by Sydney Addae
“Yes, Ma’am.” Asia prayed to the Goddess and stepped inside. Her plan of not looking at Hawke failed the moment she entered since he was suspended in front of the small glass pane where Lancaster, Gordon and Alpha Verrick stood.
Testing the weight of the ax, she moved further into the room, and threw the ax into the glass causing it to web but not shatter. Next, she picked up the lone chair in the room and sent it flying into the glass, this time it broke in several places. Running, she leapt and fell short of the window.
“You bitch,” Lancaster said, holding the side of his head as blood ran down and then stopped. “You just killed your mate.”
Trusting Silas to keep her mate safe, she focused on that small upper room. She tapped into Hawke’s energy, allowed it to burn and merge with hers. Running she leapt for the room and landed inside. It was much larger than she thought.
Lancaster screamed as she backhanded him so hard he flew into the wall and slid down. Gordon backed against the wall, inching for the door.
“Kill her,” Lancaster screamed at Verrick who caught the brunt of the shattered glass. His face re-knitted as he bulked to a hybrid.
“So you accepted the poison,” she mocked.
Verrick shrugged and walked toward her. Asia grabbed the chair and slammed it into the control panel jamming the door.
“No! No,” Lancaster yelled and ran toward the door.
Verrick tried to grab her around the waist. At the last moment she jumped and kicked him in the chest, sending him flying backward. He hit the wall, shook his head and fell backward.
Asia backed up, looked at Gordon and grabbed him by the throat while Lancaster punched the destroyed control panel trying to open the door. She squeezed and then threw Gordon at Verrick when the Alpha ran at her. Both hit the floor. Turning, she grabbed Lancaster by his shirt and shook him like a leaf. All the lives this bastard ruined. She put her hand around his neck, prepared to snap it when Verrick knocked her back into the wall. Lancaster rolled to the side holding his neck trying to breathe.
She blocked Verrick’s punches and kicked him in the gut, sending him backward knocking Gordon down in the process. “They didn’t warn you, about these did they?” she asked, pointing to her legs before going after Lancaster again.
“Mistress, I can’t kill them until the covenant is broken, have Maheegan break the contract.”
She backhanded Lancaster again. He spun and hit the floor. “That was for chaining my mate to the wall when he was a pup.” He tried to crawl away. But she grabbed him by the back of his shirt and punched him in the gut. “That was for taking his pup without telling him.”
“Stop… stop,” Lancaster cried, covering his face as she picked him up again.
“This is for Gunnolf.” She hit him in the face again.
“What about Gordon… he did it too,” Lancaster cried, pointing at Gordon who stood behind Verrick.
“All of you’ll die for what you’ve done to full-bloods but you… you are a slimy bastard who abused my mate. I promised to kill you myself.”
“They are working on it Asia. It’s going to take a few minutes,” Jasmine said.
“Hawke?”
“He’ll be okay.” It was the hesitancy in her Mistress’ voice that concerned Asia. Her mate wasn’t dead, she would know, but he’d blocked her, which could mean a lot of things. She had to have faith that he would be okay. Otherwise all of this would be meaningless.
“You sniveling asshole,” Gordon growled at Lancaster.
“I saved your ass.” Lancaster tried to crawl toward Verrick but Asia blocked and dragged him back to the opposite side and pinned him against the wall by his throat. Damn, she wished she could squeeze the breath out of him right now.
Footsteps. She looked at the door before the knock came.
Hybrids.
Lancaster’s eyes widened with what she identified as hope. “The door is jammed on –” she increased the pressure on his neck cutting off his words.
Verrick stood, dusted off his pants and met her gaze. “Either kill him or let him go.”
She laughed and slammed Lancaster so hard against the wall, his eyes rolled to the back of his head as he slid down the wall.
“Make me,” she challenged Verrick as she stepped in front of Lancaster. Verrick she could eliminate.
Verrick’s gaze slid to Lancaster and then back up at her. The next moment he was airborne, she dropped to the floor missing his outstretched arms as he hit the wall and landed on top of Lancaster. She moved quickly, grabbed his head and twisted hard until it snapped.
The pounding on the door increased and then someone kicked on it. Asia looked out the broken window, grabbed a struggling Gordon, and pulled Lancaster from beneath Verrick and tossed them out the window. Seconds later she jumped and landed near Gordon, who moved slowly. Lancaster remained limp on the ground. She looked around the space.
“Where is Hawke?” She asked Gordon.
His face tightened and he looked away.
She grabbed him by the shirt and shook him like Raggedy Ann. “Where is Hawke?”
He pointed down and she looked over her shoulder at the smooth floor. “It opens?”
He nodded.
“Hawke?”
“Almost done. I’ll meet you in a bit.”
Happy to hear his voice she didn’t ask any questions. Instead, she lifted Lancaster and Gordon and ran out the room.
Chapter 31
In the hall Asia tightened her hold on Lancaster and pulled Gordon along. They needed a secure place where she could knock both men out while waiting to kill them or until either Angus or Hawke arrived.
After turning down two short halls, she stopped and looked at Gordon. “Open it.” The surprised expression on his confirmed her suspicions. This section was a private area, although none of the rooms were marked or had door handles.
He placed his palm on the wall and it moved. Rather than wait for her instructions, he stepped inside with her right behind him. The small room held a table barely large enough for two people and one chair.
“What kind of room is this?”
“Holding.” He took the seat and leaned back in the chair watching her. “Is Damian okay? He wasn’t there when I woke up and I’m wondering where he is.”
Asia released Lancaster, allowing him to buckle to the floor, but kept her palm on his shoulder to rifle through his mind to find out locations, names, dates, traitors and anything about LOBO.
The man’s mind was littered with so many failed ideas, hopes and challenges that it took a few minutes to unlock the area with Liege information and read through it. She sat on the floor next to Lancaster, moved her hand down his arm and held his wrist. “As far as I know, he is fine and on his way here. That should make both of you happy.”
Gordon’s brow rose at her actions, but smiled, nodded and then closed his eyes with the information on Damian.
LOBO was located in the mountains of Colorado, she didn’t see a name for a close town, but the facility looked like a college campus. She’d have Hawke research abandoned schools or permits for new ones along with the landmarks. Over the years they had many pups enter, but later discovered few pups could handle the surgeries. There were so many faces she wanted to cry over the destroyed lives in the name of science and progress.
Next she searched for information regarding current projects, their client base and products. Whereas the names of projects were in his mind, in-depth information was missing unlike LOBO, his personal project. She continued opening his mental doors and searching for information that would help La Patron, Hawke and anything regarding her true identity. One thing that didn’t surprise her was his alternate plans in case he needed to ditch the Liege. Seems like he took the reversal of the covenant serious and made arrangements for his disappearance.
After securing information on the Liege operation, she searched for data on Hawke and was surprised by the level of pride and affection the old bastard had for her mate. There wa
s a love and hate battle going on in Lancaster’s mind with Hawke.
Lancaster had encouraged Greggor’s feelings for Hawke, even told his disturbed nephew that Hawke returned his interest. Later he installed a corrupt neck brace on Greggor knowing either the brace or Hawke would kill the young man. She paid close attention to the neck brace information finding it interesting that under certain circumstances the effects could be reversed.
Asia watched Gordon and continued taking information from Lancaster. He was no doctor, but understood the mechanics of their enhancements. After a few minutes longer, she gave up, there had been no mention of her other than her surgeries, assignments, progress and disappointment that she escaped. Lancaster didn’t really believe she and Hawke were mated. He clung to the notion of Hawke and Angus.
The project underway to duplicate the power of the chameleon disturbed her. The Liege had secured natural crystals and rare herbs from all over the globe to recreate Angus’ work. She would inform him and her Mistress of this new threat. The idea of a Liege Lord in high positions of power sent shivers of distaste through her.
Standing, she searched the area for Angus or Hawke. “Where are you?” she asked her mate.
“When I fell through the floor I hit a caged ball which rolled out the building and landed into the Nistru River. I’m headed back in your direction, but look for me on the side of the road, I’m quite a distance away.”
She told him everything that happened since she saw him last. Hawke laughed. “Pity you couldn’t kill him. They never expected you to focus on them rather than try to save me.”
“You didn’t need saving.”
He chuckled. “Angus, Damian and Byte are in the building searching for you. Angus took information from Damian as well.” He paused. “La Patron pulled Damian’s wolf and had Angus train him in the woods. That’s where they were during the ceremony.”
“Are you okay with that?” He sounded put off for some reason.
“Yes. No. Well, I’m not sure, but I think I would have enjoyed seeing him as a wolf his first time and giving him instructions. But I’m not sure that’s what I’m feeling. It’s all new. Does that make sense?”
Asia had no point of reference and tried to imagine if she ran across a pup from her loins, how would she feel? Would she want to train the pup? Teach him how to survive? Possibly.
“Yes, the confusion and uncertainty makes perfect sense to me. Hopefully you will have time to run with him in the forest and answer questions I’m sure he has.” Encouraging him to further bond with his son seemed the right thing to say and do. At least for now.
“You said there is another?”
“In the lab one of the workers said you had two. I’ll ask Gordon, he’s waiting for Damian. I don’t think he likes Lancaster much, you should have seen them.”
“Thanks, I’m curious if there are more, even though I’m not sure what we should do about it.”
Neither was she, but she could hear her Mistress saying it was all about family. “We’ll work it out.”
She leaned against the wall next to the table where Gordon sat and looked down at him. The man sat slumped in the chair with his head down. “Is Damian the only pup from Hawke’s seed?”
Gordon’s head rose, in slow increments until he met her gaze. “No. There is one more. A female, two, no three, I think. Extremely smart, cute, definitely Alpha material. Strong willed from the beginning, she will need to temper that in order to survive the training.”
Asia swallowed hard at the sorrow in his gaze. “You’ll kill her if she doesn’t… what? Obey? If she has a mind of her own?”
He nodded. “Behavioral optimization. She is too young for any of the surgeries, so she is punished in a traditional manner.” He chuckled. “Doesn’t work though. As smart as she is, we cannot keep her if she does not bend. So yes, she will be terminated if she does not change. I’m telling you this because she is Damian’s… sister, I suppose and Hawke’s seed. If I survive and return to my duties, she will undergo a series of tests, her future is dependent on how well she does.”
“Can’t you just release her?”
“No. I don’t work alone in a vacuum.” He glanced at Lancaster on the floor. “Do you think he would ever release someone who could one day return and destroy him or the Liege? None of us would do that.”
“Why doesn’t Damian have the same computer chip as Hawke?”
Gordon released a long sigh. “Meant to, but things kept coming up, labs destroyed, merchandise lost, lost staff and things like that. Takes time and resources to find and train doctors. Since he was born in-house and the expense of the surgery, plus finding the right personnel, we put it off until later. That asshole brought him out before we put a tracking device in Damian. He wasn’t ready in more ways than one.” He shook his head.
“What about his wolf, did he ever shift?”
“No and we didn’t give him drugs to suppress it either. I think it had something to do with him not wanting his beast. He wasn’t the only one. Some shift at puberty, others never do. We haven’t figured out why yet. Do you know?”
“No. All pups shift, it’s unusual not to.”
“If they are around full-bloods and see it as a normal occurrence, but when it’s not… I’m not sure.”
Since she had no idea, she’d ask Matt in a Patron’s laboratory how that played out long term for the health of the full-blood. “What about Asia, did she have any pups?” She had searched Lancaster’s memories and found nothing.
Gordon glanced at her and snorted. “I wish, that would be the icing on the cake, but as far as I know she didn’t.” He closed his eyes as if savoring the idea. “Now that would be something.” He looked at her. “Asia is still our top enhanced work. Never understood what it was about her biology, it was different from the others. Her body accepted each additional enhancement, her arm and legs when she fell from the plane and crushed her original set. Once she was in Japan on an assignment, lost an eye, we were able to replace it with an improved version.”
Asia had forgotten the incident when she fell onto the mountains. The pain had been excruciating. Hours passed before the extraction team found her. When she woke up one of the doctors told her of the surgery.
Gordon’s account of the situation made it seem as if they’d done her a favor and that their actions had been benevolent when that wasn’t true. Too bad she couldn’t tell him what she thought of their treatments.
“Hawke is amazing as well. Even without the computer chip he has excellent utilization of his limbs. One day we hope to create the right balance with the metal so that no chips are needed.”
“So Damian has something?”
“No. Hawke’s behavior needed optimizing, he thought like a wolf with a pack mentality and refused to respond to Lancaster as his Alpha. His chip overruled his wolf and controlled his limbs. But the chip no longer works, I don’t think it’s still embedded. How did that happen?”
Asia shrugged and scented the air. Angus was nearby. “Mates. It cancels out everything.”
Gordon nodded as there was a knock on the door.
“That’s Damian.”
Gordon brightened and opened the door. Byte entered first causing Gordon to back up and return to his seat. The animal looked at her, sniffed Lancaster and then settled beneath the table.
Damian entered and headed toward Gordon. Angus stepped inside as the door closed behind him. “You good?” he asked her.
She nodded.
“Let’s go then.”
Before she could turn, Lancaster jumped up, placed his palm on the wall behind him, which opened. He dove into the small opening and lashed out his hand. The wall closed and he was gone. It all happened within seconds.
Asia placed her palm all over the wall trying to find the trigger. “Bring Gordon to open this,” she said over her shoulder.
“It’s done,” Jasmine said. “Maheegan completed the ceremony five minutes ago. Sorry for the delay, I had a few things to cle
ar out. You still have them?”
“Thank you, Mistress.” Now that she could kill Lancaster she wanted to go after him. “Lancaster just jumped through a hidden compartment, but I still have Gordon.”
“I am so sorry. If I had told you when it happened, he would be one less problem.”
Although Asia agreed she refrained from saying so. Instead, she focused on how to find the man and surfed through his memories. Nothing. She slapped the panel.
“Gordon I need you to open this panel.” Turning, she noticed Damian kneeling beside Gordon on the ground. “What happened?” She took a step for a better look.
“Lancaster threw a blade, I think he aimed at you and missed. It hit Gordon in the chest, sank deep,” Angus said, kneeling and placing his palm on the man’s forehead.
Damian stared at the blade. “Why is it bleeding? It should’ve stopped by now.” His gaze whipped around and met hers. “Can you help him?”
“I don’t think so. The covenant is broken, nature will take its course.” She took a step back, contacted Hawke and told him what happened.
“I’ll keep an eye out for the slippery bastard, chances are he’s on his way off the continent. Can’t believe he killed the man, wonder if there are cameras in that room.”
She looked around, didn’t see any and then shut out all the sounds to isolate on the hum of a camera. There was one. If there was any justice, Lancaster would be kicked out of the Liege for murdering Gordon, but she doubted it.
Damian rested his forehead on Gordon’s thigh. The man placed his hand on the back of Damian’s head and stroked his hair while looking at her. “You allowed me time with my boy and I thank you for that.”
He lifted Damian’s hand and kissed the back of it. “Here is something you need to know. Lancaster, the bastard, didn’t play fair with Niall. He gave him a neck brace that would make the man a puppet for the Liege and told him it was one we sell on the open market. It’s not. He modified this one so that Niall would attack Hawke and his mate whenever he sees him. And he fixed it so that Niall will be driven to seek Hawke out. I warned Granira to let it go, but she wanted to avenge her Alpha and felt they could make it work.”
