by Dawn Steele
“I resent having a gun held to my head, and I don’t mean it only as a metaphor.”
“I know. I have experienced the full brunt of your resentment towards me. I find it interesting that, out of all the people in the room, you would make a beeline for me.”
“You haven’t experienced the full brunt of my wrath. If you had, your head would be unattached from your body.”
Was that a threat? Her pulse took an uptick. She was aware that he could transform in this instant and tear her throat apart. If he wanted to.
She said, “Is that wishful thinking or are you planning to carry it out in the near future?”
“I’ll leave that for you to psychoanalyze.” He sat up straighter in bed and the sheet fell off, revealing his well-structured chest. He always slept naked, as if he knew she was watching and he wanted to mock her attraction to him.
Perhaps he knew she was very attracted to him.
Which was what she came to talk to him about.
In a way.
“Thank you for your cooperation so far.”
“I wish I can say ‘my pleasure’, but you and I know better.”
“Your ‘pleasure’ is what I came to talk to you about.” She pulled a chair to seat herself beside his bed. “We want to stimulate you. Pleasurably. To see how you would react.”
He smiled wryly.
“So you are suggesting you’d volunteer to give me an orgasm?”
“Are you flirting with me, Professor O’Brien?”
“How would you interpret it?” His manner did not suggest he was flirting. In fact, he was very matter-of-fact about it.
“You tell me.” She refused to be drawn into his psychoanalysis.
“I think you will do it to me, one way or another. So why don’t you just set the date, bring out the bottle of champagne and get on with it?” His tone had turned belligerent.
She thought for a while before saying, “Thank you for agreeing to do this. We will get back to you on the date.”
“You are welcome.”
She got up to leave hurriedly before he could psychoanalyze her obvious attraction to him.
*
Rust was back in the glass chamber.
He was seated and he was naked. His penis was covered with six electrodes, all which were connected by wires to an Electrostim machine. The scenario was set as before. Tranquilizer guns trained on him. Scientists observing him from the safety of another fortified glass wall.
A lump clogged her throat.
He was so beautiful. And so tragic.
But she must push aside her empathy for him. She had a job to do.
She said, “Rust, we are going to stimulate you. We are going to gradually increase the intensity.”
He did not reply.
She told the enforcer, “Do it.”
“Okaayyyy,” Stan said, and pushed a dial.
Rust visibly jerked his body as a very mild and very pleasurable electrical current was channeled to his penis. His cock immediately became tumescent.
“Erection observed,” Stan said.
“I don’t think he will transform,” Alyssa remarked. “He can’t . . . surely . . . because he has a human girlfriend. I don’t think he will transform during the sex act.”
“You don’t know what they do in bed. Wanna bring the girl in for questioning?”
Alyssa pondered this. Kate Penney was another issue. There was many a time Alyssa wanted to haul her in for questioning already. The girl had probably seen other shifters – a fact Alyssa suspected without a doubt, and was now trying to tease it out of Rust – and interacted with them. In fact, Alyssa suspected the entire Mitchell family of being shifters.
Nevertheless, the powers that be did not want to stir up the investigation yet. ‘Yet’ was the definitive word. Kate Penney was not related by blood to Rust and the Director did not want to create further media and public speculation on what they were doing by hauling civilians up.
But it would happen. And happen soon.
Alyssa said, “We will. Soon. But meanwhile – ”
Rust exploded.
Not in the literal sense of the word, but in his metamorphosis.
He became the tiger again. But this time, he was immobile. At least, as immobile as a tiger in a glass cage could be. He did not hurl himself at the glass wall and he did not pace. He merely stood there and glowered at her.
“Holy shit,” Stan said. “Shall we chalk it down as another stimulus to his change?”
“No,” she said. “I think he’s playing us. I think he willfully shifted.”
Stan could only stare at the tiger helplessly.
Alyssa said, “This is his way of giving us the middle finger. I think it’s time we called in his girlfriend.”
8
Kate gazed at the attractive woman across the table in the interrogation room.
“Am I a prisoner?” Kate said calmly.
She knew she was protected by her Miranda rights.
“No. You are here as a witness.” Alyssa Foley was blonde. Ethereal-looking. Very pale, like a ghost. “We have some questions to ask you.”
“Can I see Rust?”
“Perhaps. If you cooperate with us.”
“I need to know if Rust is OK. Are you torturing him?”
“Why do you use the word ‘torture’?”
“It’s what you guys do to tear the truth out of people.”
“Not everything is as it appears on TV.”
“Some things are worse, I believe. Anyway, I would like my lawyer to be present.”
“It is your right, of course. However, we are not arresting you . . . nor are you a suspect in any crime.”
“You haven’t answered my question. Are you torturing Rust?”
“He is collaborating well with us.”
“That is not an answer.”
“He has consented to everything he has participated in.”
What about his parents?” Kate liked both Connor and Moira, even though she hadn’t known them that long. “Did you make them consent too?”
“His parents are given the same conditions.”
“Meaning that they are being tortured too?”
“Your words, not mine.”
Kate appraised Alyssa. She knew she was no match for the seasoned interrogator. Sooner or later, she would have to cut to the chase.
“Why did you bring me here?”
Alyssa smiled. “Would you consent to a lie detector test?”
Kate caught her breath. “Why?”
“There are secrets you and Rust are keeping buried. We would like to uncover those secrets in the interest of national security.”
“Why is this a matter of national security? How is Rust a threat to you?” Kate knew she had to tread very carefully here. She didn’t know what Rust had or hadn’t revealed.
“If you have nothing to hide, then a lie detector test wouldn’t be a problem.”
“I have the right to refuse, and you can’t prove that it’s because I’m keeping secrets.”
“Then we have a right to refuse your request to see Rust. It is after all a matter of national security.”
Kate felt helpless. They were going around in circles.
Alyssa’s gaze dipped down to her abdomen. “Congratulations.”
“Thank you.”
“Truth be told, we were expecting something like this to happen,” Alyssa said. “I take it the baby is Rust’s?”
Kate was trapped. “Yes.”
“We will need to run some tests.”
“What if I refuse?”
“We both know that’s not in your best interest. Either yours or Rust’s.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“You have made a lot of inferences in the past ten minutes that you have no proof of. Collaborate with us, Kate. We are not the enemy. We are here for a common purpose.” Alyssa leaned forward in earnest. “We need to study this phenomenon for the good of mankind.”
“How is that for t
he good?” Kate’s heart was sinking lower and lower, because she knew the answer. There were so many things humans could learn from this.
“You’re a college student and you’re smart. Don’t let anything else, like your love for Rust, blind you to the fact that a lot of good can come out of this. We haven’t even touched the tip of the iceberg. How do the human cells shift? Can we use this particular mutation to avert certain diseases, like cancer?”
Kate’s hand involuntarily went to her tummy.
She said, “But you’re going to hurt him to find out the truth, aren’t you? You’re going to have to hurt my baby.”
“It’s in our best scientific interest for you to carry the baby to term. Why would we want to hurt your baby?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know what you’re going to do to us. I’m scared, and rightly so.”
Alyssa hesitated.
Then she said, “You have my word that nothing will be done to you without your consent.”
There was a steadfastness in her voice, and an underlying tone of something else that Kate couldn’t decipher. And yet, it was there – a sixth sense warning which niggled at her. She sensed that the FBI interrogator might have said the same thing to the O’Briens.
Besides, she desperately, desperately wanted to see Rust.
Kate said, “All right.”
Oh my God, what am I doing?
“Good choice,” Alyssa said. “You won’t regret it. Now, I hope you’ve packed some of your belongings. If not, we have everything you need right in this facility.”
9
Kate did not know what to expect.
Would Rust be reduced to a shell of what he once was? She hadn’t seen him in a month. Anything could happen. They could have starved him. Deprived him of sleep. Electrocuted him. Burned him. Anything to get him to cooperate with them.
Worse, they could have harvested his organs. Performed open surgery on him to inspect his insides.
Anything!
Alyssa led her down several corridors through several security channels – guards, door card swipes, retinal scans. And then finally to a simple door at the end of a wing.
Kate’s chest felt swollen and fluttery. She was so scared! She didn’t think she could bear it if anything happened to Rust. And how would he react when he saw her pregnant state? She remembered how he had dumped Shamilar once he found out she was pregnant.
Would he dump her too?
Suddenly, she wondered if she had made a mistake in wanting to see Rust. She had foolishly agreed to submit to their investigations, and at the same time, she would expose herself earlier to Rust’s wrath.
What if he made her get rid of the baby?
No, the FBI wouldn’t allow him. But maybe that’s exactly what they wanted!
Oh, she was so confused!
Alyssa scanned her retina, and the door clicked open. It was really a prison after all.
“You locked him in?” Kate accused.
“This is a high security facility. We can’t have unauthorized people wandering around.”
Kate stared at the open door.
“Go on,” Alyssa said.
“And you’ll be locking me in?”
“You will have everything you need in the suite.”
Kate stepped in, feeling out of her depth. Whatever Rust’s reaction would be, she was stuck with him in this room.
*
The door closed behind her with a click.
“Rust?” Kate called. Her heart was beating so fast that it felt like a sparrow was caught in her chest cavity.
Silence.
Oh no. He was hurt.
“Rust?” she called again.
“Kate?” Rust’s voice was incredulous, but it was still unmistakably his voice.
“Rust!” Her voice broke.
He appeared at the doorway. He was in a loose T-shirt and boxer shorts. His hair was tousled and there were dark circles under his eyes. He seemed thinner, but he was still as marvelous looking as ever. If anything, his gauntness had given his cheekbones an ethereal cast.
She flew into his arms.
He embraced her. And they were joined again. Flesh flowing into flesh. Nose buried in hair. Body clasped to body without an inch of space between them. Everything felt right in her world again. And now that she had him in her arms again, she realized how much she had missed him. Missed him touching her, holding her, kissing her – which he was doing now. His mouth found hers and he tasted of pecans, for some reason.
Was that what he had been eating?
“Kate,” he murmured against her lips. “I’ve missed you so much.”
“I’ve missed you.”
They were speaking between kisses. Torrid, searing kisses where tongues pried into mouths and mouths sucked tongues. They tasted each other, imbibed the scent of each other.
“I love you,” he said.
Her heart swelled.
“I love you so much, Rust. I was so scared.”
“But wait.” He edged away, and her spirits sank. He held her at arm’s length and gazed down at her belly. “You are – ”
“I’m sorry,” she said before he could say anything more. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
“But how – ?”
She knew he had asked her to take the contraceptives. Would she go for broke and tell him the truth?
“I-I – ”
She burst into tears.
“Kate,” he said in desperation as he clasped her arms. “Why are you crying?”
“I want your baby so badly.” Now she was babbling. “And I’m so afraid because of what you did to Shamilar – ”
“Did you stop taking the pill?” he suddenly asked.
God.
It was time to declare the truth once and for all. He would hate her, and she would be stuck in here in this seething cauldron of anger.
No more lies.
Well, maybe just half-truths.
She said, “I’m sorry . . . I wish I could say they made me sick or something. B-but I just wanted to – ”
Trap you.
“ – have your baby because I love you so much.” It was true. “And even if you didn’t want it . . . and me . . . I would have been fine with it too. I would have kept the baby anyway and brought him or her up on my own. I just wanted your baby.”
“Kate – ”
To her amazement, he knelt down and clasped her belly.
“I’m not angry,” he assured her.
She was stunned.
“I really am not,” he repeated. “I’m not angry.”
He caressed her swollen belly through her loose dress. His touch was gentle, reverent.
“But . . . you were angry with Shamilar.”
“That’s because I didn’t love her. I love you. I do want a baby with you.” His green eyes were shining with honesty, love and earnestness.”
Even though I tried to deceive you early in our relationship? Her heart blistered. But she didn’t say anything. Sometimes, total honesty was not the best policy. Especially now that things were going well between them again. In a manner of speaking.
Then his face darkened. “But in such circumstances, it isn’t fair. We were so happy. I didn’t realize we were happy, but I know it now. It is only when you lose everything that you understand true happiness in circumspect.”
“You haven’t lost everything. You still have me.” The tears ran down her face.
“No. They have us,” he said. “Because we’re prisoners here.”
She listened as he told her everything he had been through.
He added, “We are being bugged.” He indicated the ceiling. “There are hidden cameras everywhere. Hoping to trip us up into revealing things.”
She knew a warning when she heard it. Her heart started to beat a little faster.
“So she’s listening in to every word we say?”
“Yes.”
His eyes met hers. They clearly said: Do not talk about the shifter community
.
That was a monumental task. What if she inadvertently revealed something she shouldn’t? She wasn’t very good at this cloak-and-dagger thing. But wait. She had managed to conceal not only Rust’s but Carlo’s identity for so long. She did it then, amid a throng of students. Surely she could do it again.
But things were different now! This was the fucking FBI!
Her fear must have shown on her face, because he said, “Don’t worry.” He smiled. “We have nothing to hide.”
He took her in his arms and kissed her again.
He said, “Meanwhile, I’ve missed you.”
A funny feeling blossomed in her loins. She did miss him. Terribly. In every way.
“But – ”
They are watching, she wanted to say. She is watching.
“I don’t care.” He grinned. “Do you?”
“What about the baby?”
“You mean we can’t have sex if you’re going to have a baby?”
“It feels a bit weird.”
“Oh no, it won’t,” he promised.
10
Kate did feel weird.
There were two things going on simultaneously.
They were being watched. By Alyssa, no less, she was sure.
The baby was growing inside her. This was the first time she was going to have sex with Rust in a long time. What if the baby . . . knew?
“Then we’ll have a great story to tell him,” Rust said, leading her to the bed. “This is how you were conceived, we will tell him.”
“Him? How sure are you it’s a ‘him’?”
Alyssa would find out soon enough when they did the ultrasound, Kate thought with dread. But meanwhile –
Rust began to undress himself. He was so cavalier about it. So nonchalant. Was he sure Alyssa was watching? Someone was watching, at least. Or maybe a roomful of people. They had made love in front of Carlo before. They had been in a rave full of naked shifters. She had been bound in front of them.
And now they were going to make love in front of a roomful (or maybe more) of unseen people – all who were studying their every move to find out if shifters made love the normal way. This lovemaking session would go down in the annals of scientific research.