Full Moon Rising (Riley Jenson Guardian 1)

"Then who did?"

"Someone who is of no consequence to you now."

Meaning he expected me to stay here like some good little puppy? The man was an idiot. An insane idiot. "Then why were they bringing me here first?"

"Because those guards were mine, and obey my orders first."

I raised an eyebrow. Dissension in the ranks had to be good for us. "And your orders were?"

"To bring you here so I could claim what I wanted first." He paused. "It was before I realized you had tainted blood, remember."

Tainted blood? That was almost as bad as Quinn asking me if I needed "relief."

"So was the man giving orders Misha?"

Talon snorted. "Misha is a fool who plays a dangerous game."

"Then who is in charge?"

His golden eyes twinkled with amusement. "Someone you know, little wolf. Someone you've had dealings with for some time now."

Well, gee, that narrowed down the field. It could be a past lover, or a friend, or the guy I bought coffee off most lunchtimes. "I don't suppose you can be a little more specific?"

"I don't suppose I can."

My fists clenched, but it was pretty much a useless gesture of irritation. "Do you really think the Directorate is going to let you grab one of their people and not do anything about it?"

"You're a secretary, not a guardian. I hardly think they'll miss you."

"Rhoan will."

His smile reminded me of a shark. A conceited one at that. "Neither Rhoan nor the Directorate knows anything about Genoveve or this facility. They concentrate their efforts on Moneisha and I'm quite happy for them to continue to do so."

His arrogance would be his downfall - and I hoped like hell I would be there at the end to witness it

He rose and sauntered over to the window, staring out. I closed my eyes, imagining that dark plain and the door I'd created

Talon's voice made me start

"My father started this research a long time ago, and I have every intention of finishing it."

"So your father was as mad as you?" My comment was absent, my concentration on opening that door. Sweat trickled down my forehead

"My father was a genius. He saw the potential in the werewolf race, a potential that was not being realized simply because breeding was not being selective enough."

The dark plain rolled before me, the red wall shimmering brightly. I grasped the door handle and thrust my weight against the door. It still felt like I was trying to move a mountain, and I wondered if it would get better with time - and usage - or whether this sort of mental stiffness was natural

Talon droned on. "He spent his life studying the DNA sequences of the genes within an adult werewolf, how the proteins are made, and how they are used to construct the adult body. I am the result of his research."

My eyes flew open. "You're a clone?"

He glanced over his shoulder. "I prefer to call myself a natural creation of the lab. I am everything my father and the werewolf race is not."

I stared at him, dumbfounded. And yet it explained his size. And the overwhelming power of his aura. It wasn't natural. "But... why then do all your clones reek of death if your father perfected the research?"

"Because much of the research was lost in a fire that took my father's life. And because I use an accelerant so I have fully functioning adults to test. Vampire genes are more elusive than werewolf."

"So why are you working on vampire clones if your father saw the potential of werewolves?"