OnsetofDanger (11 page)

He shut and locked the door, annoyed by Simone’s
thoughtfulness. “Has your appetite returned? You didn’t eat much before.”

“Unlike you?” She laid the book aside and shifted in the
chair so she could see him without craning her neck.

“Is that an offer? I’m always hungry for more of what I was
eating before.” He ambled toward her, enjoying her renewed spirit. He couldn’t
wait to test her resolve, to strip away her stubbornness layer by layer.

She ignored the challenge and said, “Simone was a nice
surprise, but I should have realized it would have taken a traitor’s help for
you to escape the Vancouver compound.” She made “traitor” sound particularly
unpleasant.

He refused to be distracted by the tangent. Past events had
led them to this point, but they both needed to be focused on the future. “Then
you believe what I told you? If I don’t become your sworn protector, you’ll
likely die.”

Pushing to her feet, she positioned the chair between them,
her movements intentionally casual. “Do you understand what will happen to me
if I form any kind of alliance with a member of Strigo strain? I will be just
as much a traitor as Simone.”

There was that word again. She was obviously upset by the
possibility that the label would be applied to her. “I hate to tell you this,
baby doll, but you’re a traitor either way. Be honest with yourself for a
moment. After all that you’ve been through, will Tara take you back?” She
grasped the back of the chair and stared past him, too obstinate to admit what
they both knew. “I’m not just offering you myself. Once you accept my vow,
every member of Strigo strain will be obligated to protect you.”

She scoffed, managing to appear regal despite her bedraggled
clothes. “Most members of your strain will find it hard to honor any obligation
to me.”

“Their obligation is not to you. It’s to me.”

“And no one dares to disappoint a Yeager?” Challenge filled
her voice as she shifted her gaze back to his face.

“That must have been some conversation.” He crossed his arms
over his chest. Okay, so letting her speak with the healer might not have been
such a good idea. There was nothing he could do about it now. “What else did
Simone tell you?”

“That Caitlyn is here with Prince Alexi. Simone claims it
was Caitlyn’s choice, but who really has a choice when Strigo hosts are
involved? The only thing your strain likes better than sex is mind-fucking
people into submission.”

For a moment her hostility shocked him. He hadn’t forced
anything on her. Where was this bitterness coming from? Then he saw a flicker
of fear in her gaze. Apparently she’d realized how bleak her future really was,
unless she accepted the assistance of her enemy. If faced with the same
possibilities, he would fight tooth and nail. It was unrealistic to think she
would meekly bow to the inevitable.

He walked to the table and pulled out a chair. Then he
turned it around and straddled the seat, resting his folded arms across the
back. This was really Caitlyn’s story to tell, but he needed to defuse this
situation fast or he wouldn’t have enough time to form the bond before Eloise
required energy again.

“Tell me about Inatta Emil,” he prompted.

“Inatta?” Her brows scrunched together and alarm sparked
deep in her eyes, but she quickly hid her concern behind a blasé mask. “What do
the Rom have to do with anything?”

“Inatta is leader of Rom strain here on Earth. Correct?”

“Yes, but Rom strain hasn’t blended well with humans. They
are no threat to anyone.”

“They’re the only strain with psychic abilities. Anyone who
can accurately predict the future is both valuable and dangerous.”

She moved her chair away from his then mirrored his pose.
“Why are we talking about the Rom?” Even clad in snug denim, her spread thighs
were distracting.

“Caitlyn is Inatta’s daughter.” He just flung the fact out
there and waited for a reaction that never came. Her face remained calm, her
pose almost relaxed. “She was working undercover in Vladya strain when Prince
Alexi found her.”

“More like she found him, but it’s still impossible. The
blood of each host is tasted before they’re allowed anywhere near my m—Tara.”

Caitlyn was merely a segue so he didn’t linger on the point.
He needed to know the location of the Rom captives. “Are you aware that Tara
has captured some newly initiated Rom hosts?” Bronik searched Eloise’s gaze as
he waited for her answer. She didn’t immediate look away but a protective haze
settled over her expression.

She was silent so long Bronik thought she wouldn’t answer.
Her features tensed. Her lips pressed then parted. She took a deep breath then
sighed as she said, “I’m aware.”

Her honesty pleased him, yet he couldn’t help wondering why
she’d told him. She had to have an ulterior motive. She was far from ready to
trust him. “Where are they? Inatta is within her rights to treat this as an act
of war. None of us wants that.”

“Inatta is no threat to Vladya strain and Tara knows it.”

Leaning forward, Bronik grabbed the back of Eloise’s chair
and dragged her toward him, not stopping until her face was inches from his.
“Prince Alexi is Caitlyn’s sworn protector. That means every member of her
family is under his protection as well. Do you understand what that means?”
Eloise licked her lips and it took a concerted effort for Bronik not to lean
down and kiss her. He wanted to suck her tongue into his mouth and nibble on
her lips until they were both breathless and hungry for more. “Edrick would
rather not escalate the conflict but he’s prepared to launch an offensive
against Vladya strain if Tara doesn’t release the Rom captives. Just tell me
where they are and we can avert a war.”

“Anything I know is compromised.” Her gaze was steady and
calm as she looked into his eyes. “They will have moved the captives by now.”

“Tell me where they were and likely destinations for their
relocation.”

“I’d rather barter.”

“The terms I laid out are nonnegotiable. My protection for
your submission, no exceptions, no conditions.” His tone grew steely and
tension crept across his features. This was important but so was forming the
bond. He’d try one last time to awaken her symbionts then he’d use their link
to force-feed them energy. Both procedures would take time and dawn was less
than two hours away. That didn’t leave much time for verbal sparring.

She caught her bottom lip between her teeth and took a deep
breath. “Submission is impossible without trust. This can be the foundation on
which that trust is built.”

He grasped the back of her chair again, battling his desire
to touch her. Once this turned physical there would be no stopping until they
were both soaked in sweat and panting. “I want information about the Rom
captives. What do you want in return?”

“Basically the same. Tara entrusted the Rom captives
entirely to Garrett. What I know about the project I learned on my own. I will
give you a list of lab locations, but I’d like you to explain why the captives
were taken and what Tara is trying to accomplish.”

“Tara didn’t trust you with the details?” He couldn’t help
feeling as if she was working some sort of angle. Tara considered Eloise her
daughter. Why wouldn’t she be privy to anything that affected Vladya strain?

“Tara doesn’t trust anyone. She frequently segments
information so that she is the only one who has all the answers. Garrett was
kept in the dark about my operations and I wasn’t informed about his. That’s
just the way things worked.”

“All right. Give me the lab locations as well as probable
sites for the relocation and I’ll tell you what I know about the project.”

“Half now and half later.” She began to relax as they moved
closer to consensus. “I’ll list the original locations, you tell me about the
project and then I’ll offer suggestions for where the captives might be now.”

“Deal.” He took out his phone, launched the texting screen
then handed the device to Eloise.

“Who am I texting?”

“List the original locations. I’ll have Edrick check them
out and if they seem legitimate, I’ll fill you in on the project.”

“I thought we were trying to build trust.” She accepted the
phone and started the list, not waiting for his reply.

“Trust is offered then tested. It’s either strengthened or
damaged by the outcome of the test.”

She chuckled as her thumbs flew across the small screen.
“That’s a rather suspicious approach to building trust.” She finished the list
and handed the phone back to Bronik. “There might have been more but those are
the locations I was able to verify.”

He scrolled through the list, added a quick message of his
own then sent the text to Edrick. “You said you’ve been investigating this on
your own. How much have you learned about the captives?”

“They’re all female, between the ages of twenty and forty
and recently initiated into Rom strain. Beyond that I wasn’t able to learn much
of anything. Garrett’s security is a lot more sophisticated than Tara’s. He
uses technology to safeguard his secrets while she avoids it altogether.”

The phone vibrated and Bronik glanced down. Edrick’s response
indicated that he already knew about two of the locations, which confirmed
their legitimacy. He was checking into the others and stressed caution as
Bronik moved forward. Bronik only had a rudimentary understanding of the
subject, so it was unlikely he would tell her anything Vladya strain didn’t
already know. Still, he understood her curiosity and hoped the information
exchange would give them a common ground.

“Everyone on Strigoia Prime has the same blood type. It’s
likely that our bodies have evolved over the ages to better accommodate our
symbionts.” He slipped the phone back into his pocket and rested his hands on
the back of his chair. “Because humans have different blood types, they don’t
always make good hosts for Strigoian symbionts.”

“Strigo strain has done very well on Earth. It’s only Rom
and Levari strains that have struggled.”

Her confusion was troubling, though not surprising. It was
shocking how little human hosts knew about the origins of their symbionts. “I
was referring to our planet of origin, not the specific strain. Why are human
hosts kept ignorant about Strigoia Prime?”

“Information is power and the strain leaders on Earth tend
to be paranoid. Every time I asked Tara about Strigoia Prime, she insisted her
life began the day she set foot on Earth.”

“Then how did you learn what little you know?”

“Gossip, talking with hosts from other strains and Garrett.
His hunger for information is even more demanding than mine.”

“Good to know.”

“Back to the captives,” she suggested.

“As you said, Strigo and Vladya strains are strong enough to
survive in all human blood types. The Rom, however, only survive in AB positive
blood.” He’d just begun his explanation but her reaction gave him pause. She
scooted off the chair and stood, staring down at him with obvious suspicion.
“What’s the matter?”

“Nothing. Go on.”

He didn’t buy it for a minute. Her face paled and she shoved
her hands into the pockets of her jeans. “Then why do you look like you’re
about to throw up?”

“I’ll tell you once you’ve finished explaining.”

“Tell me now.”

“I’m not sure what it means yet. Go on.”

He stood as well and shoved both chairs back under the
table. He didn’t try to touch her, didn’t want to compound her anxiety, but he
wanted nothing between them if the conflict inside her erupted or she tried to
do something foolish. The stress of her captivity had to be incredible and
hosts were most dangerous when they thought they had nothing to lose.

Keeping his voice low and even, he continued his
explanation. “The differences in human blood have created symbiotic
characteristics that don’t exist on Strigoia Prime.”

“Meaning?”

“Rom strain can only survive in AB positive blood, but when
they’re lucky enough to find a suitable host they become more powerful than any
Rom host on Strigoia Prime.”

“I’ve heard all sorts of stories about what Rom hosts can
do, but the only Rom seer I’ve known personally is Zanty.”

“And she’s Strigoian.”

“As in her planet of origin not her symbiotic strain?”

“Exactly.”

She seemed to relax a little as her lips curved into a faint
smile. “I think Strigo strain chose that name to keep us all confused.”

He shook his head. Again with human ignorance. He needed to
make damn sure Edrick wasn’t employing similar tactics. “Strigo strain is so
named because it is the original strain. Strigo was the
only
strain for
several thousand years.”

“Then how did the other strains come into being?”

Her curiosity seemed genuine so he answered honestly.
“Vladya was a natural mutation brought on by changes in the hosts’ environment.
Rom and Levari, on the other hand, were most likely engineered.”

“And Tara knows all this?”

“Of course. It’s common knowledge on Strigoia Prime.”

“She’s so determined to prove Vladya equal to Strigo strain
that she’s willing to rewrite history if necessary.”

“It’s a common strategy.”

Rather than agree or disagree with his conclusion, she
asked, “What does all this have to do with the Rom captives?”

She’d introduced the tangent but he didn’t take offense.
They were wasting time they couldn’t spare, however, so he dove to the crux of
the issue. “Some AB positive humans are able to host more than one strain.”

“That’s impossible.” She waved away the statement as if it
were an annoying fly. “We can’t even feed from another host without our
symbionts battling each other. And the biological conflict generally kills the
host.”

“I don’t understand
how
it works. I’m not a
hematologist. All I know is Caitlyn carries both Vladya and Rom strains. That’s
how she passed herself off as Vladya.”