Chapter 15

Tanner was numb all over when he woke up, and for a while, he lay there with his eyes closed. Shit. His head felt like it was full of cotton. What the hell?

It took him a minute to remember, but he slowly pieced everything together. Images of Lillie’s unconscious body and Ryan kicking him in the face flashed in his head. He opened his eyes and bolted upright, terrified by the thought of what might have happened after he’d passed out. Most importantly, what had happened to Zarina?

While his mind was alert, his body hadn’t quite caught up yet, and he nearly blacked out again. But he clawed and thrashed against the darkness, refusing to let it have him back. He had no idea how long he’d been unconscious, but he needed to figure out where he was and how to get out of there.

He looked around the pitch-black space, his eyes immediately shifting and allowing him to see as clearly as if someone had flipped a light switch. He was in a small, dank room with a single wooden door. Seven people lay curled up on the floor around him. They were so still that, at first, he thought they were all dead. But then he picked out seven individual heartbeats.

He sniffed the air for Zarina’s scent, and even though the dark space was filled with a bewildering array of everything from sawdust to alcohol, he was relieved he couldn’t pick up even a trace of her. Then he realized he couldn’t smell Lillie either. Maybe she’d gotten away?

But while Zarina and Lillie might not be in here, there were other scents he recognized. One was Spencer. The other two were Bryce and Josh. He was also picking up blood. Lots of it.

Eager to help whichever captive was bleeding, he started to get to his feet only to stop when he realized there was something around his wrist keeping him from moving more than about two feet in any direction. He couldn’t even stand up straight.

Frowning, he looked down and saw a heavy metal manacle around his right wrist attached to an equally stout chain running down to an eye bolt in the bare concrete floor. There was no way he was going to get loose from the thing, at least not easily.

Tanner glanced at the other captives and saw they were all wearing manacles like him. He called Spencer’s name softly, then Bryce’s, trying to rouse them. Spencer didn’t stir, but Bryce lifted his head and pushed himself into a sitting position. He blinked at Tanner in the darkness, his eyes glowing ever so slightly. Bruises covered one side of his jaw, and there was a cut above his eye. He’d been hit hard—recently.

“I’m awake,” he said quietly. “I thought you were still unconscious. I can’t believe they grabbed you and Spencer, too. I was kind of counting on you guys to figure out where we were and get us the hell out.”

Tanner grimaced. That had been the plan. At least the young hybrid seemed okay. “Help me wake Spencer up. We need to get our asses moving.”

It took him and Bryce a few minutes before they could wake Spencer. He sat up slowly, shaking his head as if trying to shake off the effect of the tranquilizer.

“What the hell hit me?” Spencer rasped. “I feel like my head has been used for batting practice, then recycled as the lining in a canary cage.”

Yeah, that was a good way to describe it.

“They darted you and Peter while you were patrolling the perimeter of the camp,” Tanner said. “They must have hit you with enough to put you guys under without giving you a chance to raise the alarm.”

Spencer growled and yanked on the chain that held him prisoner. “Did they get Peter, too?”

“No. At least I don’t think so,” Tanner said quickly. “I was able to hide him in the trees before they got him.”

All Tanner needed right now was for Spencer to completely lose it and rip his own hand off in an attempt to get free. He decided not to mention Lillie. If Spencer even got a hint she might be in trouble, there’d be no controlling him.

“Speaking of those assholes, any idea what they want with us?” Spencer asked. He’d given up on the manacle and chain. “It’s got to be more than just kidnapping and murder, or they would have killed us already. And there’s no way they’re holding us for ransom.”

“They’re using us for sport,” Bryce said, his lip curling. “And so far, the only people who have gotten out of here are the ones who’ve died.”

Tanner frowned. “What do you mean, using us for sport?”

“He means they put us in a cage like the octagons you see on those pay-per-view MMA events and make us fight.”

Josh sat up and slowly scooted around on his butt to face them. Tanner stared at him, stunned. The kid’s nose had been broken, and his lip was busted. From the way he was slurring his words, his jaw was probably broken, too. Dried blood stained the front of his shirt, and more covered the legs of his jeans.

“They put me and two other people in the cage against five guys from the audience,” Josh continued, staring into the darkness his regular human eyes couldn’t pierce. “They let them have baseball bats while we had to fight with our bare hands. It was brutal. The crowd kept shouting for more even after the first person went down so hard, he couldn’t get back up.” He swallowed hard. “They beat a woman to death right in front of me, and people cheered.”

Tanner didn’t know what he’d been expecting, but getting thrown into some kind of gladiatorial fight wasn’t it.

“The octagon is one level up from where we are now,” Bryce added when Josh fell silent. “There’s a dance club of some kind above that. At night, I can hear the music. I haven’t had to fight yet. They said something about holding me back for the Saturday night crowd. Unless I’ve completely lost track of my days, I think today is Saturday, right?”

“Yeah,” Spencer said.

Bryce nodded. “I guess I’m up next then.”

Tanner couldn’t believe how well Bryce was holding it together. Unfortunately, the same couldn’t be said of Spencer. The hybrid’s breathing was getting faster, and his heart rate was climbing. Rage was getting the best of him.

Tanner opened his mouth to say something to calm him down when a loud clank outside the room interrupted him. A moment later, the heavy wooden door opened, and a row of overhead fluorescents flickered on. The sudden brightness was almost blinding after the near-total darkness. It was even enough to shock Spencer out of his shift.

Tanner had to shield his eyes with his hand until he pushed his hybrid half firmly into the background and his gaze returned to normal. If he hadn’t been so focused on the four men entering the room, he might have spent a few more seconds celebrating the fact that his control of the beast seemed to be getting stronger by the hour.

Ryan led the way into the room, looking even more arrogant and smug than he had back at the prepper camp. Two big men followed at his heels, spread out wide to either side like they were protecting a frigging dignitary. One was the blond, Scandinavian-looking guy—Anton. The other was darker skinned, South American maybe. Both had the look of professional muscle, definitely prior military. Tanner had seen their type before. They were well-trained men who lacked any form of moral compass. They evaluated threats and dealt with them as violently as necessary.

As they moved closer, Tanner caught sight of the large handguns each had tucked away in their underarm holsters beneath their suit jackets. A quick glance revealed the outline of backup weapons strapped to their right calves. He wouldn’t be surprised if they were carrying other weapons, too.

There was another man with Ryan, too, a middle-aged Asian guy with shrewd, dark eyes.

Anton and his buddy scanned the room before focusing their attention on Tanner. Maybe they thought he represented the most serious threat. That made sense, especially if they had no idea that Spencer and Bryce were hybrids, too. Tanner might be able to use that to his advantage.

“Told you he’d wake up fast, even with all those tranquilizers in him,” Ryan said with a laugh. “But this is even better than I thought. You can’t even see all that damage I did to his face from kicking him.” He regarded Tanner admiringly. “Damn, you’re one amazing freak.”

Tanner would have preferred to stand toe-to-toe with Ryan, but the chain around his wrist made that impossible. So he settled for making himself comfortable on the floor. Bending his knee, he rested his forearm on his thigh. When he looked up at his old friend, he saw nothing but a piece of shit.

He swung his gaze from Ryan to the middle-aged Asian guy who had yet to say a single word or even crack an expression. He studied Tanner for a few moments with dark, flat eyes before surveying the other captives in the room.

Tanner glanced back at Ryan, who was still regarding him like a bug under a microscope. “You’re the one forcing people to fight to the death in the basement of your club for money. So who’s the freak here again?”

Ryan smirked. “We all do what we have to do to get by, old buddy.”

Tanner shook his head as he surveyed the other captives. Like Josh, every one of them had bruises and were covered in blood. He turned back to Ryan. “No, we don’t all do what we have to do. Some of us still remember what the hell we used to fight for and the things we believed in. The Ranger I used to know, the man I fought and bled with, wouldn’t do shit like this.”

Ryan’s jaw clenched. “The man you fought and bled with was an idiot. He watched his brothers die so the rest of America could binge-watch their favorite TV shows, drink their soy lattes, and eat their avocado toast. War does strange things to us all, but it taught me an important lesson—take care of yourself, because no one else gives a shit whether you live or die. This is just me taking care of myself.”

“We all had a hard time over there, Ryan. I lost friends, too. But you don’t see me feeding innocent people to a bloodthirsty crowd for a few bucks.”

“No, but I do see you growing fangs and claws,” he answered. “War turned me into an entrepreneur who sees the profit potential in a little spilled blood. It turned you into a freak.”

“Enough!” the Asian man snapped. “You said you had something to show me, Ryan. Something that would move the needle.”

Ryan glanced at the man, then gave Tanner a speculative look. “So, how about it, old buddy? You going to show Mr. Nguyen what you’re made of? Impress him as much as you impressed me?”

Tanner lifted a brow. “You’re kidding, right?”

“I know how to get what we want.” Grinning at the other guard, Anton pulled a large knife from behind his back. “The monster came out when he was in pain. I say we stick him once or twice in the leg. Something tells me that will work.”

Even though he’d gained a lot more control over his inner beast lately, thanks to Zarina, Tanner felt his gums and fingertips tingle as the hybrid tried to take over and protect him against the attack it knew was coming.

Tanner did his best to keep the beast at bay, promising it that he’d make his move when the man got close enough to strike. He could take Anton hostage and pin the knife to the man’s throat. If he did this right, he might be able to get everyone out of here.

But Ryan put a hand on Anton’s shoulder. “Stand down. You too, Emilio. You’d only be wasting your time anyway. That’s not how it works with Tanner. All that’ll do is piss him off. If you really want to get a reaction out of him, you don’t go after him. You go after someone else. Someone innocent.”

Tanner stiffened, his fangs elongating ever so slightly. Ryan knew him too well.

“Someone like…” Ryan glanced around the room, his gaze falling on the middle-aged woman. She had a nasty bruise on her left cheek and an ugly gash starting at her right temple and disappearing into her hairline. “Her.” He gave Anton a grin. “Stab her anywhere but in the leg. I want her to be able to stand in the cage.”

Tanner’s fangs and claws ripped their way out before he could stop them. He lunged at Anton with a roar. The man froze, and Tanner could have finished him right then and there if it wasn’t for the damn manacle around his right wrist. He groaned in frustration as the chain stopped him short, his arm nearly ripping out of the shoulder joint as the claws of his left hand tore into the man’s suit jacket. While he grazed the skin, he did no real damage beyond that.

Anton scrambled back, his eyes huge as he reached for his gun. Beside him, Emilio did the same. Tanner didn’t care. He snarled and lunged again, straining against the chain holding him as he fought to get a piece of the men.

It was Ryan’s applause that snapped him out of his rage. That and the fact that he could sense both Spencer and Bryce getting ready to lose it, too. Knowing how bad that would be was enough to get him to rein his inner animal back in. It complained but conceded much faster than Tanner would have ever thought possible given the situation.

Breathing hard, he let his fangs and claws slowly retract.

“Think that would move the needle?” Ryan asked Nguyen.

The man nodded approvingly. “It will indeed. In fact, he’ll be tonight’s main event. One flash of those fangs, and our offshore bets will go through the roof.”

“I’m not going to fight for you,” Tanner growled. “I don’t care what you do. I won’t hurt people for your entertainment.”

Ryan glared at him. “You’ll do anything I say, or I’m going to do all kinds of unspeakable things to that girl I grabbed.”

Tanner went still, terrified his worse fears had come true and that Ryan had kidnapped Zarina. “If you hurt Zarina, I’ll—”

“Tear me apart with your claws, I know.” Ryan sneered. “Believe me, I wish I’d been able to get my hands on that beautiful Russian girlfriend of yours, but it didn’t work out that way. However, I do have the dark-haired girl you tried to save, the one with the scars on her neck. A gift from you, I’m guessing?”

Ryan barely got the words out before Spencer shifted and lunged for him, Bryce at his heels. Ryan might have been careful to stay out of Tanner’s reach, but he’d put himself dangerously close to the other two hybrids. He would have died right then if it wasn’t for Emilio. The man moved fast, yanking Ryan out of the way just as Bryce and Spencer got there.

Bryce pulled up, but Spencer refused to give up. Eyes glowing red, he snarled and yanked at the chain so hard, Tanner heard his arm bones crack.

Ryan laughed. He looked like a frigging kid at Christmas. “This keeps getting better and better. I had no idea there were three of you freaks. Is there something in the water out there or what?”

Tanner didn’t answer, not that Ryan seemed to need one. The asshole turned to Nguyen. “I think we have some more opponents for the main event. With these three in the ring, we’ll have a hard time counting all the money we’re going to make.”

Nguyen nodded, his mouth curving into a smile. After a moment, he turned and walked out, leaving Ryan and the other two men behind.

“If you hurt that girl—” Tanner started, but Ryan cut him off.

“That’s up to you, not me. You do exactly what I tell you, and she’ll live through the night. You try anything, and the pain she’ll go through before she dies will make you sorry you were ever born.”

The threat drove Spencer even further over the edge. He jerked at the manacle until his wrist bled, but it did no good.

Tanner bit back a growl as his old friend—or the man who used to be his friend—turned and walked out of the room, taking Anton and Emilio with him, slamming the door shut as they went.

It took almost an hour to calm Spencer down, during which he roared and howled so loudly, the human prisoners put their hands over their ears to block out the sound. Tanner could have told them it wouldn’t work. He knew because he’d tried it when those doctors had injected Spencer with the hybrid serum all those months ago. Tanner hadn’t been able to do anything to help the man’s agony then, and there wasn’t anything he could do now.

* * *

“How do we know that Tanner and the others are even in there?” Zarina tried to keep the terror out of her voice as she looked at pictures of Ryan’s club spread out on the table, but she was sure she failed. “What if they’ve already killed them?”

Zarina had done all she could to keep it together, but the endless hours of doing nothing but sitting on her hands at the DCO’s storage unit in Seattle had been hard as hell. She’d practically made herself sick imagining all the horrible things that might be happening to Tanner. Was he hurt—or worse?

She’d known it would take time for Landon to get help out here, but she’d never dreamed it would be close to sundown before most of the DCO operatives showed. And now that they were here, all they were doing was wasting time looking at stupid maps and satellite photos.

Why the hell weren’t they already at The Cage, going in to get Tanner and the others out?

Beside her, Cam reached out and covered her hand where it rested on the table, giving it a reassuring squeeze. It didn’t help very much. Tanner’s brother looked as worried as Zarina felt.

It was Danica Buchanan, FBI-agent-turned-DCO-operative and one of her best friends at the covert organization, who answered. “There aren’t a lot of traffic cameras around the Wenatchee area, but we accessed enough of them to get an idea of which direction the three black SUVs you shot up this morning were heading. They made a beeline for Ryan’s club, which is located about forty-five minutes outside Seattle, just west of Redmond.”

Zarina gazed down at the big map with the red circle drawn on it. The corners of the map were held down with boxes of ammunition that were merely a small sample of the hoard of bullets and explosives stored in the place. In fact, there were enough weapons, night-vision goggles, computer equipment, and communication gear to start a small war. Apparently, the DCO kept places like this all over the world in case their operatives needed anything special for a mission. She was glad they did, even if the thought of them having to fight their way into Ryan’s club to rescue Tanner and the others scared the hell out of her. Not enough to dissuade her from going in with everyone else, but enough to make her stomach clench even more than it already was.

“Satellite photos confirm the vehicles showed up at the club immediately after they grabbed Tanner and your friends,” Clayne Buchanan, Danica’s husband, wolf shifter, and DCO partner, said softly. “There’s no indication they’ve left since.”

Danica and Clayne had gotten to the storage unit forty-five minutes ago. The two DCO operatives had immediately gotten the computer equipment running, then printed maps, photos, and intel reports. Zarina was glad the couple were there. Danica was extremely good at thinking through problems and making plans, while Clayne was equally good at skipping those and going straight to the fighting and killing. Zarina only wished they’d spend less time on Danica’s part and get on with Clayne’s.

“As far as them still being alive, we have to believe they are,” Chase said, leaning forward to catch Zarina’s eye, even though the movement made him wince in pain. “We don’t know why Ryan took them, but the asshole went to a lot of effort to tranquilize them and take them to his club. He must have a purpose for them. That means they’re going to be alive long enough for us to get in there and rescue them.”

Tate and the sheriff’s deputy from Maine had shown up twenty minutes after Danica and Clayne, somehow swinging a nonstop flight from Boston. Chase was obviously dealing with some kind of injury, but when she offered to take a look at it, he waved her off and told her he was fine.

“I can’t believe the DCO doesn’t have a single clue why Ryan kidnapped Tanner and all those other people,” Staff Sergeant Carlos Diaz said. “I thought you people could find anything on anyone.”

Zarina had been stunned when Diaz had shown up. A Special Forces soldier from Landon’s old A-team, he’d fought alongside the DCO on several occasions but had only recently discovered he was a coyote shifter. She’d assumed the soldier would be deployed off to some dark corner of the globe with the other members of his A-team, but luckily, he’d been home on leave in San Diego and had decided raiding a night club to rescue a hybrid who tried to kill him two months ago sounded like fun. Zarina didn’t understand why most men did the things they did, but she was glad to have him there.

Danica frowned. “I wish we knew. When Landon told us about Westbrook and his club, we spent a good portion of the flight from Mexico trying to come up with a possible connection between a club and the abductions. We considered everything. Drugs, illegal gambling, human trafficking, the black-market organ trade, even hybrid research. But nothing fits with the facts as we know them so far.”

Walking over to the printer, Danica pulled off a stack of photos and spread them out on the table. Zarina thought they looked like mug shots, but she wasn’t sure.

“When one of our analysts discovered a Vietnamese gang out of Tacoma with known ties to the LA drug trade paid for the renovations to The Cage, we were sure drugs were the answer,” Danica said, setting down the last picture.

“But?” Chad prompted. Worry over his daughter’s kidnapping was visibly wearing on him. Waiting for the DCO agents to arrive had been as difficult for him as it had been for Zarina. It didn’t help that he was also concerned the people he’d left at the camp would be attacked again while he, Burt, and Malcolm were trying to save Tanner and the others. That was why he wouldn’t let Peter come with them. He’d wanted there to be at least one fighter back to protect everyone.

“But the drug angle hasn’t panned out,” Clayne put in. “While we know they’re selling some party drugs out of the club, there isn’t nearly enough stuff being moved through there to justify the number of gang members who seem to be providing security for the place. Besides, if this is simply about drugs, what the hell do they need with Tanner and the others?”

“Wait a minute,” Burt said. “There are members of an Asian gang pulling security for the place in addition to the mercenary types who attacked our camp? How many guys are we talking about?”

“There’s no way of knowing exactly how many we’ll face when we go in there,” Danica answered. “But if the pictures our analyst at the DCO has pulled off Facebook are any indication, there are probably at least a dozen at any one time. More at night when the club is open.”

Everyone at the table looked a little concerned at that, Zarina included. While their group had a Special Forces soldier, two cops, three covert operatives, a hybrid, and three people willing to do anything to save the people they loved, there were still only ten of them.

“If there will be more security at night, why aren’t we going in now before the club opens?” Zarina demanded.

Danica shook her head. “We can’t go in there blind. If we try to go in through the front door without knowing what’s waiting for us, we won’t be any help to Tanner and the captives, because we’ll all be dead.”

Zarina almost screamed in frustration. She wasn’t eager to go charging into that club carrying a weapon, but the thought of Tanner being in danger for another minute was more than she could handle.

“Okay, so it’s agreed. We need a plan,” Tate said, breaking the silence that had invaded the tight space of the storage unit. “What do we know about the club? Any floor plans?”

“Unfortunately, we know very little that will help,” Danica admitted. “Before it was a club, it was a sawmill. While it’s been renovated, we can still expect an almost industrial warehouse-like feel when we go in, most likely with limited lighting and lots of small rooms everywhere. Once the shooting starts, we could have people aiming at us from fifty feet away or less than ten, and we might not be able to see them in either situation.”

Zarina didn’t understand the significance of anything Danica said. But it didn’t matter. They were going in that club, one way or the other.

“I might be able to help with that,” Cam said, looking up from the cell phone Zarina hadn’t even noticed he’d been holding. “I knew the building The Cage was in was old, so I had a friend of mine who’s an amateur historian do a little digging. It turns out the mill had been set up over the remains of a gold and silver mine in the 1930s. The basement of the club is actually the sections of the mine that weren’t sealed off. My friend’s almost certain there are other ways for us to get into the basement without going through the main entrance. He’s digging out maps of the mine right now.”

Zarina silently said a quick prayer of thanks. “How long do you think it will take for him to come up with them? We need to get in there before Ryan does whatever it is he has in mind for Tanner and the others.”

Cam nodded as he shoved his phone back in the pocket of his jeans. “He promised he’ll have the maps within the hour.”

While that still seemed like an inordinately long amount of time to Zarina, Danica, Clayne, and Tate clearly didn’t agree. They immediately began handing out weapons, ammunition, and equipment.

“I know nobody wants to talk about this, but I have to bring it up, because I’ve been on the wrong side of this situation before,” Diaz said, taking the boxes of bullets Clayne offered.

Tate frowned. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that when we go in there, it’s almost certainly going to be bad,” Diaz explained. “Between those gang members and Ryan’s ex-military buddies, there’s going to be shooting, and probably a lot of it.”

“So?” Tate asked. “It’s not like we haven’t dealt with people shooting at us before. Lots of people in fact.”

“Yeah, well, the last time we all got into a bad situation with Tanner, he completely lost it and nearly killed me.” Diaz’s face was grim. “What do we do if he loses it again?”

“He might not be the only one.” Clayne glanced at Malcolm. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but bringing another hybrid in with us to go with the other two who are already in there is asking for trouble. The chances of one of you guys going apeshit is damn high.”

Malcolm frowned, but instead of getting angry like Zarina thought he would, he merely nodded. “You’re right. There’s a good chance one of us will lose control.”

Zarina wanted to think that what Diaz and Clayne were suggesting wouldn’t happen, but she knew better. As much as Tanner’s control had improved, he was still a hybrid. When the gunfire started and the blood started flowing, there was no telling what would happen. Hell, it might not even be a matter of losing control. If Tanner thought innocent people were in danger, he’d purposely let the beast inside take over, no matter the cost.

Cam paused in the middle of checking the machine gun he was holding to look at everyone in confusion. He probably wanted to ask what the hell they were talking about, the same way he almost certainly wanted to know why they couldn’t call in Seattle SWAT and have them raid the club. But there hadn’t been time to talk to him about anything, especially the part about his older brother being half animal.

Zarina picked up her backpack from where she’d placed it on the floor and took out the case with the antiserum. “If it comes to it, I’ll use this on Tanner or any of the other hybrids.”

Diaz eyed the injector solemnly. “Is that the antiserum?”

She nodded. “The whole reason I came out here was to get Tanner to take this and reset his body back to the way it had been before he was experimented on. But he didn’t want to take it.”

“Why not?” Clayne asked.

She sighed. “A lot of reasons.”

On the other side of the table, Malcolm’s gaze was locked on the plastic case. “Are there any side effects to taking something like that?”

“Yes, but that’s not why Tanner didn’t want to take it,” Zarina said. “Because the antiserum resets the body, Tanner—or whoever else takes it—will go through nearly as many physiological and psychological changes as they did the first time around.”

“What kind of changes?” Malcolm prompted.

Zarina hesitated. “There’s a good chance whoever takes the antiserum might not be able to have children.”

He considered that, then nodded and blew out a breath. “Anything else?”

“You might not remember most of the things that have happened since becoming a hybrid,” she said quietly.

Danica blinked. “Wait a minute. Are you saying that Tanner might not remember you if you give him the antiserum?”

“It’s possible, yes,” Zarina admitted.

Clayne bit back a growl. “You don’t have the right to use something like that on Tanner or any of them. To take away Tanner’s memories of you…” He shook his head. “It’s not right.”

“Do you think I want to do it?” Zarina demanded. “Of course I don’t. But I might not have a choice.”

“There’s always a choice,” Clayne said. “Something tells me Tanner would rather die than lose a single memory of the time he’s had with you.”

Zarina pinned the wolf shifter with a look. “Well, I’m not ready to let him die, even if it’s what he’d want. If it’s between him forgetting me or accidentally killing someone he cares about, I’ll do what I have to do.”

In the silence that followed, Chad cleared his throat. “Lillie would hate me for saying this, but if it comes down to Spencer losing control, the antiserum is better than the alternative. Same goes for Bryce.”

Tate frowned. “Wait a minute. You only have that single injector, right? What happens if more than one of the hybrids loses it? How do we decide who gets the antiserum and who doesn’t?”

There was another long silence.

“Let’s pray it doesn’t come to that,” Zarina finally said. “If it does, we’ll use the antiserum on the first one we can get to and deal with the others as best we can.”

Everyone nodded, then went back to what they’d been doing. A few moments later, Danica told everyone to get the last of the gear packed up. They’d leave for Redmond in fifteen minutes.

Zarina was looking through a wall locker for extra bullets for her trusty revolver, a task made more difficult since she didn’t know the caliber of the weapon, when Cam grabbed a box marked .38 Special.

“Here,” he said.

She opened the box and pulled one of the bullets out, going the extra step of comparing it to the kind already loaded in her revolver. They looked like an exact match to her.

“Thanks,” she said, slipping the box in the pocket of her jacket. It was heavier than she thought it’d be.

“No problem.” He gazed down at her with blue eyes so like his brother’s, it made her heart pang. “So, do you think you can tell me what the hell is going on? Because I didn’t understand half the crap you guys were talking about. Hybrids, people going crazy, and antiserum that takes away a person’s memory? None of this makes any sense.”

Around them, everyone was hurriedly loading weapons and trying on night-vision goggles. They didn’t have a lot of time for this.

She looked at Cam. “Remember in the diner when Tanner said those bad people he mentioned had done some experiments on him? Well, you’re going to see the effects of those experiments tonight, and it’s going to freak you out. Tanner, as well as Malcolm and two other men Ryan kidnapped, are part animal now. When they lose control, the animal takes charge, and they can be extremely dangerous.”

Cam did a double take. “Damn. When he said that, I had no idea… What kind of sicko does that to another person?” He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. I don’t care if my brother is part animal. Tanner would never hurt me.”

“He wouldn’t want to, and it would destroy him afterward, but if he was far enough gone, he’d rip your throat out without even realizing who you are.” Zarina swallowed hard. “If something happens, and you see Tanner doing things that scare the hell out of you, get away from him and find me. Okay?”

Cam regarded her thoughtfully. “So you can give him the antiserum that might make him forget you?”

Tears burned Zarina’s eyes. The possibility that Tanner might not remember her and everything they’d shared tore her heart out, making it suddenly hard to breathe. “Yes.”