Page 2 of Bound
Eventually, we end up in my least favorite place. They refer to it as the research lab, but I call ithell. It’s my personal torture chamber. I can’t count the number of visits I’ve had to this room over the years. It has to be in the hundreds by now.
As I walk into the room on all fours, the doc turns to look at me with a smile. “Ah, patient zero zero three, today I have a real treat for you. I have a new experiment to try!”
I swallow hard. It’s bad enough that they don’t even know my name, only referring to me as a number. But when the dochas new experiments, it always means a new kind of pain. If I know what he’s going to do, then I can brace myself for it. But it’s so much harder when I don’t know what to expect.
Before I can react, a muzzle is placed over my head, then I feel the telltale prick of a needle. Ihatethe needle. It paralyzes me, but I still feel everything. My heart hammers in my chest with fear. I let out a whine, knowing this is going to be a bad session.
My body starts to sway, then strong arms lift me onto the metal table, and I’m laid on my side. I try to move, to bite them, to do anything but lie here, but my body refuses to respond, and all I can do is wait. Having no control of my body is almost worse than the pain the doc likes to bestow upon me.
Almost.But nothing could’ve prepared me for what he has in store for me today.
Leather cuffs are connected around each of my limbs. I’m not sure why, when they know I won’t be able to move. Just another way to make me feel helpless.
“Alright, my dear, today we are going to see how you hold up to the loss of your fur.” He holds up something that looks like a cross between a blade and a razor.
He’s going to shave my fur off?
The thought makes me recoil internally. A shaved wolf? I don’t see how this does anything but humiliate me and leave me colder than I normally am in my damp cell. But it could be worse.Much worse.Maybe they want to see how fast my fur regrows?
He moves to my side, where I can’t visually track his movements. Then I feel it. He isn’t removing my fur,he’s removing my skin.
I howl in pain, although not a sound escapes me.
There are two kinds of pain in this world: emotional and physical.
When I’m in my cage, I sometimes convince myself that the emotional pain of being locked up here, knowing I’ll be tortured again soon, is worse than the physical. But when the doc starts to literally slice me up, while I’m unable to move or even scream, I realize that this is, by far, the worst pain I’ve ever felt.
I just pray that this time, I die quickly.
Chapter 2
Cherry
Age 14 (10 years ago)
“Ruby, waitup!” I call to my older sister as she races ahead to the edge of the woods.
“All three of you wait for us before you shift!” my mother calls out behind us.
I look back and see her and my dad headed our way. I turn back with a laugh as I continue jogging toward Ruby, who’s waiting for me just ahead. She grabs my hand and tugs me along with her.
“C’mon, I don’t want Scarlett to get a head start on us!”
We jog, hand in hand, toward where our older sister Scarlett stands excited at the edge of the woods. Today she turns eighteen, and Mom and Dad have a tradition of taking us to a forest on our birthdays so we can run together as a family pack. It was a few hours’ drive from our current home, but they said it was worth it to visit this particular National Park, full of beautifulscenery.
“You know she’ll wait for all of us,” I tell Ruby, chuckling. We finally catch up and move to stand on either side of Scarlett. I put my arm around her waist and she puts her arms around our shoulders.
“Happy birthday, Scar,” I tell her, giving her a side hug.
“Thanks, Cherry.”
“Yeah, happy birthday, big sis!” Ruby says from her other side.
“Thanks, Rube.”
We stand and look into the forest from the edge of the field, excited for a chance to run. My wolf is anxious to be free, smells already starting to reach us with the tease of a chase.
“Oh, that’s such a beautiful picture of my three beautiful girls! Now turn around and let me get one of your faces too!”
