Shifted Temptations (30 page)

Moaning, I began to stand up when I noticed two glasses sitting on the coffee table. One was
half-full, while the other was completely empty. That was when I remembered.

“Fuck!”

Ignoring my pounding skull, I jumped up and raced to the nursery. The baby was crying her little head off, but otherwise she was safe in her crib. I rubbed her head and promised I would be right back. I took off towards Sam’s room.

The be
d was empty. A sheet hung half way off the bed and the lamp on the nightstand was broken on the floor. It looked like there had been quite a struggle and it was plain to see Sam had been taken.

I roared long and loud at the ceiling.
Rage radiated from my every pore. My breath heaved in and out of my lungs as my body began to jerk with the change. I was able to stop before going too far, but I had felt my shirt and jeans rip as my body and face began to morph and broaden.

“Bear?” Liz asked and I twisted around
with a growl to look at her.

She gasp
ed and threw her hands over her mouth in surprise. The fear in her eyes as she stepped back had me calming my racing heart enough to shift back into human form. The sharp fangs and curved claws added to my angry roar was probably a little too much for her.

“I’m sorry, don’t be afraid.”

She swallowed hard and stepped back into the room. “What happened?”

I shook my head
and tightened my hands into fists at my side. How could I have let this happen?

“Bear?”

“Sam, she’s gone.”

“What?”

“Paul took her. He’s a traitor.”

Liz’s eyes widened with true fear for her friend. “What does he want with her? What are we going to do?”

“I’m going to get her back,” I growled “And so help me, if he has laid one finger on her, I’ll kill him.”

What I
had not told Liz was that Paul was a dead man either way.

~ 34 ~

Jordan

I watched Alex pace back and forth in his cage, his hands running repeatedly through his hair. It was beginning to get annoying as hell, but it was not as if we had anything else to do.

A
s usual, we were naked and dirty, waiting for our next fight in the trench. I sat cross-legged on the ground with my back straight and my hands in my lap. I was trying to remain calm knowing that we would be fighting for our lives in a matter of minutes.

In the fights before, we aimed only to incapacitate our oppon
ents, though they had not given us the same consideration. Our next battle would be different. I was not sure who or what we were about to go against, but I knew it would be far from easy.

My gaze automatically landed on the empty cage on the other side of Alex. Only a couple of weeks before, Mark had his first fight. He did not return. I was sad for that. He was not a friend, more like a childhood bully, but he had helped the
Alpha Division
and his intentions were good. I wished I could have gotten to know him as an adult.

My attention went back to Alex and I sighed.
“Alex, could you take a damn break. Your pacing is making me dizzy.”

Alex stopped abruptly and swung around to face me.
A grimace contorted his face as his hands fisted at his sides with a white knuckled grip.

“How can you be so calm? We
don’t even know what we are about to face. So far it has only been jaguars, most of which I actually recognized.” He shook his head and slumped to the floor. “I’ve tried my best not to kill them, mostly because I felt sorry for the bastards. In a way, they are as much victims in this as we are.”

“They are, but my only priority is our survival. I will do whatever I have to in order to get both of us back to Sam. I am calm, because so
far, Alexander has underestimated us and that has not changed. Whatever comes into that arena, we will be able to handle it.”

Alex
placed his head in his hands. “I miss Sam.”

I sighed. “You’re not the only one.”

“We’ve got to get out of here.”

“I know. I think we are going to have t
o take our chances with the guards that bring us to the trench. It will not be easy, but I think it’s the only way.”

Alex looked up, eager to hear the rest of my plan. As difficult as it would be, it was necessary. I was tired of this stink hole.

“The big one that usually stays at my back, I have been watching him. He always carries his gun on his back. I think I will start with him. His cocky ass attitude will be our saving grace.”

The steel door opened, interrupting our planning. I automatically sniffed the air, testing for unknown scents. Alexander’s cologne saturated scent hit me immediately, but under that a few others, my father, Paul and...I breathed deep, unable to believe the sweet smell beginning to engulf the room.

I had closed my eyes to savor the heavenly aroma when realization hit me like a two-by-four. My eyes popped open wide at the same time Alex growled. My gaze ignored everyone in the room except for her.

At first
, I thought my eyes were deceiving me. Sam stood beside Paul, looking amazingly beautiful. My gaze ran over her like a hungry man. She wore loose blue jeans and a rumpled green tee shirt that looked a couple sizes too big. With her long hair pulled up into a messy ponytail, she looked like she just woke up and she had never looked more gorgeous.

When my gaze landed on her face, though, I felt my heart skip a beat. Her eyes were red rimmed and tears streaked her pale skin. I could only imagine what she had been going through. However, strangely, the expression in her eyes looked almost...happy.

The awe of finally seeing her again began to ebb and anger coursed through my veins. They had taken her and brought her to this hellhole. That was unacceptable. A growl slipped my lips as my eyes flashed down to Paul’s grip on Sam’s arm.

“Uh uh, save it for
the trench,” Alexander said, smiling brightly.

I
did not even look at him as he spoke. My stare was all for Sam. I wanted to grab her and run. I wanted to rip this cage apart and take them all down, kill every one of them so I could take her to safety.

“Jordan? Alex? Oh, God, you’
re alive.” Sam’s voice hiccupped from her sobs.

She must have thought since we had not been home in so long
that we had not survived. Bear should have let her know that was not the case. Had the whole team abandoned us?

“Sorry,” Alexander said, not sounding apologetic in the least. “Paul let everyone know you were never coming back. I thought it was best under the circumstances. In fact, after tonight, you probably won’
t survive anyway.”

Sam whimpered
, gaining his attention. “I heard you two were sharing this woman and thought she might do nicely at getting you both riled up. We want a good show after all.”

He nodded at Paul giving him some sort of signal. Paul pulled Sam harshly against him causing both Alex and I to snarl our
displeasure. Sam tried to wiggle out of his tight grip, but it was no use. He was much too strong.

I saw red as Paul’s hand began to slide over Sam’s ass and up her back. I watched helplessly as he groped the woman that I loved. No amount of growls or warning could stop what was happening.

“Do not touch her!” Alex shouted.

When Paul’s palm connected with her breast, I almost lost it. I just about charged the electrified metal surrounding me. I knew that would not help matters
so instead I met Paul’s stare.

I let him know with my eyes that he was a dead man. He was a walking dead man, because as soon as I got out of there, and I would, I was going to
kill him. I was going to rip him apart, piece-by-piece.

I heard Sam gasp and knew he was hurting her, but I kept my eyes on him. My anger and horror over what he was doing to my woman was turning into confusion the more I looked at his dark features. His face was blank as usual. He masked his emotions better than I ever could, but there was something in the way his eyes stared at me. It was as if he was trying not to think about what he was doing.

Alexander’s voice caught my attention and I reluctantly turned to look at him. “Well, well, what do we have here?”

I followed his gaze to Sam and at first
, I didn’t know what he was talking about. Then my eyes lit on the breast Paul had groped. Her shirt was wet, but I did not know what that meant. Was she hurt?

“How old is your child?” Alexander asked.

I looked over Sam again and noticed for the first that her rounded belly was missing. She had given birth and we had missed it. All I could think about was whether my little girl was okay. Where was she now? Who had her?

The question
s race through my mind, but halted when Lee walked up to Sam and slapped her across the face. Only Paul’s grip kept her from stumbling back.

“I swear, if you lay another hand on her...” I said through clenched teeth.

“You’ll what?” My father sneered. “You can’t do anything from your cage.”

“Now, answer me,” Alexander said calmly. “How old is your child?”

“One week old,” Sam’s voice was soft, yet her chin lifted defiantly as she kept her gaze on Alex and me. I smiled at her bravery.

“And who is the father?”

When she refused to answer again, Lee backhanded her. Sam’s head whipped to the side and I growled. It felt so redundant to continue to hiss, growl and threaten, but it was all I could do.

My claws bit into my palms as my fist clenched tighter. My body had already begun to change. The fury heating my blood had triggered the onset of shifting.

Tears streamed down Sam’s face as she answered Alexander. “Jordan and Alex are the baby’s fathers.”

“Did you hear that Lee? We have a grandbaby,” Alexander said excitedly. “What is it, a boy or a girl?”

“A girl,” Sam whispered faintly, her head tilted forward as her shoulders slumped.

“Hmm
,”

Alexander looked as if he was in thought. I absolutely did not want know what was in his sick mind, but I was sure he was going tell us anyway.

“A girl could be very useful. We are trying to get the bloodlines back into proper shape and another female would be quite helpful. With her weak blood, it will take generations to perfect, but once a female reaches puberty at what, twelve? They should be ready to breed.

That was it, I couldn’t take anymore. My head was ready to explode with the need to get out of that God forsaken cage. My bo
dy trembled with rage and my vision blurred red. I was ready to charge when the lights flickered.

I turned towards a moaning Alex. He was
jerking and twisting violently against the electric fencing. He obviously had made the same decision I had. He had only made it quicker.

Alex slumped to the ground with a groan as his body continued to jump with aftershocks. Sam cried out and I turned to see her try to rush forward. Paul pulled her back and held her tightly as she twisted and turned in his arms.

“Tsk, tsk,” Alexander clucked his tongue. He looked down at Alex with clear disgust. “Why couldn’t you be more like your brother?”

Brother? Alex didn’t have a brother. I looked over at Alex as he sat up stiffly. His face registered his own confusion.

“Paul has been a model son. He listens to his father and does what he is told.”

Was he saying what I
thought he was saying? Was Paul Alexander’s son too?

I
looked at Paul and was surprised to see anger had lit his eyes. He was glaring at Alexander with pure hatred. As soon as he noticed me watching him, Paul pulled his emotionless mask back on, but I had seen enough. Paul was not the model son Alexander had thought.

“Of course his obedience could have come from his heritage. He is a full blood after all. I don’t know what I was thinking with your mother.” Alexander said to Alex
, shaking his head.

“A filthy human, like the one you’ve been screwing. I will give you a little advice son. Just because you knocked her up, does
not mean you need to stick around. I learned the hard way. I should have left you and your mother when I had the chance.”

“I wish you had,” Alex sneered. “We would have been better off and I am sure my mother would still be alive.”

Alexander raised an eyebrow. “So you have heard? Yes, I killed your mother. I had to do right by Paul’s mother, Angeline. She had been waiting on the sidelines for far too long and it just was not right. She did have my son, after all.”

“Why did you not
just divorce mom? You didn’t have to kill her!”

“Of course I did.” Alexander looked clearly amused. “Why go through with
such a hassle when, really, killing Luanne was an act of kindness. She was a drunk and I could tell she was ready to leave this world.”