by Desiree Holt
“I didn’t think details were important to you. Only results.”
An icy smile twisted Mueller’s lips. “Accurate as usual. So what information do you have for me?”
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Desiree Holt
Lisbon set his drink on a small table next to him and pulled a thin leather folder from his inside jacket pocket. Carefully he flipped open his notes.
“They recognized her from the description I gave them. Her name is Hannah Raines. She shops frequently at the convenience store, both for merchandise and gas. The people who run the store know her as well as she allows anyone to know her.”
Mueller raised an eyebrow. “They gave you this information easily?”
Lisbon snorted. “You should know better than that. But again, the details are unnecessary.” He glanced at his notes again. “They told me they’re pretty sure she lives at the edge of town in some houses she and a bunch of friends seem to own. They gave me her name and I checked directory listing but she’s not there. Either she doesn’t have a phone or it’s in someone else’s name.”
“A husband?” Mueller asked. “Or a boyfriend? That could present a problem.”
“I don’t think so. I was told she has some friends and they all live close together. I also asked them if they’d ever seen a wolf in the neighborhood and they looked at me as if I was crazy.”
“That means she doesn’t shift where anyone can see her. You were lucky an emergency situation allowed you to catch her out.”
“I’m wondering if the ‘friends’ she lives with are also shifters,” Lisbon mused. He saw the flame of excitement in his employer’s eyes.
“Possibly. I can check it out.”
Mueller rubbed his hands together. “A pack. Even a small one. My god, Lisbon, what a find. So were you able to locate her?”
“I drove around the neighborhood,” Lisbon went on, “looking for a likely cluster of houses.”
“And?”
“There’s a cluster of cottages just at the edge of town that seemed to fit the information I had, and there’s where a little luck came in.” He shifted his weight. “As I 34
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was pulling away from the cul-de-sac the door to one of the houses opened and there she was on the porch. Talking to two men.”
“See?” Mueller said. “A problem. Maybe a double problem.”
“I don’t think so. She left with one of them, went to a house two doors down.”
Lisbon shrugged. “The boys can take him easily, if need be. But I’ve got eyes on her. There’s a hill behind the cul-de-sac and Joey’s watching the houses. I’ll check in with him first thing in the morning. As soon as we get a handle on her routine we can decide the best time and place to pick her up.”
“Don’t wait too long,” Mueller told him. “I’m anxious to get started. This has been a long time coming.”
“You’ve tried other experiments,” Lisbon pointed out. “They haven’t been too successful. What makes you think this one will be?”
He knew he was the only one of Rogan Mueller’s employees who dared to question the man this way.
Mueller fixed his dark eyes on him. “I’ve refined our techniques. Harvesting the female eggs, separating them and implanting each with a different subspecies’ DNA has become more accurate. But since the last disaster we’ve only had animals to crossbreed. I need shifter eggs to crossbreed with human and pure wolf DNA.”
“You still think you can create shapeshifters in a petri dish?” Lisbon had always been skeptical of the bizarre experiment. Most of the time he kept his skepticism to himself, however.
“I know I can do it,” Mueller corrected him. “I just need a shifter female. Get me this woman.”
“There may be consequences,” Lisbon reminded him.
“Pah!” Mueller waved his cigar at him. “You’ll take care of it, whatever happens. You always do.
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Yes, he did. That’s what he was paid an obscene amount of money to do. He sighed and pushed himself out of the chair.
“I’ll check in with my guys and see what’s going on.”
“Do this soon, Gary. I’m impatient to begin.”
So what else is new?
* * * * *
Riesa Marlowe awoke with a start. She was covered with a thin sheen of perspiration, her heart was galloping and her hands trembled. She hated these damn dreams. They always spelled trouble. For her as well as for others. How many times she’d railed against this so-called gift. More like a curse, she thought. Forcing herself out of bed, she stumbled to the bathroom for a drink of water. The dreams always made her very thirsty. Refilling the bathroom glass again, she carried it back to the bedroom, sat down on the bed with pillows stacked behind her back, and tried to remember the important components of the newest nightmare. A woman, thick dark red hair flowing behind her, mouth open in a silent scream. Two men, dark and vicious-looking, carrying her up a hill. The picture shifted and she was in the dark. Now she was the woman, bound and shivering, in a small dark place. She could smell her own fear.
The picture changed once more. Now she was in a small room with only a strangelooking table. A tall, heavyset man with soulless eyes stood beside her. His lips were moving but she couldn’t hear him.
Then it was gone. All of it.
Carefully she set the glass down on the nightstand. She had no idea if this had already happened or was about to. Or even where. She only knew that someone was in tremendous danger.
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With a hand that still trembled, she lifted her television remote and turned it on to a twenty-four-hour news channel. Maybe there would be a report that gave her some kind of clue.
* * * * *
Hannah stretched like a lazy cat. Or wolf! Her body ached pleasantly, a memory of the lust—and more—she and Rand had shared during a long and erotic night. Never in her life had she expected to share something this wonderful. And with a man she had wanted for so very long.
She reached beside her to find his warm, muscular body but encountered only empty space. Her eyes flew wide as she took in the place where Rand had slept beside her. Where had he gone? Then she spotted the note on his pillow. Good morning, little wolf
I have gone to Derek’s to meet with him and Jesse. I’ll be back shortly. Do not under any circumstances go anywhere without me. And remember, you are my mate. My life. I will keep you safe.
Rand
Meeting? With Jesse? Then she remembered that one of the activities of the protection agency Rand and Derek had formed was to assist the sheriff with specific cases. As shapeshifters they could often go where humans could not. Additionally, their acute senses could track even the most elusive criminal. Jesse had worked that out and they’d gotten a number of referrals because of it. Now they were obviously going to ask Jesse to help him with this…problem. She hoped they could find the man before he decided to come after her. That was the one fear they all shared—that humans would capture them and try to reproduce their breed. Or other things more terrible to contemplate.
Hannah read the message twice more before she pressed it to her nose, inhaling the faint scent he had left on the paper. Then, clasping the paper to her breast, she rolled 37
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over to his spot and immersed herself in the scent he’d left on the sheets. Already her body was craving him again, her nipples hardening and liquid drenching her still swollen pussy. She lay there smiling, recreating every moment of the previous night. When she caught sight of a clock beside the bed she sat upright, startled. Nine o’clock? Was that possible? Why hadn’t he wakened her? Lord! She had work to do for Alexis. Two websites due and the basics for a new brochure. She knew Rand meant to move all her things into his house, but she had no idea how long he’d be. She needed her computer and some fresh clothes. Certainly when Rand had said not to go anywhere he didn’t mean just next door to where she’d been living. Hannah had no idea ho
w long he’d be gone, but she could be out and back before he finished his meeting.
She dressed quickly in her clothes from the night before and hurried into the kitchen. A coffeemaker sat cold and silent on the counter. Hannah rummaged in cupboards until she found coffee and filters, set everything up and pressed the On button. By the time she got back, she’d have a full pot of coffee to get her through her projects.
Fishing her own house key from her purse, she slipped out the back door, leaving it unlocked. Surely no one would break in during the short time she’d be away. She was so lost in thought about her new situation that her wolf senses were dormant and she didn’t notice the two men move silently up behind her until hands touched her. She opened her mouth to scream but one of the men slapped a piece of duct tape over it. And no matter how she struggled she couldn’t free herself from the iron grip holding her as they dragged into the trees.
“Cover her,” one of the men said in a guttural tone.
“But I wanted to see more of her,” the other one laughed softly. “Let’s hope the boss lets us have our fun before he begins work on her.”
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At the words a cold fist closed around Hannah’s heart. Fun? Work on her? But then in seconds a needle pricked her arm. A large cloth bag enveloped her body as she faded into unconsciousness.
* * * * *
The meeting lasted longer than Rand expected and he was beginning to get antsy. But Jesse had been determined to brainstorm about people in the area who might possibly be interested in Hannah. Who wanted her for less than honest purposes. Because Rand and Derek were unfamiliar with most of the people in the area—living as a wolf didn’t give you many social contacts, he thought with irony—they needed Jesse’s bank of knowledge. And he needed them to give him every scrap of detail, however small, Hannah had been able to tell them.
Now Rand was getting impatient and uneasy. He hadn’t expected to leave Hannah for this long and he had an itchy feeling at the back of his neck.
“Are we almost done?” he asked, draining the last of his coffee.
“I’d say so.” Jesse flipped his little notebook closed, rose from the couch and stuck the notebook in the back pocket of his jeans. “I’ll run what little information we’ve got through the databases and see what comes up. Then Charlie and I will brainstorm about possibilities in…oh, let’s say a hundred-mile radius. How about Charlie and I come back tonight, but we’ll bring the wives too. I’m sure they’ll have some input.”
Charlie, like Jesse, was married to a shifter and could give them a different perspective on things. Maybe even share information the others might not have.
“Sounds good,” Derek told him.
The men shook hands all around, then Rand walked Jesse to his car.
“I want to get back and check on Hannah,” he told the deputy. “Suddenly I have a bad feeling I can’t get rid of.”
“Oh?” Jesse stuck his keys back in his pocket. “Come on, then. I’ll go check with you. If she’s all right I can give her a hug. Hannah’s special to all of us.”
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Because she’s so shy, Rand thought. Alexa had accidentally discovered her graphics talent and everyone had been very grateful when she’d hired Hannah to work for her. There was something very extra special about Hannah and Rand’s chest swelled with pride at the fact that she was his mate.
He unlocked the front door, pushed it open and called, “Hannah? Are you up yet?”
“If she wasn’t she sure would be now,” Jesse pointed out. Rand led the way through the living room and peeked into the kitchen before heading down the short hallway. He stopped in the doorway to his room, frozen. He took in the empty bed, the absence of Hannah’s clothes that had landed in a heap on the floor last night and his gut tightened.
“She’s gone, damn it.” His hands clenched into fists. “I told her to stay here. Why didn’t she just do it?”
“Maybe she went next door to get some things,” Jesse suggested. “Let’s go check before we borrow trouble.”
“I told her to stay put.” Rand was trying to believe that’s all it was.
“I’m sure she thought just going back to get some stuff wouldn’t be a problem.”
“It is if that asshole located her and is prowling around here.” He banged a fist against the wall. “Shit! How could she do something so crazy with things the way they are right now?”
“Rand,” Jesse began.
“I promised her I’d keep her safe. I probably should have chained her to the bed.”
He slammed out the back door, heading toward Sascha’s, but stopped when his wolf eyes spotted something on the ground. “Damn it. She left the door unlocked. How the hell could she do that? And look.” He pointed. “Someone’s been here, heavy enough to bend the blades of grass.” He crouched down, passing his hand over the faint marks. 40
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“How the hell do you even see that?” Jesse was shaking his head. “I wish my senses were as sharp as yours. Of course, that’s one of the reasons you and Derek consult for the sheriff.”
“Two men.” Rand stood up, anger ripped through his entire body. “A struggle. They got her just as she came off the back porch.”
“They must have taped her mouth,” Jesse said, “or you know she’d have screamed the neighborhood down.”
“That better be all they did.” Rand could barely control his rage. “Let’s check with Sascha, just to be sure.”
But Sascha, who was just leaving for work, had not seen Hannah or heard from her since the phone call from Rand’s the previous night.
“Do you think those people got her?” she asked, her eyes wide and frightened.
“If they did they’ll regret it when I get through with them.” He turned to Jesse.
“I’ve got to do something.”
“Let’s check all our options first,” Jesse counseled. “Right now we don’t even know who we’re dealing with and where they might have taken her. I need to call Charlie and get him started on this.”
Derek had seen them from his kitchen window and now stood beside them.
“What’s up?” he asked Rand.
“She’s gone.”
In words that felt like icicles falling from his mouth, he gave Derek the bare details.
“They had to be waiting for her somewhere,” Derek said. “Let’s see what we can find.”
Rand led the way through the trees, he and Derek spotting the bent grass and disturbed leaves that marked the path of the two men.
“They carried her,” he spat out. “At least one of them did. His footsteps are heavier going back.”
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The hill behind the houses was also thick with trees, giving the shifters welcome covering for their runs. But now it was a menacing environment that had provided shelter for two men bent on god only knew what.
Rand climbed the hill with long-legged strides, until he reached the dirt road that circled the peak.
“Up here,” he called back. “They had a car waiting for them. These big oaks concealed them.”
He banged his fist against one of the trees hard enough to break the skin. Derek grabbed him by the arm.
“I know how you feel. Hannah is very special. But that isn’t going to help anything. We need to get some concrete information and make a plan.”
“They could be killing her or something worse while we make plans.” Rand swallowed the bitter taste in his mouth. Surely fate wouldn’t be so cruel to snatch Hannah away from him just when they’d connected with each other.
“Let’s get back to my house and get organized.”
He led the way back to his house, ushering everyone into his kitchen. Rand paced while Derek started the coffee and Jesse pulled out his cell phone. He wanted to close his hands around someone’s neck but there wasn’t anyone appropriate available and at the moment it wouldn’t do him any good,
anyway. How the hell were they going to find her? And could they do it in time?
Jesse snapped his cell shut. “I gave Charlie the info on the car and he’s going to see what he can do with it. He’ll also pull a list of the people in the area we might think of targeting. He’s sending a tech out to cast the footprints and tire tracks. I’m going up on the hill to make sure no one messes with the prints up there.”
Derek handed Rand a cup of coffee. “Here. Drink this and settle down. You won’t be any good to Hannah if you go off half-cocked.”
“I know that. Except—”
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“Except you want to protect your mate. Fine. We’ll do that.”
“When I get her back, I’m going to paddle her ass for leaving the house, even if it was only to go next door.”
“Sounds like that might be fun.” Derek patted his friend on the shoulder. “Just trying to lighten the atmosphere. We’ll find her. Let me round up the others so they’ll all be here when Charlie calls with the information.”
* * * * *
Riesa brewed herself another cup of herbal tea and sat with it at her kitchen table. She’d tried going back to sleep after the terrible visions, but the woman’s fear had permeated her body so thoroughly that she could find no peace. Then, close to dawn, another one hit her.
This time she saw a wolf, standing by a palmetto bush. His expression was at once mournful and full of rage. His lips were partially pulled back in a snarl but she could swear there were tears in his eyes. He paced back and forth by the palmetto, turning frequently as if he could see her. As if he were sending her a message. A blue light suffused the palmetto bush, pulsing and spearing its rays in the atmosphere. The wolf looked at it then back to her. Now there was an almost pleading expression on his face. But what was he asking? What did he want her to do?
Houses wavered behind him, more like cottages, but suddenly a huge home shimmered in through the haze. Set on a hill, its aura was shrouded in black. She rubbed her temples with her fingertips and then took a long sip of the tea. When the cup was empty she brewed a fresh one and pulled a notebook from the kitchen drawer. Long ago when she was still a child her grandmother had given this to her, smoothing her hand over the soft green cover.
