Parahuman (Parahuman Series) (23 page)

    
“Brett’s the scientist who created me, but The Company is the corporation who
funded it. They wanted Brett to construct elite hybrid soldiers and create
these wildly unique hybrid animals to sell for profit. Brett became uncomfortable
with some of their ideas so we escaped.” 

     Laney
was breathing, so he knew she hadn’t passed out from shock. Outside, Devan watched
a squirrel scamper about foraging for nuts.  

     “So
that’s why they want you, because of your…genetic material?” She finally spoke
up from behind him.

     “Yes,
and they want Brett because he’s the only person in the world who’s been able
to create a viable living human hybrid.” Devan couldn’t hold back any longer;
he turned to observe her reaction. She sat on the edge of the bed; hands
clasped between her legs jiggle legs, starring at him in distress. This had to
be hard for her to take in; the substance of science fiction.

     “This
is really true?” She gaped, eyes wide and unblinking.

     Devan
nodded and leaned back against the window sill. The coolness of the glass felt
good on his back.

    
“Brett’s not your uncle, but the scientist who …created you.” She looked dazed.

    
“Yes.”

     “And
he genetically modified your human DNA with animal DNA?” She affirmed.

    
“Correct.” He watched her apprehensively. He couldn’t tell if she comprehended
this or was just repeating what he said in a stupor. Her eyes flickered over
his wooden animal figurines on the dresser. Yes, she comprehended.

     “How
is that possible? DNA is so small.” She sounded befuddled. Devan couldn’t blame
her.

     “With
an almost unlimited amount of money it can be done. Well…at least once. That’s
why they need to acquire me, so they can obtain my DNA. That way they only have
to clone me rather than construct another like me from scratch again.”

     Laney
began shaking her head in astounded confusion. “I don’t know why I’m accepting
this so easily…” She looked up at him in amazement. “No, I know why; I’ve seen
what you can do. So people are trying to find you so they can…dissect you?” She
forced the last two words out in revulsion.

     Well
at least she didn’t appear to think he was some abomination that needed to be
taken apart if the horror in her tone was any indication.

     “When
did you escape?” She asked abruptly.

     Devan
blinked at her change of topic. “When I was ten.”

     “So
you’ve been on the run for six years.” She calculated quickly.

     Again
Devan nodded, his gaze focused on her expression. He was waiting for the full
content of the words to penetrate; the part about him not being completely
human that would change her shock to abhorrence at the aberration that he was.

     “We
move from place to place; making sure not to stay very long in any one
location. We keep our heads down and try not to draw too much attention onto
ourselves.” Something that hadn’t gone very well since meeting her. Not that it
was all her fault; the wolves were a complete fluke, and Devan didn’t blame her
for Jarrod’s actions. That male was just psychotic.

     His
statement seemed to jolt her; panic crossed her face. “You won’t have to leave
because of what happen today, will you?”

     “We
can’t be sure yet, “Devan replied bleakly. “Someone might have seen me go into
that building with you. They might wonder why I didn’t come out. There will be
a lot of talk, and Brett and I need to keep our ears open to what people will
be repeating.”

     “If
you had to leave, where would you go?” She was biting her lip, clearly
disturbed.  

     Pushing
off the window anger washed over him at too many things in his life he had no
control over, things that had never bothered him much before. He was a realist
and anger over circumstances he had no power over was a useless emotion, it was
something that had not been a problem for him previously…until it came to her. 

     Devan
could feel her eyes following him as he paced the small confines of the room.
“Brett and I have talked about Montana or Maine, possibly even going over the
Canadian border the next time we move. It just wasn’t supposed to be this
soon.” He shouldn’t be giving her this information; it could put them in
further danger. It could put her in danger. The limited space of the room was
beginning to close in on him, he had to get out.

     As
though sensing his restlessness, Laney stood up. “Do you want to go outside;
I’m sure we could both use some fresh air?”

     Devan
shot to the door in a flash, holding the door open so she could pass through
first. She stopped unexpectedly in front of him and he looked down at her
inquiringly. Not saying anything, she proceeded to straighten the sleeve of his
shirt that had caught on his bandage. He watched, staggered as the light brush
of her fingers across his skin sent more lightning bolts of electricity to
every nerve ending of his body. Standing absolutely motionless he was barely
able to breathe at the closeness of her frame. When she finished she looked up
at him with a sad smile on her face.

     For a
minute neither one of them moved, their eyes locked together in the intimacy of
the moment. It crossed his mind that she was looking at his eyes totally naked
and he didn’t care. This was something so new to him; being close to someone
and being
touched
. The emotions were overwhelming, but at the same time
comforting. Her eyes were bemused as though she were also unfamiliar with what
was happening. For those seconds Devan felt it was just the two of them, and
that there was nothing to worry about.

     A vibration
coming from Laney’s pocket broke the connection startling them both enough that
they jumped visibly at the interruption. 

     The
color of her face had to be a matching shade to his. She turned briskly
snatching the phone from her pocket. Giving it only a curious glance she
returned it back to her pocket.   

     Devan
didn’t ask who it was, only gestured awkwardly for her to proceed with him down
the hallway. They entered the living room to find Brett pacing the perimeter,
his whole demeanor anxious. His gaze skimmed Laney briefly before centering on
Devan.

    
“Everything okay?” He asked nervously.

     Devan
glanced at Laney reflexively and she smiled reassuringly, her face still
slightly pink.

     “I
won’t say anything to anyone,” she promised.

     Brett
still looked unconvinced. Laney must have realized the same thing. Taking
another step toward Brett her face became serious.

    
“Truly, I will not say anything to anyone; while you are here or if you leave.
Please believe me. From what Devan has told me about these people and what they
would do…I wouldn’t want them to get their hands on either of you.”

    Brett
relaxed slightly, but there was still a measure of doubt in his eyes as he
regarded her. He switched his gaze over to Devan. “You’re looking a little
flushed; we should probably check your temperature, and I’m sure that pain
medication is wearing off. I’ve got some pain pills here that you can take.” He
held the thermometer out first.

     “I
feel fine, although the pain medication would probably be helpful in a little
while.”    

     “No
temperature, no pain medication.” Brett stated firmly, holding out the
thermometer.

     Devan
growled in annoyance. Putting the thermometer in his mouth he heard Laney
chuckle softly. It beeped three seconds later.

    
“102.8
°
.” He handed the thermometer back.

     Brett
took it, handing the pain pills over as recompense. “Just take it easy. It’s
going to take a day for those stitches to heal completely.”

     “He
should be in bed right now!” Laney interrupted, aghast. She was looking back
and forth between Brett and him in angry disbelief.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

     “One
hundred and two degrees is not something he should be walking around with.”
Laney stared at the both of them in angry disbelief. Nobody should be walking
around with that temperature. She’d had a high temperature a few times and it
had made her feel woozy and disorientated, and here he was standing straight
looking…awesome really; not at all unwell.

     “It’s
alright Laney.” Devan held up his hands in reassurance. “That temperature is
normal for me. My animal DNA has stabilized my body temperature at a higher
degree than the average human. It can actually fluctuate between 101° and 103°,
depending on what I’m doing at the time. At this moment my body is healing
itself so it’s working overtime, raising my temperature.”  

     Laney
blinked in astonishment at the idea that his normal temperature was that high. And
it finally hit her that what Devan had been telling her was the truth. She’d
kind of taken it in shocked stride as he recounted the outrageous story, but it
hadn’t really sunk in…until just this moment.

     Devan
was different.

    When
she’d first met him she’d recognized something special about him. His
appearance screamed that. Than after each impressive deed that feeling just
grew. The lion attack, the climbing wall, saving her on the bridge, jumping off
the top of the school roof, and then the fight with the wolf; it all added up
to one astonishing individual.

    
“Laney and I were on our way outside for some fresh air. Are you still planning
to go to the library?”

     “Yes,
hopefully I can hear some of the town’s gossip.” Brett glanced at the clock on
the wall. “In fact, I should have been gone five minutes ago.”

     Laney
found herself watching the two men through new eyes. Not as uncle and nephew,
but as two people who were caught in a dangerous situation and were just trying
to survive. She also noticed—in a relieved way—that their relationship was on
an even tenor; not as scientist and subject, but person to person.         

     Brett
glanced at both of them nervously as he pulled on a light jacket and headed for
the door.

     “He’s
going to the library to find out what everyone is saying?” Laney asked.

     Devan
eyes shifted away from her. “He works there.” 

    
What
the heck
! Devan had told her that his uncle—well not his uncle—didn’t want
to stay in this area. If he didn’t want to stay why was he getting a job at the
library? It sure wasn’t for the money. It was more of a volunteer position.

     “That
story you gave me about not wanting to stay in Silverton and that you would be
leaving soon; that wasn’t really true, was it?”

     The
only way to describe the expression on Devan’s face would be ‘sheepish’. “Why
don’t we go out to the back deck and clear up some things you might have on
your mind.”

     Devan
pulled open the French doors, Laney strode through and dropped into one of the
wooden lawn chairs arranged on the deck. Devan took the one opposite of her. He
leaned back and stretched his legs out in front of him and Laney couldn’t help
her gaze from admiring those lovely calves of his. Her attention was
interrupted by a humming in her pocket…thank god, because he might have notice
her ogling his legs.

    
Snatching the phone out of her pocket Laney glanced at the screen. Rolling her
eyes she went to put it back into her pocket.

     “If
you could, may I ask you to take that call.”

     Laney
looked up at Devan in surprise. “Why? This person just wants to hound me for information.”

     A
look of shame-faced guilt crossed Devan’s face. “Yes, but information is
something we need at this moment.”  

     Laney
wasn’t able to say ‘no’ to that look, and he had a point. Inhaling deeply she
prepared herself for interrogation.

    
“Hello?”

    
“Laney, OMG, are you okay?”

     Laney
jerked the phone away from her ear at the screech on the other end. Jordyn was
one of the most annoying gossips in the school. Giving Devan an aggrieved
glare…which he returned with an apologetic look...Laney put the phone back to
her ear.

      “Hi
Jordyn. Yes, I’m fine. Thank you for asking.”     

     “When
I saw you come out of the athletic shed covered in blood I almost had a heart
attack, and then they hustled us out of there so fast I wasn’t able to find out
if you were alright. Everyone has been gathering at The Diner and talking about
what happened. They said that one of the wolves got into the shed with you and
that you killed it. That is just so crazy.”

    
“That’s about the gist of it.” Laney grimaced and threw an aggrieved look
Devan’s way. He gave her a supportive smile that warmed her from the toes up.

     “I
just talked to Jesse and he said that he had tried to get into the building but
that it had been locked. How did you get in?”

     Laney
improvised. “The door was barely hanging on when I tried it. I think it might
have been half way busted from other people trying to get in before me.”

    
“Katelyn said she saw you in the parking lot talking to the new kid, Devan.
Whatever happened to him?”

     Laney
stiffened in alarm and her mind went blank. If they were talking about Devan
then he might have to leave. She didn’t want him to leave.

     Devan
leaned forward with a neutral expression on his face. “Keep it simple. Just
tell her we got separated.” He whispered.

     Laney
raised her brows in surprise and pointed to the phone. He nodded and also
pointed to the phone, but urgently. Oops…long pauses, not good.

    
“Laney…?” Jordyn called from the other end of the phone.

     “Sorry
Jordyn, had food in my mouth.” Laney invented quickly. “Someone saw me with the
new guy, huh. Well, when the wolves showed up we got separated. No idea what
happened to him.”

     “Ohh,
because Erica said something about seeing Devan go into the storage building
with you. She seems to be the only one to have seen it though. Everyone else’s
eyes were glued in the other direction at the wolves.”

     Laney
watched Devan’s expression turn grave at Jordyn’s words. Her heart flipped over
at the thought that he might think of leaving because of this. She wasn’t sure
why she couldn’t stand to think of him leaving, but the thought was there, and
there didn’t seem to be anything she could do about it.

     “He
might have been close by as I ran into the building, but he didn’t go in with
me. Maybe he ran by me to go around the building. It was a pretty extreme
situation and sometimes things a person sees can get mixed up. I never saw him
after I went into the building.”

     Devan
was holding his hands up and Laney realized he wanted her to stop talking. She
recognized that she might be babbling and protesting a little too much so she
shut her mouth.

    
“Yeah, can’t dismiss the extreme circumstances. It was definitely that. Oh
well, it would have been cool for you if you had been stuck in the building
with that new guy. He seems like he would have been a
big
help.” Jordyn
sniggered at her big reference. “He also kind of exudes mystery and danger, and
heck he’s new, which is something that is needed around here.”

    
Laney’s dander was up at Jordyn’s flippant manner toward Devan, and at her
possible interest. She didn’t like it.  

    
“Yeah, he’s a really nice guy and would have been a real big help with the
wolf. Thankfully I got lucky.” Laney gritted out.

     “Well,
thank god you’re all right.” Jordyn’s voice oozed concerned relief. It was
possible she’d heard the stiffness in Laney’s tone.  

     Laney
figured she’d gotten enough information and she was so done with this
tête-à-tête.

    
“Jordyn, I have to go I have another call coming in. Tell everyone I’m okay and
thank you for your concern.”
No matter how self-serving it is
, Laney
thought.

    
“Okay, bye!” Jordyn yelled as Laney hung up.  

     Laney
heaved a huge sigh and pretended to strangle her phone. “Uhgg.”

    
“Sorry for having to put you through that.” Devan’s face portrayed extreme
regret.

    
Distress filled Laney that Devan might think she regretted doing this. Because
she didn’t. “I’m just upset about the way she was acting. Jordyn wasn’t really
concerned about me; well, maybe a little, but she was more interested in
getting the inside scope on the story. And then Erica gave her a reason to
question me about you.” Laney heart jumped again in alarm that he might use one
person’s account as a reason to leave. “Jordyn made it sound like Erica was the
only one that might have seen you with me at the storage building. That’s
probably a good thing, right. One person’s possible sighting won’t cause you
any problems.”

     “It’s
hard to say at this time. We will just have to wait a see.” Devan’s somber
expression still remained.

    
“Maybe I could call Erica and talk to her. Make her see that she didn’t see
what she thought she saw.”

     “I
don’t want you to have to make up more stories than you have to. I don’t want
you to have to lie.” The gloom in that statement went right to Laney’s heart
and stabbed deep. It told Laney that Devan lived a life of lies and it didn’t
sit well with him. Laney thought back to the many lies he had probably unloaded
on her and everyone already in just the few days he’d been around. How did he
keep track of them all?

     “I
wouldn’t necessarily be lying; just interviewing and mind-bending.” Laney joked
feebly.

    
“Calling just to refute her might cause her to become suspicious. Better to
keep to your story and wait for a chance encounter with her later to…interview
and mind-bend.” Devan gave her a smile and she knew it was a way to show his
gratitude.

    
“Chance encounters are sooo last year; now premeditated run ins are all the
rage.” Laney smirked.

     Her
phone hummed again. Laney smothered a groan that would only have made Devan
feel guiltier. Yep, there was the shame face. Laney gave him a bright smile so
he would think she was loving this. His arched brow said he didn’t believe it.

     Laney
spent the next five minutes going over her story again with Gabby, but this
time there was no mention of Devan…thank god. She watched him as she talked and
could tell he could hear the other person by certain facial tics, and then
found herself getting mesmerized by his eyes and losing track of the
conversation from time to time. Not good. Shaking her head to clear it she
wrapped up the conversation and hung up.

     “No
news about you is good news.” Laney said happily. Then she thought about that
for a second. “Wait…that came out wrong. Well, you know what I mean.” 

    
“Yes.”

     “Yes
its good news, yes it came out wrong, yes you know what I mean?” Laney asked
with a grin.

     Devan
smiled. “Yes.”

     Laney
smiled crazily back at him. She loved it when he joked with her. It seemed to
take a lot for him to let loose. Her phone hummed again and she answered it in
a much better mode.

    
“Hello,” Laney answered in a sing-song voice.

    
“Laney?”

     Devan
sat up straighter in his seat.

     “Hey
Donny.” Donny was one of Laney’s good friends. He hung out with her and Hali
all the time.

     “Hey
girl, I held off as long as I could but I had to call to see if you’re okay. Jordyn
was just spouting that she’d talked to you, and if you’re talking to that wack
job then a call from one of your friend’s would be a relief.”

    
“You’re right, it does, and I’m doing fine. Thanks for caring.”

     “You
know you’re my girl.” He said with sincerity.

     Devan
had been relaxing back in his chair but he abruptly seemed to tense up and a
small indent appeared between his eyes. Laney tried to catch his gaze but his
eyes snapped away from hers and focused somewhere over her shoulder. Laney
wondered what he was thinking. Donny continued talking so she made herself pay
attention because it sounded relevant.    

    
“Everyone and I mean
everyone
is down here at The Diner and all
everyone
is talking about is you. How you took on a wolf and won,
and
did it
without getting a scratch. It’s like a miracle or something.”

     “Yes,
it was definitely a miracle.” But instead of something it was someone Laney
mused. “So, what is the gossip mill spilling out about me?” Donny would have
scooped out every little story that was circulating. He planned to go into
journalism and he was like a blood hound when it came to a juicy story.

    
“Girl, the stories I’ve been hearing could fill the National Inquirer. Everyone
knows that a wolf got into the athletic building with you; it’s after that the
story explodes into a confetti gossip smorgasbord.”
Confetti gossip
smorgasbord?
“There’s one where you hacked the poor wolf to pieces with a
chainsaw, another says that you strangled the thing with your bare hands,
another
states that you ran it over with the lawn mower, my personal favorite though is
the one where you jumped on the back of the wolf Lara Croft style and then
proceeded to skewer it twenty times with ski poles until it looked like a big
furry pin cushion.”