Fighting For Their Mate (20 page)

“I thought you wanted to speak with Clare.”

“I do, but not in front of her parents. We should find out what she’s told them before we say we’re going to protect her folks. I know what my parents would say if I told them I was being blackmailed or was working in a dangerous place. They’d tell me to go back to South Carolina and to let them deal with the bad men. Parents will protect their children at all cost.”

The men looked at one another. “Bailey’s right. We don’t have enough facts.”

“Can we intercept Clare on her way home and ask her?” Bailey asked.

“We can try.” Spence pulled away from the curb.

Relief poured through her. One misstep and the consequences would be bad for all of them.

Apparently, there was only one road back to Statler’s lab. With each mile, Bailey’s stomach churned. “I think I should hide. Any number of workers could be leaving work and see me.”

“Good idea” Spence said. “From the way Ford and Ty have described Statler, I wouldn’t be surprised if he hasn’t put out an all-points bulletin on you. Not to mention he probably owns the police department in this small town.”

Why did these werewolves always have to be so blunt? Must be in their nature. At least Cam had thought ahead and purchased a few blankets and a pillow while they were at the store. She lay down on the seat, ready to crawl to the floor if one of the men gave the word. Without being able to see out, the road noise increased, along with her worry.

Clare probably wouldn’t recognize her at first, but Bailey had to tell her the truth. Was her former nurse even aware of the kind of man she worked for? She had to know if she was dealing with strapped down, unwilling patients. Right?

Knowing the meeting would happen sooner rather than later, Bailey’s stomach tightened and her breathing increased. She was terrified she’d mess this up. What if Clare refused to have any part of this operation? What if she didn’t believe that a bunch of men could keep her parents safe? Bailey’s dad had bodyguards, but they were vulnerable to attack, too.

If Clare knew Statler and his men were enhanced werewolves, she might be afraid that the General’s men wouldn’t be able to protect her folks. Damn. Bailey wasn’t sure she’d accept the offer if she’d been in the same situation.

“You can still back down, you know,” Cam said. He leaned over the back of the seat, his eyes pooling with sympathy.

Bailey wanted to say no, but she couldn’t. “I have to do this. For Tatum.” And for Tyson and Ford.

C
lare wasn’t sure how much longer she could take working at the lab. The last woman she’d taken blood from had pleaded with her to let her go. She’d just given birth to twin boys and their daddy was overseas fighting the war. Her parents had been killed in a car wreck two years ago, so there was no one to watch over her sons.

Clare’s heart had broken. If the woman was making up the story, she deserved an acting award. It had taken all of Clare’s concentration to draw the required blood then inject the new mother with a lab created sample—one designed to see how a body reacted to a particular poison cocktail. It didn’t seem to matter that human physiology differed significantly from werewolves—especially enhanced ones. Statler was desperate to make his special werewolves more invincible.

If she failed to follow Mr. Statler’s instructions, he would carry out his threat. He’d told her on the first day that the garage burning was a mere warning. The next time, he’d make sure her parents died in the fire, and she’d be given no notice.

As she rounded the big bend heading to her parents’ house, Clare refocused her attention on the road.
Whoa
. A car, angled sideways with the hood up, was blocking her path. She debated driving around the young woman’s vehicle, but the nurse in her wanted to make sure no one was injured. She slowed and then pulled alongside.

“Need help?”

The woman looked up and blew out an exasperated breath. Her auburn hair, pink hat, glasses, and heavy makeup seemed out of place in the countryside. She looked urban.

“The engine suddenly died. Unless you’re a mechanic, I’m not sure what you can do.”

“Did you call CAA or someone?”

“I’m from the States and just passing through.”

Passing through? To where? There wasn’t much this far up in Canada. Something about this girl seemed familiar, but Clare couldn’t put her finger on it. Out of nowhere, a man appeared by the girl’s side, and Clare relaxed. He’d make sure she got help. Weren’t all men born with the car gene? Her dad was super handy with any kind of vehicle.

The man looked over at Clare and smiled. Whoa. He was beyond good-looking. Too bad the woman didn’t seem to notice he existed.

A knock sounded on the passenger side window and nearly stopped her heart. She twisted around, only to find the door easing open. Oh, my God. What was he doing? Her heart sunk. “Get out. Please.”

She fumbled to lock the doors, but it was too late. The huge man was climbing into the seat, and the need to take flight overwhelmed her to the point of incapacitation. Her medical training calm fled.

Shit, shit, shit. Statler must have seen the way she listened to the new mother. He’d sternly told all of his employees that sympathy played no role in their job. Chills tripped up her spine, and it wasn’t from the cold air pouring in.

“Take it easy,” the man said in a smooth, rich voice.

His eyes widened a bit and he looked uneasy, as if he were the one afraid.

“What do you want?” She called on every ounce of strength left in her body. “Please don’t hurt me.” She lifted her purse. “Here. I have some cash.”

“I’m not here to rob you or harm you in any way. We only want to speak with you, Clare.”

A giant claw twisted her belly into knots. “How do you know my name?” This was bad. Statler must have sent him to give her a warning—one that might end in death.

“I want to help you get out of the lab—to get away from Statler.”

He knew Statler? She wanted to believe him, but this had to be a trick—or a Statler test. Suddenly, the other man was by her door and the woman had disappeared. Clare grabbed the wheel and was about to take off when the man on her right reached over and pulled the key from the ignition.

“Clare, we have to speak with you.” This time his voice sounded urgent. His nails had grown long and eyes had lightened.

He was a werewolf—like Statler and his men.

“Please…please don’t hurt me. I’ll do whatever you want.”

“Take it easy. We only want to talk. How about stepping over to the other car and I’ll move this out of the way? Don’t want you to get in a wreck.”

She didn’t want that either, and half her car was in the oncoming lane. Both men were unusually huge, and there was no way she could fight either of them off. The woman seemed to be in on this attack.

Clare had been taught that resistance would only cause her harm. She’d let them believe she’d cooperate and wait for her chance to escape. Shaking, she eased out, waiting for one of them to stick her in the arm with a needle. This must have been God’s way of punishing her for working for that sadistic bastard.

The second man slid into the driver’s side and pulled her car off the side of the road, and then got out.

“What do you want from me? I don’t know anything.”

“I told you. We just want to talk,” the first man said.

He seemed to be shifting right before her eyes like she’d seen a few of the workers do. It was creepy as hell. “Are you okay?”

The man cleared his throat. “Excuse me.” He rushed into the woods and disappeared behind the large trees.

Okay that was totally strange. The second man—the one with the woman—stepped near. “Excuse my brother.”

One down, one to go. Maybe he’d pull a disappearing act, too. She had a spare set of keys in her glove compartment. She only needed a few seconds to escape.

Clare pulled her coat tight around her chest. “Say your piece and let me leave.”

“We know you’re being coerced by Paul Statler to work for him.”

Clare’s legs nearly buckled. He was fishing. No one knew about the threat—not even her parents. Telling them anything would be dumb. “I’m not being coerced.”

“Let’s sit in my car where it’s warmer. There’s been a misunderstanding.”

She wasn’t stupid. If she got in the car, they’d kill her. “We can talk out here.”

If someone came by, she could flag him down. The problem was that most of the people coming this way worked at the lab.

He shrugged. “Suit yourself, but the woman with me would like to speak with you.”

“Why? Who is she?”

“She’s the woman who escaped from the lab.”

Clare shook her head. “No one escapes from the lab.” If she believed it was possible, she’d do it.

The man exited from the woods. His color had improved and he appeared to be back to his normal human self. The man near her waved to his brother. “Cam, ask Bailey to come out here.”

“Bailey?” She remembered a woman by that name. Clare had personally escorted the girl to the garage where Ford and Tyson had taken her to the lab in Ogden for further testing. “There must be a mistake.”

The door eased open just as a blast of cold air whipped down the road. Clare was tempted to sit in the warmth, but her safety was more important.

The woman she remembered was blonde and young. “That’s not Bailey. If she told you that, she’s lying.”

“Bailey, come speak with Clare.”

The fake woman rushed toward her, her hands flapping against her arms. “Hi, Clare. It’s really me.” She took off the hat and the glasses. “I dyed my hair auburn.”

Clare took a step back. “What is this all about? Who are you?” Without the hat and the glasses, this woman did look like Bailey, but she still wasn’t convinced—couldn’t afford to believe it. This had to be a hoax.

“Don’t you remember when you wanted to wheel me into that big room, and I said I had to go to the bathroom? You called in a guard—Tyson Summerville. He carried me into the bathroom, closed the door, and placed his back against it.”

There weren’t any cameras in the room. No one could have known that except Bailey. “How…how did you get here?” Clare was happy she’d escaped but was confused at the same time.

“That doesn’t matter right now. What does matter is that you let us help you and your family so you’ll lend a hand in getting my sister out.”

Tatum
. Her heart had gone out to the girl. She’d told Clare that she and Bailey had been hiking in the woods in North Carolina when Statler abducted them. Tatum had been so feisty at first, but when she was told her sister was gone, the fight disappeared. It had been so sad.

“I’d really like to help, but I can’t.” There was too much at stake.

Bailey shifted her weight, her teeth chattering. Clare’s sympathy surfaced. If these men meant her harm, they’d have incapacitated her already. “You look cold. Maybe we should sit in the car.”

“Thank you.”

She and Bailey sat in the back and the two men dominated the front seat. The man with Bailey closed the car hood and started the engine, but thankfully didn’t drive off.

Cam twisted in his seat. “Are you aware that Statler set your parents’ garage on fire?”

“How did you know about that?” Bile raced up her throat at the implication. Statler must have been the one to tell him.

“Rumors abound around here.”

They didn’t work at the lab so maybe it was true. She hadn’t heard that he had outside men, though. She wanted to trust these two but wasn’t sure if it was wise. In the end, it wouldn’t matter. Once they understood what would happen to her folks if she crossed Statler, they’d see why she couldn’t help them.

“The fire was why I came back home. Statler threatened to kill my parents if I didn’t do what he asked.”

“We can protect them.”

They had no idea what they’d be up against. “You can’t. Statler’s men are…strong, powerful, and very dangerous.”

“So are we. So are our friends who can protect your folks.”

Clare wished that were true, but she couldn’t chance it. Tyson had said he and his brother were teaching the others to be expert fighters. Statler’s men were enhanced. These men were not. “I’ll take my chances with Statler.”

Bailey grabbed her hand. “Clare, this is your chance to make a difference. Make up for what Statler has coerced you to do. I have a price on my head, yet I’m still here. Not only is my sister still inside, so are a lot of others. We need your help.”

She glanced to the men. The driver twisted toward her. “If you help us get Tatum out, we’ll not only protect your folks, but we’ll take you back to Greenville.”

Her heart lurched. Had they been spying on her? “How did you know where I lived?”

“It’s our job to know. We’ve had an eye on Statler for a long time. We want to take him down, but we need to free the women first. That’s where you come in,” the driver said. “We’ll be doing a test run with Tatum. Other men will follow. They’ll get the rest of them out.”

If they knew about her past, their resources must be vast. She still wasn’t ready to believe any of this. White knights didn’t exist. Yet if they were willing to tell her this, and she told Statler, the women might be moved elsewhere and never be saved. “Why would you trust me?”