“What drug?” He kept his voice low, almost a hiss. “Who did this to me? That technician?”
“No. We don’t know what drug but we’re hoping you can sweat it totally out of your system.”
He shifted, tugging at the restraints but did it slowly enough that she wasn’t dislodged from him. “Free me. I won’t harm you.”
“You need to get a little better first. Do you remember me?”
“I like how you smell.”
Her lips curved and she couldn’t help but smile. “I like how you smell too. I guess that’s a start.”
He glanced down his arm. “They are still giving me drugs.”
She looked at the IV in his arm. “The line is not open. It is just there as a precaution. It’s only saline solution and won’t be used unless you show signs of dehydration.”
Some emotion flickered in his eyes. “I don’t like sports.”
YES! She wanted to fist pump the air but didn’t dare. She barely had a toehold on the footboard with him. She didn’t want to fall and land on her ass. “That’s right.”
He closed his eyes. “You’re a shrink. You want to fix me and make me more human.” His eyes snapped open. “I’m not.”
“You’re definitely not like human guys. You’re better.” She had a timeframe now.
“Yes.”
Sweat beaded his upper lip and his brow. She knew it was happening to her as well. The makeshift sauna was creating the environment they needed.
“Your hair is longer than I thought it would be. You always keep it in a tight ball at the base of your neck.” A muscle in his jaw clenched. “Who are the other humans in the next room? Guards?”
“They are your friends. Some of them are like you.”
That surprised him, judging by his expression. He closed his eyes again and a look of concentration tensed his features.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“It’s so hot.”
She glanced down his body. Sweat poured from him. She was pretty sure she was sweating as much. Her hold on him slipped and she had to grab the strap on his upper biceps to keep from falling back. The temperature in the room was nearly unbearable.
She waited for him to speak again. Time seemed to stand still. Every inch of her clothing felt as if it were glued to her skin.
“Joy, I remember,” he suddenly said. “Where is Justice? I told him to keep you away from me.” He frowned. “Get down before you fall.”
Hands gripped her hips and she gasped. Justice was behind her and easily lifted her to the floor. His clothes were already plastered to him but he seemed oblivious as he released her to address Moon.
“She has a calming effect on you.” Justice shrugged. “It wasn’t as if we could ask you nicely to work out until you dropped from exhaustion.”
“I thought about killing her, damn it.” Moon didn’t even look at Joy. “This is the big cure? Melt me?”
“You’re back to being you so don’t complain.” Justice reached up and pulled at his shirt. “It’s like standing in hell, isn’t it? I’m going to need a shower.”
“Let me loose.”
“We’re hoping this will get whatever you were exposed to out of your system.”
“I didn’t say I was going to walk out of here. Get me out of this damn contraption.”
Justice freed Moon’s upper body and bent to free his lower half. The ripping sound of Velcro was loud. Joy backed into a corner to give the two men more room.
“Couldn’t you just dunk my ass in a hot tub?” Moon was free and stepped down to the floor. “Are we in Medical?”
Justice pulled off his shirt, tossing it to the floor. He bent, tearing at his shoes. “Yes. This is the biggest bathroom we had. You have no idea how many males it took to rig this up. And a hot tub wouldn’t have worked. Even if it had, you know how impossible it would have been to put you in and keep you there. Imagine the risks involved with someone drowning if you struggled too much? You haven’t exactly been friendly.”
“Get out of here.” Moon finally glanced at Joy again. “There’s no reason for anyone else to suffer. How long do I have to stay in here?” He lifted the arm that was still attached to the IV and asked Justice, “Can I get rid of this?”
“Only if you keep Ted informed about anything that feels off to you. I mean anything and everything. We’re not sure how long to keep you overheated. We want that drug out of you for good.”
“Twenty minutes,” Treadmont shouted. “Then we can take you out for a few hours and assess your long-term prognosis.”
Moon tore out the IV and Joy winced at the sight of blood. “There was a better way to do that.”
He shot her a dirty look before grimacing at Justice. “Get out of here. It’s hotter than hell.”
“No shit.” Justice chuckled. “We decided to try this before we force information out of a resident from Fuller. He’s a chemist. You can appreciate my hesitation at depending on anything he might have to tell us. The humans imprisoned at Fuller aren’t to be trusted.”
“Moon?” Harley suddenly barged into the cramped space.
The expression of elation on Moon’s face hurt Joy’s feelings. He hadn’t ever reacted to her that strongly or positively in all the time she’d known him. The big Species nearly shoved Justice out of the way to reach his friend. He grabbed the other man in a bear hug.
“It’s so good to see you. I missed the other time you were lucid.” Harley eased back but still kept hold of his friend. “You’ve got to beat this thing.”
“I’m trying.” Moon grinned, his chin dropping to his chest to stare downward. “I’m more important than your favorite biker boots? The leather might shrink in this hellish heat.”
“I don’t care. I’ll buy more.” Harley shook his head. “Duck next time someone shoots at you.”
“It was bad luck. It missed my vest and hit my arm. It didn’t hurt, if that helps. Just a little sting and then a whole lot of nothingness.”
Justice turned and motioned for Joy to leave. She hesitated but Moon was smiling at Harley. He didn’t seem to even remember she was there. The burning sensation in her chest had little to do with the heat. It came from knowing that Moon didn’t need her. She shoved away from the wall and exited the bathroom ahead of the NSO leader.
It was a drastic difference in temperature when she opened the door and eased into the other room. Chills racked her body before she made it ten feet into the room. Trisha, Treadmont, and four New Species stared at her.
She crossed her arms over her sweat-soaked clothes and shivered, sucking in the much cooler, fresher air. “I, um, need a shower and dry clothes.”
Trisha, the female doctor, gave her a sympathetic look. “Follow me to the next exam room. I’ll get you hooked up. I bet you’re freezing.” She glanced at Justice. “You know your way around.”
“I can manage on my own and I know where the spare scrubs are stored,” he agreed.
Ted Treadmont turned to watch the monitor. “I’ve got this, Trisha. Take your time. I’ll yell if we need you.”
Embarrassment was a stupid emotion, Joy decided. She still felt it though as she avoided looking at the Species males she passed. Moon hadn’t even said goodbye or thanked her for going in there to help him. He has other things on his mind, she reasoned. More important people in his life to talk to. Ouch. Yeah, it hurts. What did you expect? She had no answers.
Moon watched Harley strip down to his black boxer briefs and smirked as he took a seat on the floor. “You don’t have to stay in here and babysit me. Nice shorts though.”
Harley settled next to him. “Friends suffer with friends. Humans like it this hot in a room? What is up with that?”
“No clue.” It was miserable being that hot. He studied his friend’s face. “Did you miss me?”
“You know it.” Harley cleared his throat and pointed up. “We’re on camera.”
Moon glanced at the camera. “Who is out there?”
“Ted, Tr
isha, Justice, Flame, Jericho, and Fury. We’ve all been worried about you.”
Moon let it sink in. “Do they think this is going to work?”
“We’re hoping.”
“Did they catch the one who did this to me?”
“We’re still searching for him.”
“Who was Justice talking about from Fuller then?” Moon rubbed his chest, hating the feel of sweat covering his body. Fuller was the prison where the humans who had worked for Mercile were incarcerated. Fuller had been created to house them. Species wanted and needed to be kept away from them so only human guards worked there.
“One of the jerks who used to run some of their drug trials.”
“This drug is something new?”
“That’s what we figured. No one remembered ever being subjected to a drug like this one. It is probably something Mercile was screwing with before they were shut down.”
“It’s worse than the breeding drug. At least we knew it was only temporary.” He rubbed his arms next, wiping away the sweat that was gathering on his skin. “Tell me about her.”
Harley frowned.
“Joy,” Moon stated softly. “Who called her? How did she react?” He was almost afraid to hear the answer. “How much did it cost to bribe her into coming?”
“I don’t know who called her. I flew to Reservation to be with you and she was already here when I returned to Homeland. I was delayed a few days though to clear up the mess after our walls were breached.”
“Were any lives lost?”
“None of ours.”
“Good. How much money? Don’t dodge the question.” It pissed him off that his best friend wasn’t being forthcoming but he understood Harley’s desire to protect his feelings. “Be honest. That’s what I need most.”
“No money was involved. She made it clear that she didn’t want to be paid.”
Some of his anger eased. It also confused him. “Then why is she here?”
“That’s what I wanted to know. I was rough on her when we met. I caught her flashing her breasts at you.”
Astonishment slammed into Moon. “What?”
Harley grinned. “Yeah. That’s what went through my mind. I was ready to toss her over my shoulder and jog her to the front gates, thinking she was a pervert about to take advantage of you or teasing you just to be cruel. You wouldn’t respond to anything but her showing her goods, Moon. That was about the sum of it. I was leery at first of her reasoning but it worked. It seems sexy humans showing a lot of skin tames the beast in you or at least makes you talk to get to see more.” He laughed.
Hazy images surfaced of Joy and her very appealing cleavage. “I kind of remember. Not much though.”
“You were pretty out of it that day.” Harley reached up and pulled his hair away from his neck. “I can feel the pounds rolling off as we speak. Is it just me?”
“No. Humans pay for this? Doesn’t it open their skin pores or some such shit?”
“My pores are so open that my skin wants to fall off.”
“Ten more minutes,” Ted called out. “Do you need water?”
“I’m in a puddle of it,” Moon answered. “We’re good.” He lowered his voice and wiped more sweat off his chest. It was running down his body. “Do me a favor though, Harley.”
“Anything.”
“Make sure I don’t get the chance to hurt her if I lose my mind again.”
Harley hesitated.
“I didn’t feel the urge to kill but I still had the idea of slamming my chin into the bridge of her nose when she came in here and got too close to me. That would have killed her instantly if I’d had enough momentum to send the bone into her brain.”
Harley reached out and gripped his wrist. “She knows the risks. She signed a waiver absolving the NSO of responsibility in case of her death or injury.” He let go.
Moon was glad he was sitting down. Was that even possible? It astonished him that Joy would willingly do something of that magnitude to stay at Homeland.
“She is aware of the damage we can do. This morning I read the files she made on some of us. Justice let me read them after we argued a bit. I wanted to look out for you. All the shrinks’ notes on patients were transferred to Homeland when we were. One of our males told her about how he tore out the throat of a technician who leaned in too close to him while he was strapped down on a table. He could only move his head. Another Species described how he got an arm free and snapped the neck of a guard before the human could even react.”
Harley swallowed, shoving at his damp hair to keep it out of his face. “That female knows how dangerous you can be yet she doesn’t shy away from rushing to your aid. What does that tell you?”
Frustration rose in Moon. He was hot, irritable, and angry.
“She’s willing to die for you. I didn’t trust her at first and was wary of her motives but she has strong, true feelings for you, Moon. She regrets bailing on you at site four.”
“She never even attempted to contact me once we came to Homeland. Or Reservation.”
“You should speak to her.”
“I’m talking to you.”
“Okay.” Harley cast a hesitant look in his direction. “I think she loves you.”
“Love?” Moon rubbed his arms again, harder this time, trying to wipe away sweat and the uneasy feeling that made him a bit lightheaded.
His finger found something odd and he rubbed the spot while he mulled over Harley’s words. He had been obsessed with Joy when they’d been at site four. She was the female he’d wanted above all others.
Her leaving had depressed him and he’d sulked for a long time over her loss. Every time he even thought about her it was as if he’d eaten something bad and pain gnawed at his gut. Can that be love? He wasn’t sure since he had never experienced it.
“Love,” Harley repeated. “I can’t think of any other reason she’d face off against you when you were feral. Hell, you scared me and I’m not a weak little human.”
Moon frowned, distracted. His finger probed the spot again. The small lump moved against his bone, actually hurting.
“What is this?”
“There’s something under my skin.”
Harley looked down. “Is that where you were shot?”
“Yes.”
“It was a dart, not a bullet.”
“What did you say?” It was Ted, yelling from the other room.
“I found something in my arm.” Moon’s voice rose and he looked at Harley. “It’s small and it hurts when I press on it.”
“Get out here,” Ted ordered. “Let me see.”
Moon rose to his feet but swayed when he stood, the room spinning a little. Harley didn’t have that problem though as he grabbed him at his elbows to steady him.
“You okay?”
“I think the heat is getting to me.”
“Me too but I’m not wobbly. Let’s get out of here.”
Suddenly Fury was there to help, putting an arm around him. It humiliated Moon a little to need help walking but both males kept a firm grip on him as they led him out of the bathroom. Ted pointed to the bed on the far side of the exam room.
“Put him down there.” He glanced at Flame. “Get Paul. Tell him that playtime is over and our patient won’t try to kill him. I need the ultrasound machine. Your people haven’t been trained on them as well as he is.”
“I’m on it,” Flame announced, spun, and dashed down the hallway.
“What do you think it is?” Moon nearly collapsed onto the mattress. His body was wet and he’d gone from sweating to being cold. “Did part of the dart break off in my arm?”
“Where did you feel it?”
Moon showed the doctor by placing the human’s index finger over the area. “Right there.”
Paul drew everyone’s attention as he pushed a machine on wheels into the room. He smiled when Moon met his gaze. “There’s the guy I know.” Paul came closer. “I hear you’re with us again. I’m so glad. Really. Last time you
tried to take a bite out of my arm.”
“I’m sorry.”
Paul halted and bent to plug in a cord. “No problem. It’s all fun and games until someone loses an eye…or an arm, in my case.”
“Knock it off,” Ted snapped. “Joke around later. That’s the problem with you young people. You’re more concerned about bedside manner than treatment.”
“No one would ever accuse you of that,” Paul muttered as he turned on the machine and prepared it. “What are we looking for? Did he get injured? Does your chest hurt? I told them to make sure they didn’t tighten the straps too much and to make sure you could breathe without difficulty. We should run you through X-ray though if you think you might have fractured some ribs.”
Ted produced what looked like a marker and drew a circle on Moon’s upper arm. “Search this area right here.”
“That makes it easy.” Paul withdrew a bottle of ultrasound gel and hesitated. “Do you want me to warm this?”
“No. I’ve had enough heat to last me forever.” Moon never wanted to be that hot again.
Paul nodded and slathered the clear substance over a handheld instrument attached to the machine. He pushed it against Moon’s arm and watched the screen, which Moon couldn’t see. It slowly moved over his skin but then stopped. Paul pushed a little harder, adjusted the thing, and softly cursed.
“What the hell is that?”
“Damn it. I need a scalpel. We’ll excise whatever it is and examine it.”
“Did the tip break off in the bone?” Moon didn’t like the idea that part of the dart was still inside him.
“No, I’m sure it is not the dart tip. We didn’t check for foreign objects because the dart was intact,” Ted ground out in an angry voice. He appeared unusually concerned. “It’s an oblong object, very small. Definitely not anything that could be part of a dart.”
“Uh-huh,” Paul agreed. “Shit. It’s almost like one of those pet chips my wife had implanted in our dog in case he ever got lost. Maybe a bit bigger.”
“He was tagged with a tracking system of some sort?” Justice had returned. He wore the same type of outfit as the nurse, only in a larger size.
“I don’t know what it is,” Ted admitted. “We won’t know until I remove it.”