Finding the Magic (19 page)

Quickly, before she could chicken out, she slipped behind him and held the blade of the letter opener against his throat. His hand automatically came up to grasp her wrist and she had to fight to hold it in position. His fingers dug painfully into her arm and she used her other hand to scratch at his eyes.

“Bitch.”

“Oh, you don’t know the half of it.”

He struggled against her and Cameron moved with lightning speed, ducking to one side and rushing forward to grab the hand with the gun. She heard a muffled pop as the gun discharged, sending the bullet harmlessly into the opposite wall. Michael cried out as Cam wrenched the gun from his hand and pointed it back at the other man. His hand was shaking slightly and a bead of sweat rolled down his face. Jayne tracked its path with her eyes and met his eyes in puzzlement. The grip on her wrist was suddenly loosened, distracting her, and the guard froze.

“Let him go, Jayne.”

She stepped back, rubbing her wrist and put the letter opener in her pocket. “That’s not exactly how I pictured that going in my mind.”

“No, shit,” the guard muttered, his hands raised and his expression defiant. Jayne grabbed the discarded manacles from the floor and quickly fastened them onto his wrists and ankles, she could almost feel the force of his anger flooding out of him. Cameron searched him quickly, finding only a spare ammunition clip for the gun which he stuck in the breast pocket of his scrubs. Expression grim, he grabbed her arm and led her to the door.

“Let’s go, someone else is bound to be watching the cameras.”

He paused briefly, checking the corridor and she saw him give one last regret-filled look to the left before turning his broad back and leading her right. It took her a few seconds to realize that the lab where they had taken him earlier had to be in the other direction and was the most likely place to find the information he needed. “Aren’t we going to the lab? I know they might be waiting for us there but shouldn’t we at least try?” she asked softly.

“
Nae
time.”

She looked through the window of their cell as she passed and saw Michael apparently shouting. His face was red and tendons stood out on his neck with his efforts but she heard nothing through the soundproofing. They passed another two cells identical to their own, both empty. “I don’t hear any alarms or anything and no one’s come yet, maybe we got away with it?”

He looked over his shoulder at her and she saw his face was soaked with sweat. “I need to go to ground…to find somewhere safe…I’m
goin
’ to shift.”

“Oh…well, that’s…inconvenient.”
To say the least
. She reached for his hand, preventing him from scratching since he held the gun in the other.

He snorted. “Aye, that it is.” He rolled his shoulders, clearly uncomfortable, and tightened his grip on her hand. He stopped at the next door, listening, and then opened it cautiously. It was a large storage closet, shelving units on three sides containing everything from toilet paper to bleach and a mop and bucket.

“Maybe I should wait outside, there’s not much room in here.”

Moving fast, Cam stripped out of his clothes, piling them on the floor. “I need you…here,” he said through gritted teeth and handed her the gun. It was heavier than she expected, just holding it gave her the shivers. “You don’t need to…use it, Jayne. Just hold…on to it for me, okay?”

The change came a little faster that time, though no less painfully judging by the sounds Cam made. She wanted to go to him and hold him in her arms but he wouldn’t allow it. At the end, her heart was racing and she had forgotten the enclosed space she was in, too wrapped up in her mate’s suffering. When he lay panting on the dusty floor, exhausted, she scooted over to his trembling form. It was still a little disconcerting to be in such close proximity to what looked essentially like a very large lion. But when she looked in his eyes, Cameron looked back at her.

“That’s the last time, Cam. No more. Not when I know you don’t need to go through that pain.”

He licked her fingers and made a low rumbling sound in his throat.
You have a soft heart
,
my
fìor
cèile
.

“But not a soft head, let’s go.” She gathered up the scrubs and peered out into the deserted corridor. “Where to now? Are we going back?”

Cam nudged her out of the way with his nose and started back the way they had been heading, keeping his large body close to the wall.
No
,
I need to get you out of here
,
it
’
s too dangerous
.
We can come back later
.

Later could be too late and they both knew it. As soon as the professor realized they were gone—if he hadn’t already—he might start getting rid of any evidence. At the very least, he would be on the defensive. They would never have a better chance to find out what he was doing and if Cameron’s friend was lost to them again, it would be at least partly due to her impulsive actions.

“I think we should try.”

No
. His tail twitched in agitation.

“You know, I am really getting tired of hearing that word from you. Tell you what, you do whatever you want but I’m going back.” He rounded on her, lip curled in warning and though he was a terrifying sight, she forced herself to stand her ground.

No
. She sensed some kind of inner battle behind those fierce golden eyes and when he lowered his head, she knew the almost submissive action cost him.
Please
,
Jayne
,
let me take you to safety
.
We
’
ll find another way
.

Hearing the plea in his words made battling her own guilt and pride a little easier and finally she nodded. “Okay. How do we get out?”

Thank you
. There was relief in his eyes as he turned away from her.
We look for the staff areas
,
the security will be lightest there
.

They came to the end of the corridor and turned right again, Jayne started to get a little worried about the fact that they had yet to see another soul. The whole building was silent, making her a little jumpy.
Where was everyone
?

As soon as the thought crossed her mind, a door opened a few feet in front of them and the nervous guard walked out. His attention was on fastening his zipper so he didn’t immediately see them. She bit her lip.
Staff areas, I assume
.
Jayne almost felt sorry for the man as Cameron covered the distance between them in a single fluid bound.

“
Fuckin
’ hell!” The man stumbled back hard against the wall, hands held in front of him defensively. Since he didn’t try for a gun, she assumed he wasn’t armed and stepped into his line of sight.

“I’d be very quiet and still if I were you, or he’s liable to attack.”

Cameron growled and the man whimpered. “Oh, god, don’t hurt me! I just work in the lab! I was only
helpin
’ tonight because the professor wanted all the guards outside.”

Which explained why he had been so nervous, and gave them a perfect opportunity. “Where are the other people who were held here?”

“He…he moved them. To another site.”

Cameron’s voice was insistent in her head.
How many
,
where to
?
She repeated his questions, watching their captive closely for any signs he might be lying.

“F-five. He moved the last one yesterday. I don’t know where.” Cam snarled at him and took a threatening step forward and he tried to press himself through the wall. “I don’t know, I swear it! He never tells you everything, just what he thinks you need to know.”

“What’s he doing in this place, to these people?”

If possible the man looked even more terrified. “They’re not people, I…I mean, they’re usually people when they come here but they don’t stay that way. I don’t know how he does it and I don’t want to know. I just run whatever tests he wants on the samples and give him the results. I can’t help you.” This last was directed at Cameron himself. Jayne looked at him, unsure what else to ask.

That
’
s enough
.
He
’
s telling the truth
,
disnae
know any more
. He backed off a bit and Jayne felt an immediate easing of tension.

“All right, get back in the bathroom.” She gestured at the room he had just left, waiting while the man sidled past her mate, keeping as far away from him as he could. She shut the door and heard him engage the lock and smiled wryly.

Suddenly Cameron whirled to look behind her and roared. When she turned she saw Michael step into the corridor with another gun.

“Good lord, don’t we have gun laws in this country?” For a second she thought about the gun hidden in the scrubs she held but decided not to risk it. The man was clearly on edge. He alternated between pointing the gun at her and at Cam who had crouched low to the ground and was inching forward every time the man took his eyes off him. He was a fearsome sight, fangs bared and ears back, tail twitching slightly. She could see the coiled tension in his muscles, his readiness to pounce.

“Don’t you move, you
sonuvabitch
!”

“Well, technically, that’s not possible, since he’s a cat not a dog.” Who had stopped talking to her. All she got from him was a sense of rage and a cold determination and she realized the lion was in complete control.

“SHUT UP!” The barrel swung back up to her and she winced. The cat roared, the sound reverberating off the walls. Movement caught her eye behind the guard and she saw a hand with a gun in it appear around the corner. Then she heard a very familiar, roughened, English voice, its tone casual and almost friendly.

“You know, before you shout at a woman, you really should make sure that none of her friends and family are around.”

The gun didn’t waver in Michael’s hand, if anything it grew steadier. “Aye? And which are you?”

“Both.” Chris stepped into the corridor behind Michael, gun pointed at his head and the relief almost buckled her knees. He was dressed in white, from head to foot and a scarf covered most of his face but she would have recognized that deep voice anywhere. Behind him, another man in white emerged, he too had his gun at the ready. The corner of his brown eyes crinkled and she knew he was grinning at her.

“Jayne,
darlin
’, how are you? Mary got your note, she’s missed you terribly.”

The guard flicked his eyes behind her and she heard cautious footsteps. Jonathon’s voice was cold in a way she had never heard it.

“Give it up, mate. The men outside are out of commission and the professor is gone, he’s left you to clean up his mess. Whatever he promised you, he took with him.”

At last, she saw some of the cocky confidence leave his eyes as he recognized the truth in Jonathon’s words. The gun lowered fractionally and he nodded toward Cameron.

“Call him off.”

“Jayne,” Chris said softly. “If you would do the
honors
? I don’t think our friend will listen to anyone but you at the moment.”

She looked at the lion still crouched in front of Michael and privately doubted he was going to listen to anyone. Still, she remembered her mate’s promise that the animal would never hurt her and took a shaky step toward him. When she knelt beside him and hesitantly put her hand on his back, she felt the fine quivering of his muscles. It would take very little to push him into action and she hoped that the guard had sense enough to stay still.

“Cameron, come back to me, love. It’s okay, he’s not going to hurt me.” Remembering he could feel her emotions, she concentrated on relaxing her body and tried to keep her thoughts calm. “It’s over.” He stopped snarling and she moved closer, tangling her fingers in his mane and stroking his soft fur until, gradually, she felt the tension leave him. “Cameron?” He leaned his heavy body onto her knees and turned his head to lick her fingers.
Ah
’
m
here
.

Thank god
. She nodded at Chris and he stepped forward to take the gun from Michael. He pulled some plastic ties from a pocket and fastened the guard’s hands behind his back with them. “Uh, you might want to check the bathroom too, we left another guy in there.” She blinked in astonishment as
Ciaran
pushed open the door as though there hadn’t been a lock holding it closed, leaving the doorjamb in splinters. A cold draft blew out and she saw that the window was open, the lab worker nowhere to be seen. “Well, hell.”

Cameron stood and nudged her to her feet.
It
doesnae
matter
,
let him go
. Jonathon stepped forward and took her bundle from her. She had completely forgotten she was carrying it and now that it was gone, her arms felt curiously empty. Things happened quickly after that. Chris took the guard and joined
Rianne
and
Fynn
to search the facility and “close up the operation”, whatever that might mean.
Ciaran
and Jonathon bickered good-naturedly over who was going to take them home. Jayne offered to drive them herself but that suggestion was met with stony silence.

Finally, Cameron lost patience and bared his fangs at them and they rapidly decided to flip a coin.
Ciaran
won and jogged off down the corridor with a laugh, leaving Jonathon muttering about the luck of the Irish. They followed him through the deserted facility to a pair of heavy steel doors. Using a number decoder, one of
Ciaran’s
favorite
gadgets, he unlocked the door and slid it open, letting in the bitter cold air. She was shocked to see that the sun was only just coming up. The sky beginning to lighten from black to dull
gray
. The empty hills around them were blanketed with snow and suddenly the team’s white outfits made sense.