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“He?” Ellen asked, keeping her tone as neutral as possible.
“Mr. White.” Kim barely glanced at her. “If that’s his real name. Or his real accent.”
She saw the slight droop to Hollis’s shoulders. They both knew the truth. Cyrus had Kim’s mother and, whether she did what he asked or not, the woman was probably already dead. Cyrus had no tolerance for the elderly—saying they’d outlived their usefulness, were too weak to do anything but slow things down, and they offered up their opinions without his asking. Cyrus hated that.
“Why don’t we all sit down,” Hollis suggested, crossing and taking the files from Kim. “What can we do?”
Kim slumped into the chair Hollis pulled out. “I have to do what he says.”
“What has he asked you to do?” she asked, sitting opposite the woman.
Kim sniffed, taking the tissue. “Initially, he was looking for people in the beginning.” She sniffed again. “He texted me pictures and asked me to let him know if I saw any of them.” Her dark eyes settled on Ellen. “You were one of them.”
Ellen stood, pacing the length of the lab. Of course, he was looking for her. He needed her blood. He’d been without it for some time. That she was alive, helping Finn, made her a traitor in his eyes. He had to keep her alive—but that wouldn’t stop him from punishing her. Her hands fell to her stomach. Her wolf growled, the hair on the back of its neck standing straight up. No matter what she’d told Hollis, she’d fight if she had to. It was hard to breathe.
Hollis growled. “You told him she was here?”
“What choice do I have, Dr. Robbins ?” She sniffed, her voice wavering as she went on. “He made it clear my mother’s life was in jeopardy. She has serious health issues. Her English isn’t good. And she’s stubborn.” Her fingers crumpled the tissue. “Do you know this man, Dr. Robbins?”
Hollis nodded.
“Is he dangerous?” she asked. “What does he want?”
“Our research,” he murmured. “You’re smart, Kim. You know we’ve been working on things outside the…norm.”
Her gaze met his. “And I know it’s important. You wouldn’t take it so seriously, be so intent, if it wasn’t.” She glanced at Ellen. “But I never thought what we were doing was dangerous, Dr. Robbins. I would never have participated if I’d known that. Risks are inherent when doing research, but not like this. They…they have my mother.”
“We’ll help you,” Ellen said, noting the tightening of Hollis’s posture, his pointed look her way. He wasn’t pleased with her announcement. Her wolf informed her that his wolf wanted to hide her away, lock her up if necessary, until the pack had dealt with Cyrus. Her initial reaction was to remind him just how capable she was of defending herself. But she couldn’t. She understood. Part of her, the damnably emotional and vulnerable part she tried so hard to ignore, wanted to be shielded from what was to come.
But that was impossible. It wasn’t in her to walk away from someone in need or shy away from conflict. Hollis knew that even if it frustrated the hell out of him. Like now.
She rested her hands on Hollis’s shoulders, needing his touch and the calm it provided her. His hand covered hers instantly, tugging her against his back and threading his fingers with hers. Kim had no idea what was happening. Or what was at stake. But they did.
“You said initially. There was more?” Hollis’s voice was gruff.
Kim cleared her throat “He wanted to know why she was here. I s-saw you taking her blood, Dr. Robbins. When I told him, he wanted the vials.”
“You came here for them tonight?” Ellen asked, her stomach dropping. “Where are you supposed to deliver them? And when?”
“Tonight, at one.” She swallowed. “At the Hemisphere Plaza. It will still be crowded, with Fiesta going on, and public.”
Which was good. Maybe Cyrus wouldn’t kill Kim. Maybe.
“He wanted to come here, but I told him about the security system and decided Hemisphere was better.”
Tonight. At one. Cyrus would be here. Her muscles twitched, her wolf pressing to be free before remembering the baby. If she had to face Cyrus, she’d get no help from her wolf. She sucked in a slow, deep breath and focused on remaining calm.
“Shit,” Hollis ground out. “We need to get you someplace safe.”
“Not yet, Hollis.” She took his hand. “He doesn’t know we know anything.” They had time to come up with something—even if the pack couldn’t help them.
“My mother?” Kim asked. “Will this man honor his word? Is my mother safe?”
Ellen shot him a warning look. They knew what Cyrus was, but she didn’t. There was the slightest chance he’d spare her mother. Why risk drawing attention to himself by killing an old woman—and probably Kim—before this was all over? Especially someplace public?
But her wolf was quick to point out why. Because this was Cyrus. And Cyrus didn’t give a shit about drawing attention to himself or leaving destruction or pain in his wake. He wanted what he wanted and would stop at nothing to get it.
Still, she wished Hollis would buffer his answer. And, to a certain degree, he did.
