He’d die with his secrets, die for his Pack, but he’d be damned if he went easily.
“It was really quite exhilarating seeing you change on the screen as you did,” McMaster continued. He gestured toward the empty cages. “The ones that came before you shifted countless times for me, but they didn’t have the same…finesse that you had when you were jumping through fire for that witch.”
Ryder’s wolf held back a whimper at the idea of so many lost wolves. He knew they hadn’t been Talons or Redwoods since there hadn’t been any disappearances, but they could have been Centrals, lone wolves, or countless others. He couldn’t let them die in vain.
“What do you think is so special about me?” he bit out. His fangs threatened to slide through his gums and he inhaled deeply. He couldn’t afford to lose control.
“I think you’re much more special than you allow others to see, Heir of the Talons.”
Ryder bit back a curse. They fucking knew too much. They always had.
“I’m going to see what you look like on the inside, wolf. I want to see what makes you tick. The Humans First movement helps my cause, as does Washington’s inadequacies, but soon, you will know what I want. And before you can do anything about it, you’ll die drowning in your own blood.” McMaster turned to his butcher. “Keep going. I want to see him bleed.”
With that, the politician with the cool smile left him alone with the monster that didn’t scare him as much as McMaster himself.
Ryder met the man’s eyes and refused to scream, refused to growl. They would not win. He might die at their hands, but he wouldn’t lose his pride.
Time seemed to drag on as the man made his cuts. They almost didn’t hurt anymore and that worried him. Ryder pulled at his restraints, but that only made the monster cut deeper. There was no way he would escape this, not without help. He couldn’t sense his mate, his Pack, but if he inhaled deeply enough, he could have sworn he was able to scent them.
Perhaps this was it. This was his death.
He’d never have Leah in his arms again; never see her grow round with his child.
His wolf pushed at him, begging him to hold on, to wait for a time where they could break free. Ryder didn’t give in to the part of his soul that had grown tired; he fought, even if that meant staying where he was.
He was wolf. He was Talon. He was Heir.
He would try to survive because he needed his Leah.
The door opened, and Ryder tried to lift his head, only to find it too heavy. Thick boots sounded on the floor as someone came forward. Ryder couldn’t tell who it was, but he prayed to the goddess it was a way out.
He’d fought all his life to keep his mind sane and his body whole, and now it seemed that a human would be the one to best him. He couldn’t give up...he wouldn’t.
The butcher didn’t look over his shoulder, but Ryder didn’t give anything away. He might not recognize the soldier behind the butcher, but from the way the soldier moved, Ryder didn’t want to halt his plan.
The soldier in front of him, garbed head to toe in a black uniform with no insignia, took the man by the back of the neck and pulled him away from Ryder. With a few quick movements, the other man was knocked out and tied up within a cage.
“We don’t have a lot of time,” the soldier said quietly as he worked to get Ryder free.
“Why are you helping me?” Ryder bit out as he tried not to growl. He stood on shaky legs, refusing to put his weight on the other man.
“I joined the military to serve my country, then when I got out, I joined this group to keep our people safe. That’s not what’s going on.” He didn’t say anything else but gave Ryder a look. “They’ll know I was here soon if we don’t get out of here quickly.”
“What’s your name?” Ryder asked.
“Shane.” He didn’t give a last name and Ryder narrowed his eyes.
“You were there the day of the Unveiling. You were the one who helped Brynn.”
Shane raised his chin. “We need to go.” He didn’t confirm or deny what Ryder had said, but Ryder recognized the man.
His body shook and his cuts burned, but he followed the man out the door. His wolf didn’t trust Shane fully, but he had a feeling this was the way to go.
With each step, he knew he was getting to Leah, and that was all that mattered.
For now.
SHANE
Shane was a fucking idiot. He’d betrayed his country, his team, to save this one wolf. But if he hadn’t, he’d have kept the dark mark on his soul for far longer than he could live with. As it was, he’d only just found out about the true natures of McMaster and Montag.
Now, he’d taken a stance with this Ryder, but no one on his team actually knew what he’d done. He’d disabled the cameras and hid his tracks, but if he weren’t careful, he wouldn’t live long enough to find a way to right the wrongs of those he’d once trusted.
“I can get you to the outside of the compound, but then I need to go back,” Shane said softly, careful of who might overhear. “I can’t let them know I’ve gone rogue.”