BirthStone Page 15

  “Yes, Sir.”

  “Silas?”“Yes?”

  “Do something about Jacques! He and Mark almost came to blows a few minutes ago. Renee may think his love-sick expressions over mom are funny. But mom is taking Mark’s side against Jacques, and he’s having a hard time controlling his wolf.”

  “Has he told her she was his mate yet?”

  “I don’t think so. She thinks he’s crazy.”

  “A stubborn mate will do that to you,” he murmured.

  “I heard that. Just come get your boy,” she snapped.

  Silas looked at Tyrone as he stood. “Let me know when you hear something regarding Griggs. I agree with you, we are on to something with her.”

  Tyrone nodded as he stood. “Yes, Sir,” he said as he left the room.

  Silas pinched the bridge of his nose and inhaled. “Jacques, I am in the lower labs, meet me here.” He steeled his voice into a command.

  “Yes, Sir.” Silas shielded himself against the angst in Jacque’s voice. Human laws and accounting systems made things more difficult. Gone were the days when a wolf could simply steal away with his mate, Silas thought wistfully. And then he choked on the possible reaction of his mate had he attempted to take her away from her sons and family against her will. Jasmine would have castrated him in his sleep, and that would probably have been the least of his worries.

  As much as he empathized with his friend, he could not allow him to disrupt his household. He knew Jacques could not leave Victoria, his wolf would never allow it. But the man had to use wisdom and bide his time.

  Jacques strolled into the conference room with a sheepish yet stubborn look on his face. Silas knew he had to tread carefully, when it came to mates, a wolf would defy the Goddess if she interfered.

  “Yes, Sir?” Jacques' rigid posture screamed 'I will take whatever you mete out but I will not stop.'

  “I want to talk to Asia. Do you have any questions prepared for her?”

  Jacques eyes widened as his shoulders relaxed a bit. “Asia, the bitch that was experimented on?”

  Silas nodded, unsure if he spoke, that his words would lack a sarcastic element.

  Jacques pointed to the chair at the table. “May I sit, Sir?”

  Silas’ brow rose at the extreme courtesy, realizing Jacques had not relaxed his guard fully. “Yes.”

  Jacques took the seat, leaned forward with his hands clasped on the table. “I have read through the notes and have a few points I plan to submit to you later after verifying a few items. This woman…Asia, she is remarkable and not of common stock. Few wolves can withstand the type of altering that she has. A titanium leg, arm?” He scoffed. “Who is she really? Was she born or created? If she was created, for what purpose? Is she the Eve in this drama? If so, who is her Adam?” He paused.

  Silas could not utter a word, the questions Jacques voiced had never entered his mind, yet they made sense in a warped way.

  Jacques leaned back in his chair. “She is a huge part of the mystery and the success of your enemies' plans. Yet she helps you, why? To what purpose? I am not sure she is a wolf. I am not sure she is not red herring, or sleeper. If she is gathering intel on your operation, the best way to do it is to gain your trust, to feed us bits of information difficult to confirm. And if we use her data, it may be a set up to lead us into a trap.” Jacques exhaled. “So, to answer your question, I have questions but they are not very nice. I have never met her but I do not trust her. She is a weapon, no question. But for who?”

  Silas closed his eyes and mulled over everything he just heard. When he opened them, he met Jacques gaze. “You lost control last year.”

  Jacques flinched but remained silent.

  “Arianna rolled your mind, had you acting out of character, doing things to those you love while hating it, so I know you have an inside track of what Asia may be going through. When we meet with her in a few minutes, I want you to search for signs of that. Once again I find your thoughts invaluable, they have walked a path I had not noticed despite my dealings with Arianna. But hold them close to your chest, I don’t want her to think I am considering she may not be as she appears.” He paused, unsure if he should share this bit of information. “I spared her life at the request of the Goddess.”

  Jacques head snapped up and met his gaze. Silas tried to read the emotion in them, but couldn’t settle on fear or disappointment.

  “I have not conferred with her in two months. I have been lax in my duties. I will remedy that today, perhaps that will allow me to make the connections clearer without bringing in my personal experiences.”

  “Jacques.” Silas had not meant his comment as a slight, but he wanted, no needed, his friend to listen to Asia with an open mind uncolored with his past experiences.

  Jacques held up his hand as he glanced away. “I am much better these days. Although there are still moments… when I have these flashes.” He inhaled and then released it. “I would like to speak with Asia, Sir.”

  Silas gazed at the man who had been his friend for two decades. They had seen and been through much together. The experience with Arianna had changed Jacques, as it would any wolf. The woman had captured Jacques' wolf and turned it against his humanity. The wounds beneath the scars still festered, yet the man offered his assistance knowing Asia’s condition resembled his personal nightmare.

  Unable to think of a way to gracefully refuse without causing more damage, Silas nodded, pushed back the chair and stood. “This way.”

  It did not take long to reach Asia’s cell. After typing in the code, Silas waited a moment for her to scent them and become presentable. Opening the door, he noticed her head bent, kneeling on the floor. He ushered Jacques in, allowing him a moment to take in the scene before speaking.

  “Hello Asia. I have a friend of mine with me today. Jacques, this is Asia, Asia…Jacques. As usual I want to talk, see if we can discover anything new.”

  “Yes, Sir,” she said without raising her head.

  Silas sat in the chair. Jacques leaned against the wall, watching intently. “Please take a seat, Asia.”

  “Yes, Sir.” She moved fluidly from the floor to the top of her bed, folded her legs beneath her, and sat with her hands in her lap. Even with the locked blindfold, she appeared the picture of serenity.

  “I am going to scan you. I want to check the devices in your head to make sure there has been no change.”

  “Thank you, Sir.”

  Silas glanced at Jacques to gauge his reaction. After Arianna had left Jacques almost comatose, Silas had entered his mind as well. There had been a few lesions but nothing that should have been permanent. He and Jacques had never talked about it.

  With the conversation fresh in his mind regarding her humanity, Silas search her cranial cavity with a sharper eye. He looked for anything that might suggest Asia was not as she appeared. The vein joining the eye camera and the small device attached to her brain appeared to be the same. He would let the doctor know so they could alter their treatments. This time he took a little longer, poked around a bit for additional abnormalities. Everything in him said the brain was human tissue, but he had been fooled before. He radiated energy, sending waves of healing through her body. His wolf recognized an answering response in her wolf. She was lonely. This separation from all others was hard on her wolf, she needed pack. Silas stroked the beast, allowed her to make the connection with him. He would talk to Tyrese, someone had to spend quality time with Asia or she could lose it.

  When he pulled out, she was wiping moisture from her face. “Thank you, Sir. Thank you so much.”

  Touched that such a simple thing like stroking her wolf evoked such a response, Silas released his breath. He had been remiss in his duties, Asia was wolf and under his protection. He would find a way for her to exercise her beast and remain safe.

  “I am your Alpha, it’s my job to make sure you have what you need. I will inform Dr. Passen of the scan. Have you thought of anything else that might help me win this wa
r?”

  She shook her head and stopped midway. “When you were in my mind a moment ago, you did something different before you dealt with my wolf. It seemed familiar. There was warmth and a moment of clarity, like a sunrise. I saw a warehouse with a long corridor with doors on both sides. Some glass as well.” She stopped. “It didn’t hurt.” She laughed. “I said warehouse and it didn’t hurt.” She covered her mouth with her hands. “Sir, can you do that again, whatever you did.”

  “Yes.” Silas entered her mind, focused on her and who he was to all wolves, and then released healing energy. He remained longer this time, hoping to counteract whatever had been done to her. He heard a pop, but continued the stream. There was a slight hissing sound and another popping noise.

  “Sir.”

  Silas heard Jacques and started to pull back when he noticed the small device had detached from her brain. Quickly he surrounded it and tugged on the cord leading to the camera. It wouldn’t break free so he left it, and pushed the other device through her system.

  When he exited, Asia lay on her side on the floor with blood trickling from her nose. Jacques knelt in front of her with two fingers on her neck. “She passed out.”

  “I see that,” Silas said, watching from his chair. “Step back, I am going to call her wolf.” Jacques stood and moved away as Asia flowed into her wolf.

  “Hard to believe she has metal inside when she changes so smoothly,” Jacques said.

  Silas watched the wolf stand shakily with her head lowered before walking around the small space. “Sit for a while, Asia. Your body is healing. The small device that was attached to your brain is gone. The camera is still in place and I don’t know how it transmits, so the blindfold will remain. But if that device blocked your memories, they should come back to you soon.”

  Asia released a howl and then another.

  Silas laughed.

  Jacques smiled.

  “Be easy, young bitch. I want you healed and whole. Then you can decide what you want to do with your life.”

  Asia stopped howling and sat on the floor. Silas had no idea what she was thinking over his announcement. The room remained silent. He met Jacques' quizzical gaze with a shrug. Asia shifted.

  “I will decide what I will do or where I will go?” Her voice held a measure of uncertainty.

  Silas silently thanked the good doctor . “Yes. You’re here for two reasons. One, you are not well. Two, there are those who would capture or kill you if they could. I don’t believe either of those situations will last forever. Perhaps after a few more healing sessions the camera behind yours eyes will clear up, who knows? I plan to win this war, so those who would harm you will be defeated and you can live free from fear, or at the very least be in a position to defend yourself against your enemies.”

  Jacques nodded at him. Asia may not push the envelope as hard for others, but the promise of freedom was an intoxicating nugget. One he intended to dangle in front of her at every opportunity. He was convinced the secrets to defeating his enemy were stored in her mind; they needed her cooperation to access them.

  “Thank you, Sir. You have given me a lot to think about. And for the first time since…well I cannot remember when, thinking is not painful. Passen gave me a recorder to use as my memories return. I will continue to use it and push harder to wade through the sluggishness of my mind. It always seems as if something important is just on the other side, close but out of reach. As we speak, there are tingles in my head, not unpleasant but different. I hope this is a good sign.”

  Silas recognized the statement for what it was, a need for reassurance. “It is a good sign, your brain is making repairs. The healing energy followed by your shift helped.” Silas stood. “Don’t push it, let your memories return naturally, use the recorder. You should be fine. But if you have any discomfort, shift and call out to me. Your wolf will start healing immediately, but I want to know if there are any adverse affects from removing the device.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  Silas and Jacques left the room, both quiet and locked in their own thoughts. “She was willing to die,” Jacques said softly as they stood in front of the elevator.

  Silas glanced at him. “What?”

  “When you were in her mind healing her. Blood ran down her nose and I called you because she fell over onto the bed. She stopped me from calling you. Her words exactly, 'he is Patron and knows what he’s doing.'” He paused and gazed at the concrete wall.

  “I asked if she were dying, just to gauge her response. She grimaced and said yes. It was obvious she was in a lot of pain but she would not allow me to stop you. That scared me.” Jacques licked his lips. “It was too close to how I felt…with you know.”

  Silas wasn’t sure if being compared to Arianna, the crazy bitch, was a fitting example, but Jacques was talking and that was something he had not been willing to do in a long time.

  “She trusts you implicitly…I do as well…but it was difficult to see. I apologize if the comparison to that woman offends you, I merely used it as a point of reference.” He glanced at Silas, who remained silent.

  Jacques continued. “I am over that, at least I believe I am over the incident. And now… now that the Goddess has allowed me to find my mate, I know it is just a matter of time before that period of my life is a distant memory.” They entered the elevator and Jacques turned to Silas. “I know I am being a nuisance with Victoria. In my defense, I will say I do not trust this Mark fellow. He is always looking around and smiling too big. He acts as though Victoria will disappear if he takes a step back so she can breathe, it’s rather infuriating how he tries to control her every move.”

  Silas hid his smile and nodded.

  “I merely suggested that he take himself for a walk if he wanted to see the gardens, Victoria had already complained of a headache. He took offense and for some reason she did as well. Your mate ushered them into the nursery and I came here.” He glanced at Silas and then looked away. “I’m making a mess of this aren’t I?”

  “Yes, my friend you are. If Mark is an ass, he will be found out, but you cannot be the one to point it out. That’s like saying she cannot chose a good man. I have every confidence that my mate’s mother is as smart as she and will eventually notice you are the better man. But…” He put up a finger when Jacques started to speak.

  “But you have to back off. Let her see you without anger clouding her vision. Be close but not too close. I know you can woo her from a distance, the trick is this…don’t make her so angry she will deny you even if she wants you.”

  Jacques cheeks turned a light shade of red as his eyes widened. “She would do that? But…but we are mated,” he stammered.

  “And she is human.”

  Chapter 18

  Tyrese and Leonidas sat in the small room on the top floor of the hospital, monitoring the halls leading to Julie’s room. So far, a barrage of doctors and nurses had done tests, taken blood, and a number of other things to the woman. Through it all she remained in a state of near stasis. She answered no questions, and if it were not for the blinking of her eyes, Tyrese would think she was dead.

  He hoped this plan worked.

  “How much more blood will they take from her?” Leonidas asked, watching as a male nurse stuck a needle into Julie’s arm.

  “I don’t know, but I doubt she can take much more.” Tyrese watched the nurse secure the blood, but instead of placing the tube with the others on the tray, he stuck it in his pocket. Tyrese jumped up and headed for the door. “Keep watching, open our links,” he yelled at Leon over his shoulder as he headed to Julie’s room. The distance between the surveillance room and her room was the one set-back in the plan. He had to maneuver around slow-moving gurneys and sick people to reach the stairwell. He hopped over the railing twice down to her floor.

  “Where is the nurse?” he asked Leon through their link.

  “He is headed down on the elevator.”

  Tyrese raced down the stairs to the first floor and looked
around. “I don’t see him, did he get off?”

  “He’s changed. He’s wearing black pants and a dark shirt. I don’t see him either.”

  “Damn.”

  “See if you can scent her blood.”

  Inhaling, the faint scent of Julie hit him. He turned and ran toward the parking lot on the other side of the building. He saw a man headed at a fast clip toward a large navy blue suburban and ran after him. The man looked over his shoulder and ran to the truck. Two men, much larger than the nurse, stepped out of the truck from the back seat and ran toward Tyrese as if they were linebackers protecting the quarterback.

  “I can be there in a flash,” Leon said. Adrenaline pumped through Tyrese, preparing him for the confrontation. He had forgotten the other man was still monitoring the cameras.

  “Still need to keep eyes on her in case this is a distraction. Get the license plate number,” Tyrese said as the truck drove off and the first man reached him. Without slowing down, he cocked his fist and slammed it into the oncoming man’s chest with as much force as he could before pulling it back. His fist throbbed at the impact and he stumbled slightly. A loud crack accompanied the punch as the man flew past his companion and bounced on the ground, his hand holding his chest. Tyrese barely had time to catch his breath before the other guy closed in. Inhaling, he watched.

  The other assailant pulled out a gun, aimed and fired. Tyrese jumped up and flipped forward as the bullet whizzed beneath him. His opponent’s eyes followed him and tried to get off another shot. But Tyrese landed to the side, his foot shot out and kicked the hand holding the weapon, sending the gun to land a few feet away. Disarmed, the man charged. If the fight wasn’t so public, Tyrese may have engaged the guy a little longer. It had been a while since he’d sparred with anyone other than his brother. But with one man on the ground, possibly dead, and cameras on the parking lot, he decided to end this immediately. When his assailant closed in, he punched him in the stomach, face, and then got behind the man who was too weak to do anything. Tyrese placed his arms around the man’s neck, and twisted.