Burning Wild
Page 5
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Jake glanced around to make certain they were alone. He shouldn’t have worried. He would have been able to catch the scent of his enemies had they been close. Cathy despised the old man and Ryan never went near him. There was secret pleasure in knowing his great-grandfather only came to visit him. Fenton lived in Texas and didn’t really care for Chicago, but every now and then he’d take a trip to see Jake.
It was Fenton who insisted on the best tutors and it was Fenton who would talk openly about stocks and bonds with him. He insisted Jake learn languages from an early age and usually spoke to Jake in a variety of foreign languages, explaining to him that to do commerce in other countries, one had to know customs and languages. He spoke of his land and how he knew there was oil on it, but they’d been unable to find it. Cathy and Ryan made fun of him, calling the acreage “Fenton’s Folly,” but Jake loved hearing the excitement in the old man’s voice when he spoke of finding the huge resource someday. Fenton wasn’t as interested in the money as he was the actual thrill of finding new reserves. And that told Jake that Cathy and Ryan were wrong about the old man—he hadn’t thrown his money away; he had so much he didn’t need more.
“Jake, the scars? Is it that worthless son of a bitch Ryan? Or my granddaughter? She has a streak of cruelty in her. I never believed that nanny of yours beat you. I can’t imagine Cathy not knowing everything that goes on in her household.”
“Forget about it, Grandfather,” Jake said quietly, his gaze meeting Fenton’s. “I’m handling it.”
The old man shook his head and dropped down into a chair, looking around the library, his gaze wandering from book to book. Jake already had learned the value of silence and just waited while Fenton obviously made a decision. When he looked up at Jake, he showed every one of his eighty-seven years.
“Have you heard anyone speaking of the leopard people?”
Jake’s heart jumped, and he didn’t answer right away, afraid of a trap. He could smell lies and it occurred to him that his great-grandfather might be able to as well. “Tell me.”
“You must never reveal any of what I’m about to tell you. Not to anyone. Especially not to your parents or the Trents.”
Jake drew in a deep breath, his heart pounding hard. This was it. This was his moment to learn, to become more powerful. “I promise.”
Fenton leaned forward and lowered his voice. “The leopard people aren’t a myth any more than the oil on my property is. I know the oil is there even though I can’t find it, just as I know there are shifters in our bloodline even though I can’t shift. I met a true shifter once. They’re a separate species, not fully human yet not fully animal either. They are both.”
Jake moistened his lips. Did the old man know about him? Suspect? Was he looking to trick Jake? He pressed his lips together to keep silent, but his heart raced as his great-grandfather glanced at him sharply.
“There are a few shifters left in the Borneo rain forest, men and women who live with honor, who keep to the old ways. Find them, Jake. Learn from them. They are true to their nature, not the corrupt, twisted beings our bloodlines produce.” He sighed heavily. “It’s my grandfather’s fault. He kidnapped a woman from the forest and forced her to marry him. In those days, women didn’t have many rights and no one helped her. He had discovered the secret and knew that with the traits of the species, we could gain wealth and power. And he wanted it. He was ambitious and he wanted it.” He hung his head, running his hand over his face. “Our bloodline carries the epitome of cruelty. You don’t want to live like them. You must take care to keep yourself decent. The genes are strong in you, and with them come responsibility.”
Jake felt his belly knot into tight, hard lumps of protest. “I have to be whatever it takes to get away from them.”
Fenton sighed and leaned back in his chair. “Have you ever studied breeding? Breeding anything at all, cattle, dogs, whatever? You can breed good or bad traits into a line. You have to take care, watch what you do, or you end up with very bad blood. Leopards are cunning creatures. You hunt a leopard in the wild and they’re one of the few predators that will circle around to stalk and kill their hunter. They can be cruel and fierce and bad-tempered. But they’re also cunning, sharp and intelligent. Read up on them, Jake, and then you’ll have an idea of what any of us with shifter genetics contends with. We don’t have to shift to feel the effects.”
“Can you really not shift?” Jake asked. He kept his eyes downcast, his face still, afraid he’d give away his excitement. “I know you said you couldn’t, but you know so much.”
The old man shook his head. “I really can’t. The leopard is there inside me. I reach for it, but shifting eludes me. I traveled to the rain forest when I found the diaries my grandfather kept, and I met some of the people. They aren’t like us. We’re abominations in comparison. Cathy, my own granddaughter, is a sick, twisted being, cruel beyond measure, and I know I’m responsible. I married a woman to further the bloodline. Don’t do that. Don’t continue this experiment. It’s dangerous and the people we create are dangerous.”
“Like me,” Jake said quietly.
Fenton stared at him.
“You know what they’re like behind closed doors, yet you left me here with them,” Jake accused, voicing the reason he didn’t trust the old man. “They would have let me go.”
It was Fenton who insisted on the best tutors and it was Fenton who would talk openly about stocks and bonds with him. He insisted Jake learn languages from an early age and usually spoke to Jake in a variety of foreign languages, explaining to him that to do commerce in other countries, one had to know customs and languages. He spoke of his land and how he knew there was oil on it, but they’d been unable to find it. Cathy and Ryan made fun of him, calling the acreage “Fenton’s Folly,” but Jake loved hearing the excitement in the old man’s voice when he spoke of finding the huge resource someday. Fenton wasn’t as interested in the money as he was the actual thrill of finding new reserves. And that told Jake that Cathy and Ryan were wrong about the old man—he hadn’t thrown his money away; he had so much he didn’t need more.
“Jake, the scars? Is it that worthless son of a bitch Ryan? Or my granddaughter? She has a streak of cruelty in her. I never believed that nanny of yours beat you. I can’t imagine Cathy not knowing everything that goes on in her household.”
“Forget about it, Grandfather,” Jake said quietly, his gaze meeting Fenton’s. “I’m handling it.”
The old man shook his head and dropped down into a chair, looking around the library, his gaze wandering from book to book. Jake already had learned the value of silence and just waited while Fenton obviously made a decision. When he looked up at Jake, he showed every one of his eighty-seven years.
“Have you heard anyone speaking of the leopard people?”
Jake’s heart jumped, and he didn’t answer right away, afraid of a trap. He could smell lies and it occurred to him that his great-grandfather might be able to as well. “Tell me.”
“You must never reveal any of what I’m about to tell you. Not to anyone. Especially not to your parents or the Trents.”
Jake drew in a deep breath, his heart pounding hard. This was it. This was his moment to learn, to become more powerful. “I promise.”
Fenton leaned forward and lowered his voice. “The leopard people aren’t a myth any more than the oil on my property is. I know the oil is there even though I can’t find it, just as I know there are shifters in our bloodline even though I can’t shift. I met a true shifter once. They’re a separate species, not fully human yet not fully animal either. They are both.”
Jake moistened his lips. Did the old man know about him? Suspect? Was he looking to trick Jake? He pressed his lips together to keep silent, but his heart raced as his great-grandfather glanced at him sharply.
“There are a few shifters left in the Borneo rain forest, men and women who live with honor, who keep to the old ways. Find them, Jake. Learn from them. They are true to their nature, not the corrupt, twisted beings our bloodlines produce.” He sighed heavily. “It’s my grandfather’s fault. He kidnapped a woman from the forest and forced her to marry him. In those days, women didn’t have many rights and no one helped her. He had discovered the secret and knew that with the traits of the species, we could gain wealth and power. And he wanted it. He was ambitious and he wanted it.” He hung his head, running his hand over his face. “Our bloodline carries the epitome of cruelty. You don’t want to live like them. You must take care to keep yourself decent. The genes are strong in you, and with them come responsibility.”
Jake felt his belly knot into tight, hard lumps of protest. “I have to be whatever it takes to get away from them.”
Fenton sighed and leaned back in his chair. “Have you ever studied breeding? Breeding anything at all, cattle, dogs, whatever? You can breed good or bad traits into a line. You have to take care, watch what you do, or you end up with very bad blood. Leopards are cunning creatures. You hunt a leopard in the wild and they’re one of the few predators that will circle around to stalk and kill their hunter. They can be cruel and fierce and bad-tempered. But they’re also cunning, sharp and intelligent. Read up on them, Jake, and then you’ll have an idea of what any of us with shifter genetics contends with. We don’t have to shift to feel the effects.”
“Can you really not shift?” Jake asked. He kept his eyes downcast, his face still, afraid he’d give away his excitement. “I know you said you couldn’t, but you know so much.”
The old man shook his head. “I really can’t. The leopard is there inside me. I reach for it, but shifting eludes me. I traveled to the rain forest when I found the diaries my grandfather kept, and I met some of the people. They aren’t like us. We’re abominations in comparison. Cathy, my own granddaughter, is a sick, twisted being, cruel beyond measure, and I know I’m responsible. I married a woman to further the bloodline. Don’t do that. Don’t continue this experiment. It’s dangerous and the people we create are dangerous.”
“Like me,” Jake said quietly.
Fenton stared at him.
“You know what they’re like behind closed doors, yet you left me here with them,” Jake accused, voicing the reason he didn’t trust the old man. “They would have let me go.”
