4. Cherry
Cherry
Ahowl wrenches from me as I wake with a start, a familiar burning pain in my abdomen.
I died.
My entire body aches far worse than just taking a knife to the heart should.
I blink, looking around as I try to figure out where I am.
Metal bars greet me, and I shiver. I’m at the facility.
Not the same one I was kept in for most of my life, but that doesn’t matter.
The man who spent ten years of my life torturing me is here somewhere.
And now there’s another psychopath who seems intent on wrecking my life here too.
Gingerly, I try to sit up and realize I’m in my wolf form. That’s right, I did that right before those assholes killed me. Thankfully, they left me in my T-shirt and boxers. Bain’s socks are nowhere in sight, though. They were probably left on the floor of the lab when I shifted.
Once I’m sitting, I shift, wanting to make sure that I still can, but also wanting the use of my hands. I’m still exhausted, so I take my time standing from the cot I’m lying on. At least this place has a bed. That’s something I didn’t have for ten years.
The walls on three sides of me are solid metal, but the front wall is metal bars.
I make my way to the door and give it a good shake, but it doesn’t so much as rattle.
I grasp the bars and look down either side of the hall I’m in.
There’s nothing to see but other, vacant cages.
Or at least the smell tells me they’re vacant.
I glance down at my shirt, finding it covered in dried blood, a large slice where Dr. J stabbed me.
I make my way back to the cot and sit down, still feeling exhausted. I could probably sleep for several days, but I don’t have that luxury here. I have to be ready for whatever is planned next.
I haven’t forgotten that Blaze planned to bond with me.
I gasp, my hand flying up as I search for Gage’s mating bite. A sob bursts from me when I see it’s gone. “No,” I gasp, as my other hand clutches at my chest, as if trying to physically reach for my three bonds, but they aren’t there. It’s as if they never were.
Oh my Goddess. What must they be going through right now? My resurrection obviously shielded me from the loss of the bond, but what does this mean? Are they no longer my mates?
Can we reform the bonds? I’ve been told wolves can’t form a second bond if they lose their first, but that doesn’t exactly apply here, does it? Maybe not for me, but it would for them. They’ve lost their mate bond and may not be able to make another bond with me.
I drop my face to my hands as I hunch over and weep. This can’t be happening. Are they even still alive? They say that fated mate bonds, when severed, can sometimes be fatal.
I shake my head, refusing to consider that any further. They have the benefit of knowing I’m probably still alive.
I’m still wearing my tracker around my neck. If it works down here, underground, then I know they are on their way right now. And if not… Well. They’ll figure it out.
My final words I pushed through the bond to Chase and Hunter play in my mind.
I’ll find a way to escape.
I’ll never stop trying to get back to you.
I don’t know if they heard me; the sedative was stopping our pack bond from working properly before. But it doesn’t matter. I have to try again.
Taking a deep breath, I give myself a little pep talk.
Your mates need you. If they can’t find their way here, then you need to find a way to get to them. You escaped this place once; you can do it again.
I may be weak from regenerating, but I’m still in far healthier shape than I was when I escaped last time.
You can do this.
A door bangs down the hall, and I resist the urge to run to the front of my cell. Knowing I need to conserve my energy.
The footsteps get louder as does the burned vanilla scent. Blaze.
He steps up to my cell, and when he sees me awake, a huge smile crosses his face.
“You’re awake!”
I press my lips together and give him my best glare. I don’t want to provoke him, and I’m not sure how to handle him yet. But I do need to know why he thinks we’re fated mates when I’ve seen no sign of that. The man repulses me.
He grips the bars and leans his head against them as his eyes trail over me until they settle on my face, then his smile drops.
“You’re mad,” he states sadly.
“You murdered me!”
“Dr. J promised that’s the last time.”
“You think that makes me feel better?” I ask him seriously. “Why am I even still here?”
“He needs your blood,” he says, like it’s obvious.
“He’s been taking my blood for a decade. Why does he need more?”
“You’re helping,” he says a little maniacally.
“And why are you here?” I ask, hoping to get some more information.
“I’m here because you’re here,” he says, like it’s obvious.
It’s not. I don’t understand his infatuation with me when I don’t even know him.
I just want to go home. I want to see my mates and make sure they’re okay.
“I want to go home,” I say quietly as I try to stop my lower lip from trembling. I rub my bare arms, the coldness of this place starting to make me shiver. My entire body is sore. Not just sore, but achy. If I lie down, I might sleep for a week. And I can't let that happen.
“You are home,” he says, his tone turning impatient. I look up at him and see the frown on his face as he watches me, like he’s upset. I'm not thrilled to be here, locked up in this freezing cold cell.
“My home is with my mate—”
“I’m your mate!” he yells, cutting me off as his fingers squeeze the bars.
I want to scream at him that he’s not, but I also don’t want to anger the guy more than I already have. I have no idea what he’s capable of. So instead, I take a different tactic and decide to try to get some information from him.
“How did you find me? In Starfall Haven?” I ask, trying to sound curious and not accusatory.
I see some of his tension fade as his grip on the bars loosens. “I told you, I was made for you. I can find you anywhere.”
“What does that mean, you were made for me?”
He grins, like the answer he’s about to give me makes him happy. “I was born human.”
I frown, my nose twitching as I take in his scent. He definitely smells like a wolf shifter. “I started here as a guard at only eighteen. I was content with my job, until I saw you.”
“Me?”
He nods. “You had just arrived, and everyone was talking about the special hybrid.”
What hybrid?
“I was lucky enough to be in the room when Dr. J started his treatments on you.”
Treatments? More like torture.
“The second I saw you, I knew I had to have you. I begged the doctor for months until he finally agreed to do it.”
“Do what?” I can’t help but ask.
“He started to give me experimental injections, made from your blood.” My mind spins, trying to figure out what that means.
“Why?” I ask, unable to comprehend the reasoning.
“He wanted to figure out a way to replicate your powers, but it had the unintentional side effect of making me just like you.”
Dr. J turned Blaze into a wolf shifter.
“Why would you want that?” I ask, realizing how risky it was to take unknown injections.
“The first time I saw Dr. J cut you, I was mesmerized.” My stomach feels like it somersaults. I have to fight hard to keep myself from throwing up.
He’s sadistic.
“The way you cried, your tears and blood running freely…” he sighs as if recalling a happy memory. It makes me want to hurl.
“That doesn’t make us fated mates,” I tell him as my lip curls with disgust.
“Of course it does!” he says, nodding his head. “I’m tied to you. I can find you anywhere, cause I feel you, in here.” He places a hand on his chest over his heart and looks at me like he truly believes all of that.
“You’re a science experiment,” I grit out, trying not to get too upset since I don’t want to anger him.
I just want him to understand things from my point of view.
“It’s not a fated mate bond you feel. If it were, you’d never want to hurt me.
You wouldn’t keep me locked up here, and you certainly wouldn’t get giddy thinking about me being tortured.
” I can’t help but let a little anger out on my last word.
He sighs and shakes his head. “You don’t get it yet, but you will. Once Dr. J bonds us.”
Before I reply, he pulls a key out of his pocket and opens my cell. I push to my feet, unsure what he’s going to do, but he just steps back and gestures into the hall. “Come on, then. Unless you want to stay in there all day?”
“Maybe I do,” I say, eyeing him warily. If going to see Dr. J is the alternative, I’ll happily stay here.
He sighs again and marches straight at me. I throw up my hands to stop him, but he pats them aside and throws me over his shoulder. I fight for a minute, until I realize it’s futile. He’s as solid as a brick wall, and my energy is still depleted.
My necklace hangs down, the ring hitting me in the face, and I quickly grab it, not wanting to lose it as I bounce on his shoulder. He moves down several halls and through multiple doors until he finally puts me down.
He grips my shoulders from behind as I look around.
We’re in some sort of strange, small apartment.
In one corner is a bed and nightstand, beside it is a small couch and an even smaller TV with what looks like a DVD player attached to it and a handful of DVDs stacked beside it.
On the other side of the apartment is a kitchenette and a small dining table with two chairs.
The whole place can't be more than twenty feet wide by fifteen feet long.
“Where are we?” I ask in confusion.
“This is my place. If you behave, you can stay here with me, instead of the cell.”
I swallow the lump in my throat as I contemplate the offer. “I’ll take the cell, thanks,” I murmur, not wanting to be locked up with this psycho.
His hands tighten painfully on my shoulders as he grits out, “Let’s see if you feel the same after a visit with the doctor.” Before I can react, he lifts me again, throwing me over his shoulder and knocking the wind from me.