Jazz watched Rafe walk away and pressed against the ache in her chest. Everything was spiraling out of control. They needed to talk, but life wasn’t giving them a chance.
The minute he returned with Cindy, Jazz would escape with him to their bedroom.
Had she actually complained about life being too boring? She’d take the mundane stuff over what she’d been dealing with since Tony died.
Her stomach growled, reminding her that she’d been up for a while yet hadn’t eaten. She made a detour on the way to the kitchen to check on the kids. Mira sat with them, watching cartoons. Jazz spent some time talking to them, carefully avoiding the topic of Mr. Wilkins and his dogs, then retreated to the kitchen.
Josh leaned against the far wall with a phone to his ear. After a moment, he lowered it and cursed.
“Is everything okay?”
He slipped the phone into his rear pocket. “I guess. I’m probably just overreacting. I’m sure everything is fine.”
“About what?”
“I called my parents’ house. There’s no answer.”
The guilt rushed up, making her chest hurt and pulse pound. “I never thought about asking Rafe to send someone out to them. I just…”
“Stop it, Jazz. I didn’t either.” A tic started in his jaw, and he clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white before releasing them. “I never thought about my parents. What does that say about me?”
“Your life has been turned upside down. I’ve had five years to get used to this world, but I still wasn’t prepared for murdering shifters threatening my family. On top of finding out shifters existed in the first place, you got custody of Megan and lost your brother. I’d say that’s excuse enough.”
“Excuse? Is that what I should say when the cops call and tell me my parents were found murdered too? Or should I blame it on a cougar?”
She cringed.
“Yeah. I know about Mr. Wilkins. Mira woke me up and told me.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “I didn’t even freaking hear you scream.”
“You were tired. You—”
“Should have known. My window was open.”
Jazz pressed her lips together. Arguing with him would get her nowhere. He’d been tired. It was perfectly understandable. He was only human.
“Look. I wouldn’t worry about your parents yet. They live smack dab in the middle of town. There’re lots of people around. Rafe said that would deter Jon.” She twisted her fingers together. “Besides, they might be at church or something. Maybe the library. Now that they’ve retired they’re more active than we are.”
“I’ve been telling myself the same thing. It’s not unusual for them to be out, and since they don’t have a cell, they’re hard to get a hold of.” He glanced out the kitchen window. “I just have a bad feeling. There is no logical reason why this guy would hurt Mr. Wilkins. Your kids weren’t there.”
“I don’t know either.”
“Look, Jazz, I think moving home with Rafe’s family is the safer choice for you and the kids.”
She’d thought the same until Jon attacked Mr. Wilkins. “Okay, say I do. Rafe and his family will go with us. Who’s going to protect you? Your parents?” Because they wouldn’t leave. This was their home. She didn’t need Josh to tell her that.
“Don’t worry about us. Once you and the kids are gone, they’ll be no reason to go after us.” Stubbornness laced his statement. There’d be no arguing with him.
She gave him a wan smile. “Are you kicking me out?”
He brushed the back of his hand over her cheek. “Never. Think of it as a honeymoon for you and Rafe. You can always reevaluate later and move back.”
She covered his hand and grinned. “I never said I’m marrying him.”
“No, you’re going to mate him. From how Mira explained it, mating sounds the same as marriage, just without the option for divorce.”
She rolled her eyes to hide how much the thought of mating Rafe affected her. The idea of loving him and growing old with him thrilled her. Sure, she wished the option of kids was open, but if Rafe was okay with not having any, so was she. They had Seth and Levi. Besides, they could always adopt. Maybe little girls. Jazz would love to see Rafe with daughters.
“We’ll see. I haven’t known Rafe long enough to think about marriage or mating. We still need to get to know each other without the craziness going on around us.”
“I doubt it’ll change his mind. The way he looks at you borders on obsession.” He shrugged. “It makes me a little jealous.”
“I thought you were okay with me and Rafe.”
Josh cupped her face in his hands and leaned close. She was left staring into the blue eyes she’d looked into for what felt like forever. A lifetime of memories passed between them—once lovers, always friends.
“I am. It just reminds me of everything I missed out on by not going after you when you moved home. I could’ve pursued you until you gave in. You have a soft spot for me, you know.”
She gave him a small smile. She couldn’t deny his statement. He could’ve worn her resistance down if he’d wanted.
He matched her smile, obviously understanding what she hadn’t said. “And being with you would’ve fulfilled my dreams. A wife. Kids. Family. That’s all I’ve ever wanted. You would’ve given that to me. Now, I’ll never have it.”
“Not with me, but there are other women in town who’d love to date you.”
He released her. “Nah, they just want sex. That scene gets old after a while, and I’m tired of playing in it. I’m giving up on women. I’ll just sit back and watch you and your shifter live the life I can’t have.”
“What? You’re going to be a bachelor forever? Won’t that get lonely?”
“I can always get a cat.” He chuckled, then made his way to the hallway door.
His phone rang. He yanked it out.
“Hello?”
He listened for a moment, then tensed. “Mom, stop crying. Lock the doors and get inside the bathroom. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
Josh slid the phone into his pocket and ran from the room.
Jazz went after him and grabbed his arm. He yanked away and picked up his car keys. She spread her arms wide in front of the door.
“Wait a minute. What happened?”
“He’s there! At my parents’ house.”
“Your mom saw him?”
“Yes, she saw him. Not too many lions roaming the streets of West Virginia.”
He stepped closer. She widened her stance.
“Get out of my way, Jazz.”
“And what do you think you’re going to do? They live over ten minutes away! By the time you get there, they’ll be dead.”
“I can’t sit here and do nothing.” He lifted her, his hands on her hips, and set her to the side.
She opened her mouth to yell for Devin or Kade. They had to be close. The sight of Mira approaching from behind stopped Jazz’s bellow.
In one quick move, Mira yanked the car keys out of Josh’s hands, then wrapped her arms around his waist.
Josh spun and grabbed her upper arms but didn’t squeeze them. He used them to hold her in place while he leaned close, nose to nose.
“Mira, let go.” The order in his voice was clear.
Mira shook her head. “I can’t let you go. Jazz is right. Your parents will be dead by the time you get there. And if Jon’s close by, he’ll kill you too. Going out there by yourself is suicide.”
He eased back, putting space between them, but Mira’s hold on him didn’t lessen. Agony etched lines on his face. “I have to do something.”
“Devin or Kade will go. Be realistic, Josh.” Mira looked imploringly at him. “What are you going to do? You’re only human.”
Josh pushed her away, then strode to the window. “Call them.”
Mira hurried to where her cell phone sat charging on the end table.
“Mom, is everything okay?” Seth asked from the top of the stairs. “We heard yelling.”
No. Everything was not okay. She glanced from Josh, who held his head in his hands, to the front door, then back to where Seth stood at the top of the stairs. Once again, she was forced to play two roles—protector and nurturer.
“Yeah, kiddo. Just grown-up stuff. Put on another movie, and I’ll bring some popcorn up in a few minutes.”
“Okay, Mom.”
She waited until his bedroom door clicked before turning to Josh. “Please stay here while I take care of the kids. Don’t run off and do something stupid.”
“Right. Nothing stupid. I am only human.”
“I mean it. You get yourself killed, and Megan will be devastated. She loves you.”
He nodded but didn’t say anything else. It was the best she’d get. She hurried into the kitchen, made popcorn and breathed a sigh when she found Josh sitting on the couch.
Jazz ran up the steps.
She delivered her snack and spent longer than she wanted assuring the kids everything was fine. It was a lie, but how was she supposed to tell them the truth? Already they knew there was a dangerous man after them. They didn’t need any more stress.
Once they were settled, she made her way to the living room afraid she was going to find it empty since she’d left Josh alone so long.
Rafe’s booming voice rang out. She smiled and hurried to greet him, but the sight of him alone stopped her halfway down the stairs.
“Where’s Cindy?”
Rafe didn’t say anything. He opened his arms. She stared at him for a minute while her vision blurred. His silent offer of comfort could mean only one thing.
Cindy was dead.
Jazz blinked several times until Rafe’s strong features came into view before she went to him. Wrapped in his embrace, a sense of rightness settled over her, despite the horrible circumstances. No matter what life brought them, he’d be there for her. Her anchor. She grabbed his shirt and pulled him closer.
“How?” She couldn’t bring herself to say more.
“A dresser that was stored in the storage unit toppled on her.”
“You couldn’t save her?”
“No, but she told me to call the cops. That her lover pushed the dresser on her, and that you were in danger.”
“Cindy was trying to help Molly.”
“So was Tony. They just didn’t know the danger they were in.”
“I don’t understand.” She tipped her head back to meet his gaze. “Jon killed two people and hurt another. Why? To get the kids?”
Rafe smoothed his hands over her back. “I know this isn’t the best time, but we need to talk. You need to know what you’re getting yourself involved in before things go any further between us.”
She glanced over her shoulder. Mira and Josh stood close by, watching them while Devin’s multi-colored hair was visible through the open window.
“Let’s go upstairs.” Her bedroom was the only place guaranteed to offer them privacy.
With the door closed behind them, Rafe faced her. “I told you the first Royals were the offspring of the goddesses and their favored warriors. The Royals were sent to live with their fathers because they couldn’t remain in the heavens. They’d never grow. At some point, though, the warriors realized their children weren’t just stronger than them. They were immortal.”
Jazz gasped. “You’re…you’ll live forever?”
Rafe slowly nodded, never breaking their gaze. “Unless I lose my head, I will live until the world ends. A Royal will even regrow a limb if we lose one. Thankfully, in my five centuries of life, that’s never happened. I’ve been told it’s quite painful.”
He was five hundred years old. The fact settled over her, leaving her cold and shaky, but it was the consequence of what that meant that left her weak-kneed and sick to her stomach.
They’d never grow old together.
Her dreams shattered around her. She lowered her gaze to the floor. She didn’t even know how to react. Happy that he still wanted to be with her or saddened that they’d eventually be separated by her death.
Rafe cupped her face in his hands and leaned close. “But if you mate me, you will live as long as I do. You’ll be stronger than other humans. Retain your youthful appearance. Never get sick. You simply won’t be immortal. You’ll share my immortality. Does that make sense?”
Did it? She let his words repeat in her head.
“So if I lose a limb, I won’t regrow it.” She gave him a small smile.
He pressed his lips to hers. “Correct, but if you get hurt, you’ll heal. It’ll just take you longer as you borrow my strength to mend your body.”
Because she would be tied to his soul and he was tied to the goddess who’d birthed his ancestor.
“And the single animal shifters aren’t immortal.”
“Exactly, and some of the first warriors grew jealous of their children. They hauled their Royal offspring before the gods and the goddesses and demanded immortality too or they’d behead the Royals. The deities refused. Luckily, not all single shifters agreed with the ones demanding to be given eternal life and saved those first Royal children.”
He took a deep breath and went on. “Time passed and the animosity between the Royals and single shifters rose and fell over the centuries, but we endured. That’s changed in the last two centuries. Now, the Royals are facing extinction.”
“What’s changed?”
He skimmed a finger down the length of her neck. “The humans.”
“Humans learned of your existence?”
“Not exactly. There have always been some humans who knew about us. I even had a human nanny, but as with the single shifters, some resented us for our immortality. As civilization advanced, they began to look for ways to steal it.”
Images of the warehouse she’d escaped flashed before her eyes. “They experimented on Royals.”
“Yes, and the risk to our women and children grew to a point where only seclusion saved us. We lived in the shadows, hiding from even our single shifter brethren until a group of shifters approached the human government and demanded protection and rights for all shifters—singles and Royals alike. Laws were established that both benefited and hurt us, but for the most part, it allowed the Royals to rebuild our numbers.”
She closed her eyes. Images of men and women in cages, the echoes of screams, and the pitiful moans of other humans swamped her. Five years she’d had to deal with the memories of the few hours she’d spent in the experimental center. It wasn’t enough.
“There is still testing being done on shifters, Rafe. I know. I’ve seen it.”
The muscles under her palms tensed, and Rafe’s fingers pressed into her skin. Finally, he blew out a slow breath, and his grip eased. “How do you know this?”
Jazz swallowed around the lump in her throat. “Because I spent several hours inside an experimental center. I was to be the prize given to the winner of some big cage fight, but I escaped with…with Seth and Levi.”
She met Rafe’s glowing feline eyes—all gold, no white. He stared at her, along with his cats. Her heart raced the longer he watched her with his unblinking cat eyes. She pressed her lips together and fought to keep her fear contained. Rafe wouldn’t hurt her. She knew that, but murder hovered in his eyes. The enraged man inches from her didn’t match the loving, respectful one she thought she knew.
“He likes to fight just as much as the rest of us. Maybe more so. He’s got a lot of anger built up inside him. He’s only putting on a good face for you so he doesn’t frighten you away.” Xander’s words repeated in Jazz’s head, and the truth behind them struck her.
She didn’t know the man who claimed to be her true mate, not really. While she didn’t believe Rafe would hurt her, she couldn’t say the same applied to others. He would kill if he deemed it necessary. Actually, he probably already had ended lives.
Did that bother her? She let the question hover in her heart, and inwardly sighed. If Rafe had killed in self-defense or while protecting someone, she wouldn’t judge him for it. The gray area left her uneasy. He decided who was deemed a threat, but sometimes emotions altered perception and made it too easy to justify one’s actions.
Rafe squeezed his eyelids shut. His pent-up breath rushed out. The tense moment passed.
“Do not be afraid of me, my Jasmine.”
“I’m not.”
“But I have heard accounts of these places. What happens to women.” He worked his jaw back and forth. “The thought of you violated makes me—”
“Stop.” She held his face in her hands as he had done to her. “They hurt me, but I wasn’t raped. I was supposed to be a prize, remember. That got me tossed into a cell next to Seth and Levi’s mom. After the guards left, I started working on picking the lock. I’d decided I was going to try to escape or die. No way was I staying there.”
“You picked a lock?” The disbelief in Rafe’s voice matched his expression.
She grinned, trying to lighten the mood. “My pappy taught me. He said it was something everyone should know. I can’t say I ever used the skill much other than when he’d insisted I practice, but I was lucky. I was put in…” She grimaced. “It was more of a crate than a cell. It didn’t have a heavy-duty fancy lock on it. I guess they didn’t consider me a threat.”
Rafe watched her intently but didn’t respond. She dragged in another steadying breath and went on. “Anyway, after I got it open, I went to work on the door to the cell where Seth and Levi were being held with their mom. It took longer to get it unlocked. There were several chains and different locks, but I focused on each one until I got them open.”
“And you weren’t worried a guard would spot you?”
“Well, yes. But what was I supposed to do? Leave her there with two babies? She kept telling me to run too, but I wouldn’t.”
“If she’d been in there a while, she probably wasn’t used to kindness.”
“I imagine not, but she trusted me. I guess because I unlocked her.”
Rafe pulled her into his embrace. “Or because she sensed what I did when I first saw you, that you’re special.”
Jazz grinned and rested her cheek against his chest. “The moment she was out of the cell, she passed over both babies to me and made me swear I’d protect them with my life. I agreed, and we snuck out through the basement. I never would’ve found my way without running into those bear shifters who ran the place.”
“Bear shifters?” Rafe cursed. “Did you get any names?”
“No. They kidnapped me outside a bar in Charleston and took me to the warehouse they were using. They barely spoke to me during the ride other than to tell me how lucky I was to be chosen as the Hunter’s prize. They seemed really proud of him.”
“The Hunter, huh? That’s the second time I’ve heard his name.”
He didn’t elaborate, so she went on.
“We had some close calls but made it out.” And unless he asked, she wasn’t about to tell him how Seth and Levi’s mother ripped a couple of other shifter males to shreds. Nope, that was a memory Jazz didn’t want to ever revisit.
Rafe studied her with narrowed eyes as if he suspected the truth, however. “She protected you?”
“Yes, while I comforted and cooed to her babies.”
He nodded as if her answer was the one he expected. “Obviously you made it out. What happened to the…the mother?”
Jazz closed her eyes as the moment that changed her life replayed in her mind.
“You promised to protect my babies with your life, Jazz. Did you lie to me?”
Jazz clutched the two small infants closer to her chest. “No, of course not.”
“Then you’ll run with them, and if I don’t return to you, you will raise them as your own.”
“You’re not leaving with me?”
“No. There are other women in that center. Other babies. I will save them or die. I promised them.”
Jazz stared into the woman’s too-bright hazel eyes and saw the goodbye hovering there. “You’re not coming back for them, are you?”
The woman glanced at her babies. Tears welled in her eyes. She pressed a kiss to each little boy’s head, then turned away, facing the warehouse. “They’re safer with you.”
Safer? Jazz couldn’t shift into a huge tigress. “How am I supposed to protect them?”
The woman peered over her shoulder and leveled a hard look at Jazz. “Remember what I told you and trust your instincts. A good mother will always find ways to protect her kids.”
“But I’m not their mother. I—”
“Run, Jazz. Take my babies and run.” Naked with claws tipping the ends of her fingers, the woman moved in a crouch toward the window they’d climbed out of.
She was going to leave. She was actually going to leave.
“Wait.” Jazz tucked the two babies against her chest, using their mother’s shirt as a makeshift carrier. “What’s your name so I can tell your boys about you?”
“Nina.”
“Seth and Levi’s mother slipped back inside the warehouse, and I ran with her babies. She had no intention of trying to find us. Didn’t even ask where I lived.” Jazz blinked back tears. “Of course, I realized I’d need to skip town that night. How was I supposed to explain suddenly having two babies when I was clearly not pregnant the day before?”
Jazz glanced into Rafe’s face. “I was an absolute wreck as I walked back to my car with Seth and Levi, wondering if I was being tracked or what I would do if a cop stopped me.”
Rafe caressed her back. The soothing strokes calmed her racing heart. She snuggled closer to him, and he rested his head on hers. So simple, so profound. Did he know he brought her peace too? With his arms wrapped around her, she felt safe. It was an illusion. He couldn’t protect her from her memories or fate, but his embrace promised her she’d never have to face the horrors of life alone.
“You made it back safely?”
Rafe’s question broke the silence that had descended.
“Yes. It was a miracle as far as I’m concerned. I’m convinced Seth and Levi had known when they needed to be quiet.”
“They were likely reacting to your scent. Even as newborns, Royals are more attuned to the world.”
“If so, they probably had a low opinion of their new caretaker in those early hours. I went from tears to anxiety, but the worst was knowing I was alone.” She slipped her hands under Rafe’s shirt, not in a sexual manner but to remind herself she didn’t have to face that fear again.
“You had no close friends in Charleston?”
“None that I would trust with Seth and Levi’s secret. My options were limited. I shared an apartment with another girl, so even going back there to pack wasn’t possible. Going home was my only choice, but I couldn’t just show up there. My pappy would’ve flipped out and tried to raid the warehouse himself.” She smiled at the visual. “I can just imagine how scared those shifters would’ve been to see a seventy-three-year-old man with a cane and patch over one eye on their doorstep demanding retribution.”
“What did you do?”
“I ran up my credit card with sleazy motel bills and all the supplies I needed for the boys. Once I felt confident enough time had passed that I could pull off being a new mom, I went home.”
Rafe cradled the back of her head and urged her to look at him. “And the mother? You never called the cops? Told them about the experimental center?”
He’d already explained to her their existence had to remain a secret. Asking her why she hadn’t broken their golden rule didn’t make sense. Neither did the anger tightening his features, but it wasn’t directed at her. Of that she was certain, not unless the gentle stroking of his thumb along her hairline was a sign of rage.
“The next morning, the news reported a massive fire that leveled the entire industrial complex. No bodies were recovered. I assumed Nina was either recaptured or ran too.”
He squeezed his eyes closed. “Nina.”
Pain laced the single word.
“You knew her?”
“Know her, yes. My little sister isn’t dead. Kade would have felt her death.”
She curled her fingers around the waistband of his jeans. “You’re talking about your sister that Jon kidnapped?”
Rafe leaned closer, and the eyes of a predator replaced the warm ones she’d stared into while he’d loved her the day before. “And Jon will pay for his crimes in blood. I won’t rest until the he dies.”
Shouting from the first floor saved Jazz from answering—a good thing. She wasn’t sure what to say. The man claiming to be her true mate frightened her because she believed him. Nothing would stop him. Nothing.
Not even her.