"He's not her mate, so what's the problem? Besides the feral adrenaline that showed up in it."
Ely's gaze flickered. "She'll make it worse. Her hormones intensify the feral fever," she whispered. "For some reason, when I tested for their mating values, that feral quality immediately showed up in the adrenaline. She'll destroy him. His reaction to her will destroy him."
"Or she'll complete him," Jonas spoke up, turning his gaze from Ely to Callan. "I've studied the lab reports, Callan. I don't think Mercury lost his mate in those labs; he lost his animal instead. I think Ria is possibly his mate, and the presence of the strength in that feral adrenaline proves it. Mercury's test results are never the same as other Breeds'. The animal DNA fluctuates in its recession, as Ely can confirm. I believe the results of those mating tests are more an indication that she is his mate, rather than not. I think the lioness could have been his mate. But I believe Ria is his mate."
Ely's anger built around her, the scent of it causing Callan to shoot her a sharp look.
"Respectfully," she finally bit out, "where did he obtain his degree in genetics? Because his supposition is the most dangerous load of crap I've ever heard."
"Respectfully, Dr. Morrey," Jonas stated then, "I don't need a degree to know not to betray a friend. It appears perhaps your education was lacking, though."
"I know the science, and I know Breed genetics," she fired back at him, though quieter than before. "All you know is your own arrogance."
"Ask yourself, Ely, is it possible in any way that your findings could have been tampered with as well? Because if you'd pull your head out of your scientific ass long enough to realize it, you'd see that Mercury is in complete control."
"Ely, leave the room," Callan ordered her, staring at her, something hardening inside him at the sense of fanatical certainty he could feel pouring from her. "Return to your labs. I'll let you know when I need to talk to you again."
"Callan, you can't let him continue this game," she cried, jumping to her feet and facing him with a hint of desperation.
"Get your notes and your tests in order and have them faxed into this office," he told her, his voice hardening. "I expect to see them within the hour."
She stared back at him, breathing rapidly, before clenching her fists and stalking from the room. Callan watched her go, his eyes narrowed, his own suspicions aroused now as he turned back to Jonas.
"Any orders I give concerning Mercury will come from me, in person." He turned to Kane. "Find out who the hell is falsifying my orders and bring that person to me. I want to know exactly what the hell is going on here."
"The enforcer who relieved Mercury of his weapon and uniform came to me afterward," Jonas told him. "He said the order came into Austin Crowl's office. The enforcer took the call himself. Someone's impersonating your voice, at the least."
Callan rubbed at the still-sensitive flesh of his chest, where he had taken a bullet but months before, and turned to Kane.
"Is this room secured?"
Kane moved from his chair, slid open a drawer on Callan's desk and lifted free the handheld listening device detector.
"It says we're clear," he murmured, replacing it. But his pale blue eyes were suspicious.
He drew away a second later as the phone at his side rang.
"There's no way to impersonate me to my mate," Callan growled as he stared back at Jonas. "If you're in doubt regarding an order, bring Merinus to me. It's the only safety precaution we can depend on. Until then, find out what the hell is going on here, and where these f**king orders came from."
"Gentlemen." Kane sighed as he lowered the phone that had rung at his side moments before. "Our problems have just been added to."
Callan's gaze cut to him.
Just what the hell they needed, a bigger problem. As though dealing with Jonas and Ely butting heads over the enforcers again wasn't enough.
Kane looked at them all mockingly. "Ms. Rodriquez has just notified her boss that her job is being blocked, she's been insulted, and she's requested the Vanderale heli-jet to be sent to transport her to the airport, where the Vanderale private jet is to pick her up. Let's kiss our funding good-bye right now. It was nice while it lasted."
CHAPTER 10
In her life Ria couldn't remember ever being so furious as she had been when she walked out of Sanctuary. And she couldn't even explain to herself why the burning anger was rushing through her so powerfully.
The moment she entered the cabin, she put her case on the bar and lifted the laptop from it before setting it on the counter and lifting the screen.
She pulled her email up, very much aware that her connection was through Sanctuary's secured network and would be intercepted. She didn't bother to encrypt the email she typed out to Dane, and pushed "send."
She let a smile tip her lips. She had no intention of leaving Sanctuary, but it would bring Dane on their asses like a ton of bricks.
"You're not going anywhere," Mercury stated as he passed by her on the way to the kitchen. "And you need to eat. You haven't eaten today."