The Opelux and Other Monsters || Book One

EPILOGUE

Darkness and cold pressed all around as he sucked in a sharp, revitalizing breath. Soreness pulsed at his throat and wrist, the hand perfectly regrown, but the pain would be gone in a few minutes. He stretched and his arms met icy steel. He was surrounded by it. A corpse freezer. It amused him how quickly he recognized it. It had to be his third time finding himself in one.

He tapped his boot against the door. He could hear Dugana's Head Medic outside it, filling out a report. He grinned as she swore, and he tapped louder.

She filled her hand with a coma Veehm. He frowned. He couldn't have that. He leaned up so he could see the door. She threw the door wide and he locked eyes with her.

"Drop it," he commanded, his eyes burning as he propelled his Vek into her.

She blinked and lowered her hand.

"Now, pull me out."

She gripped the handle of the table and pulled him out.

He slid to the floor, holding her gaze. "Your Poeir's won't work until I leave from here," he said.

She nodded.

"Now, where is the bag I had?" The connection broke as he scanned the room for it and the woman's faculties rushed back to her.

She screamed and bolted for the door.

"No!" He jumped on top of her and flattened her to the floor, his hand pressed over her mouth. "Don't give me a reason to hurt you. I would rather they didn't know this happened just yet." He pushed his Vek into her eyes once more. "You will not try to escape, and you will not scream."

She whimpered but nodded.

He let go of her mouth and stood. "Where is my bag?"

"How is this possible?" she gasped.

He grabbed her arm and jerked her to her feet. "Where is my bag?"

She looked him up and down. "Your throat was torn open and your hand was gone. You were completely dead. How is this possible?"

He grabbed her hair and got in her face. "Where is it?"

"The first locker," she grimaced, squeezing her eyes shut tight.

He spotted the row of lockers on the other side of the desk. He dragged her along with him. He could hear in her mind it would require a correct code or an alarm would sound.

"What's the code?"

She was impressively careful not to think it.

"You will either tell me willingly, or I will compel you. Your choice."

She clamped her mouth and eyes shut.

He laughed. "Fine." He shoved her up against the locker and pressed his hands to either side of her head. His Vek flowed into his hands, into her mind. It took all of five seconds to find exactly what he was looking for. He let her go and she dropped into a crumpled heap at his feet.

He pressed the code into the pad and the locker swung wide. "Thank you, Colleena." He scooped it up and shouldered it.

"Now." He picked her up and set her on the desk, holding her hair to keep her upright. "I need you to sign a release form saying you sent my body off with the team that took my brother. Can you do that?"

She shook her head weakly.

"Oh, I'm sure you can."

She squeezed her eyes shut tighter.

He sighed. "You have balls, I'll give you that." He slammed her head against the steel surface of the desk. His claws slid from his fingertips and he dragged the smooth side down her throat.

She gasped and her eyes flew open long enough for him to catch them.

"Enough of this. Fill out the form and submit it, now."

Her eyes glazed over. He let her go and stepped out of the way as she sat up and slipped off the desk. She walked over to the corpse freezer and pushed his table back in and closed the door. There was a beep and a screen appeared across the surface.

He sat at the edge of the desk and watched her carefully for any signs of defiance. But his command had imprinted fully, and she was done in a matter of minutes.

"Very good." He came up behind her. "Now submit it so I can be on my way."

She typed in her authorization code and submitted it.

He smiled. "Excellent." He slid his bag down his arm so he could reach inside it and pulled out a small pouch. "Inside here is a small tracker. I have a job for you." He spun her around and locked eyes. "You will forget I was ever here. The only thing you will remember is this command." He pressed the pouch into her hand. "You will find a discreet way of hiding the tracker on the girl's person—something she will always have with her."

The woman's fingers closed around the pouch and she nodded.

"Good. Thank you for all your help, Colleena. You may return to your work and ignore me completely. I am no longer here."

She nodded again and went back to her desk.

His Vek seeped through his skin. Once it was thick enough, he solidified it into a shield. With the shield in place, he was completely invisible to all but Nazonna. That wouldn't be a problem, though. He could avoid him easily. The hardest task ahead would be retrieving Daniel. At least, with a tracker in place, the headache of re-locating the girl would be avoided. Daniel would appreciate that.

THE END