“Perhaps it has,” Dog sighed. “If the truth hasn’t slapped her upside the head by now, then it isn’t going to.” He inclined his head toward her. “Next time you want to talk, Ms. Hawkins, try going through regular channels. It’s normally safer for my ass that way.”
“He’s alive.”
Dog froze. Time froze. Behind her, Cassa heard Cabal growl.
“Isn’t he?” she whispered and turned back to stare at Cabal. “My husband is still alive.”
CHAPTER 20
“He’s not your f**king husband!” The words tore out of Cabal’s mouth before he could stop them. For the first time in longer than he could remember, he spoke without thought, without considering the words that fell from his lips.
He hadn’t meant to say it, not just like that. But he couldn’t handle it. Hearing her call Watts her husband was too much for him to stand.
The pain in her eyes, in her scent, nearly overwhelmed him. The need to comfort her, to wrap her in his arms and shelter her from this knowledge, was like a stake through his soul.
“Get out of here, Dog,” he snarled.
That bastard Coyote. The son of a bitch had to be related to Jonas, because he was nothing but a manipulative troublemaker, rather like the Bureau director himself was.
Dog watched them silently, his expression brooding, heavy.
“Let her face it,” he said softly, his gaze going to Cassa as she stared at Cabal with betrayal in her eyes.
The betrayal hurt the worst, Cabal acknowledged. As Jonas had warned him, this secret had come back to bite him on the ass.
“You knew.” Her voice was husky with a pain he had no idea how to ease for her. “You knew he was still alive.”
“And I know it doesn’t matter.” He’d had enough.
Cabal stepped forward, gripped her arm and pulled her toward the elevators. “We’ll talk about this upstairs.”
“The hell we will.” Jerking her arm out of his grasp, she stared up at him, waves of fury beginning to pour from her now. “What else have you been keeping from me, Cabal? How many other lies have you told?”
“More than you want to keep track of,” he bit out in self-disgust. “Do you want a f**king list?”
He pushed her gently into the elevator, blocked the exit and stared down at her implacably as the doors slid shut behind them.
“Locking me up again, Cabal?” she sneered at him.
He couldn’t blame her for her fury. She had every right to it. As Jonas had said, this was a secret he shouldn’t have kept from her, but neither had she needed to know. Until this assignment. Until the mission that Cabal had no doubt would require that he kill Watts again. This time for good.
“You would only slip out,” he growled. “You can’t stay in place, can you, Cassa?”
“Go to hell!” she yelled furiously, her face flushing a becoming pink. “I’m not some weak-kneed little bitch you can order around. Not anymore.”
“So instead of fighting me for anything, you go to Dog?” he snapped out, the anger beginning to burn in him as well. “To a Coyote, Cassa?”
“At least he was willing to tell me the truth.”
“Perhaps I would have been willing if you had dared to fight for it,” he accused her roughly.
“Fight for it? I should fight for it?” She looked like she was ready to shoot him. “Why should I fight for a respect that you should have given me willingly? For God’s sake, Cabal. You should have let me stand at your side without having to fight you for it, simply because I was your mate. You should have wanted me there.”
He stared back at her in silent shock, seeing in her gaze the betrayal she felt, and for the first time understanding why Cassa had never fought him for respect and acknowledgment when she had never hesitated to go head-to-head with other Breeds.
It had bothered him, he admitted that now. It was something he hadn’t wanted to admit before. Just as he hadn’t wanted to see what it was doing to her. He wanted to protect her. He had wanted her to demand her rights from him as he had seen her do with others she went up against. He had wanted her to challenge him. He hadn’t realized until this moment how she had been challenging him. Daring him to be a true mate. Daring him to be her equal.
As Cabal struggled to make sense of the mistakes he had made, the elevator came to a stop with a muted little ping and the doors slid open on Cassa’s floor.