Cooper (14 page)

Laughingly, he took the phone from her and did as she told him.
Bossy little girl, when she wants to be,
he thought with amusement.

Chase's impatient voice announced his name on the other end of the line.

"Can you get down to my room, asap?" he said without polite intros.

"What are you doing in your room? Oh, Amy is there. Do I need to be on hand for the bedding? This isn't the middle-ages, you know."

The tone was harsh, so Coop wasn't quite sure if he was joking. With Chase it was always hard to tell.

"No, we need no witnesses for that, thanks. But I do need you to witness something else. Get down here, now."

He knew he was pushing it, but suddenly he didn't care. This was huge and had ramifications for them all.

"I'm not sure I like this new enhanced Cooper. The old one was easier to have around." Chase's voice actually sounded amused for once.

"Easier to boss around, you mean? Come on, and if you can find the others, bring them along. We might as well make a party of it."

"What's going on, Coop? Have you been drinking? Smoking something you shouldn't?"

"Are you going to turn this into a full day convo, mate, or are you going to get down here?" His impatience was showing and that stopped Chase in his tracks.

"You're the boss," he said. "Oh, wait, no, that's me. In five, brother." And the phone went dead.

"I think Chase just made a joke. Wonders will never cease."

"Who says that?
Wonders will never cease.
You sound like you're a hundred years old."

He laughed, hearing the teasing in her voice.

"Just wait, little lady. You have a plethora of antiquated sayings and Aussieisms to look forward to."

"Guday Mite!" she parroted off, trying to capture his accent. It was awful and they both knew it. She collapsed onto the bed beside him, laughing so hard she cried.

To keep it going, and because he loved to see her silly like this, he began tickling her and throwing Aussie slang at her until she was panting with exhaustion and pleading for him to stop.

At that moment there was a sharp knock on the door, which ended the hijinks.

"Come in, if you're game," Coop called and then realised that they were both still dressed only in underwear. "No, don't. Give us a mo."

While Amy scrambled off the bed to find jeans and sweater, Coop pulled on his pants. Should he try for a shirt too, or leave the bros to imagine what they'd been up to? Hell, his mate was in his room, what was there to imagine?

"Okay, Take 2. Come in!" He called a lot louder than he needed to, although the walls and doors of HQ were soundproofed to provide a level of privacy and quiet their super-hearing appreciated.

The door opened to reveal four men standing in the doorway. Chase had gathered the troops quickly, it seemed. As they all bundled into the room looking non-plussed at the sight of Amy sitting on the rumpled bed, Cooper grinned.

"Welcome, gentlemen. I have another surprise for you."

"I'm glad yer prick's workin', boyo. That's sure somethin' we all need to witness, first hand," Connor said, his accent as heavy as his sarcasm.

"Shut the fuck up and watch." Coop gestured for Amy to stand and she hastened to do just that. She didn't reach for him this time, just stayed within range if he needed her for support.

Slowly, Coop edged off the bed and put his weight on his legs again. It felt almost natural to do so. He heard the intakes of breath from the brothers as he stood up and faced them, a wide, proud grin on his face. Then with Amy at his side, his hand on her shoulder, he took one step, and then another, towards the group of men still standing in the doorway.

"Feckin' hell!" exclaimed Connor as Cooper came to stand directly in front of them.

"Not as impressive as my sexual prowess. But something I was sure you'd all like to see."

"How long have you been keeping this from us?" Chase demanded in astonishment, looking down at Coop's legs and then up into his eyes.

"About ten minutes or so. Bloody marvellous, isn't it?"

"Ten minutes? You mean, you just suddenly got up and walked, like a fucking miracle or something?" Colt asked as he shook his head.

"Miracle Amy. It seems not only Alice can bring her mate back from the edge of death. Mine can give cripples back their legs." He was so proud of Amy that he was fit to burst. He leaned in and kissed her hair as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder, not for support this time, but in affection.

"Don't call yourself that," Amy chided, a little frown creasing her forehead.

"Let me get this straight," Caleb said cautiously. "You're saying your mate did something that healed you from a physical injury you've had for more than half your life?"

"She bit me on the bum." It sounded so ridiculous Coop couldn't help laughing.

"Bit you…?" Connor said, feeling his way to the answers Cooper had only just found. "So instead of just being a great time, her bite healed your injury like Allie healed my bullet wound by licking it?"

Coop nodded, still laughing, the tears streaming down his face. "Probably was a lot less gross for Amy than Alice, but yeah, it's the same healing process."

"Feckin' hell," Connor said again, this time with far less energy. His eyes were round as he considered the implications.

"So what this means is our mates are our own personal Get Out of Jail Free cards," Colt continued the thought. "As long as they're nearby when we're hurt, they can pretty much heal us of anything short of death. Do you think this was built into the gene sequence?"

"I've had a look at Alyssa's DNA and can't see anything in it that would explain this. Sure, it's not human, or not entirely. However, I assumed panther DNA was the
only
introduced factor. It was the most obvious irregularity. There was certainly nothing in the documentation that suggested any other manipulation. But panthers don't have this kind of healing ability." Coop let Amy lead him back to the bed, and he sat down with relief. His legs got tired fast.

"I guess this means our mates are going to be giving up more of their blood so you can cross reference them?" Colt said with a half-hearted growl.

"Yep. And you fellas will have to become human pin-cushions too, while I check for changes in all of our DNA. Having now experienced a bite, I hypothesise that the electrical charge, or whatever that was that felt like electricity, may have changed our DNA, bringing it into alignment with our mate's. It might explain why a mate can only heal their own mate, if they're synchronised in some way by the bite."

"Just from the male biting the female?" Caleb asked curiously.

"Maybe. But I assume all of us have been bitten too?" He looked at the other mated males.

"Lyss healed her first bite as soon as she did it."

"Alice had bitten me numerous times before she healed the bullet wound."

"And Amy healed me during her first bite. So maybe the female's bite is necessary to complete the synch. If it's electro-magnetic I may have to dig deeper."

For a moment there was silence as everyone considered the new information.

"Okay, I want a mate. Those fuckin' paper-cuts can be painful," Caleb joked, breaking the thoughtful hiatus.

"And on that note, we will take our leave. It's dinner time. Why don't you round up your mates and Amy can join you for a meal. Get better acquainted. And of course, they'll want to know what additional magic they're capable of, too. I think they’re going to be impossible to live with after this."

Coop looked at Amy, who glanced down at her small bracelet-style watch. "I can sneak in the kitchen entrance and go up to my room the back way, if I get in after him. Hays won't know I'm not home unless I bring his attention to it by coming in the front door."

"Good then. Stay and enjoy yourself. You deserve it!" Chase said with a pleased nod.

Even though Cooper felt he should be working on the recent discoveries concerning the mates' healing abilities, the next morning he found himself sitting in on the final briefing for the mission to take out Maxwell Hays.

Maybe it was just interest, or maybe he wanted to feel as if he was in some way contributing to the taking-down of the monster who had been hurting and terrorizing his Amy her whole life. Whatever the cause, he was anxious to make sure the mission went ahead as planned. Every day Hays stayed in play was one more for Amy to deal with, risking further injury and discovery. He couldn't handle that thought. His cat was already scratching at Coop to take action himself. And though his legs were becoming stronger with every passing hour that he used them, the human in him knew he wasn't ready to fight a man who kept at least one guard with him at all times.

"So Coop's new mate has been able to give us a fairly detailed overview of Hays' routine, backed up by Caleb's ability to hack Hays' server to download his daily schedule," Colt started up, all business as he flashed details up on the conference table in front of them.

"There are several possible extraction points, but the easiest and soonest is this one: Once a month Hays has his hair cut at an up-market salon a block from his office. That appointment is this afternoon at 1500. His regular stylist, Gina, was very forthcoming about what usually occurs during his half hour appointments.

"While his driver/guard sits on the lounge at the front of the salon, Hays takes his seat towards the back, still in view of his man. While Gina trims his hair, he sips a glass of good champagne they serve only to exclusive clients.

"Coop has supplied us with one of his magic potions. Not in lipstick form this time. A small vial of tasteless liquid will be slipped into his champagne by the apprentice. (We were lucky enough to acquire Helena's services because she's having problems meeting her financial commitments at present.) That liquid will stimulate Hays' bladder and he will make an urgent, but unremarkable, visit to the bathroom at the back of the salon.

"Gina told us that his guard doesn't make a habit of following him to the bathroom, if he uses the facilities there. The backdoor of the salon, as you can see, opens onto a public multi-storey parking garage. Salon supplies are regularly delivered through that door.

"We've created a salon-relevant logo for the side of one of our vans that will pass casual scrutiny when we park at their door. The surveillance camera for this section of the level will have a looped feed, courtesy of Caleb, during the whole period of extraction, so that close scrutiny of our vehicle or men can't be carried out at a later date. Only the cameras at the entrance and exit of the station will capture the driver and fake number plates. So Cobey, who’s driving, will be wearing a disguise.

"When Hays heads to the john, Unit A, you'll make your move. Charlie, you and Chris will enter the premises, one safeguarding the salon door while the other sedates Hays and carries him to the van, where Conrad will be keeping watch on the parking garage. Cobey will remain in the driver's seat, ready for a fast departure.

"Once Hays is secure, the van will depart as unobtrusively as possible. You'll be in and out in less than a minute. The guard won't start getting concerned for at least another three minutes, and if Helena can get away with distracting him with smiles and a little mild flirtation, it will be even longer. She'll also be responsible for washing out the glass and the disposal of the vial so no one will be any the wiser concerning her involvement."

"How reliable is this apprentice? Is she young and flighty?" Charlie asked, his South African accent distinctive amongst the Sons.

"She's mid-twenties with a young daughter who just started school. Her husband got laid off a few months back, so money is tight and getting tighter. We had to make the incentive lucrative enough for her to risk losing her job. But I gather she's partial to her new position, so that means she's both motivated to earn the money and to minimise the risks to her job." Connor flashed up a picture of a pretty blonde with big blue eyes and a wide smile.

"And Gina? She gave us information. Once things go south she's going to realise the casual questions I asked her at the bus stop last night, while I was flirting with her, were not so casual," Conrad commented with serious eyes trained on Gina's pic. She was a painfully thin, dark-haired woman in her early thirties.

"Which means she'll keep her mouth shut or risk losing her job for her part in the abduction."

"I hope it doesn't push her over the edge. She's only holding on by the fingernails right now. Thinking she's responsible for a kidnapping. Not good. I'm for a different plan."

"There's no time for another plan," snapped Cooper, his cat rising.

Colt stepped in quickly to defuse the situation. "Coop's right. His mate's in danger while-ever Hays is in play. We can monitor Gina, and if she displays signs of escalating stress we'll fill her in on Hays' activities. Tell her we're CIA or Homeland Security so she feels like she did a service to her country. Which of course she did."

Conrad rubbed at his goatee and frowned. "Why not tell her that, going in?"

Colt sighed heavily. "It's because she is so fragile that we can't risk her knowing beforehand what's going down. The apprentice can handle the tension; Gina can't. Okay?"

Conrad shrugged. "Yeah, sorry. Just hate seeing women like her suffering because of me. She was so fucking grateful for the little attention I gave her. She's gonna feel like shit when she realises she was conned."

"You won't be the first or the last man to use her, Conrad. I know that doesn't help. But we have more pressing concerns. We'll do what we can for her, after the event."

Conrad nodded.

When the meeting was over, Cooper walked out of the conference room on almost steady legs. The occasional Son who noted his condition, smiled and gave him the thumbs-up. The grapevine had done a fast and effective job of letting all the Sons know about Coop's recovery. Everyone was happy for him. He was still not sure what to do about the lab upstairs. If he suddenly walked in on stable legs, questions would be asked; questions that had no adequate answer. He and Chase would need to talk the ramifications through. Until then he'd stay in his chair above ground.

He'd have to learn to drive a vehicle the normal way, he realised with a jolt. That was going to take some getting used to. He smiled happily at the thought. Life was suddenly filled with a whole lot of new and fascinating challenges. Like making love to Amy missionary-style.

In every mental scenario he'd run, up to the moment he'd got his legs back, he'd pictured her on top while he lay there like a lump. Now it could be like his dream. And if they went for her on top it would be out of choice, not necessity.

Had he really been as angry and resentful about his disability as he now seemed to be? He'd always seen himself as being pretty laid-back about it all. Sure, he was incapacitated, but that didn't make him
dis
abled. He was in fact more
able
than most people, in lots of areas of his life.

But the cat had changed all those justifications, he realised suddenly. From the moment it was activated his frustrations with being wheelchair-bound had risen, especially in relation to Amy. The cat wanted to be the best mate she could have, not the runt of the litter. It was a lousy attitude, and he knew Amy didn't think any the worse of him because he had been disabled. But his cat made him only too aware of his limits since he'd been activated.

Wait, that wasn't totally true. Cooper had gone to see Marquez, as a Hail-Mary gesture, when nothing else worked. Maybe he hadn't been as okay with it as he thought. Maybe his easy-going bravado had always been just a clever pose designed to make sure no one felt sorry for him.

To distract himself from his troubling thoughts and worries over Amy, he collected the day's meat scraps from the canteen and headed for the alley behind Scanlan Industries, where his cats would be waiting impatiently for their daily hand-out. He spoiled them, these feral creatures who seemed to increase in number with each passing month he fed them. But a part of him had always felt an affinity with them – the rejects of life, the ones nobody wanted – and though he'd never experienced being unwanted like Amy, Colt or the strays had, he still understood what it felt like to be the bottom of the heap.

To keep his secret, he collected his wheelchair as he headed up to ground-level.

By the time the cooks started working on their evening meal, Hays would be in custody and Amy would be safer than she'd ever been in her life. He still didn't like the idea of her being a mole in the Guild, but it was worth exploring until it proved untenable.

How would they maintain their blossoming relationship if she was playing at being Guild? Would they have to sneak around, waiting to get caught at any tick of the clock?

His cat paced restlessly within him at the thought, not liking the idea of subterfuge. He wanted to claim his mate for all to see and keep her at his side, working in the lab with him.

But the human knew he couldn't barge in and take over Amy's life like that. Her so-called father had been doing that to her for years. She had to be allowed to make her own decisions, no matter how those decisions impacted on him. And at the moment she felt duty-bound to play her part within the Guild. And she wasn't the only one who thought that was where she needed to be.

Life was still a long way from perfect, Coop realised with a deep sigh.