by Faith Gibson
The four torsos weren’t the worst of it, though. All around the room, tall, round cylinders lined the walls. Whole bodies were suspended in liquid-filled vessels. Again, Lucy had no idea if they were human or otherwise. Males and females, all of whom appeared to be thirty or younger, who had more than likely been kidnapped for the sake of science, danced in a watery grave. Hair spread out around their heads in multi-colored halos. Dead eyes stared back at hers, accusingly, like it was her fault they were in their current situation. The liquid shifted and bubbled as the low hum of the power source filled the room.
If there was any doubt before that Lucius had indeed been involved with Ramey, that doubt was alleviated when she stepped into the lab. These were the exact same type of cylinders she’d found in the basement of her home. The male she now knew her uncle to be was at odds with the philanthropic one she’d traveled the world with. The one he showed those on the outside.
Lucy turned three hundred-sixty degrees, counting the bodies. When she reached twenty-nine, Lucy was interrupted as the metal cart rolled toward her. Instead of stopping it, she jumped out of the way, afraid for the cold steel to make contact with her skin. When the cart rammed into one of the cylinders with a clang, Carl cursed Lucy under his breath. Either he’d forgotten to set the brake, or he’d forgotten the floor sloped toward the drain. Still not meeting her eyes, the man gathered the four bags into his arms before depositing them on the wayward cart and leaving the room. When the door closed behind him, the sound of the lock engaging met with the hum of the cylinders, combining for an eerie tune. Lucy shivered, rubbing her arms to stave off the chill.
“What have you gotten yourself into?” Lucy shook her head when no immediate answer was forthcoming. All this because she wanted to find Warryck. If he’d only let Rory raise her, she wouldn’t be in this mess. Lucius had worked with Ramey for years, all the while grooming Lucy to step into his shoes and help with whatever all this was. Lucy had blindly done as he asked, even going to school and studying what he’d wanted her to. If he had lived, would he have introduced her to his work in the basement? Confided in her what the research entailed instead of lying about it?
Lucy had been too shocked to ask the pertinent questions before her boss rushed out. He wanted her to familiarize herself with the lab and the notes. She wanted nothing to do with whatever sick experiment had been started well before she came to work for the GIA.
And she was supposed to live down there? Lucy did her best to ignore her surroundings while she gathered her luggage and made her way to the opposite side of the room. Taking a deep breath, she pushed open the door to what was to be her bedroom. After taking in her temporary living arrangements, Lucy released the breath she’d been holding. Color her surprised when she discovered her new home was nicer than the dorm she’d vacated earlier. It was more than a bedroom. The living quarters were set up like an apartment, complete with a full kitchen, an en suite bathroom, and a small workout room. The cabinets and refrigerator were stocked with foods she liked. That didn’t bother her as much as it probably should. If only she could lock herself away in the cheerily decorated suite and forget about the freak show that was her job.
After a few minutes of sulking, Lucy decided to go ahead and unpack her bags. She didn’t have a lot of clothes suitable for the lab as most of her work had been done as a field agent, thus the four suits she’d stowed in the garment bag. Digging into the bottom of her toiletry bag, Lucy retrieved the burner phone, hoping to reach out and let Tamian know where she was. There was no signal. Not only was there no signal, but there was no sound coming from the phone at all. Gods, what if they had a blocker in the building? Would the tracker in her ring be detectable? She had no way of contacting the Hounds or Tamian. Except...
Lucy leaned against the counter and closed her eyes. She did her best to clear her mind of everything except for the handsome Gargoyle. How was she supposed to reach him? Mind-speak was something she’d only seen in sci-fi movies, not in real life. Taking a deep breath, she called out to him.
“Tamian?” She waited a beat then tried again. “Tamian?”
“Lucy, are you there?”
Oh, by the gods, it worked! “Tamian!”
“Lucy, talk to me Sweetheart.”
“Tamian...” What was that noise? No! She had to concentrate. “I...” There it was again. Someone was moving around in the other room. At least now Lucy didn’t feel completely closed off from the outside world. With a little more practice, she would hopefully be able to carry on a full conversation with her Gargoyle. She stowed the useless phone in the bottom of her garment bag and zipped it up before opening the door into the lab.
Ramey was closing the door to the industrial-sized refrigerator. When he turned and caught her staring, he stiffened. She had a good mind to tackle the man and check his pockets. He’d said he would give her time to settle in, but Lucy had already figured out the kind of man her boss was – controlling. And now, sneaky.
“It won’t do you a bit of good to hide out in your living quarters, Agent Ball. The longer you put off your assignment, the longer you’ll be sequestered.” He picked up a stack of papers. “Since you’ve yet to read the notes left by the previous scientists, I’ll fill you in on what we’re doing. These are things you should already be aware of, considering your father kept you by his side for years.”
“Like I told you before, my father didn’t teach me this,” Lucy said, sweeping her arm around the room. “I only found his secret lab this week, and before I had time to examine the contents, I was called in to work. So you’ll have to forgive me if I’m not up to speed on what exactly you and Lucius were working on.”
Ramey glared at Lucy for several seconds before tossing the papers back onto the desk. Crossing his arms over his broad chest, he said, “This is proof there are beings out there who are extraordinary. Everyone you see here has some type of gift, whether it’s psychic or physical. Your father began studying DNA to search out what it is within these people that gives them their unique abilities. The bodies on the slabs are for you to dissect into their genes. Each one is labeled as to what their specific ability was. The bodies around the room are held within a special medium which keeps them from decaying. Each person has a series of journals dedicated to their study.”
Lucy stepped closer to the tables and found the tag for the torso closest. A woman with small breasts and a flat stomach was able to run exceptionally fast, according to the notes. “Once you get into her cells, you will compare them to those of Subject 26.” Ramey pointed to a man behind him. “26 also has the ability to run at speeds beyond what humans should be capable.”
“Why the torsos? Why aren’t these subjects whole? Deterioration will have already set in.”
“That’s where your father came in. Lucius developed a serum that keeps the cells active for just over thirty days. It’s one reason you need to work quickly. You have one month with these subjects before they’ll become useless.”
Lucy walked around to the other three bodies while pondering Lucius and the serum. How could she have lived with the man her whole life and not known what type of person – or shifter – he was? Gryphons had been put on Earth to watch out for humans. Protect them. Not treat them as experiments for... “What is your end game? When you figure out what gene is capable of producing super strength or sonic speeds, or the ability to read minds, what then?”
“That’s simple, Agent Ball. We, as in you, will come up with a way to introduce the cells into one human, thus giving them all the extraordinary abilities.”
“You want a super soldier.”
“Of course. The United States has been lagging ever since the world fell apart. We’ve yet to come up with a way to combat the Unholy. And now, the Ministry is gaining a foothold not just in America but all over the world. They have to be stopped, and it’s going to take someone ‘more than’ to stop them.”
He had yet to speak of shifters, so it was possible Lucius had kept that bit of
information from Ramey. It wasn’t like all humans were unaware of Gryphons. Over the centuries, Gryphons had married humans and had families with them. When that happened, if the human couldn’t handle finding out their husband or wife was a shifter, the Gryphon had the ability to alter their mate’s mind so he or she “forgot” the information. That was easier than trying to hide the fact that the Gryphon was a shifter. Even with mind manipulation, there were certain humans whose minds were stronger than their mate’s influence, and they were aware, but they kept that knowledge to themselves. Then there were those shifters, like Lucius, who never hid their nature. He explained to Lucy that it wasn’t fair for Vera to be in the dark about what her husband was. Too bad he didn’t let her in on the secret basement. Or had he?
“If Lucius wasn’t able to accomplish this before he died, what makes you think I can? He had years under his belt, whereas I’ve been chasing the Ministry through computers for the past four years.” Lucy almost slipped up and said just how many years Lucius had been working in his lab.
“Yes, well that is something I’ve been trying to change for those same four years. Somehow Agent Franks convinced the Director you were needed in his department. I have no doubt they were sleeping together, therefore he got what he wanted. Rumor has it they are no longer together, and I was able to convince Director Higgins you were needed elsewhere.”
Ah, politics at its finest. Lucy had never been a fan of those in powerful positions. No matter what platform they ran on or how good they claimed to be, she always felt they were crooked and would lie and cheat to get what they wanted.
“That still doesn’t answer the question. My specialty was incurable diseases, not superhuman powers.”
“Then I guess you better get started. Like I said, you have thirty days with the four new subjects.” Ramey walked to the door, and with his hand on the knob, he said, “If they happen to expire before you get to them, it will be up to you to retrieve the next four.” The door closed with an ominous click.
“And just where am I supposed to find dead bodies with superhuman powers?” Lucy mumbled as she picked up a stack of papers and began reading. She had no idea how long it would take her to make sense of the notes, but she knew she only had thirty days to do it.
Chapter Twelve
The afternoon wasn’t a complete loss. Julian was still trying to figure out who the driver of the van was, but he’d come up with the name of the other agent who’d accompanied Lucy to her dorm – Agent Kyle Barnes. Hacking into government systems wasn’t easy, but Julian had gained plenty of practice when he’d been searching for Katherine. Tamian aided in getting Katherine out of the Super Max facility when she’d been framed, and Julian felt the need to repay the favor. Tamian helped because he wanted to. The longer he was around the Stone Society, the more he felt part of their Clan. That was another reason he was hesitant to take the role of King for the Italians.
If Julian couldn’t come up with the driver’s name soon, Tamian was going to pay Agent Barnes a visit. He’d already spoken to Jonas about getting a specialized prosthetic made. He hated to ask for his help when Jonathan was in such bad shape, but like Jonas said, unless he came up with a cure for cancer soon, it wasn’t looking good for the human. Tamian prayed Lucy was a shifter. If she was, he wouldn’t have to worry as much about her health until they mated and she became a little more immortal. He couldn’t wait to find out if she was, what kind she was, and all about her species.
Having spent all afternoon cooped up in the hotel, Tamian was ready to get outside for a while. He needed to find a quiet place to concentrate on reaching out to Lucy again. It almost amused him how his every thought included her in some way. He was excited at the prospect of having a mate and making a home with her. But first, he had to find her. Tessa suggested reaching out to the Hounds, but if he couldn’t reach Lucy on her phone, then they couldn’t either. It was possible they had ways of communicating with one another, so finding them wasn’t an altogether bad idea. He didn’t know if they would be receptive to working together, especially if Lucy hadn’t clued them in that he wasn’t stalking her for the wrong reasons.
Maybe he should introduce himself to her family anyway. Get the lay of the land, so to speak. If Tamian met with them and explained how they were mates, it might help with them accepting him and helping him in finding her. “I’m going to get some fresh air,” he told Tessa.
“I’ll be here, Tam.” She gave him a warm hug before he walked out the door. He didn’t know what he’d do without his sister. She had been such a big part of his life for so long. Sharing her with Gregor was rough at first. So much so that Tamian had left New Atlanta and traveled around a bit. He’d ended up at the chalet, but after having been around the Clan, he’d gotten lonely without being around those he was coming to think of as family. Instead of introducing himself to the locals and getting to know them, he’d returned to the States.
New DC was busier than New Atlanta, but Tamian had no trouble finding a park where he could walk and breathe something other than smoggy air. He’d always loved the outdoors, and being Gargoyle, he found it necessary to his well-being to find those places where he could commune with nature. After he’d had a chance to ground himself, Tamian reached out to Lucy. It took several tries, but he finally got through.
“Sweetheart, can you hear me?”
“I’m here. Oh, my god, Tamian.”
“I’ve been trying to call and text.”
“My boss took my work phone, and the burner I have is useless. There’s no reception. I don’t even know if the Hounds can locate me using the tracker in my ring.”
“Do they know about me?”
“Yes, but they might think you’re the enemy. We didn’t have a chance to talk about you after you and I spoke.”
“Do you know where you are?”
“No. My boss blindfolded me. All I know is it’s a four-story building with a loading dock on the backside. I’m in the basement.”
“I’m going to reach out to the Hounds and explain who I am and who you are to me.”
“You mind explaining it to me first?”
“Oh, that might help. First, I have to ask you. Are you a shifter?”
“Yes. I’m a Gryphon. Does that bother you?”
“Not at all. It’s kind of sexy. Does it bother you I’m a Gargoyle?”
“Not at all. Your wings... oh, yeah.”
Tamian laughed at her response. “So, tell me about being a Gryphon.”
“I’m part eagle and part lion. I can shift into either or both at the same time, but I’m more drawn to the eagle.”
“So that was you in the woods in Holmesvik.”
“You catch on quickly. But back to what I am to you...”
“Gargoyles have one fated mate, and it seems you are mine”.
“Do I get a say in that at all?”
“Of course, Sweetheart. You can say no, and I’ll respect your wishes. But I hope to have the opportunity to meet with you and see if you might eventually say yes. I might even show you my wings up close.”
“Now you’re playing dirty. But seriously, I hope to meet you as well. Gods, Tamian. I’m in the middle of a nightmare. My boss has me locked several floors beneath ground level, and if I don’t do what he says, I’m never going to see the light of day again.”
“Who is your boss?”
“Deputy Director Phil Ramey. The stuff he and Lucius were into... It’s batshit crazy. I’m surrounded by dead bodies floating in liquid suspension and partial torsos on slabs. The people all had extraordinary traits, and I’m supposed to figure out which gene caused their abilities, then transfer them into live subjects, thus making a super soldier of sorts. I only have thirty days with the four latest victims, because that’s when the serum my uncle created to keep the cells from deteriorating expires.”
“I take it you weren’t aware of what your uncle was doing?”
“Hell no. Right before I got the call to come back to New DC, I f
ound a secret room underneath my uncle’s office. At the time, I couldn’t figure out what I was looking at, but it’s the same thing as here, only on a smaller scale.”
“I’ll get you out of there, I promise.”
“How?”
“Now that I have a name, I’m going to watch your boss and familiarize myself with his actions. Remember John? I will be able to become Phil Ramey the same way, but it will take a few days. Don’t freak out if one day your boss walks in and scoops you into his arms.”
“Ooh, gross. But if I know it’s you underneath the mask, I should be able to handle it.”
“I have no doubt.”
“So, mates, huh? Is that why we can speak to each other this way?”
“Yes and no. I can speak to just about anyone who’s able to open their mind. Can I tell you I find it odd calling you Lucy?”
“Why? That’s my name.”
“Before I knew that, I only had your aliases, and I preferred calling you Harlow.”
“That’s my middle name. I was named after my birth mother, but that’s a conversation for another time.”
“I’ll try not to call you that.”
“I don’t mind it; after all, I do use it as an alias. Crap. He’s back.”
“Lucy, be careful. Don’t give him any reason to move you from where you are.”
Tamian waited, but he didn’t receive a response. His heart was overjoyed that Lucy had been able to speak to him. Being able to communicate with her would help set his mind at ease until he could get to her. While she had been speaking to him, Tamian had found a tree to rest against. He didn’t move while he thought back over their conversation. His mate was a Gryphon, and the large eagle he’d seen had been her. That was... Damn. No wonder the Gryphons knew about Gargoyles. If they were able to fly around undetected, they could have seen Gargoyles shifting and taking to the skies. It would never have dawned on the Goyles to hide their true nature from the large birds. I can turn into either or both at the same time. Oh, holy gods. Tamian couldn’t wait to see Lucy turn into a lion. He was getting hard just thinking about it.
