Cravings (Fierce Hearts) (17 page)

Kennedy stopped, resisting the pull of the men’s grip. “Surgical suite? What’s going on?”

Typical of her father, he gave her an aloof smile and walked out of the room.

“Mother, what’s happening?” She tried to fight off the men, but her mother’s hand stopped her.

“Don’t fight it, Kennedy. This is your destiny. You’ll help change the world. It’s time for Project Powering to move forward, and you will be its primary leader.” The glee in her mother’s face turned Kennedy’s stomach. “What’s wrong with you two? Take her to surgery!”

“Yes, ma’am.” Patrick eyed Kennedy, a smug grin on his face. “Let’s go.”

Kennedy spat in his face, struggling for escape.

A hard hit to her face sent stars swirling in her head, pain and confusion buckling her legs, as the room went dark.

• • •

A bright light sliced into Kennedy’s lidded eyes. She tried to lift her hand to cover them, but couldn’t. She opened them, squinting in the light, struggling with the restraints on her hands and legs. “What the heck?” Terror pounded in her chest.

“It’s all right, Kennedy. Stop struggling.” Her mother caressed her head, but it wasn’t soothing. It was simply the sound of her mother speaking to a pet pig or an unruly horse. “The restraints are for your safety. You’re prepped for a surgical procedure and lying on the surgical table. You’re groggy from the sedative, so it would be dangerous for you to try to walk.”

“What are you doing to me?” Kennedy managed to ask.

“I’ve taught you to be brave and skillful at many things. And now, once we’ve inserted the tiny implant in your neck, you’ll be everything I wanted you to be.”

“What do you mean, implant?”

“A tiny device that will release a designer drug targeted for DNA modifications.” Her mother’s eyes crinkled in the corners. “It will make you more powerful, more brilliant, more—”

“Vicious. Is that the word you’re searching for, Mother?”

“Just shut up. You don’t appreciate anything.”

Kennedy surveyed her situation. Still dressed in her street clothes, she recognized the Phoenix Biosciences surroundings. Would she recognize herself after the procedure?

She sunk deep inside herself. She had to remove herself from this moment. If she had a mother who would protect her and take her in her arms to soothe her sobs, this would be the moment she could imagine a comforting voice that would truly make it all better.

But she’d never had that. Through the fog of the sedative, her defenses rose to take her away to where she felt nothing. Where she accepted her reality. Her brain couldn’t imagine what was planned for her, and she suspected when she woke up, she’d not care.

• • •

The mood in Asher’s home hung like thick mist, sobering the colony cats’ expressions, dampening hopes. Every cat showed up, including Shaun, along with Michelle, and Asher let their presence assure him that intrepid skills would soon be unleashed in a rescue of Kennedy.

In the midst of the disarray that was his house, they each stood waiting for Casey to lead the strategy session. But Asher’s patience was gone. The ideas of what Kennedy could be going through tore up his inside and tortured his mind.

He ran his fingers through his hair, fear squealing in his ears.

Casey squeezed his shoulder. “Tell us what you know, Asher.”

A sigh sifted through him with relief that Casey was getting right down to business. “It looks as though Kennedy was either taken or she returned willingly to her mother. She stole Lara’s vehicle and drove to her mother’s psychiatric practice, it appears. But we haven’t had contact since.”

“What’s going on here?” Casey gestured to the room’s mess.

“When I came here looking for Kennedy, I found it like this. Everything has been searched. I picked up scents of her handlers, Patrick and Gordon, as well as unfamiliar scents of four were-lynxes.” He stubbed his shoe on the carpeted floor. “At first I couldn’t figure out what they were looking for. But now I know. They stole our database, the hardbound information on all known were-cat lines through centuries.”

“Good grief, Asher.” Asia shook her head, frowning. “Don’t we keep that in a secure storage?”

Casey raised his hand to stop discussion. “Of course. Asher has done nothing wrong or neglectful. The books were hidden in a wall safe, protected by a coded electronic lock.”

“They broke the code, apparently. I’d guess it took some time for them to locate the safe, hence the complete mess of everything I own.” He knew this sharing of information was important, but he wanted to release a piercing yelp, a growl, something to startle them into immediate action.

Michelle raised her hand. “I’ve had a glimpse that concerns me. Kennedy may be getting an implant. I don’t know if it’s right now, but I feel it’s happening soon.”

Asher slammed his fist into a wall. If TNG implanted a device in Kennedy, the same kind of device that the group was using to administer drugs to transform were-lynxes into ferocious warriors, she would be lost to him. And, against her will, she would lose herself.

Tingling in his muscles warned him his adrenaline ran too high. He was about to lose control and spontaneously shimmer into his bobcat self. A rumbling growl escaped his lips.

No one could help him. No one had the ability to nudge him into calm, controlled behavior. It was up to him to manage his emotions.

But Michelle stepped close. “I’m sure this is hardest for you, Asher. But we all feel the urgency to free Kennedy. Just ground yourself. Breathe in, breathe out.”

Lara put a soothing hand to his shoulder. “Listen to her, Asher. She’s right,” his sister said. “Don’t let the chaos of the enemy hinder you from doing what you need to do.”

Inhabiting his body fully, he turned to Casey. “Kennedy is probably at the Phoenix Biosciences lab. I overheard Daren, the senator who interviewed Kennedy for an aide position, complain that things were moving too slowly for his campaign schedule. He was pushing to get her ready, whatever that means.”

“Okay, we’ll all go there, except you, Michelle,” Casey said. “You go home, your home. You’ll be safer there for now than my place. Shaun, I know you’re eager to take your place with us, but you’re not ready for a fight. I’d appreciate it if you’d go stay with Michelle.”

Shaun clenched her teeth and swirled a growl in her chest, exhibiting her were-lynx traits. “You’re right. I want to contribute, but I’ll go with Michelle.”

“Thank you, Shaun. Michelle, call Sterling, Ben, Jackson, and Lacey. Give them the heads up that we may need them.”

Asher joined in the brief planning to enter the Phoenix building and put the research lab out of business.

“Asher, you, Tizzy, and Conrad enter an upper floor from the outside. All of you are agile and strong, but getting up top will be easiest for you, Tizzy, with your hyperability to leap. Conrad, with your ability to see solutions, you’ll be able to coordinate the infiltration and rescue on the fly. Quinn, you, Asia, and I will create a distraction on ground level. Your spatial ability will come in handy, Quinn, as we try to work our way inside. Booker and Lara, you’ll be with us. After we’ve created a distraction, we’ll try to reach the others so you can both direct your healing powers where needed.”

Asher nodded his head. “We’ve got a plan. Let’s go. The clock is ticking.”

Asher led the other were-cats to the Phoenix Biosciences location, a few blocks outside of town in an area dotted with various industrial complexes. They parked their vehicles nearby but out of sight from the Phoenix building.

It sat back from the road about half a mile and was obscured by a line of trees and bushes. Rows of tall, prairie grasses growing near the building provided more shelter as they got closer.

They approached the building in separate groups from different directions. Asher led his team around back, searching for places to climb. He spotted a place where two protruding walls hid utility poles and cables. Small, overhanging design walls jutted from the side like large stairs. He pointed. “That should work.” His breath formed in small clouds in the brisk air.

A loud banging erupted from outside the front of the building. Asher trained his hearing to the sound, teasing apart the bang from other sounds. Casey and the others were banging hard on the front door. He heard voices yelling and Casey’s voice demanding to see the head researcher. This was the distraction Casey had planned.

He gestured for Tizzy to lead. She sprinted up to the building then leaped to the top ledge effortlessly. She turned back to them, motioning for them to begin climbing.

Though Tizzy’s leap was amazing to him, Asher knew he and Conrad were highly capable of making short work of the climb. All were-lynxes would be, thanks to their natural agility and strength.

First Asher, then Conrad, crept up the side, hugging the wall to prevent detection. They reached Tizzy at the moment she successfully picked a lock on the utility door to the roof. She pulled the door ajar just enough to allow each of them to pass through individually.

Stairs down opened to a hallway. It stood empty at that moment, so they quickly threaded their way through adjoining hallways in search of the surgical floor’s location.

Voices coming close sent them down another flight of stairs. A sign on the third floor wall stood out in bold letters, Main Surgical Floor. Asher led them through the door and in search of Kennedy.

His nostrils flared as he picked up scents—medicinal, mechanical, and human. He flexed his muscles as he also picked up the scents of were-cats. The cloud of scents presented in a jumble not distinct enough to identify.

But he wanted to pick up Kennedy’s scent. Frustration burbled through him, pushing him to keep searching. If he didn’t constrain his throbbing need to find her, he might do something strategically damaging.

Asher shook his head, refocusing. He could use this powerful need. Focus it and let it intensify his senses for one purpose. To find Kennedy.

Sounds erupted from back where they had just come. “Go,” he ordered Conrad and Tizzy. “I’ll find Kennedy. You see if the others need your help.”

He didn’t have to repeat his orders. Conrad and Tizzy raced down the hall the opposite direction from him and rounded the corner. He put them all out of his mind and raised his nose to filter scents.

He took a few steps forward, and then his heart squeezed. He’d found her scent. It was subtle, but it was hers. His nerves ringing in his ears, he stepped quietly and slowly down the hall, following Kennedy’s scent.

“Where is Dr. Benton?” Kennedy’s mother clenched her teeth and sputtered. “He’s late.”

Kennedy lay flat on the surgical bed, listening to her mother’s griping. It turned her stomach.

“It won’t be long now, Kennedy. All I’ve given you, everything I’ve done for you, has been for this moment.”

The sedative she’d been given was showing signs of wearing off, thanks to the escalated metabolism of her were-cat physiology. Kennedy could pull reasonable thoughts through the fog in her head. She voluntarily submitted to her mother’s will for the sake of protecting her brother’s colony. Images of Asher’s clear yellow eyes gleaming back at her made her breath catch. His sparkling attitude and his lazy grin made her heart hurt. She did this for him. But she probably would never see that face again. And if she did, she likely wouldn’t recognize him as a friend, thanks to her mother’s plans.

“You didn’t do anything for me.” The words off her tongue were crisp, direct.

Her mother scoffed. “You ungrateful little bitch.” Her mother’s look was wild-eyed. “You should be thanking me. I’ve trained you to help The Nexus Group repower the world, starting right here in Laurelwood.”

“Really.” Kennedy didn’t try to hide the sarcasm in her voice. Noises came from somewhere inside the building. Roaring and growling that made her skin dimple. It didn’t sound inviting.

But her mother ignored it. “Yes, really. You’ll first become a respected aide to Senator Daren Sage. With your special talents, you’ll help him position for the vice presidency.”

“My special talents? To what are you referring?” Subdued rage began pumping through her veins.

“You’ll see. After you have the implant, it will all make sense to you.” Her mother smiled down at her. “You’ll help Daren eliminate his opponents. You’ll use your computer skills to help him gain control of financial sectors of the city. You’ll do that and more. And it will bring you prestige and happiness.”

“I won’t do it. I won’t do anything you demand of me.” She could see clearer now. This woman and her husband and all the crazy people in The Nexus Group were wrong. Wrong about her and all the things they felt entitled to.

“Oh, but you will. After the implant is inside you, the first time you shimmer it will activate. There will be no going back after that.” Her mother grinned a smug expression that raised reason in Kennedy’s body. She did not belong with these people.

The door slammed open, and Kathryn’s eyes went wide. “You!”

Kennedy craned to see who’d entered the room. It was Asher. Beautiful, determined Asher. Hope pierced the terror in her body, replacing it with will to survive on her own terms. But fear for him made her strain against the bindings on her legs and arms. “Be careful!” He traded a long look with Kennedy.

“Yes, it’s me, Kathryn. Let Kennedy go,” he demanded, punctuating with a rolling growl.

Kathryn grabbed a scalpel from the surgical tools lying nearby and ran at him. Asher dodged her pass at him and countered with a punch.

Kathryn burst out laughing, still holding the knife. “Why should I let her go? Because you want her? You don’t deserve her. She’s mine. And she has important things to do. You, Asher, will not last the day. Kennedy will go down in history as a woman who helped The Nexus Group reshape the world.”

“Hmm. Interesting. Do you want that, Kennedy?”

“I do not.” She would hug him right now if she weren’t shackled to the bed.

Kennedy saw her mother dash for a small alarm button on the wall, sending hope plummeting.

In a flash, Asher jumped at Kathryn, knocking her to her knees. “I have had enough of you!” He punched her in the face; the sound of his fist smashing into her head echoed in the room. She slumped to the floor, unconscious.