Page 74 of Feral

I breathed in deeply and nodded. “Okay.”

Jerome came over to my side, gun in hand. “I’m sorry,” he murmured.

The feral in the cage didn’t take his appearance as easily as he did mine—he growled again, rising up off his mate. Their tie tugged harshly on her, and she winced.

“Just tell me one thing first,” she said, not taking her eyes off me. “Tell me you’ll let the doctors suffer until their last breath.”

“They will,” I said, placing my free hand over hers. “They did.”

She nodded once and closed her eyes.

Jerome fired a single shot, and the woman’s hand went slack between mine as a spray of red bloomed from the exit wound in her temple.

Her alpha let out a furious howl laced with pain so intense I almost felt bad for the baby-killer—but another shot ended his misery before he could move from his dead mate. He slumped down on top of her, his big body shielding hers from view.

I gaveevery woman there the same choice, and every single one chose the same. Some with bitter tears, some with relief—but every one chose death. When we got to Lea and her mate, I clung to Zach to keep from crumpling to the floor. It had been easy to order the death of the staff in the compound, but this—this wasn’t easy. Because there was no justice.

“Lea,” I called as I crouched by our neighboring cell.

Only her alpha moved within, emitting a low rumble that wasn’t quite a threat.

She was lying on the floor, eyes open but unresponsive.

“Lea, I need to talk to you. It’s important.” I remembered her desperation for freedom when I’d liberated Zach, and I pushed down the wave of guilt at seeing the empty husk she was now. Could I have saved her then?

Her alpha approached, but he didn’t growl at me. Instead he wrapped both hands around the bars and stared, and on his face I saw the naked plea as clearly as if he’d been able to speak.

He was scared for his mate.

I remembered him from when Zach had helped me escape—he’d clutched her to his side, protecting her. Terrified she’d get hurt. What had these two been through in the scientists’ hands?

I knew the answer too well.

And this man—I didn’t know what he’d been before. I didn’t know if he was a serial killer, a rapist, an arsonist… or falsely accused. But he hadn’t mounted his mate in the excitement like the others.

He’d been too worried for her.

But when she’d been able to, she’d tried to escape him. She hadn’t found pleasure in their bond.

Only pain.

I spared Lea a long look before I put my hands gently over the alpha’s.

“Him first,” I whispered.

The alpha slumped to the floor, trailing a smear of blood. Lea didn’t so much as blink. Jerome’s bullet bit into her skull the next second, finally ending her suffering.

Zach wrapped his arms around me as I got to my feet, lifting me up into his embrace without a word. We didn’t need any—I knew he felt my sorrow in our bond as keenly as I felt the warmth of his concern.

“We need to get rid of the bodies before we leave. There can’t be a trace of the claimed women left,” I said.

Jerome nodded, waving Eric over. “We saw an incinerator on our sweep. You find clothes for us—we’ll clean up here.” He glanced at Jarl, who nodded in return. “And then we’re done.”

“And the doctors? They’re dead?” I asked.

“They’re dead,” he confirmed. “And we’ll want to have steel doors between you and the ferals before they get tired of mauling their bodies. It’s time to leave this place.”

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