by Sarah Makela
The worst part about it was I couldn’t help thinking about what a jerk I’d been to Jacob. Yes, he’d pushed me out of my comfort zone, but I should’ve handled it better. Now I’d never be able to make things right between us. He’d been my saving grace and now... now I’d be locked away with the burden of guilt and regret or dead soon enough.
My family probably wouldn’t even notice my absence. No one else would, except him... maybe.
The clicking of hard heels on the tile floor drew my attention to the cage’s entrance. My eyes widened at the sight of the scientist with one of those tranquilizer guns. No, no, no... Not this again.
I jerked to my feet and dodged the dart, shocked at the speed in which I’d moved. One moment I had been sitting in the corner, the next I was on the opposite side of the cage. What? I could hardly comprehend what was happening.
Anger rose within me, sharp and violent, not at all how I normally reacted, but then again, these were unusual circumstances. The scientist’s talk about the full moon had nothing to do with the emotions going through me right now. At least, that’s what I’d keep telling myself.
The scientist backpedaled from the cage, mere milliseconds from me grabbing hold of him. My fingertips had even brushed his coat.
“Calm down, Caitlyn. If you don’t, you might end up hurting yourself. You don’t want to be tranquilized again, do you?” His pulse rate filled my ears, beating rapidly in his neck. “That might hurt my plans. Damn.” The idea of chasing him down and sinking my teeth into that thick vein sounded so sweet.
I jerked away from the cage, disgusted by the thoughts running through my head. What was I thinking?
Full moons, shapeshifters, and werewolves tumbled back to me. This couldn’t be happening. Did this crazy scientist really thinking he could turn werewolves or whatever the hell other shapeshifters they had hidden away here into their next super soldiers? That meant... that meant... me...
I grabbed the small cot they had in the cage and threw it against the bars. Rage and fear mixed in a potent cocktail, sending me spiraling into a red haze of emotions. One moment I was ripping the cot apart and snarling the most guttural sounds I’d ever heard, and the next, my body was dropping to the ground.
When I woke up, the cot was gone, replaced by a flat mattress that was speckled with, what looked like, dried blood. I jerked off the mattress and touched the new bandages on my back. The wound was becoming less of a problem.
My body burned in a new way. Fire rose between my legs, giving me an unquenchable need for sex as if I were an animal in heat. This couldn’t be happening to me.
I sank my teeth into my lower lip. Moisture dripped down my chin, and I licked my lips. Blood. I must’ve bitten down a lot harder than I’d expected. At least it distracted me—barely—from the need eating at me. If I didn’t find relief soon, I’d go crazy.
My body ached with the desire to be filled. If Jacob had been here right now, I would’ve thrown my morals to the wind and jumped him.
CHAPTER SIX
Jacob
Pain lanced through my skull, and I watched the doors shut behind me. They hadn’t taken my I’m-an-unfortunate-guy-with-a-broken-down-car angle very well. Well, the guy at the gate had but no one else. I let them manhandled me, so I could get inside.
If it weren’t for the fact that Kelly was counting on me, I would’ve stripped off my clothes and shifted. My wolf howled at me with a frenzied need to shed my human skin, fight back and run free in answer of the moon’s call. But I couldn’t do that. I needed to fight my instincts if I were to win her back. There was still time before my beast took matters into his own hands at the moon’s peak but not a lot, so I had to work fast.
The man in the lab coat strolled into the hallway where two guards were holding my arms and another aimed a gun at me. To be honest, I was surprised by their level of hostility. These people were prepared. There had to be more than meets the eye here. Cameras and guards were everywhere. This went beyond government security. Besides, these men weren’t wearing military uniforms. They were dressed in black fatigues. They had to be guns for hire.
From their steady heartbeats, I could tell the men around me were completely at ease, confirming my suspicions. This was something they dealt with regularly. However, none of them smelled like the two men at Kelly’s apartment, but I’d seen the van drive through the gates. They had to be here.
“Listen, guys, I’m just trying to find a phone. It’s late, and my car broke down a few miles back.” I tried to sound like a young, confused, college guy who got stranded, but they weren’t buying it. Either that or they just didn’t care.
The scientist shook his head. “Who was the imbecile that decided it was a good idea to bring this young man in here? What the hell are we going to do now? Did any of you think about that?” He gave each of them severe looks in turn, and the guards actually flinched at the scolding.
Surprising. My hunch was right. This cocky scientist was someone none of them could afford to piss off.
“Uh, sir, I’m sorry. We figured he might be trying to steal secrets, so we decided to question him further.” The one who held the gun on me spoke, but he fidgeted a little, the wind taken from his sails. “What would you like us to do with him?”
The scientist stared back at me, lifting his chin. “Well, the new subject I brought in has been reacting differently than expected. I had to tranquilizer her, which may interfere with my experiments. Hmm...” He narrowed his eyes, and a smug grin curved his lips. “However, maybe we can see how our new subject takes to the trespasser. If my calculations are correct, we’ll only need to worry about scraping his remains off the cage’s floor. Send someone to deal with his car, we don’t need any asking questions.”
I widened my eyes. I didn’t even need to feign surprise. Maybe I was overreacting, but I hoped they weren’t researching shapeshifters. No one should’ve known about my species. We kept our secret fiercely. There had to be some kind of mistake.
Besides, I knew Kelly wasn’t a werewolf or any kind of shapeshifter. I would have smelled it on her.
The guards dragged me down the hallway from which the scientist had emerged. I remained vigilant, making sure I kept track of how we got to where we were going. The scent of bleach masked anything else I could hope to discover with my nose. When I broke Kelly out, I needed to make sure we could get out of here as quickly as possible.
In the distance, I could hear something pacing around, but they were too far away to know whom, or even what, it was. The ventilation in the building steadily drowned all but the loudest of noises, so I couldn’t make sense of much by sound alone. This place crippled my heightened sense of hearing as if they knew what my kind were capable of.
We turned another corner, and the scientist pushed past us to unlock the door. “In there,” he said, his lips a tight line of annoyance.
A snarl and the rattling of bars drew my attention to the cage. The sight of Kelly naked and locked in the cage shattered me. I needed to keep my calm if we were going to see this through.
The cage door used a keycard, so I’d have to steal the scientist’s without him noticing. Damn it. This didn’t get any easier, did it?
Kelly finally looked in our direction. Blood drizzled down her chin, and she smelled different from when we’d been making out in her apartment. However, the overpowering scent of her arousal threw me for a loop.
Hunger ripped through me, stirring my beast, but right now, that would be the worst thing to happen. If my beast got loose, the chances of us getting out of here weren’t as good. Although, these men would pay the price of subjecting Kelly to this.
She opened her mouth as if to say something, but I shook my head discreetly. If she spoke, the scientist and guards might suspect my real reason of being here.
The scientist eyed me, satisfaction gleaming in his gaze. He obviously wasn’t reading Kelly’s body language very well. “I think you better say your prayers now, son. You won’t live long enoug
h to do so once you’re put in there.”
“She seems nice enough. More than I can say about you.” I wanted the talk to be over. I needed to be with her, to comfort her, and to get her the hell out of here.
Shaking his head, the scientist swiped his keycard, then he let it dangle back on his hip with one of those retractable ID holders. The guards shoved me forward, and before the scientist could move, I rammed into him with humanly force. My fingers brushed the keycard, but the scientist pushed me inside the cage before I could snatch what I wanted, then he slammed the door shut. “Idiot youth. Now I know why I stay in the lab.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
Kelly
I couldn’t believe my eyes. How had Jacob gotten brought into all this? While I’d really wanted to see him again, this wasn’t what I’d had in mind. Now we were both stuck in this place to be some crazy scientist’s guinea pigs, the model for their new super soldiers.
Jacob stared down at me, his nostrils flared. He let his gaze trail down my body. Lust burned in his eyes for a brief moment, then he shook his head as if chasing those thoughts away. He dropped to his knees in front of me. “Are you okay?”
“Fuck me. Please.” The ache between my legs was almost physically painful. If he didn’t give me release, I would wither and die from the overbearing torment. It was almost as if I was an animal in heat.
He pressed a fingertip against my lips. “No, it’ll be different from that. I’ll make love to you. However, I need to get you to safety first.”
I wanted to scream in frustration, not wanting him to deny my request. An animalistic growl rumbled in my throat. “Now.” My voice was gravelly and alien from how I normally sounded.
Jacob jerked away from me. Horror widened his eyes, and it smelled like a fine perfume. However, unlike the scientist, his pulse didn’t accelerate much. “What did they do to you?” He shook his head. “Never mind that. We need to figure out how to get out of here. Do you understand?”
Emotions welled in my chest, and tears rolled down my cheeks. I didn’t want it to be this way, but I nodded. “Even if we escape, they know where I live.” I looked him in the eye, despair wrecking my insides. “They did something to me. I’m different.”
“It’s going to be okay, Kelly. I’ll make sure they never find you again, and I’m different too.”
My mouth dropped open, and I stared up at him. “What are you?”
“We’ll talk about it later, okay?”
“Promise me?” I tugged my lower lip between my teeth, surprised to find that my lip no longer hurt from biting into it so hard earlier. My body was healing at amazing rates.
Shedding his shirt, he handed it to me. I marveled at his sculpted chest, wanting to run my hands all over that muscular expanse. The burning desire inside me didn’t need more fuel to fan the flames.
“I promise. Put that on. It might not cover a lot, but I don’t want them seeing you naked.” When I was clothed, he pulled me into his arms, resting his chin on the top of my head. Anger vibrated in his strong grip, but somehow I knew he would never do anything to hurt me. He lowered his voice so that I could barely hear him. “There are others like me. Others that will look for me.”
“How do you know they’d think to look for you here?” I pushed back from him just enough to look into his eyes.
The muscle in his jaw ticked, and he glanced out over my head again. “I know because I... I just have to believe we won’t die here. Or worse. If we could get to my car, I could get my phone and call my brother.”
He had family. Someone who cared about him. Yes! We might actually survive this. No one would care if I made it out, alive or not, except for Jacob, and he was right here with me. The fact he had someone who cared for him meant we might actually be rescued, especially if that someone was a shapeshifter. Hope wasn’t pointless.
“I just don’t know how we’ll manage that.” Jacob pulled away from me and inspected the bars. He grabbed them and the muscles in his back and arms flexed with the strain as he tried bending them. “These bars are not prison quality.” He glanced back at me, grimacing. “Please don’t ask.” He closed the distance between us and then leaned against the concrete wall next to me. “Even with both of us trying, I can’t see how we’d be able to break out of here unless the scientist gets close again.”
“The last time he got that close I attacked him. I doubt he’ll do that again.”
“Maybe, maybe not. I guess it depends on if we give him a reason to or not.” He ran a hand through his blond hair, and I wanted to do the same to him. I wanted him to fulfill my needs, so we could forget about what was going on around us. Besides, it didn’t look like either of us would be getting out of here anytime soon.
His nostrils twitched, and he shot a look my way. Hunger flashed through his eyes, and I knew he wanted me as badly as I wanted him, if not more. “We can’t, Kelly. What if someone—” He trembled with effort, and his jaw clenched and unclenched, then he closed the distance between us. His mouth descended on mine, and we toppled to flat mattress, my hands racing to memorize every inch of his body.
Jacob pushed up, holding himself above me. “I won’t be able to stop once we start. If you don’t want this—” He froze, and I heard him inhale. “You’re a wolf. They made you a were—”
“No more talking.” I pulled at his belt, and the snap of leather breaking made me wince. “Sorry, I’ll buy you a new one if we ever get out of here.”
He chuckled, humor lit his eyes. “Let me handle the rest. Just sayin’. I need these pants or we’ll both be naked.” The unzipping of his zipper was a glorious sound. On a good day, Jacob was heavenly, but now, I wanted him more than I’d ever wanted anything in my life.
He leaned in and kissed me, taking my breath away. His hands slid up the shirt I wore, caressing my breasts, and I felt the press of his cock against my belly.
I wrapped my arms and legs around him, not willing to let him back out now. I pushed against him, needing to feel him inside me. While I’d wanted him earlier this evening, my desire for him now was a palpable, choking thing like trying to breathe water.
The feeling of him impaling me sent shivers down my spine and I moaned, not caring if we were locked away in this cage. The guards and scientist were out of sight, and my senses only picked up Jacob and myself, no one else.
“You’re so tight and wet. God. I don’t want to hurt you.” Jacob’s voice was a low rumble, and for a moment, it all made sense. He was a werewolf. He had to be. His eyes when we’d made out, his strength, the fact he’d found me.
“You won’t hurt me. I’m like you.” I smiled at him, meeting him stroke for delicious stroke.
“You figured it out?”
“Yeah.” My voice broke as a wave of pleasure crashed into me. Talking was not an option, and apparently, Jacob felt the same way. He brushed his lips against my throat, pounding into me until climax poised for the strike. I curled my toes, always hearing about how sex could be this great but never knowing for myself.
His eyes glowed amber as if possessed by the beast inside him, a beast I was fast becoming more aware of. While I couldn't suppress the fear that I was something of folklore and horror movies, maybe it would help us out of this situation... and bridge the gap between Jacob and me.
Faint voices caught my attention, and I strained to hear between the smacking of flesh and our feverish moans of pleasure.
"Perhaps, I underestimated you, Dr. Peacock. You may have found the secret behind what we need to reach our goal of super soldiers. Most of our specimens have a visible mark providing possible evidence that they were turned. Except, I don't see one on him. This couple could have a child that's more resilient than what we've witnessed, and it'll be teachable. This could be what we've been missing." A door closed in an adjoining room. The window was a one-way mirror. They were watching us.
How could I have been that stupid? Just because I couldn’t smell them didn’t mean they weren’t there. Part of me wanted to
push Jacob off me. Knowing we were being watched made me feel vulnerable, helpless, violated.
Jacob gripped my chin hard, forcing me to stare at him. “Keep your eyes on me, babe. Only on me.”
My eyes widened. He heard what they were saying too. Yet—
“Put them out of your mind. Come for me. I know you’re close. I feel your thighs quivering against my hips.” Jacob brushed his lips over mine. “You’re beautiful, and you’re mine.”
Pleasure ripped through me like a beast with jagged claws. The intensity of it forced a scream from me until my throat hurt. The orgasm flooded through me, wave after wave until I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to stand again.
Jacob all but collapsed on top of me, his hot seed filling me. I wrapped my arms around him, caressing the back of his head and pressing kisses against his neck. Now the scientists had ammunition to hurt us both.
They could do whatever it was they did to one or both of us. Kill, experiment, maim. Jacob was my strength and my weakness. I’d do whatever I could to make sure he was safe, and I knew he’d do the same thing for me. Just the fact he was here proved that.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Jacob
The words spoken from the other room haunted me. These men were researching my kind in hopes of building a super soldier. My chest ached at the thought of becoming one of their test subjects, having children for them to mold into hopeless monsters.
Like I’d told her, we couldn’t pay attention to them right now.
My lust was sated, for now, but I needed to shift before the wolf ripped me open, forcing the change. The moon was nearly at its zenith. I could feel it in my bones.