Endangered Species Ch. 09-16

I didn't think about my actions. I reacted.

Knee, meet balls.

"Fucking PERVERT," I yelled as I pushed him away. I'd nailed him so good that his legs didn't work, and his hands went right to his injured nuts. He fell back in slow motion, like an old-growth cedar falling to the lumberjack's saw. He hit with a thud, and I allowed myself a smirk in victory.

Then his friends reacted. As Ron White said, "I didn't know how many of them it would take to kick my ass, but I knew how many they planned to use." The one to my left hit me in the stomach, knocking my breath out, while the one on the right caught me by the neck. He started to lift me off the ground as I fought to catch a breath.

"NO!" The man on the floor yelled, and the naked man holding me froze just before he could slam my head into the wall. "Release her."

He let go, and I dropped the eighteen inches to the floor. I landed awkwardly, and the back of my head banged against the concrete wall. I ended up on my ass, my head spinning. I shook it and looked at the men again as I pushed myself back until I could sit against the wall.

The two men saw the throbbing erection of the man who sniffed me and backed off. They dropped to their knees, angling their heads to expose their necks with their eyes closed. "My apologies, Alpha. I did not realize." The other man was shaking. Both looked like they were waiting for an execution.

The big man stood up again, uncaring of his nudity or excitement. "Leave us. I will deal with you later," he ordered. The men scampered away in seconds. Everyone in the room, humans included, was staring at us in fear or anticipation. He turned his attention back to me as I tried scooting away. It didn't work, as the girls on my sides were too frighted to move out of the way. "You're hurt," he said softly. His eyes looked into mine; I shook my head again to clear the fog. He reached out slowly and turned my chin aside, noting the scabs from her claws. "WHO DID THIS TO HER?"

Delta Betty came forward immediately, kneeling before him with her neck exposed. "I did, Alpha. I apologize for hurting your mate."

Mate? MATE? What the fuck? This walking nightmare thought I was his? Fuck that!

"Why?"

"She refused to lower her eyes to me, Alpha. She was newly captured and combative to me. I lifted her by the neck with one hand, and still, she refused to look down. It wasn't until my claws entered her skin that she accepted her place."

The Alpha looked at her, then looked at me. He looked at me from head to toe as I tried to look brave, pushing myself up the wall until I stood eyes-to-bare-chest with him. "I suppose it would be too much to ask of the Goddess Luna to give me a compliant werewolf mate."

I rolled my eyes. The Alpha was a cocky little shit. "You can find another, as I'm not compliant or submissive, and I don't want anything to do with you. Talk to your Goddess about picking someone else."

He chuckled. "The Moon Goddess doesn't make mistakes."

"I'm shocked anyone believes a monster like you deserves to procreate," I replied. "How many people have you killed in taking over this base? Hundreds? Thousands?"

His big hand grabbed my chin like I was an unruly child. "You breeders are all that remain," he admitted. "You are still alive. Don't lose that by thinking you can speak that way to me, mate."

"I will NEVER be (mmph)." He covered my mouth with his hand before I could tell the Alpha what I thought of being his mate. I opened my mouth wide, thinking I'd bite his hand to make him release me.

Delta Betty warned me to stop. "If you bite him, you claim him as your mate, Breeder. He's ready to take you right here in front of everyone if you accept him."

I froze, not wanting that to occur. That cock of his was still waving around in front of my stomach.

He let me go. "I need to eat and get back out there. Delta, take her to my quarters. Ensure she is bathed, fed, and prepared for my return tonight."

"Yes, Alpha," she said with a smile.

He turned and walked towards a table at the front while Delta Betty took me by the arm. "Come on," she told me. The other new breeders watched with wide eyes as she led me away.

"What about them," I asked?

"There's nothing you can do about them," she replied. She led me through a maze of rooms to a door marked "BERTHING AREA 1." We walked down the long hallway, passing marked doors on each side until we reached the end. The bedrooms got bigger as we walked because the doors were farther apart. Delta Betty opened the door to a luxuriously-appointed bedroom, with a large marble bathroom and a small sitting area with a dining table. "This is the Alpha's quarters," Betty told me. "Wait here." She walked through the room, removing anything that might be useful as a weapon. Scissors, knives, razor blades, it all went into a bag before she returned to me. "You stink. You know how to take a Navy shower?" I nodded; it was one of the first things you learned on a submarine. If you took a long shower on a sub, you'd end up monitoring the distilling plant for six hours while learning how precious water was. "Give me your scrubs and get in there. I'll have your food and clothes brought here."

I could have fought her, but I wanted the shower and time to think. I handed over my clothes and walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind me. There were clean towels and a washcloth on the rack; I took the washcloth into the limestone-tiled shower and turned on the water. I got my hair and body wet, then turned it off. The shampoo was unscented, as was the soap, but they worked. I turned the water on long enough to rinse myself clean, then reached for the towel. I felt much better now.

Betty entered the bathroom with a pink razor and shaving cream. "Sit up here and remain still," she told me. The razor removed all hair below my neck.

"You'd think werewolves wouldn't mind a little body hair," I quipped as she rinsed me off.

"You'd think humans would know enough to remain quiet when their life is in the balance," Betty replied.

"That's not my style."

She let out a cruel smile of her own. "I think I will enjoy watching the Alpha break you," she said. "He deserves better than you. I don't think a human is strong enough to rule by his side."

"I have no interest in the Alpha or ruling by his side," I said. "If you want him, you can have him."

She left the shaving cream in the medicine cabinet. "Don't be so quick to reject the Alpha. Rejection is final; it destroys the bond the Goddess placed between you. If you reject him, there is no reason to keep you alive."

Wonderful.

It was then I realized what was happening. Betty was in charge of preparing me for my wedding night. After the cleaning and the food, she'd display me for him like Ann Darrow to King Kong.

I didn't want that scary man as a mate. Would the Alpha and his Pack listen?

No, they wouldn't.

They didn't listen to anyone or anything. The werewolves were a law unto themselves, and humans had no rights in their world.

The Alpha wanted me, and that was enough. He would rape me tonight to make me his.

Ch. 10

Betty finally left after giving me a silk nightgown to wear. "The Alpha will be back for a late dinner," she told me before going. "Your first impressions were not good. It is best for everyone if you change that quickly."

"That's an interesting perspective. I'll have to take that under consideration," I replied cooly. It was what my father would say at work when someone above him suggested doing something that he knew was completely idiotic. It was a fancy way to say "fuck you" without getting in trouble. I didn't need Delta Betty as an enemy, but she wasn't the one being prettied up for the rape party later.

The bedroom didn't have that lived-in look. Most of the drawers were empty, though I did find a pair of pull-string basketball shorts that went below my knees and a T-shirt that hung like a dress nearly as far. It was better than the lingerie I was supposed to wear. I tossed that on a chair by the bed and went exploring.

The bathroom was a loss; nothing more dangerous than nail clippers remained after Betty's removals. The sitting area had a large flat-panel monitor on the wall, but I couldn't find anything but static. The desk drawers had some basic office supplies but no private files or information. If he did administration, he must have an office elsewhere.

The bedroom held a King bed, two bedside tables, and a dresser. A small closet had his raingear, winter clothing, two gray suits, and several camouflage utility sets. On the floor was a half-dozen pairs of shoes and boots.

On the top of the dresser were two eight-by-ten photos. One showed the Alpha in climbing gear at the base of Mount Rainier with three other men and one woman; I recognized one of the men from the dining hall. The second showed him at the summit, his arm around the shoulders of the gorgeous brunette. They looked happy, with big smiles on their windburned faces.

Maybe that was why he didn't seem thrilled to have me as his mate. He was aroused by my presence and protective of me, but he didn't stick around to talk. Instead, he sent me off with an underling to his bedroom, where I could waste away the hours until he'd finished the important stuff in his life. When he needed his lusts sated, he'd force me into giving him what he wanted.

I wasn't going to go quietly.

I needed weapons, and I hadn't seen any. I'd have to make something.

I went back to the picture of the Alpha and his girlfriend. Removing the back, I pulled out the piece of sheet glass before putting it back together. If you didn't look directly at it, you would not notice the glass was gone. There was a roll of red duct tape in with the office supplies, and I grabbed that. I carefully broke the glass sheet until I had four triangular-shaped shards that would work. The rest I placed carefully in the bottom of the trash can, below the Kleenex and papers.

I wrapped the base of the triangles with duct tape, creating four knife-like weapons that could slice or stab. They would be fragile, but that might be all right. If I could stab directly into flesh, a twist of my wrist could break the chunk off and keep my victim from removing it. I stashed one in the bed, tucked under the fitted sheet between the mattress and the padded headboard. The second went under the Kleenex box on the bathroom vanity. The third I taped to the leg of the dining table. I wanted to have one close to me, no matter where I was in his room.

The fourth knife was the smallest, and I spent more time with it. I used a narrow built-up strip of tape at the transition from grip to glass to give my hand something to push against if it started to slip. I also used duct tape to make a sheath for it, allowing me to carry it in my shorts.

As I slid it into my pocket, I wondered if I was kidding myself in thinking I could fight back. The Alpha was twice my size and had more training. I could only escape if I could defeat the Alpha and evade his Pack. I could take advantage of him when he was distracted or sleeping, but the rest would be a real challenge. They'd killed Mike and captured me without breaking a sweat, and his men had overrun a facility staffed by a battalion of Marines.

And if I fled, I condemned hundreds of innocent women to a horrific fate. If he mated with me, I might be able to influence his decisions and improve their treatment. Could I swallow my pride and revulsion long enough to play a convincing game of house with a monster like that? Could I pretend to like it when he rapes me night after night?

The other option would be to take away his shiny new toy. I pulled out the knife and looked at it; I could stab my neck, leg, or chest. If I cut an artery or penetrated the heart, it was over. They wouldn't have the people or the facilities to save me.

I wallowed in those thoughts, but one thing pulled me out. It was the Message to Garcia. I had my orders, and Mike's death didn't change the mission. Being a mate didn't change the mission. There was no chain of command to report to on this base, so I had to find a working radio or escape and travel to another military base.

I put the knife back in the sheath, then tucked it away. I knew that killing myself or the Alpha wouldn't change the facts of the situation. This mess was international in scale, and I had to get out of this by using my head.

I needed to think through the clues and observations I'd made since arriving here. I had to know my enemy's capabilities as I planned my escape.

I got a legal pad and pen, then sat at the table. I wrote down what I'd seen, heard, and inferred about the werewolves and their Pack. I filled two pages, then reviewed it and let out a sigh.

I was kidding myself if I thought escape would be simple. The werewolves could see through near-darkness, move silently, and easily track my scent. When they caught up to me, they had the advantages in size, strength, speed, and fighting ability. What chance did I have when trained Marines got killed without firing a shot?

I tore off the pages and hid them behind the desk.

All this, and it was only three-twenty. The Alpha was supposed to be back late, so I had hours to kill. The room had no books, games, or other things to do.

I might not be able to fight back, but I could mess with his head. I went into the bathroom and moved everything around in the medicine cabinet. I did the same with his desk. I opened a dresser drawer, thinking I'd move his clothes around, then changed my mind when I looked closer at the drawers. They were solid wood, with a groove on the side that fit runners on the case. I took out one of the empty drawers, flipped it over, then put it back in.

It worked, and I grinned as I put my plan into motion. I started by pulling out all the drawers and stacking them on the bed. Then I lifted the mirror off the back and rolled the case until it was upside down. Putting the drawers back in, I held them in place as I carefully rotated the dresser upright. Once the mirror and pictures were back, you couldn't tell I'd messed with it.

What else could I do?

Plenty. There was a can of Barbasol shaving cream and dental floss in the medicine cabinet. Duct tape and a thumbtack came from the desk. I pushed the clothing aside and duct-taped the can near the top shelf. I tied a length of floss to a thumbtack, then pushed it into the side of the can. Using another strip of tape, I almost closed it completely before fixing the other end of the floss to the back of the wooden door.

It was a crude tripwire booby trap, but it was effective. Once the thumbtack popped out, the can would shoot shaving cream out twenty feet and continue for ten seconds. I didn't have time to do a "White Christmas," where you hung the can from the ceiling. I did this to an upperclassman once as a prank. It coated everything in the room with a thin layer of foam.

His first reaction would be to close the door again and limit the damage. I prevented this by removing the hinge pins from the door.

I cleaned up the evidence as I tried to think of more gags. I was staring at the bed when there was a knock on the door.

Why would they knock? I was a prisoner here. What was I going to do, tell them no? "Just a minute," I replied.

I double-checked the room as I walked to the door. Keeping my left hand on the knife in my pocket, I opened it.

"Hi, I'm Melanie," the beautiful brunette said with a big smile.

"Your boyfriend's not here," I replied. "Don't worry about me taking him. I don't want him."

"That's not why I'm here," she said as she pushed past me into the room.

Ch. 11

"Please come in," I said as I closed the door. "Can I offer you a drink? Something to eat? Oh, wait, I can't. Your Alpha locked me in here without food or water, thinking I'd be more compliant when he returns to rape me."

Her eyes glazed over slightly, then she got all apologetic on me. "That was our mistake. Delta Betty assumed you'd eaten before the Mating Lineup but didn't verify. The kitchen will bring something to us shortly."

I looked at her quizzically. "How do you know?"

She tapped the side of her head. "Mind link. It's a kind of telepathy we can use in human or wolf form to talk to family or Pack members. It's the ability to talk into someone's head and for them to answer. If the bond is strong, you can even send feelings and images. Very handy."

No shit. And VERY informative. "Did you just talk to Delta Betty?"

"Yes, and the head of the kitchen staff. I can speak to one, several, or all at once. We need it to communicate in wolf form, but we use it this way, too."

Jesus. Communications are a critical part of warfare, and their innate abilities allowed them to speak to each other silently. As soon as one wolf spotted me trying to escape, they ALL would know. It made me wonder if I'd ever get away. I'd ask her many questions if Melanie wanted to be a chatty Cathy. "Please, sit down," I told her. I sat down where I could reach the knife under the table without being seen. She sat opposite me, closer to the door. "I saw the picture of you with the Alpha on top of Mount Rainier," I said.

"That was such a fun day! It was our last adventure before our parents died."

Wait a second. "Our parents?"

"Yes. Hard to believe, but that big lug is my twin brother." My jaw dropped at this; she seemed nice and friendly, while he had the personality of a badger. Looking closer, they both had the same black hair and sky-blue eyes.

"He's like three times your size," I said.

"I got the brains, and he got the brawn," she said as she giggled. She stood up and went to the door just as a teenage girl arrived with a sandwich and a Coke. Melanie took the stuff and closed the door. "I ate on the way here, so I'm good," she said as she set the food down.

"Oh? Where did you come from?"

"You don't know?"

I looked at the sandwich; ham and swiss cheese with mustard. Not bad. "Assume I know nothing about your kind or this place. I was captured yesterday and processed through this morning. After the lineup where your naked brother poked me in the stomach with that big dick of his? I've been in here alone."

She laughed. "I heard about that from some of the girls. You don't know how disappointed I was that no one had it on video. I'd love a picture of him on his ass, holding his balls, with you calling him a pervert. I'd blow it up and put it in my office!"

"You don't like Scary Naked Dick Sword?"

Melanie laughed out loud at that. "I love Cole, but he's SO bossy and superior. Making him look at that picture every time he came in the room would keep him humble." She leaned forward and lowered her voice. "I have high hopes for you, Angela Summers. You're exactly the kind of woman he needs and deserves. Luna was right to pair you two up. You have fire in your eyes, don't take shit from anyone, and aren't scared of him."

It was my turn to roll my eyes. "Oh, I'm scared of Cole. He's fucking HUGE, mentally unbalanced, and ordered the deaths of thousands and the enslavement of hundreds. He marked me as a BREEDER, and I'm sure he intends to make good on that tonight when he rapes me. So, yeah, I'm scared. I can't stop him from taking what he wants. I can't bring back the people he's killed or free the women he's collected to be Pack sex slaves. What I can and will do is to make his life as uncomfortable as possible before he kills me. I'm pretty fucking good at that."

She sat back in her chair and thought about that. "Cole will never hurt you, Angela. You are his mate. His wolf would never let him."

"What do you mean? He threatened to kill me if I didn't speak to him respectfully."

"I know what he said to you, but he said that for the sake of the Pack. He hasn't accepted you as his mate and Luna, so he cannot allow you to insult him in front of others. You are a team, leading together, always in sync. Discord among the leadership is bad for the Pack. You are military?"