Once Bitten, Twice Burned (Phoenix Fire 2)

The fittest what?

But the static crackled again. Then . . . silence.

“H-hello?” she cried out.

No answer.

She twisted beneath her bonds. Pulled and yanked. Her left wrist cut open when the metal tore into it.

The scent of blood teased her nose.

He likes the blood.

She stilled.

And remembered.

I am Sabine. She thought of the cold woman’s voice. Of hell and pain.

I am Sabine.

She stared up at the light. Remembered screams and death. A nightmare that wouldn’t end. And that voice . . . that cold voice.

You will die. A promise.

Because her beast was out of the cage, and there would be no going back.

Time passed. The bonds holding her eventually were removed—the woman’s voice told her that they were programmed to release once her body reached a certain core temperature.

Food was brought to her. Pushed through a narrow opening at the bottom of her door. She ate. Barely tasted the bland meal.

She paced her room. Walked the small confines again and again. They’d given her clothes, jeans and a T-shirt and even tennis shoes. Maybe they were trying to make her feel normal now.

Only she wasn’t normal.

The man’s image would whisper through her thoughts every now and then, but she never let her expression alter.

They thought her memories were gone.

You thought wrong.

Because when she’d come back after her last death, her memories had returned completely.

She heard footsteps approaching her cell. After her deaths, her senses had sharpened, too. She could catch the faintest of smells and hear the softest of whispers.

You don’t know what I’ll do to you.

She didn’t let her smile break free. Sabine stilled and waited.

The door opened. Sabine didn’t rush for the door. She didn’t do anything. They thought they’d trained her. Broken her.

They were wrong.

A woman walked inside. A woman with sleek red hair that was twisted up on her head. She wore a lab coat, carried a clipboard, looked perfect and pretty.

But she was rotten inside. Sabine could smell that, too.

Guards flanked the woman, and, big surprise, they had guns trained on Sabine.

“I-it’s time for a test.” The woman’s voice trembled. It had never trembled before.

Sabine lifted a brow. Are you afraid to be in here with me? You should be.

The woman—she smelled of antiseptic, blood, and fear—locked her gaze on Sabine. “I can give you freedom.”

Her words were not what Sabine had expected.

“There’s a monster out there. A dangerous, vicious beast. He has to be stopped.”

Sabine was already looking at a dangerous, vicious beast. Just one that wore the skin of a human.

“He’s like you,” the lady told her. Then her jaw dropped as she seemed to realize what she’d said.

’Cause, yes, calling me a dangerous, vicious beast will make me want to help you.

“Why aren’t you talking?” the woman demanded. She seemed unnerved by Sabine’s stare. Good. The redhead’s brows shot up. “Can you talk?”

“Yes.” She just didn’t want to waste words on the bitch.

The redhead sighed, as if in relief. “Our facility has been breached.”

Was that why the lady was sweating?

He’s coming for me. The thought had Sabine’s heart squeezing. Ryder had given her a promise. Freedom was close. Close enough to taste.

“We know our director will be targeted for assassination.” The woman’s fingertips had whitened around her clipboard.

Their director? Ah yes, must be that dick, Wyatt. He’d come to see her a few times. Come to gauge the success of his precious “research.”

The redhead’s eyes narrowed on Sabine. “We want you to stop his attacker.”

Seriously? The bitch was crazy. Sabine wasn’t going to stop him. She’d applaud the guy. Give him a freaking standing ovation.

As the silence stretched, the redhead finally seemed to realize that fact.

Uh, hello? I’m the captive that you’ve been torturing and killing for days. Why, oh why, would I ever help you?

“You remembered this time, didn’t you?” the woman asked as she eased back a step. “Wyatt said that could happen. That sometimes you’d rise with your memory there. It just hadn’t happened before, so I thought . . .” Her voice trailed away.

Sabine just kept staring at her.

The woman cleared her throat. “Actually, that might make things easier,” the redhead murmured, but she still made a point of getting closer to the guards. The woman slanted a quick glance at the guard on her right. “We still have the tail on her brother, right?”

My brother. Sabine fought to control her expression. They were looking for a weakness. She wouldn’t give Genesis one.

But the crazy bitch was still talking. “Make sure our watcher knows that if Sabine doesn’t complete this task, a bullet should be put in Rhett’s head.”

Fire burned in her gut. Heating and churning and boiling as fury and fear clawed at her.

“Now that got your attention, didn’t it?” the woman said, sounding satisfied. “I saw the flash of fire in your eyes.”

“I’ll give you a flash of fire,” Sabine promised, knotting her hands into fists.

The woman jumped back a good two feet. Her shoulders brushed the cell door. The guards lifted their weapons.

Sabine had been playing with fire lately. Conjuring it from nothing. Letting balls of flame roll in her hands. The practice helped to pass the time.

Now, deliberately, she let the fire rise from her palm. The ball hovered over her hand. “Look what little trick I learned.”

Though they already knew this. They’d been watching her through their cameras and their two-way mirrors.

“Do you want your brother to die?”

Sabine forced a shrug. “Maybe he’ll just come back.” She even managed a smile. “Like me.”

One perfectly arched red eyebrow rose. “Since you were adopted and he isn’t your blood brother, I find that highly doubtful.” She gave Sabine a wide smile. “But let’s go see.” She turned to face the door.

“No!” The word broke from Sabine, and the redhead looked back, all Cheshire-cat satisfied.

Damn her. “Why are you doing this?” Sabine demanded. “I’m a person. I have rights!”

“You’re a weapon. And you’re about to be used.”

Very, very cold bitch.

“Your target is a man named Cain O’Connor. He’ll most likely be with a woman—Eve Bradley.” The redhead held up her clipboard. There was a manila file on that board. The lady pulled it free, then tossed the file near Sabine’s feet. “You can find their pictures in here. Look at them. Memorize them, then go and find those two.”