Page 57

Victor wanted to argue, but he knew Mo was right. "You stay with me at all times. No heroics."

Mo nodded solemnly. "Promise."

The next two hours passed way too slowly. Victor felt the tension coiling tighter within him as midnight approached, his wolf prowling just beneath his skin, ready to tear apart anyone who stood between him and his mate.

"The guards are changing in fifty minutes," Asher announced, eyes fixed on his screen. "Now's our window."

Victor nodded to the team. "Let's move."

The drive to the facility took twenty agonizing minutes. They parked a half mile away, continuing on foot through the dense forest surrounding the building. Victor moved silently, Mo close behind him, with Raschid's wolves fanning out to either side.

As they reached the edge of the tree line, Victor could see the facility clearly and he stopped, dragging Mo to him and taking his gorgeous lips in a kiss that just about stopped his heart. “l haven’t said it, but I love—” He stopped because Mo’s fingers were pressed against his lips.

“No,” Mo shook his head, “Don’t you dare say it like a goodbye. You say it when we’re all together.” Mo shook him. “You hear me?” he hissed.

"I will," Victor promised, his eyes never leaving Mo's. "For all of us."

The facility loomed before them, a stark concrete monolith against the night sky. Victor signaled to the team, and they moved into position as the guard shift change began.

"Now," Victor whispered into his comm as the main gate opened to admit the relief guards.

Two of Raschid's wolves, in human form and dressed in tactical gear, moved with preternatural speed. They subdued the departing guards before they could raise an alarm, while Daniel's team disabled the incoming shift. Within moments they were tied up and gagged.

"Main gate secured," came the whispered confirmation through Victor's earpiece.

Victor turned to Mo. "Stay close. Remember what we discussed."

Mo nodded, his face set with determination as he adjusted the bulletproof vest Daniel had insisted he wear. Even Dr. Adams was on standby.

And for a godawful moment Victor doubted himself. He might be a wolf, but he wasn't some special ops guy. Some trained soldier. Daniel had training but Riley was here because of his healing ability, and Asher might be FBI, but he was a tracker. What if he did something wrong? What if his mistake cost him Zack?

Then he felt the squeeze of Mo's hand on his shirt, and it settled him.

They moved through the compound with a stealth belonging to the predators inside them, taking out two more guards before reaching the main building. The access card they'd taken from one of the unconscious guards got them through the first door.

"Asher, we're in," Victor confirmed into his comm, his wolf stirring as he caught the faintest trace of Zack's scent, and he growled. "He's here."

They moved through the sterile corridors, the artificial lighting casting harsh shadows. At the security office, Raschid's wolves created a diversion in another part of the building, drawing the guards away from their posts.

"Elevator requires a keycard and code," Victor observed as they reached the central hub.

"Try 0-9-7-1," Asher suggested. "It's Pearson's birth month and year."

The elevator hummed to life, descending smoothly to the underground levels. Victor's heart hammered against his ribs, the bond with Zack growing minutely stronger with each floor they descended.

As the doors opened, they were met with another sterile corridor, this one lined with heavy metal doors. Lab facilities, Victor realized, his rage building.

"Which one?" Mo whispered, his eyes scanning the numbered doors.

Victor closed his eyes briefly, focusing on the bond. "This way," he said, moving toward the end of the corridor where the pull felt strongest.

Then all hell broke loose.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Zackdriftedinandout of consciousness, each return to awareness bringing fresh waves of agony. Dr. Mayer had administered the new drug hours ago—or was it days? Time had lost all meaning in this sterile hell.

"Remarkable progress," he heard her clinical voice somewhere above him. "The embryo's development has accelerated significantly. What would normally take weeks has occurred in days."