Blind Faith (44 page)

huge.”

Yeah, and he usually tripped over them. “Maybe. But until then, I want to have a birthday party.”

Nate blanched. “We have training all day tomorrow.”

Yep, they sure did. Jory had memorized the schedule weeks ago, which was easy because his brain took

pictures of everything he saw. But he forced a frown. “Shoot. Well, you could just give me a present.”

Shane bit back a smile. “Nice. What do you want?”

Heat slid down Jory’s throat to land in his stomach. So far, he hadn’t been able to get his brothers to

agree to what he wanted. “Since it’s my eight-eight birthday, it’s important. Reaaally important.”

Nate sighed and eyed the clock ticking on the wall. “What do you want, Jory?”

“A last name,” he whispered.

Matt blew out air. “I told you we’d pick a name when we got out of here.”

“Come on, Mattie.” Jory yanked his hands from his pockets. “You’re probably twelve or so… Don’t

you want a last name we all can share?” He looked down at his feet, and his eyes stung. His brothers never

cried, and neither would he. “Just in case the commander sends me away, I want to have the same name.

Just so I know what it is.” His hands shook again, but this time he didn’t care. If he died, he wanted the

right name on the grave cross.

“Jesus,” Matt muttered. “Listen to me, damn it. The commander is not going to send you anywhere. I

promise.”

Jory looked up, and Matt’s face wavered through tears he wasn’t strong enough to get rid of. Matt was

the strongest boy Jory had ever met, Nate was the best fighter, and Shane was brilliant. But they were just

kids, and the commander was a grown-up. “I know, Mattie. But I really want a last name.”

Shane bit his lip. “I do, too.”

Silence ticked around the room.

Nate lifted his shooting shoulder. “Um, I kinda do, too.”

Matt looked at each one of them in turn, his eyes darkening. Finally, his shoulders relaxed, which

usually meant he’d made a decision. “Fine. Does anybody have an idea for a last name?”

“Asskickers?” Shane asked, hope in his voice.

Nate laughed. “We need something untraceable once we escape. Something that’s us but is a lot of other

people, too.”

Jory nodded. “I got an idea last week when we snuck and watched those old movies.”

Matt rolled his eyes, a real smile finally lifting his lips. “I’m not going to be Mathew Casablanca.

Period.”

Nate grinned, his body visually relaxing as Matt joked with them again. “Um, no.”

“I meant that movie,
Rebel without a Cause
,” Jory said, holding his breath.

“Rebel?” Nate asked.

“Stark—after Jim Stark?” Matt rubbed his chin. “I think that might be too rare.”

Jory shook his head. “Dean. After James Dean. He was kinda lost like us, and I think he would’ve liked

to be in our family. The Dean family.” Jory held still, trying not to hope too hard.

His brothers all remained quiet for several heartbeats.

Finally, Nate nodded. “I like it.”

“Shane Dean,” Shane murmured. “Yeah. It’s good.”

Jory sucked in air and focused on his oldest brother.

Matt studied him for a moment and then slowly smiled. “The
Dean
family it is.”

Chapter 1

Utah

Current Day

Jory Dean counted out push-ups rhythmically, keeping his six-foot-plus body aligned for maximum

effect. He hit a hundred without breaking a sweat, which energized him further, considering muscle now

covered the bones in his body. Finally. He felt like a healthy adult and not some hospital patient.

The cold cement floor scratched his hands, reminding him he was alive.

Somehow, amazingly alive.

He slowly lifted one hand to twist around his back, not losing the beat.

High heels clipped down the hallway toward his cell, so he straightened and stood. The computer

vestibule fully visible outside his containment area was empty, so he couldn’t ask who was coming. It

couldn’t be—

It was. Dr. Madison opened the door and came into view, her black hair in a bun and her blue eyes

quizzical. A purple-yellowish bruise covered her right temple, and as she neared, a limp became evident.

“What happened to you?” Jory asked through a screened part of the security-glass wall of his container.

He hadn’t seen her in the last ten weeks as he recuperated, and he’d wondered where she’d gone.

She fingered the bruise and looked up more than a foot to his face. “Your brother blew up our DC

facility, and I was caught underground in an airplane hangar.”

Jory grinned and ignored the sharp pang from the mention of family. He’d kill to see his brothers again.

“Which brother?”

“Nathan.” She pursed her lips in a tight, white line. “He took my daughter with him.”

Jory rocked back on his heels. “No shit? Good for Nate.” Jory’s big brother had never gotten over

Audrey Madison, so it wasn’t exactly shocking that he’d returned for her. “Um, was she willing to go?” He

wouldn’t put it past Nate to toss Audrey over a shoulder as the bombs detonated.

Madison sniffed. “I believe so, but maybe the pregnancy has messed with her intellect.”

Jory stilled. “Audrey is pregnant?”

“Yes. With Nate’s baby.” Madison reached for a tablet in her white doctor’s jacket. “Congratulations, as

it appears the Gray family can procreate.” She smiled, revealing sharp teeth.

Warmth burst through him. Nate was going to be a father? Oh yeah. He’d make a great father… if he

lived. Wow. So they did have a chance for families. Jory wanted to smile but refused to give the doctor the

satisfaction of reading his emotions.

Her gaze dropped to his groin. “I wonder if we could—”

Jory fought the urge to cover his boys and instead stepped closer to the partition. “Don’t even think of

it, Madison. I’ll kill you first.” He spoke low and kept eye contact.

She clucked her tongue. “It’s hard to imagine you are the good-natured brother.”

“Getting plugged in the chest several times and ending up in a coma for two years tends to piss a guy

off.” He stretched his torso, trying not to go crazy in the small cell. He’d awoken three months ago,

immediately striving to regain his strength. To get home to his brothers. They had to be worried beyond

belief.

Dr. Madison licked her lips as she eyed his bare torso. “Your workouts and diet regimen have returned

you to excellent shape in such a short time. I did a marvelous job with your genetics.”

When she looked at him like he was steak on a plate, he wanted to puke. “I’m tired of gym shorts.” He

rested broad hands on his hips and glanced around the dismal cell. One cot sat in a corner, and a bare-

bones bathroom took residence around a partial wall. “Get me out of here.”

“Why?” She arched one fine eyebrow. “That kill chip by your C4 vertebra will detonate in one week

and you’ll die. Your best chance of survival is staying here.”

Anger roared through him, so he flattened his hands on the bullet-proof glass and leaned in. “The chip

that you screwed up? Yeah. I’m not expecting a rescue there.” The bastard scientists had implanted kill

chips in all the Dean brothers’ spines, and if the right code wasn’t entered in the right computer in one

week, the chips would activate and sever their spines.

Of course, the damn code didn’t work for Jory.

“I do wish you’d watch your language. As a child, you were so well mannered.” Dr. Madison typed

something into her tablet. “I didn’t make a mistake on the chips. When you got yourself shot, a bullet

ricocheted off the chip, and it’s damaged. It’s shocking the device didn’t explode then and there.” She

pursed her lips as if pondering what to have for dinner. “Just shocking.”

Jory rubbed his eyes. He was a fucking monkey in a cage, and he had to get out of there before his

brain melted. So he tried reason. “Madison? I have a week to live. For once in my life, have a heart and let

me go live it out.” It was the closest he’d come to asking the brilliant scientist for anything after she’d

started hitting on him when he’d reached puberty.

She smoothed back her hair. “I didn’t raise you to be a quitter. Don’t worry. I have a plan.”

Great. He ran a frustrated hand through his hair, which had begun to curl at his nape. “What’s the

plan?” If he was going to figure out a way to save his brothers, he had to get out of there. Anger heated up

his throat, and he fought to keep calm.

Two heartbeats echoed from outside the room, so he tilted his head to hear better while trying to appear

bored. Dr. Madison had no clue about his heightened senses or his extra abilities, and he needed to keep it

that way. Nobody normal would be able to hear the heartbeats.

A soldier entered first, followed by a woman who slid out from behind him.

Jory’s breath caught in his throat.
Exquisite.
For once, that word could be applied accurately. She stood

to about five foot six in black boots with a matching leather jacket. Mocha-colored skin, curly black hair,

and eyes greener than the most private parts of Ireland.

She took one look at him and stepped back.

He stepped forward and flashed a smile that made her eyes widen. If he had to scare her to get her to

leave, he’d do it. Anybody seeing him in captivity would be killed by the commander after serving their

purpose. “Is she for me?” he asked, forcing himself to run his gaze over her body and surprising himself

when he hardened in response. Whatever her purpose, she sure as hell didn’t belong in this dismal place.

Hopefully, she’d turn on her heel and get out.

Instead, she lifted one eyebrow. “So that’s him.”

Well, damn. Another angel with the heart of a demon. A pang landed squarely in Jory’s chest. Beauty

should never be evil. “Yeah, that’s me,” he murmured. “Who are you?”

She opened her mouth and shut it as Dr. Madison shook her head. “It doesn’t matter who she is.”

Grasping the woman’s arm, Dr. Madison led her over to a computer console. “Get to work, and remember

the rules.”

Dr. Madison glanced back toward Jory. “Leave her alone to work, and I won’t have you tranquilized

again.” With that, she allowed the soldier to escort her from the room.

The woman at the console turned around. “Piper. My name is Piper.” She eyed the partition. “Who are

you?”

“Jory.” He really liked the way her tight jeans hugged her curves. “Why are you here, Piper?”

She exhaled slowly and stretched out her fingers. “I’m here to save you, Jory.”

Turn the page for an excerpt from Rebecca Zanetti’s first novel in her sexy romantic suspense

series,

Forgotten Sins

Available now!

Prologue

Southern Tennessee Hills

Twenty Years Ago

Shane settled against the cold block wall, engrossed in the television set across the room but forcing

himself periodically to glance outside the darkened window. The second dawn hit, he and his brothers had

to flee the computer center. Their current transgression was punishable by beating or confinement.

Probably both.

But a night spent watching a marathon of the show featuring a family living in the city was well worth

the risk and provided an insight into a world he had only dreamed about. Breaking into the private room

housing the television had been almost too easy. It surprised him the soldiers taught them stealth and

surveillance but didn’t expect them to use the skills.

A boom sounded in the distance—probably from a coal mine hours away. Just to double-check, he

lifted his head and used his special hearing to make sure they were safe. A wolf prowled a mile or so away,

and prey scattered. No humans breathed nearby. Well, none other than his three brothers while they

watched the show. The eighth episode wound down to cheerful music and a happy ending.

“What’s a family?” Jory, his youngest brother, asked.

Shane forced a shrug. “I think a family is people who live together.”

“So we’re family?” Jory’s voice cracked.

Shane nodded, his shoulders straightening. “Yeah, we’re family.”

“What’s a mom?” Jory scratched his head.

“I guess it’s that lady there.” Shane pointed at the woman on the screen.

“She looks…” Matt, the oldest of them all, said thoughtfully, “soft.”

They all nodded.

“How come we don’t have moms or ladies here?” Jory asked.

Shane shrugged again. He probably didn’t deserve a mom, but Jory did. Why didn’t Jory get a mom?

“Maybe soldiers don’t get moms.”

“Oh.” Jory turned back to the screen. “She looks nice.”

Yeah. The soft lady had looked nice.

Nathan jumped up. “It’s time to go—sun’s out.” As the second oldest, Nathan usually kept a close eye

on Jory and Shane, while Matt spent his time training them to survive.

Shane stood and reached down to help Jory up.

He yanked back. “I want to stay.”

“Now, Jory.” Matt slid the door open a sliver to peer outside. “They’re already starting hand-to-hand.”

Jory stood and brushed off his pants. “Fine.”