I almost smirk. “Let’s go.” I grip his arm with my hand. Whether he wants it or not, I’m touching as we go through the barrier. I don’t want him to die before we even cross into vamp territory. We run right through the barrier. I grit my teeth as the blast hits us. I drop my arm as soon as we’ve cleared it, and I takea moment to appreciate that we’re both still alive. Garrett takes a breath, and I can tell he’s in pain. But I don’t bring it up, and neither does he.
“Thanks,” he says tightly. “See you on the other side.” Then he slips into the shadows.
I start towards the facility, walking at a leisurely pace. I want them to find me; I want them to focus on me and not Garrett. It doesn’t take long for the vamps to show up and grab me and drag me towards the main building. But they don’t take me inside. We stay outside, and I wonder what we’re waiting for. My answer comes a few minutes later when none other than Rizo, the master himself, comes out.
“The wolf is back,” one of the vampires says.
“So he is,” Rizo says in a voice that sounds like melted butter. He cocks his head to the side. “There must be a reason he came back, besides signing his own death warrant.”
So, they’re not playing games this time. Good to know. I’m not either. “I’m back for Sherese.”
The silence that descends is so thick, I can almost taste it. I keep my gaze locked on the master vampire. I can’t get a read on him. “That’s too bad,” he says right as something slams into the back of my head. I want to fight back, but I drop like a rock instead.
When I come to sometime later, I’m in a chair. My hands are tied behind my back, and my feet are tied. I try to pull my hands and feet free, but whatever they did is holding. It can’t be a simple rope because I could have gotten out of that easily. I start thinking through my plan. I’ll figure out a way to get free, and then I need to be ready to get Sherese and myself out of this place. I try shifting, but something keeps my wolf from rising to the surface. Now that I think about it, my wolf seems really far away. They must have warded this room to keep wolves from shifting. Because I’ve been focused on getting free, I missed thebig TV screen a few feet away. I watch now as the video feed plays on the TV. At first, I’m not sure what it is I’m looking at. Then I realize it’s the glass enclosures where they keep their new wolf shifter/vampire creations. I try to count how many of them there are, so I don’t focus on the fact that I’m trapped in this room right now. I see a flash of something, and I stare at the screen. I know I saw something, so I watch and wait.
The camera pans the room, and I take in the enormity of what they’re doing in this operation. When we attacked before, I didn’t really get to see this room. I knew they were amassing their own army, but I didn’t realize it was an operation like this. There are so many vampires and lots of humans, which is a surprise to me. I hadn’t realized they had so many humans employed. I see a flash of dark hair, and my stomach knots. I try to lean forward, but whatever they used to tie me up cuts into my wrists and stops me. I see a guy come out of one of those enclosures, and I know just by looking at him that he’s one of their creations. Then I watch as he picks up something and throws it, sending it into another glass enclosure. Glass shatters everywhere, and I realize with horror what exactly it was that he just threw. It wasn’t a thing at all; it was a person. It was Sherese. Anger courses through me, and I pull at my restraints. I watch as the soldier enters another glass enclosure. I can’t see Sherese’s face because her back is to me, but I see the moment she follows him in.
“Get out of there,” I mutter under my breath.
She must be talking to him because she just stands there. And then she’s sailing through the air again, as he throws her out of the room. A growl rips through me, proving my wolf can break through whatever wards they put in this room. I try to shift again, but I just can’t get him to the surface. I watch as the shifter/vamp guy drops an elbow on her. She rolls at thelast second, avoiding a brutal hit. “Get up,” I say through gritted teeth and fangs that have dropped. “Get out of there.”
I don’t know who put this on the screen, but there is no doubt in my mind that the vampires set this all up. They’re going to have me sit here and watch while my mate is torn apart and killed by a shifter/vampire beast. I growl fiercely through my chest and then let my vampire strength rise to the surface. I don’t often use it; I don’t usually have a need. My wolf is a fierce predator and needs no help. But these are extenuating circumstances. I pull from that vampire dark power and rip my arms and legs free from their restraints. My blood is singing for protection and revenge for my mate. I get to the door and try to open it. Of course, they locked me in. But the lock is no match for my combined wolf and vampire strength. I rip the door from its hinges, startling the vampire on duty. He shrieks and backs away. I don’t bother with him. I'm one hundred percent focused on getting to her.
“Going somewhere?” a velvety voice asks. I don’t bother to answer or even look at the Master. “It’s not time for her to see you yet.” His words confuse me, but I don’t respond. I’m focused on nothing else but getting to my mate and rescuing her from this place. Maybe that’s why I don’t foresee the attack. One minute, I’m racing to get to my mate; the next, something sharp jabs my neck, and I drop to the floor.Again.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Sherese
I stare at the screens in front of me and wonder for the thousandth time if Hunter was able to get the healer to safety. “Sherese.”
Ajax’s voice pulls me from my thoughts. “Let’s go.” I avoid sighing or showing my annoyance on my face. Rizo may have bought my innocent act, but Ajax certainly didn’t. He’s been breathing down my neck every moment of every day since Hunter got the healer out. I’m pretty sure he’s decided grunt work is the way to beat me down and get me to tell the truth. Every day when I finish staring at the screens for hours, he leads me to do some obscene job somewhere in the facility. Yesterday, it was cleaning out all the blood transportation bags. The day before that, it was mopping every single floor in this building. Before that, it was helping to replace several security cameras outside. I’m just dying to see what today’s job is.
We walk past the room that houses the blood packs, and I look away. I've only been allowed one blood pack a day. I’m not sure who’s giving the orders—if it’s Rizo or Ajax, but they’re keeping me on a tight leash. Honestly, I'm not surprised in the least. I knew this would happen. Even if Rizo seems to “sort of” believe me, I knew there would be consequences for helping Hunter and the healer get out. But I can’t find it in myself to regret it. The only thing I regret is that Hunter isn’t here anymore; he at least made this awful place more endurable. I can’t believe how much I miss the wolf that drives me crazy; it shocks me, actually. I wonder if I’ll ever see him again, get to see that annoyed light in his eyes when Ava and I push his buttons.
“Are you even listening to me?”
Ajax’s short tone draws my attention, and I realize he was saying something that I totally missed. “What?”
He scowls at me, but I don’t let it bother me. He hates me, always has. “Linens.” I finally realize we’re standing in the large laundry room. I eye the huge industrial-sized rolling laundry carts full of bed linens and towels. “All these need to be washed and folded.” He disappears without a word, and I don’t bother to watch him go. I know we have people that do this, or humans, I guess I should say, but apparently today is my day. I’ve never really paid attention to the humans that have come and gone over the years. At first, it was too painful a reminder of all I’d lost, and then it became too hard because I knew the fate that awaited them. Eyeing the overflowing cart, I resist the urge to sigh and get to work. It’s going to take me until late into the night to get all this done. I put the first few loads into the washing machines. I mentally thank Ava for teaching me how to do laundry. I never learned when I was growing up, and I certainly hadn’t learned here in the facility as Rizo’s prized treasure.
I finally crash in bed a little after two. I’m back to living in the apartment Hunter and I shared for a little bit. I subconsciously sniff his side of the bed when I get in, but it’s been too long. Seven days? Eight? Longer? I wasn’t sure anymore; the days all bled together in a mix of hopeless existence. When I was living with Hunter, he drove me crazy. And yet, I find myself missing arguing and fighting with him. Maybe it was just that I was lonely for anyone, but it seemed like more. I squeeze my eyes shut. Thinking that way is dangerous. Hunter is out of my life now; the sooner I get that through my head, the better.
The next morning, I woke to somebody pounding on my door. I groan and drag myself out of bed. I wish I had my phone, but I never got it back after they took Hunter’s and mine away. And I have a feeling I won’t be getting one for a long, long time. Ithrow on my clothes, knowing it’s Ajax at the door. It's the same thing every day. He keeps me out late working and gets me up at the crack of dawn the next morning. I throw open the door, not even bothering to hide my scowl. “Good morning. Sleep well?” I would love to wipe the smirk off his face.One day.
When we walk past the blood room, I start to step inside, but he stops me. “Not now.”
“Why not?” I ask, irritated. First thing in the morning is the only time I get blood; I’m not about to skip it when it’s all I get.
“No blood until further notice.”
I laugh. I don’t mean to; it just sort of slips out. “Right.”
“Not sure what you think is so funny.”
“You are; this whole thing is. You're already cutting my blood supply. What are you going to do next? Make me go without?”
“That’s exactly it.” His eyes are cold, and I shiver at the hate there.
