Maya smiled. This was going to be a good trip. She hoped.
Connor fumed about his sister. He was fascinated with the idea that an enforcement agency was run by and for jaguar shifters. If he’d learned of such a force before he and his sister had started their successful garden nursery, he might have considered joining it himself. Then again, he’d always looked out for Maya, and he couldn’t see spending long periods away from her.
Hell, he left her alone for two days, and she opened the house up to Wade Patterson, his brother, and two other male shifters. Sure they were cousins, but Connor hadn’t met them first to ensure they were safe. On top of that, she’d started a fight in a shifter bar? Not to mention that a zoo official believed Maya had stolen a jaguar from the Oregon Zoo. He couldn’t imagine what would have happened if he’d left her alone for a whole week! He wondered if she’d left anything out in telling him what had gone on. Like how intimate she’d been with this Wade Patterson.
Connor admitted that he had approved of her and Kat’s idea of posting Maya’s picture in her jaguar form in the greenhouse. They’d had quite a boost in garden sales. Now he was regretting that decision.
“I think you should find Wade and help him take down the hunters,” Maya said, appearing worried as she exited the closet. “I’m here now. I’ll take care of Kat.”
“No,” Connor said.
Maya gave him a cross look, just like she always did when he disagreed with her over an important issue.
“He’s on a job. He’s trained. He’s getting paid for it. We’re strictly here on vacation, and I’m staying with the two of you to keep you safe.” Connor was not leaving Kat alone, even with Maya’s protection, if hunters were close by.
“How’s Kat feeling?” Maya asked, changing the subject.
He knew from the way she’d done so that she hadn’t given up on the subject of helping Wade. She’d revisit it when she could. Maybe by soliciting Kat’s help to back her up. He loved that the two women were the best of friends, but their friendship kept him on his toes because they often conspired against him.
“Kat’s having a little morning sickness. Shifting seems to help settle her stomach. She can handle the pregnancy better as a cat. We don’t go until it’s dark out.”
“You saw no sign of the hunters?”
“None. Thousands of acres of rainforest exist out there. Half of Belize is covered by dense jungle. A lot of it hasn’t even been explored yet—by humans anyway. Because of Kat’s condition, we’ve stuck close to the cottages. And hunters wouldn’t suspect jaguars would hang around people. But if she’s feeling better, we’ll go farther out where we can’t smell any signs of humans.”
“You’ve marked your scent around the area,” she said, knowing he would.
It was part of what they were. That primal, territorial aspect couldn’t be tamed. Not when they were in the wild like this.
“Yeah, we have.” He smiled. “Kat hasn’t quite got the hang of it. She thinks if she scent-marks over where I’ve scent-marked, she’s claiming I’m her territory, and any other females can keep their paws to themselves.”
Maya chuckled. “I love Kat.”
Even when they visited the forested area around the lake on their property, they left their stamp on the area. Humans didn’t know jaguars existed in Texas, but the wildlife in the area certainly did. Not that the jaguars ate any of the critters around there, except for fishing in the lake, but the birds and snakes and squirrels and armadillos knew.
“I missed you both,” Maya said.
Connor knew she was being honest, but he snorted anyway. “Sounds like you didn’t have time. You were never alone.”
She was opening her mouth to rebut his comment when Kat opened the door to the cottage and smiled, her dark hair pulled into a ponytail, her green eyes sparkling with excitement. “You’re here!” She turned to Connor and scolded him. “You should have told me right away! Why didn’t you wake me?”
He only gave her a half smile.
Dressed in a pale blue long-sleeved shirt, blue jeans, and hiking boots, Kat looked refreshed and ready to take a walk in the jungle.
Maya ran down the steps from the elevated bedroom to join her and gave her a big hug. “We have cousins!”
“And Wade Patterson is in the area,” Connor said, as if the devil himself had just shown up in their neck of the rainforest. He couldn’t help it. He was certain that as soon as Wade saw Kat, he’d make a move on his wife, and Connor would kill him.
Then both Maya and Kat would want to kill Connor.
Chapter 9
Wade had already decided that after they investigated the cabana where the two hunters were staying, he would check on Maya.
The smugglers had used a credit card at one of the resorts in the jungle town, and Wade’s boss had informed him that the two men were named Mylar Cranston and Tierney Smith.
They had rap sheets with crimes ranging from carjacking and jewelry-store theft to attempted murder over the past twenty years, as well as drug deals in Central and South America, which was where they undoubtedly got their connections to chase down jaguars.
Nice guys. The latest message from his boss was that the men were armed and considered extremely dangerous. No surprise there.
Martin had reserved a cabana for Wade and David at the same resort. The thatched roofs gave the buildings a rounded appearance and fit in with the jungle theme. Each of the cabanas was backed up against the jungle, with trees screening one from another. Inside, the two bedrooms were of simple fare, three twin beds and a queen. A blue tile floor matched the floral bedspreads, and a blue tablecloth over a table seated between two rattan chairs was also covered in floral print. Hanging on one wall, a large print of a jaguar reclining in a tree made Wade smile. He could have posed for that picture himself.
“Looks like you,” David remarked, glancing at the print.
“He’s not as handsome.”
David chuckled.
“Ready to take a look at their cabana?” Wade asked.
David dropped his bag in the other room and returned. “Ready if you are.”
They made their way through the jungle behind the cabanas, silent and cautious, working around toward the back side of the rental unit where they would be hidden from view. Several keel-billed toucans were sitting in a tree watching them, their necks and chests covered in brilliant yellow feathers, the rest of their plumage black. Looking like the Fruit Loops toucan, they had large rainbow-colored beaks in bright green, orange, blue, and red that made them stand out. They were sociable creatures and the national bird of Belize. A couple of them were making a croaking sound while insects whirred and buzzed and clicked and chirped in the dense jungle foliage.
Brushing against the leaves of a tree, Wade felt his long cotton sleeves gather rain droplets collected on the broad surfaces. He could smell that it had recently rained here, making the atmosphere steamy and heavy with moisture.
They drew closer to the back side of the building and listened for sounds within the structure—trying to hear voices or showering or anything that would indicate someone was inside.
Wade heard nothing. “They’re gone,” he whispered to his brother. Peering through the window in the bathroom, he observed two shaving kits, toothbrushes, and toothpaste sitting on the bathroom counter.
He pried open the window, climbed in, and took a deep breath, smelling the scents of the men so he’d recognize them in the jungle. The pungent odor of the lemon-scented insect repellent the men had used still hung heavy in the air.