Team Leader had approached him nineteen years ago while he was still in the Marines. Gage had been attracted to purity of the Abolitionist cause, but regular paychecks and full benefits were hard to let go. Still, rescuing helpless females and preventing these demonic abominations from reproducing was a reward far more valuable than material comforts. There was no moral ambiguity in salvation. Without his assistance, these females would not only suffer in this world, they’d be damned to an eternity of hell’s fire after they died. So, Gage had left the Marines and sworn allegiance to the Abolitionist cause.
Willona’s lovely image fueled his determination, still vivid after four and a half years. She’d pushed him away long before her death, but he’d kept tabs on her, watching from afar as she struggled to rear her daughters alone. If his lifestyle had been more conducive to a permanent relationship, he might have tried harder to resolve their differences. No, it was better that he’d just let her go, let her enjoy the life she’d purchased with blood, sweat and tears.
After Willona had fulfilled her contract with the Abolitionists, Nehema had ordered that Willona be left alone. It was surgically impossible for her to reproduce and the girls were no danger to anyone as long as Willona kept them away from Therian males.
But Willona had died and the demons returned to claim their lost females. Nehema had dispatched a rescue team as soon as she learned of Osric’s plans, but the demons had arrived first.
Gage had promised Willona he’d keep her daughters safe. Even after they went their separate ways, he’d been determined to keep that promise. But he’d failed. There was no way for him to escape that fact. And now, if he didn’t act quickly, Carissa and Ava would be dragged back into the savage world Willona had fought so hard to escape.
Gage didn’t know the identity of Team Leader’s contact, but it didn’t matter now. Gage had no intention of sitting on his hands while the girls slipped farther from his grasp. The raptor’s defenses had been breached. The location was compromised. The creatures had no choice but to relocate Carissa. But where would they take her?
Knowing their twenty-fifth birthday was approaching, Gage had been gathering intel for months. He spread out the photos, considering each location. The Wildlife Sanctuary was the most defensible setting, but it was also the least discreet. The raptor’s house had been his first choice and his instincts had been correct.
Irritation surged through his focus. This hadn’t been the first time his instincts had salvaged a floundering mission. Why wouldn’t Team Leader acknowledge his value? If Gage hadn’t been two steps ahead of the other operatives, the jaguar would have defiled Carissa. No one else was even close! Yet he was the one Team Leader chastised. He was the one sent home.
With a deep, calming breath, he cleared his mind and stabilized his emotions. Team Leader’s incompetence would have to wait. The only thing that mattered now was saving Carissa. The only reason he’d followed Team Leader’s order in the first place was because sleep deprivation had affected his aim. His shot should have taken out the raptor, even with their unexpected gyrations.
Well, four hours of sleep had steadied his hands and cleared his vision. His friend had warned him that they appeared to be preparing to leave. Even the raptor was deserting the nest. Now Gage needed to choose his next target.
He picked up the picture of an unassuming cabin, nearly concealed in the trees. This was the jaguar’s home, and it would take several hours to drive there. He’d already spent seven hours attempting to sleep. He wasn’t willing to squander any more time. His instincts were telling him to go to that cabin, and he intended to listen.
* * * * *
Quinn’s cabin was smaller than Ian’s house, and even less coordinated. Ian’s vaguely Southwestern décor would never earn industry accolades, but at least the furniture matched. Carissa looked around Quinn’s rustic living room, trying to decide if it deserved a groan or a giggle. The deep-cushioned sofa was black while the wood-framed chair and ottoman were burgundy. A wood-burning stove nestled in the far corner of the room, adjacent to an ultramodern entertainment center. It was all rather…eclectic.
“I don’t spend a lot of time here,” he muttered as she continued to stare.
Rather than irritate him further, she asked, “How is your security better than Ian’s? His house seemed more secluded.”
“Secluded doesn’t always equate with security.” He motioned her toward the loft situated above the small kitchen. A curtain obscured her view, so she climbed the ladder and pushed the material aside. His large, warm palm cupped her rear and gave her a playful push. “Keep going.” He’d moved up behind her, his breath teasing the small of her back. “I’m losing interest in the tour.”
His arm wrapped around her thighs and he started to pull her against him, so she scrambled up into the loft. Two and a half hours on the road had given them plenty of time for small talk and wistful smiles. They both liked classic rock and action flicks. He didn’t share her fascination with the paranormal, but she pointed out that paranormal was passé for a Therian. The light, stress-free mood had been so welcome she hadn’t asked any of the questions lingering in the back of her mind. But her curiosity wouldn’t be denied any longer.
Quinn pulled out one of the chairs from the wraparound desk and offered it to her. She sat back and watched as he activated the multi-screen computer system. It seemed rather elaborate for a home office. The monitors flickered to life with images from popular online games and she couldn’t help but smile.
“Is this how you spend your days?”
“No, but it makes a convincing cover for this.” He entered several commands into the keyboard and the computer shifted modes. The animated warriors and busty fantasy heroines were replaced by real-time images of the cabin and a data access screen.
“Holy shit.” She rolled closer to the desk. “Why do you need this sort of security?” One monitor was divided into four smaller sections, each one displaying an interior shot of the cabin. The other three monitors displayed external shots. Even the access road, which was a deterrent in itself, was covered by surveillance cameras. He unlocked a drawer on his right and withdrew several small black objects. They were about the size of nine-volt batteries, and had no obvious controls. “What are those?”
“Proximity transceivers. I need to give them to Landon and his men or they’ll set off the alarms.” He put the transceivers in his pocket as she took it all in. “It’s easy to make enemies in my line of work.”
“Which is?” She swiveled toward him as she waited for his answer.
He paused, hands resting lightly on his thighs. “I’m a hunter, hellion. You know that.”
“But what do you hunt? Bounties?”
“At times.”
“Fugitives?”
“Yes.”
“Criminals?”
“Yes.”
“Helpless women?”
He snickered. “Are you really going to and try and convince me you’re helpless? I have the scratches on my back that prove otherwise.”
Heat crept up her neck onto her cheeks as their escapade in the hot tub rolled through her memory. Never before had she been so uninhibited, so demanding, so…ready to have sex with a veritable stranger while others watched! “Did I really scratch you?” Or had he brought up sex to derail her curiosity?
“I’ve been thinking about last night and this morning.” He pushed back from the desk and swiveled to face her. His gaze fixed on her mouth and he spread his legs, pulling her toward him chair and all. “Did Erin do something creative while she healed you? Did she accelerate the end of your heat cycle or… Why do you suddenly have more control over your body than I do? And in the hot tub, I was screaming for release, but I couldn’t come.”
What was he talking about? Last night she’d had no more control than he’d had. She’d been wild for his touch, ready to let him define her if it meant he’d stay in her bed. For long hours after he’d left, she lay there picturing what it would have
been like if he’d stayed.
As for the other, all she knew was she’d never been so turned-on in her life as she’d been in the hot tub. Her hormones might have been tamed by the nasal spray, but her emotions and fundamental desires had been immune to the chemical harness. She wanted Quinn. It was as simple as that.
“You liked it better when I was so desperate I hardly knew what we were doing?” Did he know about the nasal spray? Erin had warned her that it was forbidden. “Therian heat is like a date rape drug.”
He shoved her chair back and stood, gaze narrowing to glistening slits. “Except I didn’t give it to you, and I made damn sure you were willing before I ever touched you even once.”
“You’re right. That wasn’t fair.” She stood as well, rolling her chair out of the way. Their bodies were already in sync. If she didn’t defuse this fast, she’d be facing the longest three months of her life. “I was frightened. I’d never been that out of control before. I didn’t want to sleep with you because my hormones left me no choice.”
His brow knitted as he considered her words, and then his jaw dropped and he shook his head. “Did she give you a Heat kit?” He raked his hand through his hair, creating adorable spikes. “Of course she did! Why didn’t I see this coming?” He snorted. “Or not coming.” He was seriously pissed, but she wasn’t sure if she had garnered his wrath or if he was focused entirely on Erin. “No wonder I lost control. Those chemicals are forbidden for a reason.”
“My entire world has been thrown into chaos. I had to regain control over some small aspect of the situation.” She crossed her arms, wishing he’d sit down. Having him glare down at her wasn’t making her confession any easier. “Besides… I wanted to know I’d chosen my lover, not just accepted the first Therian who crossed my path.”
He hooked her belt loop and pulled her toward him, his expression still unreadable. “You have to stop using that kit. I’ll give you as much time as I can, but those chemicals throw everything off balance.”
“I thought the mist just slowed things down, backed off the urgency.” She’d used the mist that morning and her hunger had simmered ever since. She’d been aware of the slumbering urgency, but the craving had been easily managed. Even in the hot tub she’d felt far more in control than she had in the truck. He rested his hands on her hips, allowing a cushion of space between them.
His gaze lowered to her mouth and his thumbs stroked her sides, the caress light, almost unconscious. Their gazes locked and his hands tensed. “You keep revving me up, but your body isn’t giving me what I need to finish the job. That’s why I started to shift last night. My desire built and built without a chemical response from you.”
“But I responded. I was just as wild as you were.”
He shook his head. “It’s not the same. No matter how many times you climaxed, I wouldn’t have been able to come.”
“Like in the hot tub?”
“Exactly.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know.” She looked away from his grim face, unable to concentrate with his penetrating stare boring into her. “Erin never said anything about side effects.”
His warm chuckle drew her gaze back to his face. “She probably thought I deserved it. I suspect she wouldn’t have offered you the kit if you’d chosen Ian.”
The casual mention of the other man’s name sent unanswered questions tumbling through her mind. There was never going to be a good time for this subject and he was already annoyed with her. What did she have to lose? She took a deep breath and placed her hand on his chest. “I don’t need details, but will you please let me know why they—”
“Hate me?”
“I was going to say mistrust you.”
He stepped back, away from her touch, then returned to his chair. “Erin might mistrust me, but Ian hates me.”
“Why?” She sat as well, crossing her legs in an attempt to appear at ease. “Did you use your ability on his sister or something?”
“Best friend’s wife,” Quinn supplied without outward emotion.
She’d figured as much, but his motivation was still a mystery. “Was there a reason for your actions, or did you lose control?” There had to be more to the story than Ian knew or was willing to accept. Quinn could be arrogant and domineering, but he was fiercely protective and honorable. There was no way he would intentionally harm a woman.
Quinn’s brow arched in mock surprise. “Someone is going to ask questions before passing judgment? This will be a first.”
She tried not to be affected by his obvious bitterness. Objectivity was key to understanding any situation. “How did it happen?”
“I was hunting a man named Russell.”
“Ian’s best friend?”
“Ian claims they were closer than brothers.” Quinn shrugged. Despite his calm expression, resentment and regret warred within his gaze. “There’s no accounting for taste.”
“What had Russell done? Why were you hunting him?”
“Armed robbery. The worthless bird had a thing against honest work.”
If she was going to give Quinn the benefit of a doubt, Ian deserved it too. “Why would Ian defend someone like that?”
“According to Ian, Russell was an adrenaline junkie who would do all sorts of irrational things for the thrill of it.”
“That’s no excuse.”
The shadow of a smile fell across Quinn’s lips. “I agree. Society is too quick to justify wrong choices with syndromes and behavioral disorders. Three people got shot while Russell chased his adrenaline fix that day. One of them almost died.”
“What about Russell’s wife? Had she done something wrong?” If she wanted the complete truth, she had to be willing to dig for the answers and risk reawakening Quinn’s temper.
“Jillian was aiding and abetting a violent fugitive.” His voice remained conversational, but his features began to tense. “I could have shot her and been within my rights.”
That was obviously Quinn’s perspective. By the letter of the law, Jillian was guilty and his actions were justified. But the woman in Carissa couldn’t help but identify with the choices Jillian had faced. How could any woman stand by and allow the man she loved to be incarcerated? Therian males weren’t the only ones who could feel protective.
“How did triggering Jillian’s heat help you find Russell?” They were moving closer to the heart of the matter, the conflict stemming from the circumstances. She fiddled with the hem of her shirt, not even sure when she’d untucked it.
“I didn’t intend for the result to be as powerful as it was. I just needed to be able to track her to her mate.”
Regret twisted his features for a moment before he retreated behind his expressionless mask. She’d felt an odd ping of emotions, like an echo down a long corridor. Was she starting to sense emotional spikes in his consciousness? Would this happen more often as their bodies adapted to each other?
“I brushed up against her in a bar then went to my truck to wait for her to rendezvous with Russell. She ducked out the back and I never saw her leave. According to Ian, Jillian’s scent was so strong and her need so demanding that Russell walked in on a Roman-style orgy featuring his wife.” He shook his head and stared off into the distance. “Russell ran out of the motel room in a blind rage and I managed to trap him, but none of it unfolded the way I’d planned. Jillian was collateral damage. That was never my intention.”
Carissa hesitated. She still had so many questions, but Quinn stared into nothingness, sullen and defeated. She didn’t want to revisit this hurtful memory once they ended this conversation, so she reluctantly pushed on.
“Was Ian directly involved in some way or did he just know the couple?”
Quinn released a heavy sigh then said, “Ian led the charge to have me banished. He submitted the case in Jillian’s name, but everyone knew he was the driving force behind the charges.”
“Were you close before this happened?”
“Kyle knew him a lot better than I did, but at one t
ime I considered him a friend.”
Which would have made Ian’s betrayal sting all the more. She knew the outcome of the trial, so she didn’t ask for details. “Had anyone ever responded that strongly to your ability before?”
“Yes, but the situation was vastly different.” Quinn’s dark gaze shifted back to her face. Most of the anger had melted from his expression, but the pain was even more upsetting.
She wanted to touch him, smooth the worry lines from his brow and trace along his prickly jaw. But she knew he’d bat her hand away and retreat even farther. “How was the situation different?”
“I was fifteen when it happened the first time. Kyle dared me to ask an older girl to dance. I’d never touched a female before and I became immediately aroused. The more excited I became, the more excited it made her. By the end of the dance, she was ready to do a whole lot more than dance. Kyle was convinced I’d done something to her. I told him he was full of shit, but when I tried it again a few weeks later, the same thing happened.”
“You were only fifteen when this began?” A young male discovering his own sexuality with the power to instantly arouse females. She couldn’t imagine a more volatile situation. “Were you tempted to switch on every girl you encountered?”
“I can’t say the thought never crossed my mind. But as someone so kindly pointed out, switching females on is rather like slipping them a date rape drug. Rape, in any form, is abhorrent to me.”
She cringed at the reminder of her careless charge. She hadn’t meant it as an accusation. She just hadn’t been thinking when she chose her illustration. “How long did it take you to figure out how to control it?”
“As with any Therian ability, mine grew stronger with age. Luckily, as the female reaction to me became stronger, I found the path within myself and figured out how to open and close it.” Quinn related the facts with casual indifference, as if he were no longer talking about himself. She recognized the defense mechanism, having used it herself from time to time.
“You said there was another time when the woman had an unusually strong reaction to your pulse,” Carissa prompted, not wanting to hear a detailed list of his conquests.
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