Savage Hunger(48)

The back of her neck prickled and her breath hitched. Unless…unless he’d left some kind of clue she hadn’t been able to decipher on the jump drive. She’d only had a few minutes to scan it—when she’d tried to e-mail it to her dad, but the file was too large. Which was why she’d planned to fly across the country to deliver it in person.

“You’ll understand if I don’t believe you, Sienna. Someone told you about the shifters, didn’t they?” Quinton asked as he approached her once more. “Was it Leonard Perkins?”

She couldn’t stop the tension that seized her muscles and knew immediately he’d picked up on it by the knowing grunt he made. She swore softly and fisted her hands.

“It was deduction, kid. I pretty much figured it anyway. You’ve got a dead body turning up in an empty lab after the agents combed that place and found it empty. Meaning Leonard ended up there after.”

“Stop,” Sienna choked out, tears burning her eyes. Her stomach clenched at the thought of what Leo’s last few minutes must’ve been like. The terror and pain he’d gone through. “I can’t…I can’t go there right now.”

“You don’t have a choice, Sienna.”

“You’re wrong,” she shouted and turned to face him. “You know what? I don’t have to answer any of your questions, Agent Quinton. I don’t care if you’re the end-all be-all of agents within the P.I.A. If you think I’m guilty of something, than say it outright. Arrest me. Have me subpoenaed. Do whatever it is you need to do, but we’re done here. I’ve told you everything I can.”

Quinton’s eyes were like hard chips of blue ice. Lacking any warmth and full of accusation.

“I could turn you over to the local police. You’re wanted for questioning by them. But with local law enforcement you won’t be offered the same protection the P.I.A. can offer.”

“Protection?” she repeated in disbelief and shoved a strand of hair off her face. “I’ve been abducted, harassed and nearly killed—how the hell can you call this protection?”

Quinton stepped closer, almost nose to nose with her now. “You’re alive because of us, Sienna. And you’d do well to remember that. If I turn you over to the humans you may as well kiss your ass good-bye.”

A trickle of fear rolled down her spine, even as her anger at the agent in front of her pricked deeply. What if he was right? What if whoever had killed Leo wanted her dead too? It wasn’t completely farfetched. She couldn’t trust humans. Couldn’t trust shifters. My God, she was literally on her own here.

“But you’re right about one thing, Ms. Peters. We’re done here. For now. Get your butt back to the safe house and think real hard about all the things you’re not telling me.” Quinton stepped back, unblocking her escape on the path back to the house. “Because next time we talk, I’m not going to be so nice.”

This was nice? And no way was he letting her go just like that. She eyed him suspiciously, before glancing down the path again.

For someone who was supposed to be the Big Bad Agent within the P.I.A. who evoked terror, he seemed to be letting her off way too easily. There’d only been a handful of questions at most, and she’d only given hints of truth. Of course he’d promised a next time, but hopefully she’ll have gotten the hell out of Dodge before next time came.

When he made no attempt to block her retreat, she lifted her chin and stepped past him. One step. And another. When she was a few feet past him she started to relax.

“Oh, but I do have one word of advice.”

Of course he did. Damn. She’d known it had been too easy.

She didn’t bother to turn around. “And what might that be?”

“Don’t get involved with Warrick Donovan. Or any shifter for that matter. Our kind can’t—”

“Mate with humans? Save me the info dump.” Her lips twisted at the painful reminder. Dammit, she was done having this flung in her face. That she would never measure up. “I know all about the archaic little rule within your society, Quinton. And you have nothing to worry about. I don’t want to be Warrick’s mate. I just want to fuck him.”

If her intent had been to shock him, it seemed to have worked, because a heavy silence met her response. She couldn’t resist glancing over her shoulder anyway to steal a peek at his face. But there were no wide eyes or open mouth. Instead there was that hint of amusement again and maybe—though she probably was imagining it—a glimmer of respect.

The latter possibility robbed Sienna of her smugness and again put her on unfamiliar ground. Turning away, she continued up the path and away from Quinton.