Shifter In Ascent (Louisiana Shifters) Read Free Page A

abruptly.
“Make contact?” she echoed.
“Yes,” James said patiently, “that’s why the Legion needs you. You will make contact, infiltrate their group, and then brief us on their habits. Ideally you’ll find their lair,” he said.
“I don’t understand. What is it that you hope to gain in all this?” Tessa asked, confused. It must be something big if they were willing to establish a whole facility near their targets, to kidnap and torture people, to do whatever they’d done to those nurses…
“Your task is to gather information. We have identified some of the members of their group, as well as some of the establishments they frequent in New Orleans. The next step is finding out where they live,” James said, pulling the folder from Tessa’s hand and flipping to the section of photographs.
The first photo was a stunning brunette, all legs and curves. She had the high cheekbones and perfect features of a supermodel. Attached was a sticky note that read, “Madeline Copeland”. The next was a similarly stunning man with deep brown eyes and perfectly tousled brown hair with just a hint of a curl. He had beautifully chiseled cheekbones and his jaw was set in a grim line that only enhanced his sexy mouth. Tessa found herself staring at the man whose photo was labeled, ““Jacques ‘Jace’ Copeland”.
James cleared his throat, reminding Tessa that she wasn’t alone. She hastily flipped through another handful of pictures, each with a drool-worthy subject and a name attached. Still, she barely saw any of the other photos. The first man’s image stayed with her stubbornly, impossible barely saw any of the other photos. The first man’s image stayed with her stubbornly, impossible
to forget.
    James was talking, but Tessa couldn’t focus. She needed to speak up, tell Jameson that something was wrong. A picture shouldn’t give her chills like this, shouldn’t make her feel anything at all.
    Instead, she asked a question.
“When do I leave?” she blurted out.
James smiled faintly and looked at his watch.
“One hour,” he announced, “So we’d better get you dressed and ready. We’ll outfit you with
    clothes and a cell phone to be used strictly for contacting me. We’re going to put you in a lowkey hostel for your stay in New Orleans. You can read through the folder on the way to the city.” “Are we flying there?” Tessa asked nervously.
Jameson looked at her oddly.
“Do you remember coming here at all?” he asked.
Tessa shook her head, biting her lip.
“We’re only an hour outside New Orleans right now, Tessa. You left Boston over three weeks ago,” he said hesitantly.
Tessa was floored. How had they brought her all the way across the country without her consent? And how the hell had she been here three weeks? Sure, it was all a blur, but…
Tessa’s lower lip began to tremble as tears welled up in her eyes. She wiped her eyes with the backs of her shaky hands. She was locked in some secret facility belonging to a bunch of crazy people calling themselves The Legion, who believed that Tessa was a werewolf and wanted her to go find and betray other werewolves for the good of humanity. These lunatics had trapped Tessa first, and now they were holding Camilla hostage to make Tessa do their bidding.
The more Tessa thought about it, the more absurd it became. Everything felt unreal, baseless, impermanent. Tessa’s chest constricted tightly until she could barely draw a breath. She could sense Jameson trying to say something, shouting for help. She could feel gravity shifting as her body began to topple over. Darkness swarmed in her vision, swallowing her before she hit the ground.
TWO
    ``If Jace didn’t intervene soon, the human girl was as good as dead.
Jace paused in the shade of a block-long second story balcony, one of many that defined New Orleans’ French Quarter. He waited a moment to be sure he wasn’t being followed before dashing across the centuries-old cobblestones paving the