Viper Game

  There were some women who were the kind you knew from the moment you set eyes on them that they were going to tear out your heart and keep it in their hot little hands. Wyatt knew he was going to keep her, and the risk to him would be enormous. He might pretend to her that she didn't matter, but she was always going to matter.

  He needed to find his grandmother. She was soothing. She was wise. She wouldn't say a word unless he opened his mouth and asked her what the hell he was doing. He already knew it didn't matter whether he knew what he was doing or not - he'd started down the path and the pull toward Pepper was too strong to walk away.

  There were the babies. Already he didn't want to let Ginger out of his sight. She was sweet and easily wrapped them all around her little finger. Everyone wanted to be the one to make her laugh. She was a very sober baby and didn't know about dancing and music or joking. He wanted to be the one to teach her about family.

  Instinctively, he headed for the parlor and wasn't surprised to find his grandmother there playing with the baby. They were laughing together, Ginger delighting in the swamp pop music Nonny liked to blare every now and then. The little girl turned in circles in the middle of the worn, faded rug, mimicking Nonny's movements.

  He leaned one hip lazily against the doorjamb and watched them, the tension draining out of him. He remembered the music and the joy Nonny brought to the household. There had been plenty of hard work to be done in their home, but there was always more laughter.

  He realized, watching the baby as she learned the joys of dancing, that he wanted this for his children - the freedom that came so easily in the bayou. They would learn to survive here and grow up to be loving, giving adults who believed in working hard but playing and loving just as hard.

  It suddenly occurred to him that Pepper had never experienced this. She'd grown up a soldier. She didn't know any more about laughter and love than Ginger. His childhood environment couldn't have been more different. Still, she loved the children fiercely. He knew she'd walk through fire for them. She fought for them in her own way, and he had to convince her this was what was needed for them. This home. These people. His three little vipers would be at home here. He suddenly wanted to rush off half cocked, just like Grand-mere, and get the other two babies and bring them home.

  A tingle of awareness went down his spine. Ezekiel, on the stairs, paused, let out a low warning whistle and instantly Ginger ceased dancing. Wyatt was across the room in one short leap, scooping up the baby.

  "No, Nonny, keep the music goin'," he cautioned when his grandmother reached to turn off her favorite song. "Malichai, get rid of the high chair. Come on, little one, you need to stay quiet and watch over Pepper for me. Can you do that?"

  Ginger signed frantically.

  "Too fast, baby. Your pere isn' so good at signin' yet."

  She slowed her little fingers enough that when he entered Pepper's room he knew she sought reassurance. "Yes, they're here, but they won't take you back. Stay in here."

  Pepper's eyes were on his face, a mirror of Ginger's. His heart contracted. He didn't have time to gather her into his arms and reassure her like he was doing with the baby, but he never wanted to see that look in her eyes again.

  He slipped a gun from his boot and a knife, handing both to Pepper. "Stay quiet. We'll get rid of them. They can get in through the windows, but you'll know they're comin' if they try it. And they won' be happy. Grand-mere planted stingin' nettles under all the windows to keep us from slippin' out at night."

  "Take this out of my arm. I have to be able to move," she said.

  There was no nonsense in her voice, and he knew if he didn't remove the catheter, she would do so herself. She looked different. He could still feel her pain beating at him, but it didn't show in her eyes or her body. She was all warrior. After one flash of sheer terror, she was all steel - all business. That was the moment he believed in her.

  Good girl. We've got this, sugar. Don' you worry. They aren' takin' our baby from us. Not now, not ever.

  Pepper didn't answer him, but while he removed the needle and set the rigging out of the way to give her more freedom of movement, her gaze clung to his. At his reassurance, she nodded, just as determined as he was.

  "Stay quiet," he repeated. "And know who you're shootin' before you pull the trigger. Nonny's with us and she has a tendency to rush into the middle of the fray."

  Pepper nodded. "Just be careful, Wyatt."

  Wyatt turned to go, but caught the baby's look. Anxiety was there. Fear. The baby was terrified that they would take her back to the laboratory. He leaned down and brushed a kiss across the baby's forehead, his heart turning over.

  "You're about to learn votre pere is a badass, Ginger." He kissed her again, avoiding Pepper's gaze and left the room, closing the door softly behind him.

  He felt like he had his own family. Stupid really. He'd always had a family. Pepper and Ginger were the ones who didn't know what that felt like, but he was the one with the lump in his throat and the fire in his veins and belly to protect them.

  "Nonny, the guards are approachin' the house. Get your pipe and your shotgun and sit here in the parlor, right in this chair," he instructed, patting the one in the corner away from the windows. "Keep the music on. Zeke is on the roof and Malichai is goin' to be circlin' around behind them. He'll take out anyone creepin' around the back windows." He kissed the top of his grandmother's head as she settled in the chair without a murmur. "And, Nonny, thank you for plantin' those nettles at the window. They're suddenly mighty handy."

  "Don' you worry none about me, boy. I can shoot the wings off a fly if I have to. No one's gonna be takin' your woman or child from this house." There was determination in her voice.

  Wyatt's heart contracted painfully. Everything he needed to be happy was in this house. Everything but his two other children. It didn't have to make sense to him that he was already bonded to them. He was a family man and he'd always secretly longed to have a woman like his sister-in-law. She was loyal and courageous and she loved his brother with every fiber of her soul. He had tried hard to get that from Joy and had failed utterly. Now he knew why. It had taken three little vipers in jeopardy to open his eyes. Three little girls with a mother made of steel and silk.

  He went to the door. Pepper, can you hear me?

  Yes.

  I'm sorry for doubtin' you. I didn' want to see what was right under my nose. I don' trust so easily.

  Amusement flooded his mind, warming him. I got that about you. Not that I blame you. I'm struggling a little bit with this setup myself.

  We seem to communicate quite well this way. Maybe talkin' aloud should be banned. They're close, honey. Keep the baby quiet.

  She'll stay quiet, but I've been thinking about all of this and what you said. If you're right and someone orchestrated all this, then it's really about you, not us. Not the children or me, but maybe they need you for something.

  I think you're right about that. But even if I figure out the answer, and I'm goin' to try, they aren't goin' to get the results. Wyatt stepped out onto the porch. It was easy enough to hear the approach of the guards. They were coming up the canal in an airboat, a nice fancy one. Fast. He recognized the make and model. He'd always wanted one.

  You have figured this out already, haven't you? Why we were brought here?

  I think so. The problem with Whitney is he can' ever figure out what makes humans tick. He doesn' get relationships or how people bond. How they fall in love or feel the need to protect their children. He can't get what he wants until he knows why we all do what we do.

  He could smell them now. They were wary, but they weren't afraid. And that was a mistake. They figured they had him outnumbered.

  They brought the dog with them, Ezekiel reported. They want it to sniff out the baby and Pepper. I can control it, but maybe you ought to take it this time. I practiced enough last night. Right now I'm itching to squeeze this trigger. I can take out maybe three of them for sure, maybe four befor
e they can take cover.

  A little bloodthirsty this mornin'? Wyatt inquired. He tried to include Pepper in the conversation, building a bridge so she would know what was going on at all times. Don' be shootin' anyone until we know what they want.

  Wyatt had told Pepper that all of them had things to work on, things they had to constantly keep in check. Ezekiel was a hunter, the cat in him stronger than in either Wyatt or Malichai and it was bad enough forcing the two of them to hold back in a fight. For Ezekiel, it went entirely against his nature.

  I'll have to move position once they get on land, Ezekiel warned.

  Before you move, make certain none of them try to circle around. And be watchful of a land approach as well. They can come at us from the road.

  Goes without sayin', Doc. Seriously, this isn't my first firefight. Ezekiel's voice dripped with sarcasm.

  Malichai gave a snort of pure derision. We know you're up there sneaking a smoke of Nonny's tobacco. I saw you inhaling when she was smoking that pipe of hers early this morning.

  Wyatt's churning gut settled nicely with the familiar banter. He might not have the rest of his team around him, but he had two men who would fight with everything in them to protect his family. You couldn't ask for more than that.

  Are any of them GhostWalkers, Malichai? You're closest to them.

  He watched the airboat slide up to the pier. One of the guards from the previous night, Jim, caught the rope and tied it up. There were five altogether and they were going to need a lot more than that. He was a little disappointed in them. He'd beat the hell out of Larry, so one would have thought they'd be a little more leery - or they had another team approaching from the road.

  Stay alert up there, Zeke. Why send only five when they know we can fight?

  They probably don't know you can dodge bullets yet, Malichai pointed out with a small laugh. And no, they all seem normal to me with no enhancements. I think they're ex-military. They carry themselves like it. And they know how to handle guns, but these aren't Whitney's supersoldiers.

  That worried him too. Pepper had alluded to the men she was certain Braden would call in to track her and the babies. "Elite trackers." That sounded to him like Whitney's supersoldiers. He had taken the men applying for the psychic enhancements who had failed psychological testing and enhanced them and used them as his own private army. She'd mentioned that Braden had his own soldiers enhanced in some way. Where were they? Why send civilians into the game?

  To Whitney, the supersoldiers he created from the men who had failed the testing were expendable, and he used them as pawns in his private war games ruthlessly. Wyatt knew they were ticking time bombs. The psychic enhancements came with a multitude of problems, although the earlier experiments such as Team One of the GhostWalkers suffered far more than the rest of them did. Whitney continued to perfect his technique. But still, some of them needed an "anchor," another GhostWalker to draw the psychic energy away from them when they became overloaded.

  Adding physical enhancements as well added more to the strain. Being so outside normal society was extremely difficult. Eventually being so alone and isolated became wearing. He hadn't even realized how wearing until he returned home and stood on the sturdy pier he'd built himself out of love for his grandmother.

  The men spotted him as they came into the yard; he could tell by the way they stiffened and then exchanged long looks with one another. If they were armed - and he was certain they were - they kept their weapons out of sight. He sent word to Nonny's two hunting dogs to stay quiet before reaching for the guard dog. It took a moment to penetrate the dog's barrier and overcome its natural instincts. He dulled its senses, pushing the scents of the bayou as well as that of his cat DNA so that the dog would be more interested in him than his prey.

  This is a huntin' party. A recon. They're lookin' for signs of Pepper and Ginger, he warned all of them. Whitney appears to have no patience. He's a scientist, not a hunter, and he doesn' quite get this end of the game. That didn't make sense to him, but sending out the guards to their home was a huge mistake.

  Pepper stirred in his mind. You keep dismissing Braden as if he isn't important. He's the one running the show here in the bayou. He directs everything that goes on at the laboratory in France as well as here. They run a legitimate plastics company, or at least a skeleton of one for show, but no move is made without Braden's say-so.

  Wyatt thought that over. Whitney was used to having long-term goals. That meant he was a man of patience. He wouldn't make this kind of mistake. Pepper was right, Braden had sent these men, not Whitney, and that would cause a rift between the two. Wyatt was absolutely certain Whitney gave the orders to Braden, and right now, Whitney would not be happy that Braden was going out on his own.

  So Braden took the initiative and sent his men to look for you. You know that can only mean one thing. Whitney doesn't have him in the loop for his end game, Wyatt said. No one goes against Whitney and lives to tell about it. No one. He's utterly ruthless. I'm not certain the man actually has blood in his veins. More like ice water.

  Like Trap, Ezekiel said. He's our iceman.

  Not like Trap, Wyatt denied. Trap feels compassion; Whitney wouldn't know what the word meant.

  The guards made their way toward the porch. Blake, Jim and Larry led the way. The other two men had dropped behind them, slowing their gait in order to check their surroundings.

  Wyatt stepped up to the edge of the porch. "What can I do for you gentlemen?"

  All of them stopped instantly. Larry heaved a sigh. "I came to apologize to your grandmother. I wasn't certain you were serious, but even if you weren't, I thought about what you said and I owe her one."

  "It takes five of you to come here to apologize to one little old lady?" He hoped Nonny's music was up loud enough that she didn't hear what he'd called her. She'd probably box his ears. He reached up and pulled on his earlobe, thankful he didn't have cauliflower ear.

  Larry shrugged. "We actually had some other work to do, and because it took us in this direction, I thought I'd take the opportunity to make my apology."

  "How is it you know my grandmother and where she lives?" Wyatt asked.

  "Since we've been working at the place, your Ms. Fontenot has been out to that section of the swamp numerous times. It's fairly remote and we get a hunter or two occasionally, but she's been there regularly. Our company has to guard against industrial espionage, so we had to check her out."

  "You thought a little old lady plantin' and harvestin' was committin' industrial espionage?" He grinned at them. "Seriously? Because she's gonna love that."

  "All right," Larry said, looking slightly annoyed and embarrassed, "we had no choice. When the boss says to investigate someone, you do it, no matter how ridiculous."

  Wyatt nodded. "I can understand that. After you shoved her, she thought maybe you were making dirty bombs in that place and the lot of you were treasonous terrorists." He watched their faces closely.

  The men looked at one another. Jim hid a smile. Blake raised his eyebrows, and the two in the back coughed behind their hands.

  "She said that about us?" Larry asked.

  "About you in particular, Larry. You do realize that Grand-mere is an icon here in the bayou. If you really investigated her you would have found out her famille dates back to the first settlers and that she creates the medicine here. Had she gone to the other families here and told them, they would have strung you up by your balls."

  Larry winced. "Would you mind if I just said my apologies and we let it go at that? I'm still sore from your little lesson. I don't think I need another one."

  He moved a few steps closer with the dog. The dog didn't cast around looking for any other scent, his total concentration was on Wyatt.

  The others spread out behind Larry, an easy maneuver, as if they were just hanging out while Larry approached the porch. The dog came with Larry. Wyatt didn't want his grandmother exposed to possible trouble, so the best scenario was to allow Larry into
the house. The parlor was a distance from the bedrooms, but if the baby started to cry or Pepper made a sound, the dog might alert before he could control it.

  I would prefer to bring Larry and dog into the house. It would go a long way to makin' them believe we aren' harborin' any fugitives such as the Rougarou. Pepper, you'll have to make certain Ginger doesn' make a sound.

  She won't, Pepper assured. She's a soldier.

  He winced at that explanation. He didn't want his daughters to be soldiers or experiments. He wanted them to be happy children, with no worries of evil men who used them as experiments.

  Your grand-mere might inadvertently give them away, Malichai cautioned.

  Ezekiel grunted, his amusement more felt than heard. Grand-mere won't give anything away, Malichai, and shame on you for even thinking it. I never could teach you to see past the obvious. She's a wily woman and nothing gets by her.

  Wyatt was pleased Ezekiel had noticed. And she'd better not hear you even thought that she'd give them away, because if she does, you won't be eating at the table for a long time to come.

  Blackmail material. Oh, yeah. Ezekiel was elated.

  "Just you. You and the dog," Wyatt said. "You can come into the parlor and have a word with Nonny."

  Larry glanced back at the others. Jim couldn't keep the triumphant look off his face. Yeah. They had been military, but they weren't cloak and dagger.

  I'm bringin' him in. Stay quiet, Wyatt reiterated.

  Ginger doesn't cry, Pepper reassured. Not when danger is close. They were already in training, remember? The first thing they were ever taught was to maintain silence.

  There was the merest hint of indignation, not in her voice, but in the way she felt. He knew neither of the others could tell and it made him feel closer to her.

  I know, babe. I just needed to touch base and know she's okay in this situation. But caution her about bitin' just in case.

  She has the right to defend herself if they come through the window and try to take her, Pepper objected.

  She might have the right, but I don' want her livin' with the consequences, knowin' she killed another person, he said firmly. We're her parents. We'll do the killin' if it needs to be done, not her.