Fatal Call (New Breed Novels Book 4) (12 page)

X poured himself some coffee from the early breakfast table and started to prepare some tea and a bagel for Rose. She’d still been out cold when he’d gotten out of the shower, which was good. She clearly needed it. Helen was right. Sleep hadn’t even made the top five this week, which had gone something like sex, sex, food, water, more sex.

His boy walked in and cracked a smile. “Mornin’, Hoss. How goes mated life?”

“About two extra cups of coffee going, you dig?”

His partner barked a laugh. “I figured as much. Hey, can you make a little time for the Vette this week?”

“Hell, yes. I always have time for her. Everything okay?”

“Yup. Just some questions.”

Diesel walked in with a plate of Mary’s pancakes. “Mornin’, boys.”

X grinned. “Damn, those look good, Dies.”

“Eyes off the goods, my friend.”

Troy took a sip of Joe. “Hey, while I’ve got you two. I’ve noticed the females have been spending more time out back since it started warming up. I mean, we got offspring gleamin’ and shit.”

X nodded.

The brother stopped eating. “Who’s gleaming?”

Troy shoved the last of his bagel in his mouth and rolled his eyes.

Diesel dropped his fork. “Maya’s gleaming? Whoa.”

“Exactly. I know we have the electrified fence and security cameras, but is there anything else we should be doing?”

X nodded at his partner. “We’ll look into it this afternoon.”

“Thanks, guys. I’ll check you at dinner.”

Diesel watched him walk out. “When the fuck did he grow up?”

“Real fast, my man. Real fast.”

Reyn paced in front of Richard’s TV, stopping only to watch Maya gleam across the room before starting up again. “The
Olympics?
Have they lost their fucking minds?”

“Reyn, it’s in ten years for Chrissake. Sit.”

He sat on the couch and ran his hand threw his hair. Richard had a good point. They didn’t even know if there would be a Boston in ten years. Jesus, he needed to calm the fuck down. Since Akina had left, his adrenaline was on ten at all times. He could barely make it through the morning news anymore.

“Look, I think we’re going to have to send Ana and Pax back in.”

The HNBIC shook his head.

“What other choice do we have? We need to know where Victrixa is at with this thing. We’re not even sure what her relationship is to Batiste. Look, Ana is the best there is and she’s been training Pax for weeks.”

“His ability to clone doesn’t protect her from her own high profile with Toltec.”

“I hear what you’re saying. But rescuing Adriana was very different from what we’re asking them to do undercover. Come on, Reyn. This is Ana. This is what she excels at.”

Reyn nodded. “You’re right. Let’s get them in here before dinner and give them the deets.”

James looked in the bathroom mirror and started to take his facial piercings out one at a time. He was just about to take out the barbell in his tongue when he stopped. Maybe he’d leave that one in. A slight smile crept onto his face as the events of the last thirty-six hours came back to him. You’d think it’d be the sweaty moments that would stand out. Not that it wasn’t amazing, but the time they’d spent afterward—laughing, kissing, holding each other. He never thought he could be so happy. No. It wasn’t happiness. It was joy. Pure joy.

He turned on the shower and stepped under the hot water. He shook out his hair and started to shampoo it. An NB’s hair grew so damn fast. He’d been dying it once a week just to keep up. He had no idea how females dealt with that shit. What a PIA, especially with hair as thick as his. He was looking forward to cutting the black off the ends and just being auburn again.

As he soaped up, he thought about how pissed off he’d been the last few weeks. All that time he’d been so frustrated out of worry that they’d never get their chance. Only, it was never about if they would be together. Only when. And that’s the way it was going to stay, for the near future at any rate. Which was probably for the best. He wrapped a towel around his waist, grabbed the scissors and got to work. Fifteen minutes later, he ran his hand through his thick waves and decided it was close enough. He wiped up the sink with a towel, tossed it in the hamper, and pressed his knuckles into the granite vanity. He looked into the mirror, stared at his hazel eyes, and wondered if he would ever stop seeing the male who murdered his best friend.

X sat facing the computer in the lab and typed in Helen’s notes. The female was so busy working that she didn’t have the time. She was also far too satisfied with pen and paper. She was making good use of the new safe, but he wanted it all on hard drive as well. His thoughts wandered to Rose as he started to wonder where she’d gotten to. She’d left their room before he got back with breakfast. Maybe she was down in the shelter with Rory. Nah, he’d sense her there. Jesus, he was losing it. One fainting spell and his female couldn’t have a couple of hours to herself. Maybe he’d just check their room real quick.

He sauntered down the corridor and poked his head in the door. His female was standing in front of the bed, hands clasped behind her back, eyes shining like she had a secret.

“I did something bad.”

A strangled little cry came from under the bed and a tiny little black dust bunny crawled out. X’s brain played with the image until it landed directly on
kitten.
It was completely black except for its paws and the bottom half of its face, which made it look like it was wearing white shoes and a little black mask.

Rose scooped her up. “She was out on the back property all alone and she was so hungry. I don’t think she has anywhere to go.”

Here it comes.

“Do you think we could keep her?”

His mate looked like a kid at Christmas, which was actually kinda hot. Yeah, something was so not right about that.

“I thought we could call her Cool. C-o-o-l. Get it? Isn’t it cute?”

Oh, he got it alright. His black ass was so damn whipped he would have adopted Cool, Cool’s relatives, her previous owners—whatever it took to put that look in his female’s eye and keep it there as long as possible.

“Well, I don’t see why not. Ana has a
nagual.
”

Rose put down the cat and threw her arms around his neck. She held him so tight he was about ready to head to the Humane Society and clean them out.

“Thank you, my male. You’ll never know she’s here.”

Somehow he doubted that, but what the hell. Besides, he should hardly be complaining with a second form like Cheetah. What was sharing a little den space from one cool cat to another? Sharing quality time with his female—now that was a whole other story.

Pax lifted the barbell and continued counting down reps before placing it back on the rack and grabbing his water bottle.

Ana walked in wearing skinny jeans and a hoodie. This definitely wasn’t a gym run. “Hey, hot stuff.”

“Hey, sis. What’s up?”

“I just got a text from Reyn. We’re going back in.”

Ah. That would explain why his phone had been wiggin’ on the floor for the last ten minutes. “When?”

“Tonight. They want to meet with us in an hour.”

“You think they want us to get the goods on Victrixa?”

“Yep.”

“Okay. I’ll see you in sixty.”

***

Pax sat at the dinner table and watched as Maya gleamed from Adriana to Richard and back again.

“Bouya!” X whooped as everyone started to clap.

Finally, he caught James walking in the far door. His gorgeous auburn hair was back and there wasn’t a scrap of metal to be seen. He must’ve had an odd look on his face because James stuck out his tongue far enough so he could see his piercing, then gave him a sexy smile. Pax covered his eyes and peeped out before pointing to the seat across from him.

“That is so cute,” Rose said from down the table.

Adriana rolled her eyes. “Yeah, sure. It’s all fun and games ’til they have to send Mommy away.”

Richard kissed his mate’s cheek.

Pax looked across the table and mouthed, “I need to talk to you.”

James gave a quick nod and took a sip of his water.

After the antipasto was finished, large bowls of pasta were placed on the table with garlic bread. Separate plates of chicken and grilled vegetables were put down in front of Pax and Ana, who was sitting next to him.

“Dig in, Valentino,” she said with a wink.

James gave Pax’s boot a nudge under the table and gave him an odd look, which he waved off for the moment.

“Two of the stuffed shells is plenty, my male.”

“Are you sure that’s all you want, Rosie?” X asked.

“Yeah, I overdid it with the antipasto.”

Diesel smiled. “It’s easy to do.”

Troy snorted. “’Specially for you, Dies.”

X chuckled. “That ain’t no lie, my brother.”

After dinner, James was walking up the main staircase when he felt a hand take his. Instantly, his heart began to race. Pax sped up, led him down the second floor hallway, and pulled him into the conservatory. He used that body of his to pin James up against the wall and warm breath hit his cheek before Pax’s mouth was on his. The message James sent him in the drawing room had been a very explicit come-and-get-me. Message received. He parted his lips to him, Pax’s tongue a sweet invasion. Then James took the male by the back of the neck, wound his tongue around his, and gave him a friendly jolt of electricity.

Pax moaned, but then pushed back, panting. He leaned in and whispered into James’s ear. “I wouldn’t do that in a public space again.”

James smiled and caught his breath. “Point taken.”

His
camzah
kept the space intimate. “Listen, I wanted to tell you that Ana and I are heading out on another mission late tonight.”

James’s face fell. “Fuck.”

Pax took him by the chin. “Hey. I’m going to be fine.”

But James had been in the old Toltec building. He’d seen the male in action. He knew what it was like, understood the danger far too well. They’d gone on another mission recently and he hadn’t even heard about it ’til they got back. Now, he was getting some serious good-bye action before the guy left. Man, how things changed.

He swallowed hard. “Just be careful. Please.”

“I will be.” The male put his hand on his cheek and walked off.

Ana double checked her weapons and equipment one last time, zipped her leather jacket, and walked out of the closet. SE was standing next to the arm chair with his arms crossed. He walked over to her, pulled something small and silver out of his pocket, and handed it to her. Her chin dropped. It was a Berloque pistol.

“I know how averse you are to back-up weapons, but do bring this one back with you. They’re not easy to find.” He grinned.

She jumped up and threw her arms around his neck. She slid back down and turned the tiny piece over and over in her hand. “This is so cool. Thank you, my male.”

“You’re welcome. You come back to me,
Ihkweea
.”

“Always.”

She pulled him into a kiss and gleamed out, materializing in the foyer. A moment later, Pax appeared.

“You all set with the plan, Pax?”

“Yep. You’ll take out old blue eyes and I’ll take his place.”

“Right. And remember, Victrixa works very closely with him and the guy’s a total sociopath. You show one glimmer of conscience and you’re toast.”

He nodded. “Got it. After you.”

At the last moment, she sensed her mate. She looked up at the top of the stairs and noticed SE on the balcony, the
nagual
twittering above his head. She found his eyes, memorizing them for just a moment before gleaming back across the lines of the war.

Rose sat on a stool at the bar and sucked on a lollipop to settle her stomach. She watched Xavier play pool with Troy, James, and SE. He had put the game together to help ease the males. He took a pull from his cigar, lined the shot up, and looked directly into her eyes. He took the shot without dropping eye contact. The ball went in the pocket and he gave her a wink. Her body filled with heat. What was it Ana had said the other day? She’d told her she’d landed the Alpha. She supposed she had. But there were sides to him that no one would ever know but her. The way he cradled her in his arms from top to bottom. How laying with his head in her lap and her peppermint tea was the only thing that helped his headaches if he’d had too much screen time. The things he whispered in her ear in the middle of the night after taking her.

She hopped off the stool and very contentedly popped the candy from her mouth. “I’m going to head downstairs, my male. I’m a little tired.”

His coffee brown eyes were focused on her mouth as she spoke, then followed the lollipop as it went back between her lips. “I won’t be long, female.”

“Let’s keep the game moving, boys,” she heard him drawl as she left the room.

“Never thought I’d see the day, X.”

“Watch yourself, Southie.”

They all burst into laughter and a little satisfied smile crossed Rose’s face.

Ana stood perfectly still in one of Toltec’s back hallways. She drew her breath in slow even pulls as she swept the place for Mommie Dearest. She was alone in her office. Hmm. She didn’t know this building very well and that was going to make things difficult. In the old days, Blue Eyes had a lair under the actual compound. But that place had been a former mental hospital. Where would the cocksucker hide in this more modern building? The frigging custodial closet? Not to mention her powers had been down when she’d been near him before, thanks to the shitload of liquid silver he’d pumped her with. Pax was getting antsy beside her and she didn’t dare look at him. Before partnering with the male she’d always worked alone. Warriors were used to action and any other brother would feel jumpy with this much waiting, but she needed to get her bearings.

“Hey, can you hang tight for a few minutes?”

“Yeah. Where are you going?”

“Someplace you don’t fit.”

Ana phased into Cobra and gleamed herself up inside the drop ceiling. She’d been working on gleaming in her second form for a while now. She’d never seen anyone else do it, but her power worked a little differently, so she thought she might have a shot. She knew it would bring her spying game to a whole new level. Plus, if it worked, she’d be able to kiss mini cams good-bye. It was worth it for that alone. Sure enough, a week ago she’d gleamed herself to the showers down in the gym. Thank God they rarely got used, although she now knew where Viktor’s birthmark was. It had been worth it for this moment. In Cobra’s lightweight, slender body, she was able to navigate the connector rails between the tiles easily without falling through. Her hearing wasn’t great in her second form, but she could feel vibrations, including those made by energy. She just had to hope it would be enough.

Over and over Ana serpentined. She could no longer sense Pax, which meant he must have taken on another form. Damn it. She could only pray there wasn’t a Toltec body lying somewhere.
Come on. Come on.
Every moment slipping by took up time she didn’t have. She had no idea how long it had been when she suddenly felt a heavy vibration of
k’ul
appear from out of thin air down below. Whoever it was had gleamed. Without any way to see who it was she was taking a risk, but she had no choice. She locked in on that energy and dematerialized.

The strike was so fast and precise, Blue Eyes couldn’t have prevented it even if he’d seen her. She hit him just above the boot line, delivering enough venom to immobilize him with pain and maybe some blurry vision. It quickly took effect and only then did she phase.

He slid down the wall to the floor and looked up at her with those fucked up blue eyes. “Do you know what happened to the last Mata female who tried to poison me?”

God
damn
she wanted to kill the fucker. Unfortunately, she couldn’t do that. They needed to put him back in play when they were done. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. My mother’s scar, blah, blah, blah. Get a new story.”

She picked up the metal trash can and slammed it down on his head.

There was a tremendous flash and Rose’s body was consumed by a heat too intense to bear. She looked up. Xavier was running toward her, his great hands balled into fists, his face contorted by fear.
“Run, Rose!”
She looked down at the concrete, willing herself to move, but it was melting under her very feet. She looked back for Xavier, but he was being swallowed into the melting ground.

Rose felt a scream try to leave her throat, but when she sat up in bed, she was greeted by quiet darkness. The only things she could hear were the smooth whirring of Cool’s purrs and the even sound of her mate’s breathing next to her. Then the shaking started and she realized she was freezing. The sheets were soaking wet.
Oh, Goddess, no.
She made her way to the bathroom and grabbed a clean towel. She wrapped it around herself and rubbed her arms as she went back into the bedroom and found her bag. She pulled out the new cell Xavier had given her and sent out a text.

I’m coming.

Ana slipped around the corner to the back hallway where she’d left Pax. A blond Toltec shifter stood facing her. Instinctively, she went for her pistol, but then the male flashed her the peace sign. The agreed upon signal. It was Pax.

“You didn’t have to kill the looker, did you?” she whispered.

He shook his head. “I knocked him out. Did you find him?”

She nodded and cast out her senses for any unexpected visitors before giving him the all clear. He followed her down the next hallway and around a corner to a heavy door. They gleamed inside and made their way past the douche’s museum of torture horrors and into the next room.

Pax phased back to his first form and looked down at the body on the floor. Ana watched and waited, but the male just stood there. Patience. Officially Lost.

“Well?”

“I…I don’t know what he is.”

She looked down at the body on the floor. “What do you mean you don’t know what he is?”

“With all the shit we’ve dealt with lately this somehow surprises you?”

She looked down at Blue Eyes and kicked his boot with her foot. “I thought his energy was a little funky.”

“And you’re just sharing that now?”

“Well, can you clone him?”

“I’m working on it, but so help me, if I end up looking like that the rest of my life I’m going to kick your ass.”

Oh, for the love of fuck.

X rolled over and immediately realized he’d made a mistake. A squeal came out from under him and he lifted his shoulder. Cool’s head popped up and she bristled.

He glanced over at the clock on the nightstand. Seven o’clock. “Sorry, Miss Thing, but I’m not sure we both fit in this bed.”

She hopped off and went straight for her dish. Hmm. “Hungry, eh? Where’s your mama?”

He put down some food and fresh water. She wolfed down her breakfast, then started to chase something under the bed. Huh. So far, it seemed he was usually the first one up. He headed into the bathroom. Rosie hadn’t showered either. For a moment he wondered if she might be out behind the mansion looking to add to the family. If she did, there was no way he’d be able to say no, that’s for damn sure. The thought crossed his mind that he’d better get started on those plans for expansion. He shook his head and smiled at the thought of them becoming two crazy old cat people.

Twenty minutes later he was walking up to early breakfast with Diesel and Helen when they met Geoffrey in the main foyer.

The look on the male’s face was earnest. “I must speak with you.”

“I’ll catch up with you later, Dies.”

Geoffrey walked into the small kitchen and X followed. “Did you know I received a call from Rose this morning? She asked me to take her into town.”

X’s heart gave a lurch in his chest. “To town? Where?”

“To Cambridge. MIT.”

MIT?

“I just returned. You didn’t know? I sent you a text. I would have declined to take her.”

Fuck.
“You did the right thing, Geoffrey. Thank you.” X said absently.

Geoffrey headed off. “Let me know if you need anything.”

What could Rose possibly want at MIT? She’d been there the night of James’s Induction, but he’d never asked her why. He gleamed down to their room and turned on his computer. Then he went for the drawer to her nightstand. Kleenex, a book, a photo of him that was no doubt from the other females. Adrenaline coursed through him. The protective instinct was clearly running the show. He turned, slammed her suitcase down on the bed, and opened it before freezing in place. He rubbed his goatee. He needed to know she was safe, but part of him felt like he was spying on her. A big part. No, there was no way he was going through her stuff. He turned and sat down at his laptop, quickly bringing up her phone. He’d given her a clean phone when she moved in, after installing a third party tracker for safety. He exhaled in relief when the signal popped up on the map. She was still on the main MIT campus somewhere. Thank fuck. Now the only question was did he go get her now or later?

The tab for screening her texts popped up. He stared at it for a moment before clicking the icon. Jesus, this was low. That wasn’t no protective instinct. It was the
possessive
instinct. But like the mated male he was, he glanced at the screen anyway. She’d only sent one text since she’d been at the compound. It had gone out at 5 a.m. that morning to—Ben Stokes. A male. Fuck. Me.

He pulled out his cell and dialed his boy. “Yo. I need you. It’s Rose.”

Troy was seriously hauling ass as he followed his partner across Main Street in Cambridge. He looked up at the giant space-age building in front of them. It was a slim triangle of silver and gray, and featured seven floors of nothing but windows. Looked like someplace you could get felt up by a bunch of bobble headed douchebags from Mars. “You sure this is the right place, X?”

“According to the online directory, this is where that Stokes dude’s lab is.”

Oh, man. He’d never seen X worked up like this. Any of the warriors of the Order could be lethal in a fraction of a second, especially if it came to a mate. But X—the dude was on a whole other level. He was death personified, and you did not want to get on the wrong side of that shit. He followed him through the front doors and into the lobby. That’s when his partner sped up and he knew he’d caught Rose’s scent. God help X’s alma mater if she was up in that lab with that Ben guy. He wasn’t a big fan of the architect, but the building looked brand new.

His partner stopped so fast, Troy almost walked right into him. The male reached up and touched a plaque next to the door that said Stokes Lab.

Fuck.

Rory entered the back stairwell leading from the compound to the second floor of the mansion and stopped. Evy had told her how to get to her room in case of an emergency, but she’d never been upstairs before. Her heart was beating way too fast in her chest and her body felt like she was floating. Could she get in trouble? No, Evy and Troy wouldn’t let that happen. And this was an emergency—kind of. She started up the steps and was relieved when she didn’t see anyone else along the way. But nothing could have prepared her for what she saw when she peeked into the upstairs hallway.

The house looked like a palace. She swallowed hard and looked to the top of the huge staircase. Okay. Evy and Troy’s room was the first door to the right of it. She took a deep breath and ran to the opposite side of the balcony and past the top of the stairs. She looked around and knocked on the door lightly. “Evy,” she said into the heavy wood door.

Evy thought she heard a knock. She untangled herself from the text books she was looking through and went to get the door. “Rory. Are you okay?”

The girl’s bright blue eye’s brimmed with tears. Evy put her arms around her and brought her inside. “Come on over to the bed and sit down. What’s wrong, honey?”

“I’m so sorry, Evy. Everyone has been so nice, especially you and Troy. But I didn’t want to get Christian in trouble.”

Evy brushed her long brown hair behind her back and handed her a tissue. “Shh. It’s okay. Whatever has happened, I’m sure we can fix it.”

“Are those my books?”

“I’m not sure yet. Maybe.”

Rory’s tears started up again. “He only did it to protect me. I’m not a shifter and he wasn’t sure if you’d let me stay in the beginning. He would have done anything to keep me from being put back in the system.”

Evy took her hand. “We would never let that happen.”

“Oh, I know.”

“What is it Christian’s done, Rory?”

“You’re gonna be mad.”

Evy waited. In her experience, you never answered that one. The next sentence was usually the confession, and there was no way she could know how she would react anyway.

“Chris lied about my age.”

“Your age? Well, how old are you?”

“Twelve.”

And then it all clicked. Evy looked at the books on the bed. They were no doubt the wrong ones. “You were going to start tutoring soon and you knew the books would be for seventh grade.”

She nodded. “Chris was going to tell you. I think he just didn’t want to let you down. I probably could handle the work. I was in advanced. But…”

“Go on.”

“The thing is, if he doesn’t become a New Breed, he’ll probably go on to college. Did he tell you he got into Columbia? He’s really smart. I didn’t know if I could stay here if he left, but if I did, I didn’t want it to be on a lie.”

Goddess, Rory was a great kid. Evy put her arms around her and rubbed her back. “Thank you for being honest with me.”

Rory nodded. “You’re not mad then?”

“No. I understand why he did it and so will Troy. Rory, I think that if your brother goes, you should stay. Troy and I would want to know that you’re safe. But the decision would be between you and Christian.”

“Evy, do you think I’ll phase and be a shifter like my brother?”

“Well, there’s no way to know for sure. It definitely runs in some families. All we can do is wait and see.”

“I hope I do.” She glanced down at the bed. “Hey, maybe I can help you look at the books. I can tell you what I’ve done. These might be okay and then I can start with Rose soon. I really like her. She’s nice.”

Evy smiled and handed Rory a book.
What a kid.