Circe's Recruits: Gideon: A Multiple Partner Shifter Book (15 page)

Alex kept his attention on the large monster biting into the female’s arm.

She screamed and swiped at his face, making contact with an eye. Oh yeah, the claws and fangs definitely said “Circ” even if her scent was a bit off. The coppery tang of her blood tasted like wildflowers in the air. An odd, poetic notion he couldn’t shake.

“Bailey Duncan?” he growled, catching her gaze.

Her eyes widened when she saw him, grew even bigger when she noticed Alex and Eli moving in. She had light brown eyes, the color of fine whiskey, and despite the fear turning them golden, it was the rage burning deep that truly got to him.

She shrieked and dug her thumb into her captor’s eye socket, removing the orb. But he only continued to eat her, uncaring of his lost eye. She tossed it to the ground and fished her claw free of his face. Gideon shot a psychic blast at the monster, but nothing happened. The freak didn’t react.
Hell.

In the next instant, a milky substance replaced the missing orb. In seconds he had his eye back—his red eye.

“Oh yeah. Freaky.” Eli jumped forward and dug his claws into the guy’s abdomen. Alex yanked the monster’s jaw free from the female, taking a chunk of her skin with it, while Gideon pulled her to his side.

Then Carter arrived and yelled, “Back off, Caldane. Come meet your brothers.”

Caldane stopped moving and turned to face Carter.

Gideon had no idea what the hell Carter thought he was doing. Surrounded by ink-black mutants, he seemed to be holding court with a dozen of them. They stood around him, swayed by his mind control.

Caldane seemed unable to resist as well. At least something got through to the guy.

“Get her in the SUV and get ready to move,” he murmured to Alex, placing the woman in his care. “Eli, call for backup. We can’t leave all these creatures to attack the public.”

Eli nodded and whipped out his cell as he and Alex took the woman back to the vehicle.

Gideon rushed to Carter’s side, bypassing the unmoving Caldane.
Jesus.
Seeing him up close, with no distraction, Gideon felt real unease.

Unlike the other more human-looking Circs, Caldane’s eyes had no pupil or iris, just a solid orb of red. His pale features and striking, model-good looks looked wrong on so many levels. Like an angel of death with a hellish sensibility. The monster had serrated teeth and continued to lick Bailey’s blood from his fangs, going so far to lick the drops that had landed on his long fingers.

He had to be seven feet tall, if not a few inches more. Yet…the fucker was
growing.

Hell.
Time to go. “Carter, get your ass in the SUV.” Out of the corner of his eye, Gideon saw the vehicle pull closer.

“Just as soon as Caldane comes over to see his brothers.” Carter turned to the mutants. “He wants to come home. Bring him with you when you go. And swallow him whole, brothers. Eat him up but good.”

The mutants screeched and raced for Caldane, who smiled as he walked to greet them.

Not wanting to watch any more cannibalism than he had to—
Good God
—Gideon hustled over to Carter and met the vehicle, shoving Carter inside before hopping in the front. He glanced around. “We all here?” He noted Eli driving, Alex with the woman in the backseat, Carter in the way back, and himself. “Check. Let’s get the fuck gone.”

But the woman—Bailey—kept babbling about her files. Eli followed her directions to a cluster of trash cans by the side of the motel. She pushed past Alex and got out to retrieve a large tote. She hopped back inside in seconds. “Drive.”

Her voice had a husky quality he liked. And so did the others. Eli and Alex appeared to soften. Carter cocked his head, as if confused.

“Sorry,” she apologized. “I mean, can you please get us out of here?”

He heard her tears, didn’t want to deal with more emotional crap, and closed his eyes. But he couldn’t close his heart to its furious pounding inside him, or to his beast that wanted nothing more than to stroke the woman into an easy, peaceful sleep.

Bailey tried calming her breathing, thinking about butterflies, anything to forget the nightmare that had found her. Myers and Yates had been horrible. But that red-eyed demon… He’d been eating her! Biting her not for any sexual or physical pleasure, which would have been bad enough, but because he intended
to eat her.
To devour her power, he’d whispered.

She flinched when the man next to her touched her shoulder. “Easy, Bailey. It’s okay.”

Another huge shocker. The sexy fantasies she’d had of guys in orgies had become real. Well, not the orgy part, but the wild men she’d dreamed were here. The sad, gray-eyed hunk sat next to her. The tatted guy drove them. The blond giant sat in the back, humming with energy. She could feel him vibrating inside her, in some weird way, as if he was trying to psychically figure her out—which was just weird on top of weird.

And
him.
The green-eyed leader. He looked practically feline with those slit pupils, that wicked danger in the way he moved. So smooth, so silent. She’d smelled him before she’d heard or seen him when the monster had been sucking her blood and teething her bones.

The shock of seeing him had broken her from the pain of being chewed on. But now, surrounded by so many large, powerful men—Circs—fear came rushing back, threatening to drown her.

“She’s not going to be okay because you tell her to, Alex,” the driver said, full of sarcasm. “I know. Hey, honey, why don’t you forget all about the freaks we just fought and think about puppies and kittens instead? Meow. That helping?”

“Shut up, Eli,” Alex, her comfort, snapped at the driver.

Eli laughed. “Yeah, right. See? That ain’t gonna happen either.”

“She’s scared. She should be,” came the low voice from the back.

“That ain’t working either, Carter. Damn, what a bunch of pathetic do-gooders. Bailey? We’re not here to hurt you. If we’d wanted you dead, you’d be tits up already.”

“Eli, you’re not helping,” Alex snarled.

“Guys, enough. I think Bailey knows we’re on her side.” The leader had a gritty, smoky voice, one that brought her beast to life. “And Bailey, tone that creature inside you way down. We all need to relax if we’re going to make it home without tearing each other apart.”

She swallowed around a dry throat. “Wh-what?”

“What’s in the bag?” Eli asked, changing the subject.

“Who
are
you people?” she blurted, overcome, and reached for Alex’s hand, gripping it like a lifeline. She felt his surprise, but he didn’t disengage. If anything, he held her tighter and covered her hand with both of his.

“I’m Alex Palmer. I used to work for U-Ground security.”

“But not regular security. One of the lower levels.” Obviously. He was friggin’ huge. She turned to get a better look at him. Handsome, sculpted, gorgeous.
Pack.

She tried to clear her mind from the beast wanting out.

“Yes, the lower levels.” He gave a half-smile, half-grimace. “My sister…” He cleared his throat. “She was a huge conspiracy nut, and she believed something was going down at U-Ground. So she investigated, then she disappeared. I showed up to find her, going undercover as a security guard. They invited me to work below, and I saw things.”

He sounded so sad. She clutched his hand tighter and felt him relax.

“That’s where I met these three. Elijah Ortiz is our mouthy driver.”

“Call me Eli, sweetheart.”

“Carter Freeman’s the big guy in the backseat.”

“Hi.” Carter nodded at her.

“And Gideon’s in the front.”

“He thinks he’s in charge,” Eli added. “As if.”

“Yeah?” Gideon said, his voice like gravel. “You want to challenge me, pretty boy? I’m game.”

She shivered, feeling the threat like a physical slap.

Eli only shrugged, seeming unconcerned. “Relax,
jefe.
Just wanted to see if you were awake.”

“Funny guy.”

Carter chuckled. “He’s not that funny, actually. But he kind of is.”

“Oh, that makes sense.” Eli drawled. “You’re blond for sure.”

Their banter made her feel better. It sounded normal, something regular guys would say to get a rise out of one another. They felt… Her beast tensed, then relaxed.
Yes, like pack. A unit. Strong together.

“Anyway,” Alex cut in again. “When I found out what was really going on, I called in a few favors, got a special branch of the government involved. We rescued Gideon, Eli and Carter. Dr. Lang, you know him?”

She nodded.

“He kidnapped and experimented on the guys. On all of us, really.” Alex sighed. “So much wrong he got away with.”

“Not for long,” Gideon murmured. “We’re not done with him yet.”

She appreciated that threat, agreed with it wholeheartedly.

Gideon continued, asking, “Were you at U-Ground when that supposed fire broke out?”

“No, I was at home.” She blinked. “That was your rescue operation, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah.” Alex bit his lip. “My sister helped set it up. They killed her because of it.”

She looked at him again, and when he made eye contact, her world tilted. “
Katie.
You’re Katie’s brother. She has—had—the same eyes.”

He nodded.

“I’m so sorry.” She hugged him to her, startling him, she could tell. His stiff hug back slowly warmed, and he sagged in her embrace. She swore she felt moisture dampen her shoulder and hugged him even tighter. “Katie saved me.”

She stroked his hair as he let out a shuddering breath, then let him go when he gently pulled back to get some space.

“Tell me,” he said, his voice raw.

She explained in detail what had happened to make her flee from the company. How Katie’s email had helped her evade those sent to capture her.

“It’s all in the file.” She pulled the wad of paper from her bag. “I have some of it here, the rest on a thumb drive. I think that’s why they want me back. That and I guess I’m like you guys.” She frowned. “But I don’t know how I can be. I never went in for any experiments or anything. Never went below the main level, ever.”

Alex shook his head. “They must have drugged you, like they drugged me. Because I never signed up to be Circ either. But I’m different.”

“Not all the way Circ,” Gideon added. “Strong, psychic, but the eyes don’t lie.”

She noticed what he meant. Alex had round pupils. “Are my eyes different?” She opened them wider.

Alex leaned close, and she caught the hint of his scent, like a fine cologne of safety, compassion, and dampened desire. She did her best to keep herself closed off, so he wouldn’t read her sudden—inappropriate—sexual response.

“Your eyes look normal.” He stared, and she saw his pupils lengthen.

“Wait. Your eyes, they just changed. Went Circ.”

“Yeah?” He blinked, and the change vanished. “Still?”

“No. It’s gone. That’s odd.”

Gideon laughed. “That’s nothing. Wait until you see the first version of the Circs. They seriously turn into something not human.” He turned around to watch her, then his gaze shifted to Alex. “So what the hell happened to you back there”

Alex sank lower in his seat. “I saw something.” He paused. “Myers and the others killed Katie.”

“Damn,” Carter said softly.

“I’m so sorry.” Bailey wiped her eyes. What a terrible way to die.

“I don’t know if I did enough damage to kill Myers, but I’m going back to find him,” Alex promised, meeting Gideon’s gaze. “I’m going back to kill them all.”

That sounded like a challenge. He didn’t look away from Gideon, and the air in the SUV filled with tension.

Bailey should have been totally freaked out by discussions of killing and death. But such talk of vengeance satisfied the beast inside her. The tension continued to build, and part of her wondered who would win if the men in the SUV battled.

Gideon flashed a fang, then shrugged. “I was going back even if you weren’t. You calling dibs on Myers if he’s still alive? Okay. But Smith is mine.”

“Hey now.” Eli frowned at them in the rearview. “I want a piece of him too.”

“You can have Lang.”

“I want Lang,” Carter growled, showing a layer of violence she hadn’t seen in the big man yet.

“What about me?” she asked, wanting to be a part. “If you guys get all the scientists, then I want the money lady. Amelia Norton.”

Alex froze. “Myers mentioned a Norton. She’s bankrolling this thing?”

Bailey nodded. “And she’s got some pretty deep pockets. They have oil money. Her family’s big into politics. Her father is a retired senator.”

“With connections to the federal government,” Gideon said. “No way we can trust this to Circe’s Recruits.”

“Yeah. No way,” Carter seconded.

“I agree.” Eli nodded.

“Whoa. Hold on.” Alex sat up straight. “Circe’s Recruits are the good guys.”

“Yes! Circe’s Recruits.” Bailey knew that name. “That’s who Katie told me to find. And the locker. She left me information, stuff I’m supposed to get to you guys and Circe’s Recruits.” Her gaze wandered from Circ to Circ and settled on Gideon.

Shadows flickered over his face, the moonlight overhead trying to hide his expression, but she saw it plain as day. Satisfaction, possession, and a need for violence. “You’ll give it to
us,
Bailey. Because you’re gonna be pack real soon.”

She swallowed. “Pack?”

“Feels right. But weird, too,” Carter said.

“The, um, Myers said I was made for his pack.” Something she wanted to, but couldn’t, forget. “Are you saying you’re all going to maul me or something?”

Eli chuckled. “Or something.”

“Shut up, Eli,” Gideon warned. “No, Bailey. We aren’t going to maul you. But I can feel it. Hell, we all can. You’re pack. Wake that beast inside you and she’ll tell you. Probably why Hayashi pointed you out to us in the first place.”

“Who?” Had she fallen down the rabbit hole or what?

Yes, pack. A strong mate here.
Her beast chuffed, and Bailey felt everyone around her tense.
Fuck me sideways. Now what?

Gideon had been doing his best to ignore the sweet scent of Bailey growing more potent in the confines of the SUV. He wondered if the others felt it as well. A glance at Eli showed him no different than he had been. Not sporting an erection the way Gideon was.