Protector: The Elect, Book 1 Read online

  “You won’t relax until they’re here, will you?”

  She bit her bottom lip—it was the only way to not beg him to take her—and shook her head. “I need to know they’re safe,” she whispered.

  She needed him thrusting inside her. That wasn’t happening yet, but she saw the promise in his eyes. That and so much more. He edged closer. His hands settled on her hips, stroking up and down her sides as he stared down into her eyes.

  “I hope you’re ready, baby,” he whispered. He was gentle. Seductive. “We’re not human. My needs aren’t human.” His head dipped to her shoulder and he nipped her, humming at her jerked response. “And neither are yours.”

  Oh God, she was in so much trouble here. He released her, a wicked, carnal smile curving his lips that made her pussy clench in anticipation.

  “Call your brother.” He motioned to the phone on his desk. “Tell him Mason Cole is picking him up with a team.”

  She dialed the number, licking her dry lips as it rang.

  “Yeah?”

  His greeting was abrupt and unfriendly. She wondered if Carter would ever soften. She’d like to blame his Special Forces training for his attitude, but he’d been cold and distant long before he joined them. They’d only honed the cold that was already there.

  “It’s me,” she said softly.

  “Jesus. Where the fuck are you?”

  She scowled at the phone. That was over the top even for Carter. “With a…friend. Listen, I’m sending someone to pick you two up. Pack a bag for a few days.”

  There was a long silence and she wondered if the connection had been broken. “Carter?”

  “What’s going on, Esme? When you missed our meeting, I went by the campus. Your lab and office look like a hurricane swept through.”

  She flashed hot, then cold. She couldn’t help searching the room for where she’d dropped her bag and breathing a sigh of relief it was still there by the door. Zach had acknowledged receipt of her email, but after twenty-four hours of no other contact, Esme had panicked. She’d saved all her research and notes onto flash drives then wiped all of her computers clean. She’d burned the papers. Whoever had been through her office wouldn’t find anything.

  “There’s nothing left to find. I’ll explain it when you get here.” Braxton’s paranoia was wearing off on her. She didn’t trust the phone, but she didn’t want to have a prolonged telepathic chat with him either. It was taxing and she wasn’t sure if anyone could listen in if she was using that much power. She had to risk a short conversation.

  “Why don’t I just come to you?”

  She looked at Brax, standing so close she knew he heard Carter’s side of the conversation. He shook his head no.

  “Carter, just do it. ”

  “It’s better if someone picks you up,” she said, trying to sound steady and calm. The last thing she needed was Carter rushing to her rescue when it wasn’t necessary. This was going to freak him out bad enough as it was.

  “What’s going on, Esme? ” he countered.

  “Is this about the tests?” She could hear the concern for his son in his voice.

  “Yes.”

  There was another long pause. “How much trouble are we in, Esme?”

  “I’ll explain when you get here. ”

  She wasn’t discussing this by remote and he’d just keep on pushing if she didn’t shut him down. Besides, Brax was giving her a knowing smirk. “A man named Mason Cole is coming to get you. Be ready, Carter.”

  He hung up with an angry click, and she sighed. Damn. Her brother was difficult enough to deal with, hard and protective; why did she feel like she would get ten times worse with Brax?

  “Enjoy your private conversation with your brother?”

  She rolled her eyes. “What did you hear?”

  “Nothing.” He shrugged. “I felt the energy you used. I’ll teach you to shield that.”

  Since she didn’t plan on making a habit of using telepathy that shouldn’t be an issue. Brax changed the subject before she could decline his offer.

  “We didn’t have time to do much of a background check on you. There was nothing about a brother. If you and his son are Elect, he is too, and at least one of your parents. But none of you are in our database. Why is that, Esme?”

  “That’s a good question,” Zach drawled from the doorway. She hadn’t noticed he’d returned. “I’ll want to run those tests again.”

  She snorted. “Don’t trust my results, Dr. Littman?”

  They weren’t friends exactly, but she’d expected more from him. They’d met in graduate school. He was one of the few men whose thoughts and feelings never touched her, never overwhelmed her. She’d even entertained the idea of carrying their light flirtation to the next level, but somehow it never seemed right.

  “I re-run all tests before we add anyone to the database. It’s not personal.”

  Like hell it wasn’t. He was studying her with a cold, critical eye that made her skin crawl. Maybe she’d made a mistake trusting them. Maybe she’d end up dissected and under a microscope after all. God, she hoped she hadn’t brought her family into worse danger. She jumped when Brax growled.

  “Knock it off, Zach. She’s freaked out enough as it is.”

  She wanted to laugh. She wasn’t freaked out. She was terrified, and she only knew one way to deal with it. They were here. They might as well answer her damned questions. It wasn’t like she could escape with the information.

  “How long have you known? That there was a new species?”

  Zach didn’t answer until Brax nodded permission.

  “Three generations. The military had a top-secret program to study parapsychics during World War II. They gathered a group of telepaths, mostly, together and tried to train their talents for warfare.” There was a hard edge of both sarcasm and anger in his voice. “After a few years, when it appeared to be unsuccessful, they gave up the program.”

  “And they were the first?” she asked skeptically. That didn’t make sense. “There are plenty of humans with advanced perception skills.”

  “Yes, there are,” Brax agreed. “But some of the subjects of that research were much more advanced, not just psychically, but physically. They knew they were different enough they hid it and banned together to survive.”

  “They messed up on purpose. Intentionally threw off test data?” She smiled at the confirmation in his mind.

  “So y’all are descended from this first group. Have you isolated older groups?” she asked.

  Zach shook his head. “They’re the first generation we’ve documented. I’ll show you my research tomorrow. Which still doesn’t tell us about you. There are no Durands in the database. Or Owens. Why does your bother use a different name, anyway?”

  She shrugged. “Different fathers.”

  Both men tensed. “What?”

  “There are very few Elect females. We have a sixth sense for our own kind, usually. Most of those who are first generation managed to find their way to Tampa, and inevitably we find each other,” Zach answered. “I never got that sense from you until tonight.”

  “She’s learned to shield herself if she keeps her distance,” Brax said softly. She got the impression he didn’t like that one damned bit, but she was so not going there.

  “Well, it would have to be my mother, wouldn’t it?” She took a deep breath. Damn, she should have drawn that conclusion years ago. She and Carter had both inherited her mental abilities. “Everyone thought she was nuts. She was institutionalized when I was a child.”

  “Where is she now?”

  She shrugged. Her mother hadn’t been a part of their lives for twenty years, had never attempted contact. “I have no idea. When she was released from the last mental facility, she disappeared. I was still a minor then.”

  “Who raised you then?”

  “The state of Florida and the good citizens of Tampa.”

  She couldn’t keep the bitterness from her voice and both men flinched. They’
d been right here all these years, and she and her brother had still been abandoned.

  “I was born in Tallahassee. My mother brought us here when I was a few months old.”

  She felt her first twinge of sympathy for her mother in decades. She’d sensed home, safety, was here and tried to find it, and damn, didn’t that just suck. Because she’d never succeeded.

  Brax moved up behind her, his hands settling on her hips as he leaned down to whisper against her ear. She saw surprise in Zach’s eyes and wondered what the hell that was about.

  “You’re here now, baby, safe with your people.” He nipped her. “With me.”

  It was more than she could process at once. The revelations, the man, the desire. She was relieved when the front door slammed open and her brother stomped down the hall, yelling for her.

  “Esme?”

  He hurried into the room, Kaden in his arms, sleeping against his shoulder. Her heart hurt for the boy. He was too small, much too thin for his age. He’d been plagued by odd illnesses all his short life, and now he was getting dragged into this.

  “What the hell is going on?” Carter demanded, careful not to disturb his son.

  “Let’s get Kaden in bed, and then I’ll explain.”

  He glared but allowed them to lead him upstairs into a spacious suite. Esme watched as he gently tucked Kaden in. The boy curled on his side in a tight ball without waking or making a sound a protest. When he was settled, she led Carter to the suite’s living room, and though he was careful to be quiet when he pulled the dividing door shut, he couldn’t hide his rage or worry from her.

  “Okay. Spill it.”

  She glanced at the bedroom door. “He’s fine. He sleeps through everything.”

  Zach, who’d followed them, was staring at the door, his expression quizzical. Concerned. “What’s wrong with him?” he asked Esme.

  “Hell if I know. That’s why I ran the DNA. I was afraid maybe he had a genetic disease since nothing else shows up.”

  “Symptoms?”

  “That’s my son you’re discussing, Esme. Who are these people?” Carter snarled and tried to step in front of her. She’d been sidestepping his protective gestures since they were teenagers and he’d shot up taller than her, though. It was easy to do so now.

  “Your people.” Brax smirked. It was obvious he found Carter’s attempts to shield her amusing. She’d better step in before Brax got his ass kicked.

  “I need a computer.” She turned to Carter. “You aren’t going to believe this unless I show you.”

  Brax stilled. “You said you destroyed all the evidence.”

  Wow. He must really think she was stupid. “All the evidence someone could get to. I have backups of all my research.”

  She expected anger from both men, and there was no doubting Brax was pissed. But Zach smiled, then laughed. “Thank God. Let’s go to the lab.”

  They stopped in the study for her bag, then followed Zach into a state-of-the-art lab on the back end of the house. She was jealous as hell. “Nice set-up.”

  He led her to a bank of computers and fired one up. “Yeah, and I could definitely use a scientist of your skill in it.”

  “I have a job,” she said reluctantly, retrieving the flash drives from a hidden pocket. She found the one she wanted and brought up several images. Carter leaned over her.

  “So?”

  “Notice the differences.”

  He was Special Forces. He’d been trained to do just that. She identified each image as she loaded them next to each other.

  “There are four DNA samples here. Ape. Human.” She took a deep breath and pointed to the third. “This is mine, and the last is Kaden’s.”

  After a couple tense, disbelieving minutes he straightened and stared down at her. “You’re saying you aren’t human. That my son isn’t human.” His voice was flat, but she heard the anger and shock anyway.

  “Yes. That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

  “That’s the kind of talk that got our mother locked into a padded room, Esme.”

  Suddenly the low, pulsing anger she’d felt from him moments ago was a full-blown storm. She tried to block Carter, but Brax just picked her up and moved her aside.

  “You want to think very carefully before you say something like that to her again.” His voice was soft, but frigid. Furious.

  Carter just narrowed his eyes. “What exactly is your relationship with my sister?”

  Whoa. That was a conversation that just didn’t need to take place. She grabbed Brax’s arm, knew her fingernails were digging too sharp but didn’t care. She prayed he kept his mouth shut. She should have known better.

  “She’s mine, and I’ll protect her from anyone I have to. Even her baby brother.”

  She cocked her eyebrows when Carter swore. She was sure he’d made some of those words up, and she might have to borrow a few. He paced away but he wasn’t any calmer when he returned to them.

  “This is ridiculous. What do you think you are if not human?”

  She almost flinched in the face of his scorn. “Something different. Something new.”

  “That’s cra—” He snapped his teeth together when Brax growled at him.

  “Listen, sweetheart.” His voice turned soothing. That’s right, calm down the crazy girl. She was ready to slap him herself. Stubborn man. “If this was true, it would be all over the news. People who look human but aren’t? It would be the biggest story ever. Not even the Army could cover this up.”

  “That can never be allowed to happen, Carter,” she said firmly. “You know what they would do to us. And I’m not talking about padded cells.”

  “And you two buy into this too?” He looked at Brax first then Zach, who nodded. “Who the hell are you?”

  “That is Dr. Zach Littman. I’m Braxton Lee.”

  Carter narrowed his eyes, his gaze tracking the room as he took in the high-tech, very expensive equipment. “Lee Enterprises’s Braxton Lee?”

  “That’s the one.”

  He was entirely too smug, egging her brother on. She jabbed him with her elbow and hissed at him to shut up. It didn’t faze him at all. He just brought her into the circle of his arms and rubbed his chin on the top of her head. It felt entirely too good for her peace of mind. She could lose herself in him and she knew it. Dangerous ground. Snap out of it, Esme.

  Carter rubbed a hand over the back of his neck and she felt his weariness as if it was her own. The last few weeks had been a hell of an adjustment for him, and the strain showed. Fine lines etched the corners of his eyes and mouth. His gaze wasn’t as bright as usual.

  “You should rest. We can discuss this tomorrow,” she said softly.

  She left the lab and walked up the stairs with him, Brax a few paces behind. Carter opened the door and glared at the shadow behind her. “I’ll take the couch. You can bunk with Kaden. He doesn’t take up much room.”

  Brax snorted. “She has a bed, Owens. Don’t stick your nose in it.”

  “I’m not leaving my sister alone with some delusional nutcase!”

  Esme barely got between them in time. She poked her brother in the chest until he stopped snarling and glared down at her.

  “First of all, no one is crazy here. Second, in case you missed it,” she said snidely, “I’m a grown woman. I’ll make my own choices about where I sleep, little brother.”

  She gave them both a disgusted look and stalked off, fuming under her breath. Obstinate, obnoxious, bossy men. She could hear the low argument continue behind her. She wouldn’t sleep with Brax because he ordered it, anymore than she’d stay away from him because Carter ordered her to. And if there was bloodshed over it, she had a few things to say to both of them.

  She returned to the lab. She needed to focus on something pure and calm. This was why she’d kept her distance from people for so many years. Emotions were messy.

  Zach was bent over a computer reading some of her notes when she walked in.

  “Find anything of interest
?”

  He leaned back and gave her a sympathetic smile. The cold, reserved scientist who’d met her when she arrived in the compound was gone, replaced by the guy she remembered from years ago. He looked like that rumpled-if-brilliant grad student. “How are you doing, sweetie?”

  She shrugged one shoulder, choosing to ignore the annoying endearment. He’d always called her that just to get a rise out of her. Funny, she didn’t mind it from Brax. “Ask me tomorrow.”

  She glanced at the screen. It was the information she had on Kaden. She nodded at it. “Do you know what’s wrong?”

  He sighed. “Not yet, but I’d guess it’s some kind of infection.”

  “That can’t be right. Every test imaginable has been run on this kid. An infection this severe would have shown up.”

  “But he does get sick a lot, right? Pneumonia, bronchitis, whatever. Stuff you treat with antibiotics, he’s fine a couple weeks, and then there’s something new.”

  “Yes, but the underlying problem can’t be an infection. We’d have killed it by now.”

  “I knew you’d say that. Come look at this. We see it in some of our kids, but I don’t think this is Kaden’s problem.” He led the way to a microscope, pulled a slide from his coat pocket and inserted it under the lens.

  She looked. “I don’t see anything. This is a normal blood sample.”

  “Right.” He reached over and turned a spotlight on. She sucked in a breath as the squiggly bacteria showed up.

  “Why have I never heard of this?”

  “As near as I can determine, humans are immune to it.”

  “You think something else is wrong with Kaden? Why?”

  Zach looked grim. “The kids that get this start experiencing organ failure after a few months.”

  Okay, Kaden wasn’t that bad, but… “He’s been sick off and on since he was born.”

  Carter announced his presence with a knock on the door frame. “What’s wrong with him?”

  She turned to meet her brother’s worried gaze. “We don’t know yet.”