Shadow - Dohner Laurann (книги онлайн полностью TXT) 📗

Brass snorted. “A human you attacked is still in surgery. The doctors couldn’t save one of his nuts. You smashed it.”

Shadow remembered the mercenary he’d taken down. He felt no regret. He said nothing.

“I’m surprised they are still alive.” Fury gave him an understanding look. “I would have killed them.”

“Beauty wouldn’t walk out of sight.” He wouldn’t lie. “She’d seen enough violence. I wanted them dead but wasn’t willing to do it in front of her.”

“We’re glad they are alive.” Justice leaned forward. “They know how to locate Douglas Miller. Tim is questioning the ones we captured. Miller’s in Afghanistan. They gave him up easily.”

Brass chuckled. “Bestial might have had something to do with that. He went into the cells with Tim to persuade them to be agreeable. Tim is good at intimidation but not as convincing as an enraged Species male. They tend to believe we’ll eat them alive.”

“True.” Justice hesitated. “We also have a lead on who might be behind the drug given to Moon but they were unsure of exactly how Miller acquired it. We’ll know more once the human is caught.”

Anger filled Shadow. “We don’t have authority to go to Afghanistan.”

“Lucky for us, we know someone already there.” Justice held his gaze. “Jessie has a brother who works for a private security firm that protects American workers. I made a call. He was sympathetic and is assembling a team. It will take some time but Jake will capture Douglas Miller and have him returned to the States. They will hand the bastard over to us just as soon as they are able.”

“I want to be there.” Shadow wanted to personally kill Beauty’s abuser.

“No.” Justice shook his head. “We need him alive. He has to tell us exactly what was done to Moon and tell us where he got the drug.”

“He abused a Gift Female.” Shadow wasn’t about to let it go. He wouldn’t rest until the bastard was no longer a threat to Beauty. “He sent mercenaries into Reservation after her. He’s too dangerous to be allowed to live.”

“He’ll suffer for his crimes but death is not the answer,” Justice growled. “Calm now. The Gift isn’t the only victim he’s harmed. Species were hurt when that team attacked Reservation and Moon is still feral. The drug hasn’t worn off. Every hour that passes harms him more. The doctors and specialists we’ve called in agree on that. They are frantically trying to identify the drug but so far haven’t been able to. None of the treatments are working to calm and return him to his natural state.”

It ate at Shadow’s gut to leave Douglas Miller alive. He didn’t deserve to breathe for what he’d done to Beauty. He’d kept her locked up in chains and forced his body into hers. The more he thought about it, the more enraged he became.

“Easy,” Brass ordered, watching him with concern. “We understand but death is too swift. She suffered endlessly. Why shouldn’t every day he takes breath be hellish? Do you understand? Justice’s mate’s brother will find Douglas Miller. It could take some weeks since it’s pretty bad over there but he will get him. I met Jake when he visited to meet Justice. He’s a tough human with predatory traits. He would fit in with the task force if he wished. You’d like him.”

“I don’t care if I’d like him or not. It’s my right to seek revenge for Beauty.”

Brass’ eyebrows rose. “I see.”

“She’s mine,” he snarled, still furious. “He forced her to submit to sex and hurt her. He named her Mud.” His rage built. “Kept her from sunshine and exposed her to vile humans who threatened her with harm. I don’t want him to suffer. I want him really to be in hell after I take his life.”

Brass slowly stood. “You’ve deeply bonded to her.”

“Yes.” Shadow wouldn’t deny it.

“So fast?” Brass looked skeptical.

“It doesn’t take long,” Justice mused. “Trust me on that, my friend. I spent a few hours with Jessie and she was deeply embedded under my skin.”

Slade grunted. “Or a few minutes. I woke in a hospital after I was freed from Mercile with this angel leaning over my bed. I had her pinned under me in seconds, ready to claim her as mine. I wanted her immediately and I will never stop wanting Trisha. She’s my mate. The attraction was so strong. I almost lost her later though because I didn’t realize she was the same woman when we met again.”

Shadow gaped at him.

“She’d dyed her hair another color and I was pretty drugged at the time. My memories of her were affected.” Slade grinned. “I knew my attraction was unusually strong when I met that mouthy little doctor. I just didn’t put it together until she admitted who she was.”

Shadow pushed the plate away, his appetite gone. “I need to do something.”

“Be with your female,” Justice gently urged. “Trust me on this. That’s the only cure for the rage you feel. Help her heal from the damage done by showing her all the things she missed while in captivity.”

Shadow considered it. He looked at Brass. “Tim wants me to return to the team. I’m needed there but Beauty couldn’t live at headquarters. I can’t go back to working with the task force.”

Brass appeared shocked. “You are implying she’d want to live with you. Are you talking about mating with her? How does she feel about that?”

“We need to talk about it still.” His chest tightened at the prospect of her refusing to accept him on a permanent level. “She admitted I’m the only male she wants. We agreed on not sharing sex with others.”

“Ellie and I have discussed Gifts at length. They are different from our other females who tend to reject settling down with one male,” Fury stated quietly. “They learned to protect themselves against bonding with males to avoid being emotionally crippled when they were taken to different ones for the breeding experiments. But Gifts spent most of their time alone with no bonds at all. They didn’t have an opportunity to form any since only their abusers had access to them. It’s possible she might welcome being mated to a male.” He silently regarded Shadow. “You’re the first one a Gift has wanted to interact with. She must feel strongly for you.”

“Did you share sex with her?” Slade arched an eyebrow.

“I don’t feel comfortable discussing this.”

“It’s relevant and they did share sex,” Justice announced. “Breeze confirmed that privately before I brought everyone into the conference call with her. Breeze stated Beauty handled the experience in a positive light.”

Shadow hated the way everyone smiled at him. “Enough.” It embarrassed him slightly.

“I guess your fears were unwarranted,” Brass teased.

“I won’t discuss it.”

“Do you want to mate her?” Justice crossed his arms over his chest.

“I plan to discuss it with Beauty. I want to.” He took a deep breath. “We’d need housing away from the dorms. I’d want to live next to Wrath and Lauren.”

“Agreed.” Justice picked up his pen.

“I’d like papers drawn up.”

Justice looked up from his notes to stare at Shadow. “We only have them for humans. It’s a legal issue with their rights and to protect them by officially making them Species.”

“Mates have papers.” Shadow refused to back down. “I want it official if Beauty agrees. She deserves to know I’m serious.”

“We could come up with something,” Fury intervened. He smiled at Justice. “Couldn’t we? Ellie has our papers framed in our bedroom.”

Justice grinned back. “We could do that. Jessie hung ours in the office at home.”

“As soon as Beauty is out of danger, I plan to ask.” Shadow reached for the pizza. He should eat.

“Why wait?” Slade paused. “There’s nothing you can do right now. You aren’t returning to the task force since a Gift shouldn’t live at headquarters. There’re too many human males and you’d never want to leave her unprotected around them. It’s hard to work if you refuse to leave your quarters. Douglas Miller will be caught but you won’t be a part of it. Your priority is Beauty.”