Lycan Packs 1: Lycan Instinct (14 page)

“This can’t be happening.” Her words were but a whisper.

With one arm wrapped around her waist and one hand at her nape, he rolled until she settled snuggly on top of him. “It can, if you let it.”

“I have a duty, a responsibility. I have to be objective and you’re...”

“I’m not your killer.” He tugged her toward him. “If you can’t believe me, then trust your instincts.”

“But you’re a sus—” His kiss silenced her words, but not the groan of surrender that followed. He didn’t want her thinking of him as a suspect or a killer, or anything other than who he was. A man strongly, albeit foolishly, attracted to her. He didn’t want the cop so much as he wanted the woman.

Even as he tugged her closer, felt her body relax against him, he could almost hear the alarm bells sounding in her mind.

Suddenly she pulled away. He grunted as she scrambled to her feet and dug in her pocket. She fumbled with her cell phone, which he now realized was the source of the ringing in his ears.

“Lyons,” she said breathlessly.

He couldn’t hear the caller’s voice, but he suspected it was her partner when he saw her wince.

“No, I haven’t been running. I dropped the damn phone.” The lie made Rafe quirk an accusatory brow and flash her a grin. Her luscious lips curled into a snarl that made him laugh and her cover the phone’s mouthpiece and turn away.

“Was that Stone?” Cooper asked her.

“Just tell me what you found out,” she ordered.

“That was Stone. You’re still with him, aren’t you?”

“Cooper...” Mackenzie ground her teeth. She didn’t feel like playing twenty questions right now.

“I thought his brother would’ve called him by now and told him we were here.”

“He knows. He got the call a while ago. Now, tell me what yo—”

“Then, what was he laughing about?”

“How the blazes should I know what the man is thinking...” Mackenzie’s breath hitched.

Oh damn
.

Rafe’s hand slid around her waist from behind and his lips warmed the sensitive curve of her neck. She nearly groaned when he nipped her earlobe and his fingers brushed the underside of one breast, but Coop’s voice snapped her back to attention.

“Mac?”

“I’m here.” She slapped Rafe’s hand. “What did you call to tell me?”

She covered the mouthpiece again and hissed, “Stop that.”

“Mmm, you smell like coconut,” he murmured, then nuzzled her neck one last time before pulling away with a chuckle. She gave him a look that promised there’d be hell to pay.

“...on you to give the word.”

“Give the word?”
What had Coop said
?

“Yeah, Fuller says it’s your call on when you want the team to go in and serve the second warrant.”

“You got the second one.”

“That’s what I just said. Mac? Are you okay?”

She stared at the wall, wishing she could bang her head against it. “Of course, I’m all right. Are you done at L.I. yet?”

“Almost. This is a big place. But if you want to go in tonight, I’m sure we can arrange it with the guys over at State.”

Mackenzie glanced toward Rafe and found his gaze locked on her. “No. Tomorrow’s soon enough.”

“Why the delay, Mac? We wait ‘til tomorrow with him already tipped off about today, and—”

“Just finish up there, okay? I gotta go.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

She hung up and fumed.

“The iron curtain’s back in place,” Rafe said, walking up to her. “Someone else die?”

“Huh? No.”

“Someone going to?” Amusement crept into his voice.

Mackenzie shook her head. “Not yet, anyway.”

She was stalling. Avoiding the inevitable. She’d postponed action on the search warrant, probably the dumbest thing she’d ever done in her life. No, the award for idiocy would go to her for what she was about to do.

“I know I don’t have the right to ask this,” she said, turning to face Rafe, “but did you mean what you said earlier? About trusting me?”

He peered at her, his eyes narrowing with suspicion. That didn’t bode well, she thought, but his next words surprised her.

“Yes, but you disappointed me. You could’ve asked for whatever you needed, and I would’ve gotten it for you.”

“As lead investigator, I’m supposed to accept your word that you handed over everything, hid nothing? How am I to know you wouldn’t somehow tamper with evidence?” She held up a hand when she saw storm clouds brewing in his stare. “Even if I believed you, I couldn’t do it. You’re a suspect. I took an oath. I have to do my job.”

“By the book, is that it?”

“I’ve already broken a rule on every damn page of that book, but if I don’t follow it from here on in, a killer could go free.” She reached toward his arms folded across his chest. “Or an innocent man could go to jail for a crime he didn’t commit.”

“You believe me then?”

She spun away from him. “I already told you, what I believe doesn’t matter.”

“It matters to me.” The seriousness in his tone tore at her heart.

“To the courts, it’s what I can prove that counts.”

“Guilty until proven innocent. I thought it was supposed to be the other way around?”

“Don’t be petulant.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it, Detective.” He took a seat by the fireplace, the picture of distinguished composure.

“Eventually the evidence will fill in the necessary pieces of the puzzle but, until then, I have to follow every lead, check out every suspect. And right now, I can’t cross you off my list.”

He was silent for so long that she decided she’d follow her better judgment and leave.

“I’d better go. Where’s my car?”

“You can pick up your keys at the front desk. The guard on duty will know where your car is parked.”

She almost made it to the door.

“Mackenzie.”

“Yeah?” She didn’t turn around.

“What happens tomorrow?”

Shit
. She bit her lip, stiffened her spine, and faced him. “Cooper and I, along with some special agents from the State Police, will serve another search warrant at your estate.”

She searched for any change in his expression, but found none.

“I see.”

Did he? She doubted it.

“I have to crosscheck your wolves’ DNA with any found at the crime scenes. If there’s no match, I can cross them and you off my list.”

“When?”

“First thing tomorrow morning.”

He nodded, and she turned to leave again.

“Detective?”

She gripped the doorframe and looked back over her shoulder.

“You may want to button up your blouse.”

Her gaze shot to her chest. The top three buttons were undone. She cursed her stupidity for compromising the case even as she escaped through the doorway.

“You want me to do what?”

Rafe set aside the quarterly report he’d been reading to watch his brother, Gabe, rant. A glance at the grandfather clock across the room told him the storm had been raging for about thirty minutes already. Now that he’d dropped the news of the second warrant, Rafe suspected he had another half hour of it to deal with.

“Although she doesn’t know how many wolves are here, she’s seen you as G. She’ll expect to get a sample from you.”

Gabe paced about the room with furious agitation. Rafe studied the imported rug to see whether ruts had formed. So far, it held up under the abuse.

“You told me there’s no risk in discovering a Lycan trait through DNA because it changes completely depending on the form we take. Was your research wrong?”

The insulted look Gabe gave him showed what he thought of having his work questioned.

“So, what’s the concern? You’re a veterinarian. You know the procedure’s harmless.”

“It is when I’m the vet doing the examination.”

Rafe fought to hide the grin threatening to break free. His brother had always been the scientific one in the litter, with a hidden strength that burst forth whenever he was angry, but Rafe had never dreamed he feared a needle.

“One chuckle, Rafe, and I don’t care what the consequences are...I’m outta here.”

“It’s just a little needle.”

Gabe cursed. “I know that. I don’t mind exams with a doctor. I just don’t like submitting to them as a wolf. Not when I can’t communicate with the vet. They don’t care for animals that make them feel like Dr. Doolittle.”

Rafe covered his mouth to hold back the laugh, his elbow resting on the armrest.

“You’re seriously going to let her come in here with her legal crap and take blood samples?” Gabe repeated the question he’d asked several times before. The answer hadn’t changed.

Rafe nodded. “I’m sure they’ll take hair samples, too.”

“This is bullshit.”

“What’s bullshit?” Luc asked as he walked in, plopped on the couch, and planted his boots, ankles crossed, on the coffee table.

“That detective raided L.I. yesterday afternoon. I only had a moment’s notice to lock down before they were everywhere. And instead of taking care of it, Rafe here is ready to let her ransack the estate, too.”

Luc cast a puzzled look around. “How’d she get to L.I. when her car was at Stone Corp. headquarters all afternoon?”

“How’d you know that? You still following her?” Gabe asked.

Luc grinned. “No need now. Not when I can track her car.”

Gabe threw up his hands and again plowed his way across the rug. “You bugged her car? That’s just great! If she finds it, there really will be hell to pay. We’ve already got her crawling all over the place. Why not bend over and let her kick our asses all the way to prison?”

“Settle down, Gabe,” Rafe said before frowning at Luc. “I didn’t tell you to bug her car.”

“It’s a new GPS tracking device, not a bug. I’m testing it for our security division.” Luc toyed with the toothpick held between his straight white teeth. “You wanted me to check her out. That’s what I’m doing.”

“I asked you to find out about her past, nothing more.”

Luc shrugged. “Then you shouldn’t have asked me to drive her car to the hospital the other night. It was an opportunity I couldn’t resist. Besides, I figured you’d want me to keep a closer eye on her, especially if what I suspect is true.”

“Suspect what?” Gabe looked from Luc to Rafe. “What’s he talking about?”

Luc held up two fingers. “Two dead. Our big brother is the link. He didn’t kill ‘em. I didn’t kill ‘em, and you damn sure didn’t do it. So, my question is, who’d want the cops to suspect Rafe?”

Gabe sat and stared at the portrait on the opposite wall. His words, when they came, were soft but menacing. “He’s here.”

“We don’t know that for sure,” Rafe said, “but it is a possibility.” He walked toward the bay picture window at the front of the house.

“Why would he risk coming back now? We’ve had him on the run ever since...” When Gabe’s voice drifted off, Luc offered his opinion.

“Maybe he’s tired of running. I nearly had him cornered in Atlantic City last summer...before the bastard slipped away.”

Outside, the sun burned the eastern horizon. She’d be here soon. Rafe turned from the window. “Have you been able to pick up tracks at his former haunts? Any signs that he’s back?”

Luc shook his head. “He’s smart enough not to do that. If I’m right and Anton is behind this, he’ll keep his eye on you, so I’d watch your back.”

Gabe snorted. “He wouldn’t confront Rafe face-to-face. If he’d wanted to do that, he would’ve done it years ago instead of running.”

“Don’t underestimate him,” Luc warned. “Back then, he was a white-collar criminal. He’s hanging with a seedier, much more dangerous crowd these days.”

Gabe sneered. “I guess committing murder will do that to a person.”

“I agree with Gabe in part. I don’t think he’ll attack me directly.” Rafe leaned against the wall, arms crossed. “If that were his plan, he would’ve taken me out, not hit people I know.”

“Which brings me back to that delicious detective.” Luc smirked when Rafe scowled, then followed Gabe’s gaze to the portrait and frowned. “Anton killed someone he claimed to love. What do you think he’ll do to a woman who catches
your
eye? Hell, he gets one whiff of your interest in her and...bull’s-eye.”

“All right. You’ve made your point.” Rafe struggled with a flood of emotions.

He had vowed to make Anton pay for what he’d done to the Stone family. He’d expanded the Lykos Institute to accomplish just that. He and his brothers had spent months focused on the search for Anton and other rogue Lycans. And Rafe had postponed his search for a mate, not wanting to risk endangering another woman—at least not until Anton was gone.

Now, it seemed Anton had finally brought the fight to him. A challenge Rafe was more than ready to deal with. But that made the risk of a possible relationship with Mackenzie that much more perilous.

Rafe cast another glance out the window and sensed movement through the trees. Cars coming up the drive. Mackenzie was here.

“Gabe. Change.”

“Damn it, Rafe, I don’t think—”

“Now. She’s coming. I don’t have time for a debate. They won’t leave until they get samples from all the wolves on the property, and since she’s seen you as G, suspicion will fall more firmly on me if you aren’t here.”

“Samples?” Luc asked as Gabe cursed but started the change.

Rafe watched his brother’s clothes puddle on the floor while sparkling light filled the room.

“Samples of what?”

“G and the wolves are donating their DNA to the cause of proving my innocence.”

I’m all for proving you innocent, Rafe, but if one person comes near my ass with a thermometer, I’ll hold you responsible for my actions.

Luc laughed at Gabe’s telepathic warning. “You’re such a beta wolf.”

I’ll show you beta, asshole
. With ears straight up and teeth bared, Gabe snarled.

“Roll over, Mutt. I don’t have time to play.”

“Stop provoking him, Luc.”

“He needs the practice after spending all his time with beakers, test tubes, and microscopes.”

“Not now. G...Be nice. Luc...Do something with his clothes.”

Don’t you dare stuff ‘em under a cushion. I don’t want ‘em wrinkled
.

Luc sighed loudly but picked up the outfit, just as the doorbell rang.