New Species 11 True (4 page)

“Harris is keeping her so drugged that she isn’t going to
wake up if that’s what you were hoping for. It’s better to keep her knocked out
since we have no idea how she’ll react emotionally when she comes around. As I
said, this shit is hard on humans. We want to keep her heart rate as slow as
possible so heavy sedation helps with that.”

“How can she eat?” He clenched his teeth. She was already
too small.

“No worries there. We’ll make sure she gets what she needs
to get well. Food is not the most important thing for her right now. She’s been
through the wringer.” He stepped away from the bed. “Is the rumor true that she’ll
be transferred to Fuller when she’s stable?”

The idea didn’t sit well with him. “I’m not certain.”

“I just hope they have a good medical staff.” Paul circled
the bed and lifted the sheet. He removed the bandage, revealing her wound.

True bit back a growl at seeing her pale stomach and the
angry red wound on her side. There were ugly bruises on each of her hipbones.
The gown shielded her from her ribs up but if the nurse tugged the sheet any
lower her sex would be exposed since it was obvious she was naked from the
waist down. The protective urge that struck was strong, goading him to shove
the nurse away, but he resisted. Her modesty was covered. He’d put a stop to it
though if the nurse dared lower that sheet another few inches.

“I will apply a fresh bandage but Harris is really curious
as to how the drug will work on us. He needs to see this first. Damn. That shit
is amazing. Look at that.” Paul pointed to the staples. “I think I can remove
those. The skin seems to have already fused. It’s only been about twelve hours
but you’d swear this happened at least a couple of weeks ago, judging by how
rapidly it’s healing. I think the drug is working faster on her than it does on
you guys. I’m going to call in Harris. He might want to lower the dose. This is
so exciting to be able to finally test it on humans at full dosage. Nobody
wanted to do that before.”

True covered her stomach with the sheet after the nurse laid
gauze over her incision and left the room to seek out the doctor. It angered
him that they were viewing Shiver as an experiment. He hesitated, straining for
any sound of approaching steps, before carefully taking her delicate hand in
his. It was totally lifeless but warm. He was gentle as he caressed her
fingers, memories of finding her bloody and dying on the floor prevalent in his
thoughts.

There had been times since he’d gained his freedom when he’d
considered how he’d react when Tech Shiver was located and arrested. The sense
of betrayal he’d once felt had remained. She might not have been his female but
her reasons for being kind to him had been suspicious after learning she worked
closely with Polanitis. Had it all been an act to get him to care about her so
she could be safely mounted by a Species? He wanted answers.

He placed her hand back on the bed and stepped away. The
anger he had thought he’d feel at seeing her again didn’t surface. It would
have been easy to pretend he just wanted to question her if she survived but he
prided himself on being brutally honest. True just wanted her to open her eyes
and be well. He’d cared about Shiver too much and her death would cause him
pain.

She probably would be sent to Fuller Prison. There was no
denying that she worked for the enemy. The humans who ran the place would put
her in a cage and justice would be served. She would learn confinement,
hopelessness of ever gaining freedom, and suffer for her crimes against
Species.

A memory from the past formed inside his mind…

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Shiver stepped inside his cell with a smile on her
heart-shaped face, glanced at the camera before coming inside, schooling her
features. The kit in her hand indicated why she’d come. They took many vials of
blood after forcing drugs into his body.

“Hi,” she whispered. “I’m sorry about this.” Shiver placed
the kit on the table and his chains activated, pulling him tight against the
wall. She wasn’t the one to do it so that meant a guard outside the door
watched their movements. “I’ll make it quick.”

She donned gloves as she uncapped a needle and inched closer
with the syringe. A small alcohol packet was held between her fingers as she
invaded his space. Her head didn’t even reach the top of his shoulder when she
stopped mere inches away. She used her teeth to rip the tip off one finger of
the glove, then also tore open the packet and swabbed his arm near his inner
elbow. She lifted her head and studied his face, paying careful attention to
his jaw.

“I’m so sorry. Are you okay?”

She referred to the bruising there. He didn’t answer, rarely
did.

Her warm fingers gripped his arm so gently he almost missed
the soft way she stroked his skin with that single bare fingertip. She had told
him once that tearing away the latex made it easier to feel his veins but they
were very prominent. Sometimes he pretended it might be possible that she just
wanted to be able to touch him, skin to skin. Her body blocked the camera so he
was the only one aware of her actions. The needle was inserted into his arm so
carefully that he barely felt it. Others just stabbed him roughly, seeming to
enjoy inflicting pain.

“I brought you pain pills. They are safe to take,” she
whispered. She released his arm and reached down the front of her shirt. He
couldn’t look away as the neck of it dipped lower to reveal her creamy, white
skin and the top curve of her breasts as she removed something hidden there.
She reached down and slid a small plastic packet against his palm. He closed
his fingers around the object.

She withdrew the needle and capped it, shoving it inside her
front pocket. She pressed a small gauze square to the puncture site. Shiver
glanced up then, holding his gaze.

“Those pills are mine—from a dental appointment. I smuggled
them in. Just take one at a time with some water, two if you are really sore.
They’ll help take away some of the discomfort.” Her gaze drifted to his swollen
jaw again then to his bruised ribs. Tears surfaced in her eyes but she blinked
them back. “Don’t give up, 710. I promise this won’t last forever. Just keep
calm and don’t cause fights.”

Her meaning was confusing. He always healed. The pain would
fade until the guards inflicted more damage. Nothing in his life changed,
especially the suffering the guards routinely inflicted upon him. He glanced
down his body to study his chest, certain he’d experienced worse bruising than
the dark ones now marring his skin. She shouldn’t be alarmed enough by their
appearance to worry that he’d do something that would provoke a deadly response
from the guards while he was helplessly chained. His life wasn’t a happy
existence but he would only attack if he had a chance of winning a fight.

Realization dawned that she stood too close to his body. He
could strike out and cause damage. His muscles tensed while he mentally
reviewed her weaknesses. One downward arc and he could shatter her nose with his
chin or cause facial injuries. She was even near enough to bite. Her tender
flesh was vulnerable. He resisted, unable to hurt Shiver. He didn’t want to
spill her blood or hear her screams. It made his chest ache, imagining seeing
terror in her gaze when she looked at him instead of the warmth he always
glimpsed.

She backed away and he watched her safely leave with her
kit. The chains loosened and he limped to the sink. The camera remained at his
back when he studied the white pills inside the tiny clear bag. He removed two,
hesitated before shoving them into his mouth. He bent and sipped water from the
sink to wash them down.

It was a risk to take her drugs but he trusted Shiver for
some unknown reason. He hid the bag in his fist, making his way to the sleeping
mat. He lay down, curling onto his side. He shoved the bag under the mat where
it would remain hidden since they never moved it. Everything hurt but as time
passed the pain eased. She hadn’t lied to him. Why did she care if he suffered?
Why had she risked giving him her pills? He was sure the guards hadn’t known
about it. She’d been careful to keep the exchange hidden.

He’d once witnessed firsthand that she wasn’t on friendly
terms with the guards. It had been that time they’d purposely kept him chained
to the wall for days while beating him for injuring one of them in
self-defense. He hung there, helpless to retaliate.

She’d entered his room, seen his condition and yelled at the
guard near the door to get a doctor. When he refused, she’d shoved the male and
yanked the radio from his belt, demanding one come to the cell. The guard had
pushed her roughly into the hallway before the door closed. A doctor had come
and—

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“You have to see this.” Paul’s voice tore True from his
memories as the nurse returned with the doctor.

True turned to glance at both males. He should leave but he
wanted to hear what Harris had to say. The doctor approached the bed, drew back
the sheet and lifted the gauze pad.

“Wow. At this rate she should be fully healed within a few
days. It’s a real breakthrough we can use to our advantage.”

“That’s what I was saying.” Paul grinned. “Do you know what
this means?”

“We keep a lid on it,” Dr. Harris snapped, shooting a glare
at Paul. “Mercile created it and any hint that they came up with a miracle drug
would have them ranting about how what they did to New Species was beneficial
to mankind. That isn’t happening.”

“They destroyed their records to hide evidence of what they’d
done to New Species. Won’t this drug formula be lost to them? They can’t claim
ownership if they don’t have proof it was created in their labs. We didn’t
exactly share the information that we recovered the formula from those
bastards.”

“Who knows what backup files they hid? I’m not willing to
risk it. I’ll send some samples to a trusted friend at the FDA if this
continues to go well. They can test it in human trials and take credit for its
creation at that point. Nobody wins a fight with the FDA.”

“How is she?” True didn’t care about the drug, only her
prognosis.

Harris pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and
shrugged. “She’s doing great so far. She hasn’t stroked out or had a heart
attack. I half expected one of those two scenarios to happen by now but it’s
only been twelve hours. It’s a powerful drug.”

Alarm shot through him. “Stop giving it to her. She’s no
longer in danger of dying, correct?”

Harris frowned. “This could help humans, True. We’ll learn a
lot if we keep her on it.”

“Her life is more important than a test.”

“She works for Mercile.”

True growled, his temper flaring. “So?”

“I won’t lose any sleep over this test. They didn’t give a
shit if they killed New Species. The least she can do is help us find out if it’s
possible to fully heal on the same dosage of the drug that they used on you guys.
It could be used on mates if they are injured.”

“Take her off the drug.”

“I’ll discuss it with Justice.” Harris shook his head,
turning away. “I’m sure he’ll see it my way. It’s worth the risks.”

True lunged, blocking the doctor from exiting the room. “Take
her off the drug.” He growled. “She isn’t a test subject. Her life isn’t yours
to gamble with.”

“She belongs to the NSO now. I don’t know why you’re so
upset about this. They used you for testing so who gives a damn if we turn the
tables? Did Mercile ever ask your permission to inject you with drugs? She
would be dead already if it wasn’t for what we’ve done so far.”

“We’re not them. Stop giving her the drug, Harris.” He
clenched his fists, ready to strike the male if he refused.

“Calm down!”

“You could kill her.” He glared over the male’s head to the
nurse. “One of you is going to comply or both of you are going to need medical
assistance. You can test the drug on yourselves if you feel the risks are
acceptable.”

“Fuck,” Paul muttered. “He means it, Dr. Harris. They are
really protective of women.”

“You have no authority here,” Harris snapped.

True snarled, giving the man a cold stare. “Stop giving her
the healing drug.”

“Do what he says,” Jericho rasped from behind him. “We don’t
kill females. I wasn’t aware she no longer needed the drug to survive or the
harm it could cause to her body if you continue to dose her.”

“Neither one of you has any medical knowledge,” Harris
protested. “I’m not being mean, damn it. This could help human mates if they
are hurt. I’d rather test it on her than someone we care about.”

“I care if she dies,” True rasped.

Jericho stopped next to him. “I have excellent hearing and
heard the risks. They aren’t worth it.”

True gave the male a grateful look for backing him up before
turning his head and growling at the doctor. “She belongs to the NSO now. You
stated it. Do what we say. Stop giving her the drug.”

“You do work for us.” Jericho’s voice deepened. “That’s an
order.”

“I’m on it.” Paul removed the bag he’d just hung. “I’ll go
get plain saline. Let’s not fight. I don’t want to get my ass kicked,” he
muttered. The nurse rushed around them and fled the room.

“I’m calling Justice.”

“You do that.” True wasn’t concerned with Harris’ threat. “Tell
him it could have killed her. I’m sure he won’t be happy.”

The doctor stomped out of the room and True relaxed, looking
at the primate male, Jericho. “Thank you.”

The other male shrugged. “My job is to protect and keep her
safe. I fail if she dies.” He glanced at the bed. “I heard she once worked
where you were held.”

“She did.”

“You want her to survive to experience the suffering you
once lived with daily? Fuller is run by humans. She’ll learn to regret all she’s
done.”

“She wasn’t like the other technicians.” He studied Shiver,
resisting the urge to step closer.