“No. They kidnapped me outside a bar in Charleston and took me to the warehouse they were using. They barely spoke to me during the ride other than to tell me how lucky I was to be chosen as the Hunter’s prize. They seemed really proud of him.”
“The Hunter, huh? That’s the second time I’ve heard his name.”
He didn’t elaborate, so she went on.
“We had some close calls but made it out.” And unless he asked, she wasn’t about to tell him how Seth and Levi’s mother ripped a couple of other shifter males to shreds. Nope, that was a memory Jazz didn’t want to ever revisit.
Rafe studied her with narrowed eyes as if he suspected the truth, however. “She protected you?”
“Yes, while I comforted and cooed to her babies.”
He nodded as if her answer was the one he expected. “Obviously you made it out. What happened to the…the mother?”
Jazz closed her eyes as the moment that changed her life replayed in her mind.
“You promised to protect my babies with your life, Jazz. Did you lie to me?”
Jazz clutched the two small infants closer to her chest. “No, of course not.”
“Then you’ll run with them, and if I don’t return to you, you will raise them as your own.”
“You’re not leaving with me?”
“No. There are other women in that center. Other babies. I will save them or die. I promised them.”
Jazz stared into the woman’s too-bright hazel eyes and saw the goodbye hovering there. “You’re not coming back for them, are you?”
The woman glanced at her babies. Tears welled in her eyes. She pressed a kiss to each little boy’s head, then turned away, facing the warehouse. “They’re safer with you.”
Safer? Jazz couldn’t shift into a huge tigress. “How am I supposed to protect them?”
The woman peered over her shoulder and leveled a hard look at Jazz. “Remember what I told you and trust your instincts. A good mother will always find ways to protect her kids.”
“But I’m not their mother. I—”
“Run, Jazz. Take my babies and run.” Naked with claws tipping the ends of her fingers, the woman moved in a crouch toward the window they’d climbed out of.
She was going to leave. She was actually going to leave.
“Wait.” Jazz tucked the two babies against her chest, using their mother’s shirt as a makeshift carrier. “What’s your name so I can tell your boys about you?”
“Nina.”
“Seth and Levi’s mother slipped back inside the warehouse, and I ran with her babies. She had no intention of trying to find us. Didn’t even ask where I lived.” Jazz blinked back tears. “Of course, I realized I’d need to skip town that night. How was I supposed to explain suddenly having two babies when I was clearly not pregnant the day before?”
Jazz glanced into Rafe’s face. “I was an absolute wreck as I walked back to my car with Seth and Levi, wondering if I was being tracked or what I would do if a cop stopped me.”
Rafe caressed her back. The soothing strokes calmed her racing heart. She snuggled closer to him, and he rested his head on hers. So simple, so profound. Did he know he brought her peace too? With his arms wrapped around her, she felt safe. It was an illusion. He couldn’t protect her from her memories or fate, but his embrace promised her she’d never have to face the horrors of life alone.
“You made it back safely?”
Rafe’s question broke the silence that had descended.
“Yes. It was a miracle as far as I’m concerned. I’m convinced Seth and Levi had known when they needed to be quiet.”
“They were likely reacting to your scent. Even as newborns, Royals are more attuned to the world.”
“If so, they probably had a low opinion of their new caretaker in those early hours. I went from tears to anxiety, but the worst was knowing I was alone.” She slipped her hands under Rafe’s shirt, not in a sexual manner but to remind herself she didn’t have to face that fear again.
“You had no close friends in Charleston?”
“None that I would trust with Seth and Levi’s secret. My options were limited. I shared an apartment with another girl, so even going back there to pack wasn’t possible. Going home was my only choice, but I couldn’t just show up there. My pappy would’ve flipped out and tried to raid the warehouse himself.” She smiled at the visual. “I can just imagine how scared those shifters would’ve been to see a seventy-three-year-old man with a cane and patch over one eye on their doorstep demanding retribution.”
“What did you do?”
“I ran up my credit card with sleazy motel bills and all the supplies I needed for the boys. Once I felt confident enough time had passed that I could pull off being a new mom, I went home.”
Rafe cradled the back of her head and urged her to look at him. “And the mother? You never called the cops? Told them about the experimental center?”
He’d already explained to her their existence had to remain a secret. Asking her why she hadn’t broken their golden rule didn’t make sense. Neither did the anger tightening his features, but it wasn’t directed at her. Of that she was certain, not unless the gentle stroking of his thumb along her hairline was a sign of rage.
“The next morning, the news reported a massive fire that leveled the entire industrial complex. No bodies were recovered. I assumed Nina was either recaptured or ran too.”
He squeezed his eyes closed. “Nina.”
Pain laced the single word.
“You knew her?”
“Know her, yes. My little sister isn’t dead. Kade would have felt her death.”
She curled her fingers around the waistband of his jeans. “You’re talking about your sister that Jon kidnapped?”
Rafe leaned closer, and the eyes of a predator replaced the warm ones she’d stared into while he’d loved her the day before. “And Jon will pay for his crimes in blood. I won’t rest until he dies.”
Shouting from the first floor saved Jazz from answering—a
