Caged Heat (Black Meadow Pack) (17 page)

Sam wanted to kick her own ass for being such a fool. She should’ve listened to Ry when he told her things were still unsettled. She gulped and thought of what Troy had said. She might be pregnant, and had possibly placed her child in danger. “Luisa, what are you doing?”

Luisa shook her head. “Sam, I’m sorry.” She kept her voice soft. “I really am, but I need you to die. I can’t kill you here, so let’s get in my car and go for a drive.” She cocked the gun to prove she meant business, and Sam got into the car with her aunt.

With Sam in the driver’s seat, Luisa pointed the gun into Sam’s head. She glanced back at the house, hoping Ry or Troy had heard them, but Luisa had spoken so softly even she’d had a hard time listening to her.

Luisa smirked, and Sam started driving off. “I know all about the shifter-enhanced hearing. Trust me, your mother told me things.”

“How did you know I’d get the door?”

Luisa rolled her eyes. “You have huge bay windows with no curtains, incredibly tacky and stupid at the same time. I saw you walking down the stairs. I’d seen the men heading for the backyard earlier.”

Sam tried to think of a way to get out of the situation without getting herself killed. “What exactly do you want Luisa?”

“I want the money that belongs to me.” Luisa’s voice rose the further away they drove.

Sam shook her head in confusion. “But Ginny left you a million dollars, Luisa. I know you don’t live with high expenses, so why do you need more money?”

“Because my sons are sick.” Luisa’s voice lowered again with each word.

Sam had never heard of Luisa’s kids being sick. She’d always boasted of them working for international companies and traveling the world in their successful careers. “Sick how?”

Luisa’s sadness still made her feel bad for the woman. She looked a lot like Sam’s mother. “My oldest has a small drug problem. He tends to spend all our money on the stuff and needs help.”

Sam grimaced. “If he’s spending all your money, what he needs is rehab.”

“Don’t you think I know that?” Luisa shrieked.

Shit. She’d pissed her off. Sam had been slowing down in the hopes that Luisa hadn’t noticed. They weren’t too far from the house, but the area was still somewhat deserted. Riel and Sam’s houses had been located in a section where there was a lot of space between neighbors. She tried to keep Luisa talking. “What’s wrong with your other son?”

“He’s a bit of a compulsive gambler.” When Sam made a face to match her distaste, her aunt rushed on, “but he’s going to get help. He’s just always waiting for the big win, and I don’t have the money to wait on him anymore.”

Wow. The entire family had treated Sam like a piece of trash because one of her parents had been a shifter, and all along they should’ve focused on their own issues. She continued driving straight instead of taking a curved road that would lead her into the highway. By going straight, they were forced to stop when they reached a dead end.

“Why are you stopping?” Luisa demanded, not taking her eyes off Sam’s face.

Sam turned to Luisa. “We’re at a dead end.”

Luisa peered around and lowered the gun to shove it into Sam’s side. “I guess this spot can work just as well. Get out of the car.”

Sam had to do something before things went downhill for her. She half turned toward the door handle, felt Luisa move closer to her, and slammed her elbow back into Luisa’s face.

“You bitch!” Luisa screamed.

Sam reached for the hand holding the gun.

Blood covered the older woman’s face, but Sam was focused on fighting her for the weapon. She’d never have guessed Luisa had such a strong grip. Sam struggled to get the gun from Luisa and keep it from pointing in her own direction at the same time. A shot rang out inside the car, and she heard glass breaking. There was no time to talk or try to convince her aunt to stop. This was a fight for survival. She managed to turn the muzzle enough so that the gun now pointed in Luisa’s direction.

Luisa screeched and fought her for the gun. “Let go. I’m going to kill you for this.”

Sam tried really hard not to lose her grip on the gun that was facing away from her. “Luisa, don’t do anything stupid. This can be worked out.” She continued to try to pull the weapon from the other woman.

“Are you kidding me? Juan Junior said he’d take care of you, but what good was he? He sent you a bomb, and nothing. We sat there in the car, watched you reach for the package, and set it off. We left before we could figure out if it had killed you, only to find out later that you were alive!” She screamed through the tugging. “You were supposed to die when we lit your house on fire, and yet you’re still here! Now I have to do this myself. You are just like your mother, consorting with animals,” Luisa spat in disgust.

That did it. Her emotions raged, and she turned the gun fully on Luisa. Luisa screamed as the bones in her hands popped, and she squeezed the trigger involuntarily. Sam knew that shot had hit the mark. Luisa stopped struggling and glanced down at her chest. A small, red dot spread over the pristine silk blouse until the white material was covered in red. The raven-haired woman fell back into her seat, eyes open and mouth agape.

The driver-side door was torn from the hinges, making Sam scream in fear. Riel’s angry, panting face scanned down her body.

She shook her head. “I’m fine.” The finality of the situation got to her, and she threw her arms around his neck and started sobbing.

Riel’s hold on her tightened. “I’ve got you.”

She nodded into his shoulder through her tears. “I know.”

* * *

Sophia walked back into the living room from her office.

“OK, Sam. I’ve got your test results. But before we get to it, explain to me how you guys know it was only Luisa and Juan Junior and not Danitelli or one of the others.”

Riel spoke up. “Luisa told Sam all the attempts on her life had come from her and Juan Junior.”

“But what about Danitelli?” Sophia asked.

“We found out that while he does have some weird ties to the mob, he wasn’t involved in any of Sam’s death threats. He’s been taking over his sick uncle’s business, and it’s why he’s been so hard to trace. But he didn’t really have anything to show him as a culprit.”

“What about the aunts?” Natalia asked.

“Oh. Well you all know Cecilia is paying off the younger man to be with her, but she recently found out he was cheating with some other women and dumped him. As for Maggie, she’s busy being the new matriarch in Danitelli’s family. Juan Sr. is still in the Philippines, and Luisa’s two sons are overseas hiding from drug and gambling debts.”

“Could they try to come and do something to Sam?” Kane asked.

“We’ve got some of our friends in the London Pack keeping tabs on them. We’ll know if they try anything,” Chase added. He glanced at Sophia and then at Sam. “All right, love. I think if you don’t tell Sam her test results, she’s going to have a mild panic attack soon.” He grinned.

Sam’s leg shook from nerves. Riel must’ve noticed her anxiety because he picked her up from her seat and sat her in his lap. The move instantly calmed her. She curled her arms around his neck and turned to Sophia. “OK. So what did you find out?”

Sophia grimaced. “I’m sorry Sam. I have two theories. It is possible that your mother had a gene which kept her from turning shifter when she mated and that gene was passed on to you.”

“There’s no way to tell?”

“No. I would need your mother’s DNA to test and see if it was a genetic anomaly. My other theory is that her treatment with those drugs killed any chances for you to be a shifter. The compounds were super strong. I’m surprised they didn’t kill you in her womb.”

Sam wasn’t surprised. She’d had a feeling from what she’d read that the drugs had caused her to be in her current state. Too bad, she’d never be a shifter.

“But I do have good news.” Sophia smiled.

“What?” All Sophia was supposed to look for was the alteration to her DNA.

Sophia sat on Chase’s lap and grinned at them. “You’re going to have a baby.”

A chorus of “what” and “congratulations” sounded in the room.

“Hold on a second,” Sam interjected, confused as hell that Sophia could know something that soon. “How can you tell when it can’t be more than a week or two?”

Everyone laughed.

Sophia winked at her. “Well…shifter babies develop a lot faster than a human baby. What would be a nine-month pregnancy with a human is a six-month pregnancy with a shifter.”

She gulped, unsure how to handle the-whole-going-to-be-a-mother thing so soon.

“And,” Sophia continued over the loud voices, “I don’t think the problem with the lacking gene will pass on to your offspring. Your baby should be full-blown shifter.” She grinned and pointed at her own nose. “This little baby doesn’t lie. I can smell the tiny wolf a mile away.”

Riel turned Sam in his lap and grabbed her face in his hands. He kissed her so softly she forgot all about how Sophia knew she was pregnant. She became oblivious to their audience until someone cleared their throat.

“Um, excuse me,” Nat broke in. “But I’d like to hug the mom-to-be sometime before the baby is born. And I’m not trying to see any adult-rated shows anytime soon,” she complained.

“Come on, Nat. I can show you some great sights in private,” Kane quipped.

“Over my dead body,” Troy growled.

She lifted her face to her mate’s. The look of total adoration in his eyes made her heart flip. She turned to Natalia who sat between Troy and Kane. They were ready to fight for the rights to her best friend. It was funny to see and so obvious to her that Kane was only trying to rile up Troy.

Sam stood and was enveloped in multiple hugs until she found herself being pulled to the kitchen by Sophia’s sister Julia, and Nat.

Sam’s smile grew when she noticed what was on the kitchen table. The women turned to Natalia, and she grinned. “I know how you pregnant shifters or almost shifters get without your chocolate, so I begged Tryx to hook you guys up. One for each so there’s no fighting.”

Julia stopped in her tracks. “Oh god. Is that—?”

Sophia bounced toward the table. “Yes! How did you know we’d love this, Nat?”

Natalia laughed. “I don’t know, but from what I saw of Sam, you guys have some sweet tooth that can’t be cured.” She grinned. “And really, who the hell doesn’t love chocolate cake? That’s just insanity.” When the women pointed at the two extra cakes, she smirked. “You girls don’t think the guys and I deserve a piece?”

They all laughed.

Sam had to hand it to Nat. She fit right in with the shifter group. They each cut a large piece and walked out to the yard where the nurse guarded over Shane and Selena. Riel walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. She sighed and leaned back into him.

He fluttered his lips over her ear. “Thank you,” he whispered.

She lifted her head and peered at his beautiful golden eyes. “For what?”

He turned her in his arms. Her breath hitched at the emotion in his eyes. “For coming home.”

She pulled his head down for a kiss. Ginny’s death might have brought her home, but her mate was the reason she stayed.

~ Acknowledgements ~

For some very special people I love:

Jewels Fernandez—my sister and loving fan, Tito Bermudez—my husband and encouraging partner, Heidi Hutchinson—my best friend and never ending inspiration, Angela Lantigua—my mother and great source of strength and Melinda Fulton—my editor and the first person to read and love this series enough to ask for it to be published. I wouldn’t be here if not for them.

I also want to thank the following people for their unwavering support and continued commitment in helping encourage me to succeed.

DeAnna Pratt (You ROCK so hard woman! I have the ultimate girl crush on you!) Amalfis Liz, Diamond Bermudez, Alexia Bermudez, Yolinda Ventura, David Morel, Anthony Fernandez, Lindsay Avalon, Leda Verber, Emely De La Cruz, Heidi Parmenter, Sharon Chappell, Glynestine Kinloch, Felix Lopez, Karla Jordan, Maritza Hernandez, Jeannette Medina, Jennifer van Gunten, Jodie Smith, and a host of others that know who they are.

My Sexy Biters AKA Sexy Pimps for always helping make my life easier and sharing the love of my books: Barb Hicks, Jennifer Spell Wedmore, Iris Montalvo Pross, Sheri Spell, Michelle Wilson, Carrie Fort, Ava VonGiebel, Holly Collins, Kristin McKittrick, Teracia Loretan, Celsey Sievert, Brooklyn Wilde, Crystal Newman, and Len Phelps.

And to YOU. This book is dedicated to you, my reader friends, who read Sharp Change and fell in love with Chase and Sophia. I hope you also love Riel and Samira and each of the others that are coming after.

Thank you. I love you all.

~ About the Author ~

Milly Taiden (Also writes as April Angel) was born in the prettiest part of the Caribbean known as the Dominican Republic. Currently, she resides in New York City with her husband, bossy young son and their little dog Speedy.

She loves to read, write and spends most of her time living inside her head making up new stories.

When she’s not working full-time, texting with her bff in England, chastising her son for pulling the dog’s ears, shopping with her sister Jewel or watching scary movies with her husband, she can be found writing on her laptop. She’s addicted to shoe shopping, chocolate and Dunkin Donuts coffee.

Discover more about Milly Taiden here

http://millytaiden.com

http://www.facebook.com/millytaidenauthor

http://www.facebook.com/millytaiden

~ Also by Milly Taiden ~

Sharp Change

Black Meadow Pack Book One

Only the hottest sex can cool a wolf in heat...

After her sister is bitten by a werewolf, geneticist Sophia Reece begins researching shape-shifters and isolates a gene she calls Furry Beast—FB for short. But in her excitement over her discovery—dancing in the lab is never a good idea—she has a teeny little accident with the samples, one canine, one feline, and winds up landing on the syringes, pointy side up.