Page 128 of The Forsaken Heir
“Called out sick at the last minute. I’m covering. Damn, who all you got in here? A three-man crew to dump some trash. That’s a little much, isn’t it?”
I held my breath, waiting to see how they’d explain that.
“Nah, making a detour after this. Hitting the bar in town. Hoping to find us a few pretty ladies. Figured it made more sense to do it all in one trip.”
The guard snorted. “Sure thing. Good luck withthatwhen you’re stinking like shit, but whatever floats your boat. Head on in. Where are you heading to? Recycling or the dump?”
“Little of both,” the driver said.
“Sounds good. I’ll open the gate. Hang on a sec.”
I let out a relieved sigh as I heard the electric rattle and hum of a gate being drawn back echoed from outside the truck. A few seconds later, the truck moved forward. Freddy waited a couple seconds before opening the window again.
“Did that guy recognize you, Freddy?” the driver asked.
Freddy glanced over and shrugged. “I fucking hope not.”
“He was eyeballing you pretty hard,” the third man said. “Almost like he wanted to ask you something. I really think hemighthave realized who you were.”
“Fuck it,” Freddy hissed. “If he did, it’s too late to change it. All it means is that we have to hurry.” He turned back to address me. “We’re all good for now. We gotta get to the far end of the facility. We came out late last night and hid a couple of the trucks at the farthest edge of the property.”
“Trucks? Can’t I shift and fly? Iama dragon.”
Freddy shook his head. “I’m sure you’re feeling better, but I doubt you’ll be able to fully shift for a while. Especially not after that stuff Bastien pumped into your veins. We’ll get into the trucks, drive out the back gate, and split up from there.”
I closed my eyes and reached out to my dragon, checking to see if what Freddy said was true. My beast latched onto my consciousness. We had a mutual desire to shift, but I struggled to access that magical part of my soul. It was muted somehow, like when you’d sat on your hand until it was numb, then tried to pick up a cup. The mind was willing, but the body was stumbling along, unable to oblige.
Freddy hadn’t lied about the farthest edge of the facility. The truck rumbled along for what felt like an eternity before it finally rolled to a stop. I heard the truck doors slam, and a few seconds later, the back hatch and tailgate opened.
“Come on,” Freddy said, waving to me. “Get out of there.”
“You don’t have to tell me twice.” I leaped down from the rear of the truck.
I took a deep breath, relishing the crisp, clean air that filled my lungs. After the rancid trash, it was the sweetest scent I’d ever breathed. That lasted all of three seconds before one of the healers stepped forward and spritzed me with something from a spray bottle.
“OhGod,” I cried, forcing myself not to gag. “What thefuckis that?”
“Concentrated wolf shifter pheromones,” the healer said.
“Shit,” I muttered. “Is this necessary?”
“It’s concentrated. That’s why it smells so strong to you,” Freddy said. “It’ll hide your dragon smell even better than the trash. Usually, it’s only a slight smell that you can zone in on or ignore at your leisure. This is like overkill, but we want to be safe. I useda more subtle version to mask my own scent to get out of the mansion without anyone recognizing me.”
“I don’t recall Elle smelling this bad,” I said. “And I’ve been around her a lot.Reallyclose too.”
Freddy shrugged and toed the ground with his shoe, looking slightly uncomfortable. “It might be that you’re attracted to her scent, or it may be that it’s not nearly as strong since she’s not a full shifter. Also, can we not talk about my sister’s love life? Kinda gross, honestly.”
“Put this on,” the other healer said and tossed me a pair of coveralls. A sewn badge on the chest read: Laurent Waste Management.
“This plus the spray should be enough to get us out of here,” Freddy said.
“Fine,” I grunted and pulled the uniform on while Freddy turned to the others.
“You two hop in the other car. You’ll follow me and Aurelius until we exit the rear gate. Once we do, you head east. We’ll go north.”
“Got it,” the larger of the two said.
I eyed him curiously, then sniffed the air. “You’re ahuman?”
