Electric Storm(71)

He hunched his shoulders then laid his cheek against her leg as if he expected her to reject his tentative touch. Though she knew it was dangerous, she let the power dance close to the surface. The energy seeped into his pores, offering the only comfort she knew how to give. A connection he craved. His breath stuttered out of him, and he hesitantly set his hand on her foot.

She glanced at the clock, reluctant to leave, but they had too much to accomplish to stay. It took her ten minutes to dress and get her hair up into a twist to cover all the streaks. And another ten minutes to get off the phone with her credit card company and repair man. By the time she turned around, Taggert was dressed, and Jackson had just stepped out of the bathroom.

“Here.” She held out a card. “Charge whatever you want.” When neither man grabbed it, her brows wrinkled. “What?”

“Pack members usually work and give a portion of their earnings to the alpha to keep things running.” Jackson appeared confused.

Raven shrugged. “You both need things. I have the money.” She stared at them and didn’t understand the look that passed between them.

Jackson took the card, his fingers brushing hers. The touch caught her breath in the back of her throat, and she quickly jerked back her hand. But not soon enough to cover her reaction. Damn shifters saw everything.

“Make sure you both sign up for phones under my plan.” She handed over a business card, careful to keep her fingers free this time. “Tell him I sent you, and he’ll set you up with something sturdy.”

Jackson pocketed the paper, and an awkward silence filled the room.

“I better go.” When she strode to the door, Taggert followed. She drew up short. “What?”

“Be careful.”

Raven blinked at his concern, all the awkwardness rushing back. “You, too.” Before she could leave, he hugged her. As abruptly as he embraced her, he let go and darted out the door. Raven lifted a brow at Jackson, baffled at the behavior, her heart beating just a little too hard.

Jackson met her gaze and heaved a sigh big enough to hear across the room. “You really don’t understand.” He chuckled, shaking his head. She couldn’t tell if he was laughing at her or not.

“You’re family and family is a big deal to shifters. You were able to release the slave collar and that raised your status even more in his eyes.”

Raven flinched. That was the last thing she wanted. Jackson saw her reaction, and his expression shut down. Well, hell. “I just did what you told me to do. Protected him.”

“And danger will come when others find out about what you can do. Are you willing to kill for him?” Jackson spoke the stark words softly.

Raven glanced down at her hands, hands that could wield so much power, but that also put everyone near her in danger.

Jackson snorted at her lack of response.

She’d killed. The faces of the men and women haunted her dreams. She just didn’t know if she could do it again and keep the last bit of herself that had survived the labs sane. “Call me if you run into any trouble.”

Without waiting for his reply, she slipped out the door. She couldn’t handle any recriminations with her emotions so close to the surface. Thankfully, the rest of the house remained quiet, and she escaped without detection.

In two hours, she’d only found three pieces of information. Jason’s girlfriend’s name was Sarah No Last Name, she’d lived with Jason, and she’d gone missing the same day Jason had disappeared. When Raven arrived at their house, everything that might have been Jason’s had been cleared out. Anything of Sarah’s had been destroyed. In the rubbish, the only clue Raven found was a torn picture of a laughing woman. Possibly Sarah?

It was too much of a coincidence that no one claimed to know the woman. There were no hospital records and no missing persons report filed.

Which led her nowhere except the last resort for missing persons.

The morgue.

The phone rang, startling her out of her thoughts. She glanced at the name displayed and smiled. Jackson. “Hel–”

“There’s trouble at the Diago. Jackie and a few others have cornered Taggert outside the store. Unless they cause violence, I can’t touch them. No matter where we go, they’re following.” The frustration in his voice raised her own.

He wasn’t telling her everything. “What’s holding you back?”

“My job of protector changed the moment Taggert became pack.” As abruptly as that, the connection died.

Changed? Changed how?

She pulled the phone away, disgusted to realize she’d sucked every drop of juice out of it when her emotions rose. “Damn it.” She pulled the car out into traffic and did a quick u-turn, ignoring the symphony of blaring horns. Then Jackson’s statement struck her. He wasn’t her pack. Now that she’d mated Taggert, Jackson couldn’t interfere in any dispute with another pack.