Page 75 of Feral

I’d been keptup by the cold rage, and the rush of vengeance, but as we made our way toward the exit of the compound dressed as staff members, I had nothing but sorrow and anxiety left. The horrors I’d experienced in SilverCorp’s lab would haunt me for as long as I lived, but I knew I’d get through it—because Zach was with me.

I glanced up at my mate, who silently supported me as we made our way through the long, white corridors. I hadn’t fully understood how lucky I was that he had been the one to brand his claim into my neck until tonight. How unique our bond was. I’d accepted that we belonged together, that I was no longer whole without him. But I’d thought… Some part of me had still assumed that what I felt for him, that warmth of completion in my gut when we were together, that it came from the biology of his claim. That all women felt this with their mates, even if it might take them a while to accept their lot.

If today had proven anything, it was that I’d been wrong.

The kind of bond I had with Zach—it was the real thing. There was no forcing it—and despite everything we’d gone through,… I hadn’t sacrificed my life when he marked me.

I’d come alive.

Zach looked down at me, his attention drawn by the flicker in our bond. And in his eyes, I saw the truth of our connection.

Helovedme.

The drugs had taken away so much of his humanity—but they’d also taken his ability to deny his emotions like I had for so long now.

“I love you, too,” I whispered.

His expression softened, if only for a moment, as he squeezed my hand tighter. Then we arrived at reception, and his focus shifted.

“Okay, I’ve got the keys to a couple of staff members’ vehicles,” Jerome said, turning to look at us all. “It’s close to regular leaving hours, so the hope is that the soldiers won’t look too closely as they let us out the gates. Eric, Jarl, and Larry, you guys take the first car. Zach, Lillian, and I will take the second. We’ll make sure to stick close. Don’t let them close the gate between us—if we get separated, we won’t be able to regroup.

“We’ll swap cars at the meeting point. It should be dark once we get there, so we’ll head directly for the border and stay on the road until dawn. Everyone on board?”

There was an affirmative murmur from our small group, and then Jarl stepped forward, leading the way outside.

We walked toward the staff parking lot, locating the two vehicles by pressing the unlock function on the key fobs. I got into the passenger seat next to Jerome to make the arrangement look more normal than if he’d been chauffeuring us both in the back, and we rolled toward the gate after the blue Ford Jarl was driving.

“Showtime,” Jerome murmured as Jarl pulled to a stop by the gate. A soldier leaned out the small booth and Jarl rolled his window down.

“You’re the first out—is anything going on down there?” the soldier asked. “We usually see a small trickle earlier than this.”

“Fuck,”Jerome mumbled. My heart jumped into my throat, adrenaline coursing through my veins and overriding my exhaustion.

“Bit of an incident with the alpha lab,” Jarl answered. “It’s under control now, but it was all hands on deck for a while.”

“We didn’t hear anything,” the soldier said, and I didn’t miss how he peered into the car. “Usually do, when the ferals get unruly, after the shit-storm a couple of months ago. Any idea why the docs forgot the new policy?”

Jarl’s answer was too low to make out, but it seemed to have appeased the soldier, because he straightened back up and spoke into his radio for a moment before the gate opened with a clank.

“Oh, thank God,” I murmured, relaxing in the passenger seat as the wave of adrenaline eased ever so slightly.

Jerome pulled forward as the blue Ford drove out the gate, stopping next to the soldier.

“You guys have any more info on what went down in there?” the soldier said after Jerome rolled the window down.

“Oh, just the usual,” Jerome replied with a shrug. “Couple of ferals getting into a fight—one of the techs forgot to keep two of the more combative ones away from each other. They smashed up some lab equipment. Nothing worth calling you guys over, but a mighty big mess to clean up.”

The soldier frowned. “Really? That guy just said it was about a female.”

“Oh, yeah—might’ve been that too. We’re just the guys who scrub the floors,” Jerome said.

“And you’re the first to leave?”

Shit.

“Didn’t know there was a girl on the cleanup crew,” the soldier continued, peering into the car at me. “What’s your name, sweetheart?”

“Vivienne Dixen,” I said, flashing him what I hoped was an easy smile. It was the name on the staff member’s badge I’d taken. “I’m in IT, though. I’m just catching a lift home.”

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