Page 36 of Fury

Outrage at his amusement at her expense began to build. What the hell? This was exactly the kind of thing she was sick of dealing with. Men with egos who regularly dismissed her.

“I don't appreciate being laughed at. I'll have you know that I have repeatedly tested off the charts for intelligence and have attended one of the finest higher education institutions in the country in addition to my extensive FBI training. I don't come to you blind. I did my homework long before I stepped a foot on Devils Point. I probably know more about your group collectively, than you do. Well, except for the whole shifter thing. That didn't come up in my research.”

Dante sobered instantly. “I would certainly hope not since we've gone out of our way to keep our existence as secret as possible. Even the men who hunt us on a regular basis don't want the world to know of our existence. As for the other, I'm thrilled actually. Having someone with your skill set in our pack is going to be a true asset.”

“Dante.” Sawyer shook his head in warning.

“What? You stuck your nose in her crotch after shifting in front of her and you're worried about what I might say?”

Penelope's head nearly exploded as she remembered the horror of that event as it had unfolded. The sounds of his bones crunching still made her stomach churn. The giant wolf approaching her with her helpless to do anything to stop it. “Why exactly did you do that anyway? There should be boundaries among friends. And that is most certainly one of them.”

“This probably isn't the time or the place to get into shifter dynamics,” Sawyer said. “We’ve got to get the hunter situation under control before we can relax and chat. For now, I want to hear more about what happened to you after the bridge. Any details you can remember might help us now.”

Since she feared they were all in imminent danger, she allowed him to change the subject—for the moment. There'd be time to deal with their weirdness later. He was right in one respect. These 'hunters' needed to be neutralized.

“First things first,” she said. “I need a cell phone. Mine got left behind or destroyed or something back at the bridge.”

Dante shook his head. “Nothing got left behind on the bridge except for him.” He shoved his thumb in the direction of Sawyer. “No car, no cell phone, nothing. That’s why we had no idea you were missing until that drug they gave him wore off.”

That information settled in her brain as she began recalling phone numbers she’d committed to memory. “Okay, fine. Any cellphone. It doesn’t have to be mine. Give me yours.” She held out her hand to Dante.

“Who are you going to call, Agent Bishop?”

Dante’s voice had cooled and it gave her pause, making a sudden chill sweep over her. Sitting in a car filled with good looking alpha men made it easy to temporarily forget what she’d seen just a short while ago. But she couldn’t exactly forget could she?

They weren’t human. Something she could still barely wrap her head around. And Sawyer, the man she felt wildly pulled toward, had an unusual fixation on her. They kept referring to her as a mate and as much as she’d like to bury her head in the sand and assume they meant that as a friendly term, her instincts told her differently.

They seemed to think of her as something more.

Another fact that threatened to blow the top off of her head.

“Penelope.”

This time it was Sawyer pulling her out of her thoughts as she lifted her head and met his gaze. So much beauty there despite the scars, or maybe because of them. He wasn’t like the rest of them. Hardened on the outside by evil? Yes. But she sensed a good heart underneath all that and for now that’s what she would focus on.

She closed her eyes for a moment to break the spell she felt pulling her under and took a deep breath. It was important to remember exactly why she was here and what she needed to do.

“I’ve got to call this in. We’re going to need back up. Your assumption as to what side I’m on may have been a little presumptuous. As a federal agent, I’m on the side of the law and right now these hunters, as you call them, are on the wrong side of it and appear to be the priority. After that, well, we will just have to wait and see.”

Both men frowned down at her, the heads shaking in unison.

“Involving more humans is not what we need,” Dante assured her. “Having you in this situation is dangerous enough. I’d feel a lot better if you weren’t involved at all.”

Sawyer was shaking his head in agreement.

“I can’t ignore this. We’re likely headed straight for an ambush. The least I can do is try to even up the odds.”

This made Sawyer grin, while Dante continued frowning.

“If there is an ambush, we’ll handle it. My men are more than capable of handling a few hunters.”

His overconfidence alarmed her. From what little time she’d spent with those men on the bridge, she’d gotten the distinct impression that they were not only fanaticals, but that they would stop at nothing to get whatever it was they wanted, and in this case, it appeared they wanted this pack obliterated.

“Egos aside, you could use our help. And this is still my job. I was sent here to profile a killer and it would seem the situation is a lot bigger than anyone knew.”

“Even more reason for you to stay clear,” Sawyer replied.

It was her turn to shake her head. “You aren’t listening. This is my job. Not yours. The FBI is trained and well equipped for these kinds of situations.”

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