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  “Where is that?”

  “The Persian Gulf.”

  “Where is that?”

  “On the other side of the world.”

  “He’s going to run?”

  “It appears he plans to but he won’t get far. Don’t worry, True. We won’t allow him to escape. He’ll pay for what he’s done to your mate and our people. We’re all over him.”

  He needed to believe that or he’d sneak off Homeland the way Moon had done to find his mate, only he’d have fewer loving reasons. He wanted to get his hands on the human and wring his neck until he drew his last breath. True wanted to make certain Boris could never harm Jeanie again.

  “Um, clothes and personal grooming supplies were left outside the door of your home. They didn’t want to ring the doorbell in case you were sleeping. We were aware that you didn’t get any sleep last night. Place a call to the community gatehouse when you want food supplies delivered. They stored them in their fridge until you’re ready for them. We figured you might attack an officer who entered the home to put them away.”

  “Thank you. I’ll call them now. You didn’t get much sleep either. You were interrogating the guards at Fuller.”

  “I’m good without sleep.” Darkness chuckled. “I like to keep busy.” His tone turned gruff. “Besides, I would have had nightmares after the things I learned.”

  “It was that bad?”

  “We’ll discuss it later. Right now your mate is our priority. How is she holding up?”

  “Good. Jeanie is brave.”

  “You haven’t snarled so I assume you’re keeping your temper in check because she’s sleeping?”

  “Good guess.”

  “Go back to her and get plenty of rest. Enjoy your new mate and allow us to take care of all this. She is your main concern.”

  “I want ten minutes alone with that male when he is arrested.” Darkness didn’t answer. “He should die for what he’s done. I volunteer to be the one.”

  “I agree with you but you aren’t the only Species he’s harmed. We might have to draw straws for who gets the pleasure of killing that male.”

  “He went after my mate.”

  “Fury holds that grudge too. Perhaps you could both tear him apart like a turkey wishbone.” Darkness chuckled. “That’s a good image, isn’t it?”

  True silently agreed.

  “Get your supplies from out front and call the gatehouse when you want food. I need to make more calls. I’ll text you if there is more information to share.”

  “Thank you.”

  True disconnected and unlocked the front door. Four boxes were piled in the shade of the porch. He glanced around but didn’t see any movement. It only took two trips to carry them inside before he locked the door again. The food could wait.

  He crept back down the hallway and stripped out of his pants then climbed back into bed with Jeanie. She mumbled in her sleep but turned to face him, snuggling against his chest. He grabbed a lock of her hair and inhaled. His mate was safe and in his arms. He’d take Darkness’ advice and worry about the rest of it later.

  His dick stirred at just the feel of her against him but he ignored the urge to make love to his mate. She needed sleep more than she needed him. He relaxed, closed his eyes and slowed his breathing until he drifted to sleep.

  Chapter Twenty

  Jeanie stood back from the table, eyeing the meal she’d laid out. True was on the phone, had been for a while. She went in search of him, finding him in their bedroom. His gaze met hers and he made excuses to end the conversation.

  “Dinner is ready. I made a tri-tip and made sure I left the center pretty rare.”

  He approached her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “You did?”

  “I know you like your meat bloody.”

  “Will you be able to eat it?”

  “I’ll cut off the well-cooked ends.” She grinned, wrapping her arms around him. “Come eat before it gets cold.”

  “My mate prepared a meal for me.” He beamed.

  “I do remember how to cook. It’s just been a while. I’ve lived alone since I graduated college and no longer had roommates around who thought meals only came in microwavable varieties. It’s kind of pointless to do it just for myself though.”

  He lifted her off her feet and walked down the hallway. She lifted her legs, wrapping them around his waist. The feel of his stiff cock trapped inside his pants rubbed against the front of her pussy, making her more than aware that he was aroused.

  “Keep this up and we can eat later.”

  “No. We’ll share sex after. I’m eager to eat what you made for me.” He forced her to release him when they entered the dining room. He pulled out her chair. “Sit, mate.”

  He was always thoughtful. They’d only been mated for just over a day but she had a feeling he wouldn’t be a man who stopped giving her special treatment any time soon, if ever. He sniffed, grinned, and took the chair next to hers. She leaned up and began to dish out food on his plate first, then her own.

  “This is wonderful.” He cut into the rare meat, took a tentative bite and groaned in appreciation while staring into her eyes as he chewed and swallowed. “Perfect.”

  “Great. There was a recipe for it in one of the drawers from someone who used to live here so I made it from that.” She cut a piece of meat. “May I ask who you were talking to on the phone? You’ve been in there for quite a while.”

  “You’re my mate. You can always ask me anything.”

  “I thought it might be private New Species business.”

  “You are Species now. There is no information you can’t know, Jeanie. It was Darkness on the phone. They’ve discovered a pattern of Boris flying to Oregon for the past few months under one of the two assumed names he’s been using. They were able to locate the car rental business where he spent money and have sent one of the task force members there to see if they use GPS systems in the cars to get an exact location of where he went.”

  She forgot about the food on her plate. “There is another place where New Species are being held then.”

  “Uncertain but suspicious.”

  “Are there any research development companies in the area? That’s where I’d start looking.”

  “Three. They are attempting to see if any had dealings with Mercile Industries.”

  “Can you search all three of them?”

  “We could but not at once. We’re concerned that, if one location is compromised, the other two might catch wind of it. If we choose wrong, they could move Species or kill them to prevent us from rescuing them.”

  “Why can’t you hit all three at once?”

  “We only have so many trained males to do it without bringing in outside resources. We’d rather not risk that. They aren’t equipped to handle captured Species or the issues we’ve had with other facilities that held them prisoner. It’s best if we investigate until we’re certain which one, if any, may be involved with Mercile or someone who was once an employee with access to our people.”

  She nodded, taking in that information. “I see.”

  “It might not be a research company. It might be a private individual who owns a Gift Female. It’s in an area where a lot of wealthy humans live.”

  Jeanie would never forget what it meant to be tagged with that classification. “You’ve rescued so few of them, right?”

  “Yes.” He took a sip of milk. “Boris could be there for other reasons. We don’t want to be rash. We need to know what we’re dealing with.”

  “What about the phone taps? Anything?”

  “He’s speaking to a human male but their conversations are very brief. We haven’t been able to track those calls. They only give times and dates of meetings before hanging up. All numbers besides the phone Boris uses seem to be untraceable. We tried to call one of the numbers Boris contacted, planning to say it was a wrong number, but it went directly to voicemail. It was an automated voice and we couldn’t pinpoint the location. They set up a