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Cole wore a thin gray jumpsuit he’d been given before leaving the SCIS facility. His beard itched under the metal mask, which they’d welded shut when he was detached from the wall. His ankle chains jingled as he walked out the front door into blinding sunlight. His wrists were cuffed behind him and the mask made it hard to turn his head, but the scenery reminded him of northern South Carolina.

But there was nothing here but an old farmhouse and barn, the guards and a transport truck.

The Guardian’s human in the US government kept him informed of SCIS operations, so this place would be on the Guardian’s list. But if they’d marked it as a research facility, Cole’s team would have no reason to hunt him here.

They’d be looking at holding facilities first.

Way to think positive, Cole.

Just keeping it real.

An armored truck had been parked in front of the house the staff used for access to the underground rooms. The truck had a South Carolina tag, possibly confirming his guess even if it wouldn’t help him.

Of all the things that surprised him, Gray Wolf actually behaving for the moment topped that list.

Maybe because his wolf’s rampage last night had been a pressure release, allowing his animal to run free even if it had been contained in that room.

Gray Wolf had let Cole know just how little control he maintained anymore.

Cole blamed that bastard Brantley for overdosing him with something that was not a protein compound.

Gray Wolf huffed softly, just letting Cole know he was there. That one gesture reminded Cole of the many times over the years he’d been as one with his wolf. Maybe Gray Wolf realized they were heading toward the end and it would come in a cage.

Brantley would get what he wanted.

Cole would like to know for sure Brantley was Cadell, but some of them were gifted at hiding their identities and acting as humans.

Something was going on between Tess and her so-called partner.

If Cole were to guess, he’d say Brantley wanted her out of the picture completely. He’d said that sending Cole away was her decision, meaning Tess was higher on the totem pole than Brantley. For now.

She hadn’t wanted to send for transport.

That much had been clear.

If she knew the suspicion Cole harbored—that Brantley was not human—she’d be running to get away from the guy, but she couldn’t know.

Even most shifters wouldn’t have recognized what Brantley really was.

Gallize shifters could pick up on Cadell magic, but only in their animal forms. This guy hadn’t used magic yet, so Cole might be wrong.

But he would bet his next breath that he was right.

If Brantley was Cadell, he’d wrangled a position that allowed him access to jackal shifters for his dirty work. Having those shifters inserted as SCIS staff now made even more sense.

Gray Wolf wouldn’t have stopped bleeding those two jackal shifters if Cole hadn’t pleaded with him. That had been the last resort when his wolf had ignored Cole’s orders. It had taken shouting telepathically at Gray Wolf that he was going to get Tess in trouble.

Those two jackals had been no match for Gray Wolf even after they’d shifted, and they had Tess to thank for being alive.

Brantley and Tess stood near the box bed for the truck.

Cole swept a look around, as much as the hot, iron mask would allow. No help in sight.

A guard shoved him in the back.

He stumbled, but gained his footing.

The closer Cole got to Tess, the more alert his wolf became until it was pawing hard by the time Cole was marched up to the rear of the truck.

Brantley stepped aside to hand papers to a new pair of jackal shifters and said, “Here are your delivery forms. Let me know if you have any trouble.”  He stepped several feet away and lifted his phone to scroll through it.

Tess moved over to where Cole stood between two guards armed with stun guns. He didn’t want to experience those hits if possible. But that didn’t stop him from constantly assessing a possible escape route.

He took in her sad gaze.

Did she feel guilty for sending him to a hole in the ground? She would at some point, because eventually someone would show her his face and she’d realized what she’d done. But it might not be until they brought her the report of his death.

This wasn’t her fault.

He knew she was doing her best at her job. This woman was the most honorable person he’d ever met.

Gray Wolf howled to get out.

Even if Cole didn’t have this mask on, he wouldn’t unleash his monster on any of these people.

I will kill them all.

No, Cole told Gray Wolf. You can’t do that.

Well, maybe Brantley, Cole amended to himself.

They will kill us.

Gray Wolf had a point, but Cole still couldn’t condone unleashing his beast on anyone. He told his wolf, I’m trying to keep us alive right now. Don’t fight me.

His wolf had nothing to say, but then his wolf had always been about teeth and claws, not reason. Cole cut his gaze at the jackals, who were having a hard time hiding their glee at his future.

Fuck them.

If he had the chance, he’d let Gray Wolf deal with those paid murderers.

Would Tess believe him if Cole told her she was paying shifters who lived to bleed others?

Probably not.

Tess told the shifters, “I want a minute.” She’d spoken with a stern edge that meant she expected to be obeyed.

The jackals moved back, eyeing her with disrespect that had a growl climbing up his throat.

Tess distracted him from his lethal thoughts when she spoke. “I don’t want to do this,” she whispered with that same core of iron in her voice. “Just tell us what you know and I can revoke the order until I have time to do a full investigation on what happened last night.”

Her soft voice climbed inside of Cole and warmed him. But he couldn’t tell her the truth without exposing that he was Gallize, which would expose the Guardian’s teams. Between the shifters and the Cadells, it was getting damned hard to function in this country without exposing their Gallize league.

But he would die to protect the people he considered family.

They would do the same for him.

Before he left, Cole had to do one thing for Tess, to spare her conscience once she discovered that she’d sent the man she loved in college to his death. He had to say it in a way that she would not figure out that he knew who she was until later. “You lost someone important to a shifter, didn’t you?”  

His words brought a chilly change to her disposition.

She said, “That has nothing to do with this.”

“Yes, it does. What happened in your past is driving you to right wrongs between shifters and humans, isn’t it?”  His guess? Her mother’s death pushed Tess to this point.

Her heart strummed a fast beat. He could hear the pounding and scented something new. Anger. Her face pulled down shutters over her emotions, but she’d already exposed herself.

He’d been right, so he pushed once more. “You seem like you genuinely want to understand shifters. I’m asking because I’d like to know why you’re so interested. Call it a dying man’s last request.”

Whatever tart comment had been about to launch off her tongue got pulled back at the suggestion that he wouldn’t survive this.

If Cole was right about Brantley, he wouldn’t see another day in this world.

She tapped her fingers on her hip in a state of thinking. “I lost a family member years ago in a shifter attack, yes. So what’s your point?”

He hated to be in this position, but he hated it just as much for Tess. Maybe more. He’d been yanked into this world by dormant genes that came to life prematurely, based on what the Guardian had told him, but Tess was human.

An innocent.

Brantley headed toward them.

Cole’s seconds with Tess were coming to an end. This time, he’d never see her again. He had so many things he wanted to tell her, so many things he had to explain, but he couldn’t do it here and now.

What he could do was ease her burden. “I forgive you, Tess. I understand what you’re doing and that you would never intentionally hurt someone. You’re too sweet, too honorable and too decent for this world.”

Her eyes widened with shock. “What did—”

Cole barely moved his head from side to side, telling her not to say another word.

“Time to go,” Brantley ordered. “Load him up.”

The jackal with curly, carrot-colored hair yanked Cole up the steps. The other shifter followed along behind, holding the chain around Cole’s waist.

When they had him in the center of the cargo area, they positioned him spread-eagle. They hooked three-inch-wide titanium manacles around his wrists that had chains running to opposite upper corners of the box structure. Those chains ran through thick steel guides and down the corners to a unit that reminded Cole of a small motor with low gears.

That would probably cinch the chains tight.

Similar cuffs were put on each ankle before releasing his leg containments. Those cuffs had chains running to opposing corners of the cargo box, which they tightened until he stood with his feet far apart.  

What the hell?

Cole could shift and drop out of any of those manacles. He perked up. Transporting him this way could provide a chance to escape.

Hadn’t they tried this with other shifters?

Brantley grinned. “Like our new transport vehicle?”

Oh, so it was a first time. He’d break it in for them. Cole ignored the snide comment.

With a nod from Brantley, one of the jackals hit a button near the back door.

The grind of a winch motor hummed and chains began slowly tightening, pulling his arms straight out. Then the chains hooked to his legs slid away from him as a second motor started, forcing his legs wide. Too wide.

The motors stopped.

Cole drew short breaths and fought to stifle a groan over how taut his body was being drawn in four directions.

He clenched his jaw shut, refusing to let even a grunt slip out.

“A word to the wise,” Brantley went on in his superior tone that Cole was looking forward to shoving down his throat. “It’s more than a tensioning system. If you get the wise idea to change to your wolf, this has been designed with a shifter in mind. Your arms and legs draw up before the muscles and bone change, which means you’ll tug on the chains at that point. One slight pull and the chains tighten a half-inch snugger ... all four. From what I’m told, once you start shifting, it’s hard to stop. That would really suck, because continuing to activate it will result in at least one limb being ripped out.”

Fuck.

Cole couldn’t look at Tess when she gasped. He could smell her anxiety. He doubted anyone had told her about this new mode of transporting prisoners.

The rear door slammed shut and he held every muscle as still as he could to keep from activating a motor. He’d trained to endure the worst torture imaginable, but with no idea how long this trip would be, he wasn’t sure he’d arrive in one piece.