That is true, Cayenne confirmed. She leaned toward Violet. “Then why did you send the soldiers after me? And don’t deny that you did that. You did. He doesn’t want me dead anymore, does he? I’m paired with Trap. We’re together, and more than anything else he wants a baby from our pairing. He wants Wyatt’s children. You ordered the hit, not Whitney. Why did you do that? You need to tell us right now. You want to tell us.”

Trap stared at Cayenne in awe. She’d never used that tone. The one that slipped inside one’s brain and insisted on obedience. So low. So perfect. The voice of an angel. No one, not even the devil, could avoid her voice or resist the soft command. She’d been telling him the truth when she said she’d never used her talent on him – not her full talent.

Baby, I’m going to have to reassess whether or not I’ve actually had the upper hand. He let the awe and pride in her show in his voice.

I love you, Trap, but you’ve never had the upper hand.

He brought her hand to his mouth, turned it over and pressed his lips to her sensitive wrist making her shiver. He waited for her gaze to jump to his face. His tongue touched her pulse. It jumped and her eyes darkened. He smiled against her bare skin. I have the upper hand.

“I did send the soldiers, but not for the reason you think,” Violet said. “I knew you would wipe them out. It isn’t like he has an endless supply. He takes the rejects from the program, the ones who test high in psychic ability, but low in the psychological ones. He knows they’ll burn out eventually, because when enhanced, they’re too aggressive and become killers. He doesn’t care about that because he says they would never make good soldiers to protect our country and he might as well give them a purpose. He binds them to him some way so they’re completely loyal to him.”

“You knew that. You knew he had a breeding program and some of these men were forcing the women to have sex with them. You knew and you turned your backs on them,” Wyatt accused.

She nodded. “For Ed. I had no choice if I wanted to keep him alive.”

“They were raped repeatedly,” Wyatt said.

“I know.” She lifted her head. “I know. Do you think I sleep at night knowing what I let happen in order to try to protect my husband? I don’t. I hate what I became. What I’ve become. Still, if I could have him back…” She broke off.

Wyatt leapt out of his chair and paced across the floor, fury riding him. “You knew my children and my grandmother were in that house. My wife. The woman I love the way you loved your husband, and you still sent a full team of soldiers – a full team and two helicopters.”

“His helicopters. His soldiers,” Violet hissed. “How else can I bring him down? You’re soldiers. Trained. An elite force. You did your jobs. And you wiped out an entire full team. But you left one. The man you interrogated went running back to Whitney and he would have blown everything. I had to kill him before he connected with Whitney and make it look like he’d died because of wounds he’d sustained. Fortunately, Whitney trusts me just about as much as he could ever trust anyone.” She sounded scathing, as if they were guilty of not doing their jobs.

She’s lying about that man going to Whitney. He went to her, Cayenne said.

Wyatt suddenly flung his body in front of Violet’s, hands slamming down on the arms of her chair, leaning in close to her. “You bitch. Did you not hear me? Do you not understand? You sent those trained soldiers after my wife. My children. Ma grand-mere. Nonny would have been killed if Cayenne hadn’t jumped in front of her. Their deaths are not acceptable for your revenge. They aren’t expendable.”

Violet didn’t flinch. “It didn’t occur to me that Whitney’s soldiers had a chance to kill anyone, let alone your family. I presumed that you had protection in place for them.”

“Cayenne was shot. Twice.” Trap took up the attack when Wyatt, clearly disgusted, prowled across the room to keep from strangling the woman.

Violet’s gaze swept up and down Cayenne. “She looks alive to me.”

Trap’s breath hissed out. The air shimmered. Turned opaque. The shimmer drifted in a circle around Violet’s chair, wrapping her up in a soft, incandescent veil. She coughed. Once. Twice.

Trap stared at her, not breaking eye contact, watching as she began to choke. To change color. He didn’t blink. Didn’t move. Stared at her as any lethal predator might his prey.

CHAPTER 20

What the hell are you doing, Trap? Joe snapped. What’s going on in there?

I’m killing this fucking bitch, Trap replied. She allowed women to be raped repeatedly, held prisoner and experimented on for her own gain. She knew Whitney was giving Flame cancer and she didn’t care. She sent a full team of trained soldiers to Wyatt’s home where his children and wife were. She couldn’t care less that Cayenne was shot. She’s not worth it, Joe. She’s the enemy, and we take out the enemy. Can you imagine what she’ll do if she becomes the VP?

I am ordering you to stand down. Right now. You stand down. Joe poured command into his voice. Trap wasn’t a man to accept commands unless he totally respected the man heading his team. He’d always given Joe respect. He’d never once disobeyed his order. Joe, and the team, had covered for him more than once when he’d ignored a directive coming from above Joe.

I overheard those soldiers talking about Cayenne, calling her names, acting like she was filth, an abomination to be stamped out. Those soldiers were loyal to Violet, not Whitney, no matter what she says. So screw her, Joe.

Stand. The fuck. Down. That’s an order.

Cayenne very gently brushed her hand over Trap’s face, her fingers lingering along the seam of his lips. “Honey. Let it go.”

Trap stood up so fast his chair rocked. He stepped away from the group, but before he did, he blew air into the center of the opaque mass. Turning his back on Violet he paced across the room to stand beside Draden.

Violet fell out of her chair onto the floor, her hands around her throat, her body spasming. None of the men moved to help her. It was Cayenne who went to her knees beside the senator.

“There’s a pitcher of water and glasses over there on the sideboard,” she said quietly. “Trap, I need a glass of water now.”

“This is fucking bullshit and you know it, Cayenne. She’s a lying bitch who will do anything to get her way. She’ll lie and kill and watch women she was raised with be raped and tortured in order to get what she wants.” He poured water into a glass and brought it to her. “She’ll let children die, put them in danger, if it serves her purpose. I don’t want you fucking touching her.”