Chapter Five #2
Carter nodded. “It happens occasionally when a shifter’s animal is close to the surface, and when we’re fighting the urge to shift.
Most humans who glimpse it just shrug it off as a trick of the light.
But you recognize what is because you’ve spent time around shifters, so you know the signs to look for. ”
“I was worried for you,” she admitted quietly. “That day. I hoped that they wouldn’t catch you too.”
“If everything you’ve said about them threatening you is true, why would you help me? Why trust me? You’ve got to know that you’re putting yourself at risk by telling me all this.”
Emily looked down, then back up, locking eyes with him. “You might not believe me, but there’s something about you, Carter. A pull. An undeniable connection. I feel like... I feel like I can trust you.”
He knew what she was talking about, of course. The mate bond was strong, and it was drawing them together. But she was human, and without an inner animal, she had know way of knowing what the mate bond was. She just felt the effects of it.
“I want to help you,” she whispered. “I want to help all of them. And maybe, together, we can.”
They sat in silence, the weight of what was discussed pressing on them. Their hands reached out tentatively and found each other in the space between the couch and the chair. They didn’t speak for a moment—Carter just let the warmth of their connection reassure him.
Carter looked around Emily’s condo, taking note of how exposed it felt, especially after everything she had just divulged. “You can’t stay here,” he stated abruptly.
Emily looked at him, eyebrows raised. “What do you mean?”
“It’s not safe, Emily,” he said, his voice carrying the weight of his concern. “You know too much, and if they even have an inkling that you’re helping the shifters inside the facility, they’ll come after you. People like that will stop at nothing to protect their secrets.”
Emily hugged herself, looking around her place as if seeing it in a new light. “This has been my sanctuary, even though they pay for me to stay here.”
“And it’s compromised,” Carter continued, the urgent need to protect her coursing through him. His mountain lion was restless, pacing in his mind, agitated by the danger she was in.
Protect our mate, it growled.
“Come home with me,” he blurted out. “I’m staying at my parent’s house while I’m in town. Your bosses will never know you’re there. You’ll be safe.”
Emily looked stunned, then hesitant. “Carter, I appreciate the offer, I really do, but I can’t leave. My role at the facility is too important. If I disappear, they might hurt my family to get to me.”
Carter clenched his fists, frustration bubbling to the surface. This is a mess, he thought, his lion echoing the sentiment with a growl.
“Your safety is paramount. We’ll find a way to protect your family as well,” he promised.
She shook her head. “It’s not just about safety, Carter. It’s about my purpose. If I leave, who will be there to secretly help the imprisoned shifters? I can’t just abandon them. They need me.”
Worry gnawed at Carter’s gut. The logic in her words clashed with his every protective instinct. “I don’t like this,” he admitted.
She reached out and gently touched his arm. “I know, and I’m so grateful for your concern. But I have to stay—here and at the facility. At least for now.”
He sighed, raking a hand through his hair, and met her eyes. “Alright, but we need to figure out how to keep you safe here. There’s got to be a way.”
Her smile was faint but genuine. “We will,” she assured him. “Together.”
The mountain lion within him grumbled, the desire to whisk her away from danger was potent, but Carter recognized the strength and resolve in Emily. And he knew that he would need to trust in her judgment as much as she would have to learn to trust his.
Emily’s voice was soft, vulnerable. “Will you promise me something?”
“What?” Carter asked.
“Promise me you won’t judge me for my part in what is going on in that place, and please believe that I want no part in it.”
His mountain lion rumbled softly within, a mix of protectiveness and affection.
Mate. Protect mate.
Carter smiled, squeezing her hand. “You’re being forced to work there. I believe you when you when you tell me that you’re not doing any of it through your own free will. That night, when those men came and ushered you into the car, I followed you.”
Her eyes widened in surprise. “You did? Why?”
That was the million-dollar question, wasn’t it? But he couldn’t tell her about the mate bond, at least—not yet. It was too soon. She was already spooked by everything going on in her life.
“I was worried about you. I thought you were being kidnapped. Then, at the facility, I saw you let yourself into the building and realized you weren’t a prisoner, at least, not the kind I had first imagined you to be.”
Emily sighed. “I just wish there was a way to shut their whole operation down. I mean, what they are doing is obviously illegal. I thought about going to the police, but I could just imagine how crazy I would sound if I started telling them about experimentation on shifters.”
Carter nodded. “I’m glad you changed your mind. There are shifters who work in the police force, of course, just as there are shifters who work in every profession, but we have to keep our shifter status a secret. It’s essential—we can’t risk anyone finding out about us.”
“But…why?”
“Can you imagine the panic? Even though there’s no cause for it. I mean most people probably work with or are friends with shifters already.” He squeezed her hand. “But don’t worry, we are going to shut them down. I have…skills, that I’ve acquired in my job, and friends, colleagues who can help.”
Emily frowned. “Skills? What do you mean? What is your job?”
Carter hesitated for only the briefest of moments.
It was strictly forbidden for him to tell people he worked for the CIA, and the secret identity and job title he was meant to give people who asked very nearly spilled out of his mouth.
He didn’t want there to be any secrets between them and he couldn’t lie to his mate, but telling her something like this after just meeting her was a huge step.
He decided to take a leap and trust her.
“I work for the CIA,” he said.
Emily gasped. “Then you can help,” she said, her voice filled with something that sounded a lot like hope.
“I’m certainly going to do everything in my power to help,” he said.
And he would—he’d do whatever it took to free his sister and all the others from that hellhole.