Breed of Havoc (The Breed Chronicles #3)

by Lanie Jordan

  “Like you let me go?” I jerked the material again. “Not a chance in hell!”

  The doors opened and men ran inside with raised guns aimed at me again.

  One man—unarmed—ran up to me and tried pulling the woman free, but he got too close. I grabbed his weapons vest and head-butted him, too.

  “Release them, Jade. Now. They will shoot you with more tranqs. You’ve had enough in your system now that I’m afraid another dose would do more harm than good.”

  “Well, if you manage to kill me, then your kidnapping scheme will have been for nothing, huh?” Okay, obviously I wasn’t hoping to die, but considering the steps they’d taken to make sure I wasn’t hurt, I didn’t think they’d risk hurting me now. I didn’t know what they really wanted, but it was more than just blood or DNA samples. It had to be.

  Creeper walked into view a few seconds later, his expression different than I’d seen it so far. It was darker, scarier. “Don’t try my patience. You won’t like the results if I have to come in there myself. I’m not nearly as friendly as they are.”

  I didn’t doubt him for a second and I didn’t want him in the same room with me at all, so I released his people.

  The woman, still clutching her face, gasped and sobbed. “She—she attacked me!”

  The guy, who was also clutching his face, just glared at me.

  I smiled, but it was my most least sincere smile to date. “Karma’s a bitch, isn’t she?”

  Creeper spared the doctor a quick glance. “Did you get enough?”

  She had a roll of gauze pressed against her nose now and her eyes were getting puffy. “Barely.” Her voice was all nasally.

  “Very well. Your other tests can wait for now. Go take care of yourself.” Creeper looked to me and there was a vindictiveness in his eyes and smile. “I’d like to try something else.” He turned his head slightly. “Leave. Have our other…guest…brought in.”

  “Guest? You abducted more people?”

  “In a manner of speaking.”

  I didn’t like his tone. I liked his expression even less. It had chills running down my spine and a shudder going through my entire body.

  He stood like a statue, just watching me with those too-calm eyes. Staring at me until I wanted to squirm.

  I heard footsteps a few minutes later and then his other ‘guest’ arrived. A demon. Its arms and legs were shackled. A guard stood behind it, shoving it forward and prodding it with some kind of stick when it slowed or stopped. It snarled at him.

  The demon wasn’t one I recognized. It was short, maybe only an inch or two taller than me, with pasty, almost translucent, white skin. It kind of looked like a human worm with black eyes. A very unhappy looking demon.

  My stomach dropped and my mouth went dry. “What do you think you’re doing?”

  The guard poked the demon again. A bright light flashed and made a zapping sound. He shoved the now-snarling demon into the room while Creeper eyed me from behind the glass walls, wearing the same cold smile on his face. He glanced at the guard. “Leave and close the door.”

  The demon growled and watched me with wide, empty eyes. Slobber dripped from its mouth. My gaze darted from the demon to Creeper and I fought against my restraints, pulling and yanking until my arms screamed in agony. “It’s going to kill me!”

  “It may.” He said it so casually, like he was talking about the weather and not my possible soon-to-be death.

  “Well, it better, because if it doesn’t, I’m coming after you.”

  He inclined his head and looked at the guard. “Turn off the lights and release their shackles.”

  “What?” I screeched.

  “You can see in the dark, can’t you? So can the demon.” He signaled the guard.

  The guard pulled a small handheld tablet from his pocket and pressed a button. All the lights went out, throwing the room into complete darkness again. I heard locks disengaging and then metal hitting the ground. The demons shackles. My arms were still trapped. Almost as soon as I thought it, my wrists were free. I was out of the chair in a second and felt my way to hide behind it, putting it between me and the demon. For a place to hide, it left a lot to be desired.

  C’mon demony senses! Kick in!

  I couldn’t see the demon yet, but I heard its breathing, and it sounded angry.

  “Go away, demon. Shoo! I don’t taste good. Break the glass and eat them! They’re bigger.” Please be a friend, please be a friend. Or at least not a foe. “Back away. I’m a friend. Even if I’m not a real friend, I’m the enemy of your enemy, which makes me a friend. Your real enemy is standing right outside there.” I pointed. “See? Go…go eat them!”

  A red glow formed around the demon. It sniffed the air as it stepped toward me, so I moved away. “Come on,” I said, turning to pound on the glass where I knew the exit was. “Let me out of here before it kills me!”

  “If I’m right, no harm will come to you.”

  “And if you’re wrong?”

  He lifted his shoulder in a shrug.

  “Asshole,” I muttered. Hearing footsteps, I twisted around. The demon swiped at me, clawing the side of my face when I couldn’t get out of the way. My hand went to my cheek and I felt tiny, bloody welts. Worm demon was definitely not a friend.

  As it reached for me again over the chair, I grabbed its arms and yanked down. The demon crashed neck-first onto the back of the chair. It bounced back, pissed but seemingly uninjured, and then started for me again. I ran toward the other side of the room with the demon only steps behind me. Still running, I jumped up, pushed off the wall, and landed behind it. Its head moved side to side, like it was trying to find where I went, so I grabbed it around the neck, applying as much pressure to the choke-hold as I could.

  The demon reared its head back, missing my face by an inch, and spun around and around, trying to dislodge me. It shoved me against the glass walls, knocking the breath from me, and spun again. This time, I went flying knee-first into the side wall.

  My knee screamed in agony and had tears streaking down my face. My breath came out in choppy gasps that made my back and ribs ache. Before I could move, the demon’s arms went around me, lifting me up and clutching my stomach so hard even a breath couldn’t escape the grip. Tighter and tighter, it squeezed until my eyes watered and I thought my ribs would break.

  I was not going to die like this, trapped in a glass room, being suffocated by a demon. I wasn’t going to be a spectacle for Creeper and whoever else might be watching.

  Wiggling, trying to get free, I threw the demon off balance. It fumbled forward. I lifted my legs and, fighting through the pain in my knee and ribs, pushed back with all of my strength. We ended up in the chair and the demon’s grip loosened. I slid from its arms and fell to the ground at its feet, gasping and panting for breath.

  The lights flashed on and my gaze locked with Creeper’s even as tears streamed down my cheeks. I barely saw him through the tears, but his expression was the same as it always was: blank. Like he was watching a bland movie he had no interest in seeing.

  He made a motion with his hand and I heard the sound of locks being engaged. I glanced behind me and saw the demons arms trapped, the same way mine had been only minutes before.

  Creeper cast a glance at me and his shoulders lifted. He made a small sound. “Well, I suppose I was wrong.”

  I didn’t say anything—couldn’t, physically or mentally. How could someone just stand there, watching someone else nearly be killed by a demon they’d sicced on them, and stay so calm? So cold and detached. I couldn’t comprehend that. Linc had been right when he said people were worse because they had choices. Some people were definitely worse.

  I stayed where I was, glaring at Creeper because it was all I could manage. A lot of words came to mind (most of them were some variation of a particular four letter word), but none left my mouth. The anger was back again, a thousand fold. My knuckles strained against my skin and my nails dug into my palms. I started to shake.


  I’d never hated anyone as much as I hated this man. Not Mrs. Gill, not Felecia or Rachel. No one. There was only one thing in the world I hated more and that was the demon that’d killed my family. That was the hardest thing I’d ever gone through, the hardest thing I thought I’d ever have to go through.

  This… I honestly couldn’t tell if this was worse or not. Both were the worst experiences I’d had, but in different ways.

  “Get the demon out of there,” Creeper told the guard. “Don’t try anything, Jade, or I’ll just have you knocked out again.”

  I didn’t move, neither did I want to. Using my good leg, I scooted away to the far corner of the room, my eyes locked on Creeper and his on mine. “You’ll pay for this,” I said quietly, in a cold tone that I barely recognized as my own. “I don’t care how long it takes me, but I’ll make you pay. And I keep my word. Always.”

  I didn’t plan the words. They came out before I could stop them, but I meant them all—every word, every syllable. I’d never wanted to cause anyone serious bodily harm before, but I wanted to cause him pain. For Adam, for kidnapping me, for locking me in a room with a demon. For everything.

  I’d never felt this kind of hatred before, not for a person, or even a demon, if I was being honest with myself. Dislike, hate, loathing. I’d felt those things. This was different. Rawer. Stronger. Powerful. I’d never felt that cold rage that crept just below the surface, waiting to be unleashed.

  Like its own entity.

  It was separate from me, but at the same time, it was a part of every cell in my body.

  When the demon and guard were out of sight, Creeper stayed behind. Eyes narrowing, I got to my feet and limped up to the glass, standing directly in front of him. My knuckles strained against my skin painfully but I couldn’t unclench them. “I never thought I’d hunt a person, but I’ll hunt you to the ends of the Earth.”

  CHAPTER 19

  Sounds pulled me from the darkness. My mind was awake, but I couldn’t move my arms or legs, or open my eyes. The last thing I remembered was threatening Creeper. They must’ve drugged me again, but I didn’t even remember that.

  I lay still, listening to the sounds around me. After a second, I realized they were hushed voices. I tried moving and opening my eyes again but still couldn’t. It was like my mind wasn’t attached to my body and I had no control over it. Was I tied down?

  Panic bubbled inside me, had my heart pounding. Someone said my name and I forced the panic down, forced my heart to slow so I could listen.

  “Do you really think the girl is part of Project Faith?” someone said. It took a second before I realized who the voice belonged to: the crazy woman doctor.

  “Don’t you?” Creeper’s voice. “You know what they’re doing. You know what he’s capable of doing. Why else would he protect her? How else would she have survived a vampire bite? How else is she as strong as she is? She’s not normal, doctor. You and I both see that clearly. If she’s not part of Project Faith, then tell me how she survived. Give me better answers. That’s why I brought her to you, so figure this out and tell me what she is.”

  Gritting my teeth, I waited. No one spoke again, or if they did, they were too far to hear.

  What was Project Faith and why did they think I was a part of it? I wasn’t part of anything. And who was the ‘he’ Creeper’d referred to? Greene? Someone else?

  Every single person here was freaking insane. And Creeper, he was the worst of the bunch.

  *~*~*

  Screams and yells woke me. This time, I managed to move and sat up, swinging around in time to see guards running by the outside door. I couldn’t hear what the voices yelled, but it didn’t sound good.

  One of the guards watching me glanced at his partner before turning and pointing an accusing finger at me. “Don’t move.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Where do you think I’m going? I’m locked in a room, you idiot.”

  He shot me a glare and inched toward the doorway. After a few steps, he paused, looked back at me like I was going to do something, and then continued to inch forward.

  “Sounds like trouble,” I said brightly. “I sure hope so.” A big ass load of trouble in the form of CGE people.

  There were more shouts, followed by running footsteps.

  “Grab the girl. We’re leaving.”

  I spun around. Creeper. I turned back to see Watcher guy slowly walk toward my cage. I stepped back and smiled wide.

  His gaze went beyond me, to Creeper.

  “Scared of a girl?” I scoffed.

  He didn’t answer, only narrowed his eyes at me.

  “If she tries anything,” Creeper said, his voice casual, “stun her.”

  Creeper walked away as my smile faded and one formed on Watcher Guy’s face. He pulled a stun gun from his weapons belt and tested it. I saw the electricity—bright blue, almost white—sizzle out. He reached in his pocket for something with his other hand and pulled out a small remote looking thing. “Don’t try anything,” he warned. With one last look at me, he pressed a button on the remote.

  The door pushed out an inch, then slid smoothly out and along the wall of my cage.

  Watcher Guy may have been smiling, but he was cautious and his eyes darted side to side as he entered my cage. I saw his gun hand shaking.

  I had absolutely no idea what was happening, but if they were trying to move me in a hurry, it had to mean the cavalry was here, right? My heart flipped in my chest. My rescue!

  “Stop smiling at me.”

  I blinked innocently. “Why?”

  “Because—because I said so!”

  I rolled my eyes again. “Great reasoning.”

  There weren’t any more shouts, I realized. Or footsteps—except for Watcher Guy’s as he shuffled back and forth. He must’ve noticed the same thing, because he grinned at me a second later.

  Did my rescuers get lost? Did they need rescuing?

  No, they didn’t. They were just…taking care of things. Like kicking some ass and searching for me. And as soon as I got away from the joker in front of me, I’d make their search easier. Some masked guy wasn’t going to stop me from escaping, even if I was weaponless and he had a stunner. I’d have to knock him out, but I liked the idea of that so I didn’t mind. The more I took out the better.

  When I stepped toward him, he jumped back and raised the stun gun.

  “Wow, you’ve got an itchy trigger finger,” I muttered.

  He moved away from me and motioned to the door. “Go. Move.”

  I kept my movements slow as I started for the exit. His partner watched me through narrowed eyes from outside.

  Watcher Guy shoved me again. I stopped, so he gave me another shove with the gun.

  “Get moving.”

  This time when he tried to shove me, I twisted around, grabbed his arm, and disarmed him. I kicked him in the knee and smiled as I raised the stunner.

  He raised his hands up as his partner ran into the cage and yelled, “Drop it!”

  “I don’t think so.” I moved around behind the other guy and pulled him to his feet so I could use him as a shield. I held the stunner against his neck. “Drop yours first.”

  Neither of us budged.

  Watcher Guy started to wiggle, so I pressed the stunner against his skin even harder. “Keep it up. I don’t mind stunning your dumb ass.”

  “I said, drop it!” his partner repeated.

  I aimed the stunner at him and pulled the trigger. He dropped to the floor, his scanner sliding across the ground as he started to convulse.

  “You won’t get out of here,” Watcher Guy murmured.

  “Maybe, maybe not.” I shoved him away from me and kept the stunner aimed at him. “Slide over the controller for the door. Don’t even think about it,” I added when I watched his gaze go to the fallen guard’s stunner.

  He shot me a glare and slowly pulled the controller from his pocket and slid it to me. Slowly, keeping him in my line of vision, I knelt and picked it up. I
debated stunning him then and there, but instead, I walked over and kicked him. My foot connected with a body part that was, quite literally, below the belt. I made a quick note to myself to never mention that to Linc or Chris.

  Watcher Guy’s eyes went glassy and rolled back. I started to move around him, but then I stopped and turned around. I wanted to see their faces.

  I checked the stunned guy and then checked the other. They were both so…unremarkable. They could’ve been any random person off the street. How were they so normal-looking on the outside when their insides had to be twisted and ugly? Shouldn’t kidnappers look different? Evil or something, like Creeper?

  Grabbing the front of groin-clutching Watcher Guy’s shirt, I lifted him and waited until his eyes focused (mostly) on me. “I know what you look like now, and if I see you again, you’ll regret it. You hear me?”

  His head bobbed.

  When I dropped him, he looked up at me with angry, pain-filled eyes. I almost left, but instead, I aimed the stunner at him and pulled the trigger. His body twitched and convulsed like his partner’s. I should’ve felt bad, but I didn’t feel a twinge of guilt, not after what he and the rest of them had done. They may not have been behind this all, but they were willing participants. They’d been given a choice, not me.

  Before I left, I checked to see if either man had the same tattoo as Creeper. They didn’t. For some reason, I expected them all to have it. I’d hoped they would, so I’d have a way to identify them.

  You’ll just have to be more careful, won’t you? I thought, then made my way out, locking them inside my cage.

  I paused at the exit of the room to make sure the coast was clear, then headed in the direction I’d last heard the voices coming from. Minutes passed and I didn’t see or hear anyone. I didn’t find anything that looked like an exit. Everything looked the same. Same narrow hallways with unfinished, plaster-spotted walls. Grungy concrete covered the floor. The cold seeped through my sock-covered feet. Above me, tiles were missing from at least half the ceiling. Long, fluorescent lights hung down, making that eerie buzzing sound. They cast menacing shadows on everything.