Page 39 of Savage Mates (Ruthless Instinct #2)

With the sledgehammer in my hand, I took one look over my shoulder before carefully aiming. The clang echoed, but seemed muted, which surprised me. Yet the lock didn’t budge. I tried it again. Then again.

On the fourth swing, the lock snapped, pieces falling to the floor. A sense of relief rushed through me; I had expected to see Kyle running toward me with a weapon in his hand.

The silence in the corridor was unnerving as much as the humming and vibrations coming from inside the room. After placing the hammer on the floor, I tentatively placed my hand on the door handle.

Another deep breath and I felt courageous enough to discover what was inside.

There was no way of describing the incredible sight, colors from every spectrum of the rainbow shifting behind a three by four sheet of glass. Three sides were composed of a metal structure with a tube connecting a power source.

What was behind the glass was obviously alive. At least in the way of energy fields.

When a slight exclaim left my mouth, the shapes ebbed and flowed, almost as if they were excited to see me. Which was ridiculous.

Using caution, I moved closer, mesmerized by the ever-changing colors and the heat resonating in the space.

Immediately perspiration appeared on my upper lip.

I was nervous, but the excitement continued to build.

With every step I took, it appeared the forms were breaking apart, each creating a different shape.

Almost human-like.

Breathless, I pressed my hand against my mouth and pushed myself to close the distance. Once I was only inches from the glass, the shapes also danced closer, a few even hitting the glass.

“What are you?” As soon as I asked the question, it was as if I felt something searching my brain, a slight tickle that couldn’t be explained.

The hum was suddenly slightly louder. Lifting my arm, I reached out only to curl my fingers from apprehension. But I wouldn’t learn anything by remaining skittish. So I placed my palm on the glass.

A bolt of light bounced off the ceiling, a sensation of powerful energy sweeping through me.

I wasn’t scared. Instead, I was floored by the vibrations, the humming in my ears.

And the beautiful colors that became more vibrant.

If I didn’t know better, I’d say the lifeforms were sweeping my body, reading not only my DNA, but also my brainwaves.

Was that crazy? Maybe.

Impossible? No.

“You’re alive. Aren’t you?”

As if to answer, one of the shapes formed a human figure. Just for a few seconds. And I’d be damned if the shape didn’t appear almost as a likeness to me. Duplicating my exact measurements. But the shape quickly changed into something else. What the fuck? A lion? Whoa. Whoa…

Get it together. Communicate with them.

I could do this. I was a damn scientist.

“If you are, you need to save the other lions. There’s a beautiful lioness in this facility and she needs the kind of help I can’t provide.” I’m not certain what I was looking for, maybe confirmation the lifeforms that I felt existed behind thick glass were real.

And intelligent.

“Yes, Dr. Radcliff. They are alive.”

The deep voice was filled with excitement instead of anger.

Dr. Abbott stood behind me, the eagerness in his voice deceptive. He’d obviously known my curiosity would push me into discovering what they were hiding. My mouth was suddenly dry as I studied him, his face almost serene as he studied the lifeforms.

“Aren’t they beautiful?” he pressed and his footsteps indicated he was moving closer. “Very intelligent. Very useful.”

As strange as it sounded even to me, when I’d entered the room, the lifeforms seemed excited to see me, as if they’d been waiting for me to lay eyes on them.

But with Dr. Abbott, I felt anger. Rage.

Their colors were darker, several of them slamming against the glass.

Also, there was no flex, no smashing sound, the vibrations swept through every inch of my body.

“I had a feeling you’d be very curious and I was right. Just try and remember there are some very important discoveries being made.”

“You lied to me. You, Dr. Douglas, and Dr. Zimmerman.”

“Come now, Dr. Radcliff. How did we lie? We are very interested as a company in discovering cures for diseases in wildlife, but you yourself have said many times that scientifically we were not at that point. These creatures can help us. That’s been proven.”

Once again, I pressed my hand against the glass. The sensations were different this time. My God, it felt as if they were trying to tell me something.

Warning me.

Against the scientists themselves or what might occur? My hand had been forced. I might as well attempt to learn as much information as possible.

“You’re working with Blackwell.”

He chuckled, but seemed delighted I’d started to put the pieces together. “Come now, Dr. Radcliff. Blackwell is dead, killed in a fire. You mentioned that in the article you wrote years ago.”

Fuck. Confirmation my white paper had been used against me.

“What I also mentioned is that the remnants of his charred body were never found. If he wasn’t turned to ash, that means you and Dr. Zimmerman’s firms were working directly with him and his company all along.

” When he didn’t say a word, I turned toward him.

Now I was angry. “Zimmerman’s company has been.

Let me guess. He was an investor in Blackwell Industries. ”

“Blackwell had several. This project has been very important to so many people, Lauren. Imagine the discoveries we’ve made, the advances in science.

Everything from repairing damaged DNA to the cure for diseases.

Even the ability to withstand poisons. It’s a miracle.

The reports simply didn’t do our work justice. ”

“It’s blasphemy if you’ve also created mutant beings.”

“What do you mean?”

I folded my arms, laughing sardonically.

“Don’t try and fool me. I’ve seen the mutant lions being kept on this island.

While the beautiful lioness we have suffering inside the medical facility appears normal on the outside, I can only guess how twisted her organs are, and do you want to know how I know this? ”

He appeared smug and I fisted my hand, ready to punch him. That was all he deserved.

“Because I ran the DNA on every sample I had. Guess what I found?”

I’ll be damned if his eyes didn’t light up as if I’d given him a Christmas present. “We knew your tenaciousness would add so much to the team.”

“If you could control me. Right? Isn’t that one reason you brought soldiers with you? To make certain I remained a good little scientist? You baited me by sending me the information these lions existed. You knew from my background that I wouldn’t let it go.”

“And we were right.”

I couldn’t believe this. How stupid I’d been.

The lifeforms were angry. I felt it in my bones. This time when they threw themselves at the glass, the surface bounced. We were both shocked. Exhaling, I glanced over my shoulder.

A face peered back at me.

The blip was short, but I could see and feel it.

“They like you. They respond to you, which is also what we hoped. Your reputation doesn’t do you justice, Lauren. You aren’t just a lion whisperer. You can do that with every beast.” There was utter disdain in his voice and the lifeforms felt it.

And they hated him.

Just like I did.

I’d been brought here under false pretenses.

“The lions you experimented on two years before refused to do what you wanted them to. Right? They wanted no part of your horrific tests.” I laughed when he didn’t answer immediately.

“Along comes the lion whisperer. You gave me what I wanted by tossing away your earlier experiments, dropping them on this deserted island and luring me here by planting the initial photographs of the lions. You knew I’d go to great lengths to learn if the pictures were real and if so, exactly what I’d do.

My God. I played right into your hands.”

“You can’t tell me that you weren’t eager.

Don’t dare try and act as if you aren’t interested in the work we’ve been doing.

I can see it in your eyes, Dr. Radcliff.

You want nothing more than to work with these lifeforms and create new species, better creatures.

You have no idea what we’ve been able to accomplish. It’s incredible.”

“Yet not perfected, which is why we’re all here. You brought new lifeforms to see if they could repair the mutant lions. Or maybe you simply wanted to experiment in different ways, encouraging these poor souls to create lifeforms that don’t exist in nature. Vampires come to mind.”

He smiled and I was nauseous. “As I said, you’ll make an excellent team member. Even if you’ll need to be strictly controlled.”

“You can’t control me. You won’t get away with this. The entire world needs to know you’re attempting to play God.”

Dr. Abbott half laughed and there was something crazy about the look in his eyes. As if he’d been taken over by the very lifeforms he’d been trying to control.

“We’re not attempting, Dr. Radcliff. We’re achieving. Now, unfortunately, plans have changed, but we will regroup.”

“What the hell does that mean?” I glanced around the room, furious that I’d left the hammer in the corridor. And where the hell was Dr. Douglas? Was he complicit in this as well?

“With the approaching storm, we’ll need to move our work elsewhere. Unfortunately, it’s been decided we can’t take every lion with us. However…” He walked closer, prompting me to take a giant step backwards.

The lifeforms went nuts, the colors now vivid reds and purples, shifting and ebbing, slamming against the glass.

I was shocked when he pulled something from his pocket.

A fucking remote control. With a single button pressed, a spark of what could only be described at pure white-hot lightning was driven into what was little more than a prison to keep the lifeforms from escaping.

The color instantly faded, barely anything moving or pulsing.

“Stop. You fucking asshole! You’re killing them.” I flung myself toward him, but he held up the remote, issuing a tsking sound.

“If you want them to survive, I suggest you back away, Doctor. I assure you there are more of these creatures locked up in various containers, so they aren’t needed.”

My God. The expanse of what they’d accomplished was worse than anyone had discovered. The knot in my stomach was huge, but I refused to allow them to be hurt because of me. I stepped away, fueling the hate. They would not destroy the lions. I would find a way to keep the bastards from doing that.

“The lions will destroy you.”

Every laugh seemed maniacal. “There’s not enough of them, Lauren.

As of this very moment, the mutant lions have been destroyed, soldiers deployed to annihilate the pride you so covet.

Except for the three lions you’ve grown affectionate of.

Now, if you’re very good, they won’t be tortured, but that’s entirely up to you. ”

Soldiers. He meant the mercenaries. “You had Rory drug me.”

“Yes. We felt it necessary given your acute sense of loyalty to the lions. But somehow you escaped. That’s when we knew we’d be required to change our plans to accommodate your… curiosity.”

“You were hopeful I’d get very close with the shifters. What did you hope to accomplish, breeding me?”

He studied the faded energy level within the glass cage. “While unexpected, what occurred naturally was more than we’d hoped. That’s why they will remain alive.”

“I will fucking kill you.”

His smirk remained, but at least he finally slipped the remote into his pocket. “No, you won’t because you cherish life far too much. Now, you will come to your senses, although it might take time.”

I should have known better than to try to discover the truth on my own. I’d placed my team in danger, along with the lions I had grown to adore and those who deserved to live.

Let alone what this could do to humanity.

When Kyle stepped into the room with an assault rifle in his hand alongside the pilot and co-pilot, all three grinning in a way that horrified me, I glanced at the lifeforms. If they were as intelligent as I believed, they would do everything in their power to remain alive.

“We don’t need to make this difficult, Dr. Radcliff,” he continued. “Just work with us. That’s all we ask.”

“Work with you. You are out of your mind.”

“Come with us, Dr. Radcliff. If you don’t, your assistants will suffer and you’ll be forced to watch.

” Kyle pointed the barrel of the rifle toward my chest. While I knew they wouldn’t kill me because they needed me to communicate with the lifeforms, I believed they’d hurt Carrie and Peter to keep me in line.

There was no other choice but to try to contact my lions. It would appear Dr. Abbott had no idea just how close with them I’d become.

“Fine.” I moved away from the lifeforms, but not without taking another look. Perhaps pleading with them.

The wind was already whipping through the trees, a strong, strange scent in the air. I was led to another building, the one that had been locked before. As soon as I was pushed inside, I realized what the building had been used for.

Keeping people locked behind bars.

“Lauren!” Carrie called from her place locked in a cell. Peter was with her and so was Dr. Douglas.

“You’ll stay here until we’re ready to leave in the morning. As I said, if you’re a good girl, you’ll get to be with your lions.” Dr. Abbott laughed, his feet echoing in the dense space as he walked away.

“You’ll never get away with this, Steve,” Dr. Douglas called after his former friend and colleague.

As the horror settled in, I did the only thing I could do.

I called out to my lions and knew with everything deep within my scarred soul, they would come for me.

And they would protect me at all costs.