Mending the Beast (Awakening Pride #10) - Lacey Thorn Page 0,21

possible she could benefit from it.”

“How did you know what to test?” Daniel asked.

“My thoughts exactly,” Tah agreed.

“I’ve been working on this since the last time we rescued someone from Talbot. The doctor likes to inject DNA inhibitors that seek out and attach to the animal genetics in a shifter. They work to repress, preventing a shift, dampening the animal senses, but over the long term, they can cause a breakdown in the DNA. One that may not be repairable.”

“Fuck,” Tah growled.

“Give it to me,” Daniel ordered again before glancing toward Tah. “I’m not losing my lion.”

Tah nodded his agreement. “What about Kenzie? Do we know if there’s any permanent damage there?”

“There’s not,” the professor answered while Tony moved toward Daniel. “Luckily, she’d already mated with Gabriel by the time Nix hit her with the second round of drugs from Talbot. Plus, her lioness was already starting to emerge. It was a setback. That’s all.”

“But I haven’t mated yet,” Daniel murmured.

“Yet,” Tony agreed as he slipped the cap off a hypodermic. “This is going to burn.”

There was something in his eyes as he pushed the viscous liquid into Daniel’s vein. Going to burn was a bit misleading. His fucking veins were on fire. His heartbeat accelerated to the point he feared the organ might actually beat its way out of his chest. He clenched his fists, grimacing as he fought the ferocity of what was going on inside him.

“Have you ever given this to anyone else?” Tah asked belatedly.

“No,” Tony admitted with a grin. “Daniel’s my first.”

“Well, fuck me,” Daniel muttered. “Am I supposed to feel like my insides are on fire?”

Tony shrugged as he placed his fingers against the pulse in Daniel’s throat. “Heartrate’s elevated. Any nausea?”

“Things can’t ever be easy, can they?” Tah growled, fingers clenched around the footboard of Daniel’s bed.

“Easy’s overrated,” Tony murmured, gaze glued to Daniel. “I wasn’t sure how much to give you. I forgot you’d lost weight. I based it off your healthy weight.”

“Before I was shot,” Daniel muttered through clenched teeth.

“Before you started running around with a death wish,” Tony countered. “I’m glad you’ve decided to stop that.”

“Daniel, how are you feeling?” Tah asked, shifting his weight so he was closer to the professor.

Daniel’s teeth felt too big for his mouth. He kept flexing his neck and turning his head side to side as he tried to adjust. His tongue was heavy, thick, and everything around him had taken on a strange glow. His fingers hurt, and when he glanced down, claws had replaced his fingernails.

“Should it be working that quickly?” the professor questioned, making notes on his tablet.

“Call Aleksy,” Tony ordered, but Daniel was incapable of doing anything but what his body wanted.

“Tony? What’s up?” The voice filled the room, and it dawned on Daniel that Tony had been speaking to his phone instead of the others in the room.

“Head to the labs. I may need you,” Tony murmured. “Now.”

“I’m right here,” Tah interjected.

“Yeah, I’m not stupid enough to risk you,” Tony admitted. “Every member of this pride would have my head. Though, I think you’re lovely mate is the one I’d be most afraid of.”

Tah snorted a laugh, and it dawned on Daniel they were concerned about him. He would have told them not to worry, but speaking was beyond him. Still, his animal was trying to make an appearance, something still prevented it. There was a battle going on inside him, and he wasn’t sure if there’d be a winner when it was all said and done. Then he was nothing but pure burning heat.

“Fire,” he growled as he thrashed, knocking himself from the bed to the floor. He grasped his head as he landed on his knees. He was panting. Hell, even his lungs felt as if they were consumed in flames. Breathing fucking hurt. Everything fucking hurt.

“Tony, what’s going on?”

“Give it a minute,” Tony said, but Daniel was pretty sure he’d been locked in the flames for hours. Maybe days.

“Daniel, look at me,” Tah commanded, but Daniel couldn’t.

“Aleksy, over here.”

Daniel saw a large pair of feet move into his range of vision. Aleksy, the black liger. The man who was always trapped in a primal state. What must that be like?

“What’d you give him?” The new voice had to be Aleksy’s. “Lyra, stay over there.”

“No.” This voice was rough. No, rusty. As if it wasn’t used often. Daniel remembered someone mentioning something about Lyra having been deaf or partially deaf prior to mating the primal liger. He