by Milly Taiden
One by one, everyone filed out of the room, except Kyro, his beta. He stayed behind with Xeon and propped his feet up on the table. Xeon plopped back into his chair.
“Way to keep it all serious.” Kyro interlaced his fingers, put them behind his head, and leaned back in his chair.
“It’s a serious matter. We can’t all be fun-loving and joke about everything.” Xeon narrowed his eyes at his beta. Kyro was the largest man in the pack, with a frame like a bodybuilder, which was why he was the beta. He was also a guy that loved to have a good time. That was fine. He wasn’t raised with the responsibilities that Xeon had since birth.
“It’s not good to be serious all the time. You need a little fun in your life.”
“It’s not the time for fun. I need to find Trina. I’m supposed to protect her. I’m supposed to protect all of them.” Xeon ran his hands through his short hair. “I failed the pack.”
“How could you have failed them when you weren’t there?” Kyro sat up and rested his hands on his knees. “You can’t keep blaming yourself for her disappearance. We’ll get her back, along with the rest of them.”
“You’re right. It’s getting late. Get some rest. I want to get started early tomorrow.”
“You’re the boss.” Kyro stood and made his way around the table to the door.
As Kyro walked out, Xeon’s phone rang. It was too late for this to be a courtesy call. He looked at the number on his screen but didn’t recognize it. Kyro had stopped and stepped back inside when he answered the phone.
“Xeon here.” He expected it to be one of the Officers on the case.
“Is this Mr. Pearse, Alpha of the Lumberton Pack?” a quiet voice said on the other end.
“I am, and you are?” He looked up at Kyro headed back to the table.
“I’m Dr. Mara Maxwell.” Her voice hushed, just barely over a whisper. “I have information on your missing pack members. Can you meet me at seven in the morning at Mel’s Diner on Burlington Street?”
He jumped up, ready to bolt out the door the second she told him a location. “Of course I can meet you. Why can’t you talk now?”
“Because my battery...” Before she finished her sentence, the line went dead.
Xeon tried to call the number back. It went straight to voicemail. There were no hushed voices on the voicemail message. She had a strong and confident tone he could listen to all day.
“What was that about?” Kyro asked.
“A woman claimed to have information on our pack mates. She wants to meet in the morning.” He looked at the time on his phone. “Well, she wants to meet in a few hours.”
“That’s all she said? She wanted to meet. Not where they were or how she knew about them?” Kyro arched a brow.
“That’s all she said. The battery on her phone might have died.”
“I don’t know, Xeon. It could be a trap. I’ll ride with you,” Kyro told him.
“You should go with the crew in the morning. I think I can handle one female.”
“I’m sure you can, but you need to follow your own damn rules. I’m going with you.” Kyro sat back in his chair at the table. “In fact, it’s only a few hours away. I think I’ll stay up, so you don’t go sneaking off without me.”
“Fine, do what you want.” He opened his laptop and logged in. “I’m going to kill some time by doing a little research. Let’s see who Dr. Mara Maxwell really is.”
He went to his Google search and typed in her name. Kyro scooted his chair closer and leaned in to see the screen. Xeon clicked on a link, and a picture of a beautiful woman popped up on the screen.
“Daaamn!” Kyro whistled.
She was beautiful. “For once, you’re correct.” She was absolutely stunning. And his. “Wow.”
“Can I call dibs?” Kyro asked and nudged him on the arm.
“No. She’s mine.” He stared at Mara’s picture on the screen. “Mine.”
“That’s the perks of being an alpha.” Kyro sounded disheartened.
Xeon knew through their bond that a spark flicked for Kyro when Mara’s picture came up. The same spark had hit him. He saw an extraordinarily beautiful woman. Her ink-black hair hung down past her breasts and out of the view of the camera. He wondered if her hair would caress her ass when she walked. Her eyes were the color of emeralds and shined brightly in the camera’s light. She had full lips he would love to catch between his teeth. She looked to have pale ivory skin. Since she was a doctor, she probably didn’t get out in the sun much due to her long hours.
“I swear, she’s the most ravishing creature I have ever seen,” Kyro commented, staring at the screen.
“That she is,” Xeon agreed.
“I’m definitely coming with you now. No way am I letting you hog her all to yourself.” Kyro sat back in his chair.
“Like you have a chance, beefcake,” he picked at Kyro, researching more about Mara.
The information on the screen showed her to be thirty-eight years old. She’d worked at Gavin Memorial for seven years before transferring to their smaller facility, Garnett Medical Center, six months ago. From what he could tell, there didn’t appear to be a Mr. Maxwell in her life.
“I’m going for a shower to get this sweat off me. I’ll meet you back here at 6:30. Got it?” Xeon closed his laptop.
“You already need a cold shower. Got it.” Kyro said with a grin.
“Asshole. For your information, I don’t want just any beautiful woman. I want her.” Xeon scooped his laptop off the table and headed to his place. He was drawn to Mara, unlike any woman, ever, and that was just from looking at her picture. What would it be like when he saw her? Yes, a cold shower was needed.
They met according to plan. It wasn’t a long drive to the diner, but Xeon wanted to get there early to scope the place out. He doubted the doctor would double-cross him and set him up, but he still needed to be on the edge of caution.
It wasn’t even 7:00 a.m. yet, they had some time to observe the cars coming and going. He backed into the parking lot for a fast getaway if needed. Xeon got out of the SUV and looked at the rooftops of the nearby buildings for any possible threats.
“The lot’s clear,” Kyro said when he came around the SUV. “I only see one customer inside.”
“Is it her?”
“Only if you add a 100 pounds and change genders.” Kyro laughed, walking to the diner entrance.
“It’s still early. I don’t expect her for another five minutes or so.” Xeon glanced at the time on his phone then pushed it into his pocket.
Kyro opened the diner’s door. The waitress, who was busy behind the counter putting a pie into the display case, nodded to them.
“Have a seat anywhere, guys,” the older woman said, placing a glass lid over the dessert. “I’ll be with you in a minute.”
With a nod, they took a seat in the back, away from any unwanted company. When the waitress came around, they both ordered a coffee and waited. And waited. No one had shown up. At least not the person they wanted to show up. No black-haired beauty walked through the door.
“What a waste of time,” Kyro complained, finishing off another coffee.
“I think this may have been a rouse to get us away from the compound. We need to check in with everyone and make sure they’re all accounted for.” Xeon tossed money onto the table and got up.
His gut told him that something was wrong. He’d thought for sure Mara planned to meet him. What if someone heard her talking to him and stopped her? The phone call had ended abruptly, after all.
Chapter Three
Mara left work a few minutes early. She made the last round with her patients and hurried back to her office to get her things. The diner wasn’t too far from the hospital, and she could be there in fifteen minutes. The parking garage had a few lights out, but the sun was already rising so she wasn’t in total darkness.
Pulling her keys out of her purse, Mara pressed the key fob, but she didn’t hear the familiar click the locks made whe
n unlocking. Had she forgotten to lock her doors when she came in yesterday morning?
Mara checked the back seat before she got in, making sure someone wasn’t hiding there. When she saw no one, she got in her car and locked the doors. She’d worked seventeen long hours straight, and exhaustion threatened to take over. Thankfully, she didn’t have to be back into work until Saturday.
Traffic was light. Luckily, it didn’t get bad until eight o’clock in the morning. Which meant she had plenty of time to meet with the alpha and get to her house before the roads were flooded with cars. Music blared from her radio, and she turned it up another notch to keep from drifting off.
Suddenly, her car began to wobble. Her steering pulled to the left. She turned off the radio to listen to her car acting up. The moment the music stopped, she knew what had happened, she had a flat tire. She managed to get the car to the side of the road with no issues other than the wobbly tire.
“Son of a bitch!” She hit her palms against the steering wheel. She threw the car into park and pulled her phone from her purse to call AAA. When the screen didn’t come on, she remembered it was dead. She plugged the device in and sat back to wait for enough charge to make a call. Her eyelids drooped quickly.
Instead of waiting and falling asleep, she opened her door. There were no passing cars. No one to help her. At least walking around had her wide awake. Examining the tire, she kicked the flattened rubber.
“Damn it, damn it, damn it!” She growled while she went to the trunk for her jack and spare tire. Maybe she could get a start on it, so whoever came to help would get done faster.
She cursed under her breath and pulled out everything she needed. It had been a long time since she changed a tire herself. She hoped it was like riding a bike. Once you knew how you didn’t really forget. At least she didn’t have to change the tire in the dark.
Before she could jack the car up, she needed to bust the lug nuts loose. Placing the tire iron on the nut, she applied pressure with her foot, effectively making the nut move. Three of the five loosened with no problems. When she got to the fourth, her efforts were futile. It didn’t budge.
“Come on!” She jumped with all her weight onto the tire iron, but the nut didn’t budge. The issue with the lug nut had her so distracted, she hadn’t noticed that someone had pulled up behind her.
“Can I help you, ma’am?” a man asked as he walked over to her.
“I got it. I just can’t seem to get this lug nut loose.” She tried again, pressing her weight onto the tire iron.
“Here, let me help. I’m good at busting nuts.” He smiled at his own comment.
Noticing a familiar tone in his voice, she looked closer at his face. Suddenly an arm came around her from behind, and she felt a prick along her neck. Within seconds her body went limp, and she sagged.
“What have you done to me?” Her voice slurred, then everything went black.
Slowly Mara’s eyes fluttered open. The bright lights stung, forcing her to squint. The ice-cold metal beneath her sent chills down her back; she was on a lab table! She tried to sit up, but restraints prevented her from much movement. She turned her head to look around.
Immediately, she recognized the basement room at the hospital, where she previously saw a patient laying. She couldn’t see past the opaque plastic hanging from the ceiling.
“Help!” she screamed out.
“We’re helping,” Dr. Phenix said from beside her. She hadn’t even known he’d been in the room. “Helping us, but helping, nonetheless.” The syringe he’d stabbed into her IV line pushed fluids into her arm. The liquid ran up her vein, burning the whole way.
“Stop. What are… you… doing?” She could barely get out the words before she slipped back into unconsciousness.
Jerking awake, she opened her eyes and looked at her surroundings. The cold lab table had been replaced by a hospital bed. She recognized it as one of the locked rooms she’d seen earlier. She struggled against the restraints, and tried to get up. Her body felt completely immovable. Straps were running across her chest, arms, and legs.
“Fuck.” Twisting and tugging, she tried to loosen the restraints to no avail.
It is no use. We’re stuck here, for now, a purring voice said.
She looked around the room. No one was there. “Who said that? What’s going on?” She waited for a reply, but none came.
Checking out her condition, she noted monitor leads were attached to her chest; the wires ran out the pocket of her hospital gown. A blood pressure cuff wrapped around her left arm. Electrodes were on her temples, the wires stretched out behind her.
Footsteps sounded in the hallway, and voices drew closer and became louder. Deciding it would be best to act like she was still asleep, Mara closed her eyes and calmed her breathing. Maybe if they didn’t realize she was awake, she could find out more about what was going on.
The door opened, and two men walked into the room. She almost flinched when one ran his fingers through her long black hair.
“Man, she’s a beauty. Where did you find this one? She’s so much... more than the wolves you picked up before.” He continued to touch her hair. She didn’t recognize the voice. It wasn’t one she’d heard earlier.
“Actually, she’s not a wolf. I’m not exactly sure what she is. Her DNA is… different.” Dr. Phenix walked to the cabinets behind the hospital bed. “She’s one of the doctors on staff. Unfortunately, she found out a little more than she should have, so I decided to use her rather than kill her.”
He walked back to her bedside, and the blanket covering her arm moved, cooler air touching her skin. He continued, “She’s now officially part of the study. I must say, probably our best subject yet.” A coldness touched her, and the smell of rubbing alcohol reached her nose. He was preparing to give her a shot!
Her eyes popped open. “Stop! What the fuck are you doing? I haven’t given you permission to do any of this.” She tried to jerk away from him, but the straps made it impossible.
Dr. Phenix laughed. “Well, my dear. When you started snooping where you shouldn’t have, it gave me permission, in a way, to do whatever I please with you.”
She squirmed, trying to get out of his hold. She flinched when the needle pricked her arm, and warm fluid flowed into her vein.
“Now, we wait. When she’s out, I’ll proceed with the other injections.” Dr. Phenix put the syringe in a bio-hazard container on the wall. She drifted off and felt one of the restraints on her arm being released.
“Wake up! Wake up!” a hand shook her shoulder. “Come on, it’s been too long.” Mara heard a woman’s voice urging her awake.
Groggily she shook her head, her hair falling into her eyes. “What? What are you saying?” she asked quietly. “What do you mean it’s been too long?”
When she opened her eyes, she appeared to be in a cell. No... more like a cage. She must have been moved from the highest basement level to the lowest floor of the hospital, basement level two. The woman who shook her was next to her in a cell just like her own.
Looking around, she saw more metal enclosures in the huge room. A few of the cages had people sitting with their heads down. The ones across from her were occupied by wolves, big ones. They were pacing in their cages, growling, with glowing golden eyes. Their large, sharp, white teeth showed when they snarled.
“Let me out,” she yelled. “I don’t belong here.” She tried to shake the bars to get someone’s attention. Panic set in. Terrible thoughts flooded her mind all at once. First, the injections and now locked in a cell. What did Dr. Asshole do to me? What will happen if I can’t get out? Will those huge ass wolves manage to get out and eat me?
“It’s no use, honey. No one will come to help you or any of us.” The young woman in the cage next to her said.
“What did they do to me?” Mara asked, more to herself than anyone else.
“Not sure yet, but I bet it probably won’t be long before we find out,” the woman replied.
Mara
looked closer at the young woman next to her. She looked familiar, maybe the female that went missing last week. The same one she’d called the alpha about. The one she saw on basement level one on the hospital bed. Mara paced back and forth.
“You’re the missing woman I saw on TV,” Mara said.
“I’m Trina Pearse.”
“I’m Dr. Mara Maxwell. What do you mean by finding out?” Mara asked her.
“Do you feel anything different yet?” Trina asked from her cage.
“I don’t know,” she shrugged. “I feel tingly.”
“Yep, it won’t be long now.” Trina backed away from the bars and sat on the makeshift cot on the other side of her cell. “They’re changing our DNA. Turning us into something different.”
“Aren’t you already different? You’re a wolf shifter, right?”
“Yes, but not now,” she shrugged. “I shifted not too long after I woke up here. At first, I thought I hallucinated the whole thing. I wasn’t my normal wolf.”
“What did you change into?” Mara’s brows drew together. She had no idea that a shifter could change into something different.
“I turned into a Bengal tiger. Can you believe that? I wouldn’t have it if Benny hadn’t told me about it afterward.”
“Who’s Benny?” she asked, looking around at the other cages.
“Benny is my pack mate. They took him before they nabbed me. He’s the man on the end.” She pointed to the last cage on the opposite side of the room.
“He’s a hyena,” Mara said, staring at the creature pacing in his cage. “He’s your pack mate?”
“Remember, they changed us. What were you before they grabbed you?” Trina asked.
“I’m human. There’s nothing special about me.”
“Well, I hate to break it to you, honey. You’re not human anymore.” Trina leaned back on the bed and rested her back against the bars.
