Dylan (Bowen Boys, #3)(27)

“And had you not survived, how would you have been justified for all this work?” Jack didn’t answer, but Marshall knew. “Casey has a copy, or knows where one is.”

They stared at one another, and she just knew that he was searching her mind. She had no idea if he could actually do that, but figured if Dylan could, then it could stand to reason that everyone could. She felt a small touch, a sort of tickle to her mind, and stilled.

“He can’t read your mind. But you should know that you and I can speak this way and no one else can hear us.” She glanced at him. “All mates have a link. I would imagine that Warren and Marshall have one, as well, though I don’t know of any other gay weres, but I’m sure there are plenty.”

“This thing, this link, is it just weres or can anyone do it? The reason I ask is because when I found Monica, she said a wolf was chasing her and she was a little off. Could someone have gone in and f*cked with her mind?” Dylan stood suddenly and left the room. “Dylan?”

“I’ll be right back. Help them as much as you can, but don’t mention the wolf yet. I want to check on something.” She looked at the others in the room and smiled.

“Casey doesn’t know what it is, but she knows where to find it. And I’ve set it up that if anything should happen to her, anything, the file hits the papers.” Marshall nodded. “I trust her because she’s trusted me. You? I don’t know.”

“Understandable. But if someone else were to get the file from her, what then? Do you know what that can do to National Security?” Marshall got up to pace. “Even if we take out the pictures of Warren and me, the other stuff in there would destroy all we’ve worked for.”

“I never said it was a file.” Reed looked at her, and she smiled at him. “I know probably more about computers and programs than four of him. He’s good, but I’m better. Casey checks in weekly. She misses one week its fine, two it notifies me. If I don’t respond within a week, it hits the papers, all of them.”

Marshall sat down next to Warren and reached for his hand. “You know she hasn’t contacted you. You know she’s still alive.”

“I spoke with her yesterday. She wants to come home but knows that if she does she’s dead. She also knows that I’d been hurt. Hard not to pick up a paper and see my face plastered all over the place. But what she doesn’t know about is what you people are. She is a great friend and a better doctor. If you ever needed another doctor, she would be the person I’d call.”

The door opened behind them, and Dylan filled the space. He was upset, and she went to him. When he kissed her, she could feel the coiled tension in his body. He looked at the people assembled there.

“Someone knows Jack is here. A wolf came onto the property today and found Monica out in the woods. He read her mind and was clumsy about it. He left his print behind, and I’ve been able to see what he found.” He looked at her. “Mann knows where you are.”





Chapter Nine


Kirby moved around the room without touching anything, and when he did touch something, he was careful to wipe his prints away. He had been hiding there for a whole day, and he was already going stir crazy. He just hoped to f*ck that the books he’d read were right, and that without taking his blood the vampire couldn’t find him.

His wife was dead, as was his daughter. He knew the moment that he’d gotten the call from Lucius that he would kill them. The man did not strike him as a houseguest sort of person. And his family had been spoiled. He knew this as he’d done it to them. When things did not go their way or they didn’t get what they wanted, they tended to whine about it. It was one of the reasons he gave in, and also the reason he worked late several times a week and went in on most weekends. He loved them, but he had made it hard for himself. And Lucius did not strike him as a patient man. Then there was the blood that had been on Lucius’s jacket.

Kirby still couldn’t believe that he’d seen it or that he’d done what he had. When Lucius had sent him out of the room to speak to…or kill the wolf, Kirby had gone to the bedroom and found the coat there. He’d not even remembered him having one on, but that was beside the point. But the blood had been there, and he’d taken a sample. Actually, he’d taken several samples. He’d had them tested the very next day to see who or what he might have killed.

Three of them came back as canine. Kirby had no idea whether it was actual dog or a werewolf like the one he’d had as a guest. But two of them were his wife and daughter. The blood splatter of all the samples had been enough to convince him that they’d been murdered, as all the blood samples he’d taken had been. So Kirby had run.

He didn’t go near the window, nor did he order in at his new place. It was not the worst he could have moved into on a temporary basis, but it was as close to slum-like that he’d ever been in. Kirby hadn’t worked for one of the largest agencies in the world to not know a thing or two about keeping yourself safe. He’d even put on a disguise to hide who he was to the taxi drivers, as well as when he’d gone into Walmart to get the things he’d need. In each instance, after he’d had to talk to or ask for services from someone, he’d changed his appearance. He was quite proud of himself about it, too.

He’d gone to the store before coming here and had purchased a small microwave and enough shelf-life foods that required no refrigeration that he could live for nearly a month. He’d also picked up a cheap laptop. The bottled water sat in a cooler that he’d brought, too. His clothes, packed for such an occasion, had been updated and freshened every few months or so. He had even made sure that his pictures on his IDs were updated to the current year, as well as his aging face.