It didn't last long enough. Awareness surfaced, drifting in and out, as if my mind was caught in a fragmented dream. My arm felt like fire, and the heat of it mingled with pain that seared deep and hard. Laughter rolled around me, through me, a pain of a different kind but just as sickening. Starr enjoying the moment, enjoying my agony.
The reeds under my back trembled with the force of approaching steps, then hands were on me, moving me. The blackness surged again, and for a while there was nothing but the peace of that void.
When consciousness surfaced again, it came with a feeling of time having passed and a deep sense of familiarity. Of having been here before, in this same situation if not the same place.
My arms were raised above my head, tied at the wrists with something that was smooth and tight. The pins and needles in my fingers suggested they'd been that way for some time. The fierce fire and pain of the break had gone, meaning somewhere along the line I'd shifted shape and healed my arm, but the memory of it still drifted through my limbs and there was a weakness in my right arm that had nothing to do with the pins and needles. The rest of my body just ached with a tiredness that made no sense. Rhoan hadn't bashed me around that much, nor had we fought very long, so why the bone-deep weariness?
Sweat stung the air, sweat that was both mine and another's and with it came the heady aroma of sex and lust. My back pressed against something soft, silky, my stomach against flesh as hot as the sun. Hands were on me, caressing me, their touch bruising and familiar. Heat filled me, thrusting hard and fast if not deep, but the crescendo he was reaching certainly wasn't mine.
I cracked open my eyes. It was Merle who rode me, Merle who reached for his orgasm.
Relief swept through me. Merle certainly appeared one of the saner inmates of the asylum, and at least I knew I could touch his thoughts. If I could touch them, I could control them. Maybe not for a hugely long time, but long enough to get the hell out of this place.
Maybe.
But until I knew where we were - what the odds were - I wasn't doing squat.
My gaze drifted beyond him. The sheer blandness of the room was instantly recognizable. We were back in Merle's bedroom - and had been here for some time if the aroma of sex and sweat riding the air was any indication. I drew in a deep, careful breath, testing what other scents lie in the room. There was little beyond the stale-ness that came with air-conditioning. I couldn't see anyone else, nor could I smell them - though that in itself didn't mean much considering Starr's DNA experiments.
Merle's body began to jerk spasmodically. I closed my eyes, keeping still as he came. He slumped against me for several minutes, his dead weight making breathing difficult, then he slowly climbed off.
I cracked my eyes open again, watching him. And noted the fresh scars down his back and barely healed scratches on his arms and side. It looked as though Merle had been a little too close when I'd changed shape to heal my wounds. Couldn't be sad about that.
And it certainly explained why I was tied up.
"Iktar," he growled. "A drink."
The spirit lizard was there almost instantly, a bottle of soda and a glass in hand. He poured the drink then offered the glass to Merle.
"Sir, Mr. Starr phoned five minutes ago and said that he will be finished by six. He wants you in the toy room at that time."
Merle glanced at his watch - which indeed was gold and gaudy. "Gives me just over an hour to play with the bitch."
It was five already? I'd been with this bastard for nearly six hours? Christ, no wonder I was achy - it wasn't from the fight, it was the pounding I was getting from Merle.
Obviously, Starr's lieutenants had nothing better to do all day than rut like dogs. Though even the worst of us dogs had a hell of a lot more class in the loving stakes than Merle did.
Iktar nodded, but as he turned, his glance fell on me. He knew I was awake. That was so evident in the gleam in his eyes, the slight smile touching his thin lips.
Merle came back to the bed as Iktar left. I closed my eyes, but my other senses were on high. Not that they needed to be. Merle was extraordinarily easy to track - all I had to do was listen to the soft sound of his steps and follow his sweaty, in-need-of-a-shower smell.
The bed dipped as he sat on it, then his fingers were on my breasts, plucking and pulling my nipples. It wasn't pleasant to simply lie there and take it, especially when my wolf soul wanted to rise up and rip the bastard's hand off. It was even harder when his fingers moved down, roughly exploring. I'm not sure what he was trying to achieve, but it certainly wasn't any form of foreplay I was familiar with.
After a while, his lust stirred anew and his body shifted over mine. As his cock slid inside, I carefully felt for his mind. His shields were as tight as ever, but as his body began to move, the wall wavered, became less solid. It still felt like I was pushing through thick glue, but either I was stronger than before, or Merle's recent efforts in the loving stakes had left him weaker, because this time I got through quicker.
Once past that barrier, I didn't bother with finesse, simply stormed in and took control. It was a rout in every sense - in a matter of seconds, his body and mind were mine. Now I just had to decide what to do with him.
I ordered him off, then made him lie on the bed as I searched his thoughts for any mention of the labs. But as before, there was little. Either he didn't know, or the knowledge was buried so deep it would take hours and hours to uncover. As I had neither, I called for Iktar.
The spirit lizard appeared instantly, a smile of amusement touching his lips as he walked across to the bed and undid my bindings. "And here he was, only last week, boasting he was strong enough to repel any psychic attack."
"Baring Starr, I'm guessing."
Iktar shrugged eloquently. "That is a given."
I sat up and rubbed my wrists. "Are there cameras in these rooms?"
"Only in the hall."
"No other security device we should be wary about?"
"No. Unless Merle regains enough control to hit the alarm on the panel near the bedside table."
"Good." I rose and headed for the bathroom I'd seen my last time here.
Iktar followed, watching as I soaped up and washed the blood and sweat and fluids from my skin. If he was at all aroused, it wasn't showing. "What is your plan? You cannot hope to hold him forever."
"I know." Even as I rinsed the soap away, I could feel the muted ache behind my eyes beginning to grow. I may have controlled people this completely before, but never one who was psychic. Controlling Merle took a whole lot more power - and strength - than I thought it would. "Who has access to the main security area?"
"Merle, Moss, and those guards who man it. Access is thumbprint and key-coded and there's armed guards at the entrance and exits."
Joy. "Is there one man or two on each shift?"
"Generally three, but because of the kitchen and the loss they incurred there, they've pared it down to two so they could put a watch on the rebuilding crew until new recruits arrive."
Well, at least Nerida's action had achieved one good thing. Not that it pacified the dead. Their need for revenge still heated the air. I couldn't see them, though, and of that I was glad. Vampires were dead enough for me - I didn't need to cope with the truly dead as well. "You'd better pray that the bomb controls are in central security, because there is no way in hell I am willingly going back into Starr's rooms."
"We had an agreement - "
"Have you ever been to Starr's rooms? Have you any idea of the security he has in there? I wouldn't get two steps in and I'd be dead."
I stepped out of the shower and he handed me a towel. "If you can control Merle, maybe he - "
"Starr is a powerful telepath. He'd sense my leash on Merle the minute I got within range of him."
Iktar was silent. I asked, "What of the labs on the second floor? Would there be a key stored in security?"
He shrugged. "I would guess so."
"Are all calls to there monitored?"
"As far as I know, only outside calls are monitored and recorded."
I threw the towel in the laundry basket and finger combed my hair. "Is it shadowed enough outside for you to disappear?"
Amusement briefly sparked in his eyes. "There only needs to be the slightest hint of dusk and I can be gone. The spirit lizards Starr makes do not match our natural skills."
A scary thought. "So would it be possible for you to arrange for the power in this place to be temporarily shut down?"
The amusement deepened. "At what time would you like this possibility to occur?"
I blew out a breath. Merle had a six o'clock appointment, which didn't leave me a whole lot of time to play with. Especially given I had to be back in the arena by seven. "In ten minutes."
I might be able to use Merle to get me in there, but I didn't want any physical record of me actually going near the place. Which meant we had to take the cameras out.
"You realize they have maintenance on standby to cater for such problems. The main power will not be out for more than ten or fifteen minutes."
"Then maybe you need to smash up the power box a bit more, so it takes them longer to find that many replacements." I hesitated. "What about backup systems?"
"They have several emergency generators that will kick in immediately. The main one provides power to the security systems if the main source goes down. There are also smaller units in the labs and security area to provide them with lighting and electrical systems."
"And if we shut down the main backup?"
"Everything will lock down. You would not be able to get in anywhere."
"Ah. No point in doing that, then."
I rubbed my temples wearily then spun and walked back into the bedroom. Merle was still prone, his mind still caught tight. I dove deeper, taking control of his speech and movement centers, then forced him to reach for the phone and dial the security center.
"Security. Harris speaking."
Merle's thoughts told me Harris wasn't the main man, security wise, just one of the plebes who watched the cameras and monitored phone calls, and maybe that was just as well. A man who was only there because he had to be was a far easier target - and one more likely to stray.
"Harris, Merle."
"Evening, Mr. Merle. What can I do for you?"
"I'm sending a woman over to collect a copy of the day's reports."
"A woman, sir?" It said a lot about Merle and Moss that only the faintest hint of surprise showed in the guard's voice.
"Yes, Harris. You got a problem with that?"
"No, sir."
"She'll be there in ten. Make sure the guard on entrance ten know she's coming and lets her in. I don't want my toy harmed."
"Yes, sir."
Lances of fire were beginning to shoot through the back of my eyes, and sweat trickled down my spine. I had to end this quickly, before the totality of control slipped and he became conscious enough to fight me. I made him drop the handset, then touched his forehead with my fingertips. Though I had no idea if touching him this way would help enforce my will, it just seemed the right thing to do. Besides, Jack had done it the few times he'd subjugated prisoners, so it had to be of some use. "You will sleep until you are woken. When awake, you will remember nothing more than having sex all afternoon and ordering Iktar to escort me upstairs at five before falling asleep. Go to sleep now, and sleep the sleep of the well sated."
As the orders slipped into his subconsciousness and became fact, I pulled out of his mind, carefully erasing the traces of my presence and making doubly sure he remembered nothing more than fucking the hell out of me.
As the connection fell away, a shudder ran through me. The pain behind my eyes became so fierce that for several seconds all I could see was shooting stars. I took a deep breath and swept a hand through my damp hair. What I'd really like to do right now was to take a painkiller or two and catch a few hours' sleep. But I'd given myself an hour's window to do some worthwhile investigating and maybe even some rescuing, so I couldn't waste it, no matter how much my head ached.
"Wake him just before six." I rubbed my eyes wearily, and pushed to my feet. "Let's get going."
"You know where central security is?"
"Yes."
He raised an eyebrow, but didn't question my knowledge, simply led me out of the rooms to the elevator. When it was moving, I looked at him. "Ten minutes, remember. And if you don't do what I asked, I'll find those detonators and set them off myself."
"I will do as you ask."
"Good." I glanced up, saw we were almost at the ground floor. "What is the toy room you mentioned earlier?"
"A torture room on the first level."
Trust Starr to call a torture room a toy room. "What else is there?"
"An armory. Secure meeting rooms. Stuff like that."
The elevator jerked to a stop and the doors opened. I headed left, but not directly toward the security area. There was ten minutes to kill before the power outage removed the threat of the cameras, so I pushed open the nearest exit door and walked out into the coolness of the gathering evening. The sun had moved behind the mountains and trees, and shadows hunted across the ground. The scent of eucalyptus filled the air, and kookaburras were beginning their evening laugh-fest. I walked across to the nearest gum tree and squatted down on my heels. Awareness tingled across my skin, and I glanced sideways to see a guard appear a few doors down. Meaning my earlier guess that we would be watched from now on had been spot-on.
I casually touched my ear, then plucked a long blade of grass and idly fiddled with it.
"Hey, Jack," I said softly. "Any more news of Nerida and Berna?"
"And good fucking morning to you, too. Or evening, as the damn case is."
"This is the first chance I've had to report, so don't pull the heavy on me."
"It doesn't take much to Hick your ear and let me hear what is going on even if you can't speak."
"Which is impossible to do when you're unconscious."
He swore loud enough to make my wince, then added, "You'd better update me."
I did. "You heard from Rhoan at all?"
"He touched the com-link briefly as he was going into the fight, but nothing since then."
"Damn. Hope he's okay."
"He's been in far worse situations. He'll be fine."
"But Starr is suspicious of us both, Jack. He's got a watch on me, even now." I flicked the blade of grass away and glanced sideways at the man in question. He was leaning, cross-armed, against the brick wall, his face raised as if he was studying something in the trees. The mere fact I'd sensed his presence when I hadn't even heard him meant he was something other than human. Which possibly meant it wasn't going to be easy to ditch him, but I had to try before I went anywhere near the security center.
"Then maybe we'd better pull you out."
Pull me, not my brother or Kade. "I'm not going anywhere just yet."
"Riley, if he does suspect, it's far too dangerous for everyone - "
"I have things to do first."
He swore again. "You can't rescue that kid - "
"We made promises to people. Jack. I'm going to try and uphold them before I run. Besides, I'm not going to leave my brother alone in this mess."
"He's got far more experience than you to fall back on."
He hadn't seemed too damn worried about my inexperience when he'd sent me in here. "Experience won't mean squat if he's outnumbered. Which he is."
Jack grunted. "At least tell me what you're planning, then."
I gave him a rough outline. He was silent for a few minutes, then said, "You know, it might be worth destroying the labs and security."
"What? Why?"
"Starr may be suspicious of you, but I actually doubt he realizes that you're working for the Directorate or that you're a dhampire. Even if his suspicions are raised over you losing your guard, he won't suspect you being behind the destruction of security and the lab. We both know only someone with vampire speed can manage to get to those two places in a short amount of time."
"Agreed, but I'm still not seeing the point."
"It's a simple subterfuge to deflect his suspicions. Given the kitchen bombing that barely missed taking out Merle, he may suspect the cartels playing friendly are actually attempting a little double-cross."
"Which means I couldn't actually leave, even if I wanted to."
"Yes."
"Then how do I get the baby out?"
"Women," he muttered. "Look, bring the kid to the forest and I'll call in an eagle-shifter to get her out. We'll look after her until Dia is free. Okay?"
I grinned. I'd actually figured I'd have to argue a whole lot longer before jack gave in. "Okay. And you know this means Dia will be in the Directorate's debt, don't you?"
"Oh, I'm counting on it." His voice was dry. "Just remember, kiddo, that you can't leave live evidence behind."
My grin faded. "I know."
I'd just avoided thinking about it, because it was just another step down that road, another twist in the chain Jack was wrapping around me. One kill, then two, and before I knew it, I'd be killing without thought, without regret. Or so he hoped.
"Good. Contact me when you've finished creating havoc."
"Will do."
I touched my ear to turn off the link, then rose and walked downwind. After a few minutes, the muskiness of something feline and male touched the air. The guard was following, but keeping his distance.
Good.
I walked along the outside of the building until I was at the far end of the house, close to the remains of the kitchen and well away from the security center. Then I stepped into the trees and the deeper shadows lurking within. The minute I found a path, I wrapped those shadows around my body and ran like hell around to the other side of the house. With vampire speed it only took seconds - but that was long enough to have disappeared from the guard's sight. And the whispering wind would already be scattering my scent. All I had to hope now was that he didn't go running back to Starr to report the loss. Though given the fear that madman induced, I figured no guard in his right mind would want to do that. But then, nothing was ever certain in this world, and fate seemed to be enjoying crapping all over me of late.
I stopped in the duskiness of several large trees and scanned the outside of the building. Lights shone in several windows, meaning the power was still on. I shifted my weight, suddenly anxious to get things moving. Tension crawled through my limbs, and an odd sense that something was wrong teased my mind. I had no idea what or why. Maybe it was just tension rising from the knowledge of what I was about to do. What I had to do, if we were all to keep undercover and keep safe.
I let my gaze rest on the metal doors that were the main entrance to central security. The floor plans indicated heavy fortification within that area, which included the substantial doors and a long corridor to traverse before reaching the control room.
And though it wasn't mentioned on the plan, it made sense that the center would have its own power source if all else went down. But any auxiliary source would take time to get going. I just had to make sure my timing was right, or they would catch me on camera.
The lights suddenly went out right along the building. I waited, watching for several heartbeats, then, when the lights remained out, silently thanked Iktar and walked out of the trees. The camera above the doorway didn't move, even though I was peripherally in the camera's sensor range.
I rapped on the metal. The sound seemed to echo, but for several seconds, there was no reply.
Then a gruff voice said, "Yes?"
"I've been sent here to collect some reports."
A small hatch in the middle of the door slid aside, and blue eyes stared out at me. "Lady, we just been hit by a power blackout. No one is coming in these doors until we have the generator up and running."
I shrugged casually. "Fine. I'll just tell Mr. Merle you said I couldn't have them."
I turned to go and the guard swore softly. "Fine, fine. Just wait a moment."
The hatch slammed closed, and after several seconds, the door opened enough for the armed guard to step through. He was a big man, all muscle and broad shoulders. I couldn't tell what sort of gun he held, because while I'd been trained to use them, I didn't really like them and, like any sane person, tended to avoid them whenever possible. Hence, I'd skipped all the theory stuff on makes and models.
And really, who fucking cared what brand or type it was when it was aimed at your face? Any gun was scary this close.
I slowly raised my arms and did my best at looking defenseless. Which wasn't really hard, considering the gun and the fact I was naked. Actually, it was hard to look anything else but helpless when sans clothes.
He held the gun steady while he looked quickly around. In reality, I could have taken him out there and then, but that would have given warning to those inside.
When he was sure there was no one hiding in the bushes, he opened the door and motioned me inside. As I moved past him, I noted not only the thin strand of wire around his neck - a sure sign that he was shielded from psychic intrusion - but the knife at his side and the second gun strapped near his shins, barely visible through his tan trousers.
"Stop," he growled, before I'd taken three steps beyond the door.
I did as he bid, lightly drawing in his scent while trying to "feel" him with my other senses. He actually smelled quite nice - a mix of sage and sharp spice. But I wasn't getting anything along the sensory lines, which meant he was human. Anything else I would have recognized.
The door slammed shut and darkness consumed us. Bolts thudded home, then the guard's hand gripped my arm with unerring accuracy. Which suggested he was one of Starr's "enhanced" humans, because there was no way in hell a normal human could see in this darkness. Hell, I could barely see, and I had wolf sight. Switching to vampire infrared solved that problem, but he didn't have that option.
Or maybe he did. Who knew what gene pool Starr's people had been paddling in of late?
"Walk," he said, tugging me forward.
"Damn dark in here." I forced a quavering note into my voice. Acting helpless and scared couldn't hurt.
"Don't worry, I'm not going to lead you astray." Amusement touched his voice. "Though I'm telling you, if we weren't in this place, I'd be tempted to let you lead me astray."
"And here I was thinking you didn't notice."
"Lady, present any man with a naked woman, and they're going to notice, no matter what they're doing."
How very true. Unless, of course, they were as highly trained - or as gay - as my brother. Though Rhoan did appreciate a good female form, even if it didn't excite him. Concern flicked through me as I thought of him, and I frowned, wishing once again he was telepathic. I needed to talk to him, needed to know that he was okay, that this vague sense of unease had nothing to do with him.
But that wasn't an option, and there was nothing I could do except concentrate on the here and now. "Well, at least I know I'm not losing my touch."
I bumped against him as I said it, and he chuckled softly. "Stop flirting, ma'am. It's appreciated, but I'm likely to end up with my balls in a sling if I tried anything in this place."
"Isn't that a little harsh on you boys in here when everyone else is allowed to sample the goods?"
"Yeah. But we're better paid than them."
"Money isn't everything."
"No, but living long enough to spend it is."
Which he wouldn't because I couldn't afford to leave witnesses. And that was a damn shame, because he actually seemed like a nice man, even if he was working for a monster. I closed my eyes briefly. I couldn't think like that. I simply couldn't.
I had to kill them to throw the heat off me and Rhoan. There was no other choice.
"How are they going to know?" I said.
He glanced at me. My infrared vision made his eyes glow strangely, but even so, amusement was very evident. This man might be attracted, but he wasn't about to be distracted. Damn.
"There's another guard in security. He'd tell."
"And here I was thinking grown men were above being tattletales."
"He values his life, just like I do."
"What if he joined in the fun? He could hardly tattle if he's guilty of the same crime."
The amusement got stronger, touching his lips. But for the first time, excitement spun through the air.
"I don't think Mr. Merle would be too pleased if we did his lady."
My snort was derogatory. "I may be his latest fuck, but I'm not his lady."
He grinned. "You sound like a woman not being satisfied."
I arched an eyebrow, and lowered my voice several notches as I said, "And are you the man who's going to relieve that problem?"
He glanced at the door ahead, then back at me, and cleared his throat. "Probably not."
Well, this was definitely a first. A naked woman throwing herself at a man, and him refusing. It looked like I was going to have to use my werewolf aura because while I could take out one well-trained, well-armed man, I wasn't sure enough of my skills to take out two. Not when I had to beat bullets as well. And given the time restraints, and the fact that even this guard was showing wariness, I just couldn't afford to play around.
We stopped at the door. The guard pressed his thumb into the scanner, keyed in a code - which I noted - then pushed the door open. The room beyond was only semi-dark, lit by a flashlight that sat on the middle desk, its bright light beaming upward and splashing across the ceiling. There was no one else in the room, but as the door clicked shut behind us, the second man came and poked his head through a doorway across the other side of the room.
"Just about to fire up the emergency generator." His gaze ran down my body and a smile tugged his lips. "You're one hell of a messenger, lady."
Though this second man wasn't as big as the first, he also wore a thin strand of wire around his neck. Obviously, in the security heart of his empire, Starr wasn't taking chances with having just the one mode of psychic protection for his men. And personal shield wires like these weren't disrupted by power blackouts. I'd have to get them oft to get the information I needed. Luckily, a wolfs aura worked on a base level rather than mental, so the wires weren't going to be a hindrance.
"The papers are on my desk, Joe. I'll just finish cleaning the generator before I start her up. The maintenance boys have been damn slack."
He disappeared again. Joe had barely taken a step when I unleashed my aura, flicking it across him like a live thing, letting the heat of it overwhelm him, until the desire to take what he wanted, what he craved, was all-consuming.
I knew what it felt like. Knew the flame of it, the way it snapped control and made you need as you have never needed, because Misha had once used his aura on me. But at least I'd had the option of negating the power of it with my own aura. I could have controlled just how much it affected me.
This man, enhanced human or not, had no such choice.
His hand shot out and thrust me hard against the wall, his lips crushing mine as he ripped at his clothes with one hand and groped wildly with the other.
I kissed him back, enjoying the taste of him, the feel of him, giving him that much as I slipped my hands up his back and around his neck. My fingers found the wire's connection. The second it was undone, I slid into his mind. When he was mine, I let my aura drop and forced him to stop. He was panting heavily, his mind dazed, confused, but not fighting. He wasn't psychic, so my hold was complete.
But the little lances of fire beginning to shoot into my brain suggested I had better not push this too far or too long. The recovery from controlling Merle was taking longer than I'd thought.
I quickly sorted through his thoughts and memories to find the information I needed. The controls to Iktar's implanted bombs were indeed here, locked in a cabinet in the main office - which I hadn't noticed but was apparently to our right. Joe didn't have the code for the cabinet. The other man, Maz, did.
That was all I could get. I made him step back, and put my hands around his neck. His neck muscles were tense under my fingertips, the beat of his pulse erratic. Killing him was just a matter of applying some pressure to the right spot, feeling his flesh and bone crack and break under my grip.
My stomach rolled.
I couldn't do it.
I just couldn't.
Jack might want me to be a killer, he might have trained me to be a killer, but killing so coldly, so matter-of-factly was a state of mind, a zone you went to. Or so Rhoan had once said. I didn't have that zone, not yet, and I'd be damned if I'd step on the path to that dark place unless I absolutely had to.
But I couldn't leave this guard as he was, memory intact, either.
Sweat trickled down my cheek as I went back into his mind and reorganized his memories. Made him remember not me, but a short, blond man with green eyes and a bulbous nose. I had no idea if such a man actually stayed here, but at least Starr would waste time looking for or interrogating him. Better than me or Rhoan. I left him remembering Merle's order for the papers - a fact Merle and his memories would strenuously deny, therefore heightening the confusion. Then I added a fight and gave him bruises to prove it with a quick one-two punch to the jaw that knocked him out cold, and threw him back to the floor.
His body had barely hit when the second man suddenly appeared. I saw the gun in his hand in one of those heart-stopping moments when you just know you're not going to get out of the way in time, and flung myself sideways anyway. The retort echoed loudly in the small room and the bullet tore through my arm rather than my heart. Pain bloomed, but I ignored it, unleashing my aura as I hit the floor, striking him with it as hard as I could.
It didn't affect him. He just stood there, gun aimed and expression fierce.
Shock rolled through me. I'd always believed, had always been told, that a werewolf's aura would devour any race. Hell, even the Government believed it, because they'd recently put in place laws that made the use of auras on humans the equivalent of rape. We could use it on each other just fine, just don't touch the precious humans or you'll find yourself thrown in prison.
So why wasn't he affected?
I didn't know, and right now, didn't have the time to wonder. I closed my eyes and forced myself to ignore the beat of pain in my arm, the sweet smell of blood seeping onto the carpet. Let my limbs go lax, as if unconscious.
For several seconds, the man didn't move. His steady breathing stirred the air, as did the scent of him, a weird mix of grease and earthy, heady pine.
I remained as I was, on the carpet and bleeding all over the place, and eventually he cautiously walked toward me. He toed my leg several times, then carefully bent to take my pulse. He was too ready for action, the gun too close to my heart, to react in any way, so I simply lay there as his fingers pressed into my neck. After several seconds, he grunted and rose. He walked across to his partner to check him, then walked back around me to the desk. As he reached for the phone, I kicked his legs out from underneath him. He was spinning, the gun swinging my way, even as he hit the floor. I launched forward, grabbed the gun with one hand and elbowed him hard in the face with the other. Bone and cartilage shattered under the force of the blow, and blood splattered across my face and arm. He made an odd gargling sound, as if he suddenly couldn't breathe, but I ignored it and knocked him unconscious with another punch.
He went limp and tension slithered from me. Instantly, pain bloomed again, becoming a red wave that left me momentarily gasping. The bullet might have been an ordinary one rather than silver, but it still fucking hurt. I quickly shifted shape to stop the bleeding and start the healing. Though the pain muted, it didn't go away.
But right now, I couldn't afford to waste more time on another shift. I had to get the controls for Iktar and get the hell out of here.
I swiped at the sweat on my forehead with my arm, grabbed the gun and shoved it on the tabletop. Then I scrambled back, gripped his belt and hauled him onto his side. Blood began to soak into the carpet and his breathing seemed a little easier. After unclipping the wire from around his neck, I dove deep into his mind and grabbed the code for the security cabinet that held the controllers, then did a quick search for other usable information - which came in the form of the location of the fire exits for the subterranean levels. Surprisingly, this wasn't the tunnel Moss had disappeared into, so where the hell did that go?
The guard didn't know. Actually, he had no awareness of that particular tunnel.
The sharp spikes beginning to drive into my brain suggested I'd better get on with it before said brain exploded under the pressure. An image that made me smile even as the pain grew and my eyes started to water.
I quickly gave him the same false memories as the first man, then re-clipped the wire around his neck and rose. A quick search in the nearby office uncovered the cabinet. After the code had been entered, the draws clicked open. Inside was what looked like game controllers, several bunches of keys, and a notebook that just happened to contain all the codes for the various areas. I found a bag and carefully shoved everything inside, then locked up and headed out. I was at the door when I remembered one vital thing - all the locks to security areas were key and thumbprint coded. I couldn't get out of this room, let alone into the labs or anywhere else, without both.
Fuck.
I glanced at the two men, then the knife the first guard had. There was no choice - and losing a thumb was infinitely better than losing his life.
I carefully lowered my haul then walked over to get the knife. A quick check told me his pulse was a little thready, but otherwise strong. Unconsciousness would hold a little longer. I stole his knife and walked across to the other guard.
The hilt seemed to grow heavier in my sweaty palm, as if the knowledge of what I was about to do weighed down the metal. I touched the second guard's neck lightly, checking his pulse yet again, then took a deep breath to fortify myself and splayed his hand on the floor, thumb well away from the rest of his fingers.
After another breath that didn't do a thing to calm my stomach, I raised the knife and sliced down as hard as I could. There was little resistance. The knife slammed through skin, muscle, and bone as easily as it did the carpet underneath, stopping only when the blade hit the concrete base. The force of the blow echoed up my arm, making my teeth ache. Blood welled from the wound, thick and rich.
My stomach rolled, then rose. Swallowing back bile, I raised his arm so that the flow was lessened, then gingerly picked up the detached digit, wrapped it in some plastic I found on the desk, and headed back to the door. Once through, I ran like hell down the tunnel for the next door. I barely got that one open when my stomach rose again, and this time there was no stopping it.
It wasn't until the very last second that I realized there was someone standing on the other side of that door.
And by then, it was too damn late.
