She tested the bond, calling out for him. Linc? There was no answer. Still, she tried again, Linc? For a second, there was a glimmer of a response, but it disappeared.
She crossed her arms, pressing her back against the bars. She settled in and started planning.
Chapter Eleven
Linc found himself somewhere he never wanted to be again—in a cage. The pain and shock he felt as the humans dragged him from the shore had been hard to hide from Edie, but he’d done it. He didn’t want her to follow him.
He knew he’d left her in pain. It would only get worse the farther away he was moved, but she could survive it. He called out to his father at the last second, before the humans stuck him with the device that shot electricity through his veins, drying up every ounce of moisture in him and leaving him weak. He hoped he had heard him. He lost consciousness a moment later, so he couldn’t be sure. If he had, he would find and protect Edythe.
The lights in the cage snapped on, and a buzz filled the room. It was the same disabling buzz present his first go-around in a cage. It blinded and paralyzed him so he was left to rely on his hearing. The footsteps tracking across the floor stopped in front of him.
“How are you feeling?”
Linc knew the voice. He didn’t bother to answer. In all honesty, he wasn’t sure he could.
“You look different than the last time I saw you. These scales are darker, harder. It’s an interesting development. A result of the mate-bond, perhaps?”
The footsteps walked around the cage, stopping behind him this time. “I’m surprised you haven’t taken note of your pain level.”
Between the lights and the buzz overwhelming Linc, he hadn’t given a thought to his pain, but now that Edythe’s father mentioned it, his body ached, but not with the all-encompassing pain he should have felt when separated from his mate.
Which meant only one thing.
Linc sprung from the ground, reaching through the cage at the blurry figure who jumped out of reach. Her father laughed. “Ah. I see you understand now.”
“She’s your daughter!” he cried. Edythe!
“She’s probably still too far away to hear you. Shut the lights off,” he suddenly directed, and he nearly collapsed in relief when the switch was thrown. He could see Edythe’s father standing at the far end of the room. Near the doorway stood another man wearing a lab coat. This was not some suburban basement. This was a lab facility, complete with machines and a glass window where Linc could see uniformed men observing him with interest.
“I never introduced myself at our last visit.” He stepped forward. “I’m Rex Carson. And you are Linc. Now”—he walked toward a table and spent a moment examining the items on a tray—“is it just Linc? Or do you have a last name?”
He didn’t answer, only watched as Rex selected a gleaming metal scalpel from the tray. He turned to Linc and smiled. “Let’s get to know each other again.”
Chapter Twelve
The drive took much less time than Edythe expected. It was so short, in fact, that she believed they were only a few miles from the beach. When the van doors slid open, she could still hear the sound of the ocean. She looked around quickly, trying to get a sense of where they were before the light shone directly in her eyes again.
“You guys are assholes,” she said as someone pulled her roughly from the van. “But I’m sure you hear that all the time. I mean, you must, right? I’m not the first girl you’ve thrown in a cage. I couldn’t be. It’s not like there’s a market for vans with cages. Can’t just rent one. You gotta have a need for this kind of setup. You’re really investing in something.”
“Shut up,” she heard someone growl, and she smiled.
“I feel like I should come up with something better than asshole.” Her body was lifted and slammed onto a gurney. She struggled, but hands held her down until she was strapped in tightly. All the time, though, the fucking light was in her eyes. It took her a moment as she was wheeled forward to realize something… she didn’t hurt so badly anymore.
Linc?
Edie? There was a surge of worry and fear. Damnit, Edie.
I’m going to get us out of here, Linc. She felt a wave of love and tenderness come over her.
I love you. A moment later, she felt searing pain, right below her collarbone, as if someone was slicing into her skin then holding a match to the wound.
She screamed, and Linc’s bellow echoed through her mind. The light suddenly turned off. “What’s happening to her? Did you touch her?”
“I don’t know, man. She just started screaming.”
She opened her eyes, staring down at her body, but where she expected to see a gaping, bloody wound there was nothing. The pain came again, and she cried out. It wasn’t being done to her, it was happening to Linc.
Linc! she sobbed. She struggled against the straps holding her down, rocking her body back and forth.
“Hold onto the gurney. She’s going to knock it over!”
Linc! she screamed, but he didn’t answer. There was only hurt where his voice should be.