Turning Payne by Chantel Seabrook Page B

fuck-up everyone thought he was, made him want to wrap her in his arms and never let her go. She was awakening a part of him he had no idea how to force back.
    Chase coughed behind him. "You ready?"
    "Yeah." He started to turn, then thought fuck it . He was moving before he could stop himself. In a swift motion, he pulled Riley towards him. His lips crashed against hers, tongue swiping over her lips, flickering past them to taste her.
    Blood thundered through his veins, the fiery need to possess her, to claim her spread through his body, burning away any doubts that she had to be his.
    He released her, pressed one final abrupt kiss on her lips, and turned away.
    "Now I'm ready." He stalked across the parking lot, ignoring the stunned looks on Chase and Lora's faces.

Chapter 15
    The first thing Turner noticed as he entered Marcus' small, rundown apartment, was the stale smell of fear.
    "Hands where we can see them," Chase ordered.
    Marcus barely flinched, but continued to tap persistently at the keyboard, shoulders hunched over his laptop. His hair stood on end, and there were dark sweat stains under his arms and down his back.
    Turner kept his weapon drawn and pointed at the man's head as he slowly rounded on him to get a clearer view of his face.
    "It's over," Marcus mumbled, his skin pale, eyes glossed over.
    "It is over. Now, put your hands up," Turner warned.
    Chase moved through the apartment, checking each room. "All clear."
    Marcus continued to type as some sort of code scanned down the screen. He pressed one final button and the screen went black. He sat back, hands above his head and waited silently for Chase to cuff him. His non-blinking gaze flicked to Turner.
    "We have a few questions," Chase said.
    Marcus' eyes moved slowly to Chase, and he chuckled, the sound gritty. "With all the technology the Therian agency has, you still don't have a clue, do you?"
    "We know more than you think." Turner's fingers flexed. "For starters, I know that Boyd is alive, and that you're working with him."
    "Working with him?" Marcus sneered, then shook his head. "Your resentment has blinded you."
    "You know nothing about me."
    "No?" He snorted through his nose. "It doesn't matter what you believe. You're all pawns in her game."
    "Her?"
    "You really are ignorant aren't you?" Marcus spit on the floor. "I could have saved her, saved them all, if you hadn't shown up. Now they're all going to die, and it's all your fault."
    Chase crossed his arms over his chest and frowned. "You wanted to save them?"
    "Bullshit," Turner spat. "You stuck a fucking needle in Riley's neck. Were you trying to infect her like you did Kiera?"
    Marcus shook his head. "I didn't want to hurt her, but—"
    "But, what?" Turner gripped the man by the throat, his nails elongating and piercing the flesh.
    "Turner," Chase warned.
    Turner released him and took a step back, shaking off the need to beat the shit out of the man.
    Marcus coughed. "You think your threats scare me? I'm already a walking dead man. He knows what I've done, when he finds me…" He swallowed hard and closed his eyes. "I was just trying to save her."
    "You want to help Kiera?" Chase demanded. "Then tell us what you know."
    Marcus looked past them both, his eyes vacant, distant. "The first trials. My sister, Ana, she'd tested positive for the recessive gene. She volunteered. I tried to stop her, but…"
    "She volunteered to be infected?"
    Marcus nodded. "She believed in the program. They all did. They thought the drug would turn them, make them metamorphs. But…" His voice cracked. "Well, you've seen what it does. It was worse in the earlier trials, most didn't make it. Ana was one of the few that survived."
    "So why infect others?" Chase asked. "Revenge?"
    "No. I didn't want to hurt Kiera, I just thought…I thought that if his daughter was infected, that he would work harder at finding a cure."
    Chase's mouth dropped open. "Are you saying Boyd's still alive?"
    Marcus gave a noncommittal shrug,