The Wolf Within (Purgatory 1)

The holding room? She sucked in a sharp breath. The holding room was the paranormal equivalent of solitary confinement. No windows. Walls reinforced with a combination of silver and steel. One door. Thick. Heavy. An eight by twelve foot prison.

There was only one light that shone from the ceiling in the middle of that room. It was normally where the most dangerous paranormals were kept before transfer. Where Connor probably would have been housed, if Pate hadn’t been so worried about Duncan’s transformation under the full moon.

Holly’s whole body was tight with tension. “That’s a little extreme, don’t you think?” She didn’t want Duncan locked up. The collar was bad enough. “He’s one of ours.”

“That’s why I’m doing everything I can to keep him safe and to keep him from hurting anyone else.” Pate rolled his shoulders. “How do you think he’ll feel, Hol, if he wakes up tomorrow and finds the dead bodies of his fellow agents around him?”

“That’s not—” Holly began.

“It could happen,” Duncan said at the same time.

No, it couldn’t. Why did she have more faith in the guy than he did in himself?

Her hold tightened on him. “You’re not like that.” Not like Connor.

“It’s time to find out if I am.” He pulled away from her. Damn him, he pulled away. Then he glanced back at Pate. “Take me to holding.”

“No!” Holly sprang between the men. “He’s wearing the collar. Just let him stay here. I can keep an eye on him tonight, I can—”

Duncan’s hands closed around her shoulders. He turned her toward him. Kissed her.

Not a hard kiss.

Not wild.

Not what she’d expected.

Soft. Controlled.

He has control.

“I won’t hurt you,” he said.

No, he wouldn’t. That was what she was trying to make them all understand. If the idiots would just listen to her.

“Stay away from me tonight,” he said as his gaze held hers. “Connor might have set this in motion, but I’ll be damned if I lose what matters most to me.”

Her heart slammed into her chest. Wait. Was he saying that she mattered? That it wasn’t just sex and need?

But then he was pushing her behind him. Heading away with Pate. And Pate was glancing back over his shoulder and giving her a hard glare. “Shane,” Pate ordered, “make sure that Holly gets home safely tonight.”

The home that still sported a broken window? That reeked of safety.

“Make sure she doesn’t go near holding,” Pate added.

Shane gave a little salute and sauntered toward her. “Guess we’ll be getting cozy tonight.”

Duncan froze. Then he turned and gave Shane a glare that would have singed most men. “You f**king won’t.”

Shane gulped. “Uh, right…I meant…” He straightened quickly. “I’ll keep her safe, promise.”

Duncan held his gaze. “You’d better.”

Then Duncan was gone. Pate was gone. Elias hurried after them.

Holly found that she couldn’t move.

“He’ll be okay,” Shane said, voice soft.

Her gaze cut toward him. Shane could play the carefree card pretty well. He’d done it plenty of times, but she knew there was a whole lot more going on beneath his surface. He had his share of deadly secrets, too. Most of the agents in the Para Unit did. It took a certain type to hunt monsters.

“He’s strong. If any man can hold back a beast, it’s him.” Shane exhaled on a rough sigh. “You get your gear together, and when you’re ready to go, you just tell me.”

Holly shook her head. “I’m not leaving.”

Shane winced. “How did I know you’d say that? Shit, does this mean we’ll both be bunking down in the lab tonight? Because those gurneys make for crappy beds.”

She wouldn’t be bunking anywhere. She’d be keeping an eye on Duncan.

“What is it with you?” Shane asked as he came a bit closer to her. “Shouldn’t you hate him…you know…seeing as what you are?”

That had her gaze flying right back to his.

“Your secret’s out,” he murmured. Then he tapped his teeth. “And when Duncan kissed you a minute ago, your fangs came out, too.”

Horrified, she slapped a hand over her mouth. She hadn’t even felt the burn of her teeth. How had that happened? She’d been so careful, for so long.

“Don’t worry,” Shane assured her. “You’re not my first vamp. I figure if you haven’t gone for my throat by now, you aren’t going to.”

She shook her head. “I-I’m not.” Her fangs had come out. The karahydrelene definitely wasn’t in her system any longer. If it was, her fangs would have stayed in check. Without the drug, she’d have to learn normal control—well, normal vampire control, or she’d give herself away to more than just Shane.

His gaze searched hers. “How long ago did you change?”

“It’s been a year.” It felt like so much longer.

“Is that why you’re here?” His hand lifted and waved around the room. “Hiding with the monsters?”

“The prisoners are—”

He laughed then, a rough sound that she wouldn’t have expected from him. “Who says I’m talking about the prisoners?”

She could only stare at him in surprise.

“The agents…why do you think we’re taking the cases?” He stalked toward her, closing in. “You should look beneath the surface more often, Dr. Young.”

His eyes…the color seemed to deepen as she gazed at him.

She also realized that his southern accent—the South Carolina drawl that sometimes dipped beneath his words—was gone.

And then he flashed his own fangs.

Startled, no, terrified, Holly jumped back. She opened her mouth to scream, but had no chance. Shane had shoved his hand over her lips.

“Now why would you want to do that?” Shane whispered. “I would have thought that you’d be thrilled to find yourself with one of your own.”

His right hand was over her mouth. His left wrapped around her body and pulled her close against him.

His body was strong. Powerful. And his teeth…those were the fangs of a vampire.

One of your own.

She swallowed back the lump of fear and stared up at the vampire who’d worked beside her for months.

***

Duncan marched into the holding room. The lone light shone down from above. Bright. Stark.