True: 11 (New Species) Read online

  The phone rang and Justice answered. He listened, thanked someone, and hung up. “Slash will be fine. The doctors gave him something to counteract the sedative. He was able to tell them that the two humans arrived at the dorm to transfer Shiver to Fuller. They had paperwork for it, wore the uniforms, and seemed legitimate.” His gaze slid to True. “She protested and repeatedly asked him to call you. They tranquilized him as he reached for his phone.”

  Justice turned his head to pin Tim with a direct stare. “Forget your rescue attempt scenario. True is right. She was not a willing participant. They came to take her by force and we won’t know what happened after Slash went down until Jeanie can tell us. Maybe she overheard something they said and it will point to who is behind this.”

  Breeze cleared her throat and frowned at Tim. “Did you verify that Fuller Prison got your cancel order? Perhaps they don’t know she is to stay here. That fits. If they came here to get a prisoner, too, of course they’d want her alive. I don’t understand why they’d knock Slash out but maybe our male frightened them when the female put up a protest. I can’t see him just standing there meekly if she began to struggle and the humans turned too aggressive. The Fuller guards do carry dart guns to handle unruly prisoners.”

  “The darts used at Fuller aren’t strong enough to take down a Species male.” Darkness faced off against her.

  She didn’t back down. “Obviously, they are now. You didn’t spend a lot of time at Mercile once you reached maturity and they sent you away but some of the technicians they hired were as big as our males. Many of those males are imprisoned at Fuller now. The guards keep strong darts for use on those captured humans when they become aggressive. They must have a new formula that is strong enough to disable us as well.”

  “She has a point,” Flame agreed. “As we grew stronger the technicians they used to control us were changed out for males similar in size to the ones hired by the task force. They might need to be as heavily dosed as our people to keep them down. Whatever Fuller now has access to, it was strong enough to take down Slash.”

  Tim jerked up the phone and placed another call. Seconds ticked by. “Fuller still isn’t answering. What the hell? They should pick up.” He disconnected and placed another call. “I’m assembling two teams to go over there.”

  “I’m coming with you,” True stated.

  “No.” Tim shook his head then spoke into the phone. “Trey? Assemble two teams ASAP and pick me up at Homeland. It looks as though Fuller Prison guards tried to grab Shiver and everyone here is up in arms. Fuller has gone dark. I can’t raise them for confirmation about any of this.” He slammed the receiver into the cradle and turned. “I’m going to put on my uniform and wait for them at the gate. We’ll call as soon as we know something.”

  True blocked the door and fought the urge to punch the human in the face. “I’m going with you. I will know the other human when I see him. I will make him pay for touching Jeanie.”

  “No.”

  Justice got between them before violence could erupt. “We’re all going, Tim. That’s final. True won’t calm down until we know why his female was targeted and I want to know what the hell is going on at Fuller. They told the gate they were here for medical supplies but then darted one of my males and injected the female as well. Something is seriously wrong and I’m going to find out how this could be deemed acceptable by them because we all know it’s not.”

  Breeze gripped True’s arm. “Breathe in and out. I’m sure you’ll get answers at Fuller. Jeanie will be well guarded and well cared for until you get back.”

  “There are bad humans at Fuller. Why did they want to take my Jeanie? A female died there,” he reminded her.

  Her mouth pursed in a tight line. “I’d forgotten about that.”

  “It’s all I’m thinking of. I just want to kill all the humans responsible for harming my female and get back to Jeanie as fast as possible.”

  Breeze released him. “You heard the man. Move your asses but get them covered first if you rushed from bed to make this meeting. We’ll assemble in ten minutes at the main gate.” Her voice lowered as she glanced down True’s body. “Grab a spare uniform and boots from your locker. We’ll scare the shit out those humans so they never forget proper protocols again.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  True couldn’t exit the SUV fast enough after it stopped at the front gates of Fuller Prison. No signs identified the location but tall concrete walls surrounded the property with barbed wire running along the top to add an additional five feet of height. Security cameras and bright lights made certain their presence was known.

  Justice and Tim walked up to the camera directly in front of the double gates and Tim pressed a button to speak to the guard in charge. The camera moved, zooming in on them.

  “What do you want?” It was a male voice that came out of the speaker.

  “This is Tim Oberto with Justice North,” Tim declared. “Open up.”

  “I’m sorry but I can’t do that. The warden ordered a full lockdown of the facility, sir. We’re not permitted to allow anyone entry.”

  “Tell him we’re here, you idiot!” Tim shouted. He turned his head toward Justice. “Sorry. He must be new.”

  “The warden is currently in DC at a conference until tomorrow, sir. You will need to call his cell phone and he’ll have to send me a message to void the lockdown if he agrees to let you inside.”

  “Un…fucking…believable,” Trey muttered. He stepped closer. “Hey, moron, this is Justice North out here in case you aren’t looking at your monitor or lost the ability to hear my boss when he speaks. That means he’s higher ranking than the warden. Open the damn gates or losing your job is going to be the least of your troubles. I’ll personally kick your ass if you make us wait out here any longer.”

  They didn’t open.

  Justice snarled. “I demand you allow us inside right now or we’ll drive through the gates.” He motioned and the team of New Species surrounded him. They all glowered at the camera. “You don’t want that to happen. It will anger us even more.”

  The buzz was loud as the locks disengaged. True rushed forward as soon as they opened wide enough to fit his body through. The teams followed him, staying closely grouped together. The courtyard was empty but a side door to the large building opened and a human in uniform rushed outside. Within seconds another human male followed. That one wore slacks, a dress shirt and was quite a bit older than the guard.

  “Stop right there,” the gray-haired human called out.

  “What is the meaning of this, Jeff?” Justice took the lead, facing off against the shorter male.

  “We’re under lockdown, Mr. North. I apologize for Dill’s rudeness but we weren’t expecting you.”

  “Why wasn’t someone answering the phone and what caused the lockdown order?”

  The human remained quiet.

  “Answer him,” Tim grunted.

  The human looked ill at ease. “I’m not sure. That order came directly from the warden. It’s standard procedure to shut off the phones and cut contact with the outside world.” He patted his front pocket. “We’re only allowed to stand down from the alert when the warden calls me directly on my cell.”

  True was impatient. “Why did your guards come after Jeanie?”

  The male paled, glancing at him. “Um, who?”

  “Jeanie Shiver,” Tim elaborated. “I placed a pick-up order on her but then canceled it. It seems two of your men entered Homeland under false pretenses and tried to take her by force. It was a big mistake and now the only guard we have in custody is dead and unable to answer questions. We’ve come to take the other one into custody and to find out why they deceived the gate guards at Homeland and discover who sent them.”

  Jeff paled even more. “Um, well…”

  “This is where the vehicle they drove was parked,” Smiley yelled from across the courtyard where he stood in an empty parking space. “This area scents of the same human males who were