BirthStone (25 page)

“The cops are searching, as well as our
network. They went to ground. When they resurface, and I think they
are somewhere nearby regrouping, there’s no telling what new toys
they will bring to the party,” Tyrone said.

“That’s the problem,” Cameron said. “We have
no idea which group has what toys. I thought the group who sent
Asia was behind the bombings, but it was Merriweather’s group,
right?” He gazed at Tyrone.

“It looks that way. Asia’s peeps deal with
body modification. They used the serums to make changes and
surgical reconstruction. Merriweather has found a way to insert
explosives quickly. Remember Jennings had only been missing for a
day. According to the lab, the triggers are imprinted in the bomb,
not in or on the person.”

“Merriweather’s group is also responsible
for the serum to kill wolves. Which makes no sense considering they
claim that we will all live together in harmony one day,” Tyrese
said.

“Crazy is as crazy does,” Tyrone
murmured.

Silas shook his head. “Crazy they may be,
but the body count is growing and I want it stopped.”

“Asia give us any more info to help find the
labs?” Tyrese asked.

Silas brought them current on Asia’s
situation. “In the next day or so, Dr. Passen will take her through
some tests to see how much of her memory is intact. Anything she
tells us from this point on must be verified.”

Cameron nodded. “She shouldn’t be under
their control any longer. I hope she has coordinates. I’d love to
pay that lab a visit.” He looked at Tyrese. “I saw the feed from
the parking lot fight, were those amped up humans or breeds?”

“Humans. That’s why I had to clear the
grounds quickly.”

“Mom said the babies have a cold with a
temperature,” Tyrese said into the quiet.

Silas met Tyrese’ gaze. “I don’t know what’s
wrong, the doctor is looking into it.”

“Is that why Jarcee is standing guard at the
nursery?” Tyrone asked.

“Until I know why my pups are sick for the
first time, yes.”

Cameron’s gaze swung between the twins
before settling on Silas. “No way. You think someone did something
to your pups?”

Silas released a stream of air as he looked
at each of them. “Yes.”

“They’ve never been sick before, the timing
is suspect,” Tyrone said slowly. “Mom’s probably freaking that you
suspect one of our fam, but I see your point.”

Tyrese nodded slowly. “It's the way I would
call it.”

“You would prevent your mother from seeing
your pups?” Cameron asked the twins, his voice doubtful.

“Hell no.” Tyrone shook his head. “Mom would
never do anything to hurt me or Rese. And never our kids. I’m just
saying I understand the rationale behind not wanting anyone around
now who wasn’t around before the kids got sick.”

Tyrese shook his head. “Nope, I’d never stop
mom from hanging with my kids. I can’t even imagine that.”

“What if she wasn’t being herself? Had some
challenges?” Cameron asked.

Tyrese eyed him. “Like Nana?”

Cameron shrugged.

Silas waited to hear the twin’s opinion.
According to Jasmine, Victoria has not been her normal self. What
if his enemies had gotten to her? It was a sobering thought.

“She’s been forgetting stuff. It’s not like
her, but we don’t really have much of a guide book on breeders.
This could be normal. Her body could be handling everything
differently. Julie willed herself to die and walked that path.
Arianna used her breeding abilities to her advantage and caused
some serious damage. Breeders have powers that we know very little
about. Even mom doesn’t fully understand her capabilities.” Tyrone
paused. “I said all of that to say this, I don’t know if Nana could
be used as a Trojan horse in this instance. It's possible.”

“What about the necklaces? Could they be
having a reaction?” Cameron asked.

“Those were the first things I took off,”
Silas said, remembering David’s outrage. His son had screamed until
he'd placed the black stone back into his hand. “Still no
change.”

Cameron scooted further in his chair. “What
if they were activated when the pups touched them?”

“Or some chemical in the oil the priest
used?” Tyrese added.

“I provided the oil,” Silas said. He had
refused to allow anyone put something on his pups he hadn’t
checked. The minister had been surprised but went along with
Jasmine’s request. “I gave it to him as he started the long
prayer.”

“Okay, so the only thing that touched the
babies were the stones, damn…” Tyrese said softly.

“Aunty is going to be hurt behind this. Let
me say this for the record. Although I understand why you have the
ban in place, I don’t believe my aunt or nana has anything to do
with my brothers and sisters being sick. I hope it’s a cold like
mom thinks but…the timing is suspect,” Tyrone said, his voice
trailing off.

“Right now it’s the only anomaly I have. I
take this strike personally and will not be swayed by hurt
feelings. This is my den and those are my pups. I will do whatever
necessary to protect them.”

“Mom by herself is a handful, add aunty and
nana…” Tyrone shook his head. “Let’s just say I’m glad I live in
another wing.”

Chapter 21

Two days later, the children’s fever’s
spiked up to one hundred and ten degrees, well over the norm of one
hundred and two for pups. The mewling sounds of their discomfort
tore at Jasmine’s heart. Her eyes itched with unshed tears as she
silently agreed with Silas that there was more at work here than a
cold.

Yesterday, the doctor hooked them up to IV’s
to insure they received medication, nutrients and remained
hydrated. She and Silas had moved into the nursery. He was
constantly in and out during the day, changing diapers, wiping
sweat covered brows, and holding a babe when the pain was too much.
They spoke little to each other and that was fine with her. His
sadness, tinged with anger, was palpable. Guilt ate at her that he
had been right and she had unwittingly put her children in danger.
She couldn’t fathom how it was accomplished but the devastating
results spoke for themselves.

After the first day, Silas taught her how to
tap into her energy and feed it to the babes, which provided them
some relief. She even suggested he feed them drops of his blood
since it had helped David. Nothing worked. Watching her babies
suffer cut her deeply. Every agonized cry peeled a strip off of her
heart. Her limbs ached with fatigue, yet she refused to take a
break. Rose sent food and exchanged her worn clothes with clean
ones through the doorway.

The day after the christening when she
didn’t appear for lunch, her mom found her in the nursery. When she
stepped out to explain, her mother accepted her story about the
cold and cause for isolation. She and Mark acted as though they
were on vacation at a five star hotel, frequenting the pools and
sunbathing on the private deck outside their suite. Mark was
generous with his time and affection with her mother. Jasmine
couldn’t remember seeing her mom so happy.

Renee wasn’t so easily dissuaded. Initially
she'd offered to assist Jasmine with the children, and it had been
difficult to look her sister in the eyes and say no. But she had.
Couple that with her spending all her time with her babies, it came
as no real surprise when Tyrone entered the nursery that morning
with the news.

“Mom, Aunty wanted me to tell you she’s
leaving today.” He raked his fingers through his scalp while
looking at the babies and the equipment. “She said more…but she’s
hurt and no doubt will talk to you again. One day. Probably not
this week, but give her some time.”

Jasmine slumped in the chair. Her bones
ached. Her heart was torn. She had made a mess of things. Now she
would have to find a way to placate her sister. That was a muddle
she wasn't ready to tackle. Once the kids were better, she’d work
on that relationship.

Most of all, she missed Silas. He was her
rock, her solace, and he had left her to find her own way and she
didn’t like it. It didn’t matter that he gave her what she asked
for. She didn’t like the results and knew she would have to make
the first move to change things.

She offered Tyrone a smile, knowing he was
uncomfortable being the bearer of such news. “I know she’s pissed,
not that I blame her. I didn’t have a chance to explain the wolf
culture thing to her, so she has no way of understanding what’s
happening.” She released a breath. “This sucks.”

Tyrone nodded but remained silent.

<<<<>>>>

Silas strode into his office and closed the
door. He slumped into his chair and placed his head in his hands.
With the exception of David, his pups had not made any
improvements. David had responded well to the meds after the first
day. But Jackie, Adam, and Renee had slipped deeper into whatever
gripped them. Once he dismissed the nurses, speculation ran rampant
through the compound regarding the pups, but he didn’t care.

There was a knock at his door. He turned in
his chair and studied the door as if he could tell who was on the
other side simply by looking. It was a wasted effort, he knew it
was Rose.

“Enter.”

Rose stepped in, her eyes downcast. “These
came in for you today. I postponed your weekly Alpha meeting until
next week.”

“Thank you.” He nodded as she laid the
envelopes on his desk and then left him in peace. Tyrone had told
him of Renee’s departure this morning and he wondered how Jasmine
handled her sister’s abandonment. Not that Jasmine had spent any
time with her family since the christening, but still… there was a
protocol in place for what they were going through.

He opened the letter on top and read the
contents.

La Patron,

It has come to my attention that Cameron
Knight is your choice for the Alpha position in West Virginia.
Previous reports had been of a different challenger. Cameron is a
full-blood whom I respect and believe will fulfill the position of
Alpha admirably. I humbly withdraw my challenge.

At your service,

Serrano Knight

Silas read the short missive twice. Bigotry
still flowed through his ranks. Cameron’s full-blood status did not
make him Silas’ first choice, and the back-handed compliment from
Serrano rankled Silas. The wolf should never have challenged Silas’
pick regardless. He placed a call.

“La Patron, Sir
,”
Jayden
answered.

“Serrano ceded the Alpha position to
Cameron, he thought he would be fighting a breed but since it’s a
full-blood wanting the spot…well, there’s no challenge, smug
bastard. I should make him fight Tyrone just to teach him a
lesson.”

Jayden chuckled. “True. There was never a
doubt in my mind who would have won that battle. Rone would’ve
wiped the floor with him. The only other person I would’ve
considered was Rese, but he’s not interested in sitting behind a
desk or using tact. He’s enforcer material.”

Silas wasn’t surprised with Jayden’s
assessment of the twins, they were both deadly. Tyrone merely
appeared more amicable than Tyrese, who refused to make an effort.
“I agree. I leave it to you to handle the dismantling of the
event.”

Jayden remained quiet for a bit longer.
“Perhaps we can use this as a drawing card.”

Interested, Silas sat up. “What do you have
in mind?”

“Word has gone out about the challenge
already. We muffle Serrano so he doesn’t let on about the
cancellation and use the event to set a trap.”

“No more deaths. And that’s how those
assholes play. They kill innocents. Think of a way to set a trap
and I’ll listen, but I want to know every angle including possible
death counts.”

“Yes, Sir.”

Silas debated whether or not to tell
Cameron. He thought about the earlier discussion he'd had with
Cameron and the twins. Although neither twin let on, Silas knew
Cameron’s suspicions regarding Victoria and Renee struck a nerve.
The last thing he needed was problems with his core group. Perhaps
a visit to the Alpha house would do Cameron, Lilly, and Thorne,
Lilly's teenaged brother, some good.

“
Cameron
,” Silas called through their
link. Moments later Cameron and Lilly entered his office. Once they
sat in front of his desk, he handed Cameron the note from Serrano.
To his credit, Cameron frowned before passing it to his mate.

“That’s no reason to give up a challenge. He
would have a better shot at the alpha position by fighting me than
with Rone.”

Lilly’s brow rose at his comment.

Cameron laughed and tapped the tip of her
nose. “I’ve fought Rone before, he is skilled and a better fighter
than most alphas. I’m not ashamed to admit he’s better at fighting
than I am. Even when we practice I have no qualms asking him
pointers. I will get better, but right now he is better. Deal with
it.” He laughed at her frown. Seconds later she laughed as
well.