Charming the Beast (Purgatory 3)

Silence.

The miles ticked past. The moon rose higher. Its power called to Connor.

“I saw you when you were a child, Connor.” Keegan’s voice had gone cold. “I found you…right after I turned eighteen. You were younger, probably, what…twelve? You hadn’t shifted yet. I could tell because when I watched our father peel the skin off your chest, you didn’t heal.”

“You sonofabitch,” Duncan snarled.

“I watched that for a long time. It was interesting. You didn’t cry out for mercy. You didn’t beg. You just…endured.”

Duncan lifted his gun. “Shut up.”

“I realized then that you were really more like our mother. You didn’t fight back. You just took the pain he gave you.” Keegan shook his head. “And I was like our father…because then I went home and I tore the flesh from those bastards who’d raised me. They begged for mercy, but I didn’t give them any.”

Duncan’s gun fired.

The dart didn’t hit Keegan, but it lodged into the side of the van, less than an inch from Keegan’s head.

“I won’t miss next time,” Duncan promised.

Connor realized his own claws had come out.

“Turn left on Geronimo,” Keegan said.

And Chloe sucked in a sharp breath.

“Oh, starting to figure this out, are you?” Keegan asked her. “It took you long enough.”

***

“There is no Geronimo Road or Geronimo Street or Geronimo Avenue on the map,” Olivia said, sounding frustrated. “The guy is just jerking us around.”

Eric didn’t think so. He’d caught the sound of Chloe’s quickly indrawn breath.

Then he heard the crackle of her radio coming to life.

“In about thirty minutes, we’ll be coming to an old dirt road,” Chloe said. “It doesn’t have a real name…I used to call it Geronimo Lane. My…my mother and I called it that. She was part Apache, and she used to tell me stories about Geronimo.” Her words came a little faster. “She had an old ranch up here. We’d ride horses in the summer. I thought my dad had sold the place after she died. He never let me come back here.”

Probably because he turned the place into his own experimental prison.

Olivia was pulling up a larger map of the area on her laptop. He saw a big building, one that looked to be surrounded by a heavy fence.

Metal or silver? He’d lay odds on silver.

“We’ve got a destination,” he muttered to the team with him. “Now let’s move the hell in. And be ready—for anything.”

Chapter Fifteen

“Have you ever wondered about your mother?” Keegan asked Chloe.

They were driving down Geronimo Lane. She could hear the echo of laughter around her. Feel the memories. She’d been so happy there. Riding on the horse with her mom. Her hair had flown behind her and they’d gone so fast.

“She left your father for another man, but come on…did you blame her?”

No, she hadn’t.

I just wished that she’d taken me with her.

“You know, that story was bullshit. She didn’t leave with another man.”

Her fingers tightened around the radio.

“She was like you, Chloe. A werewolf. She realized your father wasn’t…well, he wasn’t her type.”

Did she realize he was crazy?

“She was going to take you both away, but he stopped her.”

The van slowed. Braked.

“And he brought her here. I think she was his very first prisoner.”

The back doors opened. Chloe ran and jumped out, nearly hitting Eric. She spun around and saw a big, gleaming fence circling the property. Silver? Yes, yes, it looked silver.

Is my mother in there? That couldn’t be possible.

She walked toward the fence. Once upon a time, a small ranch house had stood about thirty yards away. Now, a tall, menacing building rose from the darkness.

“This is the original Purgatory,” Keegan said. “Only there are just a few prisoners left here now.”

“Lock him in the vehicle,” Eric ordered as Duncan and Connor climbed out of the van. “We’ll go into this place and find out what the hell is happening.”

Chloe’s feet felt rooted to the spot.

“If he’s got prisoners in there, then he probably compelled them,” Duncan warned. “We need to fire the tranqs on sight. Let’s knock them all out, then we can assess things.”

Shoot first? But—

“Is it midnight yet?” Keegan asked, sounding mildly curious. “It sure feels close to the witching hour.” His voice deepened. “You didn’t catch all of my pack, you know. I had a few waiting in the wings. Waiting here. Waiting…until they saw us arrive.”

An explosion rocked the night. The force of the blast sent Chloe flying back. Before she hit the ground, Connor caught her and held tight.

She looked up and saw the fire blazing, just behind the fence. Rising and rising, the orange and gold flames were shooting toward the sky.

“Better hurry, if you want to save anyone…” Keegan said.

Then she heard the cries. Howls and screams. And they were all coming from the fire.

“Oh, my God.” She glanced into the armored van, staring at Keegan in horror. “What did you do?”

“I said I’d take you to them…”

Eric and Connor were running toward the fence.

“I never said anyone would get out of that place alive.”

She started running after Connor. Keegan’s mocking laughter followed her.

***

“Do you want your brother to die?” Keegan asked Duncan.

Duncan had taken a position at the back of the armored van. Duncan still had that gun of his at the ready.

“I mean…your other brother. Connor. Not me.” Keegan smiled. “Because Connor needs back-up. I might have left some seriously f**ked-up inmates waiting on him.”

Over Duncan’s shoulder, he saw the doctor—Holly—rushing after Connor.

“And there goes your vamp mate,” he added. “A tasty little morsel. They’ll eat her right up.”

“Holly can handle herself,” Duncan growled.

But he looked over his shoulder.

“Normally, she could. She can’t…not against what’s waiting inside.” Time for a new surprise. “I lied…I do that. There aren’t innocents inside. No one is innocent any longer. They’re the monsters we made—the senator and I.” That dumbass David Vincent had never ever realized how much Keegan and the senator had been scheming together. Even if the guy hadn’t lost his wolf, Keegan had planned to take over as pack alpha. “We played and now they wait.” He could smell the smoke. “It’s really better to let them all burn. I’m doing you a favor with the fire. Because if they get out, they’ll kill anything in their path.” He exhaled. “It’s such a good thing that my Chloe can come back from death.” He paused. “Can your Holly?”