“It’s not as though it will affect Vanderale. Lawrence Industries is no more than a pet project of yours, Dane, admit it,” Carrington snapped. “The holding Lawrence bought from you was in no way attached to Vanderale.”
“Father can be a shade possessive of his holdings.” Dane sighed as though he were the reckless playboy he was perceived to be. “He’s going to expect results from me here, and he does have a soft spot for the Breeds. Disappointing him here would not be in my best interests.”
Or those of the others. The world was no longer such a small place and Vanderale Industries had always had its sights toward that. It had a finger in many pies, just as Lawrence Industries did. Many of those pies were now staring back at Dane, sweating, uncertain if they should stand their ground or allow Seth’s measures to continue to back the Breeds.
Backing Sanctuary and Haven was a smart business decision, as Dane well knew. Callan Lyons and the Wolf Breed leader, Wolf Gunnar, were excellent leaders and strategists. They would lead the Breeds into a future that would one day see them not just secure, but completely profitable and self-supporting.
“Ah, here’s Rye,” Dane murmured then and glanced back at the board members. Yes, the members of Seth’s board of directors were about to receive a very rude awakening. “A few discs I’ve managed to attain myself from some very greedy Council soldiers. Should we go view them?” He extended his arm to the meeting room as the others watched him with almost fearful curiosity. Valere was quiet, but in his black eyes Dane glimpsed the evil that he could smell hovering over the man
like decayed flesh.
Theodore Valere came from Spanish aristocracy. His family could trace their roots back to the Middle Ages. Hurrah, hurrah. Dane’s father had traced the Valere family roots as well and found a history of depravity and petty cruelties. The past three generations of Valere money had filled the Genetics Council coffers.
The Council had ruled the Breeds with an iron hand, destroying their creations despite the billions, perhaps trillions, of dollars that had gone into giving them life. The miracles they had created were ignored. The scientists didn’t see them as miracles; they saw them as tools and as expendable creatures. The discs Dane had acquired had been authenticated by the world’s foremost authorities on video and audio production, enhancement and duplication. There was no doubt each event, each bloodcurdling scream, each demented plea for mercy was real.
The blood that filled the labs, the cold faces of scientists and soldiers alike, the complete inhumanity of the experiments, all in the name of science, were events that even the staunchest stomach couldn’t bear. And the girls. The faces of young female Breeds, were those that were hardest to bear. Dane stood by the viewer and stared back at the board members, his eyes hard, the sounds of agonized wails echoing in his head, as they always did, even in his nightmares.
All but Valere turned away. He stared at the images, a heavy frown on his face as he watched, a glimmer of pleasure in his eyes. And Dane swore, before much longer, he would have the proof he needed. When he did, Valere would die.
Dane wasn’t bound by Breed Law. He didn’t have to turn his evidence over to the Breed Ruling Cabinet, law enforcement agencies or senators. All he had to do was assure his own conscience. Once that last shred of doubt was assuaged, then Valere blood would spill. As Breed blood had spilled.
Over and over again.
CHAPTER 16
“I should start flying every last one of them to the mainland,” Seth growled as they entered the suite, his body tight, humming with anger as he released her arm and moved to the bar. Dawn watched him, her chest heavy, her heart aching as though someone had cut into it with a dull knife as she watched him pour a drink and breathe out heavily.
“Board members are like death and taxes. Can’t get rid of them.” Dawn quoted him. He’d made that comment years before at one of the parties he had attended at Sanctuary. He glowered at her, but his shoulders seemed to relax marginally.
“Bastards,” he finally muttered before sipping at a whiskey and turning back to stare at her. The look in his eyes fired her blood immediately. It made her think of soap made in Paris and the wild scent of his lust clinging to her body.
“The board members aren’t the only problem we have,” she told him, hating the necessity of making the situation worse. At least in his eyes. “Investigator Ison arrived just before I met up with you in the hall. Dash and Callan are with him, but they’re wanting to question Merc about the death of your board member.”
The whiskey glass was set on the bar carefully. “They’re trying to pin Breyer’s death on a Breed then?”
“That’s what we suspect. Mercury would make an excellent target. Flash his picture across the television screens of the world and parents would fear not just for their children but for themselves. I think they’re wanting to turn this on us.”
Seth closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. He was tired, she thought. Neither of them had slept much the night before, or this morning. The mating heat had taken them in its grip, and every ounce of energy had been given to it.
The thought of those hours had her thighs weakening and her sex clenching in need.
“Where is Investigator Ison?” He sneered.
“We had the library secured before his arrival. Dash is hoping that he and Callan can distract him or somehow divert the direction of his investigation.”
His jaw clenched. “Let’s go. I’ll be damned if I’ll sit here on my ass and watch them try to pin Breyer’s death on an innocent man. Has Dash run a background check on him yet?”
Dawn nodded. “We’ve found preliminary evidence of an association to several Council contacts, though those contacts aren’t verified. At this point it would be only speculation in the eyes of the law.”
“All I need.” Suddenly he looked taller, broader, harder. He looked like a man that most people would be frightened to push much further.
And Dawn had to admit to feeling a curl of trepidation. Not personal concern, but rather that gut feeling that should Seth lose the control she could now glimpse as a core of steel inside him, then death would result.
“Do you have his file on that handy-dandy PDA of yours?” He nodded to the electronic device. Dawn pulled it free of her utility belt, activated it and pulled up Investigator Ison’s file before handing it back to Seth.
He took it, his eyes narrowed on the screen as he scrolled through the information. His jaw was rigid, his nostrils flaring as he read the file.
“His brother married the sister of a suspected Council soldier,” he murmured. “Past military career, possibility of Council and/or lab involvement.” He looked over at her. “And Dash is letting this son of a bitch live?”