She laughed. “I’ll be pregnant for some time.”
He kicked back the sheets and stood, stretching—giving her an incredible view of the body she’d enjoyed so thoroughly the last two days. The muscles of his back shifted as he stretched his arms high over his head. This beautiful man was hers.
They showered, dressed, and headed to the lab.
The evening security guard glanced up as they entered.
“Busy night,” he said, nodding at them.
“Busy?” Hollis asked, pausing.
“Miss Su is already here.” He grinned. “Guess some of the research you do is time sensitive.”
Hollis looked her way, the suspicion on his face reflecting her own. Every instinct had told her something was wrong. Ellen was already running to the lab, her wolf urging her on. Kim Su wasn’t an Other—she and Hollis would know. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t working with them.
Hollis was behind her, swiping his security badge and pushing the lab door open.
Ellen followed, scanning the room—her wolf on high alert. No Others. No unfamiliar scents. Just Kim.
“Dr. Robbins ?” Kim jumped, her voice echoing across the lab. “I didn’t know you were still here.” She fumbled with the files in her hold, knocking some onto the floor. “I…I was cleaning up.”
“It’s late,” he said. “Was there something pending I didn’t know about?”
Kim looked back and forth between them. “No…No.”
She was shaking.
Hollis waited, but Kim didn’t add anything. “Why are you here, Kim?” Hollis asked, closing the door behind them.
Ellen focused on the woman, searching for clues. Her scent was bitter, tinged with fear. Pounding heart. Rapid, short breaths. The woman was absolutely terrified. She squeezed Hollis’s hand in warning.
Kim’s dark gaze darted between them. “I had to.” Her voice was unsteady. Nervous. Anxious. The look in the woman’s eyes…she was keeping secrets.
“Why?” she asked, keeping her voice soft. Was she stealing and selling Hollis’s research? It would explain her agitation.
Kim swallowed, the files in her arms shaking. “Dr. Robbins.” She stopped talking then, her gaze falling. “My mother.”
Hollis frowned. “I know she’s been ill—”
“Not ill.” Kim shook her head. “Someone took her.”
Ellen’s heart sank. She didn’t need to hear anything more. Cyrus had a hand in this. Ellen’s wolf whimpered, pacing frantically.
“Took her?” Hollis asked, shooting her a look. “Have you called the police, Kim?”
“No. He said not to.” She sniffed, tears streaking her cheeks.
“He?” Ellen asked, keeping her tone as neutral as possible.
“Mr. White.” Kim barely glanced at her. “If that’s his real name. Or his real accent.”
She saw the slight droop to Hollis’s shoulders. They both knew the truth. Cyrus had Kim’s mother and, whether she did what he asked or not, the woman was probably already dead. Cyrus had no tolerance for the elderly—saying they’d outlived their usefulness, were too weak to do anything but slow things down, and they offered up their opinions without his asking. Cyrus hated that.
“Why don’t we all sit down,” Hollis suggested, crossing and taking the files from Kim. “What can we do?”
Kim slumped into the chair Hollis pulled out. “I have to do what he says.”
“What has he asked you to do?” she asked, sitting opposite the woman.
Kim sniffed, taking the tissue. “Initially, he was looking for people in the beginning.” She sniffed again. “He texted me pictures and asked me to let him know if I saw any of them.” Her dark eyes settled on Ellen. “You were one of them.”
Ellen stood, pacing the length of the lab. Of course, he was looking for her. He needed her blood. He’d been without it for some time. That she was alive, helping Finn, made her a traitor in his eyes. He had to keep her alive—but that wouldn’t stop him from punishing her. Her hands fell to her stomach. Her wolf growled, the hair on the back of its neck standing straight up. No matter what she’d told Hollis, she’d fight if she had to. It was hard to breathe.
Hollis growled. “You told him she was here?”
“What choice do I have, Dr. Robbins ?” She sniffed, her voice wavering as she went on. “He made it clear my mother’s life was in jeopardy. She has serious health issues. Her English isn’t good. And she’s stubborn.” Her fingers crumpled the tissue. “Do you know this man, Dr. Robbins?”
Hollis nodded.
“Is he dangerous?” she asked. “What does he want?”
“Our research,” he murmured. “You’re smart, Kim. You know we’ve been working on things outside the…norm.”
Her gaze met his. “And I know it’s important. You wouldn’t take it so seriously, be so intent, if it wasn’t.” She glanced at Ellen. “But I never thought what we were doing was dangerous, Dr. Robbins. I would never have participated if I’d known that. Risks are inherent when doing research, but not like this. They…they have my mother.”
“We’ll help you,” Ellen said, noting the tightening of Hollis’s posture, his pointed look her way. He wasn’t pleased with her announcement. Her wolf informed her that his wolf wanted to hide her away, lock her up if necessary, until the pack had dealt with Cyrus. Her initial reaction was to remind him just how capable she was of defending herself. But she couldn’t. She understood. Part of her, the damnably emotional and vulnerable part she tried so hard to ignore, wanted to be shielded from what was to come.
But that was impossible. It wasn’t in her to walk away from someone in need or shy away from conflict. Hollis knew that even if it frustrated the hell out of him. Like now.
She rested her hands on Hollis’s shoulders, needing his touch and the calm it provided her. His hand covered hers instantly, tugging her against his back and threading his fingers with hers. Kim had no idea what was happening. Or what was at stake. But they did.
“You said initially. There was more?” Hollis’s voice was gruff.
Kim cleared her throat “He wanted to know why she was here. I s-saw you taking her blood, Dr. Robbins. When I told him, he wanted the vials.”
“You came here for them tonight?” Ellen asked, her stomach dropping. “Where are you supposed to deliver them? And when?”
“Tonight, at one.” She swallowed. “At the Hemisphere Plaza. It will still be crowded, with Fiesta going on, and public.”
Which was good. Maybe Cyrus wouldn’t kill Kim. Maybe.
“He wanted to come here, but I told him about the security system and decided Hemisphere was better.”
Tonight. At one. Cyrus would be here. Her muscles twitched, her wolf pressing to be free before remembering the baby. If she had to face Cyrus, she’d get no help from her wolf. She sucked in a slow, deep breath and focused on remaining calm.
“Shit,” Hollis ground out. “We need to get you someplace safe.”
“Not yet, Hollis.” She took his hand. “He doesn’t know we know anything.” They had time to come up with something—even if the pack couldn’t help them.
“My mother?” Kim asked. “Will this man honor his word? Is my mother safe?”
Ellen shot him a warning look. They knew what Cyrus was, but she didn’t. There was the slightest chance he’d spare her mother. Why risk drawing attention to himself by killing an old woman—and probably Kim—before this was all over? Especially someplace public?
But her wolf was quick to point out why. Because this was Cyrus. And Cyrus didn’t give a shit about drawing attention to himself or leaving destruction or pain in his wake. He wanted what he wanted and would stop at nothing to get it.
Still, she wished Hollis would buffer his answer. And, to a certain degree, he did.
“I don’t know,” he murmured.
Chapter Twenty
Hollis was fighting for control. His bones ached, strained by his wolf’s efforts to break free. Now wasn’t the
time to panic. Being careful, deliberate, and rational was the best way to survive this. There was no chance Cyrus would honor his promise to Kim. But would he spare her life? Knowing the bastard, the chance was slight. He paced, his mind working through all Ellen had shared. The longer he paced, the more agitated Ellen and Kim became. Until he stopped pacing. “Kim, where is the latest strain of vaccine?” he asked.
Kim swiped her eyes and stood. “It came back yesterday.” She shook her head.
“No improvement?” he asked.
“The mice died within an hour. The heart collapsed.” She glanced between them. “Do you want the data?”
“Yes. And whatever samples we have left.” He moved to the counter, preparing a catheter and sample tubes in case he needed more blood.
“What are you doing?” Ellen asked, watching Kim as she retrieved the vaccine from the refrigerator.
“You’ve been gone for a while. He’s probably weak.” The motherfucker was probably out of his mind for her blood. Since Cyrus had grown reliant on her blood being without it for six months would be a nightmare. Not that he could risk saying so out loud. The wolf was too close to losing his fucking mind as it was. Still, it might just give them the edge they needed. “And impatient.”
“You’ll give him the tainted blood?” she whispered.
“It will kill him or cure him. Either way, we win.”
“He’s not going to drink it right there.” Ellen understood the way his mind worked but didn’t seem convinced.
“We’ll have to make it irresistible,” Hollis argued.
“Drink it?” Kim asked, horrified.
“Cyrus White is…unlike anyone you’ve ever met before,” Ellen offered.
He focused on the task at hand, setting one vial of Ellen’s blood aside and splitting the remaining into three new vials. He added the vaccine, shook the samples, and slid the rubber stopper in.
“You need to call Finn,” Ellen said, staring at the vials on the metal tray. She looked resigned—almost defeated. Because she accepted they couldn’t defeat Cyrus. She couldn’t shift, he couldn’t shift, and there was no way to win. And it had his wolf howling.
He glanced at the clock as he dialed. It was almost midnight. “They won’t get here in time,” he said.
“In time for what?” Finn’s voice reached him. “What’s happening?”
“He’s here.” Hollis winced through Finn’s long string of expletives before he summarized the evening’s events. Kim’s mother, the blood, Cyrus’s imminent arrival—all of it. By then, the rest of the pack had joined in, too—their general sense of impatience and helplessness threatening his attempts to keep his own wolf in line.
“The tainted blood is a good idea,” Finn said. “Mal, have Gentry get the plane ready.”
“He’ll smell it,” Dante argued. “Know something is different.”
Hollis cleared his throat then, torn between feeling guilt and pride. “She’s pregnant—maybe that will cover it.”
“Fucking A, Hollis.” Anders laughed. “I didn’t know you had it in you. Congrats, man. With Ellen. Bet that’s scary as—”
Hollis silenced him with a glare.
Mal interrupted. “I’m with Anders on this one, Hollis. Never pegged you as a papa type.”
Hollis didn’t disagree.
“What’s the aversion to condoms?” Dante asked. “Is it a bond-wolf thing for you to lose your head and take stupid chances or what?”
“Chill,” Anders said. “I get it. My wolf wants to get laid, too.” He laughed at his own joke.
“Congratulations, Hollis.” Finn’s voice was edged with command. “But I imagine this complicates things?” he asked. “Since she won’t be able to shift now?”
“Right,” he ground the word out. Ellen was vulnerable. He was useless. And the pack was hours away.
“We’re driving to the airstrip now. Should be in the air in five minutes. Gentry’s calling up some help—two of his former Special Forces team. They should be there soon. Might slow things down.”
But Special Forces didn’t mean shit when a wolf was involved—they all knew that.
“We need more time, Hollis. You can’t let her meet with him.”
“We’re twenty-five minutes from the city, Finn. He’ll be expecting Kim at Hemisphere Plaza.”
“The town’s Fiesta crazy right now.” Dante groaned.
“People everywhere.” Anders muttered.
“He’s up to something.” Finn growled.
“Always,” Hollis agreed. “We need to leave now to meet with him. She doesn’t see him, he’s not going to like it.”
“Who the fuck cares?” Mal asked. “Don’t let her go. The motherfucker will come after her and we’ll be waiting.”
“He has Kim’s mother,” Hollis reminded them.
“She’s dead.” Dante said what they were all thinking.
“If there’s a chance to save her, there’s nothing I can do to stop Ellen from going,” Hollis said.
There was a long pause.
“I call bullshit,” Mal said.
“I’m with Mal on this one, Hollis.” Finn’s exasperation was clear. “We’ll get there as fast as we can.”
Hollis released Ellen’s hand and stood, crossing the lab and putting as much distance between him and Kim as possible. He couldn’t afford having her run when she found out tonight’s plans had changed again. “Where?” he asked.
“He’ll come to Kim’s place.” Finn sighed. “Text me the address and we’ll head straight there. We’ll be ready for him when he comes.”
Were they ready? Hollis wanted to believe it. Then all of the living in fear would be over. What would life be like as a happy wolf? At the moment, it was beyond imagining.
“What weapons do you have?” Dante asked.
“Some magnum prototypes still in development in the basement. Wide-gauge silver injectable bullets that dig in and release. A present for Gentry.” He racked his mind for other options. “Knives in the vault.” Knives he wanted to use. He wasn’t afraid of Cyrus anymore. He relished the idea of getting his hands on the bastard, of inflicting whatever pain he could.
“Puts you within his strike range,” Finn argued.
“I’m counting on it.” Hollis growled. “Kim’s not one of us, Finn. She’s not going to let this go because you say so.”
“Fucking lock her up.” Mal jumped in. “Her mother’s dead. She’ll be dead, too, if she goes tonight.”
“Do what you need to do. Tell her whatever makes her stay. But it’s not her choice. Keep her there. And we’ll be there as soon as we can,” Finn said. “If we’re lucky this can end tonight with minimal bloodshed.”
The line went dead.
Minimal bloodshed on their side. If he had it his way, Cyrus would be bled dry tonight. The Alpha had spoken. Kim wasn’t going anywhere. It would be up to her how that went down. He didn’t believe in scare tactics. His mind didn’t work that way. Hard facts. Information and data. He was an academic. So was Kim.
“I need to show you something,” Hollis said, crossing the room to the wall safe only he had access to. “As a woman of science, I need you to read it with an open mind.” He punched in the code and opened the door, pulling the file he’d been keeping on Cyrus White out.
“With all due respect, Dr. Robbins, that can wait.” Kim stood. “My mother is all I have left. She is my world, the reason my dreams have come true. I don’t understand who this man is or what he wants with your research, but I do know my mother needs my help.”
“Hollis, she doesn’t need to see that,” Ellen argued. “Once she knows, there’s no going back.”
Kim stared at the file, then Ellen. “Who are you?” she asked.
“She’s a colleague, someone who understands the infection we’ve been studying for the last seven years.” He crossed the room and placed the file on his desk. “And she’s my…the woman I plan on spending the rest of my life with.” He couldn’t refer to her as his mate
in front of Kim—not without losing all credibility in a five second span. “This will explain things that might sound…impossible. And why meeting with Cyrus White alone will only lead to disaster.”
Kim placed her hand on the file, her dark eyes filling with tears. “All I want is my mother.”
Ellen grabbed the box of tissues off the top of the file cabinet and handed it to her. The look she sent Hollis’s way mirrored all the restless torment that his wolf was battling. Ellen knew what she was capable of, but her pregnancy made shifting impossible. Hollis had no idea what his wolf was capable of, but he could never shift or his heart would give out. Both longed to retrieve Kim’s mother for her, but neither was physically capable.
“Help is on the way,” Hollis offered, without promising a thing.
Kim sat, ran her hands on her thighs, and opened the file.
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Ellen asked him, her hand warm against his forearm.
“No,” he answered honestly. “But I’m not Mal. Or Cyrus. I won’t lock her up for her own good.” He paused, lowering his voice. “Not yet.”
Ellen nodded, sliding up onto the counter to sit and lean against the wall.
Hollis did his best to leave Kim alone, busying himself with straightening the lab before sitting at his desk to review his emails. It was twelve sixteen.
Kim sat, reading over the documents, notes, and copies of statistical documents that dated back more than a century. A list of dated accidents, victims’ names, and unexplained deaths. Cyrus White’s movements—what could be traced, that is. There was no avoiding the truth: Cyrus White was evil.
“This is the man who has my mother?” Kim asked, skimming the last page.
“Yes,” Hollis said, watching her closely.
She shook her head. “My mother is dead?”
“We can’t be certain,” Ellen said.
“I feel confident she is,” Hollis said, nodding at the clock. “If she’s not, you both will be once you give him the blood.”
“You are like he is? Something more than human?”
“I’d like to think we’re better than he is,” Hollis offered. “Most of the time.”
“All this time you’ve sought to cure yourself and those you love?”
Protecting the Wolf's Mate (Blood Moon Brotherhood) Page 23
