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“If we wanted to harm you, we would have burned your little sanctuary to the ground.”
“That’s reassuring,” Dove mutters.
“You keep mentioning survival,” I say, “but you haven’t told us what the hell we're supposed to be trying to survive.”
Ayden’s brows draw together. “Isn’t it obvious?”
“We are a little slow, kid. You’re going to have to spell it out for us.”
He licks his lips, glancing away before he seems to make a decision. When his gaze comes back to Dove and me, there is a hardness in his eyes. “They want to build an army of super wolf-witch hybrids.”
“We know that. That’s why they’re taking us.” Dove frowns.
“They’re not just taking you,” Ayden says slowly as he watches us. “You really have no idea what is happening at their facility?”
Neither of us speaks because we don’t want to admit how in the dark we are. Ayden tips his head back to look at the ceiling. “How are you so clueless as to what is happening around you?”
“Feel free to enlighten us,” I urge.
His eyes slide toward Dove. “You’re very protective of her.” His head tilts to the side. “Interesting, considering there is no mating bond between you.”
His words hit a nerve, and I step toward him, intending to wrap my fingers around his scrawny neck. Dove’s arms wrap around my waist, stopping me in my tracks. “Don’t,” she murmurs.
“What do you know about any of it?” I direct this at Ayden.
“I know a lot more than you give me credit for. You two were imprinted on each other.”
I have never heard this word before, so my brow furrows as I stare at him. “Imprinted?”
“It’s a method the Order uses to put selected pairs together. It’s meant to mimic the mating bond. A synthetic connection, if you will, but I guess it’s going to fade out now that you’re not receiving the magic anymore.”
“What magic? What do you mean it mimics the mating bond?” Dove’s voice is small as she asks this question, as if she is afraid of the answer.
I don’t blame her, because I don’t want to know either. The way he says it makes it sound as if whatever we’re feeling isn’t real, and I refuse to believe it.
“Why don’t they just use chosen bonds?” I ask.
“Because they have to be done by an alpha. It’s alpha magic that creates those bonds. The Order doesn’t have pack magic because there are no packs within the facility. It would be far too dangerous to create that sense of unity. Packs are strong, and the last thing the Order wants is dissent. They need every single wolf or tau under their control. They all need to be mindless workers, focused only on what they perceive to be the greater good.”
Dove steps forward, and I move with her, not willing to let her out of my reach for even a second. “If they’re creating mating bonds… are they… are they mating tau with wolves?”
He nods. “Imprinted pairs can simulate a heat cycle, and heat cycles lead to pups—specially bred to be stronger and more powerful than any hybrid or wolf to walk the earth.”
The floor feels unsteady beneath me, even though it does not move. I don’t want to understand what he is saying, because it means the only reason Dove and I feel so close to each other is because the Order tried to make us breeding partners.
Dove peers up at me, her face pale, and I wish I was able to understand what she is thinking.
“You’re sure?” she asks. “Because that’s a hell of a long game to play if that’s what they’re doing. The pups that are born aren’t going to be ready to fight for years.”
“They’ve been doing this for a long time.”
For more than a decade, at least. They’d taken Halle’s mom when she was just a little girl.
His attention strays back to me and Dove. “Your wolves are fooled into believing you’re connected. That’s why you want to tear my throat out every time I look at your woman, but it’s not real.”
I shake my head. “I don’t care about synthetic mating bonds. She’s mine. I knew it from the moment I laid eyes on her.”
Dove’s hand slips into mine, gently squeezing, but she can’t calm the storm brewing within me.
