condado area apartment building. After he swept the second floor hallway, he jogged up the stairs and stopped in front of what was hopefully Jesse’s apartment. He knocked twice, and looked up and down the hall.
“Ya voy.”
A male voice. Good sign.
James quickly took a nip from his pinky nail while he waited. The door opened and he was face to face with a male who had the same soft dark eyes as his mate.
Jesse stared at him for a moment, then spoke in slightly accented English similar to Pax’s. “I know you. You were up on the hill at the burial with—”
Whoa. Okay, this was so not a convo for the hallway. He nodded and pushed past the male, taking him by the arm and bringing him farther inside.
“I was there. You must be Jesse?”
The male closed the door. “Yeah, yes. I’m sorry, do you work with Pax?” Jesse stepped closer, raising his head and smelling the air. “No, you’re with him, aren’t you?”
James couldn’t believe his ears. Jesse had picked up their scents. He was a shifter. Holy. Shit. “I’m James. I’m Pax’s mate.”
And didn’t he just smile in spite of himself? Wow. That packed a wallop the first time you said it out loud. “But I do also work with him. Listen, he doesn’t know I’m here, and I’m breaking a thousand rules right now. But I thought maybe you’d like to hear from him since—”
Jesse put up his hand. “Wait. Wait right here. Don’t go.”
James watched the male turn and rush down the hall. Jesse had obviously figured out this wasn’t going to be a long visit. He returned with an envelope in his hand.
“I’ve been playing soccer professionally abroad on Barcelona’s under twenty team, so I only just came back after my father’s first stroke last month. I finally told him what Pax had been doing all this time. I figured it couldn’t hurt, not with his condition deteriorating the way it was. He asked me to tell him everything I knew. He left this for Pax. He wrote it just before he died. Our father deeply regretted what happened between them. Please, can you give it to him?”
James took the offered envelope. “Of course.”
“I know what you do for our race, and I know that it’s very secretive, but do you think I could see him?”
“I can’t go into detail now, but it might be possible. I’ll have to talk to Pax. Are you going back to Spain?”
“Yeah, I thought I’d grab a flight at the end of the week.”
James put his hand on Jesse’s shoulder. “I can’t make any promises, but I’ll tell him.”
He turned to go, but felt a hand on his arm. He looked back at the male.
“You must love him very much to risk coming here. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
James smiled and dematerialized.
Pax walked through the main foyer with Sasha following along beside him. It wasn’t much of a surprise when he sensed Adriana in the library. Pax didn’t want her to hear it from anyone else and it wouldn’t seem real until he’d told her anyway. He poked his head in. The female was standing by the main table looking through piles of manuscripts. He led Sasha through the doorway.
“Knock-knock.”
Adriana’s head popped up. “Pax! Where have you been? You won’t believe…” Her voice trailed off and she rushed toward him with an excited squeal.
They met near Reyn’s desk and Pax picked her right up off her feet into a hug.
“Oh, Pax. I’m so happy for you.”
“Thanks, honey.”
She leaned back and kissed his cheek before he let her down. “When?”
Pax smiled. “Last night.”
Adriana put her fingertips to her temples. “That makes total sense. We summoned the Goddess last night.” She grinned. “I knew she wanted the two of you together.”
Pax thought back to how the moon had looked and his mind went right to how his male had looked in the water. He must have had a smile on his face to rival a Cheshire cat, because Adriana rubbed his arm and said, “God, you look great.”
“Yeah, remember what I said about not caring about being mated? What an ass.”
She giggled while she gave Sasha a pat. “Yeah, I kinda kept that one to myself.”
They walked to the table and he leaned lazily on his elbows, his chin in his hand. “Please tell me that there are breaks in the action. Don’t you people ever just wanna make popcorn and watch Scandal?”
Adriana sat up on the table next to him. “Oh, please. You just want to see what coat she’s wearing. Listen, wait ’til I tell you about what went on here last night. We were doing the incantation, and out of nowhere, the Goddess’s essence comes floating right out of Ana.”
“Like using a portal?”
“Exactly.”
Pax shook his head. “I knew something was up with her.”
“The Goddess told us they’re keeping her captive in their city, but then asked us not to go after her.”
“You’re kidding. I mean, it’s Reyn. He’s probably already packed.”
“He’s been pretty much keeping to himself since last night, but I don’t think anybody doubts it. All I know is he spoke to Richard briefly and said he’s staying long enough to officiate our second mating for our anniversary.” The female’s warm brown eyes suddenly lit with excitement. “Oh, my God. I have the best idea. How would you feel about sharing anniversaries?”
Pax straightened up. “Really?”
“Yeah, we can keep each other from forgetting. It’ll be great.”
“Are you sure you want to share your ceremony? What about Richard?”
“He’ll be happy if it’s what I want. Let’s do it, hon.”
Pax leaned down, and wrapped her up in his arms. “You are the best. You know that?”
“I know.”
Troy leaned back against the gym wall and took a long drag off his cig. He’d done an awesome job at quittin’. He rolled his eyes. Luckily, he never actually smelled like smoke, but wou
ld have to tell Evy sooner or later. Between the protective instinct, Evy’s pregnancy, and all the emotional waste bouncing off the mansion walls lately, he was lucky not to be in some psych ward somewhere. He’d tried working out, but it got to the point where he was in there day and night. Maybe if he could smoke and burn out the equipment at the same time…
X walked into the gym and Troy rolled his eyes. Well, he wasn’t going to have to break the news to his boy.
“Yo. Tough day, bro?”
Troy’s mouth opened, but nothing came out. He closed it and shook his head.
“Evy?”
“Evy, the baby, the fucking insanity around here lately. Half the time I can’t even block it out anymore. The whole mansion needs a vacay on the Vineyard. My treat.”
“I hear that. You up for some hoops after dinner? Maybe I can wear your ass out.”
Troy snickered. “You can try, chief.”
“Keep hoovering in that shit and I won’t have to try very hard, you dig?”
“Yeah, I know. Looks like I’m quittin’. Again.”
X put his arm around the male’s shoulders and they started out of the gym. “Ever try meditation?”
Troy rolled his eyes.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Pax picked more shirts up off the bed and hung them in the closet. They hadn’t actually discussed whether they were going to live upstairs or down, but they’d spent almost no time in James’s room, so he took a chance and went by that. After all the mating ceremony talk with Adriana, Pax had gotten all fired up about getting started on their life together. Now if he could just figure out when to pop the question.
James gleamed into the room by the door. “Hey. You didn’t have to do all that. I could have helped.”
“No need. You’re officially moved in.” Pax walked over and gave him a kiss before handing him the shirts. “Here, baby. You can do the last two.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“So, what’ve you been up to? I thought you’d be back ages ago.”
James knelt down and petted Sasha, and she licked his face. “Well, we should talk about that. I’ve done something…a good thing. I think.”
Pax pulled a couple pairs of James’s shoes out of a box. Actually, he was pretty sure one pair was his. “Oh, yeah? What’s that?”
“I went to see Jesse.”
Pax froze and looked up. “What?”
“I found an old address book in the bedroom at the beach house and there was a cell number listed. I had X look for an addy. I know I should have talked to you first, but I was totally careful. I’m sorry.”
Pax could hardly breathe. Jesse. After all this time. “Did you see him?”
“Yeah, we spoke at his apartment. He was on the island just for the month your father was sick. He’s been playing soccer professionally on Barcelona’s under twenty team.”
“Holy shit. That’s incredible. It’s what he always wanted.”
Pax sat down on the bed and James followed.
“What else did he say?”
“You’re never going to believe this, but when we went inside the apartment, he realized we’re mated. He caught our scents.” James put his hand to the side of Pax’s neck. “He’s a shifter.”
Pax was so shocked he couldn’t speak. He supposed he should have thought about it with such a strong genetic link on his mother’s side of the family, but he really hadn’t. Jesse a shifter. “He phased? I can’t believe it.”
“Isn’t it awesome? Oh, wait. He gave me something for you.” He reached into the back pocket of his jeans and pulled out an envelope. “Your father asked about you while he was sick. Jesse told your father about you being in the Order. Everything he knew about what you’ve been doing. Your father wrote this letter to you before he died, and asked Jess to get it to you someday if he could.”
Pax took the envelope in his hand and looked down at his name scrawled in his father’s writing. Valentino.
His mate stood up. “Listen, I’m starving. I’m going to head upstairs for some lunch.”
“James.” Pax took his male’s arm and looked up at him through tears welling in his eyes. “Thank you.”
James smiled and headed off.
Pax turned the envelope over with shaky hands. He carefully opened it and unfolded the letter. It was written on his father’s personal stationary. Pax looked at the date, then the greeting.
To My Son, Valentino.
He rubbed his eyes. His son. He started to read through the letter slowly, not sure if he could really believe what was written there.
With so little time left, I asked Jesse to tell me everything he knew about what had become of you. And when he told me that my eldest son was fighting for the safety and freedom of humans and shifters alike, I was moved to tears.
A tear ran down Pax’s face, and he wiped it with his hand before it could land on the page and spoil it. He read on.
Since you were a boy, I’d known you were meant to be a fighter, and I was convinced that my way was the best way for you to attain your goals. But in trying to convince you of this, I said things that attacked your dignity and drove a wedge between us. I think I believed I could cow you into giving in, even though it went against your very nature. All I did was force you to leave. I was so self-righteous that I couldn’t see you had long since earned my trust, and that you would find your own place in the world.
Pax, you have always accomplished anything you set out to do. The question I asked Jesse should not have been what had become of you, but rather what you had become.
It is my last wish that this letter may somehow find its way to you. I deeply regret the lost time we could have spent together. Do not blame yourself.
I love you, m’hijo. And I’m proud of you.
Pax drew his knees into his chest and cried—for the time he’d lost with his father, for his death, and for the fact that his father would never meet his amazing mate.
Evy flew down the back staircase from the second floor to the compound. She couldn’t believe she hadn’t thought of Rose before. The female had flown over a good portion of the Otherworld when she’d passed on. At the very least, she hoped maybe she could show her the lay of the land. Reyn may not have announced he was leaving just yet, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going. Evy was pretty sure most of the house believed he would try to rescue their Goddess, and she was determined to help any way she could.
She knocked on Rose’s door and waited. Hmm. She cast out her senses and swept the compound. Rose was down in the shelter with X. She headed down the hall and into the gym before stopping by the basketball hoop. She smelled cigarette smoke. Damn. It had to be Troy. She knew he’d been having a tough time lately, but he was obviously worse than he was letting on. They needed to have a talk.
She walked down the shelter’s corridor and found Rose, X, Christian, and Rory all gathered together in the study room. “Hey, everyone. I hope I’m not interrupting.”
X smiled and stood up to offer her his seat. “Hey, little mama. We were just talking about you.”
“It’s okay, X. I’m good. Thanks.”
“Evy, you’ll never guess what. Rose and X are starting a scholarship fund and I just found out I’m the first recipient.” Christian beamed.
She looked from one of her friends to the other. “That’s amazing. Congratulations.”
“Thanks.”
“Rose and I wanted to do something in honor of my mother. As you know, she was a strong believer in education.”
Rose smiled. “It’ll help the cause as well. The Order may just need a lawyer one day.”
Evy laughed and gave Christian a hug, pulling Rory in on the action too.
“If we do, we couldn’t find a better one. Rose, is there a time we can get together for a bit?” Evy said.
“Actually, we’re all set here. Walk me back to my room?”
“Sure.”
As they rounded the corner back into the gym, Evy tried to think of a way to broach th
e subject. Dying and coming back to life seemed like it could be kind of a sensitive topic. “I’m sure you heard about our circle last night?”
Rose nodded. “Xavier told me at lunch.”
“The thing is, I’m pretty sure Reyn is going to go after the Goddess, but when we summoned her, she didn’t give us any details about how to get to where she’s being held. She doesn’t think going after her is the best thing to do.”
“I heard. I’m glad he’s going. I support it. Watching them take her, Evy. It was indescribable.”
Evy followed Rose into her room. “That’s why I thought maybe you could help.”
“Really? What can I do?”
“Well, when you were, ah—”
“Dead?” Rose smiled.
Evy liked her so much. “Well, you saw a lot of the Otherworld on your journey. I wondered if you could share what you saw with me. I thought if I could make up the rest with my ring, we could create a map of the Otherworld that Reyn could use.”
Rose nodded. “That’s a great idea. When do we start?”
“How about right after dinner?”
“Yeah, early is good, since the males are off duty tonight.”
Evy grinned. “Great minds.”
James stood at the counter in the small kitchen and added another layer of turkey to a sub that was quickly growing big enough to be used by the US military. He hadn’t eaten since Pax made him dinner the night before. Last night. He slipped a finger between his lips. Out of nowhere, a familiar collection of k’ul registered behind him. His mate wrapped his strong arms around him, then they were in total darkness. James’s New Breed sight kicked in. The pantry?
Pax moved around to put their foreheads together. “Thank you, my male.”
His mate kissed him gently, but very quickly they were locked into a searing kiss and Pax was pushing James back against the shelving.
Who knew a pantry would turn on anyone other than Diesel?
Desperate Call (New Breed Novels Book 5) Page 15
