Riley Jensen 03 - Tempting Evil Part 15

He snorted. "You have such a lovely way with words."

"Blame my pack-mate for that one." Kade still wasn't aware that Rhoan was my brother-it was a secret we kept from all but a few. I folded my legs and sat cross-legged on the mat. Kade squatted behind me, filling my senses with his warm, musky scent.

"Has Rhoan reported in yet?"

I repeated the question and Kade shook his head. Not that I could actually see it, but right now all my senses were attuned to his every move, so the head shake was something I could "feel." Which maybe was something I should be scared about, because I wasn't emphatic, and I shouldn't be able to "feel" anything.

"It often takes several days for the new security officers to appear." His fingers skimmed my skin, sending little skitters of pleasure across my skin and stirring barely sated desire.

"Do they lose security personnel that often?" I asked.

"Yes, because part of their job is checking the zoo. Let me tell you, there's some very angry creatures penned in that area, and they often take it out on the guards."

No surprise, given the fact that being penned for any amount of time was enough to drive most nonhumans insane. There again, the nonhumans filling these particular pens were bred in a lab then locked in the zoo, so they probably wouldn't have had much of a grip on sanity to begin with. Not that Starr would care what his creations did as long as they killed on order.

"Did Kade get the floor plans I sent to him?" Jack asked.

Again I repeated the question, then winced as Kade pulled a sliver of wood from my skin.

"Yeah. Not that it'll do me much good. I have to stay outside-they'd pick me up as an unknown the minute I entered any of the buildings."

"So the cameras are monitored twenty-four hours a day?"

"Afraid so." He picked another bit of wood from my skin and flicked it away. It landed in the middle of the water and bobbled its way downstream. "s.h.i.+ft changes are seven in the morning and seven at night. You might have a few minutes leeway there, but that's about it."

"Has he seen Starr about at all?"

I repeated Jack's question.

"I get the impression that except for mealtimes, he never moves from his bolt-hole."

"And there's been no mention of Libraska from anyone else?"

"None at all." He kissed my shoulder then sat down, his long, leanly muscled legs stretching out either side of me. "But there's been a lot of new arrivals in the last few days. Something is happening."Jack snorted. "Starr is marshalling his forces for a war against the other cartels."

I repeated the comment, felt more than saw Kade's disagreement. Which was yet another worrying indication that the drug Talon had forced onto me was starting to effect my system.

d.a.m.n it, I didn't want any more psychic powers. And I definitely didn't want an increase in power in those that I did have. I was quite happy as I was, thank you very much.

But like so many other things in my life of late, I didn't appear to have much choice.

"I've studied the files and know most of Starr's generals by sight," Kade said. "A lot of the arrivals don't match what's in the files."

I frowned. "Maybe there's more generals than we know about."

"Or there's a whole lot more happening than we realize."

And wasn't that a pleasant thought. "Have you seen Dia Jones around?"

"The white psychic? Yeah, Pretty bit of tail, too."

"You seen her with a kid at all?"

He hesitated. "No. But word is Starr's holding her kid hostage for her good behavior."

So she was telling the truth there, too. "In the labs underground, apparently. You know anything about them?"

"Not really. I know they're on a lower level, but not the same one as Starr's. I also heard they have completely different access points and codes than Starr's quarters."

"Riley, why is this important?" Jack said. "You are not going after the kid. It'll jeopardize everything."

I ignored him. I was here, he was sitting in his van, and there wasn't a d.a.m.n thing he could do to stop me now. And short of endangering Rhoan or Kade, I was going to do what I could to rescue that kid. "What about the scientists?"

"Six that I know of."

"You able to point them out?"

He pulled me back against him. The stallion was up and ready to go again, and I couldn't help grinning in antic.i.p.ation.

"Why?" he asked.

"I need to get in there, which means I'll probably have to f.u.c.k one of them to get the information I need."

"Riley, I forbid you to do this."

"Bite me."

"Me or Jack?" Kade murmured, his teeth grazing my neck and sending s.h.i.+vers of delight skittering across my skin.

"Jack. And I'm not a fool, boss. I won't jeopardize the mission. I want Starr every bit as badly as you do."He grunted. Whether that was agreement, or merely the realization he couldn't actually stop me was anyone's guess.

"So, the scientists," I prompted.

"They're a pretty motley looking lot," Kade answered.

"As long as they're male and therefore have a d.i.c.k that takes over from the brain when confronted by a naked woman, I don't give a d.a.m.n."

He chuckled, and slid his hands up to cup my b.r.e.a.s.t.s. "G.o.d, I do so love a werewolf's lack of inhibitions."

And I loved his touch. They way his large hands could cover and contain my b.r.e.a.s.t.s. The finesse of his clever fingers as they teased and pinched my engorged nipples. I leaned my head against his shoulder, closed my eyes and simply enjoyed.

And it was in that moment I heard it. The snap of a twig, the gentle rustle of undergrowth. Someone was coming toward us.

I tensed and sat upright.

"What?" Kade asked immediately.

"s.h.i.+ft shape," I murmured as I scrambled to my feet. "Someone's approaching. Jack, I'm switching you off."

"Be caref-" His warning was cut off as I flicked the com-link. Kade s.h.i.+fted into horse form and moved away to graze while I stepped into the icy water and began scooping it up to wash away the evidence of lovemaking. Goose b.u.mps fled across my skin, but the cause wasn't only the chilly water. The presence of the person approaching burned across my skin, as powerful as the electricity that ran before a summer storm. Unpleasant and yet, at the same time, exhilarating.

A man stepped through the trees to my right. He was thick set, broad shouldered, with golden skin and rippling muscles. His hair was a mane of darker gold, thick and lush, and his face was almost feline. His eyes, when he looked up, were tawny. Like a cat's.

He stopped, his eyes suddenly narrowing. The electricity in the air sharpened abruptly, rolling around me in waves that left me breathless, hot. But there was an undercurrent of brutality in what he was projecting, suggesting this man was into more than just vanilla s.e.x.

"Who are you?" he said, voice harsh, rough. He moved his hand, and I noted the gun at his waist of his jeans.

"Poppy Burns. You?"

"And who is Poppy Burns when she's home?" he asked.

"I've been employed to fight in the arena. I came in today."

"Indeed?"

His gaze slid down my body, and moisture skated across my skin, tiny beads of perspiration that had nothing to do with fear and everything to do with arousal. My nipples hardened almost painfully and the throbbing, low-down ache got stronger, especially when his gaze seemed to linger on my hips and groin. As if, even from that distance, he could see the pooling desire.

His gaze completed its erotic journey, and rose to meet mine again. The l.u.s.t so evident in those tawny depths just about melted my insides.

I might be wolf, and I might be so very easily attracted to a good-looking man, but what this particular man was projecting wasn't natural. It was too overwhelming. Not even a male werewolf using the full strength of his aura could create this sort of reaction in me. Not if I didn't want it to.But I had reacted like this several times before-with Talon, who'd been lab-made by Starr's father. Obviously, given the heated desire boiling around me and his feline features, this man had werelion in him rather than lion-s.h.i.+fter. s.h.i.+fters-even wolf-s.h.i.+fters-didn't possess this sort of aura. It only came with those who were forced to s.h.i.+ft shape on the rise of the full moon. It was her gift to us, if you will.

Or curse, as many s.h.i.+fters and humans seemed to think.

Only I didn't actually think he was a part-breed, or a even clone like Talon, nor did I think he was he a lab-born crossbreed. I think he was something else entirely-and someone I had been warned about. A human who, while still a fetus, had undergone several procedures that involved cross-planting DNA from s.h.i.+fters and weres to enhance reflexes and senses. According to Misha, the experiments started by Starr's predecessor had finally been successful, but one of the side effects was an overdeveloped s.e.x drive and an aura to match. And given Starr's lieutenants were apparently the end result of such experiments, I was betting this man was one of them. There was too much authority in his expression, and in the way he stood, for him to be just another guard.

If it was Leo Moss, I had to tread carefully. Misha had warned that Moss and his counterpart, Alden Merle, weren't exactly chummy with sanity, and the last thing I wanted was to get in their bad books straightaway. But by the same token I didn't want to seem too submissive, if only because the unattainable often held the interest longer than the easily gained. I needed to hold their interest until either Rhoan or I got Libraska's location. Killing Starr and tearing down his cartel would be useless otherwise.

Someone else would just step into the breach, and keep producing nightmares.

The stranger walked toward me. I resisted the urge to step away. The nearer he got, the more my skin burned, and it wasn't just the intensity of his aura. There was madness in his eyes, in the very feel of him-as if his spirit, his soul, was infected with death and decay.

I licked my dry lips, saw his gaze follow the movement. Saw the flame of desire burn darker in his gaze. It was almost hypnotic, and it took a lot of effort to pull my gaze away, to look down.

Which is when I saw the fine down of hair covering his skin. It was silky, s.h.i.+ny, more like a small cat's than the coa.r.s.er texture of a lion's coat. My fingers itched with the need to feel it, but I had to wonder if the hair covered all his bits. I wasn't into fuzzies when it came to that.

He stopped within arm's length. I crossed mine, feigning indifference when every inch of my skin trembled with desire and every sense was urging me to turn and run from this foul thing. "So who are you when you're home?"

A smile twisted his lush lips, but it held a hint of arrogance that provided a whole lot of reinforcement to my resistance of his aura. I might be a wolf and technically easy, but no one should ever think they could have me without at least a little effort involved.

"I'm the man you'll be spending the night with."

A s.h.i.+ver ran down my spine at the thought-even if that was what I was sent here to do. "Really? And why is that?"

"Because I want you."

"So? I can pick and choose who I wish to be with, and I see no reason to do so now when I haven't seen the other goods on offer." I let my gaze run down his length. If he wanted me now, it wasn't actually showing through his pants. But then, I fooled around with a stallion, so everyone was small in comparison.

"Have you read the small print on the contract?"

"Why does everyone keep asking me that?"

"Because if you had read it, you'd know it states that while it is mandatory the winner spends the night with Starr's lieutenants, said lieutenants can also choose to spend the night with someone other than the winner, and he or she will comply."

And Jack had said it was a standard contract. I'd like to see what he termed a nonstandard contract. "I think you people are making these things up as you go along."

He produced that arrogant smile again. "Then I shall have another copy of the contract delivered to you. I suggest you read it more thoroughly." He looked me up and down again, and again I reacted with the intensity of a b.i.t.c.h in heat. If he'd have dropped me to the ground and screwed me senseless right there and then, I wouldn't have cared. Kade might have, but not me.

Of course, my reaction afterward would be an entirely different matter. And one that would involve many showers and much soap.

But Moss didn't push the matter, just stepped back. The blast of his aura and l.u.s.t abated, allowing me to breathe properly again.

"I shall have you brought to my rooms after dinner."

"Joy."

He raised an eyebrow. "Sa.s.sy. I like that."

"I couldn't give a d.a.m.n what you like."

"Oh, you will. You surely will." He gave me a nod, then moved on, quickly disappearing into the trees.

I took a deep, relieved breath, then glanced around as Kade approached. "Wait here. I'm going to follow him."

"That's danger-"

"Is it usual for Moss to be roaming at this hour of the day ?"

"Not that I know-"

"Then we need to know what he is up to."

I turned and walked into the trees. Moss's scent hung in the air, though it wasn't actually a smell as much as a teasing touch of heat, desire, and foulness. Now that I thought about it, the man didn't actually have a scent. Maybe it had been bred out of him.

I padded through the shadows, keeping close enough to follow his non-scent, to hear the soft crunch of leaves under his shoes.

I was naked, my steps lighter, so hopefully I wasn't making enough noise for him to hear me. But given his senses were supposedly heightened, I had to be extra careful.

Especially since the forest itself was quiet. There were no bird calls, no fluttering of wings, not even the irritating songs of insects.

I hadn't noticed it before, but then, I'd been wholly occupied with the prospect of satisfaction. Now, though, it struck me as odd. Eerily so.

We walked for a good ten minutes through the strange hush before I noticed the steps ahead had stopped. My heart just about leapt into my throat. G.o.d, had he heard me?

I paused in the shadow of a pine and listened intently. The only thing to be heard was the galloping of my heart. I took a deep breath, trying to cairn my nerves, then slowly padded forward. The pines and gum trees seemed to close in, and the shadows thickened. Even the air seemed cooler, less welcoming.

His weird non-scent no longer rode the air, but the traces of Moss's pa.s.sing-the faint disturbance of leaves and twigs-provided a tangible trail. At least it did until it disappeared.

I stopped and looked around. No smell, no trail, nowhere he could have gone.