New Species 08 Obsidian (5 page)

“We’ll have Trisha make the hard decisions. Right now he’s stable and Dr. Allison isn’t leaving the cell she’s contained in. Destiny is raising a fit to see her but I don’t think that’s a good idea. He’s admitted to being attracted to her and I’m afraid he’ll attempt to pull mate status to save her if we decide to prosecute her for kidnapping 880.”

“Shit,” Tiger muttered. “It’s going to be ugly if we have to lock her up for years. She’s made a lot of friends here but we can’t just forgive what she did. I’m fond of her myself but it doesn’t change the fact that she put a Species at risk. We can’t condone that.”

The one called Justice hesitated. “She woke him. That’s got to count for something. It’s a hell of a mess.”

“I know.” 880 sensed that Tiger stepped closer. “I’m afraid he’ll care what happens to her. What if locking her away from him keeps him from waking again? She might have been onto something with the female scent. He woke to protect her.”

“Hell.” The voice of the other male came closer too. “We’ll see what Trisha has to say. I know Dr. Allison has been clear that she’s willing to put her life at risk but what if he were to kill her if we allowed her near him? I’d feel guilty. We just don’t know enough about him.”

“He’s clueless that his life has changed and probably thinks he’s still at the mercy of Mercile. I wish some of our men had been with the team who located them. Maybe seeing one of us would have shocked him more but it might have made him realize who has him now.”

A firm hand gripped 880’s shoulder and he was able keep his body lax to hide the fact that he was conscious. He expected pain but none came.

“880, if you can hear me, I am Justice. I am like you.” He paused. “Tiger is like you too. We were once held prisoner by Mercile Industries but we were freed. You are safe here with your own kind. We have you restrained because we don’t know if you are dangerous to us or not. Your mental state is unknown.” His hand moved away. “The female who stole you is human but she isn’t a technician working for Mercile. She’s a good one who just wanted to save your life. She meant you no harm.”

It could be a trap but 880 made the decision to open his eyes. The light was blinding but something suddenly leaned over him to block out most of it. He stared into a face inches above his own. The male had features that weren’t human and strongly familiar since he’d seen his own reflection at times. His heart raced.

The male smiled, his expression alight with kindness, and he opened his mouth enough to show his sharp teeth. “I am Justice. Can you speak, 880? You are safe. See? We are the same and I was created by Mercile as well.”

Movement to his left drew his attention and he turned his head to stare at yet another male with altered features. That male smiled.

“I’m Tiger. You’re safe. Mercile no longer has you. We’ve been freed.”

Shock gripped him as the words sank into his confused mind. It couldn’t be true but he stared at two males, proof that it might be. He didn’t even know other males existed besides the ones he’d smelled recently when his mate was murdered. He opened his mouth, his throat dry, but managed to speak.

“Are we the only three left?”

Justice shook his head. “There are many of us.” The male turned his head. “Get Destiny in here but keep Ted and Paul out. No humans. Species only.”

Tiger left. 880 stared deeply into the male’s gaze.

“You didn’t know there were more of us?” Justice asked.

It hurt to speak so 880 held up two fingers.

“You were kept away from our females except for one. Is that accurate?”

He nodded.

An emotion close to pain twisted the male’s features as he spoke. “There are many of us, 880. We were freed from Mercile cells. We are in control of our lives.”

880 tried to shift his arm but couldn’t since it was restrained. A soft growl burst from his lips. The other male noticed the movement and glanced up before meeting his gaze again.

“We’ll get those off you. We just didn’t know if you were dangerous or not. We didn’t want you to get hurt or to hurt us if you woke not knowing you aren’t amongst enemies.”

“The female?” He wanted to know where Alli was and what she’d done to him. “The two males?”

“I’m sorry.” The male leaned in closer. “Your mate was killed. We rescued the two males who were witness to it and they survived.” Anger deepened his voice. “We weren’t able to recover your mate’s body. I’m so sorry. It was gone by the time we located you and the other males held with you. The Mercile employees who would speak during interrogation said her body was removed and destroyed. They burned it.”

He knew his mate had died. “The technician.”

The other male drew back a little. “Dr. Allison?”

“Alli.” It hurt to get the words out, speaking hurt his throat, but he wanted to know about her.

“She is a human doctor who works for us. You were rescued some months ago and brought to us after you were in coma. After your mate was murdered you attacked the bars of your cell and it caused massive damage to your body. Even though your injuries healed, you wouldn’t wake.” He licked his lips and took a deep breath. “Dr. Allison didn’t mean any harm but she stole you from us. She believed you scenting another female would lure you from your deep sleep and perhaps pique your interest. We refused to allow it, concerned that you’d want the female whose scent you grew to know.

“She will be punished for taking you. We can’t condone the risk she took that our enemies would locate you. There are humans who hate us but we are safe from them here. She took you away from us, where we couldn’t protect you.”

880 tried to understand the information he’d been given. A lot of it didn’t make sense to him, the sketchy details overloaded his mind, and he still had a hard time grasping that his people had been liberated and so many had survived. Mercile no longer had them at their mercy. He was tempted to believe it was all a scheme to gain his trust for some new experiment but he refused to consider that males of his own kind would meekly submit to helping the vicious humans fool him. He stared into the other male’s steady gaze.

“Truth?”

“It’s all true.” Justice leaned in again. “I know what you must be thinking. This isn’t a game and they aren’t forcing me to lie to you. No female will suffer if I don’t say something they made me repeat. We are free and Mercile is no longer in control. Your hellish life as you knew it no longer exists.”

The approaching footsteps drew his attention and 880 turned to watch the male named Tiger enter the room, along with a new male with altered features. Both of them smiled at him as Justice backed away.

“Unlock him, Destiny.”

The new male hesitated, shooting 880 a dubious look.

“It is safe. He isn’t feral. We’ve been talking.”

“I am now called Destiny.” The male approached his bed cautiously and withdrew keys. “I will unlock your restraints. We mean you no harm.”

“He knows,” Justice stated. “Just set him free.”

The ankle cuffs were removed first and finally his arms were released. 880 attempted to sit but his body responded sluggishly. Justice and Destiny gripped his arms—he allowed it—as they helped him into an upright position. Tiger shoved pillows behind his back before they all withdrew a few feet to watch him.

“You have been sleeping for months.” Destiny spoke. “Your body needs to recover but you should be fine. We’ll get you on solid foods to help you quickly regain your full strength.”

880 lifted the blanket to stare down at his body. He could see his belly had shrunken, his skin tight over his bones, and he growled when he saw his dick. Something was taped to it and a tube trailed out of sight over one thigh. His head jerked up to shoot them an accusatory glare.

“It’s a catheter,” Destiny informed him. “It’s there to help you go to the bathroom without soiling your bedding. I’ll remove it as soon as you are strong enough to stand.”

“Take it out now.” He wanted free of it and the thin tubes hooked to his arm. “Take it all off.”

Destiny hesitated.

Justice cleared his throat. “Do it. We’ll help him stand until he is able to on his own. Give him his pride back.”

880 lifted his chin as his gaze swept around the room. It wasn’t a cell, just a room. The walls were not concrete or bars. The door was open to allow him to leave if he wished. No armed guards were in sight and he couldn’t detect any human scent as he inhaled but he knew his senses were still dulled. His body relaxed and he began to believe the males. He was free.

Bitterness gripped him next. It wasn’t right that he’d survived long enough to know this day when 46 had not. He’d let his female down. He’d somehow done something to cause her death. Pain filled his heart.

Chapter Five

“What were you thinking?”

Alli hesitated, staring at Trisha, the doctor who not only had become her friend but was mated to a New Species. “I just wanted to save him and no one would listen to my suggestions on how to get him to wake from his coma.”

“You could have called me or waited until I got back. I was only going to be gone for six weeks at Reservation.”

“880 was getting worse. He’d lost too much weight. I couldn’t stand to watch him waste away. How is he? No one will say a word about him. Did he wake up again?”

Trisha took a seat on her bed a few feet away and sighed. “He’s awake.”

Tears of joy filled Alli’s eyes. “Really? That’s great.”

“He’s recovering amazingly fast. He’s already on his feet. He demanded food, ate more than they wanted, and took a walk down the hallway before he almost crashed into the floor when his legs gave out on him.”

“Does he look better?”

“No humans are allowed on that level so I haven’t been able to examine him in person. Justice thinks it’s best right now if he’s not exposed to any. Destiny and Field are living down there to tend to him around the clock. I did get a look at the live feed from the cameras. I insisted and I could tell his coloring is much better from what I saw. You can imagine how difficult it is trying to evaluate a patient by video monitoring though.”

“How is his mental state? Is he showing any signs of brain damage or depression? We have no idea what was done to him or how traumatic his brain injuries were before he arrived at Homeland.”

“He seems fine.” Trisha frowned. “I’d be worried about my own ass right now, Alli. You kidnapped a Species and took him from behind the gates. Do you know how dangerous that was? What if someone not associated with the NSO had found you with him? Did you think about that?”

“I just wanted to help him and they wouldn’t let me do that. I thought it would be safe and I took every precaution I could think of. I planned to call Homeland on day seven if 880 didn’t show any signs of improvement or if he worsened.”

“You unchained him.” Trisha hesitated. “Did you think about what could have happened if he’d woken, thought you were his enemy, and he killed you? He would have been out there alone. He wouldn’t have known what to do and he could have killed innocent people, thinking everyone he saw worked for Mercile.”

Alli shook her head. “He would have been too weak to do much damage to me and I was sure I could handle him.”

“He attacked Tim Oberto’s team. He not only got out of his bed but put two of them on their asses. Think of what he could have done if he’d opened his eyes to see you there.”

The blood drained from her face as she did just that. “He would or could have killed me.”

“Exactly.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I know.” Trisha reached out and took her hand. “You’re in a lot of trouble and I don’t know what they are going to do with you. Justice won’t even discuss it with me. Slade is my mate but he is Species too. You put one of his males at risk and none of them can ignore that. You were obviously right about a female scent drawing 880 out of his coma but it doesn’t cancel out the danger you exposed him to. At the very least, you’re fired. You could be facing some jail time.”

Tears filled Alli’s eyes but she blinked them back. “I knew that and I’m ready to take whatever sentence they hand out to me. 880 was worth it.”

“Damn it.” Trisha released her and stood to pace the small area. “This is a mess. So far they’ve kept you in this holding cell but they can’t keep you here indefinitely. Justice is against Species imprisoning humans. They’ll have to hand you over to the people who used to manage Homeland. They opened a prison run by them to hold Mercile employees.” Trisha hesitated and met her stare. “It’s a hellish place full of people who will hate you and you’ll hate them since they are monsters. You’re
not
one.”

“I knew the risks and I took them.”

Trisha’s gaze narrowed. “Do you think I’m going to sleep at night, knowing where you’re going? The NSO doesn’t control it and I’ve heard horror stories about that place. I’m trying to talk them into just firing you and escorting you to the gates. You’ll be banned from having any further contact with the NSO or discussing Species in public. I just don’t know if they are going to go for it. Would you sign a total confidentially clause if they offered it to you?”

More tears filled her eyes. “I just wanted to help New Species, 880 in particular.”

“I know but you did the wrong thing. It was insane, irrational, and you did put 880 in severe danger. If someone had gotten a hold of him they could have killed him, ransomed him to the NSO for millions, or worst case, someone from Mercile could have gotten their hands on him again. There are a lot of those assholes out there who haven’t been caught yet. They are desperate.”

Alli’s shoulders dropped. “I’m sorry.”

Trisha stared at her grimly. “Hang in there.”

Alli watched her go. The officer guarding her glanced in before the door closed. The sounds of locks being turned made her curl up on the bed. Her room was small, consisting of a bed, a handful of books she’d been given, and nothing else. It had been two days since she’d been arrested. Tiger and now Trisha were the only ones who had visited her besides a few humans on the task force who had come to ask her questions. At least she knew 880 had regained consciousness and he was getting stronger.

“It was worth it,” she whispered and squeezed her eyes closed as more tears slipped out.

* * * * *

Trisha glared at Justice, then at her mate. Slade took a step closer, his hand lifted to caress her but she stepped out of his reach. She was furious.

“There’s your criminal. The big bad threat to New Species. Give me a damn break. Alli did something stupid but she shouldn’t be locked up.” Trisha pointed to the camera feed inside Allison Baker’s cell. “She’s a doctor. We will do anything to save a patient and nobody here would listen to her. I would have raised hell until someone caved if I had a suggestion I believed in but she’s different. I can’t see her yelling or getting in someone’s face. She secretly plotted to get 880 out of here where she could try to do what it took to save him.” She paused. “And it worked. I want Tiger in here right now.”

Justice hesitated but lifted his phone. “Send in Tiger please.” He hung up. “Trisha, we are all upset.”

“Doc—”

“Shut up, Slade. Don’t ‘Doc’ me. I’m mad. I swear I’m going with her if you send her to Fuller Prison. You can lock us up together in a holding cell over there.”

Shock widened her mate’s gaze and he shot an alarmed look Justice’s way. A growl tore from his throat and Trisha backed off that one immediately, afraid he’d get into a fight.

“Slade?” He looked at her. “Just stand still and let me handle this, okay?”

He frowned but his body relaxed.

The door behind them opened and Tiger strutted inside. “I was told you needed me?”

Trisha turned on him. “I demand you walk over to Security and have them lock you inside the cell next to Alli’s.”

His pretty gaze widened. “What?”

“You heard me. She called you, asking for permission to do what she thought was best for her patient but you turned her down flat. She wouldn’t have kidnapped him if you’d just given her a chance to do whatever she thought would help 880. You’re just as guilty of a crime as she is. Someone has to pay for this, according to Justice, and damn it, I’m holding you accountable too. Alli was right. 880 is awake. He might not be if she hadn’t had to go to such drastic measures to save him. Go lock yourself up and whatever time she gets, you deserve too.” She took a deep breath. “I demand you stay in the cell next to hers so you can both suffer together.”

Tiger’s mouth dropped open but he closed it. His gaze slid to Justice.

Trisha turned on him next. “That’s fair. Alli might have put 880 at risk by taking him off NSO grounds but Tiger put him at risk too for not listening to his doctor. She woke him. 880 would still be in a coma if it wasn’t for her. You want someone to pay for what she did but she was driven to do it by him.” She pointed at Tiger. “And you could have overridden his veto but you didn’t so you should be in a third cell.”

Justice frowned. “Calm down, Trisha.”

“Screw that. Either all three of you serve the same amount of time or I demand you release her. I want her back on duty. Tiger was down the hall in his office. You’re in yours. I want Alli back in hers. She’s a great doctor.”

“We can’t trust her anymore, Trisha.” Slade’s soft voice calmed her a little.

She met his gaze. “Then ban her from the NSO and escort her to the gates but let her out of that damn cell. She’s not a criminal. She’s dedicated to saving lives, she did what she felt was necessary for 880. Give her credit for that. Do you know how scared she must have been to take him? What kind of courage it took not to only implement her plan but go through with it? She put her life in danger too, knew she’d face punishment, and probably didn’t think it would even work. That makes her braver in my book. She risked it all for a Species.”

Trisha hesitated. “She had more faith in 880 than any of you did.” Tears filled her eyes. “I’d do anything for you and you’re the love of my life, Slade. You’re my mate, my heart. Alli did that for 880 and she doesn’t even know him. You should give her a raise and be damn grateful we have a doctor with that kind of loyalty. All she was thinking about was him and giving him the best chance at survival.”

The room became silent and Slade drew closer to pull her into his arms. She let him hold her. Justice finally sighed.

“Tiger, go to Security and escort Dr. Allison to her home.” He paused. “I don’t know what to do with her but she doesn’t belong in a cell. She worked for us and she may not be safe outside our gates due to her association. Have an officer placed at her door and let her know she’s confined to her house. I want her made very comfortable until we decide how to handle this.”

“Understood.”

Trisha lifted her head and stared into Slade’s gaze. “Thank you.”

“I can’t stand to see you hurting.” He turned his head to peer at Justice. “Thank you.”

“Trisha made valid arguments.” Justice paused. “This is a hell of a mess.”

* * * * *

880 stared at the females and softly growled a warning, unsure of what their presence meant. He didn’t welcome the sight of them. One of them looked too similar to his mate for comfort.

The tall dark-haired one growled back. “I am Breeze and that is not how you make friends. Just be blunt if you are trying to initiate sex. I am not interested but I don’t want to worry about you attacking me either.”

Shock filled him at her frank statement and the way she evenly stared at him. 46 had avoided speaking to him when he was in a bad mood unless she wanted to argue. This one seemed to want to challenge him.

“You remind me of her.”

The female’s gaze softened. “Your mate?”

“Yes.”

“What was she called?”

“46.”

The female took a seat in his room while the other two stayed by the door. Breeze pointed to his bed. “Sit. You make me nervous. I don’t know how in control you are or how you will react around females.” She then pointed to the other two. “They will jump on your ass if you attack me. Are we clear?”

His eyebrows lifted as he glanced at the two females before taking a seat on the edge of the bed to study the one named Breeze. “I will not strike out at you.”

“That is good to know.” She smiled. “How are you doing with knowing freedom? You look strong and healthy. I heard you ventured outside today to take a walk.”

“I am well.”

“You don’t speak much to others, do you?”

“I am adjusting. It is strange.” He avoided discussing why he wasn’t talkative, unwilling to admit he didn’t feel comfortable around so many after his solitary life with only his mate.

Sympathy flashed in Breeze’s eyes. “We all understand that but trust me, you have it way better than we did. Humans had to deal with us after we were rescued. It was tough on them, as well as us, to find a happy middle ground. You’re surrounded by your own kind.”

“Why would I feel trust? I don’t know you.” He wanted to be honest.

She grinned and he relaxed slightly when her features softened.

“True. We’re your kind though and you are ours. We have to stick together and you can depend on us to have your back. Do you know what that means?”

“You are telling me I can trust you.”

“That’s right. You can.” She leaned forward a little. “How are you really doing?”

“I’m growing stronger.”

“I mean how are you doing inside your head? I know you lost your mate. Are you filled with rage?”

He nodded. “I want revenge for her death.”

“We have the assholes who killed her.”

He tensed. “They are here?”

“We captured them when you were rescued. They were sent to a cage of their own and will pay for her death. Does that help? They will never be free again.”

“I want to be taken to them.”