"He thought he had Callan's backing." His voice was lower. "We're going to let him believe that for the time being."
Mercury wanted to believe Austin was somehow involved in what was going on, but Ria had her doubts. Austin Crowl was an irritant, but neither his files nor the information she had pulled in so far indicated he was a traitor to his people.
As they turned the corner, they both came to a slow stop. Ely stepped from another office. She stood poised at the side of the hall, her expression somber, her gaze concerned.
Mercury moved to Ria's side, placing himself between her and the doctor before urging Ria forward.
"Mercury." Ely stepped forward slowly, looking between them. "Please. Talk to me for a moment."
Her voice trembled, causing Ria to watch her cautiously as Mercury drew to a halt once again.
Elyiana Morrey had been specifically created against emotion. She had been trained in the hellish conditions of the Breed labs and had experimented on her own people.
"Ely, I don't have time for games," Mercury told her tiredly. "There's a lot to do today."
Ely glanced at Ria again, inhaling slowly.
"Your scents are changing," she said, her voice low. "I need to test"
"No tests, Ely." His voice was firm. It wasn't unkind; he wasn't angry, but his tone brooked no refusal.
Ely's hands were shoved in the pockets of her white lab coat, and they were clenched, tight.
Ria paid attention to the doctor's demeanor, and it wasn't nearly as calm as she was attempting to appear.
"Mercury, are you willing to risk all your friends this way?" the doctor asked him then. "Don't you remember how horrible it was to lose control and to kill without thought?"
"Enough, Ely." He stiffened as Ria watched the pain in the doctor's eyes.
"Mercury, you could kill her." She nodded to Ria. "You know how easily it could be done. Do you want to rip her heart from her chest?"
His hand tensed at Ria's back.
"I didn't kill friends in those labs." His voice was deadly. "You know that as well as I do."
"But you could kill friends now," she whispered urgently. "I have the confinement cell ready. You have to let me test"
Ria had had enough.
"Have you lost possession of your senses, Dr. Morrey?" she asked the other woman. "A confinement cell? For what reason?"
"Because small, closed-in places will force me further into feral displacement if its already begun," Mercury said, his voice cold, emotionless. "It won't ease. In the labs, it kept me in a state of rage, and allowed them to research the phenomenon and create a drug for it."
"It's the only way, Mercury." The doctor's voice hitched and broke.
"I think perhaps your good doctor needs to be confined instead," Ria stated. "I'm ready to leave now."
She started forward.
"Damn you!" Ely stepped forward, rage contorting her face now. "You're the reason it's happening. I warned Jonas it would happen. That increased exposure to whatever pheromone is in your system would cause this. If he kills, the guilt lies on your shoulders."
Mercury snarled and stepped between them. "Back off, Ely. You don't want the confrontation this is going to turn into."
Her expression twisted, anger and fear warring in her eyes as she stared back at Mercury.
"You know you'll destroy Sanctuary if the feral qualities in your adrenaline continue to strengthen and you end up killing." Ely's voice roughened, became harsh and growling. "I thought better of you, Mercury. I thought you cared more for your people than this. And I thought Callan did as well."
"Do you think Callan can force me into that cell, Ely?" Mercury asked her, the guttural sound of his voice causing the doctor and Ria to flinch. "There aren't enough Breeds in this compound to force me back into that cell. You'd have to kill me first."