Moon(10)
Joy swayed a little on her feet, the urge to check on Moon so strong she fisted her shirt tighter, remembering she would give too much away if she acted on impulse.
“Dr. Yards?” This Species was tall with a beautiful mane of hair and pretty cat eyes, which appeared angry as he glared at her. “What do you think you were doing?”
“I’m an expert on Species. I was trying to prevent someone from being killed.”
His gaze lowered to her shirt. “He tore it?”
“I did. I knew my breasts would get his attention. I realize how unprofessional that sounds, but I was right. And I’m not here as his therapist, or in any official capacity.” Her chin lifted as she glared back, daring him to question her motives. “Who gave him breeding drugs? Why is he on them? What the hell did I walk into?”
“He could have killed you.”
She decided to be totally blunt. They appreciated that. “Your males are unlikely to injure a female, especially one they don’t consider a threat. He was more prone to attempt to engage in sexual activity than kill me outright. That’s also why I opened my shirt. The sight of cleavage seems to work wonders. It has been known to change their moods to downright friendly. It’s not a secret how horny some Species can be.”
He seemed astonished at her frankness but suddenly grinned. “True. Let’s start over. Thank you for coming so quickly. You were difficult to track down but as you can see, we have a situation.”
She relaxed the firm grip on her shirt. “What is going on, sir?”
“Call me Tiger.” He held out his hand.
She took it, making sure to keep her shirt together, feeling the entire situation was a bit surreal. “Um, what happened to Moon?”
He hesitated. “Did you sign the waiver?”
She had to think. “You mean the confidentiality clause they shoved at me while I was being processed at the gate? Yes, I did.”
“Good. Moon was attacked three days ago and our doctors haven’t been able to figure out what was done to him.”
She waited, confused. He remained silent. “How was he attacked? Why call me? I’m a psychologist. Was it a mental break caused by the trauma he suffered? What exactly happened to him?”
“No. Yes. Maybe. He was shot with what we believe was a high-powered dart rifle while he patrolled one of our walls. We haven’t been able to identify the drug yet but it’s not a breeding drug. We’re working on finding out what it was.”
“Okay.” She waited for more details.
“He woke feral. He doesn’t seem to recognize his friends. He wants to kill anyone who comes into contact with him. Our doctors hoped whatever he was given would wear off. When it didn’t, we figured it might be psychological. You were his head shrink after he was released from Mercile and we need you to assess him.”
Her heart squeezed while she ignored the derogatory title he’d labeled her job. She had grown used to it while dealing with Species. She was more concerned with 466’s condition. It was painful that something horrible had happened to him.
“It sounds more like a drug reaction than a psychotic break. You need to find out what he was given.”
Irritation flashed over Tiger’s features. “We’re aware of that fact but this isn’t a known drug. We’re being targeted by some of Mercile’s employees.”
That surprised her. “I heard they were shut down forever.”
“They were but we haven’t found all the doctors or staff who imprisoned us. A special task force hunts them but it takes time. Someone with strong ties to Mercile recently sent a team of mercenaries to retrieve one of our females. We believe he also hired someone who worked for Mercile to make this drug and infect Moon with it as a distraction. This unidentified drug has made him homicidal.”
“Anyone associated with Mercile will be prosecuted for what they did. It’s irrational to believe that killing their victims will change that. I’m assuming that’s why they created this drug? So he’d kill other Species?” It was her best guess.
His eyebrow lifted. “Rationality isn’t their strongest trait, considering what they did to us. Someone created a drug not listed in the FDA database. Mercile is the only enemy we have with the resources to manufacture a drug targeted to harm Species and the attack happened at the same time mercenaries paid by a Mercile associate attempted to recapture the female.”
She bit her lip but released it when she realized her nervousness showed. “Okay. I don’t see why you called me though. He needs a chemist or scientist to figure out what he was given and reverse this reaction. I’m not qualified to tell you what was done to him on a substance level.”