Abandoned (17 page)

“The Romulus?” Steven jumped to his feet. He leaned forward.

J.T. cringed back into the couch cushion. “Yeah. That’s what they called themselves.”

Steven ran a hand though his hair. This nephew of his was oblivious to many things. Steven needed to get a grip on himself and let the boy finish the tale. “I’m sorry. You shocked me. Please continue.”

“I spent most of my time living in their main bunker. I’d say they were molding me. Now that I think back, they may have even been the ones to kill my parents. That idea began to enter my mind years ago. But I didn’t have any place else to go. And I hoped it was just my imagination.

“Why would they kill my parents and then take me in? It didn’t make sense. Unless they needed bodies and they thought a seventeen-year-old boy living a rogue life was the perfect kind of shifter to fill a vacancy in their strange hierarchy.”

“You lived with the Romulus for seven years?”

“Yes. Except when they placed me somewhere else and gave me a job.” J.T. cringed. “That’s why I’m here. I left my last assignment without informing them and went out on my own. They kept calling me on my cell and demanding I return to the fold. Eventually I realized whatever they were doing was huge and dangerous. They couldn’t risk losing me and having me tell anyone everything I knew.

“I know my father ran off to be on his own when he was just a kid, but he was like a hippy, I guess you would say. A mountain man. He didn’t mean anyone any harm. He just didn’t want to live in society. He was a good man. And so was my mom. They raised me to be respectful and polite.

“When I was a kid, they told me about you on many occasions and had me memorize your address in case I ever needed anything. I’d say I need something pretty bad right now. I’m scared out of my mind that these guys from the Romulus are going to hunt me down and kill me. And I’m sure my fate will be worse than that if they find out I contacted a member of The Head Council.”

Steven took a deep breath. He couldn’t believe this was happening. “What was your last assignment?”

“Right. That’s part of why I’m here. These guys are conducting some sort of experiments at their main bunker. Medical experiments. And they have a lot of test subjects. Most are volunteer, but I now realize not all of them are. They placed me at a cabin in the woods to guard a woman for over a year.”

“Who?”

J.T. cringed. “Her name is Allison. That’s all I know.”

Steven bit his cheek. “Go on.” He needed to be patient and get every piece of information he could from his nephew.

“She was about my age. A tiny sweet blonde who clearly came from wealth. Not someone on the run who’d been living rogue like other people who come to the Romulus. Allison had been kidnapped. They told me it was for her own good and to guard her and make sure she didn’t escape.

“I had grown leery of the Romulus by then, but I was afraid they would kill me or at least toss me out on my ass with nothing if I didn’t do as they said. So I guarded that poor girl for the last year. We barely had enough to eat and never anything very good.

“Hell, the Romulus was probably trying to keep me weak also to ensure I was malleable. I hated that job. I couldn’t even bring myself to speak to the girl because I didn’t want to befriend her in any way. It made me sick
,
though. And the Romulus were drugging her. Using her for a test of some sort. They left me pills to give her
,
and sometimes they took her to their main bunker for more tests.”

J.T. dipped his head. “I’m afraid in my efforts to keep her alive, I may have caused her death.”

“How was that?” Did J.T. not know Allison was alive?

“I knew it was wrong. I knew everything I’d done for years was on the wrong side of the tracks. It kept getting clearer to me. I stopped giving Allison those drugs. I buried them in the woods instead. But that probably only made things worse, because she wasn’t responding the way the Romulus wanted
,
so they grew tired of her.

“When they called and told me she was useless to them, I was relieved, thinking I’d succeeded. But then they lowered the bomb and told me I had to kill her.”

Steven gasped. “They told
you
to do it?”

J.T. nodded. “There was no fucking way I was going to kill anyone. Ever. It was bad enough what I’d done in the first place, keeping her there. So I locked her in a closet like I always did when I was away and ran. I shifted and left the state so fast there was no way anyone could track me.

“At first I didn’t know what to do. I just kept moving and worrying about Allison. When I wouldn’t answer my cell, the Romulus started texting me. Threatening me eventually when they realized I’d gone rogue and then promising to kill me when they found out Allison had escaped and not been killed. I hope to God she’s okay.”

“She is.”

J.T. flinched. “You know that?”

He nodded. “There are a lot of things I know, J.T. But what I need from you is every single detail of the last seven years so that we can track these bastards and put an end to whatever they have going on. It’s dangerous and threatening the entire shifter species.”

J.T. flopped his head back on the couch and stared at the ceiling. “I will tell you everything I know. I’m just sorry it took me so damn long to break from them and run. I was naïve and stupid.”

“Well, you’re here now. And I’ll get you to a safe place where the Romulus can’t find you. But I will tell you now, you can expect to spend every waking hour of your life filling us in on everything you know until you may wish you’d just stayed rogue.”

J.T. shook his head. “If I can be of any help saving anyone, I’ll do everything I can.”

“Good. I’m glad you came to me. And I’m sorry to hear about your parents and everything else that has happened to you. You’ve gotten a bad rap in this life. I hope we can get you straightened out so that the rest of your life is on track.”

•●•

“What the fuck happened, Henry?” The voice of Henry’s superior was shrill.

“I’m not sure, sir. I sent two men in to retrieve Allison. We knew exactly where she was located on the ranch property. They didn’t return.” He cringed. The man was going to freak.

“That’s it? Just, they didn’t return?” His voice grew louder. Wherever he was, the entire area would be able to hear him screaming at Henry.

Henry swallowed. “That’s all I know.”

“Well get your spy back the fuck in there and find out what’s going on.”

“Already sent him, sir. I’m waiting to hear back from him.”

“Is this guy reliable?”

“Yes, sir. Definitely.”

“More reliable than the two assholes you sent for the retrieval?”

Henry didn’t get to respond to that question because the line went dead. His boss had hung up on him again.

Henry tossed his cell on the table and ran a hand through his hair. If he didn’t get this mess cleaned up pronto, his boss was going to have him hanged. Perhaps literally.

He stood and paced the room. Waiting to hear back from Tarson this time was going to turn him prematurely gray. The guy was a follower
,
and Henry trusted him implicitly. But he didn’t trust the bastards on that ranch. He feared the worst with regard to the two men he’d sent in to capture Allison.

They’d either been captured or killed. And sending Tarson back to get another look had been Henry’s only viable option.

Allison leaned on the top of the stall, watching Daniel brush Sadie. It was mesmerizing watching him work. When Daniel was in business mode, he was all serious
,
stern man, but when he was devoted to the animals or Allison, he was soft and gentle. Her heart beat a fast rhythm. She was falling in love with him hard and fast.

Daniel lifted his gaze to hers. “Are you okay? I know it was hard on you seeing your parents off this morning.”

“Yeah. It wasn’t long enough, but obviously any aspirations I had of returning with them were shot to shit when you came along.” She grinned at him.

Daniel eased over to stand face to face with her, the wooden gate the only thing between them. He kissed her lips leisurely. “Mmm. Hope I can make it worth your while,” he muttered as he stepped back. “I promise we will visit them first chance we get.”

“I know.” She fiddled with the rough wood, picking on a sliver sticking out.

Most of the other families had left today too. A few were leaving tomorrow. All of the women were staying. Allison expected them to prefer to return to their homes and be with their families, but in the end that hadn’t been an option.

Allison was the only one who didn’t move into the bunkhouse with the others. And Daniel hadn’t let her out of his sight for over twenty-four hours. She wasn’t stupid. She just wished Daniel would tell her what was going on himself instead of her having to ask. He hadn’t spoken to her about anything of consequence since he’d wandered off to speak with Evan.

He cooed at Sadie and then stepped from the stall. “Ready?”

“Sure.”
For what? More following you around the ranch doing odd jobs that can’t possibly be as helpful as you insinuate?

Daniel entwined his hand with hers
,
and she walked alongside him toward the exit. They wandered slowly toward his house.

“When are you going to tell me what’s going on?”

“With what?” he asked, glancing at her briefly, just long enough for her to see his eyes widen. He didn’t meet her gaze, which told her there was definitely something happening.

She yanked her fingers free of his and stopped walking, forcing him to turn around and meet her stare. She pursed her lips.

Daniel sighed. His shoulders slumped
,
and he toed at the dirt with one boot. “I’m sorry. I’ve been trying to protect you.”

“From what? I’m a grown woman, Daniel. I deserve to know anything that concerns me. And I strongly suspect all the women aren’t staying here for a long-term visit just to attend counseling sessions and bond together in sorrow. Do you think we’re still in danger?”

He lifted his face, thankfully giving her that. “I don’t know.”

“But you suspect?”

“Yes.”

“Based on what?”

“Information we’ve gathered from the guards who were caught about who they worked for and why.” Daniel stepped toward her and set his hands on her shoulders. “I really don’t want you to have to worry. The ranch is safe.”

“Is that why there are so many more NAR members here? Because you think it’s super safe? Daniel, be straight with me. I deserve to know everything you know. It’s my life on the line. Obviously someone is after me.” A chill raced down her spine to say that out loud. “I’m clear on that. Do you think the other women are just as at risk?”

He shrugged. “We don’t know.”

She lifted an eyebrow, making him shake his head.

“No. I don’t think anyone is as at risk as you. Happy?”

“Of course not.” She shook herself free of his grip on her shoulders. She glanced around, noting the various Reserves lurking everywhere.

Daniel reached for her again
,
and she stepped back. “They make me nervous. Please tell me you won’t enlist.” She stared at him, praying he wasn’t a fighter. But she didn’t know him well enough yet to be sure of that. She’d seen him fight in wolf form. And he owned a gun. But he hadn’t mentioned teaching her to use it since that night. For that she was grateful.

Daniel didn’t say a word. He turned toward the cabin, grabbing her hand and tugging her along at a quicker pace.

Allison gritted her teeth, fear climbing up her spine to stiffen her back. He was thinking of joining. She could tell by his reaction. Could she stop him? And was that even a good plan if his heart was set on enlisting?

They reached the front porch and entered silently. Daniel led her to the sofa and sat, pulling her alongside him. “We need to talk.”

She didn’t move. She let him hold her hand, and he jiggled it loosely in his grasp as though weighing it.

“I enlisted with NAR a year ago, baby.” He paused and looked her in the eye.

She gasped.

“When you mentioned your aversion at breakfast the other day, I didn’t want to say anything in front of our parents.”