Chapter Four
The dreaded click of the door handle alerted Lawson. He loathed the sound. To him, it meant another round of needles to his flesh or beating to his body. Quickly sitting up, he grabbed his head when sharp pain exploded around his eyes.
His face hadn’t recovered from injuries received during his last pummeling, and he could barely see out of his right eye. Typically, his body healed itself within twenty-four hours, but this was the worst beat-down yet. He had open wounds from being whipped with a metal chain and several broken ribs from repeated kicks to the chest and abdomen. He recalled spitting up blood right before a blow to his head knocked him out cold.
They’d tortured him because he’d killed two men, but his compassion for these cruel humans was gone. No one had shown him an ounce of sympathy. He was treated worse than an animal.
His body had more holes it in that Swiss cheese, and he was black and blue all over. He may heal quickly, but the constant blows and needles, coupled with the lack of proper food and bathing facilities left him weaker than normal. Mentally and physically. To be honest, he wished they’d drain all the blood from his body and let him die. It would be better than the continuous suffering.
The whippings had become more frequent, and he wasn’t sure how much more his body could take before shutting down. It didn’t help that his will to live was slowly vanishing. If he didn’t find a way to escape soon he was going to die in this shithole and that just pissed him off.
At least he had managed to do a little damage to Jim’s lackeys before they beat him unconscious. He smiled at the memory of snapping the arm of one male and breaking another’s leg. And, holy shit, it hurt like hell moving any muscle on his face.
Opening his left eye as best he could, he was shocked to see the red-headed female step inside the room then shut the door behind her. She was the last person he expected to see again. Ever.
He figured she would remain in his dreams instead of flesh and blood before him. And, like it or not, she had consumed his past two nights, haunting his dreams with terrified green eyes. He was more captive to the endless echo of her horrified scream than he was to the chains binding him to the cement wall at his back.
Taking quick stock, he was humiliated to the core at his appearance. The sweatpants he’d worn from day one were so filthy it made him sick. Not from dirt so much as the stench of rancid clothes in desperate need of washing. The smell disgusted him, and he could only imagine how bad it was for her.
What he could see of his dark hair and long beard was matted, and his finger and toenails were overgrown and discolored. It was an embarrassment, and he wanted to crawl into a hole and hide.
Many assumed shifters were dirty by nature because of their animal side, but they weren’t. Clean-freak was a term his family attached to him because of his obsessive tendencies. In fact, most shifters were hygiene fanatics, but to be this squalid made Lawson physically ill.
The worst part was his toilet. It consisted of a large bucket in the corner of the room that wasn’t disposed of on a regular basis, which added to the odors. He’d been there so long his senses were muted, but it still turned his stomach to think of his poor living conditions.
“Oh, my, God, what did they do to you?” the female exclaimed, rushing towards him.
He quickly held up a hand, halting her steps. “Don’t. Stay away,” he ordered.
He had to admit he was impressed with her courage. She had witnessed him commit a violent act against two humans and yet here she was, alone in a room, with a murderer and was rushing to his side to help him. Did she have a death wish?
He sure as hell wouldn’t have returned to the scene of the crime, especially, this nasty place.
She held up her hands defensively and backed up. “Okay, I won’t go near you. If it’s okay, I’ll just sit on the ground right here and keep my distance,” the female muttered, squatting to the cold tile floor as she fumbled with her knee-length lab coat before crossing her legs.
He noticed she wore tan slacks and a black blouse under her lab coat. Her sweet scent still intoxicated him, but he found he was a little more in control of his libido this time. At least that was one good thing to come out of his dinner date with the guards. It would be beyond disgusting to encounter a filthy male chained to a wall with a hard on for you.
She held a red tote bag that she sat on the ground beside her. Red. It matched the long strands of her long silky hair, and it just so happened to be his favorite color. It struck him as odd that after all this time his world had been void of color, and now, it stood out like a beacon in the darkest of night.
Of all colors, she was surrounded by red. It represented love and life and passion to him. All of them now distant memories to what his life had become.
Her soft voice drew his attention. “My name is Olivia Kimbro, but my friends call me Liv. I’m one of the research scientists here at PRL. What is your name?” she asked, reaching into the bag and pulling out a clipboard with some papers attached to it.
The entire time he had been in this fuckhole not one single person had had the decency to ask him something as simple as his name.
Not that knowing his name would grant them the knowledge they were seeking, but it had shown him how little these humans cared. He stared at her saying nothing. Why should he share anything with her?
These humans had brought him nothing but pain, torture, and misery. Why now was one female suddenly showing interest, if that’s what it was? Could be a setup for all he knew. In fact, he suddenly wondered why they hadn’t sent a female before now to coerce him into shifting.
“I can’t say I blame you for your silence. I would probably do the same thing. How about this? I’ll tell you a little about me, and you can decide after that if you want to talk to me. I have to warn you, though, my story is pretty dull,” she divulged as she reached into the bag again and pulled out a Granny Smith apple, quickly tossing it in the air towards him.
Reaching up, he snagged it midair. “Wow, nice reflexes,” Liv said with a chuckle. “I assume that’s a shifter trait. I’ve never met a shifter, so forgive me if I’m ignorant.”
Lawson liked the sound of her voice. It was smoky, and soft and it intrigued him. In fact, he wanted to lay back and have her talk or maybe read to him. A full-length novel from start to finish. He didn’t even care what it was about so long as it took hours for her to complete it.
Looking at the bright green fruit in his palm, he turned it, studying it closer. Again, to see color was a breath of fresh air. The firmness and unblemished skin of the apple was perfection in his opinion. He had lived off cold oatmeal and stale rolls since they captured him. Of course, they loaded him with various supplements to keep him healthy but the food provided was bland and tasteless. He didn’t know if he should eat the apple or hang it on the wall like a fine piece of art.
“It’ll go bad if you don’t eat it,” she remarked as if reading his thoughts.
He brought the fruit to his mouth and took a large bite. Sweet and tart burst against his tongue, and he closed his eyes, savoring the experience. He couldn’t recall eating anything with more flavor. Taking another bite then another he groaned from the pleasure. It was cool and crisp and smelled like a sunny day. One more thing he hadn’t seen in forever.
“Wow, maybe I should’ve kept that for myself. My neighbor, Cassie, would call that look on your face orgasmical,” Olivia said, giggling.
Lawson’s eyes popped open to see her gaping with interest. Her alluring green eyes locked with his and he couldn’t stop the arousal that spiked in his groin from her heated look. Damn him to hell, but fuck if he didn’t want her.
* * *
Liv felt a blush spread across her face and quickly diverted her focus, glancing down at the clipboard as she looked through the attached papers. There was no personal information in his file, only the results of what the other scientists had found from his blood samples.
Unfortunately, she saw nothing but a blur due to her discomfort, but she kept her focus anywhere but on him. The shifter’s penetrating gray eyes reached in and played peek-a-boo. Liv swore he could see straight into her soul and that had her crossing and uncrossing her legs as she bit her lip. Beyond unnerving. She had unwanted skeletons in her closet like anybody else and certainly didn’t need this man dissecting her mistakes and failures.
Take a deep breath and get back on target, she told herself. She needed to win his trust. Otherwise, he’d never shift for them and they needed the blood from his animal. She wondered what animal he became. Bear? Lion? It was impossible to tell by looking at him and it killed her to see him with the multiple injuries covering his body.
Whatever had happened between him and her boss last night didn’t go in his favor. Yes, he had killed two men, but they were beating him mercilessly. She had seen it with her own eyes. They were attacking him while he lay there defenseless, trying to protect himself.
Now, his face was swollen to the point he looked disfigured. One eye was closed shut and the other wasn’t much better. His upper torso was covered in welts, and the skin was split open in several spots. Her heart wept for the abuse he endured.
Judging his massive muscles, Liv knew the man was incredibly strong, but even a shifter must have limitations and he looked like those had been exceeded.
Again, her mind wondered about his animal. She had heard when they shifted they had no control over the actions of their beast. How primal and raw that must be for them. Part of her acknowledged it might be freeing, as well. Curiosity was eating at her insides about his animal, and, if she were honest, she was a little turned on by it.
Shaking off her inappropriate thoughts, she considered where to begin in her less-than-interesting life recap. “So, I’m from Tennessee. Grew up not far from Chattanooga and went to the community college here in town. My dad disappeared when I was very young. To be honest, I barely remember him. No brothers or sisters but my mom and I are super close. She’s my best friend. Do you have any siblings?” she rambled, finally meeting his eyes again.
No reply but Liv saw something spark in his steel gray orbs. Was it her talking about her family? Did he have one, and, if so, were they searching for him? So many questions zipped through her mind.
How long had he been held captive? How was he captured? Why was he so resistant? It seemed he should want to help save lives if he could. She had to get him to open up if she was going to get to the bottom of what was going on at her workplace.
“Anyway…I’m thirty, have no kids, and have never been married. Umm, favorite color is pink, I like to go dancing, love Italian food, don’t drink much alcohol but consume sweet tea like it’s going out of style, and…oh, most importantly, I’m going to rule the world once I uncover the secret of how to grow money in test tubes,” she declared matter-of-factly then started laughing. Yeah, that last part was a joke. She and Cassie had a saying that they were livin-la-vida-broka.
Glancing over at Mr. Chit-Chat she thought she noticed a slight curl to his upper lip. He was listening. Problem was, that didn’t translate to him talking. Maybe he questioned her motives. Prisoner for God only knew how long and on his own in this facility. She assumed no one had shown him an ounce of kindness. He probably needed to know whose side she was on.
“So, here’s the deal. I want to help you. As much as I’d like to unlock those cuffs and set you free, that’s not an option. You have something of value to this research facility, and they aren’t going to let you leave without it. But what I can do is be a mediator of sorts and prevent any further abuse against you. If you help me, I’ll do what I can to help you. But you need to trust me. My boss wasn’t thrilled about me coming in here, but he agreed to give it a chance,” she admitted freely.
Jim wasn’t going to let her continue these visits if she made no progress. He was perfectly fine with beating this man into submission. Liv didn’t want to see that happen. She was compelled to help this man if he’d let her.
Glancing at her watch, she panicked when she saw how long she had been with him. Her time was almost up. Jim expected her to report to him after this first meeting. If she went empty-handed, he might call off their deal.
“Come on. Throw me a bone. Anything, please,” she begged, getting on her knees and pleading. It was overly-dramatic, but she was trying to make a point. The man just looked at her, expressionless. He wasn’t going to budge an inch.
Exhaling defeat, she reached back into her bag and pulled out her old iPod Nano and a set of earbuds. If nothing else, she could leave him some music. If she were chained to a wall, music would be her salvation. A means to escape her misery.
“I want you to have these in case I’m not allowed to come back. Make sure to hide them under your mattress from the others,” Liv advised, tossing the set in his direction. He caught them without diverting his eyes from hers. Staring back, she felt the flush return to her cheeks, but she didn’t look away this time.
If she never saw him again, she wanted him to know she genuinely cared. She hoped he saw it in her depths where his gaze penetrated her soul.
Forcing herself to break the hold he had on her, she turned to leave the room.
“Lawson.”
The deep baritone sent a shiver down her spine, and she turned to face him. Steel gray eyes stole her breath and weakened her knees. He told her his name. One word but that was enough. Smiling, she replied, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lawson.” Another curl from his upper lip told her the feeling was mutual.
Exiting the room and shutting the door, Liv slumped to the floor in the hallway. God help her, she was panting. Exhilarated, triumphant, giddy. She was over the moon ecstatic. Another win for Team Liv.
Excited to tell Jim about her small miracle, she headed to the break room where she said she’d meet him. There was sure to be several employees eating lunch, which meant she wouldn’t be alone with him. She wasn’t in the mood to flirt or lead him on and she damn sure wasn’t in the mood for his unwanted advances. Hopefully, her information would appease Jim, and he would agree she should continue seeing Lawson.
And right after her meeting with Jim, there was an old friend she needed to see. He was the only person she knew that had influential connections, not to mention deep pockets. If anyone could help Lawson, it was him.
Lawson.
Just thinking his name sent another shiver down her spine.