Animal Instincts (Entangled Ignite) (5 page)

Chapter Eight

Luc took a step forward but Skye didn’t move back, as if she didn’t fear him.

She
should
be afraid, considering the things he could do—had done—he thought grimly, grasping her elbow. The moment he touched her, a shock ran through his hand and up his arm, and he could see from her widening eyes that she felt it, too. Hiding his reaction to her, he easily moved her away from the crowd and into an empty bank of slots where they could have privacy of sorts. He didn’t want anyone to overhear.

“What are you?” he repeated, wanting to know how she had resisted his mental suggestions.

“What are
you
?” she said heatedly. “And what is this place?”

“Somewhere you shouldn’t be. How did you get here?”

“I told you, I got directions from that poor wild dog at the fight. I’m an animal rescuer.” Skye shrugged her arm from his grasp. “That’s why I was there. To make sure the animals were taken care of. Why were you there?”

He stared into her belligerent green eyes that told him so much about her. About
who
she was if not
what
. There was an inner core of decency in her that went beyond the ordinary. He tried to ignore that. Tried to ignore the way her mahogany hair framed her angelic-looking face. Or the way her dark T-shirt clung to her feminine curves. Tried to ignore the sheer animal heat distracting him.

He wondered what exactly she did or didn’t know.

About the shifter fights.

About The Company.

About him.

“You are a foolish, foolish woman, Skye Cross. Do you know how easily you could have been killed outside the fight arena?”

How easily she could be killed now. Not that he would let that happen. Now he owed her. He couldn’t bring her brother back, but he could make sure she didn’t end up dead like him.

“I wasn’t there alone.”

“But you left the arena alone.”

“To go after a wounded coyote.” Her tone grew strident. “An innocent animal was being abused and I wanted to make sure it got proper treatment.”

Trying not to let her humanity touch him—she didn’t belong here and he needed to make her leave—he mocked her. “Are you always that selfless, putting the needs of animals before yourself, no matter the danger? You could have been eaten.”

Her response was another frown. Her slender brows pulled together and her full lips pursed. He didn’t sense any element of fear.

Frustrated, Luc stared at Skye and wondered what it would take to intimidate her so that she would leave and never come back. Every minute she spent here put her in danger. Even as he thought it, he sensed a vulnerability in her. An opening. She was feeling some primal attraction to him. Certain he could seduce her away from here, take her in a way that would send her running to never return, for some reason he was reluctant to pierce her fragile armor. To become her worst nightmare. Yes, he could
make
her fear him, but he wouldn’t.

Because her brother’s sacrifice to save his mother burdened him with an obligation. He owed the Crosses and couldn’t ignore that debt.

“Tell me how those predators were walking around the city loose,” Skye said. “What happened to them?”

He evaded. “They’re taken care of.”

“By whom? You?” Indicating the direction of the habitat, she asked, “Are they the same animals I saw back there?”

So she was already putting things together. Not good. Now that she knew about this place, she might be able to figure out what her brother had been investigating.

“You don’t need to worry,” he said.
You should leave now. Go home and forget you were ever here.

“I’m not leaving until I get some answers. And stay out of my mind.”

“What are you?” he asked for a third time.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

He could tell she was being truthful. He could sense her building anxiety. And suddenly caught a whiff of fear that surprised him and rattled his instincts. But did she fear
him
or the unknown? He couldn’t tell.

“About the animal fights,” she said, reminding him of a stubborn terrier he’d once had as a kid. “Do you like seeing living creatures ripped apart?”

The breath caught in his throat and his pulse tick-ticked. It took all his will not to picture it. “I wasn’t there for sport.” He wouldn’t lie. He couldn’t help his nature, only how he chose to play out his life.

“Then why
were
you there?” she asked.

Before he could decide how to answer—what would best send her on her way—he was stopped by a beep on his headset. “What is it?”

“We have some trouble,” one of his security guards told him.

“Take care of it.”

“I already tried. There’s been violence in the brothel and now Beatrix—”

“I’ll be right down.” He turned back to Skye. “Something I need to do. You should leave.”

But she didn’t look like she was willing to go.

Wondering if he would have to rescue Skye Cross a second time, Luc waved over a guard. Though he was tempted to tell the man to remove her from the casino, he was certain Skye would resist and possibly get herself into trouble.

Glaring at her, he told the guard, “Keep your distance but don’t let her get into anything she shouldn’t. Don’t let anyone mess with her. And whatever you do, don’t let her out of your sight.”

…

I stepped from the protection of the slot machines and watched my mystery man stalk off toward the elevators without looking back. I couldn’t take my eyes off him. My pulse raced and I was having trouble taking a deep breath. Despite myself—despite all logic—I was drawn to him. The only way I could describe it was a case of heightened animal magnetism.

A long shiver coursed through me, and I shook away the primal energy and turned my back on the security guard he’d ordered to keep tabs on me.

I was a little weirded out by the things that had been happening to me since entering the underground complex. Maybe I was home in bed. Asleep. Dreaming.

Only I knew I wasn’t.

“Excuse me,” I said to a passing waitress.

The woman turned, her startled expression seeming to stretch her features a little. But when I blinked, she simply appeared normal.

“Can I get you a drink?” she asked.

I shook my head and pointed to the elevator where my mystery man was stepping inside. “Who is that?”

“Luc Lazare.” The waitress grinned at me. “A real looker, isn’t he?”

“But who is he? I mean, what does he do here?”

“Luc’s head of security. And he’s the Boss’s son. If you don’t need anything…”

“No, but thanks.”

Boss. The conversation I’d overheard in the habitat—something about the boss and the only woman he wanted was Luc’s mother.

So, the woman whose life Shade had saved was connected to the mob that ran this underwater casino. As was Luc Lazare, the man who had saved me.

Needing to know more, figuring I wouldn’t get anything valuable out of Luc himself, I wandered through the casino, the security guard shadowing me, and eavesdropped. I had no clue as to how or why I could hear the thoughts of only certain people—the employees but not the customers.

How much longer?
a dealer asked a waitress who brushed up against him.

I’m almost there…working overtime to earn it…

Fear of my unknown power sizzled along my spine. How this was even possible, I hadn’t a clue, but I wasn’t going to let the opportunity to learn as much as I could about the operation go to waste.

I rounded the table and slowed as I passed a couple of uniformed security guards.

I heard Cezar lost his temper, almost sent Nik through the dome.

Good thing Luc was there to calm him down.

At the reference to my mystery man, my pulse rushed. I pretended interest in the craps game as I edged closer.

The cops find more bodies, bad for all of us. Someone better figure out who’s responsible soon.

They must be talking about the murders Shade had been investigating. So the workers I was hearing didn’t know who was running the fights, either. Before I could hear more, someone grabbed my arm—a dark-haired woman wearing a backless sapphire crepe dress. Her eyes were wide and her expression was incredulous.

“Who are you?” she demanded, her gaze lowering to the sea glass pendant hanging from my neck.

She went pale and made a choking noise, and then I clearly heard her thoughts.

And what are you to Shade?

…

Luc couldn’t stop thinking about Skye Cross, about how she’d heard his suggestion to leave, about how she raised his primal instincts, about how she’d resisted his trying to manipulate her mind. He could use stronger measures to wipe The Ark from her memory, but knowing he could do permanent damage, he hesitated messing with an innocent. At least hesitated messing with her mind. Her body was another story, hard to resist.

The elevator dinged and stopped at the lower level. Luc heard a raised voice through the elevator doors, the intensity of which drove thoughts of the delectable Skye from his mind.

“Get your hands off me. Do you know who I am?”

The doors swished open to the reception area, a study in gaudy red and gold. A burly, sandy-haired man was held captive in a double armlock by two guards.

Luc recognized the guy, Ryan Connelly, a lieutenant in the Chicago Police Department. He’d been invited to the casino multiple times, but it seemed the man’s will was unbreakable. He still had his soul. He was facing down Beatrix, Luc’s stepmother, impressive in her blood-red gown split in the front to reveal thigh-high black leather boots. The four-inch heels put her at eye level with the irate cop.

“Let go of me, or I’ll have this place closed down for good.”

“Threats?” Steel threaded her silky voice. “You would do well to watch what you say in The Ark.”

“Why? You can’t touch me!”

“Watch me,” Beatrix said, reaching out a hand with very sharp, long red nails toward his chest.

“I’ll take care of this.” Luc took his stepmother’s wrist. She rewarded him with a wrath-filled glare that twisted her once-magnificent features into something bordering on horrific.

“What did he do?” Luc said.

“He used the services of two of my girls and then lost his temper.” Her dark eyes flashed her anger. “Said he didn’t get what he asked for.”

Knowing the girls would do pretty much anything a customer wanted, Luc glared at the cop. “What in blazes did you ask for?”

“I know what you all are!” Connelly spat, watery blue eyes accusing. “I wanted to see it for myself up close and personal. Wanted to experience some real animal sex.”

Luc couldn’t form a reply. How had Connelly found out the truth about them? The Kindred didn’t broadcast their abilities to humans. If an officer in the police department higher up than Shade had figured out they were shifters, Luc had a real problem on his hands.

“When Katerina refused, he began beating her,” Beatrix informed Luc in a cold voice. “And told her he would keep beating her until she turned for him. Lily got away and found me and I called the guards.”

“Is Katerina all right?”

“She will be. Eventually. Her bones will heal. Hopefully her face will, too.”
She’s one of mine. I should take care of this pig.

Considering the man’s offense, Luc was tempted to let her. Beatrix would rip out the bastard’s heart. The thought of watching sent blood pumping through him double time, but Luc quickly curbed his appetites. Giving his stepmother free rein with a human would be a mistake. Especially when that human was a cop. His death would bring their house of cards down on their heads.

If he disappears, he will be missed,
Luc told Beatrix
. Who knows if he told anyone where he was going tonight? I’ll wipe his memory and throw him out.

You are so your mother’s son.
With a snort, Beatrix turned her back on Luc and walked away.

“Hang on to him,” Luc told the guards.

He wrapped one hand around the man’s forehead.

“What are you doing to me?” Connelly cried, his panicked voice raising. “Stop!”

Not an option. It rarely came to this, but Luc had to make certain the cop wouldn’t remember a thing when he left here. Ignoring the man’s screams, he forced himself inside Connelly’s mind. Corruption and addiction filled every corner—Connelly seemed ripe for Pop’s plan, so it was only his will that had kept him from crossing over to the dark side.

When you leave here, you’ll never return. You’ll forget everything about The Ark…The Company…The Kindred…

Connelly screeched as his memories of The Ark sizzled along Luc’s arm.

Luc seized everything the man had done here, clearly saw his involvement before erasing the memories. That the man had been here more than once was clear, and his attack on Katerina was especially disgusting.

Making Luc hope that Connelly never had reason or the opportunity to return.

Chapter Nine

“The name’s Skye Cross,” I said. The dark-haired woman was gaping at Shade’s pendant, which had popped out of the top of my T-shirt. She must have known him well if she remembered seeing him wear it. Tucking the sea glass back beneath the cotton, I answered the woman’s silent question. “Shade was my brother.”

The woman froze.
She can’t possibly hear me.

“Actually, I can,” I said aloud, then mentally added,
I don’t know how, but I do.

I don’t know if she heard my thoughts, but the woman looked plenty freaked out, and she was having trouble catching her breath.

“S-sister. Right, Shade said he had a sister.” The woman pushed a lock of inky hair from her face.

“So you knew Shade well?”

She grabbed my shoulder. “He couldn’t have known. I should have told him.”

“What?” Was she Shade’s snitch? “Tell
me
. I’ll make sure he gets the message.”

But before the woman could make up her mind whether or not to say anything, we were interrupted.

“Nuala, what’s going on?” Luc asked as he joined us.

“I was just talking to this woman.” Nuala let go of me. “Her name is Cross like—”

“I know exactly who she is. Leave her to me.”

Luc, please.

Go. Let me handle this. We’ll talk later.

Irritated, I glared at him, as, with seeming effort, Nuala pulled herself together and walked off. She couldn’t take her eyes off me, though, nor I from her, until she was swallowed by the crowd.

Not liking Luc’s suggestion that he would handle me, I asked, “What was that about?”

Though I focused hard on him, I got nothing off him. Whatever he was feeling, he was covering it well.

“My sister had a thing with your brother.”

“What kind of thing?” Shade hadn’t told me anything about a woman in his life. And now he undoubtedly wouldn’t remember. Then it hit me. “
Your sister
?” While they looked vaguely alike, with his bronzed skin and pronounced features, Luc was more exotic than Nuala.

“She seemed to care for him,” Luc said, his tone matter-of-fact.

A flash of emotion that tightened my chest made me look around for Nuala, but she’d disappeared into the crowd. I turned back to face Luc, whose expression hardened even more. I thought about telling him his face could freeze like that, but I didn’t think he’d appreciate the crack.

Instead, I said, “I take it you didn’t approve of their relationship.”

“People should stick to their own kind.”

Own kind?
I stood taller. “You didn’t think my brother was good enough for your sister?”

“I thought he was
too
good. I thought he was incorruptible.”

Incorruptible. Surely he wasn’t suggesting Shade
had
been corrupted.

“What exactly are you trying to say?”

“That the Lazares aren’t anyone to play with. Not even my sister. Nuala is nowhere near as fragile as she appears to be.”

A frisson of fear shot through me. I could be surrounded by Lazares. I wondered if I could pick them out of the crowd. Luc alone felt dangerous enough.

I threw his own question back at him. “What are
you
, Luc?”

A muscle in his cheek ticked. “It’s time for you to leave. Now.” He placed a hand square in the middle of my back and pushed.

I wanted to argue, to resist, but my brain felt ready to melt down. It was late, and I’d been going on adrenaline. Finally, I’d hit a wall. Well, at least with him. With Luc breathing down my neck, I wouldn’t be able to concentrate on those unspoken conversations I’d been overhearing. My reaction to him touching me was too distracting. It was easier to let him have his way. Tonight. Tomorrow was another matter.

“How perceptive of you to know I was leaving,” I said.

He barked a laugh that made blood shoot to my face. I felt all kinds of crimson as he maneuvered me through the casino and toward a room I hadn’t before noticed.

“The entrance I came through is over there.” I pointed to the tunnel opening where the guard was still stationed.

“You have to go through here first,” Luc said. “The room is equipped to make certain you don’t leave with anything you shouldn’t.”

“Like what?” Could they detect gamblers carrying off chips or something?

Rather than answering, he pushed me inside. I felt electrified as if the room itself were trying to get hold of me. Rather, my mind. The sensation was creepy. Insidious. Most people wouldn’t know what was happening to them. I wasn’t most people. I resisted.

“Whatever you’re trying on me isn’t working.” I turned and found Luc directly behind me. “Just so you know.”

When you leave here, The Ark will fade from your memory until the memory is gone.

“If you say so.”

“Your knowing about this place is dangerous,” he said aloud, reaching a hand toward my head.

“For me? Or for you?”

Within inches of my face, close enough to make my pulse jump, his hand stopped for a moment, as if he was hesitating, then curled around the back of my neck. He tugged me so close that his features went out of focus for a second. My pulse picked up, my heart pounded against my ribs.

What if Luc kissed me? What then? I only knew part of me sizzled and burned with the thought. And while another, more rational part wanted to shove him away, my body felt as though it was melting.

His mouth came within a hair’s breadth of mine, so close I imagined I could feel him parting my lips, so close I began to sway toward him, seeking something I couldn’t quite define. This was wrong, though. This man was no one to get close to or to thwart, and I’d played a dangerous game by challenging him.

And yet, shocked and frightened as I was at all that had happened to me in the last hour, I felt more alive than I ever had before.

Every nerve in my body screamed at me, alternately telling me to get closer and to get away from him. I felt trapped. I couldn’t make my legs move. Because of him. Not because he was doing anything to make them fail to work.

He was simply there.

Touching me.

“If I were you,” he murmured, “I would
want
to forget.”

“How can I? My brother died investigating murders that had to do with those animal fights. And the fights seem to be connected with this place. Are you aware there was another murder last night? A young woman? She was ripped apart by a canine.”

Jez.

I heard the name whisper through his thoughts as the light in his eyes shifted. He dropped his hand, and it was as if he retracted his power, releasing me. Was the woman someone he knew? Not about to ask, I whipped around and hurried through the room and on toward the exit. I glanced back once and saw that he was watching me from the doorway. I waited for some kind of command—another unspoken demand from him—but he simply let me go without further interference.

I rushed by the guard and this time ignored his lascivious thoughts about me.

But I couldn’t ignore the shiver that enveloped me once I entered the tunnel.

The illumination in the long hallway seemed lower than when I’d arrived. Less reliable. It flickered. Faded. Blinked off for several seconds before the glow reignited.

Off…on…off…on…

As if I needed another thing to set me on edge. My jaw was already aching with tension.

A crushing weight seemed to consume me as I headed back toward land. A burden of incredible magnitude. A secret casino hidden under a legal one. Remembering the way I’d felt when Luc had shoved me in that room, remembering him trying to influence me through his thoughts, I wondered how the Lazares hid its existence. I couldn’t help but wonder exactly how involved Luc was with all this—whether he’d been playing me from the time I’d seen him at the cemetery.

What had I stumbled into and what could I do with the information? If I told Ethan all that I had experienced, would he believe me?

Then again, I hadn’t actually learned much of help. Luc’s name. That his father ran the operation, and that his mother was Elizabeth Reyes, the woman whose life Shade had saved. That his sister had “a thing” with Shade. Not exactly damning facts. But I couldn’t help but worry. The rest was more elusive. Hearing the thoughts of both man and beast. Thoughts that raised my instincts but that didn’t give me any kind of clue as to why Shade had taken a bullet.

I knew it all had to be connected. The animal fights. The casino. My brother’s murder. If only Shade could remember something. Anything. Even Nuala Lazare.

People should stick to their own kind.

I thought he was too good. I thought he was incorruptible.

The idea that my brother might have been corrupted made my chest squeeze tight. I didn’t believe it. Didn’t want to believe. But why had Luc tried to make me think so? Why hadn’t Shade told Ethan what he’d learned? Doubt was a horrible thing, especially doubt about someone you loved. I fought uncertainty as I made my way back the way I’d come.

Suddenly the tunnel went dark.

I stopped to get my bearings, to wait for some illumination so I could see where I was going. A bit of filtered light came from the moon and my eyes eventually adjusted.

That’s when I heard them. Footsteps behind me.
Tick…tick…tick…
No, not footsteps, but paws with sharp claws hitting the floor. Big paws, and they were approaching fast.

My pulse rushed and bile filled my throat as fear made me flee through the dark, one hand skimming the glass wall. My legs raced faster than I knew they could go.

What was coming after me? Another predator like the ones outside the arena that had threatened me? No sense in trying to communicate with it, and this time Luc wouldn’t be there to save me.

The sound of thundering paws filling my head, I quickened my pace even more, until I felt I was nearly flying.

I was almost out, almost safe. I could hear the frightening pounding closer behind me. I ran for my life and even as I thought I would never make it, I reached the stairs. I stumbled upward, knocking my shins a couple of times along the way.

I was out of breath. Out of time.

But somehow I made it to the top and threw open the door. I flew around the pillar and into the legal part of the casino boat, got myself into the middle of the crowd. But I kept looking back the way I’d come, waiting for whatever was after me to appear.