Roadkill nodded. “Whatever it was, someone had to have developed it, right?”
“Obviously.” Horvan frowned. “And?”
“And?” Roadkill rolled his eyes. “What was the name of that company we raided a few days ago?”
“You’ve forgotten already?” Hashtag called out. “Global Bio-Tech.”
“It was a rhetorical question,” Roadkill fired back. “And what kind of company is Global Bio-Tech?”
Rael became very still. “Pharmaceutical.”
Roadkill folded his arms and smiled smugly. “Exactly. So how does someone who didn’t even know shifters existed—we assume—suddenly start developing a drug that not only forces a shift but keeps them locked into it? Because I don’t think Anson woke up one morning, after a particularly vivid dream, suddenly aware that the world contained shifters and Dellan was one of them.” He cocked his head to one side. “Unless… your mom told him?”
Dellan shook his head. “No chance of that. In fact, she warned me never to tell him.” He shivered. “When Anson found out he wasn’t being handed the keys to the kingdom, he was incensed. I got that. After all, his dad had chosen me over him. When he’d calmed down, he acted all sorry and swore it wasn’t going to be a problem. But….”
Horvan gazed at him thoughtfully. “But?”
Dellan sighed heavily. “You can’t hide that kind of loathing for long. He smiled to my face, but there was something else there, you know? Something… hidden. I thought it was because I’d gotten the job he wanted, but surely that doesn’t explain why he did what he did. I mean, did he hate me so much that forcing me to shift and be locked in a cage was what it took to satisfy him?”
“Then I go back to my previous question,” Roadkill said emphatically. “If he didn’t know you were a shifter, then how did he cook up this whole drug scheme?”
Horvan expelled a long breath. “You think there’s someone else involved?”
“I think it’s a distinct possibility.”
Dellan had been thinking the same thing. Anson was only twenty-two for God’s sake. What twenty-two-year-old could devise a plan like that?
“And speaking of Anson….” Roadkill’s eyes glittered. “When are we going to pay the son of a bitch a little visit?”
Horvan cleared his throat. “I get that you want to exact your own particular form of revenge for what he did to Dellan, but that’s not your decision—it’s Dellan’s.”
Dellan gave him a thankful glance. “I don’t intend letting him get away with it, but he can wait.” Right then, other things were more important.
“Why?” Crank scowled. “He needs pounding.”
Hashtag scowled. “That sounds way too kinky.” Then his eyes twinkled. “What am I saying? You are kinky.” He got a glare for that.
“Okay, Anson needs… pounding, but only when I feel ready to confront him. Yes, I will take my company back, but not right this minute. When I feel one hundred percent again. Then. And hopefully, you’ll still be in a pounding mood.” Dellan shook his head. “Hashtag is right. That sounds way too kinky.” When Rael’s hand tightened around his, Dellan knew his mates were with him.
His physical state raised a question. Dellan turned to the doc. “That bag of tricks you brought with you—do you have what you need to take some of my blood?”
Doc blinked. “Why, yes, but—”
“I know you said I seem healthy,” Dellan explained, “but I need to be sure. We have no idea what they did to me during the time they had me in that cage. There could be traces left in my body of whatever they were drugging me with. Plus… I need to know everything is as it should be. That I haven’t… picked up anything, if you get my drift.”
It seemed as though everyone in the room caught the significance of his remarks. Hashtag and Roadkill exploded into a fit of coughing, and Crank merely grinned. The doc’s face was flushed.
You’re forgetting something. Horvan smiled. You’re a shifter. You’re immune to… such things.
And who knows what other diabolical shit they came up with in that lab? I want to be safe, okay? I want us to be safe. Dellan wasn’t going to be moved on that point.
Then we’ll make sure, Rael affirmed.
“Ugh, Doc?” Crank was frowning. “Is it safe to send Dellan’s blood off to some lab? I mean, could they tell from testing it that he isn’t quite… normal?”
Hashtag snorted. “I wonder what your blood test would reveal about you.”
“Actually, Crank has made a valid point.” Doc gave him a nod of approval, and Crank preened. “I wouldn’t send it to just any lab.” He reached into his black bag and pulled out a laptop.
“Don’t tell me—you have a secret network of shifters spread out all over the country,” Roadkill said with a twinkle in his eye.
Doc glanced at Dellan. “Your analysis of Roadkill was correct—he is very astute.”
Roadkill stilled, his lips parted. “You mean I’m right? Well, fuck me.”
Doc laughed. “There are shifters in every walk of life, but when it comes to medical personnel, it pays to know who you can rely on when you need help. So yes, there is a network of shifters who are medical staff, lab technicians, et cetera. We have to hope there’s one within traveling distance.”
“Hey, wherever you need to go, I’ll get you there,” Roadkill announced.
“I had no doubt,” Doc replied confidently. He peered at the screen and then broke into a wide smile. “Shifter network strikes again. We have a lab technician at the Steele Memorial Medical Center in Salmon. Drake McIntyre.” Doc pulled his phone from his pocket and tapped the keys. “I’ll see if he’ll be at work during the next few days.”
Hashtag laughed. “This is amazing. And you know what? It’s really got me thinking. Remember that LGBT meme they put around ages ago, saying be careful who you hate, ’cause it might be someone you love? Well, how many shifters are there in my life I don’t know about?”
Horvan waggled his eyebrows. “We are ev-ery-where,” he whispered dramatically.
“I believe you.” Hashtag shook his head. “We need some kind of a badge or a code sign or something. You know? Like, something to show any shifter you might come across that you’re an ally.”
Rael laughed, but the doc shook his head. “You three were told because you had to know. The fewer humans who know of our existence, the better.”
“But it shouldn’t be like that,” Roadkill stressed. “Humans and shifters should be able to live together, right?”
“In an ideal world, perhaps.” Doc’s face tightened. “But we don’t live in such a world. I think what happened to Dellan proves that.”
“You said you were gonna contact someone who could tell us more about shifters. Are you still gonna do that?” Crank demanded. “Because I really wanna know more.” There were nods from Hashtag and Roadkill.
“Hell, so do I.” Dellan was tired of knowing so little about his origins.
“To be honest, after what I’ve learned about Dellan’s experiences, I was going to contact him anyway. This drug they’ve developed….” Doc shivered. “There are unpleasant implications.”