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"No. But there's no rule saying you can't combine business with pleasure."
"People," Rhoan said. "We really need to move this inside."
I leaned sideways, and dropped a kiss on my brother's cheek. "If you'd stop gripping my arm so tight, I'd be able to move."
He squeezed a final time then released me. We walked inside. The cabin was small and, with all of us in here, crowded. Jack was sitting at the table down at the far end, the bright glow of the com-screen in front of him casting a bluish light across his weatherworn features and bald head. As bosses went, he was so damn easygoing it was often hard to remember that not only was he the Vice President in charge of the whole guardian division - one of the four main departments in the Directorate - but he was also one of the most powerful vampires I knew.
The other just happened to be Quinn. He'd parked his butt in a nearby armchair, cross-legged and elegant. The only other seats were the two sofas near the TV. Kade and I took one, Rhoan the other.
Jack glanced up, and gave me a toothy grin. "Good to see you alive and well, darlin'."
I smiled. "It's good to be alive and well. Jack, Quinn, this is Kade."
"I know who Kade is," Jack said. "I have his files."
Kade raised his eyebrows. "Really?"
Amusement touched Jack's green eyes. "There's no place the Directorate can't go if we so desire."
"Well, that's a little tidbit kept well away from the general population, isn't it?"
"And with good reason. Why were you in that place?"
"He's one of the shifters they were milking," I said, and added, just a touch impatiently, "I don't suppose you want to share Kade's background with the rest of us?"
"Right now? No. There's more important matters to discuss." Jack's gaze narrowed a little. "What do you mean by 'one of?"
Kade shrugged. "There were nine of us in there. I'm not sure what happened to the others after our break out."
"And they were collecting specimens from you all?"
"Yes."
Jack grunted and glanced at me. "And were they collecting samples from you?"
I shrugged. "It's all very hazy at the moment. All I can really remember is waking up in a small lane beside a dead man."
"The lack of memory coming from the drugs or the accident?"
I shrugged again.
"Probably the accident," Rhoan commented, looking at me critically. "The scar on her head looks as if the wound might have been bad enough to cause memory loss."
"What scar?"
My confusion was evident in my voice. I hadn't noticed a scar when I'd showered in the old house, but then, I'd been in a hurry to get to the kitchen and find some coffee. And I certainly wasn't prone to spending hours in front of a mirror. A quick glance was all that was usually needed unless I was going somewhere special and had to apply makeup.
Kade ran a finger from my temple to the back of my head and said, "That scar, sweetheart."
I frowned. "Is it nasty?" God, the last thing I needed was another scar to worry about. I had enough as it was, thanks to childhood mishaps.
"Your hair covers it, no probs."
"So this place is in a nearby town?" Jack said, in a voice that suggested little tolerance for slight deviances from the topic at hand.
I grinned, more than a little used to his impatience. "This place is a town. And a testing ground. They have mock buildings as well as concrete ones."
"Can you lead us back there?" he asked.
