Angel/Hiss (Bayou Heat Box Set Book 7) (10 page)

Once she saw them as people with feelings and dreams instead of just creatures, she’d been unable to continue with her research.

“A very dangerous complication,” Chelsea taunted.

“They won’t be able to stop us,” Stanton said with genuine confidence. The animals were dangerous, but they weren’t nearly as tech savvy as he was. “But for now we’ve transferred our patients to our other labs.”

She frowned. “I thought your master was convinced that Hiss would be the answer to all his troubles.”

Stanton hesitated, abruptly knowing where the conversation was headed.

“That’s his hope.”

“So why do you insist on keeping the other prisoners?”

“The research they provide is invaluable,” he said in offhand tones.

She clutched the counter behind her, a profound disappointment making her shoulders droop.

“So it’s true,” she muttered.

“What?” Stanton tried to bluff.

“You’re selling the technology we discovered.” She pushed away from the counter, moving to stand directly in front of him. “Locke, how could you?”

He wrenched his gaze from her pained expression, forcing himself to glance out the window where he could see the sky being painted in shades of lavender and pink as dusk began to spread over the city.

He didn’t want to try and explain why he’d allowed his master to convince him they should use the experimental drugs they’d created as a way to fund further research.

Not when Chelsea was well aware that nothing could excuse the blatant greed of the older man.

It was one thing to try and discover technology to keep yourself alive. It was another to sell the pain of others for profit.

“I won’t be returning to New Orleans.” He abruptly changed the conversation.

It was time to walk away.

Before she ended up resenting him even more.

She sucked in a sharp breath. “What happens to me?”

He glanced down at her pale face, memorizing each line and curve. As if her image hadn’t already been branded into his brain.

“You’re free,” he told her.

She seemed to freeze, her eyes wide. “What?”

He grimly ignored the agony that pulsed through him. For once in his miserable life he was going to do the right thing.

Even if it killed him.

“The doors are unlocked and when I leave I’ll take the guard with me,” he forced himself to say.

She blinked, staring at him with wary hope. “Are you serious?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

Barely aware of what he was doing, he lifted his hand to brush a stray curl behind her ear.

“I realize I was wrong to hold you as my prisoner.” His lips twisted, his fingers tingling at the feel of her warm skin. “At first my only concern was ensuring that no one discovered you were still alive. I couldn’t bear the thought of you being hurt.”

“And then?” she prompted.

He gave a humorless laugh. “Then I kept you here because I hoped we could be together again. Stupid. Holding you captive isn’t exactly the way to win your heart.”

Regret darkened her eyes, her hand lifting to cup his face. “I’ve told you what you needed to do if you want to be together.”

She had. All he had to do was betray the man who’d saved his life and turned him into a success.

“I…can’t,” he ground out.

Her jaw hardened with disappointment. Good lord. Even after all this time she still cared?

The knowledge was oddly painful.

“You’ll walk away and leave me?” she husked.

He flinched, deliberately misinterpreting her soft plea.

“You should be safe,” he assured her. “The master believes you’re dead and as long as you don’t deliberately draw attention to yourself there’s no reason for him to suspect you’re still alive.”

She wasn’t fooled.

She knew he was avoiding her question.

“This is what you want?” she insisted.

“This is what I want.” Framing her face in his hands, Stanton lowered his head to kiss her with a bittersweet longing he felt in his very soul.

“Stay,” she whispered against his lips, her hands grasping his shirt in a tight grip.

“Run from here, Chelsea,” he urged her, giving her one last kiss before he was pulling away. “Build a new life.”

“Locke—”

“Be happy,” he pleaded, turning to head out of the kitchen.

Not allowing himself to glance back, he halted only long enough to pay the guard an obscene amount of money to keep his mouth shut before he was climbing into his silver Jag and gunning the engine.

Soon New Orleans would be a speck in his rearview mirror and Chelsea would become a fond memory.

He repeated the words over and over as the city streets were replaced by the tangled greenery of the wetlands, not really surprised when they did nothing to ease the heaviness of his heart.

CHAPTER 7

Indy couldn’t deny a stab of surprise when Angel at last led her out of the private cottage into the Wildlands.

Okay, she hadn’t expected mud huts and treehouses, but it was all far more civilized than she’d expected.

First they’d headed to the state-of-the-art medical facility where Angel had run a dozen tests on her before she was surrounded by eager Pantera mates who’d pampered her with a hot bath and clean clothes.

Next he’d led her across the open space in the middle of the bayou to reveal the private headquarters of the Suits.

The elegant Colonial-style structure that was painted white with black shutters had an old-world feel to it that was only emphasized by the six fluted columns that held up the second-story balcony.

The inside, however, was buzzing with electric energy and high-tech security systems that would make Homeland Security shit a brick.

Trying to ignore the curious gazes that followed their path through the crowded public rooms, Indy inched closer to Angel. She’d never been surrounded by so many Pantera at once and it was unsettling.

Her nerves weren’t eased when they stepped into the private office of a large male with long, golden blond hair and jade green eyes.

The force of two alpha males in the same small place was enough to make her body feel as if it was being pressed between a rock and a very hard place.

The head of the Diplomats rose to his feet at their entrance, blatantly inspecting her as Angel urged her to the center of the room.

“So you’re the female who finally captured Angel,” he murmured.

Angel gave a sudden laugh, wrapping his arm around Indy’s shoulders.

“In more ways than one.”

Indy sent her mate a wry smile, recalling how she’d awoken handcuffed to the bed only hours ago.

“Actually, I’m not sure who caught who,” she said.

Angel pressed a swift kiss against her temple. “Let’s call it a mutual agreement.”

Raphael watched them with open satisfaction. “Did you complete your testing?” he asked of Angel.

“Yes,” Angel said. “I have a few preliminary results.”

Raphael folded his arms over his chest. “And?”

Angel’s arm tightened around her shoulder. Only days ago, Indy would have been furious at his possessive touch. Now she relished the knowledge that whatever happened, she would have this glorious male at her side.

“Specific parts of her DNA have been altered,” he admitted, the rough growl in his voice pure cat.

Raphael’s gaze slid in her direction. “Altered how?”

It was Angel who answered. “I don’t know. Which means our enemy has technology way beyond what we understand.”

Raphael grimaced. “Perfect.” He continued to study her with open concern. “Do you feel okay?”

“I do,” Indy told him. “No doubt better than I would if I’d remained a mere human.”

“She has increased strength and endurance, and if she’s anything like Tarin she’s probably immune to most human diseases,” Angel added.

Raphael’s brows snapped together, his lean body, currently attired in a pair of khakis and a cashmere sweater, rigid with his barely leashed emotions.

“Dammit,” he breathed.

“What’s wrong?” Angel demanded.

“We’re constantly a day late and a dollar short,” he snarled, his eyes glowing gold as his hunger for the blood of his enemies prickled in the air. “Tell me what you remember about the labs,” he snapped toward Indy.

Angel instantly moved to stand in front of her, his body clenched as he glared at his companion.

“Easy, Raphael,” he growled.

Realizing both males were on edge, Indy reached up to run a soothing hand down Angel’s back.

“It’s okay,” she assured her mate, keeping her hand on his lower back as she met Raphael’s smoldering gaze. The older male was worried about his people. She better than anyone understood his frustration. “We were divided into different groups. The Pantera were kept in the lower basements. I was never down there so I’m not entirely sure what happened to them.”

Raphael abruptly turned to walk across the room that was furnished with a simple but sturdy oak desk and leather chairs, with shelves overflowing with pictures of a pretty dark-haired woman and a newborn child.

“Obviously they had blood and semen taken from them,” he said.

“Yes,” Angel agreed. “And bone marrow.”

Raphael turned back, his expression bleak. “What else?”

Indy didn’t know exactly what he wanted to know, so she shared what she assumed was most pertinent.

“There were women used as breeders.”

“We’ve heard about them,” Raphael said. “They were using the Haymore Center as a fertility facility.”

Indy nodded. “Karen was one, but she was held prisoner in New York. I think there are several other labs scattered around.”

“So do I,” Raphael swiftly agreed. “Caleb is her son?”

“Yes, plus she has two others who we’ve been searching for,” Indy revealed, hoping her friend didn’t mind her sharing the information. If the Pantera went in search of the people responsible for taking them captive, it was possible they might be able to locate her missing sons. “She was never given Pantera blood,” she continued. “But she was artificially inseminated with their semen.”

Raphael nodded. “Willa must be an offspring created by a breeder.”

A growl rumbled deep in Angel’s chest. He was already deeply attached to the little girl.

“They’ve clearly improved their technique over the years,” he said.

Raphael nodded, his attention still locked on Indy. “And you?”

“I was a cavy,” she revealed without hesitation. She never apologized for being a victim. “We were all test rats used for different experiments.”

“You don’t know what they wanted from you?” the Pantera male pressed.

“No.” Indy shook her head. She’d sensed she was changing, but she’d never had a clue what the end result was supposed to be. “All I know for certain was that they took large vials of blood from me every day.”

Raphael’s expression tightened, clearly annoyed she couldn’t offer the answers he needed. But before he could try to demand more information about what had been done to her, Angel made a low sound of warning.

The older male clenched his jaw, but surprisingly he nodded his head in silent capitulation. Not that he was done questioning her.

“What about the people who were holding you?” He turned his attention to their mutual enemy. Which was just fine with Indy. “Do you know anything about them?”

She wrinkled her nose. She’d spent a lot of time investigating the bastards. Unfortunately, they had the sort of resources that made it almost impossible to penetrate their security.

“The guards were all well trained and well armed,” she shared.

Raphael narrowed his eyes. “Military?”

“I would guess they were military trained but after I managed to escape I couldn’t find any connection to the government.”

“They would make sure they kept it a secret.” The male’s lips twisted with disgust. “Even animals are supposed to be treated humanely.”

“True,” Indy murmured. It’d been her first thought as well, but so far she hadn’t discovered any link. “From all the information I could dig up, the labs appear to be owned by a private corporation.”

“Locke?” Raphael spit the name out like it was a curse.

“He’s the one listed on the paperwork.” Indy shrugged, searching for the words to express her vague suspicions. “But I sense there’s someone else lurking in the shadows.”

Indy felt an odd sense of pride as the leader of the Suits gave a brisk nod, accepting her words without question.

She’d half expected to be treated as an outsider, or even as one of the enemy. Instead they’d made her feel as if she was a part of the community.

“Can you lead us to the lab in New York?” Raphael asked.

She grimaced. She’d been expecting the question.

“I can, but it changes every few months,” she explained. “I doubt we’ll find anything but an abandoned building.”

There was a burst of heat as the two males glanced at one another. Clearly they’d hoped she could provide them with a starting place.

The tension in the air was abruptly interrupted as the door was thrust open and a tall stranger with a scarred face and dark hair stepped into the room.

Indy shivered. Christ. If two puma males were enough to make the room seem overly small, then three were enough to make it positively claustrophobic.