Page 1 of Stray Cat

CHAPTERONE

Gravity is a state of mind …

Lindsay repeated this as she clung with cat claws to the overhead beam, her muscles straining to prevent herself from plunging thirty feet to the hard arena floor.

Xavier Escobar was down there, in a pool of electric lantern light, talking to some very bad guys. He was alone for now, counting on his powers of persuasion to keep the men he negotiated with from shooting him dead.

Xav had no idea that Lindsay, in her lynx form, lurked above, ready to assist. That is, if the fall didn’t kill her.

Shifter Felines are badass.She drummed the words through her head.Indestructible.Besides, gravity was only a theory.

Or was it a law? Or were there laws of gravity, and gravity itself was a theory? She should have paid more attention in science class.

“Look, asshole, I just want the money,” Xavier said below her.

Xav was playing a minor tough. His mission: Infiltrate an impenetrable gang who’d in the past murdered two undercover cops.

Because the gang leaders had detailed information on all Las Vegas police detectives, the LVMPD had hired Xav and his brother Diego to help them out. While Diego and Xav had been with the police department in the past, the gang had become active in the area only after Xav and Diego had quit the force to open their own private security agency.

Xav still had many friends in the LVMPD, and he hadn’t been able to turn away their call for assistance.

“Watch your mouth,” the leader of the group said to Xav. “You’ll get paid. But I need to know who your contact is before I decide if I can trust you.”

Xav heaved an exaggerated sigh. “I don’t like to give up my friends.”

“You’re not giving them up. I’m trying to make sure you’re not a cop, a spy, or someone horning in on my territory.”

Xav nodded. “I get it. You don’t know me, so why should you hand me a bag of money? Even though I brought you good pieces.”

He nudged the wooden box at his feet, which contained several long-barreled guns. Lindsay wasn’t certain what kind they were, because she had no interest in weapons. That was a human thing.

“Exactly,” the leader said. “If you stole these from another gang, I don’t want them coming after us. They wouldn’t last long, but it would be a hassle. Then the police might decide to investigate, and that’s even more hassle. Save me a lot of time if you just told me where you got them.”

Xav lifted his hands in a conceding gesture. “Okay, okay.”

Xav had dressed the part in old jeans, black T-shirt, and a hoodie that covered his nearly black hair. He hadn’t shaved, and a beard shadow darkened his face. Xav liked to be neat and clean, so this was a different look for him.

Lindsay longed to tell him how sexy he was, but she couldn’t while she crouched precariously thirty feet up, her paws starting to ache.

“So, come on,” the tough said. “Who is he?”

Xav flashed the man a grin. “Not he. She. Emma Shields.”

Lindsay couldn’t see the expression on the man’s face from this height, but the change in his scent said he was impressed.

“Shields? She trusts you?”

“Obviously.” Xav shrugged. “She knows what she’s doing, so they’ll be good.”

Lindsay fought a sudden dart of jealousy. He’d gone to see Emma, had he?

Emma Shields was a former member of the underworld who now worked off and on for Xav and Diego. She had a reputation for being fair and straightforward, as long as you didn’t piss her off. Most of the criminal gangs hadn’t realized she’d started working against them, and they more or less still trusted her.

Xav considered Emma personable and smart, and he talked about her a lot. Emma was also human, so no problems with Xav taking her out to places Shifters weren’t welcome, or with her becoming a snarling cat whenever she had PMS.

Lindsay tamped down her anger with effort. Xav and Lindsay didn’t have a relationship in the strictest sense, or athing, or sometimes even friendship. They hung out when they got along and avoided each other when one of them was in a snit, which was mostly Lindsay. Xav rarely got mad about anything.

Even now, Xav remained calm and collected. He might pretend to be agitated about dealing with such a prominent and dangerous gang member, but Lindsay knew that on the inside, Xav was as cool as the winter wind.

---