Haven wasn't much different from Sanctuary, Storme thought as she stood in the immaculate kitchen of the cabin she had awakened within after a heavy dose of Breed tranquilizer. She was still feeling the irritable, almost paranoid effects of the drug two days later, after the sleepiness had finally worn off. Of course, as Dr. Armani had told her with a smirk, if she hadn't been so exhausted, the effects wouldn't have been nearly so severe.
Added to it was a symptom the doctor hadn't told her about. A sensitivity to her flesh, a low-level aching need to rub at her skin, yet rubbing at it only seemed to make it worse. And her back itched in places she couldn't reach. Adding to the irritation was the fact that Styx was no place to be found.
If the Wolf was good for nothing else, maybe he could be a decent back scratcher.
She tried to ignore that little voice inside her that assured her there were other things Styx was definitely good at.
As midmorning approached and Styx still hadn't shown up, Storme paced to the kitchen door, stared into the huge courtyard that each cabin faced and felt like growling herself.
She was damned bored. Bored and curious. She knew the layout of the Feline prides' base, Sanctuary, from schematics that the pure blood societies had managed to attain from the Council. The historic old mansion that served as the main house in the compound had been renovated and owned by the Council at one time.
She had no idea where anything was at in Haven though, or even where she was located within it. Unlike Sanctuary, Haven was newly built, and the strict security within it had, so far, kept the pure blood societies from learning where the alpha of the packs'
home was located, or his seconds in command.
From Styx's cabin all she could see was the main living community that Styx had brought her to. It rather resembled a large city block of cabins of various sizes that had been built beneath the shading limbs of oaks that had to be centuries old.
Spread out from the block, beneath the canopy of other heavy, camouflaging trees were other cabins of differing sizes and designs that she could see from several windows.
There was a small store at the end of the block, what appeared to be a community center of sorts at the corner of the block behind the cabin, and a large secured bunker-type building set into the side of a cliff at the base of the mountain rising above the compound.
From the back door window of the kitchen, she could barely glimpse the steel and cement facade built into the mountain. It was set far enough from the cabins that if it were targeted, the residents would be safe, but it was close enough to provide shelter if needed.
A mountain lake surrounded by pines and heavy forest also held cabins that had been built to blend with the terrain rather than detract from it. In several areas there were home facings built into the mountain, just as the heavily secured steel bunker was set.
Farther along the side of the lower slope of the mountain, more cabins were set. The soft gleam of lights shimmered within the trees, betraying the locations of a few, but not all, she knew.
It was serene.
As dawn brightened the night sky and gave the faintest hint of softness to the fog that filled the valley, Storme realized what made it so hard for Council assassins and pure blood terrorist groups to gain a foothold or information in Haven.
It was heavily shrouded by mountains and trees, blocked from satellite view, and every security measure had been taken to ensure that Council spies had no chance to reveal the locations of the homes.
The heavily guarded entrance to Haven was set back from the main compound, giving no opportunity to glimpse it from the road. Anyone with an intent to slip close enough to gain any detail had to first traverse the mountains that rose around the compound, also Wolf Breed and Coyote land, and had to slip past the sensitive noses of the teams of Enforcers that patrolled the land.
There were close to three hundred thousand acres of land that made up the Wolf Breed territory. The land had once been government owned, a wildlife preserve that had been accessible to tourists and nature lovers. It was now heavily guarded and closed to all but those who managed to gain special permission from the Wolf Breeds or the Bureau of Breed Affairs.
Haven was impossible to get into, according to the Council and pure blood societies that kept attempting to break past the security. And for Storme, impossible to get out of. Hell, the cabin itself was impossible to get out of.
The windows were barred, even the one at the back door. Enforcers patrolled the courtyard, as well as the front of the house. And as she had seen the morning she had gone through the bedroom window, dozens could be gathered within seconds of an alarm.
Finally, as her irritation seemed to reach peak level, the front door opened, a rush of fresh mountain air blowing into the house. Pine, the scent of freshly cut grass, and the smell of a fresh mountain lake. And it all seemed to wrap around him, making his shoulders look broader, his hair a fiery red as the sun glinted off it, the blue of his eyes deeper than an ocean.
She rubbed at her arms, the prickle beneath the skin seeming to intensify as he stalked across the room.
"The alpha and his lupina will be arriving this afternoon," Styx announced as he entered the kitchen and flashed her a flirtatious smile. "They've offered to bring any clothing or guest items you may need."
"I don't need their clothes," she muttered.
She'd prefer to wear nothing at the moment, maybe her flesh would stop tingling and itching as though the need for touch were driving her crazy.
"Fine, go naked." He shrugged as he shot her a wicked grin, then moved to the coffee he had made before he showered. "Suits me fine."
She just bet it would.
Before she could voice the sarcastic rejoinder, he strode to her, his hand curving beneath her hair to the back of her neck, surprising her as his head lowered.
Oh God. She almost moaned as his head slanted and his lips covered hers in a voracious, hungry kiss.