Page 52 of Can't Be Love

“Anyone else? I don’t understand,” Karis said.

I shrugged. “I haven’t always liked Thomas. Okay, I called him the biggest douchebag on the planet and channeled all my hurt, anger, and pain towards him, even though I hadn’t seen him since we were kids. I was so shocked to discover he, of all people, was my true mate. I didn’t handle it very well. It’s still sort of sinking in.”

“He’s a really good man, Lily,” Karis assured me.

“I see that now. I wasn’t really giving him a chance.”

“And now? Oma is right. You look at him with love in your eyes.”

I sighed. “Maybe.”

Seeing a series of rocks, I asked her if we could cross the river safely. She told me we could, and like two little girls we skipped across the rocks to the other side. It was a carefree, beautiful moment, and I knew the only reason I wanted to cross the river was to get back to Thomas. I was ready to face the facts. Thomas was my true mate, and he had somehow earned my heart along the way. I didn’t want to fight it anymore. I had already told him I was all in, but this time I truly, without a doubt, felt it in my heart.

Karis chatted on as we walked. She told me about how excited she was to be going to the ARC. She confessed she’d never been outside the village and couldn’t wait to experience the world.

No sooner had I opened my mouth to tease her about maybe finding her own true mate there than a loud pop rang out from the woods. I felt a sting of pain, and then as if from a far distance, I heard Karis scream. Another pop sounded, but I reacted quickly despite the heavy fog trying to pull me under. I jumped and covered the girl with my body, taking the sting of the second hit.

“Lily! Lily!” she yelled.

“Shh,” I said calmly. “They’ll be coming. Crawl to the river’s edge and hide behind that boulder. Cover yourself in snow. When it’s safe, you run. Karis, you run away from here as fast as you can and get help.” My words were coming out slower. My whole body felt like it was cast in cement. “Go now!” I managed just before the darkness pulled me under.

When I awoke, all my senses came to full alert. It was dark, except a few lights along what I assumed was a wall. I tried to stand, but the ceiling was too short. I felt around as my eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness. Cold metal. Bars. I felt all around me, my heart sinking as I battled not to vomit. I was in a cage like an animal.

“Hello?” I called out. “Is anyone there?”

“It won’t do you any good,” a man’s voice replied. “They won’t be back till morning. At least I assume morning since they already brought us our dinner.”

“Who are you?” I asked, my voice sounding stronger than I felt.

“Yutu,” he replied.

“Yutu? You went missing a few days ago. Thomas and I were sent here to find you. Amka explained it to me while we were delivering baked goods to her neighbors.”

“Well, you found me,” he said with no humor in his voice.

“Hi, I’m Lyle. I’m here, too. I’ve been here the longest. All the cages were empty when they brought me in. Samson arrived the next day, and Yutu a few days later. Now you.”

“Who are they?” I asked.

“Don’t know,” Lyle confessed. “Humans for sure. They’ve been taking blood, and meals come regularly. Aside from the cramped quarters, it hasn’t been that bad in here. But there are cameras everywhere, so watch what you say and do. Got it?”

“Understood,” I said, knowing he meant don’t talk about being a shifter and do not, under any circumstances, shift.

“Might as well try your best to get some sleep. Nothing’s going to happen till morning anyway,” Yutu said.

Sleep eluded me throughout the night as I memorized every inch of the cage holding me captive, and the patterns of lights throughout the room. Time lost all meaning.

I must have started dozing off at some point because suddenly the room came to life. The lights turned on, the whirring sounds of machines seemed louder, and the smell of food made my mouth water even before my eyes fully opened.

I was surprised to see several men standing around staring at me. They were all in white lab coats and seemed fascinated by my addition to the other shifters. Surprise registered strongly on the face of the man in the back. He shook his head as if trying to convey something to me, but I didn’t know what he was trying to say.

“That’s a great catch last night, Kent,” one guy said.

“Thanks, Trevor. She’s mighty pretty,” Kent replied.

The man at the back of the room rubbed his eyes and looked to the ceiling. “Seriously? Do you idiots have any idea what you’ve done?”

Everyone got quiet as all heads turned towards him.

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