Rebecca Zanetti - Forgotten Sins

“My little brother. Well, half brother.”

“Where is he?” Daniel was her best ally in this crazy place.

Tom smiled, his eyes lighting. “The commander sent him on a mission, since he was so smitten with you. Good old Danny Boy is on his way to Uganda. Good riddance.”

Disappointment weakened her knees. “You set me up.”

“Sure.” Tom’s gaze dropped to her breasts. “We’ve had you on the radar for the last five months—constantly mining the military database finally paid off. We found several soldiers with Shane’s unique skill set… and we monitored them all until narrowing our search to him. When that didn’t turn up anything, the commander figured Shane would be in touch with you again someday, so we’ve been watching you.”

“The recent divorce and losing your company?”

“No bitch would ever divorce me. She’d be buried twelve feet under instead. I made it up. To get closer to you.” Tom’s grin lacked humor. “And no little sisters. Man, that was a tactic that got your attention now, didn’t it? Poor little orphan.”

Yeah. It had worked. “They raised you in a military environment—under the threat of death? Just like Shane?”

Tom’s eyes swirled as he lifted his gaze. “Yes. I’m the ultimate soldier.” He licked his lips. “Though I’ve had training you’re certainly going to enjoy later.”

She raised an eyebrow. “I’ve always considered you kind of boring. Guess I was right.”

He manacled a large hand around her arm, jerking her from the chair. “Somehow I don’t think you’ll consider me boring for long.”

Her feet slipped on the tiles as she tried to dig in and stop Tom. He continued to pull her across the room and into the hallway, passing closed industrial-sized doors.

She fought, fear heating her gut. “I have to say, I liked you better in the flannels and jeans.”

He grinned. “Man, I hated dressing down the last two months. Good thing that’s over.”

“The laugh lines around your eyes—I don’t get it.” Bad guys didn’t have laugh lines.

“Let’s just say I love my job.” His voice lowered to something dark.

Fear rippled down her spine. The guy was crazy. “Let me go.”

“No.” His long strides ate up the concrete floor, and Josie stumbled along.

Their footsteps echoed in the empty hallway. Dead silence came from behind the closed doors. “Why is it so quiet here?” she asked. “I mean, where is everybody?”

“This is the new building for Fuller Labs. You know that.”

Oh yeah. She’d found some excellent write-offs for the lab from creating the state-of-the-art, energy-efficient new space. “The place won’t be staffed until next month, when they move buildings.” So she was on the north side of town. Good to know.

“Right. We have soldiers here now. I’ll bet that wasn’t in your documents.”

“No. The fact that Fuller Labs worked outside the law to genetically engineer a soldier slave class didn’t make it into the files.”

“Outside the law?” He stopped in front of a bank of elevators, tugging her inside when the door opened. “You know better than that. Perhaps our entire government isn’t in on it, but I can promise you many high-ranking officials fund us.”

They moved up a floor. There had to be some way she could reach his conscience. “Tom. You’re not this person. You don’t have to be what they made you—you can be whoever you want.” She tried to tug away as the doors opened.

He laughed, pulling her into a long concrete hallway that matched the one they’d just left. “I like who I am. I know how to fight, and I know how to kill. My IQ is off the charts. Normal rules don’t apply to me.” He stopped in front of a keypad next to a large maroon door.

She cleared her throat. “Oh. What, ah, special abilities do you have?”

“I just told you.” He punched in numbers and shoved her inside a studio apartment with sitting area, sleeping area, and small kitchenette.

So Tom didn’t have any super abilities like Shane and his brothers. Was he an anomaly? Or maybe just the genetic engineering for the Gray family had produced hyper-abilities. No wonder the commander wanted them so badly.

Tom pointed toward an oak door next to the bed. “The bathroom’s through there.”

She yanked her arm free and backed away.

He stared down at her from his additional foot of height. “I have to go meet with the commander but will be back soon.” His eyes darkened even further. “I suggest you figure out a way to make me happy.”

She forced her trembling body to relax. Did Tom have any feelings for her? Surely a guy like him wouldn’t like an older soldier stepping in his way. Maybe she could somehow get Tom to help her. “You don’t understand. The commander said he wants to take me.”

Tom smiled. “It wouldn’t be the first time the commander and I shared a woman. Who knows, maybe Emery will join in this time.” Stepping back into the hallway, he shut the door. The sound of the lock engaging echoed around the quiet apartment.

Fear weakened Josie’s knees. Only stubborn will kept her on her feet.

What now?

Shane punched in Josie’s phone number again from the passenger seat of Matt’s SUV as his brother broke the speed limit to get back to the cabin. “Malloy said she left with Marsh. She should be picking up her cell phone.” The spinning in his gut had to be from the surgery. No way was Josie in danger. Hell. She was probably already back at the hospital looking for him.

Matt gripped the steering wheel, stretching his neck. “Then why is the hair standing up on the back of my neck?”

Good question. The phone stopped ringing and silence came over the line. A silence heavy with expectation. Someone listened, breathing softly. Lifting his eyebrow, Shane pressed the speaker button and put the phone on the dash. “Josie?”

A loud exhale sounded. “Shane, my boy. So good to hear from you.” Soft and sexy, the voice dripped with false sweetness.

Rage ripped through every muscle in his body. “Dr. Madison. I’d hoped you were dead.”

Next to him, Matt went rigid.

“Oh, Shane. You were always such a naughty boy.” The girlish tone from the psychopath nearly made Shane puke.

Matt opened his mouth to speak. Shane shook his head, his gaze narrowing on his brother. There was a good chance they didn’t know Matt was with him, and they needed all the advantage they could get. “Where’s my wife?”

“Well now, she’s safe right at the moment. Though I have to tell you, my Tom seems to have a nice little crush on her. Thinks he can get her pregnant and give me little soldiers.” A high-pitched giggle escaped the doctor.

What the hell? Tom? How had Shane missed it? He’d been played.

Shane focused his fury until his skin prickled. Calmness settled his limbs into a state of readiness. Emotion had to go. He tuned in with his hearing, trying to get a location. No sounds echoed in the background. “Tell Tom he’ll die slowly if he touches her.”

“Oh. Looking forward to it, jackass.” Tom’s voice came clearly over the line. “Taking a dive the other night in my own hallway really pissed me off. Can’t wait to give you an honest fight.” He chuckled. “After I screw your wife, of course. Again, that is.”

“You haven’t been near my wife, dumbass.” Shane lowered his voice. “You tried, though, didn’t you? For two months, when she thought it was over with me, she still didn’t turn toward you. Who the hell trained you, anyway?”

“You sure about that?” Tom asked. “With her background, she’s quite the little liar. Are you sure she told you the truth about us?”

“Yes.” Shane snorted. “You’re junior league. Don’t think for a second the psychotic bitch standing next to you right now won’t cut your throat to get to me. To get to one of my brothers.”

“You know,” Tom breathed, “I think I’ll have your wife call me ‘Jory’ as I fuck her tonight.”

Raw fury threatened to blow Shane’s calm façade. “I can kill you in ways you can’t even imagine.” Shane tightened his hands into fists, vaguely seeing Matt type something on his phone. Probably telling Nathan to trace the call.

Tom laughed again. “Think so? Well, I doubt it. We have the same training.”

No, they didn’t. Not even close. Matt had made sure his training beat anything the commander could come up with. At times Shane had truly hated his older brother. Now he thanked God Matt had been so ruthless in teaching them to survive. “You’re going to find out how wrong you are.” He needed to keep the line open for Nate.

“What’s the problem, Shane?” Madison piped up. “If I recall, you’ve shared a woman with more than one of your brothers.”

“The psychopathic whores you sicced on us don’t count.” He nodded as Matt gestured to keep them talking. “Of course, we wanted them far more than we ever wanted you. Not that we didn’t see how bad you needed it. Or wanted it. But you never got it now, did you? Bitch.” Though he had no doubt the crazy woman had screwed her way through several of the trainees through the years.

“Are you sure about that?” Her voice lowered to a breathiness that made his skin crawl. “You might want to double-check that fact with your brothers.”

Shane shook his head. If one of his brothers had fallen prey to the nut job, he sure as hell didn’t want to know about it. “What’s your plan here, bitch?”

“Calling names? That’s more Nathan’s style, not yours.” A rustling of paper came over the line. “How is good old Nathan, anyway? Killed himself with grief yet?”

Shane inhaled quietly, ignoring the pull at his fresh stitches. Forcing pain into a distant box, he slid calmness into his voice. “Nathan is married to a nice nurse with two kids. He moved on, Madison. Sorry to disappoint you.”