by Marcy Jacks
Fuck, he supposed that meant he'd forfeited that money then because he'd run out of there even before the first hour was up.
God, that wolf was so loud. Jason hadn't heard anything like this over the last couple of months when the wolf had already been down there, so what did this mean? Did they keep it drugged up the entire time? Or were its howls and screams just that much louder?
Mr. Forg put his hand on Jason's shoulder. "You said the creature called you his mate. That's a good sign. We can learn so much with your help. If you can make this creature believe, without a shadow of a doubt, that you belong to him, then we will be that much closer to learning if there really is a mating to be seen and believed with the shifters themselves."
"What if he tries to eat me alive?"
Even as he said, a part of him inside didn't believe it was possible.
His heart told him the wolf didn't want to hurt him, but his head kept yelling that he shouldn't be so stupid.
"I can promise you, that will not happen. Sit with the wolf, see what he does. This is all dependent on you. You do not have to do anything you don't want to."
"Are you asking me to let the wolf have sex with me?"
Again with the red face. Mr. Forg waved off the question as though it were beneath him to answer something such as that. "Nothing like that, I can assure you. This is merely a…test of sorts. We would like to see how the wolf behaves and how you behave, in turn, to him."
Soooo…that totally sounded as though Mr. Forg was asking Jason to let the wolf have sex with him.
He wasn't going to let the shifter touch him, but if he stepped inside the cage…
Jason wasn't sure how Mr. Forg could make promises that he would be safe, not with the idea of stepping into the cage with the creature right there. He didn't think it was possible to make a promise like that.
What were his men supposed to do? Get into the cage with them and stop the wolf if it decided to rip Jason's head off?
Again, he didn't think the wolf would want to do that. Something told him that wouldn't happen. That wasn't what this was.
And he still felt guilty for leaving the wolf down there, howling in pain…
But if this could help other shifters…if it could answer once and for all whether or not the mating thing was bullshit, then…
"All right, but I want the money up front. I don't want anyone to…"
Mr. Forg continued to smile at him. "No one here will do anything to jeopardize your safety, and we are good for our word. You've known me long enough to be aware of that much."
Jason nodded, though he still wasn't sure about this.
Not because of the wolf but because of the hunter comment.
"Mr. Forg?"
"Yes?"
Jason thought about it, opened his mouth, and then decided it didn't matter.
"Never mind. Thanks for everything. That's all."
Even if this were a secret society of hunters dead set on capturing and eradicating the shifters, it wasn't as though that had anything to do with Jason. These people had helped him and his sister. He thought he could count on them, that they were like friends, maybe even family after everything he'd gone through.
He didn't care if these people were hunters. They'd helped him, and they were helping that wolf downstairs, even if it was hurting him right now.
Mr. Forg pressed his hand to Jason's shoulder. "I'm happy you feel that way. Come, let's get this over with."
Jason went with him back downstairs, and once again, that nagging feeling came back to him, but this time it wasn't about the decisions he'd made or what he believed when it came to the wolf shifter downstairs.
But he had to wonder whether or not he'd made the right choice.
* * * *
The wolf sat in his cage, curled up in the corner, tail wrapped around his body.
Jason's heart clenched at the sight of him. He looked like a beaten dog, as though someone had seriously hurt him.
Had Jason done that? Again, his heart twisted, an invisible knife piercing him in a way he really didn't like.
No, he couldn't have been the one to do that. It wasn't possible. No human could hurt a wolf shifter like that. It wasn't possible.
And yet, when the wolf's ears perked and it looked up and faced Jason, finally noticing that he was there, Jason felt better.
The wolf was alive, it wasn't injured, but it was looking at him as though something it had badly wanted had come back.
Jason swallowed hard. He thought about entering the cage, about sitting next to something as big as that, and as much as he wanted to do it, just so he could have the macho points of saying he'd done it, he didn't think he could.
It was too damned terrifying. How in the hell was he supposed to get inside with something like that and just sit there?
"I don't…God, I don't think I can do this."
"There's no time to be timid. This will help so many people. Your blood will help us to discover whether or not you have a calming agent that will allow us to transform wild, savage wolves like this one back into their human forms. We can help so many people. We only need you to make it work."
The wolf continued to look at him. It didn't speak to him in his mind anymore. It just…looked. Drawing Jason forward, compelling him to want to be close.
He hadn't been the one to see the murder of his parents, but he'd had to identify their bodies.
He didn't want to be turned into that. He didn't want his body so thoroughly fucked up that no one would be able to recognize him.
He didn't want to leave his little sister alone in the world without anyone to care for her.
"I can't. I'm sorry, Mr. Forg. I want to. I really do, but I can't."
Mr. Forg looked at him, disappointment in his eyes. "Are you sure? You remember the payment—"
"I know, I know, and I'll probably regret this a whole lot later on, but I just can't do it. Really. I need…I think I need to get out of here. I can't…fuck, I can't breathe."
Jason bent over, grabbing at his knees, holding himself up and trying desperately to keep himself from throwing up.
He was fine. There were people around him he could trust, and no one was intending to hurt him or the wolf.
He just needed to relax. To think.
"Is there any way I could talk you out of this?" Mr. Forg asked, still sounding as though this whole thing was making him sad.
Probably because Jason was getting in the way of some valuable research.
Jason was going to feel massively guilty about that one later on.
Ultimately, protecting his sister came above any need he had to be near a wolf, even if that wolf happened to turn into one of the most handsome men he'd ever seen in his life.
And he was saying that as someone who wasn't even into guys.
"I don't think so. I'm sorry, Mr. Forg. I really am."
He meant it, too.
Mr. Forg sighed. "I am sorry, as well."
He gestured to some of the security guards who were still hanging around. They stepped forward, drawing their nightsticks.
Jason frowned, backing away when he realized they were coming for him.
The wolf in the cage growled, lunging for the bars again, shocking himself again, but as Jason tried to turn and get away from them, he bumped into yet another security guard.
This time the man grabbed him by the shoulders.
"Don't make this harder than it needs to be."
"What?" Jason looked to Mr. Forg. "What's going on? What are you doing? Hey! Let go of me!"
He tried to shove the other man away, but he was strong. Stupidly strong. Jason always thought he would be able to handle himself in a fight. He didn't exactly work out a whole lot, but he still managed to keep himself in decent shape while running to and from work.
This was…this was crazy. The strength of this man was intense. It felt as though he were trying to punch a statue. Or that he was a little kid attempting to escape a parent.
; "Get off me! Stop it!"
Jason cupped his hands and then slammed them on either side of the guy's ears.
He screamed and dropped Jason pretty damned quick, but it wasn't enough. Jason didn't have the chance to scramble to his feet when one of the other security guards reached out and grabbed him, stopping him before he could get anywhere.
This time one of his arms was yanked painfully behind his back. He screamed, wanting to fight, his body screaming at him to fight but, at the same time, knowing it would make his arm hurt all the more.
"That's it, don't move," said the other guard. He was also strong. Also someone Jason couldn't overpower, and when he leaned in close, sniffing at Jason's neck and jaw, Jason shivered.
The man groaned. "God, you smell good."
Jason's eyes flew wide, and he looked at Mr. Forg, who eyed him somberly as the man took his phone.
"What are you doing? Are these guys shifters?"
He tried to pull his arm back but still no luck.
He wasn't going to be getting out of this without Mr. Forg's say-so any time soon, that was for sure.
"Jason, I'm sure you are aware of what it means to be an…individual with your specific talents. I've had some of my men here sniffing around you for a while."
"You fucker! Are you telling me you really knew this entire time!"
The wolf in the cage slammed his body once more against the bars, but it was for nothing. He yelped as the electric shock pushed him back, punishing him for attempting to get away.
"Jason, we have needed someone like yourself for so long. Others…we are not like the others."
"Fuck you!"
Mr. Forg bent down to one knee. "The money is still yours if you will take it. We are not like those people who will hunt down creatures such as yourself. We don't want to sell you to other shifters. Stan, that's enough."
The shifter sniffing at Jason's throat stopped, but Jason was still wigged out by the fact that this guy was even touching him like this.
The wolf growled, but thankfully, the guard did as he was told. He let go of Jason's arm, and when he did, Jason groaned as the blood suddenly rushing down his arm hurt almost as much as when he was being held on to like that.
Jason rubbed his arm, glaring at the man.
The guy just looked at Jason as if…
As if he wanted him.
Jason shivered. The wolf in the cage continued to growl, not pleased with any of this.
"Mr. Forg? What's going on? Why are…what are you doing?"
"I was going to ask you to spend some time with one of my friends here, but that didn't seem to work out so well when Stan decided to grab you like that."
Stan tensed, getting offended. "He's the one who boxed Marco's ears!"
Jason looked at the other man. He still held on to the side of his head. Someone else had come over and was helping him to walk away.
Even a shifter could have sensitive eardrums it seemed.
"He shouldn't have grabbed at me."
Mr. Forg sighed. "Jason, I wanted to see if this was something you would help us with. The wolf over there does not respond to orders from alphas even within this building. We have tried being patient with it, and when you came in…the idea was too good. You managed to make him shift. We can learn so much from you, from a creature such as this."
"What are you trying to learn from a wolf that big?"
Stan cracked his knuckles. "We want to know how it got that big in the first place. If there's a trick to it."
Jason didn't understand. "I thought you were all just born the way you were. How is there supposed to be a trick to any of this?"
"Because they are shifters," Mr. Forg said. “The key is in the name. Shifting. They should be able to enlarge themselves to any size they see fit. This wolf somehow managed such that. We want to know how.”
“And why do you need me for…” Jason trailed off, and he felt like such a moron.
His blood and his scent. Mr. Forg wanted to see if he could somehow use Jason to control this giant wolf because he was a wolf soul.
“You want to use to me to control this wolf, is that it?”
“There is no controlling the wolves,” Stan said.
“You sure about that?” Jason couldn’t help himself. “Forg controls you, doesn't he?”
The wolf shifter raised his fist.
The wolf in the cage roared.
Jason had his hands lifted to ward off any attack, but that sound was enough to make him freeze along with everyone else.
When he opened his eyes and lowered his hands to have a look at what was going on, he noted how…scared the shifter looked.
When Jason looked back at the wolf inside the cage, it was no wonder.
The thing looked like a demon, and for a hair of a second, Jason forgot all about how there was a man inside that wolf that he’d spoken with, that he’d thought was attractive, that he’d wanted.
Because now he just felt the need to run away.
Chapter Five
Jason didn't get the chance to run away because he felt a strong hand grabbing him by the back of the neck, yanking him to his feet.
"Let me go! Hey! Let me go!"
He didn't. Mr. Forg shouted some commands, but Jason couldn't make out what they were.
The only thing he knew for sure was that he was being dragged closer to the cage itself. To where the wolf was.
He saw the mangled faces of his parents again. He saw how they had been so utterly destroyed that he could barely recognize them, and he didn't want that to happen to him. He didn't want to be made into ground beef.
He wanted to go home to his little sister, to give her a hug and tell her again and again that he was never going to fail her ever again.
More guards stepped forward, forcing spikes of some kind through the bars of the cage. They shocked the wolf into getting back from the door as it was opened, and Jason was thrown into the cage itself just as the door slammed shut on him.
"Turn it back on!"
"Hey!" Jason grabbed the bars. "You can't leave me in here! Mr. Forg! You have to—aaargh!”
The scream Jason released was unlike anything he’d ever made in his entire life.
Then he made no scream at all. He just wanted to. He was finally able to let go of the bars.
And even then, it seemed that was only because the electricity had been shut off again.
He fell backward, and the wolf grabbed onto him, dragging him back, away from the bars.
Oh shit. He was going to be eaten now.
The wolf was growling again. A noise so horrifying that if Jason wasn’t already shivering and struggling through the pain of being shocked, he might have frozen in terror.
Make it quick. Please just let this be quick. He didn’t want to be horribly mauled to death, and he didn’t want to die screaming in pain.
The way his parents probably had.
A giant wet tongue licked the side of his face.
The heat was shocking. As was the comfort that came from it.
The wolf settled next to him, practically on top of him, but Jason found himself turning into the fur.
It was as though the fur was absorbing the electricity he’d been hit with.
Jason’s body still ached, but at least now he could handle it better.
“There we are. That wasn’t so bad now, was it?”
The wolf continued to growl at Mr. Forg.
Jason shook his head in the fur, gripping it in his fingers because he needed something to clench onto.
“Wh-when I get out of this, I’m…t-totally going to sue your ass f-for this.”
“We will still keep to our agreement. You will still be paid for your services.”
Jason shivered. “I d-didn’t agree…to this.”
He was getting better at talking again without stuttering or his teeth chattering. The pain still thrummed through him, and something smelled like burned hair.
He was pretty sure that something wa
s him. Fuck. This sucked.
Mr. Forg sighed. “We’ll work out those details later.”
He started to walk away, heading for the door with the security guards behind him.
Stan gave Jason one last parting look before they left.
Jason thought they were going to turn out the lights on them, and that would have made the situation all the more terrifying.
But they didn’t. The lights were left on as Mr. Forg and the others left Jason alone in a cage with a giant werewolf.
And he was not crying, not in the least. He was just trying to hold back sweat from his eyes.
“Now do you believe me when I say they are hunters?”
Jason nodded, and he was way too ashamed to admit that he’d believed the man and he’d been going to ask Mr. Forg about it but then chickened out at the last second.
Now that he thought about it, if he had asked Mr. Forg about this, the other man probably wouldn’t have let him leave.
And wasn’t that just depressing?
Jason held on to the wolf as it slowly transformed into a naked man.
Wait, did that mean the wolf had been talking to him with vocal cords a second ago? It didn’t sound as though those words had been in his head He wasn’t sure, and he didn’t care because touching this man’s skin took a lot of his pain away from him.
It did more than that. It made Jason come alive. He still hurt all over his body, but it was as though this man’s skin was the soothing balm he needed to move the pain in the back of his mind.
Maybe the shifter knew that, too, because he wrapped his arms around Jason and pulled him close.
“That’s it, sweet. Keep touching me. It will help.”
Jason shook his head. “This is…just a placebo. It’s not doing anything. Just making me think that it is.”
“I am…not sure what a placebo is, but I can wager a guess based on what you just said. No, this is real.” Jason felt lips touching his forehead. He groaned from the heat.
And the pleasure.
“This is real, and it will help you.”
Jason was so embarrassed. He was getting hard. His stupid dick started to throb, and he didn’t know how he was supposed to explain that when he was in the arms of a naked guy, but here he was.