“I feel surprisingly well and healed. I wanted to see you wet though.”
She loved the way he made sexy noises in response as his gaze lowered down her body when she dropped the towel to get dressed. No man had ever made her feel as wanted or as sexy as True could, just with his hungry stare. The intensity behind it made her feel special and highly desirable.
“We need their help to find the agent who used you.”
The sobering statement killed her teasing mood. It was easy to forget everything bad when she spent time with True. “Right.” It also reminded her of the times they’d been together in the presence of other Species. “I just don’t want you to get into another fight defending me.”
“These are Species from Drackwood. They know you, Jeanie. There won’t be any aggression.”
“I’m sure some of them don’t care how nice I was to them. They were locked up against their will and I was a part of that.”
True stepped forward to gently caress her cheek. “You were a part that made our captivity bearable. Don’t forget that. There is always that one spark that gives hope for better things when life is bad. You were that to us. Don’t ever deny how important that is.”
She stared up into his eyes, grateful for the kind words. “I won’t.”
His hand dropped away. “There’s no need to worry about being harmed by anyone we’re about to meet. I’d never allow that to happen.”
“Thank you.”
He scowled. “Don’t do that. I don’t want or need your thanks.”
“Okay. Why does that make you angry?”
“We’ll discuss this later. We must go. They will be waiting and I like to be prompt.”
She followed him out of the apartment. The guard was one she hadn’t seen before. He gave her a quick once-over before nodding at True. “Where are you taking her?”
“The library. We have a meeting.”
The New Species frowned. “No one informed me.”
True grabbed her hand and put his body between her and the other man. “She’s not a prisoner and I’m with her. I thought Jericho was on shift.”
“Darkness asked me to cover for him.”
Jeanie hoped she hadn’t hurt the primate enough that he wasn’t able to return to work. She opened her mouth to ask but didn’t, afraid it would only make things worse. True steered her in front of him and kept her away from the other New Species. The guard attempted to follow them into the elevator but True blocked him.
“Back off.”
“I should keep her within sight if she’s not inside your home.”
“She’s no danger to anyone,” True snarled.
The doors closed, leaving the guard on the other side. Jeanie studied True when he turned. “Maybe we shouldn’t leave your place. It’s totally understandable why they are suspicious.”
“My word is all that should matter and I vouch for you.”
She swallowed the urge to thank him yet again for having faith in her. It didn’t seem fair that he’d have to deal with so much animosity on her behalf. All the sacrifices she’d made had been her choice. She could have walked away once Drackwood had been taken down but the thought of not helping more New Species when Agent Brice had told her about Cornas had been a no-brainer. Someone needed to save them and she was in a position to do it.
She’d even considered the possibility of the backlash if her role was ever publicly exposed. Some people hated the New Species, forming organizations in protest of them being given human rights and some churches had even stated they were abominations. She’d been willing to withstand their biased, bigoted judgment if it came down to it but it had never entered her mind that the people she loved would have to pay as well. True shouldn’t have to defend her, yet he was. Her family would probably suffer the same fate, be targeted due to her actions.
“What are you thinking about?” True touched her shoulder, drawing her from her thoughts. “You look so sad.”
She looked up and then just stepped forward and hugged him. “It doesn’t matter.”
He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer. “It does.”
She wiggled out of his hold as the elevator doors slid open. “It’s just been a long day. I’m fine.”
“I don’t like seeing that look on your face and you will tell me what put it there. We’ll talk more about this later, at home.” He closely studied her.
“Deal.” She hoped he’d forget and let the matter drop. She already felt guilty enough for all he’d done and didn’t want to burden him with her emotional turmoil.
He took her hand and led her to the large library. Shelves full of books stood floor to ceiling. A beautiful gray-stone fireplace took up the back wall and a long conference table with plush chairs took up the space in the center of the room. New Species stood as they entered and Jeanie stopped walking, staring at familiar faces she never thought she’d see again. The smile came instantly despite her insecurity that they might not be as happy to see her as she was them.
“You all look so great,” she blurted. Her gaze stayed on one woman in particular and she unconsciously took a step toward her.
“Stay at my side.” True tugged her back.
“She’s safe here,” a male stated harshly before his tone softened. “It’s good to see you, Shiver. We’ll have to let you learn our new names. I go by Jinx now.”
Jeanie grinned at the tall, black-haired feline attached to that voice. “You’re still accident prone?”
The man laughed. “Not exactly. I picked the name for other reasons.”
She glanced down at his hand, resting on the back of a chair. “How is it?”
He released the plush material and flexed his fingers, turning his wrist until she could see his palm. A thick scar marred it, caused by a knife injury he’d once suffered when one of the guards tried to kill him in retaliation for something stupid. Jinx had grabbed the blade to prevent his throat from being slit.
“It works great.” He took a step closer. “You really gave that doctor hell by implying he was incompetent if he couldn’t repair the damage so I could move my fingers.”
A lump of emotion formed in her throat, making it impossible to speak. She swallowed hard.
“I overheard the staff planning to transfer me somewhere else since that doctor believed the loss of mobility to the hand would make it impossible for me to continue to be useful. It would be tough to improve hand-to-eye coordination with drugs if I didn’t have two working hands.”
Jeanie hadn’t known. “Where? Was it Cornas Research?”
“No. It was a death camp for our kind. One of the employees broke under interrogation and gave up the location.” A muscle in his jaw clenched and his dark-blue eyes narrowed with rage. “It was rigged to explode. All fourteen Species died before they could be reached.”
“Oh god,” she whispered, appalled.
“You saved my life.” Jinx focused his intense gaze on hers. “Now we’re going to do our best to save yours, Shiver.”
“Hello, Shiver,” a female announced.
Jeanie turned her head and smiled again. “You look great, 754. You let your hair grow. You’re so beautiful.” She realized she’d addressed her by number. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have called you that. What name did you take?”
“Luna.” She glanced at True. “May I hug her? There’s no need for you to take a protective stance and keep her at your side. Everyone here owes her thanks for some kindness she showed. Relax, True. She’s amongst friends. She saved me from being force mounted.”
The reminder of that incident made Jeanie wince. “It was total luck for us both that he was so busy making threats that he didn’t hear that door open.”
True growled. “What did you do?”
She noticed his angry expression and hoped it wasn’t caused by her actions. She had no regrets over what she’d done that day, or any day. She was always trying to stay one step ahead of the staff and figure out ways to trick or manipulate them into doing what was needed to help the New Species. “I opened the door to check on her and saw him standing next to her bed, going on about what he planned to do to her as he was removing his belt. I used a bedpan and nailed him in the back of the head. He never saw me coming. He’d turned off the cameras in the room to make sure Security didn’t spot him but it also meant there was no proof that I’d been there. I made it look as if he’d slipped and struck his head on the edge of the table.”