He raised one eyebrow. “Is it working?”
Hell yes. She’d agree to almost anything if he’d quench this desperate fire he’d lit. “No. Of course not.”
He breathed in deep and flashed a smile. “Liar.” His hand slid down to cup her buttocks.
Her knees trembled. “I appreciate the jewelry gift, but I’m not ready for it.” Even if she decided to stay with him, she doubted wearing a large cuff would suit her style. Besides, her mind rebelled against his being able to find her at his whim.
A dangerously warm mouth nipped her earlobe and tracked down to the pulse beating in her neck. She reached up and clutched both hands into his strong chest, tilting her head to grant him better access.
His mouth enclosed part of her collarbone, then he released her, stepping back. “I don’t need the cuff to know where you are any time of night or day.”
The damn marking. Probably better than any beacon. She narrowed her eyes and clenched her fists to keep from stepping into him again. It couldn’t be healthy to want this badly. “No cuff.” Desire limited her vocabulary to one syllable words.
He sighed. “All right. For now.”
Retaking her hand, he pivoted and tugged her down the path. They turned a corner. She nearly dropped to her knees. Fear hammered into her stomach. A loud gasp of air escaped her and she stopped dead in her tracks.
Dage stilled. “What?”
Emma gulped. “Ah, nothing.” The white building shimmering in the strong sun had starred in her greatest nightmares for over ten years. She looked around frantically—the forest looked different than it did in her nightmares. Angling her head, she took in the expanse of concrete on the other side of the building. That was where the king would slam to the ground in pain.
“Emma.” Dage leaned down, his concerned gaze running over her face. “What’s wrong?”
Wrong? This was beyond wrong. She straightened her shoulders. “Nothing.” The cure for her sister lay inside that damn building. Emma had understood her time was limited, but to be face to face with the place she was supposed to die, well...
His hands tightened on her arms. “Tell me.” A warning tone slid into his voice that did nothing but warm her blood further.
She shook her head. “I’m worried about Cara and need to get to work.” Her tennis shoes slapped against the smooth concrete as she yanked Dage into motion. Her time to find a cure for her sister was limited. Besides, she had no intention of actually dying in the laboratory. Fate had given her a warning she’d heed. Destiny be damned.
His boots clomped on the path. “Damn it, woman. Prepare yourself because your shields are about to be ripped to shreds.”
“What about my fragile mental state?” She rolled her eyes, grabbing the doorknob to yank. The door refused to open and she fell back into Dage’s arms.
He tightened his grip on her, his mouth at her ear. “I’ll take my chances, love. You have one day to lower them. This time tomorrow I invade.” His teeth closed over her ear and sent a hard shaft of need through her body.
She trembled—whether in fear or desire, she wasn’t sure. There was no way she could keep the king out of her head if he decided to plunder.
Dage flipped open a thick cover to reveal a keypad, quickly punching in a code. The door released with a soft click.
For a wisp of a moment, Emma thought about running—back to safety, away from the lab. But if death wanted her, death would get her. That much she knew. Maybe being able to know the place, if not the time, would be to her advantage. The scent of tulips and fresh earth always foreshadowed the explosion, so she had until next spring when they emerged from the ground. She’d spent plenty of time researching tulips; they only poked out of the earth in early spring.
Was she smart enough to cheat death?
She grabbed the doorknob and opened the door. Dage grasped her hand and tugged her inside a square entryway with freshly painted walls where two armed guards stood to attention. The farthest wall held a maroon metal door next to another keypad.
Dage nodded to the guards, punched in the code, leaning his face toward a small window. “Kayrs24256.” He lifted his head. “We’ll get you set with an iris and voice match today.”
The door slid open to reveal another Kayrs brother. “Hi.” He held out a hand. “I’m Kane.”
Emma took his hand, tilting her head back for a better view of the scientific brother. Intelligent violet eyes set in a square face studied her. Deep brown hair fell to his shoulders and was held back in a clip. He had the Kayrs size. He pulled her into a hallway lined with intriguing posters of amoebas and viruses.
“Pretty artwork,” she said, traipsing along. The climate controlled environment settled her nerves. She was back home. In a lab.
“Yeah. I thought so.” He grinned, then lowered his head to whisper in a mocking tone, “Though some of the images gross out the king.”
“Really?” Emma slanted a glance back.
Dage rolled his eyes. “A picture of a creepy crawly is just icky.”
Did the King of the Realm just say icky? Emma stifled a laugh as Kane directed her into a large room. Then she sucked in air as they entered a large lab equipped with genetic analyzers, computers, printers, and high-tech equipment that must’ve cost a fortune. “Is that an ABI Prism 3100 analyzer with ninety-six capillaries?” The one at her previous lab had only forty-eight capillaries.
“No.” Kane followed her into the room. “This Prism has four hundred eight capillaries.”
Impossible. Emma shook her head, the truth of the matter sitting before her, waiting for her to push the buttons. “That’s incredible.” The vampires had some serious clout, money, or designers. Even the printer sitting peacefully in the corner was an array printer she’d only dreamed about.
“It will do.” Kane tugged her over to a round table overflowing with papers. “Okay. This is our private lab—only members of the Kayrs family are allowed here. I’ll give you a schematic of the rest of the building. We have four clean rooms sealed by vacuums and you have access to them all. There are fifty researchers on the other side. They have access only to the first clean room as well as the twenty labs on the other side.”
“Humans?” Emma asked, her mind spinning.
“Yes.”
She turned, pinning him with her gaze. “Do they have any idea what they’re researching?”
“No,” Dage answered from behind her.
She pivoted, both hands going to her waist. “Just like the Kurjans. You’re treating humans just like the Kurjans treated the researchers at my lab. Like they treated me.”
Dage shrugged. “I don’t give a shit.”
Angry breath caught in her throat as temper had her eyes widening on his. “Excuse me?”
Dage lowered his chin, his gaze hard. “The words were clear, love. We’re paying the researchers plenty for their help and they may even cure some human genetic diseases on the side. But under no circumstances are they allowed to know about us.”
She sucked in air to keep from kicking him in the shin. “Listen here, buddy. It’s impossible to conduct research without a complete picture of the matter at hand.”
“Too bad. It’s your job—and Kane’s—to put all the data together in one complete place. The humans are workers only. Period.”
She saw red. Plain and simple. “I’m not saying we announce to the world that vampires exist, Dage. But breaking all of the research into small sections isn’t the best way.” They were talking about a biological weapon with unknown implications and final results. As many good brains as possible needed to be solely focused on saving mates. On saving Cara.
Kane chuckled low. “Much as I enjoy a good marital spat, I’ve had my ten top researchers working on their individual projects for several months now before moving them here. As a process, I’m pleased with the results, which I’m happy to go over with you right now, Emma.”