Beaufort Creek Shifters (10 book series)
The Lion’s Arranged Marriage Chapter 4

Gwendolyn

Nobody spoke for a while. Neil had gone deathly quiet, though I got the impression that he was studying the movements of the men approaching us. Just a few short minutes with him told me everything I needed to know about him. Pompous, loyal, loud. That was the nature of lions. That's how they were with the people they cared about.

Neil-that was his name. It had come right back to me when he'd mentioned his dragon friend. If the alpha had sent a team, then I was sure a few of the other men close to him were likely part of that team. Or perhaps Alpha had only sent three. Three were all I had heard earlier.

"Ah, he's awake," Dr. Myrtle stated while reaching into his pocket for a set of keys. They rattled as he approached the cage. "Should we try the serum?"

The three men behind him chuckled. Rugged laughter like that indicated malice. The amount of time I'd spent here wasn't clear, but I knew we were both in for something awful based on what I had experienced thus far.

And that something awful would strip me of clothes.

Neil growled when the cage door opened. He shifted his right hand into a paw and swatted the evil doctor who laughed maniacally. The three men descended upon us with their large calloused hands and sinister glares. Grubby hands grabbed my shoulders and unlocked the collar. They tore off my shirt.

Neil growled viciously. "That was unnecessary!"

The man holding me chuckled.

I closed my eyes. I tried to hold back the tears. The air was cold against my bare chest, causing me to shake. Warmth would never meet my skin again, would it? When I dared to open my eyes, they were as dry as they had been before these disgusting shifters arrived.

Good-they didn't need to see my tears. That would just make this worse.

Dr. Myrtle oversaw the short walk to the medical table.

There was only one table. What were they about to do to us?

Neil fought against the two men holding him. "You'll let her go in my stead. Now."

"This isn't a negotiation," Dr. Myrtle retorted. "She's important to my research. You'll be just as important, too. Here, kitty, kitty..."

A fiery anger swept through me like a heatwave. Shouts and sharp words erupted next to me, setting my heart into a hummingbird rhythm. Instinct inspired me to lash against the man holding me.

My collar was off. I could be free if I just fought back.

"Yes, darling. That's it!" Neil cried over the chaos. "Fight back! Keep going!"

His words imbued me with strength. While any encouragement would have sufficed, his was otherworldly. It bit right through the demure defeat that had crept into my bones. No longer was I a weak and fragile bird locked in a cage.

I was a white snow owl. I had a massive wingspan in my animal form.

And I was furious.

The man behind me grabbed my elbows and snapped them together. Pain rushed through my shoulders which caused me to bow forward. I cried out, drawing attention from Neil successfully fighting the other two vermin.

Dr. Myrtle stood aside, feigned a yawn, and checked his pocket watch-what a truly deranged shifter. He looked bored with our escape attempt.

And that just shattered my hope all over again.

Neil growled. His lion canines appeared in his mouth and then a row of sharp teeth descended next, expanding his jaw. Yellowish tan fur sprouted across his alabaster form. The inked skin seemed to belong to a porcelain doll rather than a handsome man-yet it wasn't so out of place either.

With those wheat-yellow strands of hair and glowing golden eyes, I was beside myself with the glory of his form. Pride should have made him ugly, yet I found his pride to be endearing. It certainly made him a strong protector. I could see that much now. Hair swung in every direction as he landed a punch on one man and successfully swatted the other. Dr. Myrtle laughed when his attendant bellowed-bright red lines oozed blood across his shoulder. It was absolute madness to witness. It made me feel sick. Something sharp grazed my neck. The man holding me tightened his fingers around my throat while angling a needle at my main artery. "It's cyanide. I don't think a shifter like her would survive such a thing, fella."

His twang was Southern, much like Dr. Myrtle's. I had to assume they were from the same region. And seeing as this was the first I'd heard any of his lackeys speak, it made me wonder if they spoke much at all unless prompted by the maniacal doctor. Neil froze with his claws extended at the two attendants. Some of his teeth receded. A few tufts of fur disappeared. Golden eyes reduced their intense glow and then returned to a hazy mustard brown. Those globes reminded me of late nights with my brother at the fair whenever it was in town.

Cesar and I had loved to get hot dogs. We always slathered them with mustard. That was what Neil's eyes looked like right now. It was an odd memory mixed with nostalgia, physical hunger, and fear.

My heart sank.

Cesar must be worried sick, I thought. He's probably begging our parents to send a search party. Gods, I miss him so much. I have to get out of here. I have to see my little brother again.

Neil focused on me. The light in his eyes burned brighter than the floodlight above our heads. For a split second, it seemed like he had understood my thoughts. The way the right side of his mouth twitched told me he was about to speak-but instead, he released a low, throaty growl, one that would signal an attack.

But I knew better. He knew better. We all were in agreement that another fight would simply dish out defeat like Oprah Winfrey handing out treats.

My eyebrows twisted together. He shouldn't obey them for my sake. He had to get back to the pack. He was far more important than me. His eyes narrowed.

I could have sworn he was reading my mind. Part of me felt utter shame at the mere thought of my being somehow weighing less than his. And I think he was feeling that. I think that was him projecting the feeling on me, the shame of me thinking less of myself in comparison. How was that even possible?

Dr. Myrtle chuckled, the dreadful sound cutting into my soul. "They're lovebirds." He winked at me. "Forgive the pun, but be a good girl and run to your mate."

The man holding the needle to my neck eased his grip on me. He shoved my upper back, causing me to stumble.

Did they really expect me to obey?

"You'll do as I say, my sweet little songbird," Dr. Myrtle rasped.

The sound of that gross nickname made me flinch.

Dr. Myrtle pointed at Neil. "Run to him. Show him affection before I twist the two of you inside out." His smirk grew more devious than I had ever seen. "I want to see just exactly how mates survive this next set of tests."

***

In this musty old basement, time was an illusion. Neil caught me when I ran to him. He didn't hesitate for a second when I threw myself into him. Having his strong arms around me eased the tension from the cold-even as the perverted men around us chuckled. Maybe I was touch-starved. Or maybe I was just tired of having to sleep by myself on a wet hard floor without any proper clothes. The possibility of us having a predetermined mate bond also crossed my murky mind at some point.

But since time passed so vividly, so slowly, it was hard to say what I was thinking and when. Shadows passed over my eyes. Light invaded my awareness every so often. A white wing appeared-I was sure it was mine-and then I noticed golden fur beneath me. Heavy breathing. Laughter.

This continued for an unknown period. It felt like it had been days, though it was more likely that hours had passed. To be put through such experiments messed with the mind in irreversible ways.

Even if we did survive this and escape, how would we fare in the outside world? Our faculties had been stripped and our senses were sanded away. It was hard to imagine ever hunting again with my wings spread in liberation.

I hit the ground with a hard thud. Neil landed beside me in his human form with lacerations all over his chest and arms. The squeak of the cage door pierced the air and the explosion of the lock clicking into place made my neck ache. I bowed toward Neil and huddled in his arms, wrapping my limbs around him to keep him from shaking.

He was so cold.

"Hang on now," I whispered. "Just hang in there."

His teeth chattered. His eyelids fluttered. He looked utterly horrible. Skin as sweet and inviting as moonlight carried with it a pallid sheen. Illness had descended on him like those mad scientists. They couldn't even be called proper scientists given the nature of their experiments. Which still completely eluded me.

The fog lifted slightly from my mind. I managed to peel my eyes open wider and peered around, searching the area for any of Myrtle's lackeys. They were gone. The other cages dispersed throughout the room registered as new. They weren't freshly built-I just didn't remember seeing them before now.

I squinted. I thought I saw a shadow or two.

Neil circled my waist, his large hands cupping the small of my back and drawing my attention away from the other cages. Heat bruised my skin, causing me to cry out.

I shivered when he slid his hands up my back. "How are you doing that?"

"My aunt taught me that trick," he whispered. "You take the energy from a potential shift and turn it into heat."

"You'll have to explain that one after we get out of here."

He chuckled weakly. "So, you do have hope."

"I don't know if I have hope. I was just saying it like that for you."

"You can't fool a lion, darling. We're too smart for you."

Amusement laced up my throat. I tried to laugh but choked instead, sputtering and then coughing and then burying my hot face into his chest. He barked with a quick laugh, groaned right after, and tensed his muscles. Seconds later, he relaxed, allowing his limbs to melt around me.

It felt good to be held.

The steady drip of the water pipe came into focus. I listened intently for a while, counting the individual tinks like sheep. What should have lulled me to sleep instead put me into a trance where I pictured life beyond this cage. How terrifying to try to conceptualize.

Neil had come to rescue me with a team. His team had been thwarted, but he made it through just fine-until he had gotten captured. If we were going to make it out of here alive and elope, then it was important for me to understand what that life would look like. I lifted my head. "Why haven't you eaten me?"

"I didn't think that was an option."

"You're a cat. I'm a bird. That's the way it works, right?"

He huffed once through his nostrils. It sounded like amusement. Or maybe he was offended. "How dare you reduce me to my baser instincts."

Yep, it was offense.

There was the pride that I knew lions possessed. It was kind of adorable coming from him. "You've had the opportunity once. Haven't you? I know you're starving. I can hear your stomach right now."

He blanched and then cupped his gut-which hardly existed right now. "Don't comment on my body's functions. I get very self-conscious about them."

"What kind of lion are you?"

"The dashing kind." He gave me a smoldering look as he caressed my waist. The touch was light and kind, like we had known each other for ages. "Also, poultry makes my tummy ache."

My face contorted. My gut clenched. Every inch of me wanted nothing more than to burst into a witchy cackle. But I knew Dr. Myrtle and those weirdos were lingering nearby. Any disturbance in here would invite their attention.

I didn't want to be on the testing menu again so soon.

Instead, a sharp snort erupted from me. Such silliness coming from such a vicious and capable creature made me feel right at home. It was the kind of humor that could get me through the darkness.

Like the darkness we were battling right now.

His eyelids grew heavy as his lips parted ever so slightly. The fine details of his face darkened, shadowed by his proximity. He tilted forward and nestled closer, huddling like I had, curling toward me, wrapping me around him and him around me. His mouth grazed my lips.

The cage faded. Fear plummeted. Golden light swept away the shadows. What was left were a pair of mustard eyes glimmering with affection and desire. So close. He was just so close to me right now...

I drifted back. I broke eye contact. I tucked myself into a ball pressed tightly into his torso and willed away my longing. Where had it even come from? I hardly knew Neil. This wasn't the time or the place to be making any kind of moves. Rest was essential. We needed to sleep first.

But after that, who knew what would happen?