“Mr. Prescott rescued it. Someone had smuggled it into the country as a cub and kept it in a basement.”
Rael’s pulse sped up, and blood pounded in his ears. “A basement?” It was a horrifying thought.
“I know. Apparently, he was a drug dealer who thought it amusing to keep a tiger. But when the police raided his house, they found the tiger, fully grown by then, chained up. It would have been destroyed, but Mr. Prescott spoke with a friend of his who happens to be a judge and got the necessary paperwork so he could save the poor creature.”
Rael breathed a little easier. He studied the cage again. “This is a well-thought-out environment,” he admitted. The temperature in the room was comfortable, so what with the grille on top, Rael guessed it was the same inside the cage.
“Mr. Prescott went to a good deal of trouble to make sure the tiger has everything it needs.”
Except the open air. And space. And freedom to move. To run.
The lion within him growled.
Rael turned to her. “But why keep it here? Why not turn it over to an animal sanctuary or a zoo? Surely that would be better than keeping it captive in a cage. No matter how luxurious or spacious it is.” Nothing could compare to the feeling of running through wide-open spaces. Then he realized what had surprised him most.
There had been no mention anywhere in his research of a tiger.
“You’d think having a tiger in his office would be a talking point,” he noted. “I can’t think why there haven’t been double-page spreads about Mr. Prescott and his efforts to save a poor imprisoned tiger.”
She gave a graceful shrug. “You’ll have to ask Mr. Prescott. The tiger belongs to him, after all.” At that moment a phone rang. “Excuse me.” She pointed to two couches that took up what space was left in the room. “Have a seat. I’ll be right back.” Veronica hurried toward a door at the rear of the room.
Rael had no intention of sitting.
He walked slowly toward the cage, careful not to make any sudden movements, conscious of the tiger’s scrutiny. He could hear Veronica talking in a low voice in the other room. When he reached the glass, he crouched down, making himself small, unable to tear his gaze away from the glorious predator stretched out languidly on the other side of the glass.
“You’re so beautiful,” Rael said softly. His lion wanted to flatten himself to the floor, to roll onto his back, making himself vulnerable. He’d always thought of himself as dominant, but there was something about this tiger that made him want to submit.
Something Rael couldn’t fathom.
A wave of nausea rolled over him, and in his head he heard a faint voice. Help me. A male voice, kind of weak.
What the fuck?
His stomach clenching, Rael swallowed. “Either I’m going crazy or I just heard you in my head.” He placed his hand flat to the glass. His heart pounded as the tiger dropped down gracefully from its perch on the branch and leisurely sauntered toward him, its muscles moving in sinuous harmony. When it reached Rael, the tiger pressed its nose against the glass covered by Rael’s hand.
And there it was again, the overpowering urge to submit. Then such impulses were flung aside when he heard the voice again. Help me. The nausea wasn’t as bad as before, but the voice was just as weak.
Ice crawled its way down Rael’s spine. Oh God. I’m not going crazy, am I?
As if in response, the tiger lifted its regal head and locked gazes with him. Help me?
Before Rael could react, Veronica came back into the room, and he rose hastily to his feet. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the tiger’s retreat to its former perch, and its departure caused Rael’s chest to tighten.
“I’m so sorry, Mr. Parton. That was Mr. Prescott on the phone. He’s been unavoidably detained and won’t be able to see you today.”
Rael’s heart sank. “Then it seems I’ve come a long way for nothing.” He mentally calculated the time he’d wasted. A three-hour drive through the snow to the airport. Six hours in transit, including the stop in Salt Lake City. Not to mention the cheap and definitely uncomfortable hotel in downtown Chicago.
“I was about to say, Mr. Prescott assures you he will be here tomorrow. And as recompense for letting you down like this, he’s asked me to book you into the Langham Hotel tonight as his guest.” Veronica smiled. “I’ve taken the liberty of reserving you a suite with a view of the river.”
Rael did his best not to let his jaw drop. “That’s very kind of you.” A five-star luxury hotel beat the pants off the roach motel he was staying in. He’d seen photos of the Langham when he was looking for a place to stay—seen, then dismissed. He might make a comfortable living, but that didn’t mean he was about to throw that much money around.
She waved her hand. “It’s the least we could do, especially after you’ve flown here from Idaho.” She inclined her head toward the cage. “It’s awesome, isn’t it? I could sit and watch it for hours. Except then I’d get no work done, and I’d be out of a job.”
Rael gave the polite chuckle he was sure she expected. “In that case, I won’t keep you any longer. I’ll see you tomorrow. The same time?”
She nodded. “And thank you for being so understanding. I’ll see you out.”
And that was that. Rael gave the cage one last lingering glance. The tiger was once again stretched out on its branch, but its gaze was still fixed on Rael.
I didn’t imagine that, did I? Then he caught his breath when the tiger slowly raised its head.
Help. The single word was barely audible but laced with so much pain and anguish it shook Rael to his core.
“Mr. Parton?”
With a shiver Rael zapped back into the moment. Veronica was staring at him. He forced out a wry chuckle. “Sorry about that. I must have zoned out for a sec.”
She smiled. “Easy to do when you’re faced with a tiger.”
He walked with her to the glass wall, where she pointed again with the remote. Once on the other side, he gave her a smile. “Until tomorrow, then.”
She nodded before heading back to her office.
Rael waited until she’d closed the door behind her before leaning weakly against the glass.
What the fuck just happened?
It wasn’t as if he didn’t come across a lot of creatures during his monthly shift in the Salmon-Challis National Forest. Most tended to run like crazy when he showed up, understandably. He’d never had one speak to him, however. That was definitely a first.
How did he do that? How did he get inside my head? Because if that voice was accurate, the tiger was male. Never mind that. How could I understand him?
For the life of him, Rael had no idea. All he did know was that the incident had shaken him badly. His heartbeat was nowhere near its normal rhythm, and there was a fluttery feeling in his belly that wouldn’t go away. The iciness that had slithered down his spine seemed to have found its way into his very core. But the thought of that tiger, his gaze focused so totally on Rael, sent a tingling sensation all over his skin that wasn’t exactly unpleasant. What made it all the stranger was the sudden urge to shift. Never before had he encountered such a strong inclination.
I don’t understand any of this.
He called for the elevator, his head in a spin. Maybe he needed to go to his new hotel and rest. Maybe sleep would help him think more clearly.