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"Stay close!" I urge, my own terror fueling my desperate need to keep my female safe.
The adrenaline surging through my veins gives me the strength I need to battle the monstrous creations spilling from the sunken steps of the lab. Their seemingly endless numbers fill the space around us like a writhing sea of claws and teeth.
Zoe clings to me, her trembling body only intensifies my protectiveness. My horns straighten, deadly points thrust outward, poised and ready for battle, as is the natural armor of my scales standing erect to deflect the blows I know are coming.
Zoe's shriek echoes in my ears as one creature and then another lunges at us. I swing my blade in a wide arc, bracing for impact—
I jerk awake, the nightmare giving way to reality, and my senses slowly returning. My body feels refreshed yet exhausted, aching from laying in the same position for however long it took for me to heal. My arm remains inside the medical cuff attached to an unfamiliar bed, and I wonder where she is.
A shiver of dread ripples down my spine as flashes from the fights with the lab creatures come back in a rapid succession of screenshots. Beasts with serrated teeth and snapping claws sharp enough to shred flesh from bone were on me before I realized how close they had gotten, their eyes burning with bloodlust. My heart pounds out a wild rhythm, knowing I must protect my female.
I rapidly blink open tired eyes, trying to clear the fog of my lingering nightmare, and peer around, taking in the dimly lit room. Sparsely furnished with boxy equipment that beeps and whirs, blinks lights in the steady rhythm of medical equipment. A countertop cluttered with vials of various colors and shapes lines one wall. The air is heavy with the scent of disinfectant, setting my scales on edge, causing them to ripple uneasily.
The underground lab!
"Zoe?" I rasp out her name in the quiet. Had I lost her in the forest? The thought sends a chill down my spine. Amid my sterile surroundings, I hunt for a glimpse of her pale mane or the warmth of her blue eyes.
"Right over here," comes her soft reply. Relief floods my senses, but it does nothing to quell the knowledge that danger still may be lurking inside.
"How did we get here?"
"Darcy, Drax, and the other males helped us," Zoe explains, coming to stand next to my bed. Her fingers gently stroke the scales covering my shoulder. "They carried you inside the lab to the medical bay and healed you with a medical cuff. Tris is here, too."
"Thank you." Grateful for her help as much as I am for Zoe caring for Tris.
"Of course," Zoe murmurs, leaning down to press a soft kiss to my forehead. "I wouldn't leave you behind, Mordox. Not ever."
My chest warms with her words. I reach up to cup her silky cheek, marveling at the warmth of her flesh beneath my cool touch. She covers my hand with hers and leans into my touch, nuzzling my palm. As my gaze locks with hers, I'm struck by a fierce protectiveness and surging desire to claim her as mine.
"I'll bet you're hungry and thirsty," Zoe says, moving away too soon, and I feel the loss of her presence all too keenly.
I check the lights on the medical cuff. They're a steady white, letting me know I'm fully healed. I sit up slowly, looking down at my body where new flesh covers the gouges left in the wake of the creature's slashing claws.
Tris hops onto the end of my bed. I hold out my palm and she doesn't hesitate to accept my invitation.
"Were you a good girl for Zoe?" I scratch her under the chin triggering her to vibrate out her special song for when she feels happy and safe.
"Of course she was." Zoe returns with Tris's near empty ration pouch of fresh fruit, a water skin, and dried alope rations for me.
"Tris will run out of food soon," I say, noticing my pack, torn and dirty, propped up against the wall.
"I'll make sure she doesn't," Zoe states, her voice low and commanding. "I'll tell someone to go out and fetch her more."
I raise an eyebrow and drink deeply from the water skin and note the underlying hostility in her tone. "They don't want me here."
"They aren't happy about it," Zoe grits out. "We're locked inside the medical bay until they can decide whether or not you can be trusted."
I scan the room until my gaze stops on the closed door. "Is that the only door?"
"Yes."
"You're sure it's locked?"
"Positive, why?"
"Because more of those creatures could still be down here."
"Drax said he found nine dead bodies in a sealed room. I told him about the ones you've killed and the one that got away, also the third one that's still out there, somewhere, on the loose," Zoe tells me. "The last time Darcy came to visit, she said Drax and Rooke found and brought back the one you killed on the way here. They've been studying it, looking for weaknesses for when they go after the others."
