The Lost Wolf's Destiny

Chapter 15

In retrospect, Lucas knew he should have recognized the madness. Jacob had been growing more and more fervent, spewing vitriol against anyone who thought differently than he. But fifteen-year-old Lucas had been a typical teenager—self-absorbed and involved with only what was going on in his life.

His and that of his twin sister, Lilly.

Even now, so many years later, his chest constricted at the memory of her. They’d been close, as only twins can be. He missed her with an ache that never entirely eased.

How Jacob had killed her Lucas never learned. He just knew the man he’d once called Father had locked them up away from each other. Left in the dark without food, without water, Lucas had grown progressively weaker. That was when the torture—referred to as tests—had begun.

Fifteen years later, Jacob had no doubt refined his techniques, perfected his cruelty with a laser-sharp focus. Lucas had never understood what Jacob had been trying to learn from them, and with his bruised and battered body screaming for it to end, eventually he hadn’t cared.

Until the day he’d seen his sister’s lifeless corpse as they dragged her down the hallway past his cell. “Dead,” one of the guards had sneered after noticing Lucas watching. After that, nothing could contain him. Jacob had killed Lilly. Lucas had plotted and planned. First he’d make his escape, get away from the madman. He’d regain his strength, grow up and then he’d be back to get his revenge.

The next time they brought him out for more tests, he’d broken free. Though he’d had to attack the man who’d escorted him, even stealing his weapon, he hadn’t killed. No, that particular sin he planned to hold in reserve to commit against Jacob Gideon. Because one day, he would avenge his sister’s death.

“Hey.” Blythe’s voice reached him from the doorway. “Are you all right?”

Startled, he jumped. Glancing at Blythe, he swallowed hard, wondering at the fierce sense of rightness, of a circle coming complete. He’d always known Jacob would pay for what he’d done. It would seem that day had finally arrived.

He forced his thoughts away from the past, focusing on the future. This time, he could not fail. There was more than one child’s life at stake now.

He’d talk to Kane. Find out if the other man would welcome his and Blythe’s help in finding the children and getting them to safety. Once that had been accomplished, he would make sure Jacob paid dearly for what he’d done. No matter what the cost.

Right now, though, he needed to clear the air. “This...” He waved his hand, struggling to find the right words, something he’d never been good at doing. “Changes things between us.”

She froze, as if she instantly understood what he meant, and then slowly shook her head. “No, it doesn’t. Not unless you want it to.”

With two sentences, she’d succeeded in placing everything neatly back with him. His choice. His decision.

Hope seized him, a bright spark, which he quickly extinguished. He thought of Lilly, her vivacious spark gone, her body lifeless. And once again faced the truth. He wasn’t worthy.

More than anything he dreaded seeing Blythe reach that same conclusion. She must never know.

He managed a casual shrug, while his insides churned. “No, I don’t.”

She nodded. “Good. I don’t want anything to change, either.”

He couldn’t look at her as he zipped his duffel and hefted it onto one shoulder. “Are you ready to go?”

“Give me five minutes,” she said, sounding way too cheerful. “I’ll meet you in the kitchen.”

He nodded, wondering why he felt such an awful, aching sense of loss.

Walking away, Blythe grimaced, stretching out her sore body. It had been far too long since she’d shared herself with a man, especially another Shifter. Their lovemaking had been...vigorous, to say the least.

She swallowed hard. Explosive, insane and absolutely glorious was more like it.

Honestly, she was perfectly okay with Lucas’s decision to keep things casual between them. She certainly didn’t need any distractions at this point in her life.

Still, the man fascinated her. She knew he had secrets—maybe that was why. Whatever he was hiding from her must be extremely personal. As she’d watched him a moment ago, lost in his memories of the past, she actually felt his pain, a visceral ache deep in her heart.

She knew he’d been unaware of the emotions flickering across his rugged features. Grief and regret and anger. Those were to be expected. But what she found the most intriguing was the guilt.

Why did he feel guilty? Surely he didn’t blame himself for what Jacob had done. Or for what had happened between them last night.

All of her meager belongings were already packed in the plastic bag they’d left the store in. She was as ready as she was ever going to be. She could only hope this car trip wouldn’t be a form of slow torture, since she wanted him as much or more than she had the previous evening. She found herself missing his motorcycle.

When she returned to his room, carefully avoiding even glancing at the still-rumpled bed, she found him motionless in the exact same spot as when she’d left him a few moments ago.

“Are you all right?” she asked again, softly.

Lifting his head, he met her gaze straight on. The darkness in his blue eyes stunned her. “I’m fine. How about you? Are you ready to go?”

She nodded, pushing away the desire that still coiled slow and heavy in her body. “Did you check the truck to see if you could find a tracking device?”

“No. I don’t care if Kane knows where we are. Now that he has Hailey, I doubt he’ll be monitoring it anyway.”

She nodded. “Good point. How about we take turns driving?” Holding out her hands for the keys, she tried to project confidence. “I’ll take first shift.”

The look of masculine outrage he gave her made her smile. “I’m driving. Come on.”

Following as he led the way to the truck, she wished she could place her finger on what exactly was wrong. This was more than awkwardness after a night of intense lovemaking. But, as good as she’d gotten at picking up on his moods in the short time she’d known him, she couldn’t figure this one out.

As he unlocked the truck, she decided to ask once more. “Really, if something is wrong, you can tell me.”

Irritation laced his expression when he swung around to face her. “For the love of... Stop. Just stop. I’m fine. You’re fine. We’re heading back to Texas to try and stop a monster from hurting children. How about you focus on that instead of me?”

He had a point. Still...

Studying him as he faced her, bristling with anger, so large and male and damaged, a sudden flash of insight showed her what might be the reason for his hesitation. Whatever his father had done to him had caused irreparable damage. She was forcing him to face his past, to revisit the horror of his warped and ruined childhood, asking him to leave his safe place, possibly the only location where he felt truly protected.

“You don’t have to go,” she said, crossing her arms as she absolved him of any lingering obligation. “You’ve done enough—more than enough—and you barely know me. I can drive myself. You stay here.”

The look he gave her told her he thought she’d lost her mind. “Why would you think I’d do that?”

Choosing her words carefully, she glanced back over her shoulder at the rustic and beautiful cabin in the woods. “This is your refuge, your...”

“Sanctuary?” He sounded grim. Furious, too.

She blanched. “Well, I wouldn’t use that word, exactly.”

“Then don’t.” Shaking his head, he stared at her, the coldness in his eyes making him appear a stranger. “And don’t ever insult me that way again. I’m leaving now. With or without you.”

That said, he climbed up inside the truck and started the engine.

Blinking hard, she wondered at the sudden tightness in her throat. Attempting to shrug it off, she hurried over to the passenger side, yanked open the door and got in. As she secured the seat belt, feeling as though every nerve ending was raw, she knew she needed to consider a few things, as well.

First and foremost would be to stop butting her nose into places she wasn’t wanted. Most specifically, Lucas Kenyon’s life.

Lucas drove without looking at her. Teeth clenched so tightly his jaw ached, he wanted to lash out at her. Yes, she’d insulted him. But worse, the fact that she’d, even for a second, believed him to be such a...coward, rankled him to no end.

He’d grown used to despising himself. And while he’d known it would hurt to have someone else look down upon him the same way, he hadn’t expected it to be quite so painful.

Because it was Blythe.

Ever since they’d shared their bodies, the atmosphere between them had felt charged, like a powder keg about to explode. Lucas didn’t understand how this could be so. Sex was supposed to calm wildness, not enhance it.

Blythe’s cell phone rang. Though her eyes widened as she checked the caller ID, her voice sounded expressionless as she handed it to him. “It’s Jacob.”

Punching the accept call button with his thumb, he held it up to his ear. “What do you want?”

Jacob laughed, sending a shudder of revulsion through Lucas. “I’ve missed you. Why don’t you come for a visit?”

“A visit.” Lucas managed a half-assed chuckle. Jacob was fishing for information. No doubt he was trying to find out how much Lucas knew. Still, now would be the perfect opportunity to set the trap. “Can you imagine why I’d want to do that?”

Jacob went quiet for a moment. His next words made a chill skitter along Lucas’s spine.

“I can think of thirty-four reasons,” Jacob said.

Whatever Lucas had expected, it hadn’t been this. “Thirty-four?” he said, letting the horror he felt come through in his voice.

In the seat beside him, Blythe covered her mouth with her hand.

“Yes.” Jacob’s voice sounded calm and matter-of-fact.

This, more than anything, alarmed Lucas. “You seem awfully confident that I know what you’re talking about.”

“Don’t pretend you don’t. I might be amendable to a trade.”

“Why?” Lucas asked. “What do you want? Let’s hear it.”

On the other end of the phone, there was silence. Hesitation?

“I’m going to hang up,” Lucas warned. “I’m not in the mood to play games.”

“Fine. I’m simply not achieving the results I wanted with the subjects I have,” Jacob said. “Maybe because they’re so young. Either way, I’m very interested in seeing if there will be something different about you two.”

Two. Again Lucas flashed back to Lilly. Again, as the familiar rage filled him, he had to fight the powerful memories. “I don’t understand,” he drawled, though he thought he might. “What kind of results do you mean? Explain.”

“No explanation is necessary.” Whatever control Jacob had been exerting to keep himself reined in vanished. “I wasn’t successful with either you or your sister. This is my greatest regret. I’d like another chance.”

“Don’t you dare mention her,” Lucas snarled. His inner wolf growled at the rioting tangle of emotions surging through him. “And you should know by now, there’s no way to exorcise it out of us. We’re born this way and we die this way. It’s a simple fact of nature.”

There was the briefest of pauses as Jacob digested Lucas’s words, and then the explosion came, exactly as Lucas had known it would.

“Demonic possession,” Jacob hissed. “I won’t listen to your lies.”

“Gee.” Lucas didn’t bother to keep the sarcasm from his voice. “You sure know how to inspire people with your love and acceptance and really make them want to visit.” And with that, he disconnected the call.

Wide-eyed, Blythe watched him.

“He’ll call back,” he said, after relaying the gist of the short phone conversation. “After all, he’s playing right into our hands.”

Grimacing, she appeared doubtful. “Either that, or we’re playing right into his.”

Listening to the raw emotion in Lucas’s voice as he’d tried to reason with the man he refused to call Father, Blythe had battled her own wolf.

Fight instincts. Something she’d only read about but never before experienced. Her wolf sensed his inner beast, had his back and was ready to join him in a fight. Like pack members, a team. Or...like mates.

The thought made her blush. She chanced a glance sideways at him, finding him grimly focused on the road ahead. Luckily, he couldn’t read her mind. He’d made it quite clear he didn’t want any romantic entanglements.

Neither did she, no matter what her inner wolf thought.

She settled back into her seat, waiting for her turn to drive.

With only the monotonous sound of the tires against pavement and the low-key music on the radio station, she must have dozed off. Because it seemed as if she blinked and then opened her eyes to find the sun had traveled nearly all the way to the horizon.

Stretching, she sat up straight and rubbed the back of her neck. Lucas glanced sideways at her, a half smile curving one corner of his mouth.

“I thought you needed to rest,” he said. “You’ve been asleep for a couple of hours.”

“Where are we?” Blinking, she tried to shake off her grogginess.

“New Mexico. I’m thinking we’ll stop before we cross over into Texas.”

“Do you want me to drive some?” she offered, ruining it with a wide yawn.

“Not yet,” he said. “We haven’t got too much farther to go.”

There was curiosity in her expression. “I don’t remember it taking this long to get to the cabin from Texas.”

“That’s because you slept the entire way.”

“Now you sleep and I’ll drive.”

He shook his head. “I’m not tired. Plus, I’ve still got to get ahold of Kane.” Pulling out his phone, he dialed the number. When Kane answered, he put the call on speaker and outlined what he and Blythe wanted to do.

“You’re asking me to authorize an illegal operation.” Kane sounded disgruntled.

“Do you have a better idea?”

“That’s just it,” Kane said, frustration showing in his voice. “We don’t. The place is like a fortress. We tried to get a search warrant, but that was denied. Not enough evidence.”

“Even though you have a little girl willing to testify that Jacob is holding other children prisoner?” Blythe’s face mirrored the disbelief in her tone. “What more do they need?”

“He’s a respected television preacher,” Kane said. “And apparently very well connected. I’m guessing his organization makes sizable political donations. No one wants to touch him. We’re in limbo right now.”

Blythe cursed.

Lucas touched her arm. “You saw how he had the entire town in his pocket. We’re not going to get him legally.”

“Then we have to do something illegal in order to bring that monster down. End of story.” Blythe jammed her hands into her pockets, no doubt to keep her from hitting something. Lucas could definitely relate.

With a sound, Kane acknowledged her point. “Fine. Though I have to tell you, we don’t usually allow civilians to help.”

“You’re already about to operate illegally,” Lucas pointed out. “Might as well go for the gusto.”

“Try not to get hurt, okay?”

Lucas nodded, unable to suppress a quick grin. “I take it that’s a yes?”

“Would it matter if it wasn’t?” Then, without waiting for an answer, Kane continued, “Yes. In this instance we’ll take all the assistance we can get.”

“Thank you.”

“I need a little time to get organized,” Kane said. “Don’t show up here until tomorrow.”

Agreeing, Lucas concluded the call. “Looks like we’re in. Might as well stop for the night, since we don’t want to be too early.”

Full darkness had fallen by the time they stopped. They spent the night in a tiny motel in Raton, New Mexico. Though her legs felt hollow when she finally stepped from the truck, Blythe marched into the room without going anywhere near Lucas.

Normally, she would have found maintaining such resolve difficult, but exhaustion trumped everything.

The place was old, verging on ancient, but clean. There were two double beds, side by side, and Blythe simply climbed into one, curling up on her side without comment. Though überconscious of Lucas moving about the room, her entire body ached. She let exhaustion claim her and closed her eyes.

When she opened them again, dawn peeked around the edge of the short curtains over the lone window. Lucas sat fully dressed on the other bed, watching her, blue eyes dark and unfathomable.

She stretched, blinking sleepily at him.

“Good morning,” he said.

Just the sound of his husky voice sent desire spiraling through her. Inside, even her wolf whimpered. Determined not to give in, she pushed up on her elbows and managed a distant smile. “Hey.”

“Hey,” he said back. And then she remembered where she was.

“Have you already showered?” she asked, praying she could manage to sound completely detached.

His nod had her scrambling from bed, snagging her bag of clothing on the way. “I need thirty minutes,” she told him, already on her way to the bathroom.

Twenty-eight minutes later—she’d noted the time on the bedside clock before she went—she opened the bathroom door and emerged. Showered, fully dressed, teeth brushed and hair dry. And, she thought as her stomach rumbled, starving.

While she was showering, Lucas had opened the curtains. He stood with his back to her, peering out, though he turned as she entered the room.

“I’m ready.” She gave him her best perky smile, though she was careful not to hold his gaze too long. “Along with a large cup of coffee, I’d really like to get something to eat as soon as possible.”

He nodded his agreement, apparently finding nothing wrong with her completely fake attitude. “Grab your things and let’s go.”

Once again the day fell into the now-familiar routine of driving, broken up by the occasional pit stop. When they crossed the Texas border, her entire body went from relaxed to alert, as though Jacob and Sanctuary were sending out some sort of telepathic signal warning them away rather than welcoming them.

She swore under her breath.

“You feel it, too?” Lucas asked, noting her rigid posture. “Just a few minutes after we left New Mexico?”

Reluctantly, she nodded. “What do you think it is?”

“Honestly, I don’t know.” He didn’t sound alarmed, so she tried to relax. “I didn’t notice it the last time I was here, but I’m guessing it’s some sort of instinct.”

“Like a heightened sense of intuition?”

He nodded. “My wolf is on full alert.”

Hers was, too. She didn’t comment. Instead, she turned her head to gaze out the window.

Keeping distance between them made her feel off-kilter. Wrong. She wanted to lean close, rest her head on his shoulder and draw strength from his touch.

She almost said to hell with it and did it anyway. Only she couldn’t bear it if he rejected her again—not now, when more than anything they needed to work as a cohesive team.

Pushing her jumbled thoughts out of her mind, she tried to focus on the task ahead: the children. In her mind’s eye she kept seeing Hailey’s precious, freckled face. The children were more important than her infatuation with a man who didn’t want her completely.

She felt energized. Maybe because they were traveling with a purpose, bolstered by a sense of determination. They would rescue those children. Jacob would pay.

Good always won out, right? Staring at the boring flatness of the landscape as they drove, Blythe wished she felt more certain. Once, she would have been able to make such a statement with unshakable faith.

These days...not so much.

When they stopped at a gas station, she went inside. By the time she emerged, Lucas was on the phone. As she approached, he concluded the call.

“I talked to Kane. He’s going to pretend to be unaware of our involvement. Remember, he can’t officially sanction it.”

“That’s fine with me.”

“Me, too.” He smiled, looking wolfish. “However, reading between the lines, he’s waiting for us.”

Before long, the sign heralding the city limits came into view.

“Almost there,” he said. Again she felt her entire body react to his voice, which made her jittery. She hated to admit it, but he’d been right when he’d said making love had changed things between them. More than that, their coupling had changed her. She didn’t think she could ever go back to the way she’d been before.

In truth, she didn’t even know if she wanted to.

Finally, they turned down the road that led to Sanctuary.

“There it is,” he growled, coasting to a stop before the huge wrought iron gates. “Hell on earth. Sanctuary.”

Eyeing the gates, Lucas wondered at his complete lack of emotion. He’d expected to feel anger, sorrow, anything. Instead, all he felt was an overpowering sense of urgency.

Good. He’d be able to think clearly. He pulled over to the shoulder, put the truck in Park and turned off the engine.

Beside him, Blythe, too, had fallen silent. The slight hitch in her breathing exposed her reaction to the sight of Jacob Gideon’s Sanctuary.

“What do you want to do?” she asked, staring at the silent house.

Handing her a pistol, he gave her a savage smile. “First, I text Kane. Then, we’ll go in with our guns drawn.”

Nodding, she checked the safety, which was on, then to make sure her weapon was fully loaded. Satisfied, she once again met his gaze. “And then what?”

With his own pistol ready, he lifted one shoulder. “And then we’ll play it by ear.”

Moving in unison, they exited the truck. Though he knew he could die, he felt no hesitation. No matter what the cost, he had to protect Blythe. Jacob could have him killed or tortured, but Lucas would give his life to make sure nothing happened to Blythe.

This time, he would not fail a woman he loved.

Loved? The thought nearly stopped him in his tracks. Steeling his resolve, he pushed the shocking notion away. He’d examine it later, assuming he survived. After he owned his own soul again, he could think about being the right man for a woman like Blythe.

For now, he had two purposes. Free the children and then...he’d find a way to make Jacob pay.

No one stopped them as they walked up the driveway. Lucas figured since Jacob had to be expecting them, they might as well take the most direct approach.

When they reached the front door, he touched Blythe’s shoulder. “Stay behind me, okay?”

She started to speak, then shook her head. “We’re partners, remember?”

And she pushed past him and yanked on the door handle.

Apparently it was unlocked, as it moved.

They stepped inside.

Four men stood blocking the entrance. All were holding pistols, aimed directly at them.

Blythe must have watched the same movies Lucas had, because she never faltered.

“Really?” Lucas said, bringing his gun to bear on one man, and then another. “So we’re going to have a shoot-out. Which means at least a couple of you are willing to die.”

Gesturing at Blythe to stay with him, Lucas moved forward. “Even better, I’ll bet old Jacob gave you strict orders to make sure neither of us gets hurt. Which makes your guns pointless. Now move out of our way.”

He snarled the last two words. When none of the men stepped back from the doorway, he fired, hitting one of the men in the kneecap. He crumpled, screaming as he went down.

This was enough to send the other three back, stumbling in confusion and shock. Lucas guessed they hadn’t expected a serious attack. Hell, even though they were armed, he was betting Jacob had given orders not to harm Blythe or Lucas. This effectively made their weapons useless.

And they knew it.

“Come on,” he told Blythe, already moving. They were halfway down the hall before any of the remaining three guards pretended to care.

“Stop,” one of them shouted, halfheartedly.

Blythe turned and fired another shot, purposely shattering a large, decorative mirror next to him. “It could have been you,” she yelled.

Lucas admired her marksmanship as he ran for the elevator. At the last minute, he realized they’d do better taking the stairway. They wouldn’t take the big, curved ornate one that led to the upper floor, but the hidden one meant to be used when the elevator failed.

“Let’s use the stairs. That way they can’t stop us. We’ll try the labs first,” he said.

Behind them, near the foyer, came sounds of disorganized confusion, which meant Jacob’s people were trying to mount some sort of defensive attack. Which would be pretty pointless, since Jacob’s objective appeared to be to get them inside and trapped.

If everything went according to plan, Kane and his team would now begin getting the children out.

The first corner was up ahead. As they approached it, a voice came over the intercom, loud and commanding.

“Stop,” Jacob shouted, his tone reverberating with authority. Despite everything, Lucas froze. The man himself. Exactly who they’d come to see.