Chapter 4

Tilly

My head throbbed as I slowly opened my eyes.

“Tilly?” a voice whispered.

I sat up and banged my head on a metal bar. “Ow.”

“Don’t sit up, sweetheart.”

I looked around and realized I was in a cage and started to panic.

“Breathe, Tilly. Just breathe,” a male voice said.

I tried to do as he said, but I was stuck in a fetal position with no room to move—trapped.

“Who’s there?” I managed to say.

“It’s Maxine and Aaron, sweetie. We’re in the cage next to you. They had you in dingo form when they brought you in.”

“No, that’s not right.” My head hurt trying to remember everything that happened. “I never shifted.”

“But you did.”

“That’s not possible. I wasn’t even conscious.”

“I don’t know how they did it, but you weren’t you when they put you in that cage. And then they came back about a few minutes ago and they gave you a shot and suddenly there you were again,” Aaron explained.

“They forced me to shift while I was unconscious?”

“Yeah. I think they did.”

Tears pricked my eyes. I felt so violated. I couldn’t even explain all the emotions flowing through me.

“Tilly, it’s going to be okay,” Maxine said.

“How can you say that? Look at us?”

Granted I couldn’t actually look at them. Were they crammed into such a small space too?

“Shh, they’re coming,” someone said.

It was the first time I realized there were others in the room.

I could hear voices getting closer until a door opened. I tried to turn my head to see them, but I couldn’t move.

“Please. There’s been a mistake. Let me out,” a woman begged.

“My son is just a child. Please release him. Do whatever you must to me, but he’s just a baby,” another pleaded.

How many people were here?

“Shut up,” a man said.

The hair on my arms stood up and my dingo tried to surface, but I couldn’t call her forward. Still, a menacing growl erupted from within me.

The man clapped and cheered gleefully.

“There she is. A true prize. A fighter.”

He was standing in front of me, but I couldn’t turn my neck enough to look up at him.

“This tiny cage will never do for such a precious treasure. Move her.”

I had no idea who he was talking to, but a second set of feet appeared in front me.

“Don’t take her. Leave her alone,” Maxine said.

“Oh, I see. A family unit then. Where did they come from? Which Tribe?” the first man asked.

“The city. They’re the ones you requested specifically, sir.”

“Really? Okay. So what makes you three so special?”

He knelt down and I saw his face for the first time. It wasn’t an unpleasant face. Any other situation and I might consider him handsome even, but looking at him now, in this place, I was too disgusted to give him a second thought.

“My team tells me the three of you can provide me much leverage.” He stood and spoke to the other man. “So do not kill them. Consider them my special guests and for God’s sake, get her out of that tiny cage.”

“Where should we put her. All the cages are full.”

“Then kill one of the others and make some room.”

I heard the cries and panicked murmurs all around the room.

“No,” I begged. “I’m fine here. Really? I love tight spaces.”

He seemed to consider that for a moment. “A martyr. You could be worth far more than even bargained for. I’ll admit going after that house in the city was a big risk. And we still have three missing pups out there if the pictures are any indication, but don’t you worry your pretty little head about that. We’ll have them soon enough. My intel is very thorough.”

I gritted my teeth and refused to engage.

“Nothing? Really? How disappointing. I had the feeling you were a true fighter the way you kicked and screamed until the sedative set in. Little bitch even bit my friend here. I had to send a clean up crew in to fix the mess you made.”

“Why would you do that?” I blurted out.

“Ah, there she is. Why wouldn’t I? The last thing I want is for some pitiful human to grow suspicious. No, no, no. That wouldn’t do at all. As it is everyone you know believes you’re all on a last minute vacation. And they’ll continue to believe that as long as you behave.”

“What do you want?”

He blew out a breath, but there was humor in his voice when he spoke again.

“What do I want? Let’s see, I want to make a lot of money, an insane scandalous amount of money. Enough to continue funding the genetic testing that I took over when your kind murdered my boss. And these Collectors have that kind of money. For the right prize they’ll pay an obscene amount for any one of you. Unfortunately, I found out a little too late that they are clueless about your kind— shifters .”

Spit hit my face as he said the word like it left a horrible taste in his mouth.

“Those morons think they’re looking for humans with special powers. They don’t know the truth the way I did. Unfortunately I learned that a little too late. So, now I’m forced to correct the issue. See they didn’t know about shifters and I was ready to present to them all sorts of shifters for the right price of course. But don’t worry. It’s our little secret. I told them your kind once existed but was eradicated over time. Unfortunately that time is now. We’ve already handled one Tribe in a peaceful manor. Then there was that other that fought back. My men were forced to slaughter them all. Pity. I keep trying to explain that I can still use the cadavers post mortem.”

My stomach lurch, but I held back my gag.

This man was disgusting and delusional. But he had information I desperately needed, so I had to play nice or at least appear to be agreeable.

“Which Tribes?” I asked. “Please, which Tribes.”

“It doesn’t really matter, beautiful, because they’ll all be gone very soon.”