The Lost Wolf's Destiny

Chapter 14

Blythe took a deep breath. “There’s something you need to know. Hailey’s very ill. Though her heart condition alone could be enough to kill her, she mustn’t be allowed to change into wolf. The Pack doctors I saw felt such a thing would destroy her already-fragile heart. She’ll die, do you understand?”

Martin attempted a smile. “She’s a bit young to even be thinking about changing, don’t you think?”

“She’s a Griffon,” she reminded him. “You know they’re different than other Halfling children. There’s no telling what she might decide to do.”

“I’ll make sure to pass that on,” he said.

“If I give you my phone number, can you have them let her call me? I really want to talk to her, to explain. A lot has happened to her in a short amount of time. I don’t want her to be frightened or worried.”

“I’ll take your number,” Martin answered. “But I can’t make any promises. I’m sure everything was explained to her.”

“Right.” Blythe couldn’t keep the bitterness from her voice. Nevertheless, she scribbled down her number on a scrap of paper and handed it to him. “Just like Jacob Gideon explained everything. I’m sure that reassured her.”

Martin frowned, but didn’t comment. Taking the paper from her, he stuffed it down into his pocket.

“What about the other children?” Lucas asked. “Surely you’re not relying on just one man to get them out? Kane helped us escape and had to fire two of the security detail. I’m afraid they’re liable to talk. Even if they don’t, I believe someone’s going to notice.”

“Others are also working behind the scenes.” Now Martin smiled. “An entire team of Protectors out in West Texas are building a case against Sanctuary. Now that I’m involved, I’m being immediately reassigned. I’ll meet them there.”

Blythe exchanged a quick look with Lucas. “We’ll go, too.”

Martin’s smile vanished. “That’s probably not a good idea.”

Lucas crossed his arms. “We have more reason than any of you to get those children out and stop Jacob Gideon.”

“Your being there might endanger the other children.”

For a second Lucas appeared taken aback. Then he grimaced. “Or we might be exactly the distraction you need. Have you thought about that?”

Passing his hand across his eyes, Martin suddenly appeared tired. “This is not my decision to make. I promise, I’ll pass that on, too. But I’ve got to go. They’re flying me out later tonight.”

“All right then,” Lucas said, sounding mollified though Blythe knew him well enough already to recognize the fierceness burning in his eyes. He wasn’t about to give up.

“For now, until I hear differently...” Martin gave them both a sharp look. “I’d like you two to stay out of the way and let us handle this.”

Let them handle this. A quick glance at Lucas told her he shared her thoughts. That would be a cold day in hell. Wisely, Blythe kept that opinion to herself.

“We’ll consider that,” Lucas responded, his voice noncommittal. Nodding, Blythe continued to keep her mouth shut, afraid of what she might say if she opened it.

“Well, then. Take care.” Martin actually smiled, appearing to believe he’d contained the situation. After handshakes all around, he climbed back into his rental car and left.

Only then did Blythe exhale. Fist curled, she inhaled deeply, trying like hell to get herself under control. She wanted to punch something, a way of finding an outlet for the overflow of mingled emotions coursing through her blood.

“Hailey is safe with someone who risked his life to save her,” Lucas said, no doubt trying to comfort her. “You’ll see her again after we take Jacob down. And we will take him down.”

“I know.” While she did agree with him, she realized she needed movement. Something physical. A punching bag or...sex. Rough, hard and hot. Something to help her forget, if only for a few moments. A little relief in a world she no longer understood.

Glancing at Lucas from under her lashes, she debated going over to him and savagely ripping his clothes off. Instead, she swallowed hard and, hands still fisted, stalked to the window, aroused and fuming and aching as she watched Martin drive away.

Even with her back to him, ramrod straight, Lucas still shared Blythe’s roiling emotions, which radiated off her in waves. Hell, her entire body vibrated from it. The air around her practically shimmered, as if at any moment, her body would begin the change to wolf.

Desire clawed at him, a given constant since he’d met her, but even more so after the passion that had flared between them earlier. Furious, he shoved that away. Not only was it out of place, but she was vulnerable. He could not, would not, take advantage of her in this state.

Yet that didn’t keep him from burning for her.

He made a sound, low in his throat, completely involuntary. With her fist up like a boxer, she spun to face him.

“I can’t believe this. The Pack—my Pack—broke in here and stole my child. Without even asking my permission, or at the very least letting us know what they’d done.” Her eyes burned, green fire full of frustration and anger and the pain of betrayal. “How could they do such a thing? How could they not care that I’d be frantic with worry when she simply disappeared?”

Once, he’d told her that her Pack sounded similar to Sanctuary. Now, they’d proved it. Though he saw no need to point this out now—surely, she already realized that—he had no idea why these Pack Protectors thought he and Blythe would take orders from them. Especially after they’d high-handedly broken into his cabin and kidnapped her daughter.

Unless they planned to motivate Blythe and Lucas to action, manipulating them while appearing not to.

The idea seemed so bizarre, so impossible, that he kept it to himself. If Blythe independently reached the same conclusion, then they could discuss it.

“At least we know she’s safe,” he said, because he could think of nothing else that might comfort this woman who mattered to him.

“True.” But she didn’t appear placated. “And this Martin Hunter. Does he really think we’re going to sit around here and twiddle our thumbs?”

Lucas wasn’t sure how to respond. Though he didn’t like the idea of becoming the Pack’s unwitting puppet, Blythe was right. They had to take action.

All through the years, he’d imagined getting his revenge. He’d thought so long that he had the details worked out, right down to the look of shock on Jacob’s face. But he’d never imagined Jacob was crazy enough to amass a collection of other children. Knowing the scope of Jacob’s hatred toward those he considered demons, Lucas couldn’t help but wonder how many of them had already been killed.

Looking down so Blythe couldn’t read his thoughts in his eyes, he swallowed hard at the thought.

Forgotten children, suffering untold torture before they were murdered and unceremoniously tossed in some sort of communal burial pit like wild animals.

The image broke his heart. Unfortunately, he knew from experience the scenario was not only possible, but extremely likely. Because Jacob Gideon, fanatical preacher of a church he called Sanctuary, was pretty damn close to murderously insane.

“These other children,” he said slowly, considering his words. “How in the hell did Jacob get away with it? Surely someone had to have reported their children missing. They couldn’t all be in the same situation as you and Hailey, convinced to join his church for a promise of healing. Someone in the media would have picked up on that.”

“Good point,” she agreed. “But Hailey has no reason to lie. She had to be telling the truth.”

“Agreed. We’ve got to do something. We just need to make sure it’s the best possible move. No matter what your Pack thinks.”

“Quit calling them my Pack.” She grimaced. “I can’t shake the feeling that they’re manipulating us. They took Hailey because they want us to do something. What exactly, I’m not entirely sure. And why the heck they couldn’t just ask us rather than take such extreme measures....”

Instead of finishing her thought, she rounded on him, shooting him a look of such blatant heat it felt as if a bolt of lightning went straight to his gut.

At first, he didn’t respond. He could barely think, never mind speak. Every instinct he possessed had him aching to touch her, curling his fingers against the urge.

“You probably think that’s paranoid, don’t you?” she asked, her restless movements impossibly sexy.

Clenching his jaw, he tried to clamp down on his overheated senses. “Actually, I don’t,” he managed, his voice rough. “The thought had already occurred to me.”

She nodded, sweeping her hair away from her neck, the sensuality of the movement drawing his gaze. “Then what do you think we should do?”

Do. If he didn’t get out of there and away from her, he didn’t know how much longer he could resist yanking her up against him and covering her mouth, hard, rough and dangerous, like a beast making his claim.

This was something he definitely needed to get over. His body ached to make promises he couldn’t keep. He wasn’t going to stop being a loner. Problem was, even his inner wolf could smell the desire in the air, see the electricity arcing between them.

Surely she had to sense it, too.

When she raised her head and looked at him, he saw from her enlarged pupils that she did. The passion of the kiss they’d shared, with the promise of so much more...

Damn. A shudder, strong as an electric shock, ran through him. He needed to look away, turn away. Instead he stood frozen, as though shared desire had cast some sort of spell on him.

She swallowed, the movement drawing his gaze to her slender throat. “About last night,” she began, her voice husky with traces of sex and sin.

“That was a mistake,” he cut in, letting her hear his frustrated fury. He teetered so close to the edge of losing control, he didn’t think he could survive discussing the heat that constantly simmered between them.

“No.” Apparently undeterred, she moved closer, her stride sure and confident. A blatant invitation, sexy as hell, making his body thrum.

“It wasn’t,” she continued. “Like I said, the timing was off. And I’m glad we didn’t. I’d never have forgiven myself if I’d been making love with you when my daughter disappeared.”

Making love. Not having sex. A fresh surge of arousal had him harder than he’d ever been.

He somehow managed to nod, hoping now that she’d said her piece, she’d go. “Yeah, well, it’s late. Maybe we should both try to get some sleep before heading out. I figure we’ll leave in the morning.” Despite his best efforts at sounding normal, he knew he didn’t.

“Okay.” But instead of leaving, she came closer still, making his heart skip crazily. She stopped when she was only a few feet from him, close enough so that he couldn’t breathe without her scent filling his nostrils. “I’d rather have sex.”

It took a major effort to keep from groaning out loud. “You don’t owe me anything,” he managed to say, attempting to sound casual in spite of the edge of desperation that had crept into his voice. Sex. Every throb of his heartbeat seemed to be repeating the word.

She made a sound, husky and sensual, that went straight to his groin. “I don’t use my body as a form of payment. The truth is, I want my daughter back so badly it hurts. I can’t turn off the screaming in my head. I need to do something to erase the pain.”

Heat suffused him, making him sway. Even his inner wolf sat up and took notice. Though he recognized she wanted to use him, he understood. “You’re playing with fire,” he warned. “Don’t start something unless you have every intention of finishing it.”

“Oh, I promise you, I do.” She reached up and pulled him to her. As her lips touched his, he gave up the fight and let go of restraint and threw caution to the wind.

They came together like a forest fire, raging in the vortex of pine and stone and mountain, consuming everything in its path. Parched, he drank her in, while she devoured him as though every fiber of her being had been starved.

Mouth to mouth, skin to skin, they impatiently tore away the unwanted barrier of clothing, craving closeness and refusing to allow even the tiniest bit of space between them.

They clutched each other as they tumbled backward onto his bed. Mindless with passion, he let them fall, knowing he would cushion her. Riding him down, the half-lidded droop of her eyes fierce and unbelievably arousing. When she took him inside her, sheathing him in her hot wetness, he nearly lost control.

No. He desperately needed this to last. More than that, he wanted them both to find equal pleasure. Gripping her tightly to keep her from moving, he somehow managed to rein himself in.

“Slow,” he ground out.

“Fast,” she countered, struggling to move and damn near driving him insane in the process.

“Not yet.” Guiding her with his hands, he kept her movements much slower than the frenzied rush she wanted.

With a sigh, she shimmied, almost causing him to lose it again, and then she began to settle down. The instant she relaxed her defenses the tiniest bit, he gave a savage grin and rolled them both over, taking the dominant position.

“Now,” he growled, nuzzling her neck. “I will show you how to do this taking our time.”

And so he did.

Killing her slowly: that was what he was doing. Blythe moaned, arching her back as Lucas entered her, inch by fully engorged inch. Using what had to be phenomenal self-control, he withdrew equally slowly, torturing her and filling her with a mindless need.

She needed more. Fast and hard, she wanted him to drive into her until they both reached mindless oblivion. Not like this. This languid exploration felt far too intimate, too personal.

So she fought him, struggled against his hands on her wrists, writhing and using her body to entice him to abandon his Herculean command.

Instead, her attempts only shattered the small remains of her self-control. With a wild cry, she let herself go, her world exploding as he brought her to the peak again and again. Each time, as she began the dizzy descent back to reality, he teased her body back to life, sending her spiraling to release again and again.

Finally, her body slick with sweat, spent and weak, she sagged against him. And then, he finally let himself go, driving into her with all the power and passion she’d craved earlier.

Unbelievably, she came to life again, glorying in the sensation, her spirit joining his as they fell into a perfect rhythm, dancing to their own music. She sensed it as he neared the peak, thrilled as she joined him there.

They both cried out, clutching each other close, her body clenching around his as he spent himself, buried deep inside her.

There were no words she could say, nothing that would even come close to letting him know the magnificence of the experience they’d just shared. But then, as she gazed into his eyes, she saw no words would be necessary. He already knew.

Knowing that, she let herself drift off into sleep with a smile on her lips.

As he cradled Blythe in his arms, Lucas reflected on how many changes had occurred in his life since seeing her on the evening news. He’d never spent the night with a woman before. But she was sleeping, spent from the amazing intensity of their lovemaking. He’d never experienced anything like it with any other woman. Truth be told, he doubted any other woman could come close to making him feel this way.

This worried the hell out of him. Briefly, he contemplated trying to ease out of her arms and leave her slumbering in his bed. Oddly, he couldn’t tear himself away.

He didn’t want to leave her. Ever.

With that thought foremost in his mind, he closed his eyes and willed himself to sleep.

In the morning he woke with a raging hard-on. Gazing down at Blythe, who still slept in his arms, he tried to understand. Was this only his body’s natural response to the stimuli of a beautiful, naked woman in his bed, or was it something more?

As she murmured in her sleep and wiggled up against him, he grew even harder. Whatever the reason, he wanted to wake her with kisses and then bury himself deep inside her.

Wrong. More than wrong. By every rule of logic, the hours he’d spent exploring every inch of her body should have slaked his hunger, quenched his thirst. Instead, if anything, making love with her had only made him crave her more.

He needed to back away or he was in deep trouble. Anything more than a casual involvement would be a major mistake. Guys like him never ended up with women like her.

Somehow, he managed to force himself to get out of bed and head on into the shower. When he finally emerged, both his mind and his body clean, his bed was empty.

Down the hall, the other bathroom door was closed. A moment later, he heard the sound of the shower starting. Telling himself it was all good, he decided to get packed. They could grab something to eat on the road.

As he gathered some things to toss into a duffel bag, she appeared in his doorway, wrapped in a towel, her hair wet. Again, unbelievably, his body stirred.

“Morning.” He tried to sound casual.

“Good morning.” Her smile sent a jolt of heat straight to his groin. “I know you said we were leaving this morning. What’s the plan?”

Thankful they were on more solid ground, he attempted a smile. He wished his body would stop throbbing. “I’m just about packed,” he said. “If you are, we can stop for breakfast on the way.”

Though she nodded, she didn’t move. “I’m not, but it’ll just take me a few minutes. What I meant was, have you come up with some ideas about what we’re going to do once we get to Sanctuary? Should we get in touch with Kane?”

Slowly, deliberately, he concentrated on folding one last T-shirt and placing it in the bag. “I don’t know. What do you think?”

Her expression darkened. “We can’t try to figure out what the Pack wants and doesn’t want. We really shouldn’t let them figure into our plans at all.”

“I don’t know.” Abandoning the attempt to focus on packing, he forced himself to meet her gaze head-on. Again, he experienced that jolt of lightning that bound them. Pushing past it, he continued. “Still, I don’t want to do anything that might jeopardize getting the children out. Since he’s got an operation already in place, we need to let him know.”

Her frown let him know she wasn’t happy. “I agree,” she finally said. “Who knows, maybe Kane will be glad of our help.”

“That way, he can focus on rescuing the children while we distract Jacob.”

At his word, her gaze sharpened. “Keep talking.”

“We’ve got to draw him out, and occupy him while Kane and his people find out where he’s hiding the children, and stop him for good. We’ve got to publicly expose him. He needs to be arrested and put away.” Or killed, he added silently. “That’s the only way to stop him.”

“I agree.” Her towel slipped, allowing him a tantalizing glimpse of her breast.

Desire slammed him, heavy and hot. He cursed under his breath. They’d get nothing done if they spent all their time in bed. “Listen,” he said. “Would you mind continuing this discussion after you’ve put some clothes on?”

She cocked her head, appearing startled, before a slow, knowing smile spread across her face. “No problem.” Giving him one last considering look, she dropped her towel to the floor. Then, completely naked, she bent over, picked the towel up, and marched away, down the hall to the guest room.

He nearly tackled her. Instead, he kept his feet rooted to the floor and watched her go. Only when she was out of sight was he able to breathe a sigh of relief. Again he wondered what the hell was wrong with him?

A few minutes later, she returned. Wearing jeans and a T-shirt, she seemed relaxed, at ease, comfortable in her own body.

Unlike him. He felt as if his skin was stretched too tight.

Arms crossed, she eyed him. “Have you thought about how we’re going to deal with the Protectors?”

“You know more about them than I do. What do you suggest?”

“I like your idea. We work with them, but separately.”

“As in, they don’t give us orders.” He smiled back, finally feeling as if he was back on solid ground. “We’ll coordinate with them. As long as we don’t get in each other’s way, we should be fine.”

He could tell from her expression that he hadn’t fooled her in the slightest. “You do know we’re in this together, don’t you?”

Restless, he began to pace, wishing he had more room to stretch his legs. She followed him out into the living room, waiting silently while he gathered his thoughts.

Watching him, her beautiful cat’s eyes narrowed.

“You’re not going to hand yourself over to that monster.”

“How do you do that?” he asked. “It’s like you read my mind.”

Instead of answering, she continued, “I couldn’t live with knowing you were killed because of me.”

He refused to let her words touch him. “I’m the perfect distraction. Me. I’m pretty sure he’d give just about anything to get his hands on me again.”

“Why? Because you’re his son? I know it’s not out of any sense of fatherly love.”

Snorting, he didn’t bother to conceal his derision.

“I’m the one who got away. I’m sure he’s spent years plotting what he’d do to me if he ever got his hands on me again.”

Again he remembered what Jacob had done to Lilly. How battered and bruised her poor slender body had looked the last time Lucas had seen her. And how badly he still craved revenge.

He looked up to find Blythe staring at him. For an uncomfortable second, he wondered if she actually was able to read his mind.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“Sure.” He gave a flippant shrug. “I’m fine.”

She continued to eye him. “What are you hiding?” she asked, her perceptiveness reinforcing his earlier suspicion about her psychic ability.

Lilly. A sister he’d failed so badly that Jacob had been able to kill her. But Blythe must never know, or she’d lose her trust in him, too. Rather than lie to her outright, he again gave her as much of the truth as he could offer. “We all have our secrets, don’t we?”

To his relief, she didn’t press. “I’ll go pack. It should only take me a few minutes.”

“Great.” He turned back to his own bag, making a show of checking the contents. “I’m almost done, myself.”

He felt her absence the same way he would have felt the loss of one of his lungs, as though he couldn’t catch his breath.

Just what he did not need. Worse, this burgeoning connection between them had her sensing he was holding part of himself back from her. As if he’d ever share what had happened to his sister with anyone. His single greatest failure, with a cost too great to bear.

He should have been the one to die instead of Lilly. Instead, he had to go on living, trying to find a way to atone for what he’d done.

After so many years, he couldn’t bring himself to even say her name out loud. He could still see her face, perpetually fifteen in his memory, her upturned eyes alight with mischief and the joy they’d shared when they’d learned to change together.

He’d thought they were freaks.

She’d believed they were sinners.

But as wolves, they’d hunted and explored and gloried in simply being. Wolves. A miraculous, youthful kind of wonder.

Odd that such a joyous time always brought back such pain. And guilt. Always the ever-present guilt.

Lucas blamed himself for allowing Jacob to find out. He’d been on the trail of an elusive, tantalizing scent. Lilly had nuzzled him twice, warning him that they had to shift back and return home. Jacob would soon be returning from his church in town, and they had to appear presentable for the formal evening meal he insisted on every night.

He’d whined, intrigued and exasperated, wanting to finish off a spectacular day with a snack of some small creature. Finally, she’d raced off, teasing him as she noisily flushed out any hidden prey.

Now that any chance he might have had of tracking his quarry had vanished, he’d been furious. So, so furious. Uncharacteristically so. Rather than returning to the area where’d they’d left their clothing, he’d taken off at a full-out run to try and burn off his frustration.

Lilly hadn’t followed.

By the time he’d located her, their father’s car was making its way up the long drive.

Beginning the process to change back to human, they rushed through the transformation. Dressing hurriedly while each kept their eyes averted, they dashed back to the house, hoping to make it to their rooms without encountering anyone.

They were not so lucky.

“Hold it right there.” Jacob, appearing more enraged than Lucas had ever seen him. He held a pair of black binoculars.

Lucas had thought his heart would stop.

“I saw you,” Jacob had snarled, his face so swollen with rage it was almost unrecognizable. “Demon spawn. Something has taken over my two children.” He called for his guards. If the beefy men thought their boss had lost his mind, they didn’t show it.

It took two men to contain Lucas. Though he was only fifteen, he was strong and he fought them. Lilly did not. Perhaps she believed this to be a game—probably she felt she could easily charm Jacob out of his rage, as she so often had done in the past.

But that was before Jacob had considered them minions of hell.