"Would you like to observe how the transition is induced?" Bridget asked. "It's a rare opportunity. Roni is only the third adult male to go through it."

Turner arched his brows. "Was Spivak the first?"

"He was the second. The first one was a nineteen-year-old kid who breezed through it. The younger and healthier the body, the easier the transition. We almost lost Andrew."

"I'm glad you didn't."

"Really? You guys didn't seem overly friendly toward each other."

Turner waved a hand. "It's male posturing, nothing more. Spivak is a prick who never tried to hide his antipathy to me. But he was a good soldier, and I appreciated his dedicated service to his country."

She put a hand on his shoulder. "Are you a patriot, Victor?"

He frowned. What kind of a question was that? "Of course, I am."

She smiled. "To be a patriot, you need to feel pride in your country, and loyalty toward it. I think your impassive façade is just that, and that you're a mushy softie on the inside."

He chuckled. "I don't think so. If I am, it must be hidden so deep inside that even I am not aware of it."

"Exactly." She rubbed his abs. "I'm going to find that hidden cache."

"Good luck."

What was it with women and trying to change everything about their men? If they didn't like what they had, they should move on.

"So do you want to see Roni get bitten or not?"

"Are you sure Kian is okay with me witnessing it? I was under the impression that he wants me exposed to as little as possible."

She threaded her arm through his. "It's fine. He is a control freak, and he wants to be on top of everything, but he hates it when people bother him with inconsequential stuff. In my opinion, your attendance at Roni's induction falls under the definition of inconsequential."

He waved a hand. "Lead the way."

They took the elevator down to one of the basement levels, not the one Bridget's clinic was on, and headed down the corridor to a large gym.

Talk about luxury.

Turner had never seen a gym so well equipped, and he'd been to several that charged a bundle for membership.

Nothing but the best for the immortals.

In the center, standing on top of a big rectangle of sparring mats, was a scrawny young man.

The kid looked terrified. Not that Turner could blame him. His opponent was Kian himself.

"What's going on? Shouldn't the kid be matched with someone his size? Kian will snap him like a twig."

Bridget wrapped her arm around his waist. "He won't. In fact, Kian is Roni's best chance of transition. His venom is the most potent."

Turner crossed his arms over his chest. "I doubt Kian will be able to summon enough aggression to get his glands going."

Bridget had explained in detail how the transition was induced. Unless Kian got into a fighting mode, nothing would happen. His fangs wouldn't elongate, and his venom glands would not produce venom. Not unless provided with proper provocation. Except, Kian wasn't the type who preyed on the weak. He was a protector.

"That's what I'm afraid of. Anandur was the first to try, and he couldn't do it. Andrew had to step in. Next was Onegus, who had no qualms about fighting Roni, especially since the kid was in better shape before pneumonia weakened him. The third was Brundar, who had no problem getting aggressive with no provocation, which was good since Roni was even more emaciated than he is now. It didn't work either. I'm hoping the reason for the failures was the illness and not Roni's genetics."

"Are you sure he is a Dormant?"

"We have reason to believe he is. But after three failed attempts, I'm no longer sure. He is young. It should have gone smoothly."

Turner looked at the people assembled around the perimeter of the mats and wondered who were they going to cheer for. The kid or Kian.

He knew Anandur and Brundar, Kian's bodyguards, but not the others. "Who are these people?" He pointed.

"The woman with the long brown hair is Sylvia, Roni's girlfriend. The guy with the glasses is William, he works with Roni in the computer lab. And the three young guys and the other girl are Roni's friends. Andrew was supposed to come, but the baby was fussy and wanted her daddy."

Daddy. It was strange to think of Spivak as a family man, one who stayed home because his daughter needed her daddy.

It was disgustingly sweet.

The role of husband and father was not meant for men like him and Andrew. There was too much blood on their hands even if the killings had been done for their country.

Kian clapped his hands to get everyone's attention and waited until the chatter stopped. "We've already held a ceremony for Roni, so there is no need to repeat it, but I am going to make it official that I am his new mentor."

He turned to Roni. "Ronald, do you accept me as your initiator? As your mentor and protector, to honor me with your friendship, your respect, and your loyalty from now on?"

"I do."

Kian looked at the small crowd. "Any objections?"

No one said anything.

"Okay, kid. Show me what you got."

Roni put his hands on his hips and stared at Kian. "There isn't much to say to a little bitch like you, who always has better things to do…"

As the kid kept spewing one vile verse after the other, his friends laughed and clapped.

"What the hell is he doing?" Turner whispered in Bridget's ear.

She snorted. "That's just brilliant. Kian detests slam poetry. Roni is trying to rile him up with his big mouth rather than his nonexistent fighting powers."

The funny thing was that it was working.

As Kian's eyes started glowing, Roni stammered, confusing his lines, and as the immortal advanced on him, Roni backed away.

"Keep going!" His girlfriend jumped up and down to get his attention.

The three young immortal males pulled out their phones and added their voices to Roni's, reading from an email or a text he must've sent them with the so-called poem, helping him along.

The look of love in the young woman's eyes was touching, as was the support of his friends.

It felt as if everyone in that gym was family, including Kian who was playing the role of the aggressor but who was actually doing the kid a huge favor.

Turning his back to Kian, Roni kept slamming until the immortal's arm wrapped around his chest and his hand closed on the back of the kid's head, tilting it to elongate the neck in preparation for the bite.

As everyone present trained worried eyes on Roni, the gym fell silent. In the quiet, Kian's hiss sounded loud and ominous before he struck, but it was obvious he was handling the kid with care.

Something shifted in Turner's cold heart.

The man who'd wanted nothing out of life other than to play a game of wits against worthy opponents and win, suddenly wanted more.

He wanted to belong. He wanted a family. He wanted people to care for him. He wanted immortality—endless time to enjoy all of that.

The onslaught of emotions was as foreign to him as it was painful, and keeping up the impassive mask became impossible.

"I'll wait for you outside." He pivoted on his heel and strode toward the gym's exit.

Out in the corridor, he leaned against the wall, closed his eyes, and let his head drop. He must’ve been coming down with something, or maybe the cancer was spreading, because Turner couldn't remember ever getting so distraught over so little.

How could it be that a show of friendship and kindness affected him on a deeper level than all the pain and suffering he’d witnessed?

Turner had always known there was something wrong with him, that he wasn’t like other people.

Apparently, it was much worse than he’d suspected.