“Found it,” Caelius says, “but it’s not the ventilation system. It’s an elevator, but we need access.”
“Show me,” Celmund says. “Shit, that’s with your retina.”
“Can’t you get us in?” I ask. We need to find a way below, as I think all the main information and what we are looking for is downstairs.
“Yeah, just give me a minute,” Celmund states.
“Sure, take your time,” Brandr mumbles as he continues down the corridor to the next door. Entering, we find another office; this one has three desks and files and pictures of the Keres. Looks like we are getting closer.
“Upload all the information on those computers to Celmund,” I state as I start going through files. A lot of the information on these files is the same as what they have on the database.
“I’m in. Move towards where Caelius is, and I will get you down there,” Celmund states.
“Brandr and Bion, stay on this level and carry on sweeping through what they have here. The rest, move towards where Caelius is,” I order. Looking over at Brandr, he nods as he moves towards the last computer. I walk out of the room and make my way towards where I can sense Caelius. When I arrive, the others are already there.
“We are ready,” I state. A minute later, Celmund tells Caelius to scan his eye. The elevator doors open, and we step in. As it descends, we prepare our weapons just in case we encounter any of those enhanced specimens they have been creating. As the doors open, we step out into a room with screens on one wall from top to bottom. I see some of the screens are filming the outside of our compound from different angles. There are others with images from all the other chapters.
“Fuck,” Burkhart mutters, “they’ve been monitoring us all this time.”
“Show Celmund,” I order, and I know that Burkhart will get it through to Celmund. I want all the cameras monitoring us pulled down as soon as we get back. I know Celmund will get the ones in the other chapters deactivated as soon as possible. I move towards my left where I see a door. Stepping inside, I stop. There are five human-sized cages, and in each cage is a woman. It’s clear these women have been tortured somehow. I want to find the person responsible for this and make them suffer the same way they have made so many suffer.
One woman who sees me approach moves back against the rear of the cage, professing to the pain she has endured previously. “I’m here to help you.” I try not to let my anger show as not to frighten her more than she already is, but she continues to quiver at the back of the cage. “My men will take you all out of here. Don’t be scared. I promise I’m not going to hurt you.” I hear Wulf approach, but I don’t break eye contact with the woman. Taking hold of the lock, I give it a yank. Opening the cage door, I step back.
“Come out, sweetheart, let us help you,” I say, “Wulf, open the others.” I hear Wulf walking around, opening cages, but I concentrate on the woman before me. I can see the fear in her eyes like a wounded animal, and I wish I could make all this go away for her. If the government hadn’t found out about us, these women wouldn’t have been messed with. We need to stop this; we need to make sure we close this project down. We can’t let them continue hurting innocents because of their thirst for power.
Her eyes shift to the cage where Wulf is gently lifting one of the women out, and then she looks back at me. Slowly, she starts to crawl forward, but I know any sudden movement and she will be back in her corner. “Would you like me to help you out?” I ask, but she shakes her head as she drags herself to her hands and knees and then slowly straightens. Burkhart and Caelius enter the room and then stop when they see what we are doing.
“Help these women to the lift. I want them out of here,” I state, and Caelius and Burkhart nod. “And then come find us.”
“Bion, there are women coming up. Take them outside. Celmund, get Striker to come help the women out of here.” We have Striker and his men from the Joburg chapter on standby in case we need assistance. They will be able to keep the women safe until we can let them go back to their lives.
“Wulf, let’s move,” I state. I want to find Katya and get this over and done with. We make our way out of this room and walk towards what looks like a lab. As we start to enter, I stop. I can hear breathing. I lift my hand, and Wulf stands still and waits for my signal. I look inside, and to the far left, I see a man bent over charts; I start to make my way towards him, but then I hear voices coming towards us. Looking around, I incline my head towards what looks like a door into an office. Wulf and I slide inside and wait.
“Don’t you miss homemade apple pie?” a male voice says as it nears.
“Was never a fan of apple pie.” At Katya’s reply, I place my hand on Wulf’s shoulder as I feel him tense. I see their shadows as they walk into the office. “Ben, what are you still doing here?” Katya asks.
“Something in the analysis of the men isn’t looking right. I’m trying to figure it out,” the man called Ben answers.
“What’s wrong? These seem to be stronger, faster, and more resistant than the previous ones,” Katya says.
“They’re stronger and faster, but they will never be able to take down one of them, and the bending of the elements just isn’t working. Also, I can’t get a connection between any of the women and the men.”
The fuckers are trying to replicate us, but I’m sure they will be able to control them somehow.
“MS21 was able to move that table yesterday with his mind,” Katya states.
“It’s small bursts of power, and that’s because we are siphoning it from the women, but it wears out quickly,” Ben explains. “We need to get one of them in here. I have to be able to test them thoroughly. The Keres’ powers we got are way too unstable for us to be able to have a correct analysis.”
I’ve heard enough; it seems Katya will be able to give us all the answers we need, as she seems to know what is happening.
I step out of the office. “Would I do?”
All three snap around to face me. The other man who entered with Katya moves his hand down towards his weapon, but before he can touch it, I have him up in the air and against the wall.
Katya’s eyes widen. “Draco.” Before she can say anything else, Wulf is behind her and has her arms behind her back. “Wulf, you won’t hurt me,” she says, but I can see the fear in her eyes.
“Help,” the guy against the wall suddenly yells.
“Bad idea,” I mutter as I look towards him. I take all the air from around him, which has him dropping to the ground and starting to gasp for air. I can hear running footsteps and know that soon, we’ll have company.
“How did you get in here?” Ben asks, but we don’t reply.
“We are getting company,” I update the other men.
“We’ll be there in a minute,” Burkhart states, and I can hear the excitement in his voice.
“Let her go.” I can see these must be the enhancements as I look at the three men who have just stepped into the lab.
“Make him,” I state, curious to see what they can do.
“Sorry, are we late?” Caelius asks conversationally as he steps behind the men. One of them turns and tries to kick Caelius, who ducks before his foot can hit him. The other one jumps at Burkhart but finds himself on his back before he can blink. The one who spoke rushes towards Wulf. He’s fast but not as fast as us. Before he can reach Katya and Wulf, I have him on the ground and my foot is on his neck.
I look over my shoulder at Ben and see his awestruck face. “I think you still have a lot of work to do. They are nowhere close to us.” I step down and break the neck of the man beneath my foot. “Finish them,” I say as I look up at Caelius and Burkhart.
“Wulf, I want him,” I state as I incline my head towards Ben. “Take them up.” I can hear running feet and know that we’re going to have more company. Burkhart and Caelius have already walked outside to confront whoever is coming, and Wulf is dragging a fighting Katya and Ben behind him as he makes his way toward the elevators. I walk o
ut to see Burkhart fighting two enhancers and Caelius holding off three. I feel like letting out my frustration on someone. This whole thing with the agency and now the women being upset with us has my energy fighting to get out.
Caelius sees me coming and moves to one of the men to his right, leaving the other two to me. “Come on, show me what you have,” I mutter, and let them come at me. I’m going to close down this project, and then I’m going to be able to live the rest of my existence in peace.
KATRINA 13
“The men have arrived,” Scarlett says as she walks in. We are all sitting in the entertainment room, having arrived earlier. Ceric made sure to bring us all back as soon as we were done, five Elementals from the Joburg chapter escorting us. “They brought Katya and a man with them,” she states, which has Jasmine mumbling angrily about Katya.
“How do they seem?” Brielle asks. “Is anyone hurt?”
“They seem fine. Still with their thundercloud expressions,” she mutters. Ever since the day of the fight, spirits have been low at the compound. It has been four days, and I for one am wondering why I’m still upset. Something needs to give; I think now it’s more a saving face issue than an anger issue.
I understand that the men didn’t like the idea of us getting anything from another man, especially something sexual. What they need to understand is that we have a say in what we do, and they can’t just decide to tell us what to do. I doubt any of us were even thinking of using that vibrator, but it was ours to do with as we pleased. If they didn’t like it, we could have discussed it. Yes, now when I think about it, I was thinking of using the lingerie, but it was for Draco’s pleasure. What the men don’t understand is that we all accepted the gifts because it was from Sam. I haven’t known Sam that long, but as the women say, Sam is like one of the women.
Draco tried to explain to me that for the Elementals, it’s stronger than them, When another man shows any interest in their woman, it’s instinctual to attack or protect. What he needs to understand is that he needs to be able to talk to me about it instead of going all He-Man on me and burning my stuff.
“I wonder if they are going to come looking for us,” Aria says as she looks at Scarlett. “They will want to interrogate Katya as soon as possible.”
“Do you think she knows more than the guy before?” Gabriela asks as she wiggles her fingers at her little girl.
“I’m sure she does. I saw her in my trance in a room with women in cages,” I state.
“I wonder if she was already involved in this project before I met Wulf,” Jasmine says. “That woman has been a thorn in my side since the day I found out about her.”
“Katrina.” I jump in surprise when I hear Draco’s voice. My heart is racing when I look towards the door and see him standing there. The frown that has been a fixture on his face for the last four days is still there as he looks around the room and then back at me. “Come with me,” he states, which immediately has my guard up.
“I’m not your dog.” His body tenses, and his eyes start to shine that blue that tells me that his emotions are high. One minute, I’m sitting on the couch, and the next, I find myself held against him. Darn man, he moves so fast that I only register later. “Put me down, Draco. This isn’t funny,” I say, but he doesn’t reply as he strides towards our room. I consider fighting his hold, but I know that it won’t help, so I keep my mouth shut for now and let him carry me.
Once inside the room, he lets my feet down to the ground. “Let’s talk,” he mutters as he takes hold of a chair by his desk and straddles it. “I’m tired of this anger between us.” His hands fist. Well, it looks like he’s as miserable as I am with this situation, but I need him to understand that he can’t just do what he wants without taking my feelings into consideration.
“Well, you’re the one who started it. You can’t just decide to burn my stuff because you can,” I state.
“You shouldn’t have accepted it in the first place,” he says. His voice is low, but that vein on the side of his temple is beating to its own drum.
“It was meaningless. If it were anyone else and they gave it to me with any sexual intentions, I wouldn’t have accepted, but he’s gay,” I say angrily.
“If it were anyone else, they would be dead,” he says, his eyes now full-blown magnetic blue, his biceps bulging with his anger. I throw my hands up in the air and start to make my way towards the door. He doesn’t understand. “Don’t do it, Katrina. We’re going to resolve this,” he warns, but I’m tired of his orders. My hand is about to touch the door handle, when Draco grabs my waist and turns me around.
His lips are on mine and kissing the living daylights out of me before I can protest. I try to push him away. I try to hit him with the palm of my hand, but he is relentless. He deepens the kiss, which after a few minutes, has my guard shattering. I want to fight him. I want him to understand, or we will have this fight over and over again, but the pull this man has on me is stronger than any resistance I could muster.
I lose the fight the minute he picks me up and places me on the bed, his nimble fingers divesting me of my clothes and his until we are both naked. “Me and you, vixen, nothing more,” he mutters as his lips graze my nipple, his stubble rubbing against my breast, heightening the sensation of his breath against my skin.
Before I can think, he thrusts into me, his body intensifying my passion. His thrusts are forceful, just what we both need, moving to a rhythm of the turmoil in our blood. I can feel my body tightening, my skin tingling. He places his wrist over my mouth, and before I can turn my head, I feel him bite my shoulder. I gasp as my body explodes with the pleasure that only this man has ever been able to bring me to. I can taste his blood in my mouth, but instead of feeling repulsed, it amplifies every sensation in my body.
I hear him groan his pleasure as if from far away as his body tenses, and then he is coating my insides with his essence. He turns. Lying on his back, he takes me with him. Now my head is on his chest and my body is lying over his. I can hear his heart beating under my ear, the heat of his body surrounding me as it lulls me into a place of peace like only he can.
“I don’t want this anger between us anymore,” he grunts.
“Nor do I,” I confess as my index finger strokes his bicep, “but you need to trust my judgement, and you can’t go around burning my stuff.”
I feel him exhale, and then he lifts my chin with his thumb so that I can look up at him. “And you need to understand that when it comes to you, I have found that I have difficulty controlling my reactions. You have wormed your way into every particle of my being, and sometimes I might seem overbearing, but I would never do anything to hurt you.”
I can hear the truth in his words. Stretching, I gently kiss his lips. “Draco, I would never want any other man but you.” At my words, he tenses. “You need to trust me.”
“I do trust you, but the thought of any man even touching you makes me want to kill,” he confesses, and I realize that what he says is true. His emotions run deep, and no matter how much he tries to control it, sometimes there might be things that ignite it.
“I see,” I say, “but if anything like that happens, will you at least try not to kill the person?”
He has me on my back again before I can even blink, his weight on his elbows as he looks deep into my eyes. “I’ll try, but, Katrina, I’m telling you now that I might fail.” He leans down and kisses me passionately. I know the type of man Draco is. If he says he will try, I know he will, and that is all I can ask of him. “Are we fine now?” he asks as he raises his head.
“Sure,” I say, and wink at him, which has him shaking his head and grinning.
“Well, now that we have resolved this, I better go get the questioning started,” he says as he lifts off the bed.
“I thought you would have started the questioning immediately,” I say as I also stand and follow him into the bathroom. He looks over his shoulder as he turns on the tap in the shower and winks.
“I wou
ld have, but I had more pressing matters on my mind,” he confesses as he steps into the shower. “Are you coming?” His eyes travel over my naked body. I shrug and teasingly walk towards him and then step inside. I can see his mouth quirk in amusement, but I can also see that he wants me again. I turn my back towards him, purposely rubbing my bum against his cock, and he groans as I lift my hands to feel the temperature of the water.
“Mmm, it’s nice and warm,” I murmur.
“Well, it’s about to get really hot,” he mutters as his hands take hold of my waist and he lowers his lips to my neck, but then I feel him tense and his head lifts.
“What’s wrong?” I ask just as I hear someone knock on the bedroom door.
“Draco, we’ve got company,” Bion says. “Celmund is shutting down the compound.”
I can feel the change in Draco. He has me out of the shower and wrapped in a towel before I can think to move.
“I’m coming,” he states. “Get dressed, vixen. I want you with the other women.” I don’t ask for particulars, as I’m sure he also doesn’t know; therefore, I look around for my clothes and start getting dressed. He finishes dressing in a flash and then stands and waits for me, not once trying to hurry me up. Once I’m ready, he guides me outside, and we make our way towards the courtyard, and then we start towards the entertainment room where the other women are.
“It’s okay, go on,” I say as I stop in the courtyard. “Go see who it is, and be careful.”
He frowns at my words but then nods. “Stay with the other women until it’s safe,” he mutters before he kisses me quickly and then is gone. When I walk into the entertainment room, the women turn to look at me, questioning looks on their faces.
“Do you know what’s going on?” Talia asks.
“I was with Draco when Bion came to call him. All he said was that they had company and that Celmund was locking down the compound,” I reveal.
DRACO'S WRATH: Elemental's MC (book 11) Page 9