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connived his way to team leader several times over until his rank was only just below
that of the main Pride members and Kane s main team.
He was quick, efficient, and cold as ice.
 Sorry I m late, Jonas. She hid her smile as she faced him, refusing to be drawn
into a confrontation with him. The alpha genes that raged in that man s blood were like
a virus eating him up. He wouldn t stop until he ruled his own little corner of the
world. She just wished he would hurry up and stake that corner out and get off her
back.
It was obvious it grated on his male pride, answering to a woman. Had it been
Callan, or even Kane, he would have accepted it easier, but his natural male aggressions
seemed to be assuring him that he had no place below her. She found him amusing. He
found her irritating.
 Late is an understatement, he murmured as he came upon her, facing her with
narrowed eyes and thin lips.  The day is going to be gone before we get the main
tunnels covered. The last thing we need are more of those bastards slipping through.
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Lora Leigh
She stopped, propping her hands on her hips and stared around the clearing,
evaluating the team members, equipment, and quickly assessing and prioritizing what
needed to be done.
 Let s get started. She breathed in deeply.  Watch for& 
 Wires, sound sensors and heat activators, he growled.  I know my job.
 Then do it, she griped in return.  Damn, Jonas, it s not like I m trying to take your
place here. You re team leader, big boy, go for it.
Surprise flashed in the narrowed eyes.
 I have two of my teams in there already, he grunted, surprising her now.  I was
tired of waiting.
Sherra shook her head, a smile twitching her lips.  I m going to begin suspecting
you and Kane Tyler of being separated at birth.
 I might have to fight you over that insult, he growled.  Are you going in or
supervising? I need to know before the rest of the teams move in.
 I m going in. I m trained in explosives detection and deactivation. We ll keep to
the main tunnels for now and re-access in six hours. If there are as many tunnels as
initial analysis is showing then we re going to have a hell of a job in front of us.
 More possibly. He nodded sharply.  Gear up. We re using Alpha Six channel but
the tunnels are hampering reception without amplifiers in place. Be sure you pack a
few.
She nodded quickly.  Let s head in then.
* * * * *
 Dammit, Sherra, I told you to keep your people out of these damned caves. Kane
was furious as he confronted her in the main cavern of the cave system. As with the
cave the assassin had used to slip onto the mountain, this one, too, had an extensive,
mazelike tunnel system that burrowed beneath the mountain. And it had obviously
been used, more than once, and in the last few days. Human scent filled it, even to the
deepest portions of the tunnels that they had managed to access so far. Whatever intel
they had received hadn t come close to the underground maze they had found here.
And they had yet to find the exit on the other side.
Sherra rose from where she had been investigating the prints found in the tunnel
she had taken. They were fresh, too damned fresh to suit her concerning the fact that
here, the scent of intrusion was barely perceptible.
 And I told you to chill out, she grunted as he rounded the curve behind her, the
scent of his arousal and his anger nearly causing her to stagger as it wrapped around
her, reminding her of the craving that tormented her as well.
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Kiss of Heat
 Wrong answer, he barked furiously as he drew beside her and gripped her hip to
stop her advance into one of the narrow tunnels.  Are you insane? Do you have any
idea just how well these caves could be booby-trapped?
She frowned, staring up into his furious face through the glow of the flashlight that
was directed at the floor.
 Oh, I don t know, Kane, she responded with false sweetness.  Do you think the
two explosives we dismantled an hour ago might have let me in on that little problem?
So far, the two main tunnels they had found had been wired with enough
explosives to bring the mountain itself down. They were expertly hidden and almost
undetectable. Thankfully, Sherra, as well as several of the other Breeds, had been
trained to detect explosives that some Breeds might miss. It wasn t so much as detecting
the scent of the explosive itself as it was detecting the variance of the scents in the area
of it.
When anything new was introduced into an area, even if its scent wasn t detectable
to sensitive noses, the differences in the smells around them changed. This was how the
two explosives had been found so far. Attempts had been made to camouflage the smell
of the high-tech ingredients of the compound itself, which proved they had been set as a
strike against the Breeds. Whether they were set before the Council evacuated or after,
was anyone s guess at this point.
 Sherra, get the hell out of here. He stopped her again as she started to continue
down the dirt path that led through the stone.  We ll get another explosives team out
here& 
 What the hell do you think I am? she asked him incredulously.  You ve read my
file, you know my training. I m more than qualified to be here.
 You re more than stubborn and intractable, is what the hell you are.
He restrained her again, pushing her against the stone wall as he loomed over her.
 I gave you a direct order, Sherra. Clear the fuck out. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]