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  Torrent gasped, staring at her.

  “Answer,” Jinx demanded. “Where is the first place we take one of ours?”

  “Medical.”

  “Why?”

  Torrent glanced at Jinx, and then at her. “To check their health and see if they need medical care.”

  Jinx took another step closer. “I spoke the truth, Candi. He’s not lying. Let’s go there. Please don’t fear us. We’d never hurt one of our own, and that’s what you are. Do you understand?”

  She nodded.

  He eased closer and held out his hand. “It’s going to be okay. No one is going to hurt or trick you. No deceitful games. That’s for humans. We don’t play them.”

  “Okay.” It was tough to trust anyone, but staring into his feline eyes, she was willing to try.

  He pulled back his hand, tore off his gloves and dropped them on the ground. He reached out to her again and gently laced his fingers through hers. His skin felt warm to the touch. A tentative smile curved his lips. “Easy, female. It’s okay.”

  “You don’t need to baby me.”

  “Maybe I want to. You’ve been through a lot, but it’s going to be okay. I promise you that.”

  * * * * *

  Hero chose to take the stairs rather than the elevator down to the lobby. He was too impatient to wait for the slow-moving machinery. He had a night off his shift and planned to have fun. There would be dancing involved and he’d heard they were serving prime rib at the bar. He reached the first floor and came to a stop, staring at the group of males gathered by the couches. Some appeared downright angry. He changed direction.

  “What’s going on?”

  Destiny was the first to speak. The primate male still wore his work uniform. It was obvious he’d just left there, judging by the smell of Medical coming off him. “They brought in a female. I was just telling everyone about it. We’re stunned.”

  “One of the females got hurt? Is it bad?” The news alarmed Hero.

  Destiny leaned against the back of a couch, partially sitting on the edge. “I guess I’ll start from the beginning. A human female showed up at the front gates. Jinx and Torrent brought her in about an hour ago. She’s underweight, the palest human I’ve ever seen, but from her history, it’s understandable. The humans kept her locked up in an asylum. That’s a hospital for humans with mental illnesses.”

  “Tell him the important part,” Snow urged.

  Destiny nodded. “She is human but was raised like we were by Mercile. I didn’t want to believe it, but you should have heard her snarl when we drew blood. She sounds just like one of our females when they feel pain. I was listening to her talk to Justice and Breeze while Doc Trisha examined her. This human female gave them precise details about her life at Mercile. A doctor took her there when she was just a young child and raised her inside a cell with one of our males. A canine.”

  Hero didn’t hear any more as blood roared to his ears, obliterating sound. Reacting before he could think, he snarled, slamming into the door before he realized he exited the building. It gave from the force of his weight, and then he was outside, running toward Medical.

  It can’t be. He ignored the dull ache in his side when he pushed his body beyond its limits, not even bothering to check for traffic when he rushed into the street. Someone yelled at him but he ignored it. The building housing Medical came into sight and he jumped the curb. He only slowed since the automatic double doors couldn’t open as quickly as he moved.

  Paul, the nurse, stood up from the other side of the reception desk. “What’s wrong? Is there an emergency?”

  He inhaled the second he entered, ignoring the male. Familiar scents came to him, just not the one he sought.

  “Hero? Are you okay? What’s wrong?” Paul came forward. “Is someone hurt? Are you?”

  “Where is the female?”

  “Doc Trisha? She’s talking to Justice and Breeze in her office.”

  Hero spun right, striding fast down the hallway toward the exam rooms. Paul called out to him, but he didn’t bother to acknowledge him. He turned a corner and spotted Jinx and Torrent leaning against the wall across from a closed door. They both turned their heads to stare at him.

  “Where is the human?”

  Jinx pushed away from the wall. “Showering. I take it you heard? We’re still processing the shock of it, but she is the real deal. We’re certain.”

  He sniffed again. He could pick up an unfamiliar female scent but not the one he sought. A stabbing pain jabbed his chest.

  “Are you all right?” Jinx studied him. “You’re really flushed and panting. Should I get Doc Trisha?”

  “No.”

  “Okay. Well, this area is off limits. We don’t want anyone to frighten the female. She’s been through a lot. Breeze is going to take her to the women’s dorm as soon as the new female is done showering and is dressed. They are treating her as if she’s a Gift.”

  It was a polite hint to leave. He turned around, a sense of loss making that pain in his chest worse. He might think he was having a heart attack if he was human. It was probably the stress of running that hard and then having his hope dashed.

  “All done,” a female voice called out. “I’m ready to go.” The door opened.

  He turned his head and stared at a slender female form framed in the doorway. She was a little thing, too skinny, and her waist-length hair dampened the baggy clothing she’d been given. His gaze lifted. She stared directly at Jinx, but the profile of her face was enough. She’d changed, but not enough to fool him. He’d know her anywhere, especially since she visited his nightmares often. A snarl tore from his throat, and it jarred him to motion. He twisted toward her as she looked directly at him.

  There was no mistaking those eyes that widened at the sight of him—light golden-brown with little splashes of green spread around the irises. Eyes he would recognize anywhere. They’d always made him dream of the parks she’d told him about, all those trees with leaves that changed colors with different seasons. He’d seen hope of a future that was never meant to be every time he’d gazed into them. Then that last time, the pure terror that he’d caused.

  She took a stumbling step forward, hitting the side of her shoulder on the edge of the doorframe. Her mouth opened but no words came out. She looked as shocked and stunned as he felt. He got closer to her, inhaling her scent. It was foreign. He reached up and touched the side of her head. He wasn’t gentle when he stabbed his fingers into the wet strands, tearing his gaze from hers to look where he parted it.

  A faint scar marred her scalp just over her ear. He jerked back as if she’d burned him. He almost stepped on Jinx’s boot.

  “927?” Tears filled her eyes, giving them a sheen. “They told me you were dead.” She reached out for him, but he avoided her touch by stumbling back. She froze.

  “You died,” he managed to get out. A roaring sounded in Hero’s head and his vision blurred. He wasn’t in Medical anymore, but back inside his cell at Mercile…

  ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

  The chain slashed across the side of her head and she went down, blood spilling across the concrete floor of his cell. It was so red, wet and warm when he threw himself down, reaching for her. The chains still connected his ankles to the wall. The length barely allowed him to reach her, but he got a grip on her arm.

  She was so still. The technicians shouted as they rushed out of his room. They didn’t matter. Only she did. He hadn’t meant to hurt her. No, he mentally corrected. He’d wanted to kill her, but seeing her fall, and all that blood, horrified him. He’d done that to her.

  “Candi,” he rasped, dragging her closer. Her body was limp as she lay in the blood that smeared the floor. “No. Open your eyes.”

  He pulled her close enough to put his face next to hers. She didn’t open her eyes, but her chest rose and fell. She was breathing. He reached up, his hand shaking as he gently pressed his palm against the wound where the chain had struck. He needed to stop the bleeding. He applied press