Page 74 of Claimed

His lips press in a thin line before he nods. “You’re right.” He looks at Chase as he tells him, “Would you like to fill her in on what you found?”

I turn to Chase, who’s leaning on the island to my left and wait as he looks me over and gathers his thoughts. “Bain and I have been trying to track down Dr. J.” My eyebrows shoot up in surprise. I nod, encouraging him to go on, even though my stomach tightens at the mention of him.

Bain, who’s standing between us on my left, places his hand on my lower back and starts to rub small circles there. I remember he can feel my emotions through the bond, and I’m just happy he’s not stopping Chase from filling me in.

“Earlier today, we met with a fox shifter named Finn,” Chase continues. “He was captured by a facility, like yours.”

“We don’t think it was the same one you were at,” Bain adds quickly, probably sensing my heart rate picking up.

“He said the man who experimented on them was called Dr. Arnold Hammond.”

“Did you ever hear that name mentioned?” Bain asks and I shake my head.

“When Finn escaped, he killed Hammond.”

I lick my lips as I ask, “How does any of this help you find Dr. J?”

Chase glances at Bain quickly before he continues. “While Finn and his mate⁠—”

“His mate was in there too?” I ask in surprise horror. “What did they do to her?”

“It seems Hammond was interested in their ability to heal and pushed that to its limits. But he never killed them.”

I nod, looking down at my hands. So just me then.

Hunter places his hand over mine as he whispers, “There’s still a lot we don’t know about these facilities.” I realize I said that last bit through the bond, and I nod, unsure what else to say.

“So while Finn was being held captive, he sometimes overheard the guards speaking about other facilities and doctors. No locations, but he did hear a few names.” That gets my attention, and I look at Chase as I flip my hand over and squeeze Hunter’s.

“Tell me,” I beg.

“One name he remembers was Dr. Jahan Jovanek,” Chase watches me for a reaction as the name tumbles around my mind. Have I heard that before? All I ever remember anyone ever calling him was Dr. J.

“Did he say anything else about him?” I ask.

“He never saw him, but it sounded like he worked at a different facility, one where they conducted different sorts of experiments.”

I inhale deeply through my nose as Bain keeps rubbing my lower back and Hunter squeezes my hand.

“There’s one other thing,” Chase says and I glance at him in question. “Finn is a hybrid. He’s a fox shifter, but he’s also half vampire.”

My chin drops open in shock. I’m not even sure what part of that statement to ask about first. “Did-Did Hammond do that to him?” I ask nervously, thinking of what Dr. J did to me.

But he shakes his head. “No, he was born that way. Apparently, his mom is a fox shifter, and his dad’s a vampire.”

“Vampires can have children?” I ask in surprise. “Aren’t they like… dead?”

“No,” Gage says, giving me a small smile. “That’s a myth. They are very much alive, just very long-lived. They don’t age. And although there are ways to kill them, old age isn’t one of them.”

Shifters have long lives, but they aren’t limitless. I glance around at my guys and suddenly realize what my immortality means. Eventually, I’ll have to watch each of my mates grow old and die. And if I’m immortal, I’ll be left alone.

“Cherry?” Maddox asks, his concerned eyes boring into mine. I know he can sense my heartache and worry, but I shake my head, not wanting to get into it now.

Wanting to distract myself, I turn to Chase and ask, “Is Finn’s mate a hybrid too?”

He shakes his head. “No, Lexi is a lioness shifter.”

“Lexi?” I ask in surprise. “She’s an omega!”