Page 17 of Feral Mates (Ruthless Instinct #1)

I turned to face him. His facial expression alone gave away his complicated feelings for the human. “I don’t need to tell you that in this society, you can’t simply take what you want. That’s a criminal act.”

He chortled. “You’ve gleaned much from the balding scientist.”

“Enough to know this isn’t our world.”

“Does that mean you want to leave her?” Apollo threw out.

As I took a deep breath, I allowed an image of her face to cross my mind.

“That’s not what I said.”

“Then we will protect her as we would any mate.”

“And then what?” Kai said from behind us.

“Three days ago, we woke up as wolves, prepared for whatever fucking painful test we’d be forced to endure.

Suddenly, we managed to escape, only to find a different set of chains.

Being human isn’t anything I wanted. I do not plan on remaining in this body for long.

Savannah is human. She certainly won’t want to live in the wild.

Then there’s the situation that we are three entirely different wolves from different packs.

I doubt we will be able to create a pack of our own.

That means we will constantly be in danger. ”

“Then go ahead and provide us with your plan. I’m certain you have one,” Apollo pushed.

“What do you suggest we do? She is our mate. We will not leave without her. So you don’t think other wolves will smell the difference in us?

Fuck! I can right now, the goddamn odor is pungent.

Wolves and other animals will try and tear us apart. ”

Kai snarled, taking a step closer to Apollo. The testosterone and anger levels were high.

“Stop,” I hissed. “There are humans in the woods. Savannah could be in danger.” I moved between them, glaring from one to the other.

“There were other animals in the refuge,” Apollo reminded us.

Nodding, Kai stared off into the woods. “The air is electric. We need to follow our instincts above all else. The remaining wolves inside the refuge were vicious. They will enjoy hunting and killing at will.”

“Humans will do the same. We are not supposed to exist. Whatever the hell we are,” I threw in, my anger increasing.

I was furious that some scientist had allowed this to happen.

We were no longer wolves and certainly not men.

Apollo was right about one thing. We’d be shunned by our own and torn from limb to limb for being different.

Fuck this shit.

Kai looked away, shaking his head. “I don’t claim to have an answer. What I do know is that we can’t remain here. It’s too dangerous.”

“True enough,” I agreed. “Our mate is in danger. I can feel it in my bones.” A sudden flash in my mind startled me. It was as if she was reaching out. “She’s warning us.”

Kai stiffened. “I can feel the tether. She’s upset.”

“And angry,” Apollo added. “As I said, we will protect her.”

“Then we need to get closer to the laboratory,” I suggested. “That’s where she’s working. We can’t protect her from this distance.”

Kai looked at Apollo. “It’s close to the refuge,” Kai reminded us.

“So the fuck what?” I threw back. “If you insist she’s our mate then others will figure that out. You know what you sensed from within minutes of waking up as humans for the first time. She doesn’t understand what she’s facing.”

Apollo glanced toward the forest. “What we’re all facing.”

The three of us looked at each other, no longer needing to communicate verbally.

“Let’s go,” I told them.

“We remain human until that’s not possible any longer.” Apollo’s suggestion was noted.

Let’s see how long that lasted.

We took off heading toward the facility, searching the forest, registering every different scent. We were fast, our strong muscles providing us with the ability to handle the difficult terrain.

The closer we came, the more apprehension I felt.

I could sense her. I could feel her concern, and her anxiety that was building.

She was frightened, but I also gathered a sense of determination.

Not only was she a beautiful woman, she was also tough in mind and body.

Whatever we went through together, those attributes would serve her well.

A crack caught my attention and the three of us hunkered down at the same time, listening while allowing our keen noses to ascertain the source.

The gnawing hunger returned, my wolf about to breach the surface. When a deer and her fawn breached a clump of trees, the three of us were immediately on edge. Only a few days before, the creatures would have already been dead on the ground.

Apollo sensed my hunger, gripping my arm as if to prevent me from killing them. I threw a look at him, snarling when I did.

I could smell fear in the two smaller creatures.

“Let them live,” Kai gritted out. “They are not our enemy or our food. Not in this form.”

I wanted to laugh. Dr. Wheeler was a consummate hunter in his case, mostly for sport. Disgusting. We only killed for food or when in danger.

However, they were both right. So we allowed them to scamper off. The hunger remained, but it had more to do with getting closer to Savannah.

I’d never felt such a strong hold on my desire. A true sign that she was our mate.

We moved forward again, carefully watching the forest.

Almost instantly, the stench of a group of humans infused my nostrils. I growled while turning my head toward the others.

There was something else.

Other wolves.

Snarls echoed in the trees, the scream of a human penetrating the air.

Then a single gunshot.

We couldn’t allow humans to murder our own.

There was no question as to what was needed.

Within seconds, we shed our clothes, willing the transformation to occur.

We were savages, monsters turning into men.

While the shift took a matter of seconds, the wash of agony was acute.

Limbs twisted unnaturally, muscles ripping while organs were displaced.

As hands became claws, a snout forming where a mouth had once been, the entire world around me vibrated with energy unlike anything I’d felt prior to my body being taken captive.

And that’s the way I thought of what had occurred.

We were nothing more than prisoners of mankind and something even more sinister. But at this moment, the ability served us well.

The transformation complete, we raced through the trees, the same powerful muscles aiding us in closing in on the human monsters determined to destroy our kind.

We ran, our strengthened forms allowing a speed I’d never felt before. We had one purpose in mind.

Kill or be killed.

Only something nagged at all of us. I could feel it in my bones, stretching across every synapse in my brain.

A conscience.

Where the fuck had that come from?

The noise was horrific, additional gunshots fired. We couldn’t seem to get there fast enough.

When we cleared the last line of defense before facing our enemy, we realized instantly our assumptions had been wrong.

The humans weren’t attempting to kill the wolves. They were attempting to protect themselves. A family. A goddamn family, a single man protecting a woman and two children while four gray wolves surrounded them, saliva dripping from their muzzles.

Our approach was cautious.

“Get them inside,” the man was saying to the woman.

She was paralyzed, holding a small child in her arms, another clinging to her leg. “I can’t move. They’ll kill us.”

They were at least twenty yards from the front door of the cabin. The woman was right.

She’d never make it alive.

It was as if a barrier was crossed when we closed the distance. I was revolted by what was happening. The wolves were shifters, just like we’d become. But they were different. I could sense their thoughts.

Pure evil.

We knew what we needed to do. Protect and kill.

There was no other choice.

Lunging forward, I threw myself into the air, landing on the smaller gray wolf, instantly driving my sharp canines into his neck.

He howled, fighting me with everything he had. Blood was everywhere, the other wolves immediately attacking. The fight was vicious. Bones breaking. Organs exposed.

The rogue wolves weren’t strong enough, both Apollo and Kai attacking violently.

High-pitched screams cut through the thick air, as the woman and children rushed to safety. Not that I should give a damn. With a single snap of my teeth, I ripped out the wolf’s throat, immediately turning to another who’d driven the human to the ground, blood dripping from my jowls.

He was fighting valiantly, struggling to use the weapon to ward off the wolf. He was no match for the strong beast, made even stronger by the change in his molecular structure.

The wolf sensed my approach, leaving the man and pitching himself into the air. We fought, snapping and snarling, teeth bared and slashes of our claws.

Snarling, the rogue beast raked his claws down my chest, creating a nasty wound. As blood seeped through, I’d had enough. With my canines fully exposed, I grabbed him by the back of the neck, tossing the wolf in the air then pitching him against a tree.

The solid thud echoed, but I wasn’t finished, leaping over his broken body and ripping his flesh to shreds.

Seconds later, there was little more than the sound of the humans whimpering.

My mouth full of blood and fur, I turned my head toward Apollo and Kai.

The four wolves were dead, but I’d seen in their minds that there were others just like what we’d become.

And they were even more dangerous.