Page 34 of The Scent of Seduction

“We’ve reached the barracks. Breach of the portal in five. Damn, they’ve got fucking three stage biometrics on these goddamn doors. This may take a little longer than we expected.”

He paused in his tracks and took cover behind a hedge ten yards from the building. “Just get the job done,” Jaryn said.

“Have you ever known me not to?”

“Nope.”

“Nice to hear the love, Alpha. I crave your effusive praise.”

Despite the seriousness of the situation, he couldn’t help but smile at his Beta’s sarcastic sense of humor. He peered around the edge of the hedge and spied the portico he was aiming for, which led to one of the entrances. Seeing that the area was still clear, Jaryn rounded the limestone balustrade, made his way across the pavers, then ducked under the arches. He breathed a sigh of relief as he plastered his body against the exterior of the mansion.

Beside him was a large window, behind which, according to Nicole, was Broyles’ office. Jaryn turned his head to see inside, but a pair of heavy drapes blocked his view. There was a strip of white in the center of the drapes, and Jaryn crept a few steps to the side to get past the opaque material. The room was dark, and he didn’t see anyone inside. He took a breath and dashed past the glass panels. At the end of the portico, was a set of French doors. According to their research, a reclusive billionaire had built this house on the shores of Lake Michigan at the end of the nineteenth century. The opulent Italian Renaissance-style structure was the Midwest’s answer to the palatial estates of the Vanderbilt’s on the East Coast. How Broyles got his hands on it was unknown. The one piece of good news was because of the sheer size and historic nature of the building, not all the entrances had updated scan systems. Jaryn had targeted this set of doors because Nicole had informed him they used an old-fashioned lock system.

He kneeled outside the wood and glass-paneled door and examined the handle. There was no obvious locking mechanism on the outside. That meant Jaryn would have to get through the glass to reach inside and unlatch the lock. Upon opening his kit, he took out a small packet. He opened it and unfolded the translucent sheet within until he held a flat round disc lined with nanobots in his hand. He stripped away the protective shield from the backside, then placed the disc on the glass panel next to the inner door frame with the handle. In seconds, the glass appeared to dissolve. When the hole achieved a large enough circumference for Jaryn to get his hand inside, he deactivated the magnetic field of the disc, thereby disabling the nanobots source of power. He stripped the disc from the remaining glass and folded its wrapping back around it, replacing it in his kit.

Jaryn slipped his hand through the dessert-plate sized hole and blindly fumbled for the lock. His fingers skimmed the knob and when he turned it counter-clockwise, he heard the telltale click that spelled success. Not wanting to waste any more time, he quickly withdrew his hand, pushed the handle down, then slid inside the opened door. He paused for a moment to get his bearings. He knew if he went straight, he would reach the dining room. Through the great hall and off to the right was Broyles’ office, and up the grand staircase were the bedrooms. The kitchen was located beyond the dining room. When he’d sneaked by Broyles’ office, it had appeared empty, but Jaryn thought he should still check it out.

“Alpha, we’ve breached the barracks door. There appear to be about fifteen cells inside. The foxes are hacking into the locking system to get them open now.”

Jaryn didn’t want to speak and potentially give away his position, so he double-tapped the microphone to let Shaun know he’d heard the transmission. He slinked his way towards Broyles’ office. The man had to be here somewhere. He was sure Mac would have told him if Broyles had left the compound, since the man said he’d been monitoring the place for the last month.

Jaryn lifted his weapon from the holster strapped around his shoulders. The bullets loaded into it wouldn’t discriminate whether Jaryn met a man or wolf in the dark. He reached the office door. He had no way of knowing what was inside unless he opened the carved wooden panel.

God, what I wouldn’t give for X-Ray vision right about now.

Slowly, he turned the knob. He pushed open the door a few inches, waiting for either an assault from inside or the voice of his nemesis to beckon him to his death. When nothing happened, Jaryn slid inside Broyles’ sanctuary. Despite the hulking furnishings, there was nothing else in the room. Nothing other than the lingering odor of Broyles’ scent. Now that Jaryn had his adversaries’ signature, it would be easier to detect him as he continued his search. One room down, thirty-nine more to go. Of course, that was assuming that Broyles didn’t know about his presence and stayed in one spot. If they began circling each other in this monstrosity of a home, it’d become a strategic game of chess, and Jaryn would have to find a way of drawing Broyles out for the checkmate. Difficult, given that fact that he was on the other man’s home turf.

He exited the office, debating what area to head for next. It was late at night. Maybe Broyles would be in bed? Jaryn silently crossed the marbled floor and climbed the first several steps of the grand staircase. He swore the coldness that permeated the house leeched through the black leather covering his body, and an icy chill snaked down his spine.

When he reached the landing, he turned left towards the west wing of the house. Nicole had told him that was where Broyles’ suite was located. As Jaryn passed each door, he looked for some trace of light shining from within, but there was nothing except darkness. The oppressive silence of the house was eerie. There wasn’t a single creak or groan. No drip of water from a leaky faucet or whisper of music. Grand paintings hung on the walls, their inhabitants keeping silent watch over anyone who trespassed along their corridor. Jaryn felt their eyes on him with every step closer to his destination.

Finally, he reached the double doors at the end of the hall that led to Broyles’ rooms. Jaryn took a deep breath and slowly reached for the long gold handle. The second he opened this door, one of three things would probably happen. Either someone would shoot him, a wolf would attack him, or nothing would happen at all. The uncertainty kept his alertness at triple intensity. He pushed the lever down and opened the door a fraction of an inch. He let the air from the room float through the crack. Broyles’ scent was definitely present, but Jaryn couldn’t determine how fresh it was. Was the man inside, or was Jaryn moments too late?

He took a deep, slow breath and slid inside the room, keeping his back to the other half of the set of doors. He scanned the space and found what appeared to be a sitting room of some kind. There were a couple of couches and club chairs. The shadow of an antique writing desk sat in front of a group of windows. A soft fluttering sound came from his right and his eyes found a long, sheer curtain floating into the room. The air in the room was warm, so it couldn’t be from an open window. There must be some kind of heat vent over there.

“Hostages are clear. Count forty-five. We’ve got shifters, vamps, and you won’t believe who else we found.”

Shaun’s voice came over the microphone, and Jaryn released a breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding. He did not know what Shaun’s cryptic remark meant, but Jaryn didn’t have time to think about that for now. Shaun was in charge of the hostages, and he trusted his Beta to do his job and get them to safety. Jaryn didn’t particularly care if one of them had horns coming out of their head and spoke in tongues.

There were no doors on the right side of the room, so Jaryn turned to his left. It seemed he had three choices. Jaryn went for door number one. Weapon at the ready, he opened the door and found a coat closet. He pushed aside the heavy fabric to make sure there was nothing behind them. Satisfied this door was clear, he shut the door silently. He saw the outline of the second door panel clearly with the help of his enhanced night vision. Finding it not latched, he tapped the panel and watched it swing inward. It was the bathroom. The space wasn’t big, but embodied the epitome of gilded luxury. Leaded glazed windows, candelabras on either side of the pedestal sink, crystal chandeliers, and detailed trim adorned the space. The only place a person could hide was the deep claw-foot tub, and Jaryn quickly peeked over the edge of the porcelain. He spied a door in the right wall. Should he go through there or retrace his steps to the sitting room? He hadn’t heard anything, but what if Broyles had come in while Jaryn was clearing the bathroom? If he went backwards, he could walk into a trap. Decision made, Jaryn went forwards.

He stepped through the door and found himself in the bedroom. The size of the space struck Jaryn stupid for a moment. His eyes followed the beams of moonlight shining through the easily twenty-foot tall wall of windows and landed on the massive four-poster canopy bed. The entire room had carved wood paneling and all the large furniture screamed masculinity.

Broyles’ scent was stronger in here, so this was most certainly his bedroom. In fact, the smell was so strong that Jaryn would have sworn that Broyles was in the room with him at that moment, but there was no obvious sign of him. Foot by foot, Jaryn searched the space, trying to ferret out his nemesis.

“Fuck. Where are you, you bastard?” he whispered.

“I’m right here.”

Jaryn spun around, weapon raised, finger on the trigger. Broyles stood in an open section of wall that had been a solid panel a moment ago. Son of a bitch had secret fucking passages.

“And what are you going to do with that thing, Chaunterel?”

Hell, if the man didn't know his name, Jaryn would have found it surprising.

“I’m going to fuck your shit up.”

“With a gun? I’m rather disappointed in you. I thought we’d be able to settle this little disagreement between us honourably.”

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