Hale

Chapter Seven

Paige stared at Evan Dennis, unable to tear her eyes away. He looked so frail. Her beast felt an immediate need to protect him, while the human part of Paige tried to deny the connection she hadn't expected to feel.

They sat across from each other in his study in two leather chairs facing a coffee table. A box of photographs sat between them. Paige gripped the one of her mother smiling and patting her rounded stomach. The woman had been beautiful, her joy shining through to the camera.

“I do believe Elliot loved your mother, at least at first. I met her when they'd first started dating.”

“So you and Elliot were close?” She couldn't bring herself to call Elliot her father, even in front of Evan.

“No. Sadly, though we shared the same mother, we didn't grow up together.

Thomas Pearl was a cold bastard of a man. He seduced my mother to produce Elliot, then forced her to give up her child. I won't go into the details, but he nearly destroyed her. A few years later, she met my father and found happiness for a brief time, until he died. My mother was a wonderful woman. She encouraged my study in science because I was drawn to it, just like Elliot.

“We met when I entered college in my early teen years. Apparently, a keen intellect runs in the family,” he said with a sigh. “Both of us possess—possessed—high IQs. We became friends, of a sort. But Elliot was such a hard man to know. I felt sorry for him.”

“What about his mother? I know Elliot grew up with a woman he called mother.”

“His stepmother had too many charities to oversee. Appearances meant more to her than her stepson. So Elliot grew up basically unloved and unappreciated. Until he showed his true genius. Genetics became his religion. Eager to prove my worth to the man Elliot loved so much, I too studied hard. It was easy to fall into the excitement of science. Hypotheses, the big 'what-ifs' of the world, drew Elliot and me closer.

“Then he met your mother, and we drifted apart again. We corresponded throughout the years, but we were each involved in our own projects. It took me by surprise when he asked me to work with him on Project Dawn.” Paige understood more now. “So you and he really weren't close. I heard rumors about the original Project Dawn. How you would disagree with him. How you were jealous of his successes.”

Doc laughed. “Jealous? Hell, I gave Elliot most of the credit for work I did. I didn't want the limelight. I just wanted the science. He gloried in all the talk, the back patting and political nonsense needed to acquire funding. I just wanted to work.

“But when I caught wind of some of his methods, what he intended for the project…I couldn't blindly agree. Using human beings as guinea pigs, when he knew there would be adverse side effects, was just wrong. Especially because most of those men had no idea of what was really done to them. Hell, I didn't even know until the fallout hit.” Doc shook his head and removed his glasses. He cleaned them with the hem of his shirt. As she stared at his eyes, she saw a glimmer of Elliot there. “But Project Dawn isn't what you asked about. You wanted to know about your mother. My dear, she was beautiful. A genuinely caring woman. She was a reporter, you know. Had quite a nose for news. That was how they met. She did a report on his postgraduate work.

Love at first sight.”

“Was it?”

“I thought so at the time.” Evan put his glasses back on and gave Paige a sad look.

“Elliot was so excited when your mother found out she was pregnant. He didn't want anything to hurt her or the baby, so he took her away to a villa in Europe. She was there to relax, he said. I tried to talk to her several times after she'd left the States, but he stopped allowing her phone calls, claiming reminders of home stressed her too much.”

“Allowing her calls?”

“I know. It worried me. Especially when no one could get in touch with her, not even her own mother. Then came the news that she had died, and Elliot seemed so hurt, so lost. He told us you'd died in the womb, Paige.” Evan pursed his lips, his voice roughening with anger. “He lied to us. And I wish to God I could say he had nothing to do with her death, but I'm not sure. Not anymore. He did so many terrible things, but he was so alone. He never let anyone close. But I tried to be there for him. I tried, and I failed.” Doc stared at her, grief stricken. “And now he's gone.”

“Yeah.” She told herself she wasn't going to cry. Elliot Pearl wasn't worth her tears. “I grew up with a foster family on the West Coast. I used to see him a few times a month at first. They never told me why he'd given me into their care.”

“Were they kind?”

“They weren't cruel.” She shrugged. “Things could have been worse. There were no cookies and hugs. No birthday parties or Christmases. But I had friends. I think Elliot wanted me to grow up in what he considered a normal environment, to see if I could blend in with 'humans.'”

“I'm sorry, Paige,” Evan said quietly.

“It's okay.” She hated that she still longed for someone to love her. No one but Robbie had ever shown her so much affection. Her friends were fine, but they never knew the real her. And after elementary school, she'd retreated into herself, not comfortable with people as a whole. “Like I said, I wasn't abused. I received an education, even a degree from Princeton. I never put it to use because my job, according to Elliot, was to assist him in scientific research. Once I finished school, the few tests they used to give me when growing up turned into extensive physical and mental exams. Like being a living pincushion for a mad scientist,” she tried to joke.

She forced herself to bury the memories of watching those poor creatures nearly kill themselves to get to her in the dark depths of Elliot's second home—Pearson Labs.

“So you were never given shots growing up? Never given odd medicines or vitamins?”

“No. Elliot was very careful that I only ate healthy foods. No junk foods, no pills or medicines of any kind. Not that I ever needed any,” she murmured, thoughtful.

Evan looked troubled. “Paige, you've never changed, have you? You know what that means?”

“I do. And no, I've never changed. I'm totally normal. Well, mostly. In the last few years, I seem to have developed several Circ traits that you wouldn't know about unless I told you.”

“Like?”

“I'm pretty strong. I can see, hear, and smell better than most people I know.” She debated whether to tell him the rest but felt a need to confide in him. It felt right. “And I can control the Circs sometimes. The mutants and I seem to have a special bond, I guess you could say.”

“How so?”

“I don't know how to explain it, but I can release a certain scent, and they do what I tell them. That's how I've avoided them for so long since my escape from Pearson Labs.”

“Your father actually imprisoned you there?” Evan asked, horrified.

That Evan seemed more passionate about her imprisonment than her abilities soothed a knot of tension she hadn't realized was building. “Elliot never physically imprisoned me. I had a home away from that horrible place. But he threatened to incarcerate me there if I didn't do what he said. You've seen the men working there. I didn't think I had much choice.”

“My God, you really are Subject 31, aren't you?”

“How do you know about that, anyway? I thought Elliot's files were totally secure.”

“I read things he didn't know I had access to. Elliot was proud of your accomplishments. He thought you were the future of the Circs. But he said you needed tweaking. He said you were too undisciplined, too willful.” Evan smiled at her, and she smiled back. “At least he had the sense to protect you from the…unpleasantness there.”

“You mean from the beatings, rapes, and torture imposed on the rogues.” He shifted and glanced away from her, his voice a mere whisper. “Yes. A few months ago when I found out I had a niece and that you were one of Elliot's subjects, I was terrified of what he'd done to you. I still am, if you want the truth.”

“Hey, I'm still alive. And I'm here.”

“You can't know how happy I am about that.” Evan gave her a tremulous smile. It slowly died. “There's something else you should know. There's danger out there for you, Paige. From all that I've studied since I realized you were, in fact, alive, it seems Elliot had specific plans for you.”

“For his breeding program. I know.”

“You know?” Evan stood and began pacing. “I wish Elliot were here right now, so I could wring his neck. To treat his own daughter like this… I think it's highly likely that he took your mother away because he wanted her to die. Miranda would never have agreed to what he did to you, Paige. From what you've told me, I believe you were born a Circ. Elliot must have infected your mother, which is how you came to have so many abilities without the problems the Circs in Project Dawn had.”

“So how is it your guys are still okay? I mean, from what I know, Circe's Recruits are the only surviving members of the original project.”

“I have some ideas, but honestly, I'm not sure why the squad survived the initial failure of the project. But they're not the only ones, you know. Caitlyn is like you. She was born a Circ. Kelly was injected with the serum at a young age. And Sabrina recently became Circ, saved from madness by Derrick, her mate. We're a special group here Paige. Like you.”

And McKinley, she thought but didn't say.

“Paige, if you don't mind my asking, how did Elliot realize you'd turned Circ?

What was it that first alerted him to your abilities? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. But I have to admit, what you've described doesn't seem to mirror what Caitlyn went through. Elliot had worked with her since she was born. She'd exhibited Circ traits right after puberty.”

“I don't know about that.” Interesting. Paige had an urge to talk to Caitlyn and the other women, to see what they thought about the men here and about their experiences with Elliot. Her instincts told her that she could learn a lot about herself among those of a like nature. She could be safe here…with Hale.

Shaking off the worrisome thought, she hurried to explain herself to Evan. “I lived a pretty normal life up until the last five years. Before then, in Elliot's eyes, I was normal. A failure. So he left me alone, until I matured and got careless. I was twenty-three when I made a big mistake. I'd just started to notice subtle differences. I'd become really strong. Small scratches healed within minutes, never leaving a scar. My senses exploded, like I could smell my roommate's perfume minutes before she walked through the door.

“I kept it to myself. I knew Elliot would want to know about it, and it made me feel good to keep that news to myself. It would have pissed him off, big-time.”

“Oh, yes,” Evan agreed.

“I'd begun dating a nice guy at the office where I worked. I'd never been very interested in the opposite sex, but Simon was nice, handsome, and fun to be with. Until one night when he wouldn't take no for an answer. I put his face through my front door.”

“Good Lord.”

“You said it.” Paige smiled, comfortable enough with him to share parts of her past. She still didn't understand why she felt so at ease with him—a virtual stranger—

but he seemed to genuinely care that she'd been mistreated. He knew all about Circs, so she didn't have to hide the truth of what she was. And he'd known her mother. The picture she still held in her hand was priceless.

Evan grimaced. “Let me guess. Elliot had you spied on.”

“Yeah. By my boyfriend, it so happened.” She shook her head, annoyed she hadn't seen that one coming. Then again, she'd been so out of her mind with lust at the time, she would have nailed anything that moved. She'd been a late bloomer. With no interest in sex, she'd resisted a ton of dating requests. Then she'd met Simon and dated him more to fit in than because she'd wanted male companionship. During the course of their courtship, her libido began a strange rhythm, turning her almost insane with lust. Which made her beast's rejection of Simon so confusing. When he'd refused to back off, her inner beast had reacted. Badly.

“I'm so sorry.” Evan reached out as if to touch her. But he kept his distance and put his hands in his pockets.

“It was a long time ago.” But the betrayal still hurt. “Elliot had watched the whole thing. He was pretty angry when he learned I'd been keeping things from him. I think my only saving grace is that he feared hurting me would hurt his research. After that, he kept me tied to his experiments. I wasn't a prisoner in the labs, even though I was.”

“I understand. Elliot could be devious to get what he wanted.” Understatement of the year.

“How did you escape?”

“I had help. A friend of mine made sure guards looked the other way when I left.

A lot of computer files disappeared, but enough apparently remained if you knew about Subject 31. I've managed to stay off the labs' radar for nearly a year. All in all, it's not a great life. But I'm free.”

“Unless the PPA finds you and brings you back,” he guessed.

“There is that.” She wondered if he'd suggest she stay here. Or if she should take part in his own experiments with Circe's Recruits. A part of her wanted him to offer her the choice, while another knew it would only make him seem more like Elliot. Using Paige to further science. The story of her life.

“Paige, I want you to know how sorry I am I didn't save you myself.” She hadn't expected that. “How could you? You didn't even know about me.”

“I knew your mother was in some kind of trouble. I should have paid better attention.” He smiled, and in that moment, she could readily believe that he cared about her. Amazing. “Paige, I know we don't know each other, but you're my niece. Whatever I have is yours, no strings attached. If I can help you in any way, just name it. I'm not like your father. Everyone who's here, right now, on this compound, is here because they want to be. I won't practice medicine on the unwilling, and I don't play God with people's lives.”

She watched him, captivated by the commanding tone of his voice that hadn't been there before.

“The people here are my family. But you, Paige, are blood. I can help you deal with the Circ side, if you want me to, and only if you want me to. You can live here or anywhere else I have a home, and I have several. We can protect you from Pearson Labs until we finally bring them down. It's been slow going, but I have no doubt what the end result will be.”

“So you're trying to destroy Pearson Labs?”

“When I left them years ago, I pledged myself to help the men affected by the Circe serum. My men are good people. We've taken care of many of Elliot's mistakes, and we've been trying like hell to bring Pearson Labs down. They have contacts that are difficult to uncover. Sabrina brought us some files that have been instrumental in helping us. But there are a few mystery people in the organization who might give us trouble.”

“Like who?” She wanted to help Evan destroy the labs. Hell, it was her sole mission in life.

“Do you know who's in charge? I've been hearing that it's a top government official, but security there is incredibly tight.”

“That I don't know. But I've seen Senator Kuntz at the labs. I know he and Elliot never got along, so I thought it odd that a United States senator had anything to do with Pearson Labs after Project Dawn disbanded years ago.” Evan started. “Senator Richard Kuntz?”

“He's the only bigwig I know.”

“Kuntz,” Evan said again. “Well, well.” He studied her with a smile. “I can tell this is going to be a productive day.”

“I think so.” She wouldn't trust him completely, not just yet. But she'd definitely thawed in her attitude toward her uncle. “So, um, would it be okay if I called you Evan?

Uncle Evan seems a little childish. Or do you prefer Doc?” He smiled. “Either is fine. I'm just happy to have you here to call me anything.” He crossed to her and waited while she stood. Then he shocked her by stepping into her personal space. He moved slowly, giving her every opportunity to rebuff him, but she didn't. He pulled her close. She was a few inches taller than the slight man, but the powerful comfort in his hug brought tears to her eyes. “I'm so glad you're okay, Paige.

So very, very glad.” He quickly stepped back, his eyes glassy and his cheeks flushed.

“Now tell me. What would you like for breakfast, Niece? I don't know about you, but I'm positively starving.”

McKinley waited and watched. It was late afternoon, and still no sign of Paige.

Several of Circe's Recruits had come and gone. Roane Weston and Derrick Packard had just left in a dark SUV. A pregnant Kelly Malloy walked between her mates into a smaller house behind the main one. Caitlyn Chase, Hale Rogers, and Doc remained unaccounted for. Now might be the ideal time to check the main house. He could handle two Circs and one older scientist without too much trouble.

Just as he rose from his crouch in the woods surrounding the small compound, Paige walked out of the main house with Doc by her side. Relieved, he hid himself again. Paige grinned at something Doc said. Evan Dennis glowed. He looked as if he'd just been handed a gift, and with the introduction to his niece, he had.

At least Paige seemed safe and happy. Doc guided her toward another smaller home next to the one Kelly and her mates had disappeared into. They walked onto a covered porch. The door opened, and Paige spoke softly to someone inside. He listened hard. The name Caitlyn rang a bell: Roane's mate. As soon as he thought about the picture he'd once seen of her, a splitting headache assailed him. Immediately, he centered himself and focused on breathing.

Shit. He hadn't had one of these attacks in years. Standing on enemy soil left him vulnerable in more ways than one. He didn't need to lose his faculties now. Swearing to himself, McKinley decided to make good use of his time.

He shook off his headache and quickly loped in the direction of the main house.

Having earlier disabled Doc's piss-poor security system, he moved along the grounds and entered the house without setting off any audible alarms. He wasn't sure about the whole of the interior, however, so he had to move fast.

A quick study of the house showed him an open floor plan. A large kitchen overlooked a family room on one side and a dining area on the other. A doorway to the left led to a hallway, which he entered. There, he cautiously allowed himself to open his senses.

The scent of Hale Rogers stood out, and he followed it, unable to help himself.

When the corridor branched off into another hallway, he stayed the course. Down the hallway and up the steps, past a second floor to the third. The damned house was huge, and this level had three doors.

He smelled traces of Packard and Sabrina at one doorway. Past that, he noted a bathroom, and then another closed door that smelled like vanilla and made him instantly hard. He twisted the knob quietly, tense because he knew what he'd find.

Opening the door, he took in the dim room before him with Circ eyes, narrowing on the unmoving figure in the middle of a king-size bed.

Closing and locking the door behind him, McKinley moved on autopilot. His beast quickly seized control as he stared at Hale Rogers, soundly sleeping. His dick hardened to the point of pain, and McKinley studied the male, wondering what to do next. His beast wanted to fuck Rogers, to take what it thought it owned. McKinley fought for control, clenching his fists tight as his claws lengthened and bit into his palms.

Where the hell was this hunger coming from? Apparently, his forays into rough sex the night before had been for naught. His balls ached, his shaft twitched, and it was all he could do not to flip Rogers over and mount him like a dog in heat.

Sweating, McKinley wiped his forehead and took advantage of Rogers's state of unconsciousness. A blanket covered him from his waist to his feet, exposing a broad, muscular chest and meaty arms. Though smaller in size and build than McKinley, Rogers still would tower over most humans. And he’d fit Paige just right. Confused that instead of the jealousy he should have felt, his desire increased, McKinley tried to step back, but his beast wouldn't let him.

Lust consumed him once more, and McKinley concentrated on observing, not touching, as he itched to do. What the hell was it about this man that grabbed McKinley by the balls and wouldn't let go?

Rogers had sandy-colored hair, a shade darker than Paige's. He kept it cut short, framing a hard face. Women would find him handsome. McKinley found him…intriguing. In sleep, Rogers looked softer, more human. Though McKinley had yet to see Rogers in his other, changed form, he knew he'd find Rogers appealing.

And that bothered the hell out of him. He would have preferred women if given a choice. The only reason he'd had sex with men up to this point was because he didn't have it in him to harm a smaller female. The large men he used could tolerate pain as well as dish it out. He couldn't imagine trying to ram himself inside a smaller female like soft, sexy, desirable Paige.

He loved her so much. Everything about her called to him. Why then, did he feel the same pull for this male? And why had it felt so right to give Paige into his keeping?

Knowing what he did about General Kohl's fondness for Doc, McKinley should have insisted that Paige stay with him. Yet he'd all but pushed her into Rogers's arms, guided by the need to protect, by instinct.

Frustrated, he sat in a chair facing the bed and studied this enemy, who was not, exactly, an enemy. All the while, his body hungered, throbbing for release.

He'd come to check on Paige and reassure himself about Circe's Recruits. Paige seemed safe here, and she'd finally met her uncle. A sense of closure, in some respects, but also a chance at a new beginning. One thing McKinley could say about Doc, he took care of his Circs. They didn't suffer for anything with him around. From everything Diego had told him, Doc considered them family.

“Mmm, yeah,” Rogers murmured. He shifted in the bed and released a torrent of pheromones into the air. The blanket over Rogers seemed to grow—right between his legs. McKinley stood and took several steps toward the bed, like a puppet on strings.

He watched in horror as his hand lowered to Rogers's chest. The feel of such tough yet smooth skin burned into him, and he drowned in desire.

Rogers took him by complete surprise. In seconds, he turned from dead to the world to violently aggressive, shoving McKinley across the room into the wall. Shocked he hadn't seen that coming and dazed by Rogers's brute strength, McKinley needed a moment to get his bearings. When he looked at Rogers again, he found a beast only a head shorter than himself. Darker skin covered the creature staring at him with glowing green eyes. Rogers's hair had thickened and lengthened, and he resembled a barbarian of old clothed in nothing at all.

McKinley growled with need, frustration, and sheer hunger. This male belongs to me. This male I can take. He looked forward to burying his cock in that ass, to even taking that thick, dusky shaft in his own mouth.

“McKinley. I knew you'd come.” Rogers growled and flexed his arms, his biceps tight with packed muscle. His cock rose, as large as McKinley's. So powerful, this Circ wouldn't break easily, if at all. The notion overjoyed him.

“I saw Paige. She seems well.”

“She's good.” Rogers opened and closed his fists, showcasing lethal claws. When he spoke, his fangs appeared, and the thought of him biting into McKinley's flesh made McKinley quiver with desire. “Excited to see me?” Rogers nodded at McKinley's obvious arousal.

The jeans he wore didn't disguise his massive hard-on straining at the seams. “I should ask you that.” McKinley licked his lips, delighted by Rogers's scowl.

“Fuck it. You came here for more than a fight. I can smell it.” Rogers cupped his balls and stroked himself. “We both know you owe me for that psychic bullshit from before. Hell, I'll call it even. You want it? Come suck it.”

“I'll take what I want, when I want.” McKinley felt the familiar desire and anticipation he'd felt the other night. In the park, when they'd started toward each other, his beast hadn't wanted to hurt Rogers. He'd wanted to play with him, to demand a show of strength. “You owe me one, Rogers. Bend over the bed, and I promise not to hurt you.”

Rogers bared his fangs and smiled. Lust uncurled in McKinley's body, his sole intention to conquer and claim this male, his male. And then Rogers hit him full force, and the fight was on.