The Tiger's Heart by Marissa Dobson Page B

completed.”
    Raja was in a battle that
he wouldn’t win. Unless he wanted to fight Ty for dominance, which
he did not intend to do. There has to be a
way around it without bringing Pierce to the compound.
    “ Why didn’t you tell
me?”
    “ Tell you that you had to
mate for things to go forward? Seriously? You would have fought the
mating at every crossroads. You said you wanted nothing to do with
a mate. Now, my friend, you have no choice. Your mate is downstairs
waiting for you.”
    “ I’m not sure she’ll be
ready to accept me after I give her the news of her family,” Raja
said, raking his hands through his hair to calm his
nerves.
    * * *
    “ We heard a roar. What’s
going on?” Bethany asked, the panic filling her voice when Raja
entered.
    “ Tabitha, Ty’s in the
hall. I need to speak with Bethany alone.”
    “ If you need anything,
Raja can reach me.” Tabitha stood, giving Bethany’s hand a squeeze
before leaving.
    “ What’s going
on?”
    “ I told you before that we
received a video, which is how we knew you were taken. Connor, our
wolf computer geek, was able to trace it.”
    “ What does that have to do
with the roar I heard?”
    “ We received another one.”
Raja dropped into the chair next to the bed, his head in his
hands.
    “ Then go save her like you
did me. I’m fine. I don’t need you hovering when there is someone’s
life in jeopardy.”
    Raja looked up, his heart in his
throat. His heart was breaking for her. The news he had to deliver
was horrific, with no easy way to say it.
    “ Raja…” concern thick in
her voice.
    “ It’s not the same.” He
took a deep breath, saying a silent prayer for the strength and
words to tell her.
    “ What do you
mean?”
    “ Oh Bethany,” he leaned in
close to the bed, wrapping his hands around her small, delicate
ones, “it’s your family.”
    “ What about them? They’re
home in Virginia, safe. Right?” When Raja didn’t say anything, she
continued. “Tell me what’s going on. You’re starting to scare
me.”
    “ Pierce, the guy that
ordered your kidnapping, attacked your parents’ home.”
    “ But they’re fine, right?”
She leaned forward to reach her cell on the nightstand, tears
already gleaming in her eyes.
    Raja took a firmer hold on her hands,
not letting her reach the phone. His gaze met hers as the tears
sprang free from her eyes. “I’m sorry.”
    “ No, you’re wrong. They
were supposed to go to the cabin…they wouldn’t be home. You have to
be wrong,” she pleaded.
    “ I watched the video
myself.”
    “ Jamie? Is she
okay?”
    “ I’m sorry.”
    Bethany’s tears flowed freely now.
Raja stood, setting his gun on the nightstand. He eased himself on
the bed next to her, careful not to disturb her injured knee. He
wrapped his arms around her. She snuggled into his embrace, and he
leaned his head on hers.
    After a few minutes of uncontrollable
tears, she moved her head away, leaving a wet spot, but he didn’t
mind. She tilted her head up to look at him. “I want to see the
video.”
    “ No!” he
growled.
    “ I want to see it,” she
stated with more determination.
    “ It’s out of the question.
I won’t let your last memories of your family be tainted by their
murders. Bethany, just leave it be. I won’t have it,” he growled,
his tiger pacing inside him from the fury.
    “ I have a
right.”
    “ Please…” He wanted to
yell at her to make her drop it, but she didn’t need that
now.
    “ It’s that bad? It was you
roaring.” Her voice cracked as tears welled in her eyes
again.
    Raja nodded, unable to bring himself
to say the words.
    “ I’ll have to go home…to
deal with things.”
    “ We’ll make arrangements,
but we haven’t to wait for the police to contact you. If not they
would want to know where you received your knowledge.”
    “ Why can’t we take the
video to the police?”
    “ He shifts in
it.”
    “ To keep your secret safe,
my family dies in vain? No justice for