Leap of the Lion (The Wild Hunt Legacy #4)(5)

Reminding her of an ugly vulture, the visitor had a shaved head, sharp nose, and dead eyes. From the flurry of activity after he arrived, he was what the human girls called a big shot.

Perhaps the big shot had interesting news. Taking her…liberated…stetho-scope from around her neck, Darcy pressed the bell to the glass and heard light conversation about politics and the weather. No problem. She’d wait…as patient as any cat at a mouse hole. A very cold, shivering cat.

Years ago, she’d risked much to steal black leggings and a black, long-sleeved T-shirt from the staff laundry room. Unfortunately, frequent contact with the rough brick walls had mangled the fabric, leaving holes for the frigid night air that blew off Puget Sound.

This high up, Darcy could see the faint glimmer of the Olympic Mountains, and her body hungered to be free of the enclosing walls. If she could only trawsfur and run the forests on four legs.

But, even if she could escape, she was stuck in human form. She’d hoped to be a cat shifter like Mum, but whatever the Scythe had done to her and the other captured females, none of them could trawsfur to animal form.

The bitter loss of that ability was…what it was. Perhaps having a cat shifter mother was the reason she enjoyed sneaking around. Of course, mountain lions ruled the forest and wouldn’t be caught dead in a city. She was more like a cowardly rat. That hurt.

Louder voices brought her attention back. The humans had finally reached the reason for the visit. Keeping her grip on one vine, she listened to Director.

“That’s right, Colonel. We don’t know why Barbara died.”

Died? Darcy froze, her chest tight with grief. A few months older than Darcy, Barbara had just turned twenty-four and was—had been—the oldest of the survivors. Tears prickled in Darcy’s eyes. Barbara had been her one real friend in here.

Eleven years before, Darcy had been carrying moving boxes into their new Dogwood home and hating Mum for making them move. She’d felt so lost.

“Hi. I’m Barbara.” The slender blonde had walked right up to Darcy. “I’m so glad you’re my age. There aren’t enough female cubs here. We’re going to be friends, you know.” And they had been.

As a drizzling rain began, Darcy bowed her head. Even the heavens should mourn when someone so special passed on.

Tapping the table with a finger, Director continued to talk. “For some reason, the creature wasted away, year by year. Nothing halted the progression, even though the doctor could find nothing wrong.”

The colonel frowned. “Was this wasting similar to how the Dogwood adults died?”

“Exactly. However, Barbara’s death took years. The adults were gone within a few months.”

Darcy’s jaw tightened. Mum had died in a cage. All the grownups had, one by one. Only the children between one and twelve had survived.

“How about the other females?”

“The older ones are weakening and growing thinner.”

And they were giving up. I won’t. I can’t. As the rain soaked her clothes and ran down her face, Darcy shivered in the growing chill.

Director scratched his round chin. “You knew Barbara had died almost before I did. How?”

“Her cougar siblings tried to escape.” The colonel’s smile was grim. “None of them ever tried before—not since we made that demonstration video years ago. It proved most effective.”

“That video.” Director’s mouth twisted. “Although they’re beasts, the girls still look human, and effective or not, the way that child was tortured…”

Darcy snarled silently. These humans were the true beasts.

“They’re abominations. We can’t show weakness. Now each shifter-soldier knows that if he doesn’t obey, we’ll skin his sister. The threat is what keeps them in line.”

A grumbling sound came from Director. “It’s a useless threat without a hostage.”

“True enough—and the cougar brothers somehow knew their sister had died. Next time a hostage is near death, tell us so we can dispose of her siblings first.”

Dispose. If—when—Darcy died, these humans would dispose of her brothers. Would kill Fell and Patrin. Her hand on the stethoscope shook as she remembered her littermates as children. Blue-eyed, brown-haired, light-skinned Fell, all lanky and tall. Patrin with black hair and dark eyes like hers and a wicked sense of humor.

Now, her beloved brothers were hard-eyed, bitter soldiers. Shifter-soldiers. Yet, the over-protective Daonain males were vulnerable when it came to their loved ones. That was why Mum had told her to watch out for Fell and Patrin.

But how? How, Mum? As she turned her attention back to the conversation, a rumble of thunder drowned the two humans out.

Director refilled the glasses. “Did Barbara’s brothers get away?”

“No. Although their disposal was a bit tricky.” The colonel made an annoyed sound. “The GPS devices pinpointed them, but they’d entered the forest. Even with tracking devices, it’s almost impossible to catch the mutant beasts there.”

Director gave a short laugh. “Well, that is one reason the shifters are useful. How did you catch them?”

“We didn’t try.” The colonel sipped his drink. “They’d entered a box canyon. We set the trees on fire and shot the cougars when the heat forced them into the open.”