Page 38 of Pawsitive Data

“Go,” he growled, his voice distorted by his feline throat.

Emma didn’t argue. She let Lucas guide her toward the rooftop access stairwell, his panther form pressing against her side as they slipped through the door.

The stairwell was eerily quiet, the sound of their footsteps muted against the concrete. Lucas paused at each landing, his ears twitching as he listened for movement.

“They’re not giving up,” Emma said, her voice a whisper.

Lucas growled low in his throat.

They reached the bottom of the stairwell, and Lucas made a quick pitstop to shift and get his clothes. Then they stepped out into a narrow alley. The air was thick with tension, the city strangely silent.

“We’re going to the safe house on pride land,” he said, his voice leaving no room for argument.

Emma tightened her grip on her bag of equipment. “Lead the way.”

Lucas took her hand, his fingers curling around hers as he led her into the darkness. The bond between them pulsed steadily, a silent reassurance that, for now, they were together.

“Do you think Victor could bring in some equipment while we’re there?”

Lucas shook his head and laughed.

TWENTY-NINE

The morning sun streaming through the safe house’s windows found Emma already surrounded by equipment, her crystal blazing with scientific excitement as she reviewed combat footage from the night before.

The house’s living room had been temporarily converted into a mini lab, much to Lucas’s amusement. He couldn’t help but admire her dedication, even if it meant they were sometimes the oddest pair in the room.

“Dr. Greene.” Victor’s voice through her burner phone speaker made her jump. “I just sent you another set of records from the archives of the medical facility.”

Her fingers flew to her tablet, pulling up genetic sequences.

“Yes, I see. Thanks, Victor,” she muttered, already absorbed in the new data. She mumbled to herself about possible connections between ancient shifter genetics and current modifications. The information was like a puzzle, and she loved nothing more than putting the pieces together.

“Your scientist has no concept of lying low, does she?” Zayne’s amused voice carried through Lucas’s phone as Emma adjusted another sensor array in the safe house living room. “She’s already turned it into a makeshift lab.”

“I’m not sure ‘lying low’ was ever part of Emma’s vocabulary,” Lucas said with a chuckle. “But I’ll let you know if she turns the kitchen into a chemistry set.”

A knock came from the front door, but Emma didn’t budge, her focus still entirely on the data in front of her.

“Don’t worry,” Lucas said, his voice soft with amusement. “I’ll get it.”

She barely glanced up, lost in thought. With Lucas beside her, nothing could touch her. He’d proven that over and over.

A familiar squeal wafted through the room. Her head popped up at the sound.

“Janie?”

Her best friend burst through the door carrying what appeared to be half a department store. When Lucas had asked for Janie’s phone number, Emma had no idea he’d actually call her.

Janie dropped a wardrobe bag on the sofa. “If you’re going on a proper date on pride territory tonight, you are not wearing lab gear. Even if it is ‘optimal for documenting supernatural blah blah blah.’“

Emma raised a brow, looking at Lucas and his sheepish expression.

“Oh yeah,” Lucas said, looking like the cat who had caught the canary. “There’s an official event tonight on pride land that I thought we could attend together. So I asked your friend Janie to help me pry you from your equipment.”

Emma put down her tablet, eyes narrowing. “Why would I need Janie?”

“Because,” Janie explained, holding up an array of dresses with a smirk, “your incredibly attractive alpha mate is taking you on a romantic tour of his ancestral lands, and you’d wear a lab coat and goggles.”

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