Page 12 of Freed

I realize he keeps saying mate, not mates. He doesn’t know I have several mates. Does he not know I’m an omega? That seems unlikely, but Dr. J and Blaze have never said anything to make me think they know about it. And I need to keep it that way. Who knows what they’ll do if they find that out.

“He’s a better protector than you,” I tell him, gesturing to the room we’re in. “He’d never subject me to this place.”

“If he was so good at protecting you, then how come I was able to take you so easily?”

“You tell me,” I say, narrowing my eyes as I wrap my arms around myself. “What did you do, use some sort of magic to hide yourself?”

A smirk pulls at his lips. “Let’s just say I had a little magical help.”

“Is that⁠—”

I’m cut off by the sound of the door opening, my head whipping around to see Dr. J enter. He glances between us with a small hint of amusement on his face.

“Good to see you looking so well, zero zero three.”

“My name is Cherry,” I grit out.

“It is?” Blaze asks, sounding genuinely surprised.

“Did you think three was my real name?” I ask him with a frown.

“Well, yeah. Kind of.”

Dr. J gives him an amused look as he starts to do something at his bench along the back wall. Being here feels different than it did before. Partly because I’m in my human form and partly because Blaze is here too. But mostly, I realize it’s because I haven’t been tied down.

If I want to escape, I need to get my hand on one of those key cards. I glance around, not seeing any lying around, but I know Blaze and Dr. J both have one.

“No,” Blaze says, making me frown as I forgot what we were talking about. “I don’t like it. I’m gonna keep calling you Three.”

My jaw tightens as I try to remain calm. He likes it because it reduces me to a number instead of a person. As much as he may think he’s my fated mate, that’s not the way he’s treating me. I’m like a toy to him. A toy he’s desperate to start playing with.

“What’s taking you so long?” Blaze asks, turning his focus to the doctor.

“These things take time and preparation,” Dr. J replies calmly as he continues to flip through his notes and hold up different vials.

“No,” Blaze says sternly as he drops his arms to his sides, his hands clenching into fists. “I’ve been waiting for years. You promised that if I brought her back, you would bond us.”

“And I will,” Dr. J says, as a shiver rolls up my spine. “But we only get one shot at this and I don’t want to mess it up.” He glances at Blaze’s aggressive posture then adds, “Why don’t you go get yourself some breakfast while I figure this out.”

Blaze literally growls then stomps loudly from the room like an overgrown child throwing a tantrum. As soon as the door shuts behind him, the doctor sighs.

“That idiot is as annoying as he is useful.”

“You have no idea how to bond us,” I say. Watching the doctor's movements over the past few minutes, I noticed he kept picking up the same few items over and over again.

Dr. J offers me a knowing look. “I’m not a fool. I know a wolf only needs to bite his mate and knot her to seal the bond.”

“Why tell him you will then?” I ask in confusion, even as fear fills me at the thought of Blaze doing those things to me.

“If you haven’t noticed, Blaze is a little bit of a loose cannon. I’d rather have him on my side, and holding that over him has kept him compliant. It stopped him from running off with you once he finally caught you.”

“You won’t be able to drag this out much further,” I tell him, not understanding his endgame here. Blaze is literally expecting us to bond today.

“You don’t need to worry about that,” he says cryptically right before he turns to face me, a small knife in his hand.

“W-what are you doing?” I ask in alarm.

“You know, when you first arrived here, all those years ago, I just wanted your blood. But Blaze, he’s the one who saw the opportunity to explore what you are. It was his idea, you know?”