Lab work? At least, he didn't suggest I man the oar at the stinking pot of bubbling animal fat. Life would truly be tortured in bio-fuel production. I followed him back to his enormous lab.
"We make penicillin here." Augustus' camouflaged pants and leather boots whispered as he crossed the shadowy cavernous space, leading the way to two side-by-side refrigerators and adjacent countertops.
Antibiotics are absolutely rare and in the highest demand. Penicillin is one of those things only the wealthiest people can afford to have on hand. Legendary. Precious. Ranking up there with miracles in general. And Augustus played creator in producing it. "I'd always wondered if there was still a place somewhere where medications are manufactured." There has to be. Doesn't it have a shelf life?
He turned a smug smile to me, halting beside a refrigerator. "Shifters take care of our own. And then some. Where would we be if our children or spouses got sick from every little knick they acquired? Now," he chuckled softly as if thinking he understood my surprise to find antibiotics here, "I'm certain you're in for quite a few surprises because you're starting your lab training."
My training? "I'm going to be learning how to run the lab?" First, gardening. Now, the lab. An alien hybrid being taught such secrets? He has to be showing me I'm family now.
"Yes, ma'am." He even nodded for effect and reached for a deep drawer in a lower cabinet next to the refrigerator.
So. He called me ma'am. Not that I'm old. Most women my age look a good decade older by now. You'd think I would, given the stress I've dealt with hiding Langston's secrets. But my youthful appearance had to be credited to Langston as much as my anxiety. Maybe they both cancelled each other out? Maybe I lived because Langston wanted me to live? Not because I am an alien experiment. But because Langston loved me like his own blood. After all, I was half Mother's. And now I'm Augustus's own. I blinked out of my digression to realize Augustus held a plastic tub filled with Petri dishes.
Had he been talking? Lord. Hopefully he hadn't said anything I'd be quizzed over later. I have to pay attention to prove I've got valuable scientific training as well as these important ovaries and a uterus to add to life here like Violet.
He placed the tub on the counter. "Take a look," he said encouragingly, stepping to the left to allow my approach.
The dishes held what looked like mold.
Wouldn't they? Penicillin is mold. I think. I tried to pretend I understood just to satisfy his enthusiastic expression. After all, he seemed so genuine in his attempt to share the lab's secrets with me as well as keep me preoccupied while Lucius was away. "What do you do with this mold?"
"These dishes are the tests for the batch the elder teenage girls and I have just finished. But these samples are tests used to ensure nothing else toxic is growing in the mix." He tucked the tub back into the drawer. "And we want the mold to grow at happy seventy degrees. So, back into your controlled environment, my helpful friends." He tucked the dishes away in the drawer.
So happily. Like he thoroughly enjoyed his chores. But what about other things connected to those communities of helpful mold? Where does the medication go? "Is this lab the origin of penicillin I've taken back East?"
He winked. "It's a secret."
Oh, the big confident Shifter is a handful.
"Now, I'm going to begin in the beginning by teaching you how to grow mold."
Anyone who had food lying around knew that much. "Leave food exposed to the air?"
He grinned. "You did learn from your tutors."
I could have smacked him. "I can only imagine how difficult the production of something so useful may be. So, can you please humor me and quickly run through the steps?"
He went all serious. "Oh, Elise, my dear, if I intimidated you with all that information, you'd run for the hills before growing one spore." He winked again and gave me another encouraging pat on the shoulder. "I've learned from experience that if I just walk you through it step by step you'll warm up to the process much more easily than if I rattled off chemicals, measurements, supplies, and warnings."
Okay. Waiting for Lucius to return won't be a lick of fun. But I will face this challenge. "Maybe I should volunteer to man the bio-fuel oar?"
His palms settled on his hips in a motherly fashion. "Oh, what fun would life be stirring that old cauldron? Be thankful you aren't fracking oil shale for all the oil a Shifter can squeeze out of fine-grained sedimentary rock. That's no fun. Trust me." He winked. "Fracking oil shale is far more stressful than anything in this lab." He shrugged. "But somebody has to do it these days."
****
My caged Wolf rode my ass the two days' ride to the Gods-be-damned open gate of the walled lodge in the forest adjacent to the fields of wheat. And, still, he choked me for release. Maybe he thought I'd pass out so he could finally take over. If only his tail could be hogtied. But Elise's ovulation had rooted in his nostrils and permeated every cell of his being. My being. And sitting in the saddle when every ounce of one's essence screamed turn around was one gargantuan feat. I deserved a far greater prize than being able to take my mate along to the gathering for controlling my inner beast. I studied the sun hovering above the western horizon's stretch of grassland.
The sun would set soon. There's no time like the present to find Hostillian's thick skull and play my sire's games.
Oh, how Augustus loved to stir things up. He'd be remembered as legendary with his schemes. Traps. Covert operations. Matchmaking. If Hostillian caught wind of the true reason for my visit, my hide would be stripped and hung from the log wall for all to see. To warn everyone not to meddle in his affairs with Josie. I passed through the thick posts of the gateway leading to the large log lodge and completely-enclosed stable tucked under the forest's concealing canopy of pines and ash.
A unique outpost. One built in the forest without cutting down one tree. The point being to hide the lodging and stable so aircraft couldn't spot it from overhead. The crops alone were easily seen from above. But we don't want to paint a bull's eye on our Shifters' lodge near something so blatantly agricultural as an expanse of manmade neatly-planted fields. So, the small outpost contained the bare necessities to keep those here working and guarding the fields safely hidden away. Anyone flying over the fields would assume we'd burrowed underground to avoid an extermination ray.
My two teenage brothers exited the stable in the familiar camouflage clothing they always wore, heading for the lodge.
Trajan and Otho. Eighteen months apart, they looked almost identical except Otho was a head taller being the eldest.
Both turned toward the movement Paint and I made.
"Hey!" seventeen-year-old Trajan said, waving, heading my direction, through shadows cast by the trees, across the leaf litter and forest debris that covered the ground surrounding the two buildings.
Still excited to see me. Like that would change because our sire sent him here to learn to grow and harvest wheat. That part of his education had nothing to do with me and the soft spot I had for his intelligence and enthusiasm to grow up. To become a warrior. And he'd grown. Kept growing. The beanpole. But Otho had filled out a bit since I'd seen him in late winter. He'd be considered old enough to mate after he proved he could handle the combine this year.
Both tall. Healthy. They should top out seeing eye-to-eye with our sire. My height.
"What brings you here?" Otho called a few feet away.
The inevitable question. "Augustus sent a part for the combine."
"Well, you're just in time for supper." Trajan grinned. "You're going to stay a few days too. Right?"
Gods. I hated hurting the kid. He'd always loved to haunt my shadow. But my mate is waiting. "Not this trip. I'll be leaving in the morning."
Those blue eyes we all shared stared back at me. "Why? What did you do? Go and mate some female or something?"
The jibe was a friendly poke more than the reflection that Trajan harbored some uncanny sixth sense. But he'd hit the truth nonetheless. I swung a leg over t
he saddle, stepped onto a crunching twig, and turned to their blue stares. "Yes. I have."
They tossed speculative glances between each other like a hot stone from a campfire before anchoring the most ridiculous stares of disbelief back upon me.
As if what I'd declared had been deemed impossible through the ages. "Look. I did. Can we go inside? I've been riding two days. Alone. And I don't feel like being interrogated out here when there's food on the table." I hope. Some meat would keep Wolf busy for awhile.
Otho reached for Paint's reins as he always did with his silent understanding of Trajan's need to spend time with me. "I'll come inside after taking care of Paint."
Older. So much wiser for it. Still filling out but absolutely capable among others his age. Otho could easily replace Augustus if he was old enough when our sire stepped down from leading the clan. "Thanks. Bring the saddlebags?"
Ortho nodded and tugged the reins, leading the horse's black tail away.
"Mated, eh?" Trajan grinned the most ridiculous accusatory grin.
As if I had broken some secret code. A pledge between brothers to remain united until the end. But he'd understand one day. He had many years ahead of him to spend in the great struggle to find a female to mate. And so few lived out here in The Wild. But when he did, his Wolf would make his mark. Take a mate. He'd understand then. "I would hope you find your mate much sooner than I did."
We headed toward the lodge's wooden door.
Night's close. There isn't much of a rush to secure the outpost. Just what is Hostillian up to? "Whose turn is it to secure the gate?"
"Jaguar will when he mans the wall."
Now, our cousin was another interesting youth. Still full of enthusiasm to learn. To strive for a better future free of alien overlordship here on Earth. "Well the job should suit him. Jaguars especially, them being nocturnal."
"Hostillian also put Panther and Quake on scarecrow duty this month."
Why man the wall with two Shifters in the fields at night? What did it matter? I'm not in charge. "Well, sounds like everything's covered on the Western Fields." I planted a boot on the only step leading to the small decking running the length of front of the lodge.
Jaguar shoved the creaking door wide.
Yellow firelight lit the interior infused with the smell of seared fish, sautéed onions, and a hint of smoke from bacon fat.
Making my mouth water enough to keep Wolf busy contemplating a meal. I might actually have a pleasant evening visiting with Hostillian and his teenage crew. I stepped through the doorway into the warmer air of a lodge being warmed by a hearth.
Didius and Geta looked up, grinned a youthful greeting, then continued hustling around the long table flanked by two long benches. Each placing cups and forks, lighting candle wicks inside two shallow bowls, preparing for the evening meal before the night shift set out on all fours to guard the crops in the moonlight.
Movement to the far right, running the space between the floor and ceiling in an open doorway lit with muted light, caught my eye.
Tall. Silent. Self-confidant. Commanding. "Hostillian." I nodded.
He crossed the kind of arms that could lift a mountain, both cloaked in camouflage as if he feared he'd terrify his charges with the mere sight of his strength when concealing them didn't matter, and leaned a shoulder against the doorframe.
Suspiciously. You'd think he'd be glad to see an adult warrior who didn't need to be nagged to shave his head and drag his tail out of bed once or twice seven days a week. But that's why Hostillian was the best Shifter to oversee one of the wheat fields. Hostillian didn't take shit off anyone. Especially teens required to learn how to grow a cash crop. I scanned the bustling exhibition of teenage self-control and returned to Hostillian's arched black eyebrow. "I see you have everything under control."
He didn't miss a heartbeat. "So you've been sent to evaluate me?"
Not one soul in the room dared to pause and stare at the subtle accusation. "No, my friend. I've brought that combine part somebody requested from Augustus." I stepped casually across the wooden planking between him and I. "I'll be leaving at sunrise."
"Oh?" Hostillian's dark eyebrow fell back into its line of indifference. "Why the hurry?"
"Lucius mated," Trajan laughed.
Hostillian leaned slightly to peer around my shoulder beyond my back. "Don't you have something you should be doing, Trajan?"
The man's slow and steady voice could move mountains more than his solid build. Chuckling would have hurt my little brother's feelings though. So, I choked down the sensation and tried to focus on Hostillian's poker face.
Hostillian straightened back into his position, leaning a shoulder against the doorframe and slid his curious gaze to me. "Mated?"
Well, most Shifters jumped at the chance. Maybe not Hostillian when the gorgeous little female set out to claim his tail. But most did. And since the discussion suddenly veered in the perfect direction to aide my mission… "Oh yes. You've heard the stories. My Wolf got one whiff of her and that was all she wrote. Maybe he wrote."
Hostillian's lips split in a controlled grin. "That's what they say." He chuckled a deep almost haunting sound, stepping toward the table. "Well, come eat with me." He dropped his arms and waved me over to where a tray of biscuits and bowl of cooked carrots waited among the hand-carved wooden serving dishes.
Like I'd earned his trust enough where he could drop the Gods-be-damned protective wall he'd decided was a waste of his time to hold up because I have nothing to hide from him. Hell, we'd spent most of our lives together. Albeit, his sire lived in another Territory. Sent him here to educate him in Augustus' lab. Just like Panther and Jaguar. Many Shifters requested Augustus admit their sons into his scientific program. So many that we never had a shortage of males available to help with growing wheat, hunting, processing meat and hides, pouring bullets, and scouring dead cities for supplies our storage room might need. I descended onto the end of the bench across the table from Hostillian who leaned his shoulders back against the wall.
"Expecting yet?" Hostillian asked.
Mate, Wolf whimpered.
Quiet, Wolf. Leave it to Hostillian to bring up the wrong subject. I wagged my head. "Too soon." A lie wouldn't shut Wolf up. But I'd make do. "It won't be long."
Trajan claimed the seat beside me.
"Is it ever long?" Hostillian didn't bother looking at him. "Any other news?"
Well, since I had the floor and the window of opportunity just opened wider… "Tacitus mated."
Hostillian's eyebrows arched as much as they did when he'd heard I mated.
"Yes. My mate's sister." Time to jam a two-by-four beneath the open window of opportunity. "A feisty redhead. Just what Tacitus needs."
Hostillian broke into a low methodical chuckle. "Needs? They're relative, my friend."
Not a good reply. But I'd gotten him talking about mating. "Well, we all can't be as self-sufficient as your independent Wolf."
His chuckle died and he sucked in a sharp breath. "A Shifter who can't leash his Wolf is a man with problems."
Oh. Bad. Bad for Josie. "Maybe. Or maybe not. You've got to learn to respect your inner beast. Know he's in it for your best interest. That he makes the best decisions for you and the rest of humanity. Or you'll never know whether or not you missed the one true chance to do your duty for Earth."
"Duty?" Hostillian's shoulders straightened just enough to indicate his question was a challenge. "Duty's in how you define saving Earth and humanity. Is taking on a distraction certain to keep you focused on anything but extraterrestrials going to help drive them from our world?"
Well, Augustus better ditch the little plan haunting him. Hostillian has no use for Josie's antics. Perfectly stated. Even if it was a roundabout way to put me in my place. At least, I'd managed to phrase the subject in such a way that I looked like I defended my choice to mate. Hostillian didn't appear too concerned. I'd just return to my mate, pass on what I'd learned, and be done with the insanity
of my sire's matchmaking.
****
Violet and the code consumed the afternoon and evening after school each day while Lucius was away. I'd take her down to Augustus in his lab. We'd pour over her scrawlings. With Augustus completely awestruck. Me, wishing I could crawl into bed and sleep away the exhaustion clouding my mind. Langston's doctor called it brain fog. I could call the mind-numbing ache brain fog, but the fatigue wasn't cool and misty. No. It was more like a penicillin-induced inability to think simply because all the steps required to process penicillin could smother every ounce of enthusiasm in a person. Just knowing how one of your mistakes created a poison could keep you up all night. But I tried to pay attention to Violet and Augustus. Tried to focus on my sister's codes he tried to break. Attempted to help find a special code as much as possible. But possible seemed impossible when all I wanted to do was rest my head on the cold soothing hard black countertop.
Loving Lucius (Werescape) Page 23