Chapter 9

Chapter

Nine

DANYAL

I wasn't foolish enough to think they were bluffing. Or, at the very least, I wasn't foolish enough to think they didn't have an actual plan to force me into action. But when I woke up the following morning to a strange, human scent, panic hit me before I fully came to.

I was prepared for an attack, but instead I found A-7324 sleeping on a cot near the foot of my bed. She was curled protectively around herself, and it didn't take long for me to realize she was awake.

Clearing my throat, I shuffled to the end of the bed and stared down at her. Her eyes were closed, but her entire body was tense with anticipation.

"How long has it been since you've had a proper meal?" I asked her.

One eye opened, and she stared at me. "They aren't starving me." She stopped, then closed her eye again. "They weren't starving me."

It was obvious she was just as aware of her position as I was. "I'm not going to let them hurt you."

She scoffed. "What more can they do?" Her voice was low and raspy, her English perfect but her accent thick and Spanish. I wondered where they'd found her—how they'd found her. How they had managed to find a human woman with the perfect set of genes to host this baby and carry it to full term.

"If I ran, would you come with me?" I asked her.

She laughed and put her hand over her face as she rolled onto her back. Her belly was even more obvious that way, and I tried not to think of the life inside as Kor's child, but it was impossible. Gods, what he'd do right now if he knew.

This place would be rubble in minutes.

Before I could ask her again, there was a soft knock at the door, and Ivan appeared. He looked just as apologetic as he had the night before, but he said nothing as he eased the woman up from the cot and steadied her as she stood.

"My father's waiting in the lab," he said.

For a moment, I wanted to tell him to go fuck himself, but his hand on her arm squeezed a fraction tighter, and I realized what he wasn't saying. Cooperate or she suffers.

"What's your name?" I asked her, taking a step toward the small wardrobe that held a change of clothes.

She didn't look at me when she answered. "I don't have one."

At that, I spun, a shirt in my hands that I nearly tore with my frustrated strength. "Yes, you do. What's your name?"

She looked up at Ivan, then at me. "Mari." She said it with the slight roll of her ‘r'. "My name is Mari."

I dragged my tongue over my lower lip, then nodded. "And the baby?"

At that, her eyes widened, and I saw Ivan open his mouth like he wanted to argue, but I held a hand up and waited. After a beat, she spoke again—though her voice was so low I wasn't sure even Ivan picked up on her words. "Delilah."

It was fitting. Her instincts were strong—almost Wolf-like.

"I'll see you this evening," I told her, then I fixed my gaze on Ivan. "Not a hair on her head, do you understand. I'll cooperate, but believe me when I say there will be no mercy for anyone if anything happens to her or that baby."

"I know," he said, nodding once.

They were gone by the time I was finished getting dressed, and then I was led to the far end of the chateau by an armed human guard. Every so often, I caught the scent of Wolf or heard a heart beating at our speed. I knew they were all feral, and all in the service of Kasher, but just leaving them there felt wrong. Bile rose in my throat, but I managed to swallow it down by the time I reached the lab.

It wasn't like I had been expecting. It was makeshift and badly put together with a couple of archaic computers. I was expecting Wolves there—tied to beds, unconscious, maybe tortured. Instead, there was just Kasher sitting in front of his computer looking defeated.

He spared me a passing glance, then waved his hand at a table laden with breakfast. "Eat. Sometimes I forget to order lunch. I haven't been very hungry these days."

Right. Because he was dying. He looked thin and sallow, and I could see a port attached to his arm under his long sleeve that I had missed the night before.

I wasn't hungry either, and I didn't bother pointing out that I could survive without food far longer than he could. But the coffee smelled both good and safe, so I helped myself while trying to get a look at what he had on his screen.

"I'm not trying to hide this from you," he said wryly. "I need to know where I've gone wrong."

With a small sigh, I carried my cup over and glanced at the data he had on the screen. "Test subjects?"

"All either deceased or unable to carry again," he said.

My stomach twisted in on itself at the thought of what he'd done. The man deserved the worst torture. "And there's something different about this current subject."

"Her biology isn't like other humans. There are…subtle differences," he said, his voice low as he clicked over to what could only be Mari's file. From the quick glance I saw she'd miscarried twice—rather similar to most Wolves when they were reaching the age of breeding and maturity. "But nothing that would qualify her as inhuman. Like you."

I ignored the small dig. He meant it to be cruel, but facts were just that—facts. I wasn't human, and I never would be. "She's the only successful pregnancy to date?"

"With heavy amounts of gene therapy, we've managed to get several humans to carry until about four months. Many have needed hysterectomies from the damage, about a dozen have died."

And he called us the beasts. I tapped my chin and considered my own research. I was certain that the only reason it worked so well on my Betas—and then on Orion—was because we were meant to change. Misha was still an anomaly, but his treatments had started off so slow and stretched on for months. I didn't think Kasher was giving these people that same courtesy.

"If I can get a hybrid born," Kasher said after a beat, "I believe it'll unlock the thing I'm missing that will allow my therapy to be successful. My traitorous son so far is the only one who has managed to survive past the treatments."

I bit my lip and didn't point out the obvious. Kasher might have seen it once, but he was dying, and it was obvious his mind was starting to break down.

But that also didn't answer any of my questions about Mari. How was a human able to carry Kor's child?

"We've attempted to track down more members of her genetic line, but unfortunately we've been unsuccessful so far." He let out a sigh and looked at me as though I would commiserate with him.

"Where is she from?" I asked.

He lifted a brow and laughed, then shook his head. "I don't suppose there's any harm in telling you. I doubt you'll live through this much longer than her giving birth." He tapped his thin fingers on the desk. "We tracked her down in Mexico, near the border of California. My son has a team there who has been attempting to find her family, but they've scattered. They are, unfortunately, sympathizers who are well aware of the current situation."

Sympathizers. Wolf sympathizers. Such an ugly phrase, and I wanted to let down my claws and make him feel pain for it. Instead, I finished my coffee, then asked him to move over. "If it means protecting her, I'll do what I can."

He gave me a look but said nothing as he shifted and let me take up room at the desk.

True to his word, Kasher forgot lunch. He forgot time, but it was easy to see why. He and I were both consumed with reading through every single line of the experiments he'd run, desperate to find a link. Mari was special, and there had to be a reason why.

I was petrified of finding it, petrified of lingering on a strand of DNA for too long lest Kasher actually see something and act. The longer I drew it out, the longer I would survive, and the more chance I had at a rescue.

Sometime before dinner, my exhaustion took over, and I sat back, pushing my face into my hands. Kasher had been dragging far longer than I was, but he was regarding me with a glint in his eye.

"You have ideas, dog."

I only just managed to control my flinch at the term. "I need to think things over. So far, I don't see any difference in her that should actually matter when it comes to creating and carrying a Wolf hybrid."

Kasher hummed, but after a beat, his tension faded, and he sagged back into his chair. "A fresh mind," he muttered. "I don't expect miracles, dog. But I do expect progress."

At that, he clicked a button on a small remote, and the door to the far side opened. My gut clenched when the same, dark-haired, feral Wolf crawled into the room and set his head in Kasher's lap. I watched as the man pet him, as he scratched under his chin, as he gripped him by the hair and turned his scarred face toward me.

"They all break like this. Even that escaped Alpha became a beast in a matter of days. When you learn to accept that you're so much closer to animals, it'll make your subjugation far less painful."

I bit the inside of my cheek. "And yet, you need me."

"I need you," he said, the words brittle and pained.

There was a long silence, then the far door opened, and my heart rose into my throat. I recognized the man walking into the room both from his striking resemblance to Misha and from the way his oily, cruel smile had been plastered all over every news station.

He spared me a glance, then reached out and kicked the Wolf away from his father. Instead of fighting back, the Wolf curled on his side and whimpered. My claws were out, and I hid them by gripping the underside of my chair.

I knew what these humans wanted—proof that I was a beast, and I wouldn't give them the satisfaction.

"Down, pup," Alexei said, then laughed. He walked over, then nudged at the Wolf until he was on all fours before extending his foot. "Lick it."

I closed my eyes so I didn't have to witness the rest, and after a beat, Kasher took pity on me. "Dog. Bed."

I heard the Wolf shuffle out of the room, and when I had the strength to look up again, my claws were gone, and I was able to fold my hands in my lap.

"Scared?" Alexei asked.

Yes, in fact, I was. I was petrified because I knew it wasn't a matter of strength that kept us from breaking. We were mortal—we could only stand against so much pain, and Kasher had found those tender spots to exploit and torture.

I would be no different from this one. Or from Zane. Or countless others.

"You're lucky you're an Omega," Alexei said after a beat. "Fucking pointless, horny little animals who don't serve a purpose."

I met his gaze, then looked over at Kasher who seemed inches away from falling asleep where he sat. "Am I dismissed."

Kasher startled upright, then glanced at his son before looking at me. "Tomorrow I want progress, or the bitch gets beaten."

I stood up to leave, the echo of Alexei's laugher on my heels as I followed the guard back to my room. The moment the door shut and I was alone, my feet carried me into the bathroom, and I was on my knees before I was even aware I had moved. There was so little in my stomach, the bile that came up seared the back of my throat like acid, but I couldn't stop heaving.

Every time the feral Wolf's image appeared behind my eyelids, my stomach heaved, and I couldn't bring myself to stop until I heard the door open and close behind me.

I just managed to get ahold of myself, aware that Kasher was probably watching. Aware he was probably pleased that he'd managed to break me this far. I was at the end of my tolerance, and I wasn't sure what I was going to do.

The scent behind me was human—vaguely familiar but freshly showered so I couldn't get a read on them. I pushed to my feet, then rinsed my mouth and scrubbed my face with the cloth at the edge of the sink before turning to face whoever was in my space.

I came to a skidding halt when I saw Ivan there, and before I could stop myself, I was across the room with a hand around his throat. This was likely a death sentence—or worse—but I didn't care. My rage was palpable. Humans had kept their heels on the throats of our species for so long, reducing us to so little. And when we rose up, their cruelty only grew until they showed us how monstrous they truly were.

"Give me a single reason why I shouldn't rip your throat out right here," I growled through fangs.

He didn't tense. He didn't fight. "I don't have one. At least, not one for my life. But you won't save yourself or Mari if you take me out like this. My father might not be watching now, but they'll find my body, and you won't get far. Not without help."

I let out a trembling breath, then my eyes narrowed. "Are you going to get me out of here?"

Ivan swallowed thickly, then nodded. "Yes. I know you saw my father's research. He's getting closer to the truth, and when he finds it…" Ivan trailed off, and I wasn't sure if it was because we were being listened to or if he was just afraid to tell me what he already knew.

"Does he know you're going to turncoat?" I asked him.

Ivan bowed his head and swallowed, the movement pressing against my hand that kept him pinned to the wall. "Yes. He's just hoping he can hold the leash a little tighter so he'll have time to figure out what he wants to know."

"Why Mari can carry this baby?"

"Where the rest of her family is," Ivan said, his voice soft. He dropped it even lower—to a point there wasn't much noise at all —and I knew why. I would be able to pick it up, but a recording wouldn't. "He doesn't want you to unlock genetic code, Danyal. He wants to get you to the point you'll be willing to break her."

I took a step back, dropping my hand. I didn't know what to do or what was safe to say, but Ivan jerked his head toward the door. "Have dinner in my quarters. They won't bother us. My father's likely hoping you really will rip my throat out."

I breathed out a long, trembling sigh. "Where's Mari?"

"Being examined again," he said. There was something dark in his tone, and I wanted to rip the walls down and find her. "She'll be returned here soon. Unharmed," he added.

I almost laughed, because that wasn't true. Perhaps physically, they'd have kept their hands off her, but she was already battered to the point of breaking. Still, I had nothing to do but trust this human. Even if he planned on betraying me, I could at least take him out before they got to me.

And if my fate was that of the other Wolves…well.

So be it.

Following Ivan to his quarters felt like a march to my demise, but instead, his doors opened up to a small, round table laden with food, and not a single guard to be found. He was in another wing from where I was being kept, and I wondered if there was a way to use it to my advantage.

Of course, being that he was on his father's shit-list probably higher than I was, there was no chance it wasn't guarded, so it was unlikely I'd be able to run without being seen.

Hell, I wasn't even sure if I was being tracked.

I rubbed my thumb along the back of my neck and over the tops of my shoulder, trying to find a place they would have cut open.

"It's near the spine," Ivan said quietly. "Easy to remove without damage if you have help, but if you're trying to tear it with claws…"

Paralysis—temporary for a Wolf, but the healing would take time enough for them to find me.

Ivan gestured to the table, and I sat, glancing around. The room was comfortable, but almost sterile, like Kasher was trying to make sure his son wouldn't be able to relax or let his guard down for even a second. He'd never be allowed to forget why they were there.

Part of me wondered if the man didn't deserve it, but part of me was starting to wonder if maybe he was just as much a victim as the Wolves. As Misha. And Mari.

"We can talk freely here. My father doesn't really care if we're sharing information, and he certainly doesn't think I have any," Ivan said.

My brows rose. "And you do?"

Ivan shrugged and pulled a plate close to him, filling it with vegetables. I did the same, taking a little bit of the meat, knowing it would help keep my strength up. I didn't think I'd be here long, but I wanted the ability to fight if I needed it.

"I'm going to take the tracker out of you," Ivan said after swallowing down a bite of food with a long swallow of wine. "I'll reinsert it in your arm so you can get it out when you need to."

I couldn't hide my surprise when he laid it all out like that—as though it was nothing. "And that's it?"

Ivan laughed. "That's it? Doing something that would probably get me maimed by one of his…" The word died on his tongue, but I knew what he'd been about to say.

By his dogs.

I set my fork down and stared at him. "Who are they?"

Ivan swallowed thickly. "What do you mean?"

"The Wolves he's broken. Who are they? Their names, where they came from, how long they've been here. They're not animals."

"They are now," Ivan said, and when I let loose a growl from the back of my throat, he paled and held up a hand. "I don't know if there's any coming back from what he and Alexei put them through, okay? I want there to be. Jesus, I…believe me when I say I'd do whatever it takes to fix this, but I don't know if there's a way."

I let out a small sigh. I wasn't trained for this. Basic medical care was one thing, but psychological trauma of this level? It was beyond my paygrade. It was beyond the skill of any Wolf I currently knew.

"It doesn't matter. They don't belong here," I told him.

He bowed his head. "I agree, and I don't… If we can get you out of here, I plan on making that a long chain of events that ends in my father…"

He didn't finish that sentence either. Captured? Dead?

Ideally, Kor wanted Kasher brought in alive. But he'd take dead too. We all would, and we would celebrate.

"Your father isn't the only problem," I said after a beat, then took another bite and forced myself to chew and swallow. "Your brother is far more dangerous to us now."

He let out a trembling breath. "I know. And it's getting worse the more he gets the support of other governments. Too many people think he has the right idea, and my father's plan to show the world that Wolves can and will be reduced to beasts is only going to fuel that."

"It'll create a divide. Civil wars everywhere," I told him. Enough humans would see Kasher's plan for what it was—torture and psychological warfare. And the Wolves in other countries who had been enjoying more freedom than us—they wouldn't be able to stand idly by.

Not this time.

Ivan bowed his head and nodded. "But it might need to come to that."

He was right, but it turned my stomach. I was exhausted by the idea of more pain, more death, more loss. I didn't want to think about my siblings on the brink of war again. Hell, even Mikael, who I tried not to think about at all, would be back in the fray, and I wasn't sure I could handle knowing he wouldn't ever come back.

"I need you to be prepared to run with Mari," Ivan said after a beat, very softly. He rose from the table, walking over to his dresser, and he returned with a small, black zippered pouch. When I tried to turn and look, he grabbed me by the back of the head with more force than I was expecting, and he turned my face toward the table. "Please don't move."

My body stiffened, my claws itching to extend, but I took a breath and nodded. "I've been prepared to run since I arrived here."

"Mari has to be kept safe," he said again. I heard the zipper, then I felt my shirt slide up my back. I stomped down the urge to fight him, and instead, I leaned forward. "She's more important than her ability to carry Kor's child."

I snorted. "You mean that you're in love with her."

His hand stilled, then he let out a sigh. "No, I'm not in love with her. But I care about her." His thumb rubbed over my spine, then I felt the cool press of an alcohol swab. It was all the warning I was given before something vicious tore into my skin.

I only just managed to choke back a cry of pain, which only got worse as he dug around for the tracker with something long and metal. I felt my limbs tingling from the pressure against my spine, but after a beat, the sensation was gone, and he took a step back.

I let my fangs and claws descend—not as good as a full shift, but my healing accelerated. I could feel my skin knitting back together, could feel him watching it happen. When I was no longer bleeding, he wiped me down, then pulled my shirt back over the wound and walked around to my side.

He didn't need to ask for my wrist. I gave it over, and he used the same scalpel to dig a hole to the right of my tendon. The tracker was a small, square bit of metal. So unobtrusive, so forgettable. I watched him lay it in a mass of flesh and blood, then he looked at me and waited.

I let myself feel it before I pushed my healing toward the incision, and I watched as the skin knitted back together, leaving a pink, shining spot of scar tissue. It would be gone by morning, and no one would ever know what Ivan had done.

At least, not until I dug it out myself and left it far behind.

"Are you going to tell me what's so important about Mari?" I asked him as he sat back down. I was more than ready to head back to my room, but I wanted information first.

He stared at me awhile, then grabbed his wine glass and drained it. Swiping his hand over his mouth, he suddenly looked very human and very vulnerable. He knew then I could kill him, and it was likely his father wouldn't even punish me too harshly for it.

Hell, it's likely why I was allowed in his room in the first place. The old man was hoping I'd take care of his problem.

"She's not human," Ivan said, his voice very low. "That's all I can tell you."

I almost laughed. Yes, there was something different about her genetic code, but…

I stopped and stared at him as the reality set in. "She's not a Wolf." She couldn't be a Wolf. She had none of our traits. And while yes, our genetic code was enough like a human's that it took an expert to sort out the differences, it wasn't possible that Mari had managed to fool everyone.

Was it?

"Ivan…"

"Just promise me," he said through clenched teeth.

When I realized that's all I was going to get from him, I nodded. "Fine. I'll do what I can. I have no intention of leaving here empty-handed."

"Don't worry about the rest, Danyal," he said. "That will be handled. But when the time comes, you take her, and you run."