Bite (Bloodlines Book 1) (18 page)

It was difficult to keep from hitting the man in front of him. The human who’d been like a father to him. “You mean I’d have given up what you wanted me to be.”

“No.” Caspar moved fast for a human and grabbed Kieran’s hand. “I cared for you. I’d taken you in, taken care of you and didn’t want to lose you. If you’d have left, there is no telling what would have happened to you. I didn’t want to have to hunt you one day.”

Kieran’s hand shook where Caspar grasped it. He wanted to believe so bad but he just wasn’t sure.

“K?” Dakota stepped up to his side, and he was so fucking relieved that he reached for her in front of everyone, not even caring if it made him look weak. She allowed him to wrap his arm around her shoulder. “Why don’t we sit down so we can talk about this?”

“Talk about what?” Dean asked. “And why are you here? You don’t need to get involved in this.”

Kieran snarled at Dean for talking that way about Dakota.

“Wait!” Caspar held up a hand. “Dakota is right. We should all sit. I think we do need to discuss things. That’s why you brought us all together, isn’t it?”

Kieran nodded.

“Okay.” Caspar dropped his hand and strolled into the living area.

It took a few moments but Dean finally followed his uncle.

Kieran turned to Dakota. He didn’t want to say anything in front of the others but he hoped his eyes told her how grateful he was for her presence. The smile she gave him was beautiful and he knew she understood what he couldn’t say. Then she led him back to the couch.

Caspar sat in the other chair while Dean joined Remy at the wall. Kieran sat and made sure that Dakota was close to his side.

“It’s time I know everything,” he said. “And I want the truth.” Kieran made sure to meet every single person’s gaze except for Remy’s and Dakota’s. When they’d all nodded, he sat back.

“Where would you like to begin?” Caspar asked.

“No place better than the beginning,” Kieran stated firmly.

Dakota was so proud of Kieran and how he was handling everything. There’d been a couple of minutes where he’d faltered, and she was glad that she’d been able to be there to keep him grounded.

“I’m not sure where the beginning starts for you,” Caspar admitted.

“How about the mission that brought you to finding me,” Kieran said.

It had taken hours but she’d stumbled on some unsealed files that were to do with the Mount Fauna investigation. It had been the last active case that Caspar had worked.

Caspar glanced toward Jackson. “I can’t talk about that.”

Jackson snorted. “Like I haven’t had someone hack into your files and don’t already have every detail from everything written about it.”

“What?” she said at the same time as Caspar.

Jackson smiled and nodded. “I have a vested interest.”

She had to respect the guy. While looking into Caspar’s last couple of missions, she’d also run a deep background check on Jackson. There she’d been surprised. With the amount of family money he had, Jackson didn’t have to actually work. He did, though. Not only did he own businesses all over the world but he was also involved in the day-to-day operations of the companies.

“If you don’t wish to share, I’ll be more than happy to do so for you,” Jackson said to Caspar.

“I knew you were trouble the first time I laid eyes on you,” Caspar said with an angry glower.

Jackson merely shrugged, and Dakota couldn’t believe it. If she’d gotten that look, she would have backed down for sure.

“Fine,” Caspar sighed. “I was the head agent in charge of the Mount Fauna case. You know that but what you don’t know is that there were two other locations that we’d taken down first. The way we found Mount Fauna was by some encrypted files we found from a laptop in a place much like the one we found you at in Missouri.”

Kieran was so rigid that Dakota was worried that maybe she should have argued against his plan better. Having all the information come to light was a good idea but she didn’t think that Kieran needed the details. She scooted closer to his side and leaned her weight against him.

“I’d been trying to find the ringleaders for three years when I found you and a stockpile of intel. I knew it would take time to go through all of the information so I took you home to help you heal,” Caspar said.

“Did you get anyone else out alive?” Kieran asked.

“No,” Caspar admitted. “You were the only one. We caught them by surprise and not only saved you but got all their files.”

“Oh.” Kieran sounded so disappointed.

“We didn’t know that Jackson had survived until he called looking for you,” Caspar said. “But I already explained to you why I didn’t tell you.”

Kieran looked toward Jackson, and Dakota was certain that the fact that Caspar had known Jackson was still alive would be the most difficult thing Kieran would have to let go of.

“About a month and a half after I brought you back, we got word from our hackers that they’d broken the code. And gotten the name of one of the organizers,” Caspar explained. “It was a surprise since it was someone I knew.”

“Who?” Kieran asked quietly.

“My best friend and partner at the time, Bradley Johnson. We’d gone through training together. He’d disappeared from a mission years before that and was presumed dead. It wasn’t until we found the records of your…capture that we knew he was still alive,” Caspar said.

Dakota looked over at her partner in shock. She couldn’t even imagine what it would be like to have your partner turn on you and everything you stand for. She might be mad at Dean but she still cared for him. She also understood why Dean wanted to make a change. Even through her anger, she wished Dean the very best. He was her friend and she would always have his back. And since she’d already forgiven him, she just wanted to go over and let him know that they would never end up like Caspar and his partner. Instead she stayed seated to listen to Caspar’s story.

“By the time we figured everything out, Bradley was nowhere to be found and every location we uncovered was empty,” Caspar said.

“Bradley is a shifter?” Alex asked. “I found his name but we couldn’t locate his file.”

“We removed all traces of Bradley from the servers. We didn’t want him to get a hold of anything. With his experience with the Organization, we worried he’d find a way to access our files,” Caspar said. “He’s an eagle shifter.”

Kieran growled. “I remember him.”

“I figured you might,” Caspar admitted. “I never brought it up because I felt guilty about it being my friend involved.”

“So you took me in out of guilt?” Kieran questioned.

“No,” Caspar said quickly. “Well, maybe at first, but after a few days I saw something in you that I knew was pure and good. After that, I concentrated on getting you trained and finding you a partner you could trust. I didn’t want you to go through what I was.”

Kieran nodded. “But you still kept Jackson from me.”

“It was years later, Kieran,” Caspar argued. “You would have left us and I didn’t want anything to happen to you. You know I care about you. I just couldn’t take the chance that Jackson would bring out the darkness inside you.”

“You just said that Kieran was pure and good,” Dakota reminded Caspar. She didn’t like anyone talking about Kieran being evil or bad.

“We all have a little darkness inside us,” Caspar said. He waved his hand in Jackson’s direction. “Jackson didn’t even remember Kieran at first. And his escape was suspicious.” Caspar glanced toward Jackson. “No offense.”

“I understand,” Jackson replied. “That is the reason I agreed to stay away from K.”

“I still think I should have been consulted. Especially after so much time had passed,” Kieran said. “But there is nothing I can do about it now. What I want to know is, why this elaborate plan to get me here? I know everyone in this room is connected. And I want to know what’s going on.”

Caspar chewed on his lips, watching Kieran for a few moments before he nodded. “Sparro told you about me going back into the field.”

“Yes, and—”

“Wait,” Caspar said when Kieran started to interrupt. “I have to finish what I started. I’ve waited years to find Bradley and we have the best tip we’ve ever gotten. It has to be me that brings him in.”

“Why?” Kieran asked.

“It’s the only way I can make it up to you that my partner, my best friend, is responsible for everything you went through,” Caspar said simply.

“I don’t need that,” Kieran argued. “It can be someone else.”

“I need it,” Caspar whispered.

Kieran sighed. “Fine but why do you have to transfer us?”

Caspar smiled. “You can’t run around wild, and I have no idea how long I’ll be in the field. I trust Sparro more than anyone else to be able to manage you.”

“You act as if I have no control,” Kieran accused.

Caspar raised an eyebrow. “If you want to, you have the most control of anyone I’ve ever seen. But if you want to cause trouble no one would be able to stop you. Not even Remy. Hell, sometimes I think you’ve corrupted Remy instead of his calm influence rubbing off on you.”

“I’m not a child,” Kieran bitched.

“You broke into the office here, attacked my boss, got yourself locked up, and that’s just what I know about,” Caspar pointed out.

“You had me followed!” Kieran claimed.

“I did.” Caspar sat forward. “You’re like a son to me. I would do anything to make sure you were protected. I knew Jackson was here, and that as soon as he learned about your presence in town, he’d find you. I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“You
suggested
I come here, knowing that Jackson would find me?” Kieran repeated. “How does that make sense?”

“If you needed help, I knew you trusted him. If I’m not able to watch out for you, at least someone could. Someone who had no connection to the Organization. That way you didn’t only have to rely on your partner and other agents.”

“So you trust me?” Jackson asked.

“I’ve kept my eye on you,” Caspar told him. “Which I’m sure you’re aware of. If you haven’t turned against the humans or shifters you’re around yet I have to hope you won’t.”

Jackson nodded. “And if I steal your boy away from you?”

“What?” Caspar questioned.

“I offered Kieran a job with me. If he accepts, he can choose where he wants to go. And it’ll keep him out of danger,” Jackson replied.

Caspar glanced at Kieran before he laughed. “Kieran can decide where he wants to go and I’ll support him. He is one of the few agents that can make the decision to leave since he wasn’t commissioned by his bloodline.”

“But?” Jackson asked.

“He’s not going anywhere,” Caspar said as he looked between Kieran and Dakota.

“I’m sitting right here,” Kieran snapped. “And again, I am
not
a child.”

“Of course not,” Caspar agreed with a playful tone. “But are you going to leave Remy alone? Or your new girlfriend? How are you going to manage to keep your mind off what I’m doing if you don’t have access to my case? I’ve already gotten Sparro’s permission for you and Remy to be my contacts while I’m in the field.”

Jackson sighed. “Well played.”

Dakota pressed her lips together to keep from smiling. The way that Caspar and Jackson were fighting over Kieran amused her while making her feel good that someone else cared about him. So far both of Kieran’s options kept him close to her so she hadn’t complained. No one had questioned her claim on him.

“I’m not abandoning you,” Caspar said to Kieran. “It doesn’t matter what is changing for you. I’ll always do what I have to so that you’re protected.”

“I appreciate it,” Kieran responded with a small smile. “I don’t know what I want to do right now but I probably won’t leave the Organization.” He looked at Jackson. “Sorry.”

Jackson shrugged. “I just want to see my friend. If you stay in town, I’ll still get to see you.” Jackson grinned. “As matter of fact, you’ll need a place to live. And I happen to have this suite or a bigger one that I would give to you. At no cost.”

Kieran’s eyes widened and he looked at Dakota. She nodded. She knew how comfortable Kieran was here. She was as well. And she planned to spend plenty of time with him. It might be too soon to move in together, it definitely was, but that didn’t mean they would sleep apart. She still had her room so she could shift and they could each have their space when needed.

“So?” Jackson asked.

Kieran looked away from her, and Dakota held back a frown. With everything out in the open, she was ready to be alone with her man.

“I’ll take you up on your offer. At least until I find a more permanent place,” Kieran said. “Thank you.”

“Of course, that’s what friends do. We have some sites that have a kitchenette and more square feet,” Jackson offered.

Kieran shook his head as he linked his fingers with hers. “I’ll stay in this one for now. I have good memories here.”

Damn, Dakota knew she was blushing but since Jackson chuckled and nodded she didn’t mind.

“I know it’ll take time for everyone to trust one another,” Caspar said. “But I think this is going to work out.”

Dakota agreed. She ran her thumb over the pulse on Kieran’s wrist. He was more relaxed now than he’d been before.

“How about a drink?” Kieran offered. “Remy ran out and grabbed a nice bottle of Scotch.”

“Sure,” Caspar agreed.

“Thanks,” Jackson said.

Kieran rose and headed to the desk where they’d set the alcohol and glasses earlier. Remy followed him over. Dakota took the opportunity to stroll over to her partner.

“Still sure you want to get involved in all of this?” Dean asked her.

He was smiling but she could pick up a faint trace of nervousness from him. She patted his shoulder. “No doubt in my mind.”

“I was going to tell you,” he said. “I wanted to tell you everything.”

“I know,” she said. “And I understand that you had to do what Caspar and Sparro asked. I’m not mad anymore.”

“You’re not?” he questioned with what had to be hope blooming on his face.

“You never wanted the field like I did. I’m glad that you’ll be able to go into the labs and use your brain.”

“I am too,” he admitted.