Rising Storm (Westin Force #2) - Julie Trettel Page 0,4

holding true to my gorilla side. I would honor those I’d left behind.

Roger spent the morning prodding me with an electric iron that he liked to use to fire us up. It left scars that my fur covered. I knew they were there though. I could feel them. My gorilla gave me accelerated healing powers, but it had happened so frequently and always in the same places that I was certain the skin there never fully healed right anymore.

As soon as he left me to go harass some poor animal instead, Vada ran to my side.

“Let me help clean you up, Emma,” she whispered. “Don’t be stubborn, I won’t hear it.”

I wanted to laugh but I was in a great deal of pain. Vada was the strongest woman I knew. She’d been one of the first Raglan captures. They’d run all sorts of experiments on her, but she remained so positive, encouraging all of us not to forget that help was coming.

We knew there was a group trying to stop these guys. They’d taken down several Raglan locations. I’d never been at one being raided and wasn’t certain what I would do.

Vada, however, was a saint. She not only took care of everyone, but she had sacrificed herself over and over, making sure that every shifter possible got out when the opportunity arose. She always stayed back and slowed down the Raglan’s escape from our rescuers as much as possible. Some of them called her deadweight, but they never got rid of her.

Rumors abounded well before she came to be with us. They’d never forced her into the cage, and I doubt they would. I was stubborn but I stayed in animal form. She preferred her human side and feared losing her humanity. Sometimes, she’d sit for hours just talking to me.

Occasionally I’d write her notes, like telling her my name was Emma. I hated being called Sahara. I’d also asked her once why she did it. Why did she always volunteer to stay behind?

She sadly told me that she had nothing outside the prison and she knew that inside she could really do good and help others.

It made me sad for her, but I understood. My gorilla family was still out there but my chances of getting back to them were slim. Even if I managed to get out, then what? At best, I’d end up in a zoo if I didn’t shift. And if I did shift, then what? I had no identity. I was in a foreign country. I had no money. Everything was stacked against me.

At least inside I knew what to expect.

Today I’d be fighting King Kong, or rather Sahara would be. King and I were well acquainted now. It had taken him some time to trust me, but my communication skills with gorillas were impeccable, especially in my gorilla form.

We’d worked out several routines. Yeah, we had to take a few hits, and one of us always had to go down, but at least we lived. It irritated Frank, but we worked to make it look convincing at least and he was getting rich off our act.

Frank knew exactly what I was. I wouldn’t give him the triumph of confirming it for him, but he knew.

“It’s all in the eyes. You’re too intelligent for a stupid animal,” he’d told me repeatedly.

The man disgusted me and only proved what I knew—humans were horrible creatures.

Roger was handling King as he put his collar on and attached a chain to it and then prodded him out into the cage.

I could smell the stale beer and hear the excitement erupt when they saw the big guy. It made me sick to my stomach as I fought down the urge to vomit.

I didn’t have long to freak out before Frank appeared with the dreaded collar and chain for me. He knew I’d go willingly, but as soon as I was in the cage, he used his stick through the slats and poked me to get moving. It was all just a show, I tried to tell myself.

Suddenly, my entire body started to tingle, and I sniffed the air. I never looked beyond the cage, but my curiosity was too great. I stared out beyond the bars, and locked onto the deepest brown eyes I’d ever seen. My heart raced in my chest as I stared at him.

Mate, a small voice in my head said.

My shock caused me to still. Never had I allowed myself to believe there was someone