Act of Command

by Mandy M. Roth

  Malik stared at the picture and said nothing.

  “She’s probably dead,” said Duke, ever the ray of sunshine.

  “Or she was taken too.”

  Duke grimaced. “Did you find anything else?”

  Striker bent and pulled out a statue. He handed it to Duke.

  Duke’s brows shot up at the sight of it. “Why the fuck do you have a naked statue of Corbin?”

  That caught Malik’s attention. He took the statue from Duke, his head tipping to one side as he surveyed it. “Amazing how accurate it is.”

  Striker blinked. “I do nae look at his junk long enough to memorize it when we’re shiftin’ or in the shower room. It’s disturbin’ to think you do. You look at mine that much? Yer a fine-lookin’ male, but I do nae swing that way.”

  Malik grunted. “I meant the rest of him and his lion. Look at how detailed it all is. Remarkable. Whoever did this is very talented and has a keen eye. Was this in the girls’ dorm as well?”

  “No,” said Striker, taking it from Malik. “The neighbors told me Mae is an art major. They said she spends most of her time sculptin’. I found that buildin’ and broke in to have a look around. I dinnae know if maybe Corbin caught her scent near there or nae. I found this, but no trace of the Brit.”

  Duke took a deep breath. “James called in. No sign of Corbin at his home either. Not that any of us really thought he’d go there, but we had to rule it out.”

  “He’s been out of touch too long,” said Malik, voicing Striker’s very same concern. “Not like him at all.”

  No. It wasn’t. Striker merely stared at his teammates. He didn’t want to voice his biggest fear—that he might have lost another friend, another man he considered a brother. For several tense moments, no one said anything, each fearing the same thing.

  Malik eyed Striker. “You feeling all right? You’ve had no witty remarks about hot college girls. You just spent hours on a campus full of co-eds. This is not like you. Are you dying?”

  “Och, I’m nae dying.” Striker handed the statue to Duke, who took it reluctantly before Striker reached into his shirt pocket and withdrew a handful of scrap papers. Each had a number scrawled on it. As Malik grabbed one and unfolded it, a number appeared. There were phone numbers on all the papers. Striker lifted his shirtsleeves, showing numbers written all over his arms in pen, some permanent. Some had explicit promises on what the women would do when he phoned. He had to admit, some of the young women were quite imaginative. Had his concern not been with Corbin, he might have taken them up on the offers. He was in need of a good fuck, but that would have to wait.

  With a grin he lifted his shirt, removing it from the front of his pants, showing off even more numbers all over his torso. “They’ve signed other places too, but I do nae think you want to see those spots.”

  Malik shook his head. “Sadly, this is more what I was expecting from you.”

  “I got numbers for you too,” said Striker, wagging his brows. “But nae Duke since he’s mated. Ball and chains probably do nae like that.”

  Duke groaned.

  He held an arm towards Malik. “Take yer pick. They’re eager for an alpha male to rock their worlds. I do nae think they’ll mind if yer nae Scottish.” He frowned, thinking upon his time on the campus. “Three of them thought I was French. Do they nae teach young people anythin’ anymore? French? I do nae sound French.”

  Growling, Duke mumbled something about the French. Striker didn’t ask for details. He knew Duke’s thoughts on the country. He wasn’t a fan.

  Malik hid a laugh behind a cough. “Striker, you should take to the internet about that later. Point out the difference and all. The failing of an entire generation educationally.”

  “Guid idea,” said Striker, puffing his chest. “My advice column is a big hit.”

  “You’re a fucking dumbass,” snapped Duke. No surprise there. Duke was always in a foul mood. That was part of what Striker liked about the man. And no matter what mood Duke was in, he was loyal. All the men on the team were.

  “Thanks.”

  Malik grinned and then glanced at the elevator as it opened and Boomer appeared, worry on the man’s face. “What?”

  “Laney got a hit on Corbin’s SUV location. The readings are all over the place, but she’s managed to narrow the area somewhat for us. Either Corbin is driving around like a crazy maniac, going in circles and everything else, or someone is trying to throw us off his actual location.” Boomer held out a small sticky note. “It’s nowhere near where we sent him.”

  Striker handed the statue to Duke and took the note and whistled low, through his teeth. Boomer was correct. The location was a good three hours from where they’d sent Corbin. It was a lead all the same. That meant something. “I love lowjackin’. We’ve got him.”

  “Assuming Corbin is with the SUV,” said Malik, glancing at the note. “Captain wouldn’t waste time driving in circles. He’s far too organized for that.”

  Boomer did a double take at the statue in Duke’s hand. “Something I should know? I’ve always suspected you had a thing for Corbin, but to go so far as to get a naked likeness of him, well, Duke, that is a bit much. Does Mercy know about this fetish of yours?”

  “Fuck you,” snapped Duke.

  Boomer ran a hand through his long hair. Striker couldn’t be sure, but Boomer may have taken a few of his earrings out. Haven, his mate, was certainly calming the man down. “The question begs, if Corbin isn’t with the SUV, where is he and what happened to him?”

  Duke glanced at Striker. “Bring extra weapons and load up on tranqs just in case we find him and he’s suffering the same fate you and I did.”

  “You mean the ‘curse of the mated male’ fate? Already done,” said Striker. “I get to shoot him with them, right? Payback for his people and my country and all.”

  Malik touched Striker’s shoulder. “You really need to let that go.”

  “They may take our land,” started Striker, drawing a round of groans from his teammates. He grinned. “Do nae take that tone about the great William Wallace. There is nae a lycan from the motherland that does nae view him as a hero.”

  “Your obsession with the man is troublesome,” added Malik. “Are you going to get a statue of him made?”

  The idea had merit. He’d have to look into it. He’d want a life-sized one to honor the man.

  Boomer motioned to Striker’s pants. They were part of his tactical gear. “At least he’s not in a kilt today. Big step for him. We should take our wins where we can.”

  Duke reached out and tapped the strip of plaid that Striker had tied around his upper arm. Wearing his clan’s colors made him feel whole. “But he brought a piece of his dress with him.”

  “Och, ‘tis nae a dress, dickhead.”

  Duke smirked, his expression saying he more than understood that a kilt was not a dress. “Too easy.”

  “Word,” added Boomer, taking the note back from Striker. “How are we playing this? Do we all go?”

  Duke shook his head. “No. I’m not leaving the women here unattended. Not with the tampered equipment we found tonight. James is headed back here. I’ll have him pick up Haven and bring her here with us. He can help me keep an eye on the women. You, Malik and Striker can check out this location. There are comm units in the back of my SUV that aren’t PSI issue. Take them and stay in contact.”

  Boomer tipped his head. “Might want to let James know that Scar is roaming the sanctuary freely. He’s a great guard kitty.”

  Malik’s eyes widened. “You let that panther loose? Around your woman?”

  Boomer owned and operated a huge animal rescue, and it specialized in exotic animals. Scar was a panther who had only recently come to reside there. Scar wasn’t a shifter but was severely abused by humans, leaving him scared and angry. He’d been seriously injured not long back and Striker had been there when Boomer had offered his own blood to speed the animal’s recovery.

  Duke grunted. “What about Li
’l Duke?”

  Striker hid his smile as he heard his friend ask about the well-being of a chimpanzee that had been a lab animal that now resided at the sanctuary. The chimp was into cross-dressing, and because of his foul mood when they’d first met him, he’d been given the name Li’l Duke. His namesake tried to pretend he couldn’t stand the little guy but all knew better.

  “Li’l Duke is fine. He and Scar get along great.” Boomer grinned. “That cat loves Haven. He’d eat anyone who got near her. Sometimes I swear he looks at me like I’m lunch. Whenever Haven is cross with me, Scar licks his lips like this is his moment—this is when I become a giant cat chew toy.”

  “Fucking cats,” said Duke. “Malik, alert James about Scar. Boomer, call Haven and have her ready for James.”

  Striker eyed his longtime friend. “Yer sexy when yer barkin’ orders.”

  Duke growled.

  Boomer shook his head. “If Striker tries to kiss you, I’m not saving him from your wrath. Just don’t go making statues of him.”

  Malik smiled. “Gentlemen, focus. We’re not getting to this location before first light and I don’t even want to think upon what we might find when we do get there.”

  “Aye, possibly a lion runnin’ through the city streets makin’ snacks of the mornin’ commuters.” Striker was only partially joking.

  Malik tipped his head to the side. “Or he’s fallen into the enemy’s hands.”

  No one wanted to think hard on that. It wouldn’t be Corbin’s first time being held captive. All the men had suffered a similar fate in their lives. Some more than once.

  Chapter Ten

  The sound of Ezra’s voice pulled Mae from her sleep. She opened her eyes, but without her glasses it was hard for her to make out much. Her body wasn’t wracked with pain, so whatever he’d given her was helping. The thirst was better. Not gone but better.

  “Bring him in here!” shouted Ezra.

  She vaguely made out Ezra’s shape and that of several other men. Squinting, she realized one of the men had another person over his shoulder as if the person was a sack of potatoes. It took Mae a moment to realize the person was a man because of all the long blond hair. Hair she’d seen before.

  No. It couldn’t be the man from campus.

  Could it?

  She blinked again, trying hard to focus with no luck.

  The hair obscured the man’s face. His wrists were bound with thick silver chains as were his ankles. He was shirtless but had on military-style pants and boots. The man holding him glanced over the top of the blond’s head as he heaved him onto the floor rather unceremoniously. The blond didn’t move, making Mae wonder if he was still alive. His mass of hair continued to cover his face. It took all of her to remain in place and not go to the man.

  Ezra bent, checking the blond’s vitals. His gaze went to the guard. “How much did you shoot him up with?”

  The other man shrugged. “I don’t know. A lot. He killed a couple of us. Took another eight of us to subdue him and he was only partially shifted. We had to wait until his body reformed fully to chain him. I’ve never seen anything like it. Kept going on about wanting to know where some woman was. I forget the chick’s name—it was a month or something—whatever it was, he was pissed and driven.”

  Ezra motioned to the men. “Go. I’ve got it from here.”

  “Denis says there are no doctors on duty tonight. Something about them being offsite. Might as well throw this one in a cell. When he comes to, he’s going to be pissed.”

  “I’ll put him in a holding cell in here and then check him over to be sure he’s in prime condition for sale,” said Ezra. “After all, Felix loves to sell male shifters, doesn’t he?”

  “Yeah, but I don’t think the infirmary holding rooms can handle this one,” said the other man. “He’s a piece of work, and if he breaks free, he’ll rip that female to shreds or fuck her to death. The only shit we had on hand were the tranqs with the sex meds in them. He’ll wake up horny and pissed.”

  “I’ll see to it he’s no threat,” said Ezra. “I’ll alert Caesar that we have another item to sell. He’ll see to it the website is updated.”

  “I don’t know. Maybe we should call Felix in about this one.”

  “By all means, notify him,” said Ezra. “By my calculations, he is at home because daylight is almost on us, probably with several women and men draped over him as he fucks and sucks them. But yes, call and interrupt his feeding to let him know we have another shifter to auction off.”

  The other cleared his throat, sounding nervous. “No. I’m good. You keep the asshole in here. I have to check on the redhead. She bit another guy and kicked him so hard in the balls he may never have use of his dick again.”

  “Put her in Mae’s cell,” said Ezra, bending over the blond on the floor again.

  “You want to move her?” asked the other. “She scares me.”

  Ezra laughed. “Tell her I said to go without fighting. She’ll listen.”

  “If you say so, man. Bitch is crazy.” He left, and Ezra picked up the blond man with so much ease that Mae gasped. He carried him to the bed next to Mae. Much to her shock, Ezra undid the man’s shackles, freeing him and casting the chains aside.

  Mae wasn’t so sure she wanted someone who scared the bad guys next to her. What if he woke up and did as the other predicted? What if he tore her to bits, or worse yet, forced himself on her?

  Ezra turned to Mae. “Shh, I can sense your worry. This man is no threat to you. I know him well. That being said, when he wakes, be still until he realizes where he is, okay?”

  She nodded and whimpered as her stomach cramped.

  Ezra grabbed a cool compress and put it to her forehead. “I know it hurts. Your body is cycling through the toxins. These fools were giving you way too much and didn’t even seem to notice the signs that you were having a reaction to it.”

  She caught his hand. “Thank you.”

  “Mae, you should know that Caesar is working to coordinate an extraction. There is another facility run by Felix. Just like this one and not too far from here. Caesar and I have to make sure the strike happens at the same time, or the other facility will issue a terminate protocol. That means everyone being held there and here will be killed if there isn’t time to get them all out. We were planning to launch this in several days, but it’s become clear it has to happen now.”

  She gasped. “I understand.”

  “You’re safe in here, with him,” said Ezra. “My guess is, anyone who tries to harm you while he’s around won’t have enough left of them to identify later.”

  “I don’t know him,” she said, squinting. “I mean, I don’t think I’ve seen him before. He kind of looks like a man I saw once, but I don’t know. I need my glasses.”

  “I’ll grab them for you. I have to reach out to Caesar and check on a few things here. I’ll be back within an hour. I’m going to override the door locks, which means no one should be able to get in, but also, no one is getting out.” With that, he left the room, leaving her with the blond.

  Mae stared hard at the man in the bed next to her. He was out cold on his stomach. His body, while not moving, still screamed powerful. There wasn’t a spot on him that wasn’t honed muscle. And there was a certain air of danger there—like he could and would still be a threat to all around him, it didn’t matter if he was awake or not. He was also spectacular. She couldn’t tear her gaze from him, a warmth spreading through her midsection, confusing her at first until she realized she was turned on by him.

  Not the time. Not the place.

  She gulped as the heat returned.

  It took her a minute to be able to sit up. When she did, the room spun. She didn’t dare move until it stopped. When it did, she grabbed the pole with the bag of fluid hanging on it, and used it to help steady herself as she stood. The bottoms of her feet hurt as they made contact with the floor.

  She whimpered, and the blond man stirred.

  There was a long gash
on his left torso that looked to be healing over and there were a multitude of bruises on his body. He had to be very tall judging by how he almost overflowed the bed. The urge to touch him was great. She let her hand hover just above his skin, fearful the drugs she’d been given were causing her strange pull to the man. She’d not wanted to jump Brad’s bones. But the blond guy she wanted to leap upon and have her way with him.

  She couldn’t tear her gaze from his form. His upper body was stunning, and that was seeing it through a haze without her glasses. She could only imagine the rest of him was too. With as many art classes as she’d taken that had an emphasis on the human form, she’d seen many people nude before, but this man was unlike any she’d ever seen. Unable to help herself, Mae skimmed her fingers over his cloth-covered thigh lightly, heat instantly searing her skin, making her jerk her hand away.

  Would she burn him too like she had the guard?

  The more she looked at his side and the wound there, the more her chest ached for him. She glanced around, knowing there had to be something in the giant room that could aid him, but she wasn’t much assistance beyond rinsing out a paper cut.

  Her breath caught as the man stirred again, rising somewhat on his forearms, his long hair still covering his face. He groaned and then his upper body stiffened, his groan turning into a deep growl. Mae eased back from him rapidly, heeding Ezra’s warning.

  He roared loudly, coming up and off the bed as if attached to strings. He went down hard on the other side of the bed, but didn’t sound deterred. “I’ll rip your bloody heads off!”

  British?

  She’d always been a sucker for a guy with an accent. She shook her head. Still not the time or the place for her hormones to behave poorly.

  “Where is she? If you place one hand upon her, I will be your end. Mark my words.”

  Mae made a move to go for him, but realized she was hooked to the bag of fluid. Without thought, she pulled the IV from her arm and made her way around the other bed slowly, keeping one hand on it to support herself as she did. She found the blond on the floor, half propped up, facing the floor.