Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
Dr. Ian Levy paced within his hotel room as he listened to the general rant on the phone tucked against his ear.
“…should have shot that fucking bear in the head when we had the chance. It wasn’t as if he served any use, given his weakness.”
Patient Seventy-six, known as Idris Robinson, had been kept alive at Ian’s request. He didn’t see any of the subjects who survived the protocol and could transform as failures. But he and the general had very different views on what counted as a success.
“I actually think it’s a good thing he’s reappeared,” Ian stated.
“Are you dumb?” An insult Ian ignored, as the general had a tendency of denigrating those he worked with. “How is his reappearance good? He risks blowing Project Therianthrope wide open. I want him dead.”
“No.” Ian found it easier to use the word with General Davidson, who was thousands of miles away in Malaysia, hunting yet another escaped patient as well as seeking out new genetic material. Research indicated that tiger shifters still existed in that country.
“What do you mean, no? Patient Seventy-six serves no purpose.”
“I disagree. Now that we know for sure that this other bear, Yuri, is also a shapeshifter, it is imperative we capture Seventy-six.”
“You’d better have a good reason as to why,” the general’s terse reply.
“Because having a pair means I’ll have a proper base of comparison. Think of it. Two males, both capable of morphing into ursines, means I can study the difference between them, if any. Perhaps even see what caused the defect that makes Patient Seventy-six shift with only minimal pain.”
“You think he can be fixed?” General Davidson didn’t hide his skepticism.
“It’s worth a try. Even if we can’t correct the defect, it might help me fine-tune the protocol so that it doesn’t happen again in the future.”
“Very well, if you can capture him, great, but any sign he’s going to cause trouble and I want him eliminated.” A sour agreement, but at least Ian had won this battle.
“I won’t allow him to jeopardize the project.” Ian conceded because to do anything else would only set off the general. To change the subject, he asked, “How is your own search going?”
“Ask me in a few hours. I’ve got a lead on the tiger keeper who was last seen with Patient Seventy-four.
” AKA Phoenix Erickson, a tiger shifter.
Ian had never been more surprised and amazed to realize the protocol he’d created could result in so many species.
Totally unexpected, since Patient Zero, who became the basis for the project, turned into a wolf.
In their ignorance, they’d assumed those they experimented on would all be canine as well.
Wrong.
Apparently, a myriad of possibilities existed within the human body just waiting to be unlocked.
As Ian hung up with the general, he wandered to the window to look out upon the bustling Russian town.
News reporters remained milling on the sidewalk in front of the hotel that had been the site of an incident with the bears Ian sought.
It would likely get busier, as Ian’s appearance on the news, offering a reward for tips on the location of the bears who’d killed the KGB agents, had received much interest. Thus far, those calling in tips were being handled by a young woman answering the phone.
Useless garbage thus far, but it only took one sighting, one proper clue, and then Ian would swoop to get the ursine therianthropes in custody.
It couldn’t happen soon enough. He itched to return to his lab.
It had taken time to recover since the loss of their original location and patients.
However, despite the setback, he had to admit the new facility had more to offer—including a government that supported his research.
The Canadian one ended up balking after the disaster where all their subjects escaped and killed almost everyone in the process.
Suddenly, they wanted nothing to do with the general and Project Therianthrope.
Despite hating General Davidson—because he was an ass—Ian had to give him grudging credit.
The man had predicted that might happen and prepared for the eventually.
But why did the new lab have to be in Russia?
It might not have been so bad if they’d been located in or about Moscow, a beautiful city with so much to offer. Instead, they ended up in bumfuck nowhere, hours from major cities and towns.
Distance, and the fact he had to pause his work, didn’t stop Ian, though, from jumping in a chopper and heading out to meet up with the agents who’d been tasked with capturing the Russian bear that ended up on Ian’s radar.
The social media mentions of the clever Russian ursine had made him curious. Smart bear, or something else?
With the general’s green light to go ahead and find out, they’d coordinated with their government contact to have it captured. Only the agents assigned to the job failed. Not entirely their fault. No one expected the second bear.
Ian was lucky he’d not been killed along with the KGB agents.
He’d been asleep in his hotel room during the attack.
It had been while police swarmed the hotel that he got a call from the KGB agent in charge, who’d apparently escaped.
The greedy fucker called Ian, blustering about the large brown Canadian who’d transformed before his very eyes.
The news shocked, and before Ian could digest the fact they’d found patient Seventy-six, the aggressive agent dared to try and blackmail, threatening to spill the truth about the bears unless paid an obscene sum.
Ian quickly agreed, even as he had no intention of paying.
The greedy KGB agent died, not by Levy’s hand.
He was a doctor, after all. But he gave the order, sending out one of the people assigned to him to meet with the blackmailer and remove the threat.
The fewer people who knew why he sought the bear—make that bears—the better.
The world wasn’t ready for the knowledge.
Wasn’t ready to handle the fact that people had an animal within and that perfecting the protocol took sacrifice—by less-than-willing participants.
Which reminded him… Ian placed a call to the lab and his assistant, Masha, answered.
“Good morning, Doctor. I saw you on the news. Do you have any leads on the subjects yet?”
“No, but with the reward we’re offering, I doubt it will be long before we get a tip we can use. I actually called to check on Patient Zero. Has he begun to cooperating?”
Masha grumbled, “He’s still refusing to eat or drink. As per your orders, we’ve inserted a feeding tube.”
“I don’t know why he’s being so difficult.
” Not entirely true. Patient Zero began withdrawing once they lost their leverage.
The niece they’d captured along with Patient Zero had died in custody.
Not their fault! She’d selfishly committed suicide.
Once Patient Zero found out, he became difficult.
First refusing to talk. Then somehow preventing the shift despite injury.
Concerned he’d try to end his life as his niece had, they’d removed anything from his cell that might cause harm.
Patient Zero didn’t care. He spent his days sitting still as a statue. And now his latest stunt—starvation.
“Seeing how nothing has worked, is it time to perhaps give my suggestion a try?” Masha asked almost shyly.
Ian pursed his lips. During a brainstorming session, his assistant had mentioned using some of the other patients to try to draw Patient Zero out of his depression.
Communication between the subjects had been banned to this point, as per Davidson’s orders.
He didn’t want them colluding. However, if Patient Zero could form a bond with someone, perhaps he’d stop willing himself to die.
“Go ahead, but don’t use any of the males.
I don’t need them conspiring together. What about Patient ninety-seven?
” A petite female who’d gone through the protocol but had yet to shift, no matter how many times they injured her.
Unlike the others, she didn’t morph and heal the wounds.
Odd, because all of the Therianthrope markers were present in her bloodwork.
“Exactly who I was going to suggest,” Masha agreed.
“Be subtle about it, though. We don’t want him to recognize we’re manipulating his emotions.”
“Of course. I’ll figure out something.”
“Keep me apprised. Oh, and make sure we have three cells ready, as I’m hoping to have my issue resolved within the next day or so.”
“Three? Did you find a third bear?” Masha didn’t hide her excitement. The Russian-born woman had a soft spot for them.
“I don’t know yet if the woman working with the bear is one. We’ll have to test her to determine that.” At the very least, she might make great leverage when it came to getting the ursine to cooperate.
“I’ll ensure we have room. Good luck.”
Fuck luck. Ian had science on his side, the KGB in his pocket, and, when he revealed his brilliance to world, the ultimate Nobel prize.
But first, he had to catch some tricky bears.