She was stopped from further angering the wolf or embarrassing herself beyond repair by the too-happy robotic voice.
“Number 5857B, please prepare to exit your cell for daily exercise.”
The glass door on her cube slid open. But then, so did the door to the right of her… 5856. The wolf. His eyes glowed as he glanced over. Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit. There was no longer any barrier stopping him from coming into her cube. Was that how the previous occupant had gone out? It hadn’t been lost on her that the wolf was just 5856 and she was 5857B. They weren’t exactly subtle around here.
But then warm air that smelled like raspberries hit her in the face, and suddenly for some reason she felt very calm and peaceful.
The robotic voice spoke again: “Please follow the glowing arrows to the exercise yard, and remember to play nice with your friends.”
The word friends, snapped her out of the calm enough to think yeah, right. She wasn’t sure why she’d had that mental break for a second where everything was roses and chocolate hearts, but she was mostly back to normal. The tension of moving in a single file line with the rest of the preternaturals who were far stronger than her was more than enough to shake any sense of peace she’d felt.
She followed the glowing arrows and the werewolf in front of her. His white T-shirt practically glowed against his olive skin. Just underneath where the fabric ended on his arm was a black tattoo with the number 5856. Sydney guessed it hadn’t been a voluntary tattoo and was thankful she didn’t have one. Yet.
As they walked down the hallway, she couldn’t help being mesmerized by the way his muscles moved under the shirt as he walked. She wanted to lick… no bite… no stroke…
The wolf in front of her growled, startling her, and her face flamed. His back was to her. How in he hell could he know she was thinking inappropriate things about him?
Sense of smell. Oh yeah. Wow, this was mortifying. Sydney blushed even harder and was thankful when they reached the open air of the exercise yard. The moon was waxing. It would be full in just a couple of days. She wondered if she’d have to come out here with therians when that happened.
They’d all have to shift under the moon; they wouldn’t be able to control or stop it. What if the wolf came after her then? Maybe if she talked to him. Maybe she could diffuse the situation somehow. Maybe when he was in wolf form he’d remember she was a friend and not food.
She followed him to the edge of the yard and tapped him on the shoulder. “Excuse me.”
He rounded on her and growled. “WHAT?” That dangerous glow was in his eyes again.
“I-I’m Sydney.”
“No,” he said with a nasty sneer, “You are 5857B. And you’d better get used to it.”
She couldn’t believe she’d been attracted to him just minutes ago. More than just threatening and intimidating, out here where he could talk to her, he was just plain unpleasant.
“Well, sorry,” she mumbled. “I just thought we didn’t have to hate each other.” Because I was hoping maybe then you wouldn’t go psychotic on me later.
Sydney took several steps back as he moved into her space.
“Let me be the one to educate you about things here. We are not going to be allies. You will never speak to me again. And if you have any sense in that stupid blonde head of yours, you won’t attempt to call attention to yourself with any of the others, either. You are an abomination. We smell your weakness, and everyone in this yard wants to rip you apart to undo the mistake your idiotic parents made. Stay the fuck away from all of us or learn the consequences of being what you are.”
Sydney was stunned into silence. It wasn’t as if she thought they were going to cuddle on the couch for movie night or anything, but she also hadn’t expected such acidic words from someone who didn’t even know her.
“GO!” he growled, pointing to the far end of the yard.
Noah watched Sydney scurry away from the other prisoners. Good. Now if she could do that for just one more night because two nights from now, he was busting them out. She hadn’t recognized him. But of course, she wouldn’t. Her sense of smell wasn’t as developed as his. And he’d changed so much from when they were kids. Then again, she had, too. She’d transformed from a child into a woman, and the looks a few of the others gave her as she passed, left no doubt.
He growled. He’d never get out of here with her. And he’d chew his own arm off before he left without her.
If he hadn’t been sure before, he was sure now. Sydney was his true mate.
Just before he’d been kidnapped, Noah had asked his dad about mates. The words Cole had spoken would never leave him: “You can take anyone you want for a mate, but a true mate is determined by blood and destiny. She’s out there somewhere. You’ll be happier if you listen to the instinct and don’t try to mark anyone but her.”
It was a heavy conversation for an eight year old, but he’d taken it to heart.
He’d asked why his mom was a demon and not a werewolf like them. It had seemed strange, even though Noah had always thought it was the coolest thing in the world. Jane had become a demon when she’d died giving birth to him and had been stuck up in Heaven before the preternaturals had severed the link between that place and earth.
She’d had screens in her room in Heaven that allowed her to see what was happening with her family. She’d watched his father fall apart from losing her while Noah had been taken in by a panther therian and a witch. She’d begged to be returned to make things right. The catch was that she had to become a demon to do it. The mating bond with his father had been true, though, and they’d remained connected in the change, upgrading Noah’s dad to an immortal in the process.
But before all that, his mom had started out human with a quirk. No one knew exactly how it had come to be, but she had some vampire blood in her veins. Since the first vampire had been created by an incubus and a werewolf, that blood made it possible for his mom to be Cole’s true mate. His dad hadn’t believed in true mates until he’d met her. After that, the overwhelming compulsion that overrode every other thought in his brain had been to protect her.
It was the same way Noah had always felt about Sydney. Even as a pup he’d never wanted to let her out of his sight, in case she needed him.
His mother had just enough blood that matched with werewolves to make being the alpha’s true mate possible, but it wasn’t as if werewolves were routinely taking mates with vampire blood. Still, Noah was as sure as his father had been. Sydney was his. And he had to get her out of here in one piece or he’d never recover from it.
Noah began his nightly run around the perimeter of the exercise yard. He couldn’t afford to break routine when he was so close. They couldn’t suspect anything or he’d lose the element of surprise and his only shot at getting out. In two nights he’d be strong enough, but he’d still have to do everything right. There was no margin for error. Especially not now.
As much as he’d wanted his freedom and to try to find his parents and pack, Noah had always accepted there was a chance he’d fail and either die or be punished severely for the infraction. It was an acceptable possibility a few nights ago, but not with Sydney in the mix. There was no scenario for defeat now.