Bengal's Heart

◆ CHAPTER 15 ◆

Cassa watched Cabal’s profile several hours later as they made the trek back down the mountain in the all-terrain Raider he was driving.

He was still angry. His profile was hard, his expression cool, and she’d noticed that the amber glitter in his eyes seemed duller. That was rage, because the dark green was more brilliant and seemed alive with the anger surging through him.

Panic had threatened to overwhelm her ever since morning, when she had given Jonas one of the small pills that had been sent to her, and explained just how well they worked. Jonas hadn’t been happy that she had eavesdropped on his conversation with Cabal the night of the Coyote alpha’s wedding reception. Cabal seemed even less pleased with her.

She remembered her first, ill-fated marriage. Whenever Douglas had become angry, she had carried the bruises, sometimes for weeks at a time.

Now, more than a decade later, she was sitting in a vehicle with a lover whose anger swirled in the air around her. There was an edge of fear, uncertainty. She hadn’t allowed herself to ever be placed in a position again where she had to worry about a lover striking her. She was beginning to wonder if perhaps she had bit off more than she could chew with Cabal. If she thought Douglas was dangerous, then her Breed lover was a hundred times more so.

He was angry with her, and what made the situation even more precarious for her was that she wasn’t certain why he was so furious.

Her interruption of his meeting that morning could be the cause, she thought. It had been a rather dramatic entrance. She had taken the pill when she had heard the Raiders advancing up the driveway, not long after Cabal had left the bed.

She’d had every intention of telling Cabal about the drug. It was too dangerous to hold secret for very long. If the Breeds’ enemies got their hands on it, then Sanctuary or Haven, either one, could be breached easily by the Council’s Coyotes and soldiers. No Breed mate would ever know a moment’s security, and every Breed child born would be at risk.

“Your attitude is starting to irk me.” Cassa forced herself to go on the offensive. “If you’re pissed off, then you could do me the courtesy of telling me why.”

He shot her an irate glance. An irate Breed was really rather commonplace, she assured herself.

“You could have warned me about that pill before Jonas arrived,” he pushed between gritted teeth. “And what the hell are you doing risking yourself by just taking some damned drug that an anonymous killer sent to you? Have you lost your mind?” There was the anger. His voice rose with it.

“Don’t yell at me, Cabal,” she ordered him with more bravado than she felt. What she felt was sheer panic. He was angrier than she had first thought. “I took a risk admittedly, but it was one that paid off.”

“It could have paid off with your life.” His hands clenched around the steering wheel as he navigated the mountainous path. “Son of a bitch, Cassa. Did you even think before you did it? Did you even consider the risks?”

She gave a little shrug. “I always consider the risks, Cabal. Whoever sent that drug and the proof of those killings doesn’t want me dead yet. He has something to prove. To the Breeds as well as to me. Killing me wouldn’t serve his purpose quite yet.”

Because the past hadn’t come full circle yet. Cassa knew that. The killer had other plans in store for her, the only question was whether or not she would survive them.

Was it foolhardy? Risky? No doubt. She had admitted that going in. But after more than a decade of doubts, recriminations and guilt, she knew she couldn’t do anything less than see this through now.

She had dropped the ball during the rescue of the German facility where Cabal had been imprisoned. Because of her husband, so many had died. Because she had trusted Douglas to care about the story even though her marriage was failing. And she had been wrong.

Now she had a chance to make certain that this rogue Breed didn’t destroy the Breed community as a whole. She refused to drop the ball on this one. She refused to back down.

“And all you thought of was yourself?” he asked, his voice lowering, darkening.

Cassa gave a bitter little laugh. “Who else should I consider?”

“Friends?” He snarled. “I know you have many of them, don’t deny it.”

She didn’t try to.

“Look, this is my job. It’s my life.” Cassa turned to him, her own anger mixing with her fear. “I weighed the consequences and took the risk. It was my choice to make.”

His lips thinned as he narrowed his gaze at the road. His hands didn’t relax on the steering wheel.

“You knew we were mates when you took it,” he accused. “Did you consider me?”

“Oh yeah, let me think about that one,” she bit out sarcastically. “No, I didn’t consider your opinion of it quite simply because I assumed you really didn’t give a damn. It’s not as though you gave the impression that you were ready for a mate, Cabal. A harem maybe.”

She hated that. The playboy of the Breeds. Or at least he’d been considered one half of a play team before his brother Tanner mated.

She watched as his jaw bunched, and she wondered if his molars were strong enough to stand the force of his teeth gritting together.

“I’ve never had a harem,” he stated angrily.

“Whatever.” Cassa blew out an irritated breath and flicked her fingers in his direction. “You were just fucking your way through the world. I understand.”

And she hated it. The thought of those women touching him, having him, touching those sexy-as-hell stripes while she still had yet to do so made her crazy. She curled her fingers at the thought of touching those oddly colored markings and tried to push past the image of her lips running over them.

A man shouldn’t be this sexy or so damned irritating.

“You don’t understand a damn thing,” he informed her. “If you weren’t constantly running scared, maybe I wouldn’t have felt like an animal chasing a rabbit. You ran from me every chance you had.”

“I simply stood aside to keep from being trampled by the hordes of lusting women,” she bit back acerbically.

But she had been frightened, and she knew it. Frightened of the strength of her desire as well as the past that she feared he would never forget or forgive her for.

“You were scared, just as you’re scared now.” There was a hint of censure in his tone. “When have I ever made you believe I would hurt you, Cassa?”

She was silent at that question. He had never done anything to make her believe he would lay a hand on her. Unless she were the enemy, and then there would be no saving her from him.

God, wasn’t that a cheerful thought, considering the fact that she had been the reason for the worst betrayal of his life and still he hadn’t given any indication of the amount of blame he assigned to her.

“You’ve done nothing to make me believe you would hurt me, Cabal,” she answered wearily. “If you sensed fear, maybe it’s for other reasons.”

“Your husband?” He cast her a brooding look. “That wasn’t in the investigation Jonas had done on you.” She guessed she should congratulate herself for having hidden the abuse she’d suffered so well that no one had guessed. If anyone had suspected, then the Breeds would have had that information. They knew every damned thing. Sons of bitches couldn’t keep their noses out of other people’s lives.

“Then what makes you think it was my husband?” she asked archly.

He grunted at that. A completely feline sound of irritation.

“I read the report on you as well as that of your husband, Douglas Watts,” he informed her. “He wasn’t exactly a prize, Cassa. You could have done much better. Just because there was nothing in there about abuse doesn’t mean it didn’t exist.”

That was no joke.

“But there was nothing in that report about it,” she reminded him.

His hair brushed against his shoulders as he gave his head a quick shake before maneuvering the vehicle onto the main road.

“And you’re being too evasive, that’s answer enough for me.” There was a latent growl in his throat, one that sent shivers of both pleasure as well as dread racing down Cassa’s spine.

“Believe what you want to,” she told him coolly. “There are much more interesting matters in my life right now than a husband long dead. How long do you think it will take Jonas to figure out where that drug came from?”

Thick dark gold lashes narrowed on her as he cast her a quick look before turning his attention back to the road.

“Soon” was the only answer he gave. “Our main concern at this point is to catch our killer. Find him and we’ll find the origin of that drug.”

“Jonas thinks he can control a rogue, doesn’t he?” She could well believe Jonas was that arrogant.

“Jonas thinks he could control the wind if he put his mind to it,” Cabal snorted. “He’s that damned hardheaded. But in this case, he most likely can.”

Cassa shook her head at that thought. “I saw those pictures, Cabal, just as you saw the bodies. That amount of rage can’t be contained. Jonas could end up on the wrong end of a rogue’s fury.”

“He’s been there before.” And from the sound of Cabal’s voice, it hadn’t been any more pleasant then.

Cabal breathed in the scent in the Raider and restrained the need to snarl in anger. He still couldn’t catch her scent or his mark upon her. It enraged him that something so elemental had been restrained within her body. Her scent, so uniquely hers, had been completely wiped away. There was nothing to reassure the animal inside him that she was his, that his scent covered her body. There wasn’t even the scent of arousal to salve that primal need.

Added to that insult was the knowledge that his accusations against Watts were correct and she was still trying to hide it. Watts had admitted to beating her, abusing her. During his interrogation after Cabal’s escape from the hellhole of the pit, Watts had admitted to it. Just as he had admitted that Cassa had known nothing about his betrayal. That he had played her. He had laughed at how eager she had been for that illusion of love, of belonging.

Cabal had wanted to kill him. So many times. So many ways. But forcing the bastard to live was a salve to Cabal’s pride as well. As much as Cabal wanted him dead, this way Watts was actually paying for his crimes rather than resting in peace as it were.

Cassa’s fears were instinctive, and though Cabal understood that, still he couldn’t get past his anger that she would fear him.

He was her mate. He would rather harm himself than harm her. That was more than instinct, that was a part of him. No male could call himself a man if he gained his sense of power from harming those weaker than himself. Especially his woman.

Glancing over at her, he grimaced at the continued lack of scent. It should have lasted only approximately two hours, she had told them that morning. It had been quite a bit longer than that.

He couldn’t smell her, and a part of him needed that connection to her. Removing one hand from the wheel, he reached out to her and enclosed the soft delicacy of her hand as it lay against her thigh.

Her response was a stiffening of her body as the slightest tinge of surprise wafted through the air. She looked from where he clasped her hand back to his face.

“What are you doing?” she asked suspiciously.

“Isn’t this what lovers do?” he asked her as he continued to hold her hand, drawing it from her lap to his hard thigh. “Hold hands.”

She blinked back at him silently. He’d managed to shock her. Damn, he thought he might feel a little pride in that. Cassa rarely allowed herself to be surprised or shocked.

She stared at their hands again, as though uncertain what to say, or how to act. To throw her further off balance, and simply because he enjoyed the feel of her soft flesh, he allowed his thumb to run over her fragile knuckles, to caress and warm her flesh.

A little tremble went through her fingers and raced up her arm. He swore she acted like a woman unused to touch.

“Beginning nearly forty years ago, escaped Breeds were making their way to areas they felt would shelter and protect them. They came here, to Glen Ferris,” he told her softly. “A few, one here, one there, until over two dozen amassed together. Then, about twenty years ago, out of those few, there would be disappearances. Rumor would make it back that the bodies of those missing Breeds had been returned, lifeless, to the Council. There was a hunting party that called themselves the Deadly Dozen, and they were preying on escaped Breeds.”

“Some of those Breeds were sold to Brandenmore Research before being returned to the Council,” Cassa remarked, a tone of relief in her voice. “Since Phillip Brandenmore and Horace Engalls were arrested for crimes against the Breed society, information has begun trickling through linking them to illegal research.”

“Exactly.” Cabal nodded. “Our rogue Breed made his first kill about three months ago, just before Brandenmore and Engalls were caught in Sanctuary attempting to steal Breed medical information. Since then, five others have died, each rumored to be connected to the research and pharmaceutical family.”

Cabal continued to hold her hand, his grip firming each time she tried to draw it free. He found he enjoyed holding her hand, feeling her skin against his, her warmth encased in his.

“It’s obviously a Breed with a grudge,” Cassa pointed out. “A friend or family member lost to the Deadly Dozen. Perhaps a mate.”

Cabal shook his head at that. “A Breed would never wait twenty years to exact revenge against a lost mate. There are few instances of matings before the Breeds revealed themselves. Each time, the Breed left behind went feral and was killed.”

Cassa breathed out roughly. Glancing at her as he drove into Glen Ferris, Cabal took in the light frown between her brows and the concern in her dark gray eyes.

“Myron knows something.” She shook her head as she glanced back at him. “There was something about his reaction to my questions that didn’t sit right. It wasn’t in character. It made me wonder if he didn’t know what was going on here and why.”

She worried about her friendship with Myron, but she worried as well about the Breed community and the killings now taking place. Myron knew something, and that something could mean the difference between catching a killer and the safety of the Breeds.

“He lost his mate here, just before the revelation of the Breeds,” Cabal stated. “A Lion Breed female. She was barely eighteen. She was killed while helping to escort an escaped Breed through the mountains. Nearly a dozen Breeds died that day in the same valley where we found Alonzo.”

“Do you think there’s a connection?” She could feel the connection.

Cabal wanted to believe there was, simply because he needed easy answers.

“A Breed is making these kills,” he told her. “Not a human. Myron might suspect someone, but he’s not the killer.”

“Meaning you’ve already checked on the possibility,” she stated.

Cabal smiled at that. “See how well you know me, Cassa? Mating with you might well be more fun than either of us anticipated. It could get very interesting.”

She rolled her eyes at him.

Cabal had no doubt it was going to get interesting, just as soon as he got her back in the bed. That damned pill was slowly wearing off, and the sweet scent of her arousal was beginning to drift to him. Her arousal as well as the hormonal mark he had left on her body. Finally, the animal inside him could breathe easier.

That pill was dangerous. As Jonas had stated, there wasn’t a Breed alive that was safe from the Council now. There would never be an assurance of safety because they could no longer depend on being able to scent their enemies.

“Where are we going first?” she asked as he turned off the main road onto one of the side roads.

“Sheriff Lacey,” he told her. “Today’s her day off. I called earlier to let her know we were coming by. Her father was one of the leaders of the groups that protected the Breeds around here. She was friends with most all of them. I’m hoping she’ll know something about the group that was killed in the valley. It’s not a coincidence that we found Alonzo’s body there.”

“But no other bodies were found there,” she pointed out. “They’ve been scattered, and Banks’s body still hasn’t been found. Someone had to have seen something,” she mused. “There could be more than just a rogue Breed, but also one or more persons protecting him.”

He’d already checked that angle, just as he’d investigated every Breed in the county. He hadn’t questioned the sheriff enough yet. She might have more information he wasn’t getting from others.

“Lacey seems cooperative,” Cassa ventured carefully.

Cabal almost grinned at the hint of jealousy he could smell now.

“Her family has always protected the Breeds that made it here,” he told her. “She’s an important contact to have.”

But he hadn’t slept with the sheriff. Danna Lacey was cooperative and friendly, but there was a reserved air about her that practically screamed at a man to hold his distance.

Cassa didn’t say anything more. Cabal drove the Raider to the turnoff to Danna’s small house, just inside the forested tree line that surrounded the small town.

The sheriff was waiting at the door, a cup of steaming coffee in her hand as she leaned against the frame and watched them leave the vehicle and move to the house.

She was dressed in jeans and a large flannel shirt, with her hair pulled back into a braid, while her green eyes gleamed with amused interest.

Her gaze flicked to where Cabal recaptured Cassa’s hand after getting out of the Raider. His prickly little mate still wasn’t certain about the affectionate side of the mating she was now involved in.

He’d given up on remaining distant from her. He needed to touch her, needed to hold her.

“Good afternoon.” She greeted them as they stepped up on the porch. “Come on in. I just made a pot of coffee. Decaf if you don’t mind it. My doctor thinks I need to cut my intake of caffeine.” She snorted at the thought.

“Decaf is fine,” Cabal assured her as they moved to the long kitchen table. “Thanks for seeing us on your day off.”

“That’s not a problem,” she assured him. “But I am curious. What do you need to know that it couldn’t wait until I returned to the office?”

Cabal lifted the brown envelope he’d carried from the Raider and laid it on the table before extracting the aerial shot of the valley where H. R. Alonzo had died.

“This valley.” He pointed to the area. “Twenty years ago a pride of Lion Breeds were killed there. What can you tell me about those who were mated?”

Cassa watched as the sheriff moved slowly to the table and picked up the aerial shot. Her expression transformed for the briefest second into lines of pain before she took a deep breath and shook her head sadly.

“There were ten Breeds,” she said as she looked up. “They were headed by Patrick Wallace, an escaped Breed from the UK. He’d banded most of the Breeds together into his pride. He took ten of them that night. The youngest was a little Lion Breed female. She was only eighteen years old but she was one of the fiercest fighters they had.”

Danna moved from the table, poured coffee, then returned with cups for both Cabal and Cassa before she took her seat.

“What was significant about the female?” Cabal asked.

Cassa knew before the sheriff answered, but she listened, and ached at the regret she heard in the sheriff’s tone.

“I was twenty-three myself then,” Danna sighed. “The girl’s name was Illandra. She had just married one of our group’s young men, Myron James.” The curve of her lips was tight with sadness. “They were escorting a Coyote Breed through the forest. He was wounded, too weak to get over the mountain on his own, and they couldn’t risk taking him by vehicle or allowing him to stay in the area. They went on foot instead, thinking they could avoid the Council Coyotes and soldiers that had been sent for them.”

“What made this Coyote so special?” Cabal asked her. “At that time there were few Coyotes that opposed the Council.”

“Maybe that was what made him special,” she stated as she shrugged heavily. “I didn’t know who he was, or why he was there. We rarely did. Patrick was pretty secretive.”

“They were caught in that valley though?” Cabal pressed her.

Danna nodded. “They were caught in the valley by a group of men sent to hunt them. Most of the male Breeds were killed. Illandra and the other female in the group were captured and taken away.”

The sheriff reached out and pulled the picture toward her once again. She sat staring at it as Cassa watched her face. She had obviously known the Breeds who had died there well.

“Illandra was Myron’s mate, you said?” Cassa sked.

Danna looked up, her lips pressing together painfully. “She was so vibrant. She had only just started laughing. Myron would make faces at her, bring her flowers and candy. He was always spoiling her, always trying to make up for the horrors she’d experienced in those labs. He was devoted to her.”

“What about the other female?” Cabal asked. “Was she mated?”

Danna frowned at that. “She was mated to one of the Breeds in the group. He was killed as well.”

“No one survived?” Cabal questioned her again.

Danna smiled sadly. “If anyone survived that night, I would have known about it. My father searched those mountains for months looking for some sign of where they’d been taken. Finally, Illandra’s body was returned to the lab she was created in. We did get word of that. Most of the males were returned as well. From what we later learned, those that never showed up again, there was nothing left of them to return. The group that captured them had sold them to an independent scientist who used most of the body parts for various experiments.”

“Were there any rumors as to who that scientist was?” Cabal asked her.

Danna laughed at that. The sound was hollow and bitter. “Not until recently. There are rumors it was Brandenmore.” She shook her head at that. “He and Engalls kept an elaborate cabin in the mountains, but we had no idea it was being used for anything like that until he was arrested last year by your people. I heard there was a research facility beneath the cabin?”

There had been. Cassa had seen the pictures of the underground lab, and it had horrified her. Not that there had been any proof that Breeds had been tortured there; they had been smarter than that. But the extent of the equipment found there, and its uses, horrified the imagination.

“Danna, have you heard any rumors of vengeance strikes by a Breed against the group of men who attacked the pride that night?” Cabal asked the sheriff then.

Cassa watched the sheriff’s gaze flicker between the photo and Cabal before she frowned back at him. “You think Banks was part of that group? And that he was a killer?” she asked curiously.

She was sharp, Cassa gave her credit for that.

“I know there were rumors that he was a part of the Dozen, but I didn’t take them seriously.” There was an edge of a laugh in her voice. “You didn’t know David Banks then. He was a bully, yes, but he puked at the sight of blood. I don’t think it’s possible.”

Cassa disagreed with her. David Banks would have no more fainted at the sight of blood than Cabal would have. The man had been hard-core evil, despite the compassionate facade he often used.

“We’ve definitely tied him into the Dozen,” Cabal assured her.

Danna’s frown deepened. “You’ve found his body?”

“Not yet, but we will.” Cabal shifted his shoulders as he blew out a hard breath. He pulled the photo back toward him as he lifted the envelope.

“What else do you have there?” Danna leaned forward as the edge of several other photos peeked free at the top of the envelope.

Cabal looked up as though in surprise. Cassa knew better. Breeds were rarely surprised by anything or anyone, especially Cabal.

It was interesting to watch these two together. Beneath her calm facade, Danna was obviously irritated that information was being held back. It was also clear that she was well aware that something was going on in her county. It would be impossible to miss with Banks’s disappearance and the sudden influx of Breeds running around.

Cabal pulled several more photos free of the envelope as Cassa watched Danna’s face. The other woman paled at the sight of the first bloody picture. The features were indistinguishable, but there was no doubt that the victim had been horribly mauled.

It was a photo Cassa had seen herself. It had been in the file that had included the crime scene photos of Dr. Ryan Damron. Where he had been murdered Cassa didn’t know, but she had a feeling it was in the same mountains where H. R. Alonzo had died as well.

“My God,” Danna whispered as she raised shocked eyes to meet Cabal’s. “Who is it?”

“Dr. Ryan Damron,” Cabal said quietly. “Did you know him?”

He pulled free another of the pictures, in which the sheriff could see the body and the ground around the doctor. There was an eyeball by his left shoulder. His tongue had been sliced off and laid on his mauled chest.

“Ryan Damron.” Danna inhaled deeply. “I knew of him. He visited with Brandenmore and Engalls during the summers fairly often. Especially during hunting season.”

Cabal slid the pictures back into the envelope.

“You think he’s tied to David Banks,” she guessed. “Were they both killed by the same person?”

Cabal shook his head at the question as though he were uncertain. “The only tie we have is the fact that the good doctor was missing for several months before we found his body. The kill was fresh. The Bureau received information where the body could be found, and nothing more.”

“And Banks’s body hasn’t shown up either.” Placing her hand on her hip, the sheriff turned away before pacing to the other side of the room.

“I knew Banks,” she sighed. “I didn’t like him much, but I knew him. Damron I was only acquainted with.” She turned back to them, her dark green eyes flickering back to the envelope that held the pictures. “They were both tied to Brandenmore and Engalls though, I do know that.”

“Damron, Banks, Brandenmore and Engalls were all hunting buddies,” Cabal stated. “Do you remember anyone else that hunted with them, or visited with them here often?”

Danna lifted her hand and tapped at her lips with her index finger as she frowned thoughtfully for long moments.

“There were several others,” she finally said. “A police officer, Aaron Washington. A quiet guy, kind of plain. An attorney out of D.C., Elam March, he came in maybe once a year and made a nuisance of himself. There was a sheriff from out west somewhere I think, Jason Douglas. And that damned H. R. Alonzo. He was a pest even then.” She shook her head. “There were others, but I’d have to ask Myron about them. He was more social than I was, even then. He’d know more about Brandenmore’s buddies than I.”

Myron. Cassa felt her stomach sink at Danna’s words. After his reaction yesterday morning to her questions, she was beginning to get a bad feeling that he was more involved in this than she wanted to believe.

“Thanks for your time, Danna.” Cabal rose to his feet as Cassa followed more slowly. “If you think of anything else, let me know.”

“Cabal, what the hell is going on here?” Concern lined the sheriff’s face now. “What was Banks involved in? A Breed wouldn’t wait this long to kill over a murder that took place over twenty years ago.”

“I’m not sure, Danna.” Cabal’s gaze was somber as he watched the sheriff, and Cassa thought perhaps she detected a shadow of regret in his voice. Did he suspect, as she did, that Myron could be involved in the killings?

She didn’t want to believe it, but she’d learned to be suspicious, and she’d learned that even those closest to you could betray you in the worst ways. She and Myron were friends, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t be seeking revenge for a mate that had been murdered and possibly tortured to death.

Danna’s jaw clenched as she gave an abrupt nod, obviously sensing that Cabal wasn’t going to tell her anything more.

“Let me know if I can help you any further then,” she told him. “I’ll keep looking for information on Banks as well. His disappearance is still an open case. There were a lot of people around here that liked him though, so be careful how you ask your questions.”

“Thanks for the advice, Sheriff.” Cabal nodded once again before turning and heading for the door.

“Thanks for the coffee, Sheriff,” Cassa said quietly.

“You’re welcome, Ms. Hawkins.” The sheriff’s voice was stiff now, concern lining her expression as Cassa turned away from her and followed Cabal out of the house.

As she stepped into the chilly air and felt his warmth next to her, she had to restrain a shiver of sudden need.

She wanted to keep her mind on this investigation; she wanted to find the killer whose acts might destroy the Breeds and learn why he’d committed such destruction on the bodies of his enemies. What was driving him, and who was he? A Breed or someone intent on destroying the Breeds?

The need to understand drove her to try to answer the questions roiling through her mind. But another need was beginning to burn through her as well.

The need for her mate.