The Virgin's Infiltrator Page 9

  It did seem strange to send his brother hours in another direction when healers could be found within a half an hour. “Infiltrators have…unique needs.”

  “That’s all you are going to tell me, isn’t it?”

  “Yep.”

  “Damn, you are frustrating.” She didn’t miss the slight upturn of Z’s lips.

  They continued the rest of the way in silence. As they came through the tree line, a small town came into view, the main street a strange mix of disrepair and renovation. As they approached, everyone moved out of Z’s way. They whispered and shot him looks of distrust, all except one, a young man who exuded confidence and command.

  “Natalie, or do you prefer Natalia?”

  No one had actually asked her preference before. “I have always gone by Natalia, but perhaps a change is in order. Maybe Nat?”

  “Nat, it is. I’m Drew, the Tao alpha.” He extended a hand. “You have been missed.”

  “I wish I could say I remember this, any of this.”

  “I remember you, as does my mate, Betty. She says as a toddler you always ran. Ran everywhere.”

  Running. Something she couldn’t do now without falling over.

  “You will run again. You simply need time.” He turned his attention to Z. “I’m going to take her to her grandfather. We can catch up at Gee’s when I’m done.”

  Z gave Natalie a wink. “It’s been a pleasure, and I’m sure I’ll see you again.”

  He didn’t mention anything about his brother being her mate. She realized he gave her the choice, he, as D, allowed her her freedom. “Thank you.”

  “Your grandfather lives on the edge of town,” Drew explained as they passed the remains of a burned building, the faint scent of soot lingering even after what she was sure was at least months. “He is….”

  “Dying. I know.” Mixed emotions ran through her: fear, nervousness, excitement, and anxiety. “I’ll do my best to make this easy on him.”

  “We’ve told him what little we know. I’m not telling you to lie, but what would the whole truth do to him?” He paused outside the door. “Do you want me to go in with you?”

  She shook her head. She didn’t need a stranger introducing her to another stranger. The only one she wanted by her side was D, and that thought caught her off guard.

  “I’ll leave you, then. Gee has a room prepared for you above his bar. At the moment, we don’t have any empty cabins.”

  “It’ll be fine.” He didn’t need to hear she’d lived in a cage for the last decade. She knocked on the door and waited until she heard a soft, gravelly voice bidding her enter then centered herself and opened the door.

  Sitting in a chair in the darkened room, an elderly man stared at her expectantly. A threadbare blanket lay over his legs. His hand shook as he reached for her. “My Natalie, you are so much like your mother, I would know you anywhere.”

  His voice brought a flood of memories back. “Gamps.”

  She moved into his arms with love, and they cried together.

  Chapter Seven

  Days turned into weeks with no word from D. Z had left immediately following his meeting with Drew, unwilling to be away from his mate for another day. She had hoped being away from D would have allowed her feelings for him to wane, but her need and desire had grown stronger. And absence really did seem to make the heart grow fonder.

  Her grandfather passed away a couple of days after she arrived. He had answered some questions about her young life but, more important, had died content in the knowledge she had made it home safely. She hadn’t told him the gory details of her incarceration. It would have done neither of them any good. She had only wished for time with the man. She remained above the bar. Though her grandfather had left her the shack, the old building looked about ready to fall in upon itself. In the end, she told Drew he could do with it as he saw fit.

  In one of their meetings, Drew explained why D hadn’t returned, despite an open invitation to visit. Due to 7’s medical injuries and D being the only one with his blood type, he could not leave his side. She understood. But understanding didn’t make it any easier. Eventually Z arrived to meet with the alpha, but all he would say was, “7’s still healing, and D sends his best.”

  She tried to help out where she could but, so far, hadn’t found a job to fit her nonexistent skills. No need for a circus animal in the pack. So she cleaned what she could for Gee, although he insisted her room and board had been more than paid for. By whom, she could only guess because the bear had proven to be as tight-lipped at times as Z. The local teacher worked with her to improve her reading and writing, and the town’s women had come together to make sure she had the essentials. But she still felt like an outsider.

  “Nat, you have a package,” Gee said as she descended the old wooden staircase.

  A plain brown box rested at the end of the bar. “Me?”

  “Jenna brought it in this morning. She found it in the old hag’s abandoned shack as she was doing her morning rounds.”

  The top of the box simply stated, Natalie.

  Gee came over with a knife and slit the seal. Although it took her some time, she managed to read the note inside without too much trouble.

  Dear Natalie,

  I am so sorry I couldn’t come for your grandfather’s funeral. I tried to make it back, but situations beyond my control prevented me getting to you. I am enclosing items to make life easier for you. I want you to have whatever freedom you choose. If you need anything from me, use the cell phone enclosed and press the D. I will come. I think of you daily but have vowed to give you the space you have never had.

  7 is well on his way to being his old self. But it will take time.

  Could you please give the small box in the bottom to Gee, (unopened)?

  Run free.

  Yours,

  D

  She dug into the package and pulled out a surprisingly heavy smaller box with Gee’s name and a quick thank you scrawled on top. “Gee, I’m to give this to you unopened.”

  The bear licked his lips, took the box, and disappeared into the kitchen. She removed the cell phone and placed it to the side, for fear she would call him right away. The clothes she’d chosen but left behind at the safe house in Lithuania lay neatly folded within plastic zipper bags. Underneath the clothes, she found a black wallet with the letter N embroidered in red. She opened it and gasped. Inside lay more money than she had ever seen in her life. Another note lay with the bills. Run where the need takes you. Three credit cards and a photo ID filled the slotted pockets.

  With freedom in the palm of her hand, she suddenly knew it didn’t mean a thing if she couldn’t share her new adventures with him.

  “Gee?”

  The bear stuck his head out of the kitchen.

  “How would I find D?”

  “Z would know.”

  “How would I find Z?”

  “Ripley would know.”

  She groaned. “And how would I find Ripley?”

  “Now, that one I know. She is at the Greystone River company compound. Do you want me to see about getting you a ride out there?”

  The next day, she found herself getting out of an old battered truck in the empty parking lot of the business whose sign stated they were closed for the season with a phone number and web address for further information. A soft light glowed from within the small office. She grabbed her bag and waved good-bye to the driver. The door opened, and a heavily pregnant woman came out. “Can I help you?”

  “Yes, I’m trying to find Ripley.”

  “You’ve found her.” The other woman sniffed the air as her face lit up with a smile. “You’re D’s mate.”

  It wasn’t a question but a statement. “Can you still smell him on me?”

  “I can.”

  The idea thrilled her and helped understand why not one man at Los Lobos even flirted with her. When she had first arrive one of the women who came into the bar
had made a comment that all the unmated wolves would be all over her. Yet not once had one looked at her twice. “I hoped you can tell me where I might find him.”

  “Did you call him?”

  “I wanted to see him. Talk to him face-to-face.” She shivered a bit as the sun hid behind the clouds.

  “Come on in.” Ripley urged her into the building, closing the door behind them. “Excuse the mess. I am, as my sisters like to say, ‘nesting,’ which means I keep taking everything down trying to reorganize this damned space. Can I offer you something to drink?”

  “No thank you.”

  “All right, then. I suppose getting to know each other will have to wait until you and D reunite.” She reached for a yellow walkie-talkie. “Z, honey.”

  “Yeah, baby,” Z responded immediately.

  “Can you tell me where your brothers are?”

  “At the moment, they should be doing 7’s physical therapy out in the open field. But that remains to be seen.”

  “Thanks.” She returned the device to its charging unit and turned. “Shall we?”

  “He’s here?” Somehow, she’d imagined he was off in some super-secret spy-like hidden lair built inside a mountain where only infiltrators could find it. Never had it occurred to her he would be a few hours away from Los Lobos, hanging out at a rafting company.

  Ripley grinned wide. “Well, not here, exactly. He is about fifteen minutes from here near the family compound.” The pregnant wolf grabbed her keys off a hook by the door, threw a coat on, and waited at the door. “You coming?”

  “I’m nervous.”

  “I don’t know everything going on. Z, as you might have figured out, isn’t very forthcoming with information. Neither are the twins. But I know D has been, against his better judgment, giving you your freedom. He arrived here a couple of weeks ago, and I see him staring off in the direction of Los Lobos, his fists clenched tight as he fights the need to be with you.”

  “I asked for my freedom.” She also asked him to stay, but perhaps her need for space was what he heard loudest.

  “Of course you did. You’ve never had it.” She picked up Natalie’s bag and exited. “Close the door behind you.”

  She liked Ripley already. She followed the other woman into the Jeep. “So he’s been here for a while?”

  “Since they gave 7 the okay to travel.” She climbed into the truck with a humph and mumbled something about her belly. She reached over and touched the wallet Nat held within tight hands. “I see you got his package.”

  “How did you know?”

  Ripley reversed the Jeep and drove down the bumpy road but didn’t seem to care they were jostled all over the place. “You don’t think a man would have thought that up on his own? He wanted to help but didn’t know how, and Lord knows Z wasn’t helpful. I suggested he send you something.”

  “Oh.” Here she thought he was so romantic.

  “Everything in the box was his idea. I just gave the push. I think he needed assurance it was okay to reach out.” She patted Nat’s knee. “It gave him something to do, to work on.”

  “What’s it like to be mated to an infiltrator?”

  She shrugged. “I have nothing to compare it to really. But I figure I’ve more freedom than most. He travels a lot. You have to accept you’ll never know his deepest secrets. He can’t tell you where he is. You have to trust more than I think most do.”

  She tapped a button on the visor and a bush slid to the side. “Used to be an open dirt road. Z didn’t approve. There are no fences. This is just to keep out lost tourists or hunters. I didn’t want you thinking you were closed in.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I’ll have a room made up for you for the night. It’s yours as long as you want it.”

  “Where does D stay?”

  “As of tonight, I assume with you.” She gave her a sassy grin. “He’s to the north through the trees. Go to him as your wolf. It’ll give you power. Trust her to lead you.”

  She swallowed the lump in her throat. This woman, who wore her strength like a banner, gave her hope of what she could become. Gee had suggested the Greystone betas might show her strength, but she had no idea what he’d meant. “I’ll try.”

  “That’s all any of us can do.” Ripley got out of the Jeep and grabbed Nat’s bag again.

  “Should you be carrying something heavy?” She indicating the other woman’s extended belly. She didn’t know a lot about pregnant women, but she did know they weren’t supposed to carry much.

  “Pftt.”

  The compound consisted of five large buildings surrounding the perimeter, with smaller cottages sprinkled throughout and a larger building in the center. Children played in the snow, and, although the adults stood nearby, a sense of safety and harmony infused the entire place. Two women waved at her, another approached to argue with Ripley in vain, trying to get a hold of the bag she carried.

  Then the wind blew. Natalie caught a hint of his scent on the breeze, shifted, and ran like the devil followed on her heels. Through the woods, without hitting a single branch, she made it to the outskirts of the open field. He stood thirty yards away in a blue T-shirt and jeans, while 7 lunged for him in wolf form. They both halted mid-attack and turned. D shifted in a second and became a black blur heading her way. He stopped a breath away and rubbed his head against hers before shifting back. She fell into his arms as soon as the last bit of her wolf disappeared.

  “I’ve missed you,” he breathed into her hair.

  Warmth and a sense of belonging washed over her as his heart beat like a cadence in her ear against his chest. “Have you been waiting here for me long?”

  “All my life.” He cupped her cheeks, forcing her to look at him before he kissed her hard. The cold no longer affected her as his warmth filled her. She wrapped her arms around his waist, pulling him closer. When he eased back, he stared at her a moment before speaking. “Tell me my wait is over.”

  She nodded and lifted up on tiptoe to touch her lips to his again. “We have waited long enough. I discovered freedom is empty without you to share it with.”

  “You are determined to give me diabetes.” 7 gripped her upper arm. “Good to see you, Natalie.”

  “You, too, 7.” He looked good, not like someone who took a bullet a few weeks back. “How are you feeling?”

  “Like someone put a piece of lead into my shoulder. Not 100 percent, yet, but if D has anything to do with it, I will be in record time.”

  D cleared his throat.

  “I think that’s D’s way of saying get lost. Interesting, as you could have screamed into my brain and she never would have known.” 7 grabbed his coat. “See you later…or maybe not.”

  Silence reigned between them. Despite all the time she had spent playing this moment in her head, the words she had planned to say blew from her memory. It had to do with how she missed him. He stared over her shoulder in the direction his brother had gone, and he waited. After a minute, he twitched and took a deep breath.

  “7 out of reach now?”

  “He is.”

  “It’s hard on you, isn’t it?” She cupped his cheek. “When you can’t sense him anymore.”

  He nodded, moving into her palm. “It’s like someone cuts off a part of you. Until the night we helped you escape, I didn’t know we could break the connection with distance.”

  “You had never been apart?”

  “Never. It was what made our abilities useful. We have amazing agility and speed, but so do all infiltrators. Even if we are a bit faster, it didn’t make us any more useful than anyone else, but we are two wolves who could act as one.”

  “Allowing for double coverage no one else could detect.”

  “Allowing for double trouble. We have caused more mayhem than any two wolves could.” He kissed her palm before leaning in to kiss her lips. “But, when you are never alone, it’s strange to have silence.”

  “I know it’s not
the same, but I think I understand. I was never alone, not really, and it was never quiet. I thought I needed to be by myself, and, in freedom, discover peace.”

  “But you didn’t?”

  “No, it only brought me emptiness. What I longed for was a sense of belonging. A family.”

  Pain washed over his face, “Oh, I didn’t ask about how you are holding up since your grandfather died.”

  “I would’ve loved to have known him, but he’s still essentially a stranger to me. I enjoyed the time I had with him. Would have loved more but he died happy.”

  He groaned, throwing his head back in frustration. “I should’ve been there for you.”

  “It’s hard to be somewhere when you are in a hospital bed, acting as a human blood bank. It’s I who should’ve been there for you. 7 was in worse shape than you let on when you left Los Lobos.”

  “I didn’t want you to worry more than you already were. I didn’t lie. I just didn’t tell you the whole truth. It was touch-and-go for a week. But you needed to be there for your grandfather and for you. If you hadn’t known someone loved you….”

  “I wouldn’t have realized I loved you?”

  “Say that again.”

  “I realized I loved you. At first, I thought it was this mating thing.’”

  “Mating thing?”

  His irritation at her description brought a smile to her face. “Connection…better?”

  “Much.”

  “As I was saying, at first, I thought I just missed you because of our connection. But as I suddenly had everything I thought I wanted, the one thing I realized I needed was you.”

  “I have never felt”—he pounded his chest in emphasis—“so split on where and when I needed to be somewhere. Driving away might be the hardest thing I ever did. But I knew Los Lobos couldn’t help 7, and I knew you couldn’t come to my pack with me.”

  “I have to be given permission.”

  He nodded.

  “Gee told me. So….”

  “So?”

  “When are you going to find us someplace warm and private and make love to me the way a mate deserves?”