Page 93 of Mated By the Pack
“And this isn’t the first time we’ve come to Haven North,” Knox adds. “We built the fucking wall.”
“Yes, yes, I heard about that,” Dr. Thomas chuckles. “Men with golden eyes who were faster and stronger than everyone else. Men who could turn intowolves. It seems the experiments were more successful than I realized. As for how I’m still alive? Same way you are. The first genetic experiments we ran focused on extending lifespans for the rich and powerful. Cell regeneration, anti-aging. I would have been dead long before all of you came along if it wasn’t for that. Although I regretted it a few times while I was trapped in a bunker underneath a pile of rubble for over a hundred years. That hunger—it was brutal.”
“And Mom?” Vance asks. “Is she still alive too?”
“No, son.” Dr. Thomas shakes his head. “Your mother didn’t have the same enhancements as me. She was simply compatible. But that doesn’t matter. What’s important is that my sons have returned to me. It’s been difficult to salvage enough technology to start my experiments again, but I should have enough to do some trial runs… I’ll be able to skip so many steps now.”
Gideon tenses up and shakes his head. He takes a step forward and several peace officers ready their weapons, but Dr. Thomas waves them off.
“We’re done with all that, Dad,” Gideon growls. “We’re not lab rats anymore and we haven’t been since they sent us to fight in the Great War.”
“Mm, yes. That was foolish. We were so close. So damn close,” Dr. Thomas sighs. “But now, I can pick up right where I left off. Surely, I can findsomeonecompatible, even if most of the women in Haven North are useless and infertile.”
I want to say something, but I bite my tongue. Dr. Thomas notices and turns his attention to me. “I must say I’m rather surprised to see you running with a pack of wolves, Nurse Calla. But I guess I should thank you for bringing them back to me. You’re more useful than I realized when I gave Clyde permission to sell you to the slavers.”
“You gave himpermission?” I snap, anger rising that I’m unable to hold back. “You’re the one selling women to the slavers?”
“That was going on before I was brought to Haven North,” Dr. Thomas answers. “But it’s either selling them off or killing them to keep the population under control. There aren’t enough jobs, and we can’t send themallto the Lower District, especially the smart ones.”
“You’re a monster!” I say, stepping past my mates. Gideon grabs my arm, but I shrug him off. “It’s bad enough that you force everyone to take supplements if they get an assigned path. But selling people? That’s just evil.”
“Are you really going to let this bitch talk to your father like that?” Dr. Thomas asks, looking at my mates. Gideon lets out a growl and Vance moves closer to me. Dr. Thomas’s eyes light up as he sees the exchange. “Oh, she’s important to you. Interesting. Unfortunately, I’ve already tested her. She’s infertile, so she’s useless to me. If you want to keep her as a plaything until I find someone compatible for the experiments, that’s fine.”
“We arenotgoing to your damn lab, Dad,” Gideon reiterates. “You can either tell your men to stand down, or we’ll go through them. We’re not staying in Haven North.”
“You might find that more difficult than you think, son,” Dr. Thomas chuckles. “Since I didn’t have any viable subjects for my experiments, I’ve been focusing more on supplements than genetics. These aren’t ordinary peace officers. They obey orders without question. They don’t feel pain, even if you rip off their limbs. They’re barely human. They’ll fight to their dying breath, and they will subdue you, if necessary. I hope it doesn’t have to come to that.”
“What the fuck do we do?” Jace whispers. “I say we fight.”
“If they want to subdue us, then those aren’t ordinary guns,” Knox deduces, keeping his voice low. “Probably loaded with sedatives or tranquilizers like they used to use on wild animals. We won’t be able to take many of those without going down.”
“I’m not going willingly,” Knox mutters. “But we have to protect Calla.”
The tension mounts. We’re in a standoff. I look down at my bracelet and see tendrils moving. It’s ready to fight, so I guess I am, too. I’m not letting my mates get taken to a lab, even if I get to go with them. Dr. Thomas may know they can shift into wolves, but he has no idea what I have inside me.
“I’ll make a deal with you, Dad,” Caleb says, stepping forward. “Let all of them go, and I’ll come with you. Willingly. I’ll let you experiment on me. I’ll do whatever you ask.”
“Caleb, no!” I call out, my hands balling into fists.
“Tempting, but you’re in no position to negotiate,” Dr. Thomas says. “You may look like Silas, but I can tell Gideon is the strongest of you now. I can’t wait to see what has been going on inside all of you since the last time you were tested.”
“We all fight,” I whisper. “Don’t worry about protecting me. I’ll take care of myself.”
“No,” Knox says under his breath. “We’ll clear a hole, and you run. Your survival is more important than ours. We don’t have the fabric of creation inside us.”
“It won’t matter if I don’t have my mates,” I whisper.
“Knox is right,” Vance sighs. “We were the first to be healed, according to Silas, but that doesn’t mean we’ll be the last. If The Aether wants your bloodline to continue, I’m sure there are other mates for you. We can’t be the only ones.”
“I don’t want other mates!” I spit back, louder than I should.
“Are we doing this the easy way or the hard way?” Dr. Thomas asks, sounding almost bored.
“You want to see what is inside us, Dad?” Gideon growls. “You’re about to. We’ll give you a good look at the monsters you created.”
Gideon starts to shift. The others do as well, shedding their clothes as the furs and fangs rip through the flesh. Dr. Thomas moves behind the peace officers and yells for them to attack us.
“Please don’t fail me now,” I beg, looking down at my bracelet. “Just… please help!”
