Chapter 12 #3
I tipped my head, my heart breaking from the sight of Erik. There were no signs the sedative was wearing off, but I could swear his body had continued to change, becoming stockier, more robust. He was a true Viking. He was my Viking. “We need to inject Erik now.”
“Are you sure about that?” Rowena asked.
“I’m not certain of anything, but if he wakes up, we won’t be able to control him. Hand me the syringe.” I knew she was hesitating, debating every decision. They were all against us. “Rowena, please. I love this man. I know it sounds crazy to you, but we’re meant to be together.”
She finally walked forward, easing the vial into my hand. “You’re going to need to explain everything to me at some point.”
“I will.” I took purposeful steps toward him, praying to some God above that this would work.
If not, there was nothing else we could do.
His veins were already so exposed, but I could swear the blood was pumping slowly.
My hands were shaking but I managed to inject his vein.
Now, all we could do was wait. After taking a step back, I glared at the syringe.
“I’ll keep a watch on what the blood cells are doing. Shouldn’t Brexin have returned by now?” Rowena’s question held a tone of fear.
There was no sense of time in this place, or even on this planet.
Days had gone by. Long days. “Let me see if I can find him.” I dropped the syringe and walked toward the door.
At least the soldier could find out what was going on.
I bit back a gasp, a shudder of fear rocketing into my system.
The soldier was dead, shot by what appeared to be a very human bullet.
I grabbed for the weapon I’d been given, retreating back into the room at the same time.
“What’s wrong?” Rowena asked, concentrating on the gun in my hand.
I shook my head, saying nothing but forcing myself to advance once again. “I’ll be right back.”
“Don’t!”
I didn’t wait, sliding into the corridor and against the wall. Everything was so damn dark, the lighting barely highlighting more than a few feet on either side.
Tap. Tap.
The sound drew my attention. I gripped the weapon in both hands, stepping over the fallen soldier. “Brexin?”
A single laugh, deep and throaty cut through the silence.
“Run!” Brexin’s voice filtered through followed by the sounds of footsteps.
I pointed the gun in that direction, taking several deep breaths.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you, sweetheart. That is unless you want to kill one of your lovers.”
I blinked several times, uncertain of who I was seeing. As his face came into the light, I gasped. “Samuel.”
“Thought I was dead?” Samuel laughed and tightened his grip around Brexin’s throat. I could see clear gashes on Brexin’s face where he’d been struck repeatedly.
“You bastard. You’re a part of this. Oh, my God.”
“You were such a little fool. Do you honestly think that Dr. Forrester would allow you to come on this trip by yourself?” Samuel dragged Brexin closer, a gun cocked in my direction.
There was no way to get a clear shot without hitting Brexin.
While he was groggy, his eyes were focused on me.
He struggled to get out of Samuel’s hold, only to be strangled until he stopped.
I was taken aback how profoundly this affected me, my heart racing and the adrenaline flowing. Nothing could happen to Brexin.
“You didn’t think I knew everything about you? The city. The stupid aliens. The love fest you have going on?” Samuel hissed, shaking his head. “You were tougher than we thought. I’ll give you that.”
“What the hell are you talking about? Where’s Kevin?” I calculated the distance between us, taking two cautious steps.
“What’s going on?” Rowena gasped after moving into the hall.
Samuel’s eyes flashed when he noticed her.
“Go back inside!” I snapped at her.
“That’s right, Rowena. Protect yourself and the human race. You have the means of doing so,” Samuel snickered, his eyes darting back in my direction. “Don’t come any closer, sweetheart, or I’ll blow his head off.” He pointed the barrel at Brexin’s head.
“Why? I thought you hated the experiments, loathing the hypocrisy of what you called ‘Big Brother.’” I shot a quick look at Rowena and the blank stare on her face. “Go, Rowena. Protect Erik.”
She finally stepped out of the line of fire, disappearing into the lab.
“Oh, quite the contrary. I was in on this from the very beginning. And Kevin lived out his usefulness. He believed that his way was better suited for Earth Two. It was kind of your aliens to lock him in the cell for me. Made things so much easier for me to be able to end his life. I assure you, he suffered in much the manner as the beasts he created. An eye for an eye.” His grin widened.
“Granted, things do need to change. The Galerians are formidable but not without weaknesses. Dr. Forrester is, or should I say he was a good friend. Seems like the man wanted to betray me. Fuck him. I recruited all his vile and disgusting volunteers. I made certain he had everything he needed. Worthless fucking criminals. Why do you think they turned so violent? The true beast within a man will always surface, no matter how their rehabilitation is handled.”
The audacity of the man was incredible. “They’re violent because of what you did to them.
” I could tell that Brexin was regaining his strength, calculating his next move.
He was much larger than Samuel, his strength unparalleled.
When Brexin’s eyes flashed, what had to be a sign he was prepared to act, I locked my arms, attempting to read Brexin’s mind. Please let me save him. Please.
“Well, that no longer matters. You and I are going to have some fun with this debacle.” Samuel glanced down the length of me, furrowing his brow. “You’re going to do exactly as I say.”
“What do you want?” I asked in an exasperated fashion.
Save him…
I could hear Erik’s plea in my mind, knew that our connection was as strong as ever. He wasn’t only a beast hell-bent on destroying everything around him.
He was my mate.
“What do I want? Everything that’s owed to me.
First, say goodbye to the fuck head. Then you and I are going to ceremoniously eradicate the Galerian clans.
I have the knowledge and you have the connections.
Imagine our wealth as the select humans arrive, which will be soon, my sweet Cassia. Very soon.”
The savage roar in the corridor echoed off the walls.
“No!” Everything happened in slow motion. Brexin jerked away, tossing him against the wall with ease, and even as Samuel recovered, ready to take a shot, I didn’t hesitate to react.
Boom!