Kalen Read online

  Kalen glanced at her, then back to the house. “If what you say is true, then the doctor’s men must have her. Let’s pray she is still unharmed.”

  “She’d better be, Kalen. I swear, if anyone has touched even one hair on her sweet head, I’ll kill the bastards myself.”

  “I believe you.” Kalen began to undress.

  “What are you doing?” Ally said with a hiss. “You can’t undress here. Someone will see you!”

  Kalen turned to face her and stared deep into her eyes. His expression, while grim, also helped calm her a bit. How could he be so calm when he knew someone had invaded an old woman’s home and perhaps harmed her?

  “I fight and heal better in my wolf form, Ally.” He turned toward the house, his gaze on the house as he tried to hear what was going on inside the structure. “I can’t hear anything from inside, but that means nothing.” He turned back to face her. Just remember one thing. If I’m injured in my wolf form, I won’t be able to change back into my human form until I’ve healed. It’s some sort of safety measure. We can’t shift shape if we have a serious injury such as a broken bone, or a large open wound. You’ll have to take me to a safe house where I can receive medical attention from another were.”

  “Don’t worry. We’ll manage to get you there somehow even if I’m constantly changing into a damned wolf.” She placed her hand over her stomach as if that alone could hold off the inevitable change. “We’ll get you to safety if something happens to you. Just…” she paused and rested her hand on his upper arm. “Try not to get yourself killed, will you?”

  Ally watched nervously as Kalen changed and made his way toward Milly’s house. She didn’t know what she would do if someone harmed her dear friend because of her. She also didn’t know what she would do if someone harmed Kalen. Why she felt that way was beyond her. All she knew was that she didn’t want him injured.

  What happened to her didn’t matter. Milly was an innocent in all of this and Kalen, well…he was just too nice to lose his life because of her.

  Ally settled down in the bushes across the street from her house and thanked goodness that the developer who bought the property hadn’t started clearing it yet. If he had, she wouldn’t have had a place to hide.

  She looked around, realizing that this time next year, this would be someone’s front lawn instead of the woods she rode her mountain bike through in the warmer months.

  A movement across the street caught her eye and she watched as Kalen, crawling on his belly, made his way to the duplex. He stayed to the brush, hiding amongst the bushes as he continued to make his way to Milly’s backyard. Once he was there and out of her sight, Ally stuck her thumb in her mouth and bit her nail.

  What was he doing? She hoped he didn’t do something foolish like barge in and get himself shot.

  Do you think I’m stupid, or what, Ally? She felt his amusement trough their mind link. Besides that, I didn’t know you cared.

  I don’t, you big jerk.

  He laughed then. She didn’t know how he did it while in his wolf form. It sounded just as she thought he would sound if he were in his human form.

  How do you do that?

  Do what?

  Never mind. I don’t care how you do it. The last thing she wanted was for him to think she was interested in him in any way. It didn’t matter that she was, she just didn’t want him to know it.

  I just do it, Ally. You have to remember, I was brought up knowing I could do this. I learned to do a lot of the things I do before I can remember.

  Oh. She didn’t know what to say to that. He didn’t have to be nice to her or answer any of her questions. After all, she was being somewhat of a jerk. There was no reason for him to explain or to risk his life for her friend the way he did. Yet he did it just the same. Thank you. She paused for a moment. Do you see her yet? Is she okay?

  I see an older woman who looks like she’s in her mid-sixties or early seventies, maybe. She’s sitting on a chair tied up, but she seems to be all right.

  Thank God!

  Thank someone. Kalen growled low in his throat. It looks like they plan to inject her with the serum.

  He cut her off after that. It was probably just as well. Talking to her would only distract him and he would need to keep on alert if he planned to save her friend.

  Ally wrapped her arms around her middle and smiled softly. Saving Milly was exactly what he planned to do and she could almost love him for that alone.

  Chapter Eight

  Kalen crawled around the house looking for a way in that wouldn’t alert the doctor’s men to his presence. There didn’t seem to be one. He wondered if he’d ever catch a break when he finally saw his way in. He just hoped that the woman wouldn’t give him away.

  He crawled toward the garage and stared at the small doggie door that would help him gain entrance. As much as he hated the idea of getting himself stuck in the damned thing, it was better than changing into his human form to enter the house.

  The men wouldn’t know she didn’t have a dog and, given his markings, he could almost pass for a Samoyed. With a mental groan, he scrunched down and pushed his way through the door he could have sworn was made for a Cocker Spaniel, or maybe a Sheltie. Whatever kind of dog it was made for was definitely smaller than he was.

  Finally, inside the garage, he looked around for the animal that used the door regularly and when he saw none, made his way to the inside entrance. It, too, had a doggie door and he wondered if he could get away with using it as well. Sooner or later he would run into the animal it was built for and then there would be hell to pay. He didn’t want to hurt Milly’s pet, but then again, he didn’t want the men to hurt Milly either. The last thing he wanted was to go to Ally and explain how these assholes turned her best friend into a werewolf.

  His mind made up, Kalen forced his way through the second small door and into the house. Once inside, he followed the sound of voices to the entryway to the kitchen, belly to the floor. What he saw there made his blood run cold. Anger nearly overran his good sense. He barely stopped the snarl that wanted to escape his throat as he watched the men laugh at the old woman.

  The two men stood near the seventy-something woman whom they had already beat until both her eyes were nearly swelled shut and blood trickled from her nose and mouth.

  Never had he ever felt the urge to kill as strongly as he did now. The feelings were so strong, he had a difficult time controlling his wolf. Somehow, he knew Milly was the sweetest, most giving woman he would ever meet.

  Kalen crouched just outside the room, his muscles tensed as he prepared to pounce, his wolf ready to rend and tear tender human flesh. Just before he attacked, Kalen realized the urge to kill these men was not his own. It was Ally’s.

  That she could connect with him so well when she was so newly turned was telling and he wanted to dismiss it, but knew he could not. Kalen immediately threw up barriers, effectively breaking their connection and Ally’s insatiable desire to be the one to rip these men’s throats out.

  The last thing he wanted was for Ally to feel responsible for more deaths. She already felt remorse for Billy and Bobby, the moron twins. As a new were-being, she was bound to feel a bit bloodthirsty. It was a transition between human and were. He knew this because Carly, the Alpha, Bastien’s mate, and the woman they rescued from the lab, Cassie, both felt that way. After they learned to control their new urges, they felt horrible guilt. Their wolf sides only knew the need to protect itself and its kind. Their human sides found it difficult to live with. Kalen didn’t want that guilt weighing on his Ally.

  With a sense of defeat, Kalen closed his eyes and came to terms with the fact that Ally truly was his mate. Ready or not, she was here now and he knew that this could be a once in a lifetime chance. Wild oats or no, he had just lost his freedom, because for a werewolf, a lifetime was a very, very long time.

  Kalen watched, waiting for his chance to pounce. If he had his way, the men would split up and he would take them on one
at a time, but he didn’t have time to wait. Milly Jenkins sat with her head down, looking like a broken woman.

  “Come on, Johnny, stick her already. We don’t got all day.” The taller of the two snarled at the man holding the syringe.

  “If you can do better, you go right ahead, Roger. I don’t like attacking old women.”

  Roger punched Johnny in the arm and grabbed the syringe. “Fine! If you won’t do it, I will.” The man drew back the syringe and Kalen attacked.

  Johnny picked just that moment to step to the side, effectively blocking Kalen’s attack. Instead of driving his teeth into Roger’s neck, Kalen hit Johnny in the back, knocking him into the table. It turned onto its side, sending a bag filled with syringes flying into the air and Johnny fell to the floor, unconscious.

  Roger jammed the needle into Milly’s arm and depressed the plunger.

  Kalen shook his head, just before he pounced on Roger and ripped his throat out.

  Johnny had apparently feigned unconsciousness. He stood abruptly and pulled a gun from the waistband at his back and aimed it at Kalen.

  Kalen wasted no time and lunged for his throat. The man barely had the time to look surprised before the wolf tore at the vulnerable flesh under his chin and ended his life.

  Milly sat in her chair, shaking with fear. “If you’re going to kill me, do it now. I can’t take another beating.”

  Her voice was low, weak. She sat in the chair, her head down and shoulders shaking. Kalen didn’t know if she cried or if she was just frightened beyond belief.

  Get in here and comfort your friend, Ally. I think she’s going into shock and she’s going to need your help. I wasn’t fast enough to stop them from injecting her.

  Oh, God!

  Kalen could feel her horror, her anguish that they didn’t get to her friend in time. What surprised him was the fact that she didn’t blame him at all. Instead, she blamed herself.

  Why?

  He could hear her sobs, feel her pain like it was his own and he wanted nothing more than to find that damned doctor and rip his throat out.

  Why would they inject Milly? What did she ever do to them? She’s not a young woman anymore. She can’t help give them their perfect army.

  I don’t know why, sweetheart, but they did it, nonetheless. Kalen sat back and waited for Ally to arrive to comfort the older woman. Maybe this would help her come to terms with her new state. After all, she may want to end her own existence, but he was certain she wouldn’t want her friend to do what she was so willing to do herself.

  Ally came to the kitchen door and knocked. Kalen wanted to laugh. It seemed so strange for her to do something so normal.

  “Go away,” Milly mumbled. Kalen could see the telltale signs of change already. Her brow was already damp from sweat as the serum burned its way through her veins.

  “It’s me, Milly,” Ally said as she cracked the door open a few inches. She put her hand over her mouth and gagged when she saw the dead bodies.

  Kalen suppressed a groan. He hadn’t wanted her to see what he’d done and she wouldn’t have if he only could have prevented the assholes from injecting Milly.

  Now that Ally was here to keep her friend from doing anything stupid, Kalen left the room so he could change. The old woman had already been through enough, and the last thing he wanted to do was freak her out even more by shifting shape in front of her.

  When he returned to the kitchen, Milly looked up, her expression listless. “Thank you for killing those bastards.”

  “How—”

  Milly interrupted Ally. “I knew he was the wolf because the others turned into wolves in front of me. She shuddered at the memory. “They said…” Pausing, she let out a sob. “They said they were going to rape me after they turned me into one of them.” She laughed mirthlessly. “For some reason, they were under the mistaken impression that they could still get me pregnant.” She shook her head. “I haven’t been able to have kids since my late forties. Menopause will do that to you.”

  Ally’s face blanched and she turned her gaze onto Kalen. “Do you think this will make her younger?”

  “Hell if I know.” Kalen shrugged. “Who knows what’s on that crazy doctor’s mind?” He looked toward the front door. “Do you have a car, Mrs. Jenkins?”

  “Yes.” Milly nodded and leaned forward so he could more easily untie her bonds. “Can we use it?”

  “Sure,” she said without hesitation then looked at Ally. “What happened to your car?”

  “The police impounded it.”

  “Impounded it? What did you do?”

  “I didn’t do anything, Milly. The same man who sent these guys here to your house injected me with that serum, too.”

  “Oh.” Milly frowned. “But that doesn’t explain why you don’t have your car.”

  “It does when I tell you what it does.” Ally sighed. “It turns you into a werewolf, Milly.”

  “I know.”

  “You know? How can you know?” Ally stared down at the old woman.

  Kalen knelt in front of the older woman and rested his hand on her arm. “You’re taking this rather well.”

  “Yes, well, when they told me what it would do, I called them crazy heroin addicts jonesing for a fix and they showed me what that potion would do to me after they beat the hell out of me.”

  Milly stretched and rubbed her raw wrists. “I can’t believe I lived seventy-two years without knowing about you people.” Standing, she brushed her fingers through her hair. “My face hurts like hell. I’ll bet I look like hammered shit.” She kicked out at one of the bodies. “I’m glad you killed those assholes.”

  “Milly Jenkins!” Ally stared at the old woman, her eyes wide. “I’ve never heard such language from you before.”

  “What?” The old woman turned to her with a frown. “I’ll swear if I want to. I’ve been beaten almost to death, for goodness sake.”

  Kalen wanted to laugh. He could really come to like Mrs. Milly Jenkins.

  Chapter Nine

  “Have you heard from those two idiots, Johnny and Roger?” Dr. Richard Thornton looked over his glasses at his assistant who sat negligently in the chair across from him.

  Damn, Martin was a perfect specimen for one of his experiments, but Richard wasn’t stupid. He knew the man wouldn’t hesitate to kill him if he injected him with the serum against his will.

  Richard may be desperate to prove to General Butterick that he could produce the results, but he didn’t have a damned death wish.

  Martin stared at him with those dead eyes and shook his head. “I think your friends got them.” He stood and began to pace. “I wish we could get more soldiers, but the military isn’t as forthcoming with help as they once were.”

  “Only because that bastard, Bastien Sinclair and his group killed all of the properly trained soldiers they sent us.” Richard was so mad he could have killed someone, but he delegated. That was what Martin was for.

  “They should have sent better trained men. Instead, they sent the dregs from their ranks and expected us to fight of a paramilitary organization with abilities akin to superpowers.”

  Martin turned to him and stared at him through narrowed eyes. “Those men were not the dregs, Doctor. They were all Special Forces and every one of them were braver than you are.”

  “Why won’t you let me inject you, Martin?” Richard wondered if he could tempt the man, even a little.

  “Because I like my life the way it is. I’m not anyone’s fucking guinea pig.” He stepped closer, placed his hands on Richard’s new desk and leaned forward. “And don’t even think about turning me against my will, Doctor. I’d be no good to you locked up and you know it.”

  “You wouldn’t have to be locked up. You could still come and go as you please.”

  “No.” He shook his head. “I couldn’t, because if you let me loose, I would rip your fucking head off your shoulders.” He straightened and pulled his shoulders back. “Read my lips. I like my life the way it
is now and I want to keep it that way.”

  Richard sat back in his chair and sighed. It had been worth a shot. He couldn’t imagine a better candidate for his serum than Martin, but he had refused every step of the way. He rubbed his eyes then looked up at his right hand man.

  “How many mercenaries have you recruited?”

  Martin finally relaxed, sat down and propped his feet up on the corner of the desk. “About a dozen.”

  Richard fought the urge to tell him to get his goddamned feet off his desk. He didn’t need to alienate the man. At the moment, Martin was all he had. “That’s it?”

  “Hey, if you think you can do better, be my fuckin’ guest. It’s not easy convincing people to give up everything in their lives to become a lab rat. You’re just damned lucky they don’t realize that they’re literally signing their lives away.” He chuckled. “I’m just damned glad I’m not the one that’s going to be injecting them. As far as they’re concerned, the only thing I know about this project is that you need volunteers to accept your serum.”

  Richard scowled at the man. “It’s not like it’ll kill them.” He pushed his chair back and stood. He made his way over to the TV and turned it on. The sound of waves crashing against rocks filled the room. Every television in the facility was hooked up to a closed circuit system that played nature scenes and sounds twenty-four hours a day unless someone was watching a DVD.

  Hell, he had to do something to make it feel as though they weren’t cooped up underground all of the time.

  Moving back to his desk, he sat down and watched the current scene, his fingers steepled in front of his face. “Did the idiots inject the old woman like I ordered?”

  One of Martin’s brows rose. “I can only assume so, Doctor. After all, they never failed to follow orders before.”

  “Yes, well, there’s a first time for everything, isn’t there?” Richard stopped baiting him. He knew that his second in command had some strange soft spot for the men he brought in. He was starting to wonder if Martin was gay.