Provoked (20 page)
Authors: Rebecca Zanetti
A
mber relaxed in the queen’s quarters, her shoulders settling down as she sank into the plush sofa. The plush, cotton blend of a sofa.
mber relaxed in the queen’s quarters, her shoulders settling down as she sank into the plush sofa. The plush, cotton blend of a sofa.
Emma smiled. “Okay. Now I’m going to try to read your mind, so you think of something fun.”
“Can you really read minds?”
“I don’t know. Dage can read minds, and I’m supposed to get his gifts at some point, so maybe I can read your mind. Maybe not. But Kane wants to test your gifts against everyone else’s, so let’s give it a try.”
Amber nodded and thought of an old
Star Trek
movie.
Star Trek
movie.
Emma took a deep breath. “You’re thinking about cows.”
“No.”
“Chickens?”
“No.”
“Ice cream sandwiches?”
“No. I don’t think you can read minds.” Amber bit back a smile at the queen’s disappointed look. “What else you got?”
“I’m psychic.” Emma sounded downright sad about that fact. “And I can only see the future once in a while. My sister, Cara, is an empath, and we’ll have you work with her as soon as she gets home from feline territory. Both Talen and Dage have cleared time on their schedules to work with you later today.”
A knock on the door drew their attention to the exit. Hilde swept inside, her face a pretty pink.
Amber shook her head. How odd to see her grandmother so young.
Emma stood and gestured Hilde to an oversized chair. “Have a seat, Mrs. Freebird.”
“Hilde, sweetheart.” Hilde sat. “I want to have sex.”
Amber jerked her head and started coughing so hard her lungs hurt.
Emma’s mouth opened, but no sound came out.
Hilde rolled her eyes. “For goodness’ sake, girls. I haven’t had sex in twenty-five years. I want sex.” She smacked Amber’s back several times to stem the coughing.
Emma shook her head. “Um, Mrs. . . . Hilde, you’re, ah, mated. There’s no, um, sex.”
“I know.” Hilde waited until Amber stopped sputtering before sitting back. “Janie was telling me about this new Virus-27 that actually takes away the mating aspect. I want that virus.”
“Oh.” Thoughts scattered across Emma’s face. “Well, the virus does take away the mating aspect, and you, ah, could have sex then. But the virus is still dangerous, and while it’s slow in progression, it still progresses. We don’t know at what point it will lose potency, if at any point.”
“So it could eventually kill anyone who is infected?” Hilde pursed her lips together.
“Yes.” The queen clasped her hands in her lap. “We’ve cured shifters from the virus, but vampire mates and witches are still susceptible. It might take a hundred years for the virus to either kill them or run its course, but we don’t know what will happen. Of course, we plan to find a cure long before then.”
“The risk might be worth it,” Hilde said grimly.
Emma leaned forward and patted Hilde’s hand. “You’re immortal. I know it’s difficult to wait, but let us figure the virus out, and then we can apply the benefits to you.”
Hilde’s jaw set. “Twenty. Five. Years.”
Amber sucked in air. What else could possibly go wrong?
Kane spread the stack of papers over the sofa table, his eyes beginning to ache. He’d turned down the lights in his underground haven as well as engaging the soothing wall waterfall, but sitting on the sofa and hunching over to read was probably stupid. He frowned. There had to be a pattern that showed when the shifter inoculation was doctored. Thick boots sounded in the hallway and caught his attention.
The door opened and Dage moved inside. The rug muffled his heavy steps as he crossed the room and dropped into the oversized chair. “Did you find anything?”
“Not yet. Well, that’s not true.” Kane grabbed two sheets from the far corner of the table. “All infected vials, even those that ended up in feline territory, were held at wolf territory in Montana.”
“So the traitor is a wolf.”
Kane shrugged. “That’s my best guess right now.”
The king leaned over to scan the papers. “I’ll let Talen know. He was going to make Cara and Garrett come home, but if the problem is in wolf territory, they should be fine with Jordan at his ranch.”
Jordan was the leader of the feline nation as well as being a good friend. Kane nodded. “I’d leave them with the felines—somebody needs to keep any eye on those monstrous Pride twins.” He didn’t care that adoration coated his voice. He’d adored Sam and Sid since the two little cubs had been born. “They’re turning four years old soon.” Which reminded him, he needed to go shopping.
“I absolutely can’t figure out why you’re their favorite,” the king grumbled. “You’re no fun.”
“The twins think I’m fun.” Kane smiled. He had every intention of getting them involved in science, so maybe a new microscope set would be a good gift. “Who should I alert about the wolf problem? The Bane’s Council or individual Alpha wolves?”
“Neither.” Dage closed his eyes and settled his head on the chair with a deep sigh. “I studied the data earlier. Does anything stand out?”
Kane had been trying to figure out a way to broach the subject and should’ve known Dage already caught the problem. Every once in a while Kane forgot the rest of his brothers were as smart as he. Almost, anyway. “The Bane’s Council visits coincide with when the vials were probably infected. All seven times—from what I could see.”
“Yeah.” Dage didn’t open his eyes. “And I have what is probably a terrible idea.”
Kane studied the king.
Dage had tied his thick hair at the nape and wore sparring clothes absent any blood, so he hadn’t sparred yet. Dark circles spread under his eyes, and frown lines cut on either side of his mouth. His eyes flipped open, a deep silver lighting his face. “What?”
Kane frowned. “When was the last time you slept?”
“When was the last time
you
slept?” Dage asked wearily.
you
slept?” Dage asked wearily.
“The night before Jase was taken.”
“Me, too.” Dage ran both hands down his dark sweats. “Don’t you want to hear my terrible plan?”
He didn’t need to hear the plan. “You’re going to send in a spy—a wolf shifter—to sniff out the traitor. Maybe somebody the Bane’s Council has requested to appear anyway, and somebody champing at the bit to have a job and help the Realm.” Kane pressed his fingers to his temples, mimicking a psychic. “Let’s see . . . maybe someone named Maggie.”
“You’re hilarious.” Dage stood and paced over to the wall waterfall. “She wants to go. What do you think?”
That every plan they had would backfire as usual. “I think she wants to go, but not because she wants to help the Realm or meet wolves.”
“She wants to help the Realm.”
“Not as badly as she wants to pull one over on Terrent.” Kane shook his head. The little wolf shifter had been waiting for Terrent to retaliate for her kidnapping him years ago, and apparently she was done waiting. Though, Maggie was a sweetheart and probably did want to help the Realm. “I say you let her go.” While the job might be dangerous, Maggie was smart, and wolves protected their own. She’d be protected. Well, from everyone but Terrent.
“She’s never been on a mission, at least that I know of.” Dage stuck a finger in the water of the tinkling fountain.
“Don’t touch that.” Kane rolled his eyes. He mulled over the situation in his mind. Maggie had been kidnapped and experimented on by the Kurjans, resulting in her having no memory of her life before the vampires rescued her. Nobody had come forward to say they knew her anyway. Dage, as usual, felt responsible for everyone. But the king would do what was necessary to protect the Realm, and sending Maggie was necessary. What he needed from Kane was something else. Support. “The right decision is to send her.”
“Thanks.” Dage touched the water again. “Ah, we should probably discuss our other issue.”
“There’s nothing to discuss.”
“Right. I’m going to ask you one more time. Are you sure about Hilde? I mean, about using her for bait?”
Kane shook his head. “No, I’m not sure. But she is sure, and she’s a tough woman—she volunteered.”
“You should tell Amber.”
He’d given Hilde his word that he’d keep Amber safe and in the dark about their plan. What the hell had he been thinking? “I can’t.”
Dage sighed, shaking his head. “Believe me, learn now not to keep important matters from your mate. They get really angry when you do that, and they make your life a living hell. Trust me.”
Kane shook his head. “Amber isn’t my mate.” The stubborn little demon destroyer refused to consider his offer.
“Maybe you didn’t use the right words.”
The right words didn’t really exist as far as Kane was concerned. But he’d started thinking about just seducing her until she wore his mark for eternity. Although, then she’d really make his life a living hell. He sighed.
A speaker crackled in the far corner. Kane concentrated on the device, waiting until Talen’s voice came through. “We have a problem. Meet me in Dage’s private control room.”
Dage sighed. “I’m here—we’ll be there in a minute.” He eyed Kane. “This can’t be good.”
Kane stood, a rock of dread slamming into his gut. “No.”
He followed Dage through the underground labyrinth to a partially hidden door that opened easily. Stalking inside, he found Talen and Max standing near the control chair. A conference table took space over to the right, but nobody sat. Instead, they all stared at a blank screen.
Talen’s face had paled, and his hands shook. He leaned over and punched in a series of codes. “We received this ten minutes ago, and I watched it before calling you.”
“What is it?” Max asked. He settled his stance near the door, always protecting the king’s back. Nobody would ever sneak up on Dage when Max was around.
“You’re about to watch a video showing two things. The first thing is that Jase is alive, and the second is that he won’t be for long.” Talen’s voice cracked on the last. “We intercepted the video on the Web, and the guys upstairs should have a location soon—after you watch, be prepared to go the second we can.”
Kane took a deep breath and opened all his senses, laying himself vulnerable.
Dage turned quickly, his eyes narrowing. “You sure?”
“Yes.” Only the king knew how much opening his senses hurt Kane—not merely emotionally, but every time he tried, his brain waves faltered. The intelligence always returned, but at what cost? Most geniuses turned mad at some point, a fact Kane had long understood. “We need to find Jase.”
The king nodded and turned back to the screen. “Press
PLAY
.”
PLAY
.”
Talen hit a button and the image of Jase took shape. Blood cascaded from his nose, eyes, and ears, while shards of bone shone where his skin had flayed open. As someone struck his body with a metal pole, the youngest Kayrs brother smiled. The smile was one Kane had never seen on Jase. Dark and insane.
Kane searched for feelings and thoughts, catching evil from the demons and stubbornness from Jase. While the king no doubt needed reason, as did Talen and Max, Kane had to forgo their needs in an effort to find clues as to Jase’s whereabouts. He got images and thoughts, but nothing concrete, and nothing that made any sense.
The tape played for nearly an hour.
Each hit to Jase’s body had Kane’s body reacting with pain. Each piercing pain to the mind along with every devastating image thrown into Jase’s head had Kane gasping for breath. Yet Kane held on, allowing his mind to be bruised, to be beaten.
When the screen finally went dark, nobody moved.
Talen vibrated in place, raw fury on his face. Dage continued staring at the screen, his expression blank. Max wiped blood off his lip where he’d bitten it.
Kane took in the expressions and emotions around him, adding those to the ones from the torture scene.
He tried to go deeper into his memories, into what he’d felt as his brother was nearly killed. There was so much mental as well as physical pain, it was difficult to sort out.
But one thing remained abundantly clear. Jase had released his hold on reality and seemed pleased to let it go. He was ready to die.
At the final thought, Kane’s mind finally blanked.
Darkness swam across his vision. A neon star exploded behind his eyes. With a low growl, he dropped to the ground, unconscious.
E
njoying the late-afternoon fresh air, Amber found Kane in a conference room aboveground. The salt of the ocean swept inside the small area from open windows. The walls were cedar, the floor sparkling teak. “This is my favorite room so far.”
njoying the late-afternoon fresh air, Amber found Kane in a conference room aboveground. The salt of the ocean swept inside the small area from open windows. The walls were cedar, the floor sparkling teak. “This is my favorite room so far.”
Kane frowned as he glanced up from the scattered papers strewn across the polished table. His shirt was rolled up to his elbows and showcased strong forearms. Lines of stress cut hard into the sides of his mouth. “What are you doing up in the main lodge?”
She shrugged and pulled a plush chair out from the table to sit. Then she bounced twice, her hands spreading along the supple material. “Tell me this isn’t real leather.”
“That isn’t real leather.”
She frowned. The material felt real . . . poor cows. “Tell me you won’t buy any more leather chairs.”
“We don’t.” Kane sighed. “I asked you a question. What are you doing aboveground?”
“Looking for you. Talen escorted me up after training me a little bit. Our gifts didn’t seem to do much together.” Studying Kane’s face, she frowned. A dark bruise cascaded out from his temple in hues of purple and red. “What happened to your face?”
“I hit a counter on my way to the floor,” Kane said grimly.
“Are you all right?”
“Yes.”
He dominated the room in a way that sped up her heart. The guy didn’t just take up space, he overwhelmed it. The vampire owned the area around him in a way she’d never noticed other men doing.
She clasped her hands together in her lap. “I can’t find my grandmother.”
“She’s on a walk with Oscar—don’t worry, we have eyes on them at all times.” Kane smiled, but the humor failed to reach his metallic eyes. “She’s safe, I promise.”
Talen hurried his large bulk inside, his face hard. “We traced the video of Jase and have a location on a demon stronghold in Arizona.” He tossed a stack of papers at Kane. “Dage is on his way up—we go in half an hour.” Then he tilted his head toward Amber.
Amber stiffened. “I want to go—you’ll need me to find Jase.”
Kane ignored her and studied the pictures. “Tell me about this place.”
Talen settled his bulk in a chair. “There’s a compound in the middle of the desert—looks like it contains one main building and several outposts. The walls surrounding Jase appear to be some sort of limestone—definitely found in Arizona. My guess is they meet underground in a series of tunnels like we use. No mountains or rock nearby, so the tunnels must lead to a town in case the demons need to escape.”
Kane scratched his head. “Satellite feeds?”
“Only show the buildings—nothing underground,” Talen said. “I compared them to earlier pictures of the area, and the compound is new in the last couple of months, so the area shouldn’t be manned completely.”
“Was this place sending or receiving the video?” Kane asked.
“Both.” Talen shrugged. “This place was sending the video—so there’s a good chance the video was filmed in Arizona. Jase is there—I just know it. Right?”
“I don’t know.” Kane’s face stayed calm. “There’s a chance the video has been spread around the demon nation—showing their strength, yada yada, and didn’t originate there—this could be a trap for one of us or for Amber.”
Amber leaned back in her chair. The scientist was intriguing to watch.
Dage hurried inside, upping the tension in the air significantly. “What do you think?”
Kane breathed out. “I say it’s a trap, but we go anyway.”
“Are you up to a fight?” Dage popped his neck but kept his gaze on Kane.
Amber raised an eyebrow. “What happened to his face?”
“Nothing,” all three men replied without looking at her.
Now that was freakin’ annoying. “Right. People bruise all the time.” What a bunch of Neanderthals.
Talen nodded and stood, apparently missing the sarcasm. “That’s true. But if Kane isn’t up to going, Max is champing at the bit.”
“I go—and Oscar can take Max’s place. Max stays here to protect headquarters.” Kane swept his hand out, and the papers magically flipped into a nice order. He stood. “What’s the plan?”
“Three helicopters—we hit the main lodge with rockets and go from there.” Dage waited for Kane’s absent nod before continuing. “If they have Jase, he’s underground. Leveling the first ground of everything doesn’t bother me overmuch.”
Amber stood. It was fascinating how they all relied on Kane’s judgment without realizing it—she doubted even Kane realized how they waited for his responses. “I want to go.” Ignoring the questioning looks his brothers sent Kane, she put her hands on her hips. “Listen, my going is my decision. You all came after me for a reason—don’t forget it just because I slept with one of you.”
Dage turned away but not before Amber caught the amusement on his face.
Talen chuckled and headed for the doorway. “I’ll meet everyone who is going in the armory.”
Dage nodded. “Ah, yes. You two get this settled, and we’ll meet you underground.” The king disappeared.
Irritation choked Amber’s voice into a raspy tone. “He’s the damn king. Why in the world is he letting you make decisions regarding me?”
Kane held out his palm and showcased the Kayrs marking. “This is why.”
“You haven’t marked me,” she whispered. Considering her IQ was probably a zillion numbers less than his, he probably wouldn’t mark her—not because he didn’t believe in love, but because he wanted to mate with some übergenius to have double-übergenius kids. “So you have no say in what I do.”
“Actually, I do.” He rubbed his jaw, his eyes tired.
“When will the damn marking disappear?” At some point, if he didn’t use the mark, the brand had to go away.
“I have no idea. I’m not sure a mark has ever appeared and not been used.” Kane frowned. “If you truly want to deal with the demons, you’ll want my skills. I can block and attack—which you’ll need to do.”
She was tempted and not just on an intellectual level. The man was strong, sexy, and a huge-assed challenge. Could she get inside his heart? Instinct whispered she was already there. He needed her. Heck, he needed somebody to be there for him the same way he was there for everyone else. “I want love. Enough people believe in the emotion that you have to acknowledge its possible existence.” Logic was the key with Kane.
He shrugged. “Okay.”
“What if you tried to love? An experiment, so to speak.” She kicked an invisible pebble. “Or is there another reason you don’t like me?”
“I do like you.”
“I don’t have a zillion degrees in a drawer, Kane.” Finally, she’d said it. Better to get the full truth out there right now.
He started. “So?”
“So, I mean, I’m not smart like you.” Man, did she need to draw him a map?
His eyes crinkled when he smiled. “Amber—degrees have nothing to do with intelligence. They have to do with time to study. You’re plenty smart . . . don’t worry.”
Warmth flushed through her. Kane didn’t lie—he didn’t know how. “Thanks.”
He pressed the issue. “If you mated me, you’d have plenty of time and money to get all the degrees you wanted.”
The warmth receded. “That sounds like a business arrangement.”
“Most successful marriages, even among humans, are arranged. Good, solid, business arrangements.”
Man, she had her work cut out with him. “I want to go today. The only way to see if I can help shield other people is if demons are attacking. I’m going—you know you need me so you can fight at more than fifty percent of your abilities. Jase is in Arizona. You saw the rocks.” Yeah, she knew using his brother was a low blow. But if she could shield Jase’s mind, just for a moment, wasn’t that important?
“I seriously doubt Jase is in Arizona.” Kane drew in a deep breath. “I don’t like the idea of putting you in more danger, but we do need you, and since the place doesn’t seem fully staffed, it’d be a good place for more training. Besides, you’re the only real mental defense we have.”
Encouragement flooded her. “So the logical, smart thing to do is to take the one demon destroyer you’ve ever trained with you. Like it or not.”
Frustration curled his lip.
Slowly, he seemed to distance himself from the conversation, from her.
Finally, he gave a short nod. “You’re right. You can go. Let’s go suit up.”
What the hell was he thinking? Kane settled himself more comfortably against the helicopter seat, his arm sliding around Amber’s shoulders. The woman had actually fallen asleep within an hour of being in the air. She nestled into his side like she belonged there.
Hell. Maybe she did.
Talen flanked her other side as the bird flew through the cloudy night, his face grim, his fingers tapping on his dark pants. Dage piloted the craft while Oscar rode passenger. It seemed odd not having Max next to Dage, but he was needed at headquarters.
For the second part of the plan.
The part of the plan that would have Amber hating Kane’s guts.
Dage’s gaze met his in the mirror. “We didn’t have a choice,” he said through the earpiece.
Kane didn’t answer. There was always a choice. “We’ll see.” The idea of disappointing Amber had an odd feeling lodging in his gut. He didn’t want to hurt her. Worse yet, he didn’t want to lose her. And considering part B of tonight’s plan was allowing her grandmother to make herself bait to the demons, the little pacifist was going to be pissed at him. He couldn’t blame her.
His frown made his fresh bruise ache. Speaking of which . . . vampires had fast reflexes. Not one of his brothers could’ve caught him before his face impacted the counter? Assholes. He glared at the king.
Dage turned back to piloting the quiet craft.
They rode in silence the rest of the way until the Arizona desert stretched far and wide beneath them. Kane studied a heat signature monitor in his hands—one he’d invented himself. “Four demons in building one, three in the second building, eight in the third.” Demons burned hotter than most and were easily recognizable. He sat up straighter. “Blow the buildings to hell—anybody important is underground.” He shook Amber awake. “Get ready, sweetheart—let’s test your skills.”
She blinked twice, her pretty black eyes focusing on him, her face flushed.
His heart thumped hard. “Stay behind me at all times.” Jesus. He really couldn’t lose her. What was going on with him?
She nodded, her eyes widening as she sat up.
Not by one inch did she belong in combat. He was doing a piss-poor job of protecting his mate.
Not that she’d agreed to be his mate.
He shook his head, trying to focus. Now he was thinking of her as his mate. Damn Kayrs marking.
“Amber, take turns touching the arm of any soldier around you once we’re down. Everyone pay close attention to the result,” Dage ordered. “Engage missiles.”
All three helicopters immediately fired missiles into various compounds.
The explosions spiraled heat back at them. Huge clouds of fire rolled up, debris flying every direction. The helicopters set down with a hard
thump
.
thump
.
Kane shoved the door open and leapt out, turning to assist Amber. Heat blasted them from the fire. He instantly pivoted to shield her. “We stay here until the first floors are cleared.” She clutched the back of his shirt, pressing her face into the cotton. Her “okay” came out muffled, but he felt the word against his skin.
Dage and Talen rushed through the rubble of the largest building while other vampire soldiers infiltrated the ruins of the other buildings. Talen kept to Dage’s left, protecting the king as usual. The king swept his weapon around, making a large arc, protecting his younger brother . . . as usual.
Some things never changed.
Kane could make out the bodies of the four demons who’d been in the building. His quick nod had two of his soldiers rushing to decapitate them while they were down.
Talen gave Kane the high-sign. Good. They’d found the basement.
Kane turned and tugged down Amber’s bulletproof vest. “Shield your face as much as possible so the heat doesn’t blister your skin. Stay behind me and slightly to the left—if you start to feel demons, protect your mind instantly. I want to know before you try to attack them back.”
She nodded, her face pale, her eyes huge.
Maybe he should leave her in the helicopter with a couple of guards.
Her small hands shoved at his chest. “Get moving.”
An involuntary smile lifted his lips. Bossy little mate. With a mental shrug, he turned away and jogged toward the demolished building. Not that she was his mate. Smoke attacked his eyes and nose, burning deep. He kept to the side of the fire as much as possible, acutely aware of the woman keeping pace with him.
Her bravery made him proud. The thought made him pause. Why did her actions reflect on him? Could Talen be correct? Was he falling in love with the little vegan? An explosion outside ripped him out of his internal debate.
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