Page 80

Her eyes search mine before she leans in with a smile and kisses me. “I’m glad I’ve let all of you change me. I was so scared of being happy again, but now I couldn’t imagine being alone.”

“You’ll never have to be,” Bram calls, and the warmth that moves through the bond settles my stone heart.

Snuggling into our embrace, she sighs happily before mischievousness winds through our heads from hers. “I’ll still kill you if you annoy me, but if you’re good—” No sooner are those words out of her mouth than I roll over on top of her.

Her laughter is loud and unrestrained, reforming our once boring boat into our new home.

CHAPTER

FORTY-ONE

We waste a few days lingering on the boat, just enjoying each other and recovering. We almost lost her. I never knew I would care so much. Hell, I dreamed of how to kill her, and now the idea of anyone touching her haunts me. Fucking mate bond, although I will admit she is worth it.

After a few days, we grow restless. I know we are all worried about how much distance the escaped collector’s monsters will have put between them and us, so we get moving, shoring up the boat once more and heading inland. It doesn’t take us long to get to the collector’s warehouse, and once there, I see what Tate meant. Most of the structure is still standing, but the inside is a mess. Nearly all the tubes are broken, and the ground is littered with glass, so much so that Torrin throws Ferol on his back, refusing to let her touch it even with her boots. I guess I’m not the only one soft on her.

There’s a horrendous stench from the blood and guts spread around. I am guessing not everybody survived the escape. We find our way into the control room, the hub of the collector’s setup. It’s almost untouched, so I guess computers aren’t really important for them.

“Computer,” Ferol calls as we stare dumbly at the technology, not one of us having a clue how to use it.

“Specimen 680, welcome back. How may I assist you?”

“The collector is dead. Transfer all controls to me,” she says, shrugging.

“Control denied, specimens escaped, containment protocol failed,” the monotone voice responds.

“Yes, specimens escaped. Is there a way to find them?”

“All specimens are fitted with a collector’s edition tracking device in case of escape,” the computer responds. Well, shit, no wonder she kept finding us.

“Uh-oh, computer, give me access to the tracking,” Ferol says.

“Access denied.”

Fuck.

“Computer, give me access to the tracking information,” Kitt demands.

“Specimen 11, access granted.”

We all turn to him, and he shrugs. “She once brought me in here to help with a show she was putting on. She gave me control to show off her pathetic grip on me. I was hoping she hadn’t revoked it.”

There’s a beep, and we turn as a device pops up from the control panel. “All tracking information successfully uploaded to the collector’s handset.”

“Well, shit, this makes it easier.” I rub my hands together as Kitt tugs it free.

“Let’s get out of here. I hate this place,” Emrys snaps, but we all hear his thoughts and turn to Bram, who is looking around. No one hates it here more than he does, so without a word, we leave the compound, the past, and the horrors behind. Once back in our commandeered truck, Kitt shows us the list.

“I guess we just start at the top?” Ferol suggests, clicking one. It loads a map. The number is about a hundred miles from here. “Well, I guess it could be farther. Alright, boys, let’s get to work.”

“What did it say about this one again?” I ask, leaning through the seats and peering at the monster we tracked down.

“Erm, I didn’t look.” Ferol scans the file. “Ah, so yeah, this looks like an amphibious monster.” We look back at the lake we are parked in front of, surrounded by trees. It’s dark, and a full moon hangs in the sky. It’s creepy as hell looking at the still water and then the screen with the unblinking number located dead centre.

“Who’s bait?” I ask, looking around, knowing there’s no other way. We need to lure it out.

When all eyes turn to me, I groan. “Not a chance.”

“But you’re so pretty and tempting,” Ferol cajoles, making my eyes narrow.