“I think it’s possible. If she was born with receptors that have one difference from ours, the bulky sugar coatin’, she might have been able to survive a bite as a child.” He also thought it possible that Whitney had discovered her when her parents were alive and he’d made her an orphan so he could have her. That would have been just like him.

Pepper was intelligent, she understood exactly what they were talking about, and if her parents were prominent in the field of herpetology, they could have come to Whitney’s attention. He would have considered Pepper extraordinary. She was intelligent, gifted and possibly an answer to a universal antivenom.

“Why doesn’t a viper bite cause necrosis of the skin? Even the most careful and famous of snake handlers have lost fingers,” Malichai asked her.

“That’s a good question,” Ezekiel agreed.

“What do you do when you’re bitten by one of the babies, Pepper? We’ll all need to know, especially Nonny,” Wyatt said.

Pepper frowned, thinking it over. “My response feels automatic so I have to actually go through the steps I take right now in my mind. I know what’s coming the moment I’ve been bitten. I slow my heart, cool my body temperature and flood the bite site with as much oxygen and cold as possible.”

Wyatt nodded. “That’s how she keeps the site from necrosis. She fills the tissues surroundin’ the bite with oxygen while she lowers the body temperature around the site.” His eyes met Pepper’s. “I’ll need a sample of your blood. Maybe I can figure out what’s not quite right about the mixture they gave you.”

“I’m still pretty sick.”

“From the viper venom, not the cobra venom. And when I tried to heal you, I could see how fast your body absorbed the venom to neutralize it. You’re healin’ fast, faster than I ever expected, but still, a soldier won’ have a bed and fluids and painkillers to get him through, out in the field. But, any GhostWalker can control their body to the point of lowering body temperature and…”

“Now you’re beginnin’ to sound like a mad scientist, Wyatt,” Nonny reprimanded. “What’s all this nonsense anyway? I want you and the boys to go get my great-grandbabies. Now, Wyatt. They’re all alone in that horrible place.”

Chapter 7

Wyatt took a breath before he answered his grandmother. When she asked for something – anything at all – his tendency was to get it for her immediately. She was everything to him and his brothers. She was home. She was family. He knew why she felt such an urge to go get the other two little babies out of that hellhole, but he also knew someone would come after them and he had to be prepared. Already, they were at risk because they’d taken in Pepper and Ginger.

“Nonny, we can’t rush off and just grab the other two babies without some kind of plan in place to protect them and all of us. Someone is goin’ to come lookin’ for them,” Wyatt objected. “We also need to know anyone around them is safe from accidental bites. I want the children out as fast as you do, but we’ll need help.”

“Call Flame,” Nonny said. “She’ll come a runnin’ and she loves children. You know how she longs for children.”

“No.” Wyatt stared his grandmother down. “Absolutely not. Don’ even think about callin’ her. She’d come in a second, yes, but she’s Gator’s entire world. He wouldn’t survive without her and you know that. He nearly lost her once and I’m not about to take any chances with her, not until I know she’ll be safe.”

“She would be a huge help even with the rescue,” Nonny said. “And her feelin’s might be hurt if you didn’ call her.”

“Maybe,” Wyatt conceded, “but I never had a sister until Flame came along. We’re not chancin’ it, Nonny. It’s bad enough takin’ chances with your life. If somethin’ happened to you, I’d never forgive myself.”

“Don’ you go a thinkin’ you’re gonna be bossin’ me around, Wyatt Fontenot. I’m not leavin’ my own house. I can see it in your eyes. You’re a thinkin’ you’ll send me away too, but these are my great-grandchildren and I’m goin’ to help them.”

He knew his grandmother and how stubborn she was. He also knew that all the years she’d spent in the swamps and bayous, running free as a child and hunting game and flowers and herbs, she’d never once been bitten. Not a single time. Like all of them, she’d encountered her share of venomous snakes, but they’d left her alone. Of all of them, Nonny might actually be the safest.

“So what do you want us to do, Wyatt?” Ezekiel, ever the practical, asked.

“Let’s get the house set up for all three babies. We’ll need cribs and blankets and high chairs.” Wyatt turned to Pepper. “Do they drink milk, or formula?”

“All of them drink milk and they prefer it warm.”

“How soon before you’re on your feet?” he asked.

“Another day. Two if I need to fight.”

“So we’ll need at least two days before we can go in, Nonny. At least that. We need to build a fortress here, and I have to set up my lab and get the house prepared. We’ve got a lot to do.” He pressed Pepper’s hand closer to his chest. “Are you certain they’ll be safe, that no one will decide it’s best to terminate them?”

He no longer believed that was the goal. Whitney liked to play games. He liked to experiment, but he would never risk losing Pepper and the three little girls, not when they were clearly so important to him. Wyatt’s mind began to fill in the puzzle pieces. Whitney wanted him to know the girls were his daughters. He wanted him to break into the secure facility to remove them from harm. He might even be planning to throw all kinds of things at them to see how far they would go to protect their venomous children.