The Breed: Nora's Choice (10 page)

            “It appears
we need to have a serious conversation,” his voice was unflinching, not
bothered in the least by her weapon.

            “Oh I see,”
she sighed dramatically, “when you thought I was just a sex kitten, you didn’t
want anything to do with me. Now that you see I’m holding some pretty serious
cards you want to team up huh?”

            “I don’t
care if you want to work together or not, either way you’re going to tell me
what I want to know,” he wasn’t being cocky, just honest. She would decide how
hard things needed to be, but the end result would be the same.

            He was a
man who got the job done. Period.

            “You are so
damn sexy,” she purred, “so arrogant and commanding. I wonder what kind of
lover you are? Slow and sensual? Or are you more of a rip the girls clothes off
and leave her gasping type?”

            “Are you
working for the nine, or the hunters directly?” he ignored her.

            “I work for
myself, I’m loyal to myself, and I
only
care about myself,” she replied
sharply.

            “That’s my
good girl,” he nodded his head, “now what’s the price for you to come and work
for us? I want to know everything you know.”

            “I don’t
have a lot to give right now; delivering this equipment safely is the test to
see if I can get into the cool kids club. Once I pass it, I’ll have full access
to whatever you want,” she said, the torch light flickering across her face.

            “So you’re
telling me I’ve got to let you take all this stuff out of here, which I’m
assuming has some seriously valuable information on it, and just hope you keep
your end of the bargain and not disappear off the face of the earth?” he
scoffed.

            “I don’t
see another happy way out of this,” she smiled while cocking the gun back.

            “Let me
copy the files on it, then you take it,” he bargained.

            “No can do.
I was strictly warned that if this thing is even turned on It’ll explode,
covering everything within a ten foot radius of it in acid,” she held her aim
steady, prepared for a fire fight.

            “You’ve got
to give me something more to go on than your word, we both no it’s no good,” he
countered, still un bothered by her loaded gun and dead aim.

            “Alright,
alright fine,” she snapped after taking a moment to mull over her options,
“obviously you guys know about the labs, and I’m guessing the experiments too,
but you probably haven’t had much luck finding anybody alive.”

            “Go on,” he
commanded, finally interested in something she had to say.

            “Well, I’ve
seen the last group of experiments on this coast that’s still alive. They’re
closing up shop on this side since you guys are coming in so hot, but it’ll be
a few weeks, maybe a month before they can get this last group sent over to the
west coast.”

            “Where are
they holding them?” he demanded.

            “They had
them on a shipping freighter in Cove Harbor Connecticut, the hunters own a
shipping company called “Pride Industries” and own just about the entire dock
down there, but that was a month ago, they’ve probably moved them by now,” she
replied, then added quickly, “they told me if I do this right, they need me to
do one more job for them, this time something to do with the last group, then I
get my payment.”

            “Which is
what?” he spat out, disgusted that she cared so little for her own people.

            “One
hundred million in unmarked, untraceable bills,” she shrugged, as if the amount
of money didn’t impress her in the slightest, “I’ll take the job, get my money,
then tell you where the prisoners are being held.”

           
Like
hell
, he growled to himself.

            “Give me
proof of what you’re saying,” he despised that he was considering working with
her, but he stood to gain much more by letting her go than locking her up for
what little she currently knew.

            “There was
a dozen or so of them, I didn’t pay too much attention to them, but a couple
stood out. A little middle school girl with white hair and black eyes, I’ve
never seen anyone with both of the Breed’s genetic mutations. Then there was a
giant guy, looked like a demon mixed with a Viking, with black hair and eyes.
At first I thought he looked freaky, but the more I looked at him, the sexier
he got, in a dangerous sort of way.”

            Balor. She
was telling the truth.

            “When is
this second job?” he asked, his mind already reeling with plans and
preparations.

            “Everything’s
up to them and on their terms, I just want my money,” she shrugged.

            “And they’re
going to give you a hundred million dollars for a computer tower, and some
mystery job?” he smirked, disappointed in her lack of intelligence.

            “Well that,
and…” she let out a delicate sigh and pulled back her gun, “they really hired
me to sleep with you, get you to fall for me, then spy on you and give them
everything I’ve collected.”

            Bile rose
up in Sebastian’s throat.

            “I’ll
assume you’ve lied and told them you’ve already begun sleeping with me,” he
spat out.

            “Of course,
in the car before we even left the airport,” she winked at him, “how else do
you think I
finally
got Marcus to break down and have a row with me? If
the great and noble Sebastian actually did it, then why has he been denying
himself?”

            “Is Marcus
involved in any of this? Is he part of the Nine?” he narrowed his eyes
suspiciously.

            A little
giggle left her throat.

            “Now that
would
be good,” she nodded, “the most up tight, rule following stickler, even more
self righteous than you are, turns out to be the bad guy. I could see Hollywood
buying that script. As far as I know though, he’s clean as a whistle.”

            “After this
meeting I’ll have to pretend to be your lover? Pretend to be smitten with you,
and actually be giving you information?” his lip curled back at the thought,
his apple green eyes flashing with malice.

“Well
that would help a sister out quite a bit with the whole ‘earning the trust of
the bad guys’ thing,” she shrugged.

            “It seems
like I’m the only one drawing the short end of this bargain,” his forehead
wrinkled in irritation, “And if I go through with your ‘deal’ what exactly is
it you want from us?”

            Could he
actually go through with trusting her? Did he have a choice? If he didn’t
strike up a bargain with her he really would have to mysteriously disappear and
detain her at the New York embassy, raising the suspicions of everyone.

            “I want a
completely fortified house. I’m talking deserted island, top of a mountain,
inside a volcano kind of deal, I want no one to be able to reach me unless I
invite them. I also want a team of at least twelve highly trained guards, that
you’ll be paying for of course,” she listed off.

            “Of
course,” he answered coldly.

            “Oh, and I
want them all to be females. To me men are only good for one thing,” she winked
again.

            “Deal,” he
snapped. The team was going to kill him for making a deal with the devil, but
deep down in his instincts something told him it was the right decision.

            “Then I’ll
be taking this,” she patted the computer tower, “and I’ll be seeing you
tomorrow to let you know how things went.”

            Sebastian
shook his head, unable to believe the situation he was in, truly wedged between
a rock and a hard place.

            “Until
tomorrow,” she blew him a kiss and sauntered out of his line of vision, her
heels digging deeply into the earthen floor.

~

            Normally
sitting watch over one of the laboratories was unbearably boring, today however
as he and Kain sat outside a partially burned down barn and horse stable, his
thoughts were flooded with ideas of what he would ask Nora tonight.

            If she
answered him honestly than these questions could be the key to unlocking her
secrets and finally getting to really know her.

            She might
have just handed him a touchdown in the game they were playing.

            He wanted
to ask her about her life and interests, but he also needed to know her deepest
desires. Everything she wanted, he wanted to give her.

            He burned
to be the one she relied on, the one to help her through all her burdens.
Whatever suffering she had gone through, they could heal together. After being
captured by the enemy for over a year he was just as emotionally scarred and
tormented as she was.

            A buzzing
sound interrupted his train of thought and he watched Kain quickly answer his
phone.

            “Ok… twenty
minutes,” he ended the call, “Cass is calling an emergency meeting, we gotta
go.”

            Quinn’s
pulse quickened as he wondered what could have made Casstiel decide to call
them all back to the embassy.

            Half an
hour later he sat in the middle of the defense department trying to keep his
jaw from smashing into the floor.

            “So he just
let her walk right out of there?” Jax scoffed, his voice a higher pitch than
usual, “well now we know how to get Sebastian to quit being so stuck up all the
time, get him a blonde chick with huge boobs. Apparently he’ll do anything for
them.”

            “Just
because you fell in love with her after a one night stand doesn’t mean anyone
else would,” Kain jabbed, “he made the right call.”

            “WOW, who’s
the gossip now?” Jax snapped sullenly, “oh and before you say it, we already
know you think it’s a trap and we’re all gonna die.”

            “Moving
on,” Cass cut in sharply, “since you guys have been out all day I’ll give you a
few hours of down time, then meet me and Ghost at the docks, it shouldn’t take
you more than an hour to get there. I want complete twenty four hour
surveillance on these guys. If they really own that much property the docks
will be swarming with them, this could be how they’ve been supporting their
entire east coast operation.”

            “I’m going
with you,” Memphis stood up, looking ready to seize the moment and kick some
ass.

            “Well I
need a good drink and some special company,” Kain waved everyone off, “I’ll see
you boys in a few hours.”

            “You going
down to that freaky club of yours?” Jax called, his spirits looking dampened.

            “You’re
more than welcome to come, I told you already the ladies would love you,” Kain
chuckled lowly, and Quinn had a feeling he was missing something.

            Jax looked
a little paler than usual, “Quinn what’re you going to do? Wanna head to the
bar?”

            “Can’t, I’m
going to meet Nora at some Sushi place in upper Manhattan,” he rumpled the back
of his hair, his nerves slightly building.

            “In jeans?
You’re kidding,” Jax laughed, “a five star sushi restaurant in converse all
stars and a hoodie… yeah you are definitely Tessa’s brother.”

            “Well I
didn’t pack a whole lot of spare clothing when the hunters took me on my lovely
vacation, and I haven’t exactly had a chance to hit up the Mall of America
since I’ve been back,” he replied flatly.

            “Borrow
something from Cass,” Jax responded, noting his own shoulders were twice as
broad as Quinn’s, “and here take my card.”

            “No way,”
he replied firmly, holding up his hand in objection.

            “Consider
it a loan then,” Jax insisted stubbornly, “you can’t go in there broke and
looking like a bum. You’re not going to get a lot of shots with her, don’t let
your pride ruin this one.”

            “Fine,” he
sighed snatching the card, and feeling like his game plan for the night needed
some serious fine tuning.

               
Nora
encased herself in the tightest, most form fitting dress she owned. The glossy
mint colored fabric strained over her wide hips and rounded breasts as she
clasped the ends of the halter together behind her neck.

            Looking at
herself in the mirror she couldn’t help but smile. The dress was completely
backless and without wearing a bra her breasts were practically spilling over
the low cut neckline.

            After his
total lack of interest in her earlier, she had gone back home and plotted out
her next move in their little game.

            “Good luck
pretending you’re not interested now,” she blew the mirror a kiss and left for
the night.

            Was she
actually looking for any action tonight? Not a chance, but her pride was
burning from his earlier nonchalance, and that was something that simply would
not do.

            Near the
front entrance she spotted Remy and Tessa walking through the hall together,
and before she could bother hiding, they’d spotted her.

            “Where in
the hell are you going dressed like
that
?” Remy whistled, looking her up
and down.

            “Uh…” To
cower from the truth? No, it wasn’t her style. 

            “You don’t
want to answer us, which means it’s something to do with Quinn,” Tessa’s face
lit up with joy.

            “Where are
you two headed?” Nora tried to steer the subject away from herself.

            “Actually
we were coming to find you and see if you wanted to have a girls night, but
apparently you’re trying to have a different kind of adult time tonight,” Remy
shimmied at her.

            “I don’t
have time for this,” she shook her head and brushed passed them as the high
fives and giggles started.

            “I better
get some details tomorrow!” Remy called after her.

            Out of all
the people she had to run into, why did it have to be his cheerleading team?
Now they’d torment her for the next week.

            It didn’t
matter; tonight she would explain everything to him clearly. He obviously
wanted some wholesome little sweetie pie, which she was nowhere near, and she
would never commit herself to a man.

            He had no
idea what true loneliness felt like and the idea of such a weepy man made her
stomach turn.

            The taxi
was ready and waiting for her as she strolled out.

            She
purposely arrived early to dinner so she could have a drink and mentally
prepare herself. He had been throwing her a lot of curve balls, and she needed
to be ready. No more allowing him to see into her feelings, she needed to be
cold and completely sever their emotional link. 

            After two
margaritas she felt his dark green eyes searing into her skin and looked up to
watch him striding towards her.

            Her breath
hitched in her throat.

            She had
expected him in relaxed and overly casual clothes, but instead he wore a tight
black dress shirt and expensive fitted jeans; his shoulders were twice as broad
as the maître d next to him, every part of him screaming dark, intense, male.

           
Her
male.

            No. She
shook her head and forced herself to breathe. She had to keep it together
tonight.

            The moment
his eyes fell on her dress his lust hit her like a brick wall. He didn’t try to
hide his desire in the slightest as he looked her over, making her feel the
need to do a turn around for him, so he knew exactly what she was working with.

            The maître
d showed them over to their table, and all along the way heads turned to stare.

            His hands
clenched and unclenched as they walked together, his jaw ticking as he forced
himself not to look at her.

A
smug satisfaction filled her.

            As she
leaned into the booth he brushed his finger tips feather light across her bare
back, making goose bumps erupt in their wake.

            The maitre
d left to fetch a waiter, leaving them very much alone, and she fought off a
shiver.

            “Why don’t
you sit in the middle with me?” he asked, his arm extended as if to pull her to
his side, his voice huskier than usual.

            “Because
this is a business meeting,” she spoke sharply. She knew if she came anywhere
near him his hands would be all over her, and she couldn’t afford that.

            “You don’t
wear a dress like
that
to a business meeting. You wore that for me,” his
eyes darkened to a hunter green and a new wave of his lust washed over her.

            “Can’t you
control that?” she snapped, overwhelmed by the heat of it.

            “Why?” his
eyes lingered on her breasts and she was hit with another blast, “I want you to
feel it. You need to know how much I want you.”

            She tried
to think of a snappy comeback but her mind had sputtered out. Why was he so
damn attractive?

            “Let’s just
do what we came here to do,” she barked instead.

            “You made
the deal, so
you
ask,” he leaned back in the booth, an air of cocky
indifference surrounding him.

            Pulling a
piece of loose leaf paper out of her beaded clutch she read off the first
question.

            “How tall
was Napoleon?”

            Blankly he
stared at her in bewilderment, but before he could protest she cut him off.

            “I’m
serious,” she grunted, “answer the question.”

            “Well him
being so short is just a myth, he was actually five foot five. Which is still
pretty short by today’s standards, but not as bad as most people think,” he
recited, still looking puzzled.

            She checked
the answer, her face souring to see he was right.

            “I thought
you wanted to ask me real questions, not play a trivia game,” he laughed.

            “Alright,
next one, who is America named after?” She felt more confident this time. She
had been shocked to see that there was an actual person credited with the name.

            “That’s
easy, Amerigo Vespucci,” he shrugged, “aren’t you going to ask me something
about
me
?”

            “What’s a
goblin shark?” her voice was almost panicked as she asked.

            “Have you
ever seen one of those suckers? There jaw pops out and they look like an alien.
Lemme pull up a video,” he whipped out his phone and started scrolling
excitedly, “Here, check this out.”

            “That’s
disgusting,” she wrinkled her nose at the creature.

            “But so
awesome,” he sighed happily.

            “Ok, last
one,” she was feeling desperate, Tessa was turning out to actually be right,
“who is the God Dionysus?”

            “Greek
mythology is my specialty,” his face lit up as he clapped his hands together
and began to explain every detail about the God of wine and grape harvests.

            The waiter
took their order and brought out their appetizers, and still he rambled on.

            Normally
she would have been bored to tears to have to sit and listen to someone drone
on for twenty minutes on a subject she knew nothing about, but instead she
actually found herself highly entertained.

He
was so animated as he told her all the stories and legends, his face lighting
up with an almost childlike joy, she couldn’t help but be interested as well.

He
spoke with his hands and weaved for her a picture so clear, it was almost as if
he were creating a movie in her mind.        

            “So
basically,” he said after swallowing down a massive mouthful of vegetable
tempura, “if he had to pick something from modern times, he would probably
choose to be the God of frat houses. So are you gonna tell me why you’re asking
me such weird things?”

            “Tessa is
convinced you’re some kind of super genius. She bet me that I couldn’t find a
question that you didn’t know the answer to,” and she was right.

            Nora had
picked what she felt like were four totally random unrelated questions, and he
had answered them all easily.

            “Not that
again,” he rolled his eyes, “look I’m nowhere near a genius. My sister just
puts me on a high pedestal. Anyone in here could answer the questions you asked
me.”

            “Oh
really?” she scoffed, annoyed that he would down play his own intelligence.

            “Excuse me
miss,” she flagged down a random waitress, “could you tell me anything about
the Greek God Dionysus?”

            “Greek
Gods…” the girl frowned for a minute, “oh wait, you mean like Thor and Loki? I
love the Avengers, they’re so hot!”

            “Thank
you,” Nora gave him a pointed look.

            “Oh come
on, she’s probably still a teenager, boy bands are her Gods. Excuse me sir,” he
interrupted the table full of businessmen next to them, “we’re having a debate
over here, maybe you could help us settle it? We’re trying to decide how tall
Napoleon was.”

            The men
each gave blank stares for a moment before one of them finally spoke up.

            “Well I
know he was a little person, and I think you have to be four foot ten or shorter
to qualify for that, so I’d say four ten,” he answered confidently.

            “Thank
you,” Nora smiled brightly. She loved being right.

            He rolled
his eyes at her, “I’m learning to never argue with you. Let’s get to the more
important part of this conversation, the questions I’m going to ask you.”

            She
narrowed her eyes in suspicion but didn’t respond. He would not get into her
head; the stubbornness of her mind was the last of her defenses, and she would
guard it viciously.

            “Where did
you grow up?” he asked, taking a sip of water. He and Tessa had the same
tolerance for alcohol, zero. One glass and she would probably be carrying him
home.

            “My family
immigrated here from Puerto Rico, they originally tried to make it to New York,
but couldn’t get that far, so Tennessee is where they settled,” she told the
same story that had been told to her when she was little.

            “Were you
an only child?” he leaned forward, honestly interested.

            She looked
away. Why was he getting so personal?

            “The one
and only. My mother wasn’t exactly in love with the idea of children, or
marriage to be honest, so my father always said he felt lucky he even got me. I
grew up with Jonathan though, and we were closer than brother and sister,” she
smiled at the memory of her first friend and their childhood together.

            “Jonathan?”
his voice was sharper than usual.

            “Yeah he
was the only son to the wealthiest family in our town. My family had worked for
them since they settled in Tennessee, and I was raised to take over my mother’s
position one day as the head maid in his house,” again she couldn’t help but
smile as she reminisced, “he was different then the other people back then. He
saw my family as equals, not just servants. He didn’t look down on me because I
was a girl, in fact when we were really little we would go out into his
families crops, and he would bring along pairs of his pants for me to wear.
Back then girls were only allowed skirts and dresses, but I always loved doing
what I wasn’t supposed to. He’d let me wear them under my dresses and run
through the fields, forbidding any of the workers to say a word to my parents
about it.”

            She laughed
quietly at the freedom she felt back on those hot summer days running between
the rows of corn and wheat. If only life could have stayed that simple. 

            For the
first time during their dinner date she started to feel relaxed, even
comfortable.

            “So your
mother didn’t like being a parent? Were you two close at all?” he slightly
pushed her towards the touchy subject.

            “Honestly
no. I loved my parents but I never really felt close to either of them, we
just… didn’t understand each other,” she tried to shrug it off, but couldn’t
help feeling the tiny prick of loss and regret, “my mom was a wild free
spirited woman. She never wanted to settle down with any man, especially not my
father. He was up tight and reserved, but their parents had made a good
profitable marriage for the two of them, and so they were stuck with each
other. They argued a lot when I was little, so by the time I hit ten or so
they’d decided it was best to stay far away from each other, and spent most of
their time making excuses to be apart.”

            “That must
have been rough,” he was suddenly sympathetic.