“Here.” He held up two keys. “The door to the cell and to his restraints. Do you wish me to go with you?”
“No. I’m afraid it would upset him if you did. I can do it.” She glanced at his outfit. “You changed fast. I only left the meeting a few minutes ago.”
“I was nearby when the order came down. I’m relieving the officer since he didn’t have a spare set of clothes handy.”
She gripped the keys in her fist, her fear and excitement clashing. She had no idea what would happen when she released 466. It could go bad really fast. The officer stopped at the elevator and removed a set of keys.
“We’re keeping it on key access only. That way Moon can’t leave the basement. We activated the cameras below.”
“Okay.” She didn’t like the idea of being watched.
He seemed to read her mind as his expression softened while he twisted the key to open the doors. “Sound only. Justice ordered Security to blacken the screen feed.” He paused. “Only female officers are permitted to listen in. We hoped that would make you more comfortable. Call out if you need help and I’ll immediately be notified. I will come to your aid.”
“Thank you.”
He stepped inside and his finger hesitated over the button to close the doors when she followed. “I will take you down and then be stationed upstairs. It will take me about forty seconds to reach you if there is trouble. Do not fight if he attacks. Curl into a ball and be very still. Even feral, it should keep him from harming you for long enough for me to get there. Backup will only be seconds behind me. Just stay out of the way if that happens. Don’t interfere if I must fight him. You’d get hurt. I can handle Moon.”
“I don’t think he’ll attack me.”
His gaze swept over her. “Define your version of ‘attack’ for me.”
“Hurt me.”
His eyebrows arched. “Do you know the risks?”
“I know he could be dangerous.”
The doors closed them inside when he pushed the button. He was a big Species. She liked him. “He might want sex. Were you warned of that?”
Her cheeks warmed again. “Yes.”
“You are prepared for that?” He frowned, glancing down her body. “You aren’t very sturdy.”
“Um, what’s your name?”
“Darkness.”
“I’m Joy.” She didn’t offer him her hand, that being a human custom and she hadn’t noticed if Species had picked it up. “Moon and I have a history.”
“I was told about that but you never shared sex with him.”
“No. I didn’t.”
“Do you ever watch animal shows on television?”
“Sometimes.”
His eyes were really dark as they narrowed. “Wolf matings?”
“No.”
“It will be a form of that if he comes at you. Expect growling, posturing, and sniffing. When mating, we tend to stick to instinct. He’ll be aggressive and exhibit alpha behavior. Lower your eyes, make no sudden movements, and don’t fight. He’d be rough without meaning to.”
“You’re feline. How do you know about wolves?”
He hesitated. “I spent a lot of time with Reservation residents at Mercile.”
“What does that mean?”
“Our less civil Species are kept there. The ones Mercile considered failures. I was housed with them for a time before we were freed. Their animal behaviors overshadow their human traits in most cases. Don’t expect purely human actions.”
“I think I understand.”
“Are you sure you want to do this?” He studied her closely. “No one would blame you if you declined.”
She decided to be honest. “I love him.”
He didn’t appear surprised at her confession. “Forty seconds. That’s all you have to endure if you get into trouble.”
“I’ll remember.”
He pushed another button and the elevator lowered to the basement. Darkness stayed against the wall in order to stay out of Moon’s sightline. “Be careful,” he whispered. “Make sure you are comfortable with his behavior before releasing him.”
“Thank you,” she whispered back, stepping out as soon as the elevator doors opened.
Moon paced his cell, dragging his chains when she approached him. The doors closed behind her and she knew that they were both locked inside the basement now. She didn’t have a key to the elevator.
“Hi. I’m back.”
He stopped pacing and growled, his head turning her way.
“466?”
His lips parted and his fangs showed as he snarled. She halted about ten feet from the bars.
“Talk to me.”
He moved to the bars and growled low. She peered into his eyes and her heart dropped. No recognition showed there. Had he had an episode? Forgotten her?
“Talk to me,” she said again, afraid for him.
“Come,” he demanded harshly.
“Who am I?”
He blinked, a moment of confusion flashing on his features. Pain stabbed her chest as seconds passed. He growled again, shook the bars, and flashed his sharp canines. He didn’t know. Whatever lucidity he’d had was gone.
“466? It’s Joy.” Her mind worked, trying to figure out what was going on. They’d talked and he’d been almost normal when she’d left. Now it was as if she faced him again for the first time. “You know me. Try to remember.”
He spun away, pacing, dragging his chains. Soft growls came from him as she fought back the anguish. He wasn’t getting better. He was having moments of lucidity but then losing them. Her heart broke.
It took a lot for her to walk over to the chair and put the two keys down where he wouldn’t see them. No way could she release him now. She’d jumped the gun because she’d wanted to believe so badly that he was getting better.
“Come,” Moon snarled.
She looked at him when she turned to face his cell. “Who am I?”
He pointed in front of him and his gaze lowered to her chest. “Now.”
Joy approached slowly but kept out of his reach. She lowered to her knees, staring up at him. “Who are you?”
Confusion clouded his face.
She tried to get a handle on her raging emotions. It tore her apart that he’d lost what foothold he’d had on reality. The anger burned too at the people who’d done this to him. She’d like to take the person who shot him with the drugs and wring his neck with her bare hands.
“Come,” he demanded again, harsher than before.
“I can’t.” Would they have to start over every time she saw him? She kept her voice low, dropped her head, and her eyes closed. It hurt too much to see him that way.
Chapter Six
He wanted the female. She smelled good sitting so close to him, torturing him by refusing to allow him to touch her. His blood seemed to boil inside his body from the need to put his hands on her. His mouth. He wanted to taste her. To take her. To possess her.
She kept her chin down but he knew what she looked like. Her heart-shaped face seemed ingrained into his mind for some reason. Big blue eyes with yellow flecks haunted him.
She was familiar but he couldn’t remember why. He crouched, sniffed at her again, and something tugged on the outer edges of his mind. He kept staring at her while he tried to figure out what it was about the female that captivated him. Frustration made him growl.
She looked up at him then and tears shimmered in her eyes. It confused him but it also did more. A deep sense of guilt filled him. He somehow knew he was the cause though he hadn’t touched her or caused her pain. She blinked rapidly to keep those tears from spilling.
Such delicate features. Her mouth grabbed his attention. She should be smiling. An image of her doing just that flashed. The sound of her laugher followed and a memory surfaced from the murky depths of his mind.
“Don’t do that, 466. You’re supposed to be serious.”
“I could be,” he said. “If you give me what I want.”
Her humor faded. “What is that?”
“You.”
“Don’t make me end this session. We were doing so well.”
He scooted down a little in his chair and spread his thighs. “Sit on my lap and I’ll tell you anything you want to know.”
She swallowed hard and her gaze lowered to his thighs. She was tempted. He could tell. He really wanted her there.
“Sit on my lap. I won’t do anything. I want you close.”
He sat on the hard floor of a cell, not a chair, watching the female with tears in her eyes. He tried to distinguish memory from reality. She really was there but bars separated them now. That was real, the other was something from the past. She watched him as intently as he did her. Words were hard to form but he managed.
“Sit on my lap.” He repeated the words he knew he’d said to her once. “I won’t do anything. I want you close.”
Her eyes widened.
He fought to remember more and lifted his hands to her. Chains rattled, distracted him, as he frowned at them. He looked back at her. “How did we get here?”
“Where do you think we are?”
He glanced around. “I don’t know. We were in…an office.” That was right. He knew it. “Yours. I wanted you closer.”
She bit her lip. “What else do you remember?”
“You wanted to do it.”
She nodded. “I did.”
“Come to me.” He shifted position on the floor and tapped the top of his thighs.
She hesitated and then rose to her feet. He growled in protest when she turned her back on him to walk to a chair.
“No.”
She bent and picked something up, turning to face him again. “What is your name?”
He struggled for an answer and it came to him. “I am 466.”
She approached slowly, something fisted in her hand. “Who am I?”
It was on the tip of his tongue. It wouldn’t come to him though. He said what felt right. “You’re mine.”
She walked right up to the door and her gaze lowered to the lock. She did something and it clicked. She hesitated and then threw something across the room. A key hit the floor. His heart raced when the door opened and nothing was between them. The urge to lunge to reach the female was strong but fear showed on her face. He didn’t want to frighten her so he remained very still.
“Sit on my lap. I won’t hurt you.”
He held his breath when she stepped inside the cell. The chains would prevent him from reaching her if she fled. They weren’t long enough to go beyond the open door. She took one hesitant step and then another until her scent was something he couldn’t resist anymore. He drew air into his lungs, inhaling her deeply. He knew her. It confused him because he could only remember bits and pieces.
“I won’t hurt you,” he swore. He meant every word. He didn’t know her name or how they knew each other but she meant something to him. “What is wrong with me?”
“You’ve been sick.” She spoke softly as she lowered to her knees inches from him. One of her hands slowly lifted and she touched the side of his face. Her caress was light, hesitant, and fearful. “I’m Joy. Try to remember me.”
“I do. I…I’m confused.”
She surprised him when she inched closer and her other hand gripped his shoulder. He looked down as she turned a little and gently lowered herself across his thigh. Her weight was slight as she sat almost where he wanted her. He couldn’t resist anymore as his arms wrapped around her waist to position her across both legs so her ass rested over his dick. She gasped but he was careful not to crush her. She was small but he wasn’t going to let her go.
“Easy,” he demanded. “No fear of me.”
Her features changed as she relaxed in his arms. The hand clutching his shoulder eased its tight hold but she didn’t remove it.
“You can remember my office? What else is happening that you remember?” Her voice trembled.
“You wouldn’t sit on my lap but you wanted to.”
“Yes.”
“That really happened?”
“Yes.”
“It is hard to think.”
“Why are you having trouble focusing on things? Do you know?”
“I forget.”
She leaned in closer and he battled back a growl. He wanted her and his dick ached—it was hard and trapped inside the pants he wore.
“What else can you remember about that day?”
“Why do you resist me? You want me too.” He knew that about her even though he couldn’t remember how he did.
“I do,” she admitted. “I always have.”
Reality was better than memory. Joy wasn’t rejecting him. A moment of clarity hit and it made him doubt his sanity. His arms tightened around her.
“Is this a dream?”
“No. I’m really here. I’m with you. Can’t you tell the difference between what is real and what isn’t?”
“Not always.” He wouldn’t lie to Joy. The name fit her, seemed right. “I get flashes of memory but then they disappear and I forget.”
A worried expression creased her features. He knew that was the right emotion, sure of it because deep down, he was very familiar with this female. “Do I have a head injury?”
“No. You were given an unknown drug and you’ve had psychological issues ever since.”
“Who did this to me?” Rage hit fast and hard as he growled.
She bit her lip and didn’t respond.
“Don’t fear me. Who did this to me?”
“Mercile,” she whispered.
Ice ran through his veins as he looked around for the technicians but didn’t see or smell anyone besides Joy. “They have recaptured me? Taken you as well?” His arms tightened as he pulled her closer and shifted his leg. His toe caught the edge of the cell door and he kicked it closed. “I’ll fight them. I’ll get us free. Don’t leave my cage. I won’t let them inside without killing them before they reach you.”
She released his shoulder to cup his face with both hands, drawing his searching gaze to her. “Listen to me. You remember being freed, right?”
“Yes. We were at site four.”
Worry showed in her direct stare. “I’m going to tell you the absolute truth but I know you’re strong enough to take it, okay? I’m making a judgment call because I don’t want you to attack anyone here thinking we’re in danger. We aren’t.”
“We are.” Maybe she was confused too and had been drugged.
“You left site four to live at a place called Homeland. It’s run by your people. Everyone here is like you. They were freed from Mercile too.”
Her words confused him more. “They put me in a cage with chains?” He wanted to believe her but didn’t understand why the ones like him would do that.
“Do you remember the guards who patrolled to keep humans away from the motel?”
“Yes.”
“That was your job here. You kept humans away who meant your people harm. There are tall walls around the area and you were on one. Someone who worked for Mercile shot you with a dart filled with drugs. You forgot who you were and attacked other males. Your friends.”
“I wouldn’t do that.” He battled uncertainty. He didn’t think Joy would lie to him, he wanted to trust her, but it didn’t make sense.
“You couldn’t remember who I was but now you do, right?”
“Yes.”
“It’s been the same with your friends. You forgot who they are. What is your name?”
“466.” He was sure of that.
Joy hesitated. “You chose a name after you left site four.”
He struggled to remember but couldn’t.
“Moon,” she whispered. “That’s your name now. Is that familiar to you? Ring any bells?”
He shook his head and his hold on her tightened. “Why are you playing games? My name is 466. Is this a test?”
She stroked his cheekbones lightly with her fingertips. He liked it a lot and it calmed him a bit.
/>
“I’m telling you the truth. I wouldn’t lie to you. You were dangerous so they had to lock you inside this space and chain you so they could take blood tests. Everyone is doing whatever they can to make you better. There are a lot of doctors, scientists, and chemists working on finding a way to reverse what was done. They called me and I came to help you too.”
“Called you?”
“On the phone.”
“You were in your office when this happened?”
“No. I was actually driving my car at the time, on my way home.”
“This Homeland is so big you need a car?”
“I wasn’t here. I live about an hour away.”
“We don’t live here?” Her words were confusing him more.
“You live here. I live somewhere else.”
Something clicked and he growled again. “Didn’t you come with me when I was moved to this Homeland?”
“No.”
Anger surged. “You lived at site four. Why don’t you live here? You’re mine and I’m yours. Did you give me to that other female?”
“No!” She squirmed on his lap. “Take some deep breaths. You’re getting agitated.”
“Explain.”
She glanced away and then back. He knew what that meant—she’d always been easy to read. She didn’t want to respond.
“Explain!” he demanded louder.
“I left site four before you moved to Homeland.”
Pain came with realization. It tightened his chest as though a fist squeezed his heart. He’d always feared she’d quit her job and abandon him. “You left me?”
Her eyes flooded with tears. “I did. I’m so sorry.”
He released her waist and leaned back, jerking his face away from her gentle touch. The urge to shove her off his lap was there but he couldn’t do it. “I left site four and came here without you?”
“Yes.” The tears slipped down her face.
He resisted the urge to wipe them with his thumbs. “Why are you here now?”
“You needed me. I came the minute they called. I didn’t even go home. I turned the car around and drove straight to Homeland.”
“You’re not in danger if you leave my cage?”