Page 31 of Feral Mates (Ruthless Instinct #1)

S avannah

“You goddamn bastards. Get off me! Get off me. What did you do? You hurt them.” I struggled, pitching my body, kicking the bastard with my foot. His grip loosened and I jerked free, immediately throwing my body over the wolves. “Leave them alone.”

They’d been drugged, but they were breathing.

For now.

I could hear laughter as if this was all one horrific joke.

The assholes had surrounded us, standing and gawking, grinning as if they’d caught a prize. They were nothing but horrible predators. They were soldiers, dressed in dark uniforms, but there was no mistaking their training or their abilities.

They’d been assigned to bring us in at all costs.

As the same man who’d addressed me before approached, he had a smirk on his face. He crouched down, studying me as if a prized bird he’d just captured and placed in a gilded cage.

“Dr. Morgan. I was trying to make this as easy and painless for you. But you refuse to cooperate.” He motioned to someone while shaking his head.

“What are you doing? Where are you taking us?”

“As I said, somewhere safe.”

Another man approached. He was decked out in full combat gear.

“You won’t get away with this.” I watched in horror as the second man, who was obviously a soldier, handed the first something.

Oh, my God, a syringe.

His smile grew wider. Two men grabbed my arms, holding me in place as the one in charge held the syringe above my head and in the morning glisten of sun. “I can, Dr. Morgan. And I will.”

A scream erupted from my throat as he stuck the needle into my neck. Seconds later, my eyelids felt heavy. No. I couldn’t stop fighting. I had to try to save… the… wolves because…

As a heavy veil of darkness slipped over my eyes, I was allowed to slump against the wolves.

My wolves.

My mates.

A soft humming.

A light whisper of air.

Clicking sounds.

Cold. I was freezing to death, my breath skipping. My heartrate was high, much more so than normal.

A deep ache, raw and painful.

What?

The second I opened my eyes, I winced from the powerful light streaming above. Shifting my head to the side, I attempted to focus. A heavy fog remained around my eyesight as I tried to put the pieces of what had happened in my mind.

Lights were swirling a few yards away, but I couldn’t make out what I was seeing. They were ebbing and flowing, increasing and decreasing in size. Pulsing.

Exactly to the rate of my heartbeat.

Like lifeforms.

Other than that, I could see nothing, the darkness oppressive.

Fear wrapped around me, capturing me in a powerful moment as my memory began to clear.

Where was I? What was happening? Panic replaced the fear, my mind tumbling through images as echoes of sounds pounded in my ears.

Moaning, I tried to blink a little faster so my eyes would finally adjust, but the cloud remained.

My head felt heavy as I lifted it again, fighting tears as they would do me no good. What was happening? Where was I?

The laboratory.

The bastards had returned me to Blackwell Industries. I’d seen the report. The building had supposedly been closed due to the extensive damage done by the fire.

A lie.

Just another horrible, ridiculous lie.

Sorrow tore through me, the feeling that I’d somehow caused this to happen leaving my stomach in knots.

No, I hadn’t been the only scientist working on the project, yet I felt entirely responsible.

Maybe because I’d desperately wanted to discover new lifeforms. I’d put my reputation on the line by sending a memo all those weeks ago.

Had I been the sole reason Dr. Blackwell had pushed the project into another direction?

The guilt was killing me.

What if I’d signed their death warrants?

Stop it. Stop thinking crazy thoughts. Breathe and concentrate.

I blinked again and a few more things came into focus.

Oh, God. Where were the wolves? What had the bastards done to them? I had to get out of here and find them. I tried to feel them, using the strong connection we’d developed, but there was nothing.

My stomach lurched. Did that mean they were… dead? No. I would know if they were. I would feel it in my bones. Wouldn’t I?

Apollo. Kai. Roman.

With the mournful thoughts lingering, I called out to them. Maybe they were still under the effects of the tranquilizer. That would make sense.

The moment I tried to jerk up, I realized I’d been constrained. I slowly tilted my head, biting back a sharp cry when I saw the metal shackles around my wrists. I twisted my hands but could barely move them.

With another moment of horror spiraling through me, I looked down at my legs. They were spread wide open, shackled at the ankles.

Even worse.

I was completely naked.

They’d stripped away my clothing. Now fury replaced everything else and I started to struggle with everything I had, groaning and hissing. On top of everything, I was lying on a cold, hard steel table like some specimen.

It suddenly dawned on me that my notion was correct. I was a specimen, the only woman who’d mated with creatures from another species.

“Argh!” I yelled out and almost instantly, the pulsing colors from before went wild. I snapped my head toward them and toward the same captured lifeforms I’d been so intrigued with before. They were still there, safe from the fire.

“What’s happening?” I purposely asked the question out loud to see how the forms would respond. They flashed and shifted shapes. I sensed they were feeding off my anxiety. Well, I had plenty of that to go around.

“Where the fuck are you?” I yelled. “Show your damn face, you fucking coward.”

The shapes went wild, growing exponentially.

I wasn’t alone. I could feel others in the room.

Were they enjoying the show? Watching a naked woman becoming unraveled.

A laugh bubbled to the surface. Why the hell had I been stripped of my clothes anyway?

If the bastards thought I wouldn’t run if I had the chance just because I’d be embarrassed, they were nuts.

With my head lolled to the side, I studied the forms as I’d done so many times before. If only I had the same excitement. Now there was nothing but dread. There were only evil intentions in mind.

“If only you could help me.” My words were said in frustration more than anything. Until they took a host, they were nothing but prisoners just like I’d become.

Were my wolves here? I could feel them, but vaguely. At least I knew they were still alive.

I’d finalized my theory based on what I’d learned. The window was electrified in a sense, keeping the group of lifeforms I was staring at from escaping. If they did, they would be free to select a host. The being who’d chosen my wolves had gleaned knowledge from the scientist working with it.

I was lucky the lifeform that had selected my wolves as its host was moral and had learned enough to express itself. There was no way of gauging decency or good versus evil with the life forces. We weren’t equipped for that. And if something evil came through…

I shuddered from the ugly thought. Somehow, I needed to get out of here. Even though all I was doing was mentally willing the lifeforms to help me, they seemed to respond. They were even more agitated.

Frustration brought exhaustion and my wrists were chafed from trying to free myself. It was useless. Panting, I shook my head as if doing so would force away the tears that had formed, once again pushing a haze in front of my eyes.

Suddenly, there were heavy footsteps. Slow and easy, the person taking their time. I strained my neck, trying to see who was approaching, but other than the bright light shining down on me and the pulsing lifeforms, the area around me was completely dark.

Whoever was coming toward me stopped walking, remaining in the shadows like some goddamn vulture. “I know you’re there. Why don’t you show your face?”

There was no movement. No other sound.

“What are you, a coward? You think kidnapping a scientist after experimenting on animals makes you a big, tough boy?” Of course, I knew I was pushing the limits, but at this point, I just didn’t care. More than half the scientists in the facility had been lied to.

And Carl was dead. Oh, God.

A sob broke free and I hated myself because of it.

I wasn’t so weak that I would allow fear to overwhelm me.

That wasn’t in my makeup as a person. As a human being.

My father had taught me to be strong. He’d even equipped me with the knowledge of how to escape monsters and bad men.

I had my father’s strength and right now, I needed it more than ever.

“Come on, you asshole. What did you do with the wolves? You’re working with Serenity Refuge. Aren’t you? They’re providing you with fresh meat to do your horrible, repugnant experiments on. Are you happy innocent people lost their lives because you couldn’t control the beasts you created?”

Still nothing. Now the silence and the cold were penetrating, keeping my fear active. I could taste it on my own tongue. I called out to my wolves once again. The horrible silence was debilitating.

“Very well done, Dr. Morgan. I applaud both your tenacity and creativity as well as your scientific mind.”

Another shiver coursed down my spine. Dr. Blackwell. He took his time slipping from the shadows in front of me. From where he stood under the lighting, he appeared paler than usual. In fact, his skin was pasty white.

Like a vampire.

I almost laughed, smirking instead. “You killed Carl. Didn’t you?

How many more people are you going to kill so you can hide what you’ve been doing?

There is nothing wrong with the portal, is there?

You could close it any time you want, but you don’t want to.

Do you? You’re not finished with playing God. ”

He wasn’t thrilled with my reaction, his eyes darkening as he stared at me.