The whizzing whistle of air that skids past my left ear and physically inflicts a searing pain with the high pitch velocity it passes me with, makes me jump sideways and crash into bushes as I run at speed. I almost swallow my own tongue and my stomach lurches, about jumps out of my body with the scare. It gives me a near heart attack, and I scramble in stinging, scratching bushes to fight my way back out. I get caught up in thorn heavy vines and trip back over my own muddled legs.
The fall makes me tumble and roll into hedge way, knocking my shoulder on rocks and stops my scrambling for a second. I take a moment to look back at the surging sunlit bright area I left behind, gasping as I see the pouring of black dressed men coming from some ground level hatch near the main door, like a concealed lid lifted from the gravel, and four maybe five bodies appear on the ground above. There are already two outside the gates and both are facing this way, looking intensely into the wood wMy head aches crazy bad with the weight of that damn bear sitting on my skull, my mouth feels weird and furry like I just ate my own socks, and I blink at the bright white piercing light as I slowly try to open my eyes. Flinching at the assault and screwing my face up in reaction. My body is heavy and disconnected as I try to come to and figure out where I am and what happened to me. I feel like I just survived a train wreck, and I’m not entirely sure I’m not dead and in the afterlife waiting room. I’m completely disorientated, everything spinning, and I can barely move my body as though somehow, I’ve lost use of anything but my eyelids. I feel vacuum pressed to the surface I’m lying flat out on and it’s the most surreal sensation to wake up to.It takes a minute for my eyes to grow accustomed to the brightness of my surroundings and much like having a torch shone in your face, it’s painful at first until it starts to level out and an a
“Where am I?” I blurt out boldly, not really caring about polite and friendly given my current predicament, and the fact this asshole has me lassoed to a bed, while Willy Wonka style bobbing nearby. My spine is agony at the point of that damn dart, and it feels like I’m black and blue all over. Only just beginning to feel my fingers and toes and despite starting to regain some alert, I feel like I’m not quite here fully yet, and this still has an aura of dreamlike to it.“Oh, of course… silly me. How rude and utterly awful. Let me introduce myself first. I’m Doctor George William Robert Adams, I’m the resident chief scientific officer at this facility, and you my dear are our guest. Sadly, we did have to take some measures for both our safety and yours, given that like my acquaintances, you seem to possess a certain wonderful gift, but it’s a temporary arrangement until we become better acquainted. I hope you won’t ho
“Pipe down, Princess. You know where you are because you hauled ass up to our door and tried to take a peek. The question he asked …. Are there more of you out there?” It’s a commanding deep, almost growl like tone, from a serious looking man with a foreboding glare. My inner intimidation returns, as he makes my brave pipe down, and I return to still, cool mannered, and stare directly at him.He’s a scary one and most definitely wolf. Not that my sense of smell is working either. Tall, broad, physically hunky, and good looking in that boring, typical, dominant wolf way, and unnervingly very Santo. Which in itself is weird. He’s Latino, dark, tanned, handsome, and I swear he almost has Colton’s darkest chocolate eyes, although his have hints of green that lighten them overall and it somehow kills the whole smoldering thing. He has an arrogant look to him, and a slight downturn to his mouth where Colton’s turns up, that gives him a
“You can untie her, Doc, she can eat, but she stays confined in here until we decide what should be done with her. I still want a name and pack. I need to know what kind of threat she is, or they pose. I’ll be back soon. I need to contact Alpha. Santo. and get direction concerning our intruder. He’ll want to be informed.”My heart literally stops beating in my chest, and I have to stop myself from gasping out loud at the words that come out of his mouth. My insides self-combust, and my blood freezes in my veins, as my mind comes to a complete standstill on those two little terrifying words.Alpha Santo! Juan! There is no other Santo pack in these parts, and his resemblance isn’t coincidental. Why Colton kept coming to mind is now glaringly obvious. This is Juan’s facility, which can only mean one thing. Deacon is a Santo, it explains the assholes bad attitude and shitty behavior, and possibly, Sierra is not an invading dream because of C
“You’re lying. I don’t know what you’re talking about, or half of what you said, but I know hybrids aren’t a thing.” Terror overtakes me as his words filter in, and my mind refuses to digest what he’s saying, because it’s simply wrong. The wolves pride their bloodlines and purity, it’s a massive part of our being and hierarchy. Mixed breeds don’t exist, because if they did, the pure bloods would destroy them. They don’t want dilution and mongrels among our blood. They’re bad enough when weak DNA like my families infects a pack, and those people become calm land workers with no urge to fight and dominate. It’s why the Whyte pack never had any kind of claim to the mountain as a ruling pack and the Santos own it. Our kind thrives on dominance, we need alphas and purity to survive.The doctor clutches a flat hand to his chest, aghast. Eyes wide, an expression that translates offence.“Lie
“Doc, she’s our prisoner, not a study volunteer. She’s a betrayer of my blood and I’ll handle her as such. The only place this chick is going, is down beside that mindless corpse they keep in bay two, and out of bounds for you and your quack colleagues in the lab. If we’re lucky, she’ll stay as quiet as her new roommate and be gone before she messes up anymore of my week.” Deacon is an asshole for sure. He pulls me with him, not waiting for my legs to catch up and despite my inner desire to not touch this idiot, I have to grab onto him or be dragged along behind him.“Sierra is not mindless. She’s sedated and detained by you thugs and your lack of vision… she’s a work of art, a person with feelings, and thoughts, and if Juan would only allow me to waken her and….”“Enough!!! Shut your mouth!! That’s a dead name…. just like you will be if you talk about her again.” Deaco
Deacon is a brute of the highest order, who probably got his training in Juan’s school of charm for asshats, and half drags me, half lets me walk on my own feeble legs down the corridor to an elevator. Only stopping to bark orders at another guard sat at a desk nearby, before shoving me inside and taking me down to a level that has an air of aircraft hangar. The doors slide open to reveal a large, empty garage like space, in semi darkness, with concrete floors, and strip lighting on the ceiling, which stands a good twenty feet above us. The space is huge and there are three trucks parked at the far end on what looks like a platform, which I’m assuming raises up. It’s dull, definitely many degrees colder, and seems like a part no one frequents all too often.As we walk the lights begin to flick on automatically over our heads, and I note at the semi middle of the wall on the left a low glow is already illuminating from what seems to be an open alcove. From this
Deacon blanks me completely, waves a dismissive hand at me like he has the last word and leaves. Stalking back the way we came, like an arrogant shit head who needs to go choke.I honestly cannot stand that guy and if I could turn, god, he would be first on my hitlist for being air punched across the room. I have enough rage bubbling through my veins to ignite it, but unfortunately, no actual ability in this weird futuristic building. All I need is an ounce of use to link Colton, tell him where his mom is, and bust everyone’s ass in here. I have enough rage that I think I could, maybe. I just wish I’d been bright enough to find and use that gift when they chased me through the damn forest. I only have myself to blame for not being able to harness my own fate given gift.As soon as I watch him storm off into the elevator and completely disappear, I turn my attention back to the room across the floor from me and focus on that lifeless sleeping body. She’s t