Edge of Instinct: Rabids Book 1 (51 page)

“And you received no reaction from the tags whatsoever during that time?”

“None. Until Harley showed up. Then I could feel what I have come to realize is their normal reaction to his Hybrid nature. But it was just that calm warm and tingly feeling I usually get from them when he’s around. Like they were letting me know I was safe with him, even before I knew him.” She shrugged, blushing.

Harley’s keen eyes saw her hands twitch to fiddle with her hair, but instead she forced her arms to fold over her chest, hugging herself. Harley wasn’t entirely sure how he felt about the fact that she could feel him when he was nearby. Probably about the same as she felt about the fact that he could smell her, he reasoned. Or that he’d been following her for months.

“Well then,” Pell said, filling in the heavy silence that had fallen on the room, rocking back on his heels. “I think, unless you are under extreme duress to the point of being killed and what not, your tags will not react in a negative way. Even then they may not react to the danger of a fellow Clean, based off of what you said. There is no way to tell if you would hurt someone if they tried to interfere with your ability to fight a Rabid, however. Such as trying to hold you back, for example. Unless it was tested out, of course.” Amiel paused.

“Actually, we do have some evidence on that. Tandy had to hold me down at one point, to keep me from attacking Rabids. I gave him a black eye.” Harley’s eyes widened. “He said that he didn’t think I meant to do it, I was just fighting to escape and I accidentally swatted him.” She winced apologetically at the brothers. Harley was more impressed than upset. His Pop wasn’t an easy man to get one up on.

“Well! That friend of yours gave us another valuable piece of the puzzle! It would seem even under those circumstances, you are reluctant to hurt a Clean. That should bring you some comfort. Perhaps at another time we can further explore that avenue.” Amiel nodded, mood slightly dampened yet seeming more hopeful.

“So!” Pell clapped his hands together. “The next experiment I have planned is a bit…extreme.” His eyes shifted to glance at Harley out of the corner of his eye. “But necessary! However, as it is a bit extreme, I won’t just spring it on you the way I did with that slap. Sorry about that, by the way,” he apologized to Amiel, awkwardly patting her shoulder.

“It’s alright. I’d prefer you didn’t do it again, though,” she stated aristocratically. Harley snorted, and Pell nodded emphatically.

“Definitely not, my lady.” He did that lame exaggerated bow again.

“Thank you.” She smiled. “What exactly did you have in mind?”

“Charleen was kind enough to round up a few stray Rabids after Cajun called me this morning.” He glanced at Harley, who glanced at his brother and his fiancé. Charleen was unrepentant as usual, but Cajun sported that ‘sorry, but it’s gotta be done’ grin of his.

“You’re going to throw Rabids at her?” Harley growled. “I thought the whole point of this was to figure out how to make it stop, not to toss her in the middle of it?”

“That
is
the point, my friend,” Pell eagerly agreed.

“Friend?” Harley frowned.

“Well of course.” Pell looked at him confused for a moment, before continuing right on with his little speech. Harley’s brow rose and Amiel covered her grin with a hand. Harley wasn’t sure how he felt about that. He suddenly seemed to be gaining friends left and right, whether he wanted them or not. Pell was still talking, not noticing Harley’s expression.

“The goal
is
to get her out of these dangerous situations, yes. But first we have to learn as much about what’s happening to her as we can. Then we can make the best decision in regards as to how to make her safe. We need to understand how these tags work, Harley.”

“And we need to understand more about who made them and what their purposes for doing it were,” Charleen interjected sternly.

“What if the tags don’t react the same way? What if by willingly puttin’ herself in a situation the tags won’t react the same, won’t protect her? You’re willin’ to take that chance for these answers?” Harley asked, grasping for straws. Sure, he’d enjoyed watching her fight that first night. But now that he knew her better, now that he was her friend, the idea worried him. “Besides, every time she fights, she’s puttin’ herself at risk for infection. She’s been insanely lucky so far to get away without infection. Now we’re just temptin’ fate.”

“It’s going to happen again eventually, whether we want it to or not, Harl,” Cajun interjected. “At least this time she’ll have us here to back her up. We’ll cover up as much of her skin as we can, and we can pull her out if things get too hairy.”

“Ah! One moment!” Pell held up a hand and ran out the warehouse door. When he returned he was holding a bicycle helmet. “She can wear this to protect her head. It’s saved my noggin a few times.”

“Are you particularly
fond
of that helmet, Einstein?” Cajun asked.

“Einstein? Hardly. His hair was much better behaved than mine.” Pell snorted, laughing at his own joke. “It’s been a good helmet for me, but I can always get a new one if this one gets too messy.” Cajun smirked, but said nothing. Harley turned to Amiel.

“It’s up to you, Thumbelina. How far are ya willin’ to take this circus?” Harley asked, looking earnestly into her eyes.

“I’m not going to lie and say the idea of facing Rabids
intentionally
doesn’t scare me. I’ve always done my best to avoid them when I feel them coming. Before last night,” she said, glancing toward Cajun. “But sometimes you have to do what you have to do. And if this brings me one step closer to finding my answers, then I have to do it.” She smiled, landing a fake punch on his arm. “Besides, it’s like Cajun said. I have you guys to back me up.”

His instincts were rebelling, his Hybrid snapping at him to stop her from going through with this. They protected their own. They didn’t toss them to the lions. Her emeralds drew him in, pleading and consoling at once. Her small hand wrapped around his elbow, and even through his leather he could feel her touch as though it were on his naked skin.

“I’ll be fine, Harley. I’ve made it this far, right?” His jaw clenched. Could he let her do this? He wanted to think he wouldn’t pull any macho caveman antics that women were always complaining about, but his insides were clawing at him. He took one look in her eyes and knew his answer. His fingers found the tab of her zipper, fastened it and slowly zipped it to her neck. Reaching into his own jacket he pulled out his aviators. Her smile was bright, eyes wide with happy surprise as he slipped them carefully up her nose.

“Wear these. Cheatin’ Rabids like to spit in the eyes to infect ya.” Her lips parted slightly, and he could feel her emotions swinging toward confusion and nervous energy. Probably thanking her lucky stars it hadn’t already happened to her in the past. He knew he was. He grabbed a lock of her hair, feeling the soft strands between his thumb and fingers. He gave it a couple of light tugs. “Slightest slip up and I’m gonna be in there savin’ that little butt. Screw the experiments.” He tucked the hair behind her ear before pressing his glasses a little further up her nose. “And don’t break my shades.”

“If I do, I’ll just buy you a new pair at the Gap.” She smirked saucily at him, revealing a little dimple in her left cheek that he’d never noticed before. He swallowed hard as his Hybrid leapt to the forefront of his mind, eager to show that dimple some attention. Her left brow lifted over the frame of his aviators, likely noting the way his eyes had dilated. Not only that, but the traitorous glasses were no doubt showing her all the chemical reactions he’d just had to her. He cleared his throat, stepping back and averting his eyes.

“Got your gun?” She nodded. “Got ammo?” She nodded again. “Good. Let’s get this over with then,” he growled at Pell, making the guy jump slightly before smiling cheesily.

“Right! Like I said, Charleen coaxed a few Rabids in here early this morning, trapping them in a couple of rooms at the back.” Cajun grinned luridly at Charleen, and from the little squeak and jump she made, Harley assumed he’d pinched her backside, too. That was his brother. Sometimes it was embarrassing taking those two anywhere. Harley shook his head, then rolled his eyes at Amiel who was currently trying to hide a smirk behind her hand. She snickered harder, and he couldn’t help smiling back. She really was cute in his glasses. Pell was completely oblivious to it all as usual, going on about the plan at hand.

“When she releases them, they will smell us and come directly here. I imagine they may be a bit…frustrated at having been trapped for so long. So you’ll have your work cut out for you.” Amiel nodded solidly, hands clenching at her sides. Pell popped his dorky helmet down on top of her head, fussing with the straps until they fit her snuggly. He stood back, beaming proudly with his work.

“There! That’ll do nicely.” Amiel pulled the glasses down enough to bat her lashes at Harley when Pell turned his back. Pursing her lips she struck a ridiculous pose. She obviously knew how embarrassingly goofy she looked in the helmet and was playing it off. But Harley could have groaned. Even looking like a total doofus, the girl managed to be cute. Sighing he grabbed her arms, turned her around and steered her toward the middle of the warehouse.

“Now, to ensure the brunt of the attack is on Amiel, and not
us
, we are going to be in this control room over there. We can’t mess with the experiment or we won’t get accurate readings.” Pell pointed to a little box of a room about fifteen feet away.

“In there?” Cajun asked, nose crinkled, emotions giving off the same feelings that Harley was experiencing about this idea.

“Oh yes. Don’t worry, my monitors should have no problems recording all the data there. I checked them earlier.”

“Good, that’s exactly what I was worried about. Hope everyone wore deodorant today,” Cajun mumbled before turning to Charleen. “Why don’t you let me get them this time. You already took risks getting them here by yourself this morning.” Charleen smirked.

“You know I’m a faster runner than you.”

“It’s a good thing I like the chase then, isn’t it.” Cajun leered, grabbing her up and making a big sloppy display of kissing her, before slapping her butt and sending her on her way to fetch the Rabids. Harley sighed loudly. Those two were ridiculous with their PDA.

“Charleen!” Amiel called after the girl. Charleen froze. Turning warily, she eyed Amiel as though she were a strange new animal she’d never encountered before. Amiel took several steps closer, and Harley shadowed her, standing stiffly at her back, hoping Charleen didn’t cause a fuss. She’d learned how to quell her urges to rip into every random person that looked at her, but she would always have that aggressive streak in her system. She would always have the calculating instinct for survival. She’d always have the absence of empathy toward those she didn’t feel loyal to. She’d been born that way.

“Thank you for helping me. You didn’t have to. You don’t even know me. But you’ve taken risks for me anyways, and I just wanted you to know that I recognize that and appreciate it.” Amiel’s emotions and words rang clearly, honest appreciation thick to the core of the statement. Charleen’s eyes narrowed slightly, her stance still wary. Harley could feel Cajun edging closer, sensing a very likely confrontation.

“I love Cajun. He loves his brother, which makes his brother my family. And if his brother likes you so much, then I guess you might as well be family, too. Now shut up, I’m working.” Harley stared in shock as Charleen melted into the shadows. Charleen’s words may have been gruff, but coming from her, they might as well have been a big warm hug. She hadn’t turned her back when she left, which meant she didn’t entirely trust Amiel, but it also meant she didn’t hate her enough to insult her. Leaving as she had showed she was wary of Amiel’s place in their group, but that she was willing to give it a chance. 

“Well, that was unexpected,” Cajun said, face showing similar signs of shock. Shrugging he turned to move to their little safety box, but didn’t go inside. His face said he clearly didn’t trust Harley to come back when he was supposed to. Harley turned to Amiel, lightly gripping her arm.

“You sure y’all are up to this?”

“Yes,” she whispered. “I’ll be fine. Go.”

“Harley, let’s go!” Cajun grumbled quietly. Amiel nodded, her silent encouragement ungluing his feet. He sprinted to Cajun’s side, and was about to step inside when her heard Amiel gasp.

“They’re coming!” Her words were strained, and she clutched at her heart. Charleen’s lithe form shot into the room, and Harley noticed her look at Amiel with vague surprise as she ran by. Cajun shoved them both into the room, slamming the door shut, leaving them in very cramped, dark quarters. The dim lighting from the thick Plexiglas window in front of them and Pell’s laptop were their only sources of light. Amiel suddenly let out a piercing scream, falling to her knees, arms stretched wide.

“Well. That was certainly…disconcerting,” Pell muttered, writing something down on his notes. Harley’s body tensed, instincts screaming that he go out there and defend her. He ground his teeth, fighting for control. It was difficult to fight for control over something you didn’t want to fight against. Again, he and his Hybrid wanted the same thing. And again, it revolved around that little girl, out there all alone. Shadowed forms of Rabids poured out of darkened corners in the back of the warehouse, all setting their sights on Amiel. Amiel reached up, the helmet clips popping loose as she yanked it from her head. Harley bit down harder, teeth protesting the strain. Pell perked right up.