Revealing Eden (9 page)

“Dr. Newman, we represent the Federation of Free People,” Jamal called out. “We’re here to requisition your services and technology for the benefit of the People. Come with us peacefully and I guarantee you’ll be treated with the respect you deserve.”

“Four minutes until termination. Please exit the building at once.”

Still, her father ignored them, as if he was immune to the chaos.

“Father!” Eden yelled. “Help!”

At last he spun round to face the enemy. “What? It isn’t possible!”

If the situation hadn’t been so dire, Eden might have laughed. To her father, anything was possible if approached in a logical sequence.

“I insist you leave at once,” he continued. “You are interfering with a delicate operation.”

A curdling scream rose in the air. Poor Bramford. Eden wouldn’t wish such suffering on anyone, not even him.

Inquisitive detachment replaced the crazed look on her father’s face. He seemed to forget the immediate danger and turned back to the test bed.

“Proceed to the nearest exit. Three minutes remaining until termination.”

“Advance,” Jamal told the men.

Eden watched the soldiers step forward, her heart in her throat. Her father wheeled round again, waving a syringe in the air.

“Stay back!” he said. “Or I’ll kill myself and the subject.”

The men halted and looked to Jamal for instructions. He yanked Eden in front of him, shouting above the raging fire. “If you cooperate, Dr. Newman, nothing will happen to your daughter. However, if you continue to resist, I cannot guarantee her safety.”

Her father hesitated.

Eden heard the shock in Jamal’s voice. “Do you understand, doctor?”

“What? Yes, the paradigm has been clearly presented.”

Eden’s father looked at her with regret. She guessed what he was thinking:
the biggest leap in evolution since man discovered fire
.

“Father?” she said.

He shook his head and focused once more on his precious patient.

It was embarrassing, really. No one wanted her—not her boyfriend, not even her own father. Guess the FFP hadn’t counted on her worthlessness.

“Warning! Two minutes remaining until destruction of REA.”

“Take out the doctor,” Jamal ordered his men.

An earth-shaking roar split the air. Frantic, Eden fought to get away. “Let me go!”

To her surprise, Jamal released her and stared ahead, wide-eyed. Then as the thunderous sound repeated, she understood it had come from the platform.
From Bramford
.

Her father staggered away from the test bed. Even the soldiers stepped back. From the tearing sound, Eden guessed that Bramford had ripped off the bindings that held him to the bed. But that was impossible for any man.

She gasped as something dark and monstrous sprung from the bed. It landed at the edge of the platform, towering over the room. Bramford didn’t resemble the controlled model of the new man she expected. Instead, she stared up at a terrifying creature, part man and part beast.

Mostly, he reminded Eden of his new cousin, the jaguar. In the slash of cheekbones and feline face the resemblance was unmistakable. His eyes, now a luminous deep green, gleamed cat-like in the glow of the fire. No longer bald, he had dark silky hair tumbling down his shoulders. Powerful, carved legs ripped through the white surgical pants.

His skin had turned so dark it blended with his camouflage spots, giving the impression of muted scars or tattoos all over his body. The deep, dark coloring, thanks to the melanistic jaguar’s pitch-black coat, enhanced his powerful presence, just as Bramford must have intended.

He shook with rage. The shirt split across his chest, revealing tight bands of muscles under a light mat of fur. Slowly,
he turned over his hands, examining the thick padded palms. His gaze traveled down his adapted body, and Eden wondered if the unexpected beastly form shocked him. Or had Bramford even retained enough human awareness to experience such an emotion?

His angry roar seemed to answer her unspoken question with a resounding yes. She felt faint from the ferocious power he exuded. Unreasonable feelings bubbled up within her. Maybe it was crazy, but she wanted to roar back at him.

Feral eyes landed on her, devouring every inch. She found herself smiling at him. But his eyes stayed cold, his expression as flint-hard as ever.

In that moment, Eden understood that despite his dramatic physical transformation, deep down Ronson Bramford hadn’t changed one bit. He was still the same arrogant bastard.

T
HE WARNING countdown rang out in the laboratory with increasing urgency.
“One minute and thirty seconds to termination of REA. Immediate evacuation required.”

Eden tensed as her father approached Bramford, who towered over him. Like a child experiencing his first World-Band fantasy, her father’s eyes were wide with wonder for his creation. If Bramford so much as flicked a finger, he might destroy the man who held the keys to his destiny. But would the beast understand that?

Beside her, Jamal ordered his men in a calm, low voice. “Do not kill the creature. I repeat, stun but do not kill him.”

To her surprise, Eden felt a protective urge towards her boss. “Run, Bramford!” she cried.

He seemed not to hear her, and she wondered if he still knew his name or even retained the power of speech. Or maybe he simply chose to ignore her, as usual. In any case, he stood firm, facing the semi-circle of soldiers. She hated to think of how the FFP would cage and dissect him like a common lab rat,
Rattus norvegicus
. They would destroy him, just like every other wild thing on the ravaged planet.

And yet, hope surged in her as the cunning predator now embedded into Bramford’s DNA seemed to take possession
of him. His feline eyes canvassed the room, probably devising a strategy to attack. She imagined him drawing upon the superfine senses and formidable powers he’d been given. But how would he resist the soldier’s lasers?

Bramford sank onto his haunches with a warning rumble. Powerful muscles rippled in his thighs. His lips curled into a snarl, ready to attack. The louder his growl grew, the more nervous the soldiers seemed. Eden understood with a rush of respect that like any alpha male, he needed to establish his dominance over them.

Her father pleaded with the FFP. “Please, desist at once. You’re inciting the subject.”

“One minute and counting until termination. Fifty-nine seconds…”

Fire mushroomed through the shattered roof, sucking out the air with a powerful whoosh. Chunks of the building rained down. Eden screamed as one of the soldiers fired his laser at Bramford, who dodged the flare with lightning speed.

Shen rushed forward but Bramford sent him flying back with a light slap. He looked surprised when Shen hit the wall with a loud thud. Eden wondered if he’d simply aimed to put his loyal bodyguard out of harm’s way.

A second laser blast sizzled in the air. Again, Bramford pivoted away, too fast for her eyes to trace. He leapt upon the nearest soldier and mashed him into a ball. With ease, he hurled the screaming man into the path of an oncoming laser. In a blur, Bramford ducked to evade the other two soldiers’ flares. He bounded towards them, crushing them with a single swipe of his arm.

Giant and Squeaky retreated to the edge of the platform.

“Stay down,” Jamal told them, as he aimed his laser. “I’m going to neutralize Bramford.”

Eden saw that Bramford would leave himself open to Giant and Squeaky, if he attacked Jamal. She had to help. She recalled that Aunt Emily said she felt as if the top of her head came off whenever she recognized poetry. Now, Eden felt a similar lift and knew what to do.

Time slowed, in her mind, as she spied a burning timber shake loose from the roof. She grabbed a nearby chair and, like an old-fashioned baseball player, swung it hard at the falling timber. It connected with a bang and sailed in Jamal’s direction. The chair flew from her hands, sending her tumbling to the ground. A sick scream filled the air, followed by a laser blast. Eden raised her head to find Jamal lying on the floor covered in flames.

Another gut-wrenching cry reached her, its familiar tone filling her with dread.
Father!

Scrambling to her feet, she saw him sprawled on the ground. He clutched his leg, a crimson stain spreading onto his lab coat.

Bramford roared at Giant and Squeaky, the remaining line of defense. They inched backwards, then turned and ran to their fallen leader.

Once more, Bramford’s penetrating gaze fell on Eden. Did she imagine it or did something in his eyes soften?

Distracted by Shen’s loud moans, he turned to the devoted bodyguard, who struggled to stand. One arm hung limp at his side; the dragon tattoo gone slack. He lurched forward with obvious effort, but Bramford’s abrupt growl stopped him.

A look that puzzled Eden passed between them. Bramford pointed towards the exit, clearly ordering Shen to leave. Now she was sure the creature must have lost his human voice, although some reasoning appeared to be intact. Shen shook his head, refusing even now to abandon his boss. Bramford answered with a final roar, its cold authority strikingly similar to his old ways. Finally, Shen turned away.

What was it, between those two, anyway?

Bramford leapt towards Eden’s father, who lay helpless on the floor. The beast’s emerald eyes burned feverishly, the nostrils flared. Eden gasped, afraid the blood that oozed from her father’s wound might incite Bramford to attack. Any predator would.

She hardly could believe it when he carefully lifted her father in his arms. Not even Bramford’s former self was capable of such gentleness. Like a rock skimming over a flat pond, he carried her beaming father across the tops of the workstations until he stood above Eden.

She stared up into his savage face, her mind a blank. To her amazement, Bramford spoke in a raspy growl, as terrifying as a tsunami, as thrilling as a rare bird in flight.

“Come, Eden,” he said, holding out a sharp-clawed, leathery hand.

He knew her, she realized with delight. Perhaps it was silly, but she felt special, as if a celebrity had recognized her. And she felt helplessly lost in the magnetic glow of his cat-like eyes.

“This is your final warning! Thirty seconds until termination. Twenty-nine seconds…”

Bramford barked at her. “What are you waiting for?”

Eden liked him much better when he seemed mute. She certainly didn’t want to go anywhere with the scary beast. But there was Father, and her promise to watch over him.

She reached for Bramford’s hand, shocked once again by the electric feel of his touch. This time, there was no mistaking the reeling effect on her, despite the change in him. Or maybe because of it, she realized.

Bramford balanced her onto one broad shoulder, as if Eden were a little bird perched there. She clung to his neck, petrified, as he sped away. Fiery objects exploded around them, and yet he easily evaded them, dodging through the smoke-filled tunnels.

Ahead, she saw a wall of fire, blocking their path to the upper level. Good Earth, Bramford wasn’t going to stop. She screamed as he sprinted forward. The fire reached for them, but Bramford was too fast for it to catch hold. He seemed to have the power of ten jaguars.

Eden laughed hysterically, as they burst through the blaze. She wondered if
they
were laughing, too. Possibly,
they
had designed an entire night of elaborate Holo-Images to drive her mad. She only wanted it to stop.

Bramford ran past the charred security gate and into the hangar, where his aircraft waited. The pilot’s eyes widened as they approached. Like Eden, he must have recognized Bramford in the creature’s steely gaze. At once the doors slid open.

A Uni-Gov military siren echoed in the distance. Eden feared they’d treat her no better than the FFP. Her father might be retained until he was of no further use, but she would be cut off. They had no choice but to rely on Bramford, as crazy as that seemed.

He lowered her to the ground then set her father on the back seat, again with surprising tenderness.

“Get in, Eden,” he said, as he jumped into the facing seat.

Her father’s eyes begged her to join him. Happy at this meager sign of acceptance, she stepped in beside him when a horrible thought stopped her.
Austin
. She’d forgotten him in the chaos. Before she could leave, Bramford yanked her inside, and the doors closed.