Dark of the Moon Read online

  He started to get up and I locked my arms around his neck, holding him in place. "No, it's not that. I swear to you, Connor, there's nothing I want more."

  He grinned. "Okay, then. It's settled. But first things first, right? We gotta get the hell out of here."

  I nodded. Yeah, that was a priority. Then I could face destroying us with the truth about me.

  TWELVE

  Monique brought us breakfast. Funny thing was, she appeared really nervous doing it and wouldn't even look at us directly.

  "I'll see if I can find you some blankets for tonight," she said quietly before leaving.

  "What was that about?" I asked as I ate the sausage and biscuit. "Do you think watching us last night embarrassed them?"

  Connor shook his head. "I don't see how. I mean, yeah, we got a little carried away with the kissing, but we didn't go nearly as far as I wanted."

  I felt my cheeks warm, broke off a bit of biscuit, and tossed it at him. "Bad boy."

  "I'm gonna be if we don't get out of here." Finished with his meal, he brushed off his hands and began walking slowly around the perimeter of the cage. "There has to be a way out."

  "Once we get out of the cage, we have to get through a locked door."

  He winked at me. "One prison at a time."

  The door opened and Mason strode in with his familiar entourage and two guys I didn't know. They were beefier than the lab guys, but not quite as buff as the ones holding guns.

  "Ah, company," Connor said. "And here I am not yet dressed."

  I was still wearing his sweatshirt.

  "That's okay," Mason said. "So what's the ink on your back mean? I know Lucas and Rafe have one."

  "Fraternity initiation."

  Which was what Rafe had told Mason earlier in the summer when he'd asked.

  "See, I don't believe it. However, that's okay. Studying the samples you provided yesterday has proved very enlightening. But what I really want is to see you transform into a wolf."

  "Afraid you're just going to have to be disappointed, because I can't transform."

  "Can't or won't?" Mason asked.

  "Don't you think if I had the ability to change into a wolf, I'd have done it when you captured me before? You know, when I was escaping?"

  "Wolves invaded our camp. Are you saying you're a wolf whisperer?"

  "I'm saying I'm not a werewolf."

  Mason grinned. "One way to find out for sure."

  I heard clanking and glanced over to where Ethan, Tyler, and the two new guys were building what looked like a metal tunnel. I was dying to ask Mason what was going on, but I wouldn't give him the satisfaction.

  Connor must have realized that Mason had something unpleasant planned, because he moved over, wrapped his hand around mine, and squeezed. I squeezed back.

  "What do you think he has planned?" I asked.

  "I don't know, but I don't like it."

  They shoved the tunnel over until one open end covered the doorway of our cage. I heard the squeaking of wheels and watched as a cage was rolled in—a cage housing a cougar.

  "Damn," Connor muttered.

  "Is he a Shifter?" I whispered. Some of our kind shifted into other animal forms.

  Connor shook his head. "No, he's the real deal."

  I was grateful that he didn't question why I couldn't sense the truth about the cougar. I figured he was too busy thinking strategy. Unfortunately, if what I thought was about to happen happened—he had only one option.

  They set the cage in front of the other end of the tunnel and secured it.

  Connor glared at Mason. "Mason."

  The threat in his voice was unmistakable.

  "It's for the good of mankind."

  "That's bullshit. All you want is to be something you're not. You want it so much you're willing to believe something this crazy, go this far, to get it."

  "If I don't personally benefit, then it doesn't make me the bad guy."

  What a lie' We already knew he had plans to personally benefit.

  "Read my lips," Connor said. "Look into my eyes. I'm not a werewolf. If you let that cougar in here, he's going to kill us."

  For a split second, a single heartbeat, Mason seemed unsure. Then he shook his head, nodded as though he'd been arguing with himself. "I know what I know," he said sternly.

  "At least take Brittany out of here, so you don't have two deaths on your hands."

  "She's my guarantee you'll fight and not surrender," Mason said, and at that moment I hated him with every fiber of my being.

  "Oh God," I whispered as Mason pointed the remote and our door slowly opened.

  Connor released a harsh curse, and I knew he'd been bluffing, that he wouldn't willingly accept death on Mason's terms. Still, I was terrified at the thought of what was about to happen.

  Connor jerked off a boot and threw it at the bars. He did the same with the other.

  I moved back, leaving him room to maneuver. His socks came off next and then he was reaching for his belt.

  The door to the other cage began opening. The cougar snarled, the catlike sound grating on my ears, setting my teeth on edge. My back hit the corner, rattling the cage.

  Connor jerked his attention over to me. "Brittany, get ready to shift."

  I shook my head, tears burning my eyes. "I can't."

  "What?" Connor took a step toward me, flinging his hand out to where Mason and the others stood. "Forget them, ignore them. This is our survival we're talking about. I might be able to take him, but if he gets a shot at you, you're in a better position to defend yourself as a wolf."

  I knew I had to kill any hope he had that we were in this together. "I can't shift. I'm so sorry, Connor, but I'm not a Shifter. I'm human."

  They were the hardest words I'd ever spoken. And judging by the stunned expression on Connor's face they were the worst words he'd ever heard.

  The cougar shrieked as it loped down the tunnel. Connor's survival instincts kicked in. He backed into the far corner to give himself maneuverability and began to remove his jeans.

  I turned away, wrapping my hands around the bars, because I couldn't stand to watch the confrontation. The cage shook with the power of the cougar entering it and then I heard the howl of the wolf.

  I spun around. The wolf and cougar were entangled in a deadly embrace, similar to what Connor and I had experienced when we'd wrestled. First one would be on top, then the other. Then they'd break apart and come at each other again. Teeth and claws were striking hard, making wounds, drawing blood that was beginning to leave trails on the floor.

  My gaze drifted over to Mason once. He looked as though he was experiencing ecstasy. I could see the hunger, the yearning to possess the power that Connor now exhibited.

  But mostly I watched Connor fighting for his life, knowing there was little I could do. I had no weapon. I had no way to help him maneuver the cougar into a position that would allow him to sink his teeth into its throat. I jumped around the cage, trying not to get in the way, thinking that if I could get to the doorway, I could scamper into the tunnel and give Connor more room to fight without having to worry about me.

  As though he was now worrying about me. He was probably wishing the cougar had taken me first as a snack.

  Suddenly I was angrier than I'd ever been. Angry at my mother for leading me to believe that I was a Shifter. Angry at Mason for forcing me to reveal that I wasn't. I wanted to take him on.

  Then I thought to hell with him and his manipulations. Just because I wasn't a Shifter, it didn't mean that Connor had to fight alone. I had a mean roundhouse kick.

  Making fists, bouncing on the balls of my feet, I concentrated on the battle playing out before me, waiting for the moment to make my strike. I knew Connor's moves, had experienced them firsthand. His wolf maneuvers wouldn't be that different, because even in wolf form he was still Connor. I watched, saw the opportunity, moved in, and kicked the cougar's rump—hard.

  Hard enough to make it screech. Hard enough to distr