Taken by the Beast

by Natasha Knight

  “Kayla?” his soft voice asked. “Put the gun away, you’re going to scare the girl to death,” he snapped at the soldier. “You can come out, Kayla. No one will hurt you.”

  Kayla knew she had no options. She needed to keep Rachel safe now and there was only one way to do that. She slowly stood and looked at the man. She knew right away this was Eric Maddox, the man who had helped them to escape.

  He smiled at her and held out his hand. “Are you all right? I’m sorry for barging in in the middle of the night.”

  “No, you’re not.”

  “No, I’m not.” He kept smiling and the look of it chilled her.

  “Elijah’s not here.”

  “I know. He’s not the one I came for. I needed him to go ahead before we came to collect you, my dear.”

  “What do you mean? You helped us.”

  “And now you’re helping me. It’s the way the world turns, isn’t it? An eye for an eye.”

  “I don’t think that’s what they meant by that,” she said. “Is Elijah hurt?”

  “No, I don’t think so. According to my device, he’s still on the move. He is almost on the grounds. He can move fast, can’t he?” he said.

  “What device?”

  He checked his watch. “I’ll tell you in the car,” he said. “I don’t want to hurt you, Kayla, but it will be up to you how we proceed to the vehicle.”

  The soldier stepped forward as if on cue.

  Kayla walked ahead of them and up the stairs, never once glancing in the direction of the safe room. Men lined the hallway of the house and watched as she made her way outside.

  “We’ll take this one,” Eric said, opening the door for her. She stepped up into the back seat and two soldiers sat on either side of her. Eric slipped into the front passenger seat and in a matter of moments, they drove away from the sleepy street.

  “How did you find me?” she asked.

  “We’d planted a small chip in the back of Elijah’s neck while he was unconscious. We’ve known where you’ve been all along, but needed to give Elijah a head start.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I don’t want to be there when he sees the state of his brother,” Eric smiled as if it was friendly banter.

  “It was a trap all along, wasn’t it? You helping us?”

  “It did all work out beautifully, didn’t it?”

  “Why?”

  “I told Elijah already. Phillip was ill-informed and out of control. My plans are different from his.”

  “What plans?” she asked, knowing all along.

  “I plan on breeding the pack. You, my dear, will make plenty of wolf babies for me. I have to make sure I thank Elijah for letting us know about you,” he said. “When he killed your boyfriend back in Detroit and you went missing, well, it wasn’t too difficult to figure things out after that. Ah, all in all, I think things are going perfectly. Why don’t you try to get some rest. It’s a bit of a drive from here, I’m afraid. I hadn’t known about this location. The house is registered under a name I don’t recognize, but must have been his safe house all along. Elijah definitely wanted to keep you hidden, didn’t he? Keep you all to himself.”

  “He’s going to kill you,” she said.

  “I don’t think so,” Eric answered. He checked his watch. “We should be there just in time,” he said, returning his attention to the road.

  * * *

  It took Elijah that day and part of the night to get to the complex.

  The first two guards he killed easily. They hadn’t expected a wolf, after all, but the surprise element wasn’t going to last forever.

  He remained in wolf form. He couldn’t take a chance he’d be hit with the anti-shift drug and wasn’t sure what sort of bullets the soldiers’ guns contained. He was on the grounds, but the property was huge. At least it was wooded and offered some cover. He could sense there was something not quite right though. He should have run into more guards; it shouldn’t be this easy.

  He went around back of the largest building. He listened, trying to hear the sound of voices, trying to hear his brothers. He should be able to sense them. If they were here, that is. Or had they been so sedated for the last eight years that he couldn’t even hear them? Feel them?

  He didn’t see or hear a soul. Instinct told him it was a trap, but he couldn’t turn back now and he could no longer remain in wolf form, not if he wanted to enter the buildings quietly. He shifted and took the clothes off one of the guards he’d killed. Not a perfect fit, but they would do. He then slung the gun over his shoulder. He chose a window and tried it. Locked. He moved to the next one. This was also locked, but the third one slid open.

  The room was a sort of janitor’s closet, he assumed. He stepped over the things and listened at the door. When he heard nothing, he turned the handle and opened it.

  The building was quiet, too quiet. He came upon what he assumed was the center of the place, a large open space with a second level he could see from the first. He remained hidden in the corridor, thinking there should be people here.

  Just as he thought it, two men in lab coats walked by, looking at a file and in a heated discussion. They were oblivious to his presence.

  “Maddox will be here soon. We need to be prepared,” one said to the other.

  He’d known Eric Maddox was the mastermind of this new trap. His helping them escape Phillip was part of his plan all along. He’d likely used Elijah to eliminate Phillip.

  He watched them disappear into an elevator and counted the floors on the old-fashioned display, all below ground, deep beneath the earth. Elijah walked across the hall and tentatively opened a door. He’d found the right one; it was the stairwell. He heard the heavy footfalls of more men and quickly slipped through the door. Taking the steps two at a time, he went downward, listening all the while for the sound of people, but only when he was eight floors down, did he hear the two men.

  “They should be here within the hour,” one said to the other.

  Elijah opened the door a crack just as the two men pulled another door down the hall open. From inside the room, came a familiar scent: that of wolf.

  Elijah’s heart raced and it took all he had not to charge into that room. But he waited until the door was closed behind the men before deciding on his next move. There was no sound in the hallway and he hadn’t seen a single guard stationed here. Was Eric so sure of himself he didn’t think he’d need any? He stalked toward the door and listened. They weren’t talking anymore, but he could clearly hear the sound of glass, metal, papers. He turned the handle of the door and decided in that instant to shift and pushed his way into the large, white room, taking the occupants by surprise.

  One guard shot his gun, but Elijah was faster. He attacked and killed the man with little effort before turning his attention to the two in lab coats. One opened a drawer and raised a weapon toward him with a trembling hand. Elijah lunged, dropping him to the ground with his full weight as he sunk his teeth into the man’s throat. The other man ran toward the door, screaming, but Elijah took him down, pushing the door closed in the process. Once the body lay still beneath him, he shifted and turned to take in the room. It was large, all white, and steel. A lab, a high-end lab. Along one wall stood three cages with thick bars. Two were empty and he wasn’t expecting what he found in the middle cage.

  “Collin,” he said, his expression pained. “What have they done to you?” he asked.

  Collin, Elijah’s older brother, made an effort at a grin. Eight years ago, Collin and Elijah would be matched in battle. They were the same size and build. Collin had always been Elijah’s favorite, the one he looked up to. The only one he’d take orders from.

  “Don’t open it,” Collin said, remaining seated in the corner. “It’s rigged to explode.”

  Elijah touched the bars and Collin pointed at the blinking light at the top right of the door.

  “It’ll go off when you open the door,” he said. “Which isn’t locked, by the way.”

>   “Collin, you look like shit, brother,” he said.

  Collin smiled. “You’re looking fit, healthy.”

  “How long have you been here? And Marcus, is he alive?”

  “We’ve been at this facility for the last two years. They’ve kept Marcus fairly well-sedated, but healthy. I was the one they did quite some testing on. They needed to keep one of us for our seed,” he said. “He always was a lucky bastard,” Collin added, attempting a joke.

  “I’m getting you out of there,” Elijah said, already looking for an alternative to the door.

  “As much as I’d like that, you don’t have time. Eric planned what happened a few days ago, you killing Phillip. It was a trap all along. Half the soldiers had pledged their loyalty to Eric already; Phillip was clueless. Deserved what I hope you gave him?”

  “He pissed himself before he died,” Elijah answered, looking closely at Collin. He’d grown so much thinner, weaker. His shoulders slumped now, something they never used to do. Patches of skin were red or bruised, some areas still raw. “What did they do to you?”

  “Had to test the anti-shift drug on someone. It took a long time to perfect it, but since then, they’ve been feeding it to Marcus, keeping him sedated. They stopped giving it to me, didn’t even need to anymore.”

  “I’m sorry, Collin.”

  “What for? None of this is your fault.”

  “If I’d been there, maybe I could have done something.”

  “Like get yourself killed. Listen to me now, Elijah. Eric’s plan was that you find me. He’s taken Marcus to the other building, the smaller one.”

  “I saw it when I got onto the grounds.” This also explained the lack of guards in this building. Anyone he left behind would be expendable.

  “Plan was I’d be too weak to talk. Been doing a pretty good job of fooling them, I guess. You’d kill the fuckers there,” he nodded toward the two dead scientists. “Then open the door to save me. Boom and we’d both be dead. They’d have Marcus and a girl they’ve found to rebreed the pack and keep control of it.”

  “Kayla!”

  “That’s her.”

  “But they won’t find her. I’ve hidden her with Rachel. I ditched the car; there’s no way they would have tracked us.”

  “Wrong. Eric planted a tracking device on you, Elijah. It’s in the back of your neck. They probably did it when you were knocked out.”

  Elijah touched the back of his neck. He’d felt nothing; maybe a dull ache, but nothing significant. “Have they got her?” he asked.

  “That I don’t know, but I’d be willing to gamble yes.”

  “All right, we’re getting out of here, then I’m going after them.”

  “Can’t, Elijah. You don’t have a choice.”

  “I do! And if I have to, I’ll come back for you. We’re not setting off the bomb.”

  “Have to, only way they’ll think you’re out of the picture. Only way you’ll have a chance. You can rescue Marcus and Kayla. Kill Maddox, start again. Look at me, Elijah. I’m weak and I’m tired. This will be my last heroic act. We don’t have a choice.”

  “Don’t talk like that, Collin. I’m going to get the others and then I’m coming back for you. That’s that.”

  Collin inhaled and exhaled deeply. “Kill that bastard slow for me, Elijah.”

  “I will.” Elijah placed his hand through the bars of the cage and Collin reached forward to take it. “I love you, brother.”

  “Me too. Now go get that son of a bitch.”

  Tears filled Elijah’s eyes but he checked those, turning them into anger, rage. One last look at Collin and he headed out the door. He was no longer afraid of running into any soldiers. Eric would have cleared them out of the building if he was planning on blowing it up. Up the stairs he went and out the door. Birds sang outside and the sun was high as he made his way into the woods and through to the other building. Just when he reached the back of it, an explosion rocked the grounds, sending him to the forest floor for cover.

  * * *

  Everything shook. Kayla’s bonds held her upright, but the explosion rocked the room. She screamed, closing her eyes and covering her face as best as she could with her arms bound overhead as they were.

  The sound of Eric’s laughter made her turn to look at the man.

  “Ah, Elijah’s here,” he said, his eyes boring into hers. “Or was.”

  Kayla’s mouth fell open and she pulled at her bonds. “What did you do? What?” she screamed at him. She turned to Marcus, who stood at the bars of his cage, his face pure rage, his expression fierce. The resemblance between him and Elijah was remarkable. Same golden tiger eyes, same mouth and nose, same sharp features. He too was large, almost as big as Elijah. And the only difference was that for Elijah’s blond hair, Marcus’ was black, the opposite.

  He growled at Eric and the men, shaking the thick bars.

  “Down, wolf,” Eric said. One of the guards poked his weapon through the bars and into his ribs. “If you can’t behave yourself in front of a lady, I’ll have to up your dose of the drug.”

  Kayla watched Marcus narrow his eyes at the man, his knuckles turning white with the power of his grip on the bars. He glanced in her direction and let go, backing up into his cell.

  “My apologies for him,” Eric said, coming close to her. “No manners in these animals. We’ll try to do better with the next generation.”

  A growl came from inside Marcus’ cage.

  Eric ignored it and continued. “He’s become used to the drug; it doesn’t sedate him like it did Elijah. But it does prevent the shift; that’s all that’s required.”

  “What was the explosion?” Kayla asked.

  “That would be the signal that Elijah found Collin. Brothers reunited. In hell.”

  “I hate you,” she spat at him. “I’m going to kill you.”

  “You’re going to have to wait in line,” Marcus’ low voice came. It was the first time she’d heard him speak. He had the same serious tone Elijah always had, but his voice was deeper, rougher. She wondered if that was because he’d likely not been speaking much in the last years of his captivity.

  “Now, as my guests, I expect polite behavior. Let me introduce you, I’ve been rude. Kayla,” he said, turning her to look at Marcus. “This is Marcus, Elijah’s younger brother. The youngest of the pack, I believe?”

  Marcus didn’t reply; he only glared at Eric.

  “Ah, well, haven’t been able to tame him in eight years, can’t expect much now. Marcus, this is Kayla. I believe she was intended for Elijah but, well, that didn’t work out. Lucky you, you’ll get a shot at this beautiful young thing.”

  “Leave her alone, Eric. She’s nothing to you. There’s no one left who can carry a wolf child and you know it. Phillip took care of that, if you recall.”

  “Phillip wasn’t as thorough as he thought. Kayla’s father was a shifter. She carries the gene. Although it’s obviously not dominant in her, her offspring have a chance. When I mate you two, that chance grows.”

  “You won’t be mating anyone,” Marcus said.

  “My, you have a lot to say today, don’t you?” He turned to one of the guards and nodded. “I thought we’d do this the old-fashioned way. A gift for you, Marcus. What do you think?”

  Marcus lunged at the bars so fast, Kayla missed the movement, only seeing the rattling of the cage and hearing his deep, inhuman growl.

  “I didn’t think so,” Eric said. “Sedate him,” he told a guard.

  Just then, a window burst, crashing inward, a huge wolf landing on top of the guard who would have shot another dose of the drug into Marcus. Marcus shook the cage harder and Kayla screamed. Eric fumbled in his desk drawer and the other guard shot at the wolf, but Kayla kicked his leg in time to send the bullet ricocheting off the walls. Marcus ducked down and Kayla turned away, screaming again. Elijah lunged at the second guard and took him down as Eric lifted the pistol and pointed it at him.

  His hand trembled. “Shift back,�
� he demanded.

  Elijah stalked slowly toward him. Kayla watched in terror.

  “It will kill you if you’re in wolf form, Elijah. Shift!” Marcus yelled.

  The door crashed open just then, more guards entering, guns blazing. Elijah took advantage of the distraction, lunged, taking Eric to the ground, the gun sliding across the floor just close enough to Marcus’ cage for him to grab it and shoot at the first guard, then the second. Kayla had noticed when they’d gotten here that there weren’t many guards in this smaller building. After the explosion, the ones that were on property must have run to the main building, and with Eric thinking Elijah was dead, he wouldn’t have called for reinforcements.

  Elijah growled fiercely, his face inches from the older man’s. He shifted, the sight of it still so strange to see, so against all laws of nature.

  “Elijah,” Kayla cried.

  He ran to the door, closing and securing it before he freed Kayla. He took her into his arms and held her and she wrapped hers around him, crying with relief.

  “I thought you were dead,” she said. “He said you were dead.”

  “Are you all right? Did they hurt you?”

  “No, you were in time.”

  “Rachel?”

  “In the safe room.”

  “Brother,” came the quiet voice from inside the cage.

  Elijah looked over at him, but took a minute to pick Eric up off the floor and dragged him along to the cage.

  He held Eric with ease. “Where the hell is the key?” he asked Eric.

  Eric shook his head.

  “Here, try these,” Kayla called out, tossing a set of keys to him.

  Elijah caught them, starting with the first one. It took six tries but eventually, the heavy lock turned and Marcus burst from the cage, taking Eric immediately from Elijah.

  “Collin?” Marcus asked, never taking his eyes from Eric’s now-trembling form.

  Elijah shook his head. “He wasn’t supposed to do it,” he said.

  “I’m going to kill you slowly. I only wish I had eight years to do it,” Marcus said.

  “He’s not worth it, Marcus. Kill him now, let’s go. Rachel’s been waiting a long time.”