She nodded. “I’m still feeling the effects of the gas you let loose. It’s made everything fuzzy and my muscles weak.”
“Oh. I do apologize for that.” Concern filtered through his eyes now. “You should be all right by tomorrow.”
His calm concern made her want to throw up. She couldn’t breathe. “I’m trying to understand why you got Lost Bastards involved in your, ah, game. You wanted Heath looking for you.”
“It was only fair, since I’d been looking for him.” Daniel wiped his mouth, an odd glint in his eyes. “But I hadn’t expected that you’d go to bed with him so soon after Carl had broken your heart. You’ll have to purify yourself for me. Like you were when I first met you. Redheaded and oh so innocent.” His lip twisted, and his eyes hardened.
Her stomach lurched, and she swallowed rapidly. If she threw up on the table, it’d probably piss him off. She had to take herself out of her own head and play the part right. “So you liked me because I was a pure redhead.”
“Yes.” His gaze dropped to her breasts.
Screams rose inside her, wanting out. She bit her tongue, and the coppery taste of blood centered her. “Was there a redhead in your life who wasn’t pure?”
His gaze hardened to flint. “Watch yourself.”
Her legs went weak. “I’m sorry.”
His chin lifted. “Apology accepted.”
“Thank you,” she whispered, pressing her knees together to keep her legs from trembling. “Why were you looking for Heath and his brothers?”
“Now, that’s a smart question.” Daniel dug into his salad. “Heath, his brothers, and I were made by a woman named Isobel Madison. She spliced and diced genes to create us. I’m supposed to bring Heath home.”
Anya choked on her wine and coughed, setting the glass down. “What?” she asked weakly.
Daniel frowned at her wineglass. “You heard me.”
How was that possible? “You’re one of those supersoldiers?”
“Yes,” Daniel said smoothly. “Yet now I’m faced with a dilemma, right?”
“What is that?” she asked weakly.
“Now that you and I are together, I can’t have Heath at the new compound all the time, can I?”
If she could just get him to trust her in some way, maybe she’d get a chance to escape. Somehow. “What’s your alternative?” she asked, trying to appear curious and not scared shitless.
“I can call Sheriff Cobb instead of Dr. Madison, considering Sheriff Cobb wants Heath dead.” Alertness lit his gaze. “What do you think I should do?”
She sensed the trap and scrambled to think of a way around it. “I thought they worked together.”
“Heath told you about them?”
She numbly nodded.
“I didn’t figure you were that close.” Daniel set his knife on his plate. “That’s unfortunate.”
Panic pricked along her skin. She had to bring the conversation back to him. “Is my intel wrong? Don’t Cobb and Madison work together?”
“Sheriff Cobb and Dr. Madison. We use manners here,” Daniel said, his voice hard. He lifted his knife and pointed it at her. That knife had probably carved letters in women’s chests.
Her hands went clammy. She couldn’t help but pant. “Of course. Sorry.”
He waited a beat. “That’s the last apology I’ll accept from you tonight. They do work together, but they have different motivations regarding Heath and his brothers.” Daniel took another drink of wine. “The sheriff wants to torture and kill them, while Dr. Madison wants to bring them home to work for her and donate genetic material for the next generation of enhanced soldiers. It is a conundrum.”
“I see,” Anya murmured weakly. She couldn’t let Cobb get to Heath. Her shoulders straightened. She’d do whatever she had to in order to protect him. “Do either the sheriff or the doctor know about your, ah, search for me? Your game?” Was that how she should put it?
“No.” Daniel shrugged. “I need something that’s just mine.”
