Savage: Wild Heart Chronicles

By Lucy Auburn

I don't know my own name, but fate tied me to him.

Shifters are living under the streets of Belmont City, hiding from the federal agency that wants to see all paranormals dead.

Eden Brooks, a captive of scientists who torture her, doesn't know all this. In fact, she doesn't even know her own name… until a shifter named Alec rescues her and she winds up in the middle of a desperate fight.

Alec is a man who likes to stay neutral. Serving in the army taught him that following orders isn't always in his best interest. But something about Eden's delicate eyes, her sexy smile, makes him want to protect her for better or for worse.

Their love is inevitable, but so is the battle that could end it all.

Can someone like Eden help save them all? It's what their future depends on.

**Savage is the sequel to Feral, and Book Three in the Wild Heart Chronicles. It is a complete novel with a HEA and no cliffhangers.**

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lucy Auburn
• Release date: Aug 16, 2017
• ISBN: 9781386655947

Book preview

Chapter 1

Mad as a Hatter

There were a lot of awful things going on in my life, but none were quite so bad as forgetting my own name.

Beatrice… Jordie… could I be an Annabelle? The thought was disconcerting. I made the shape of the name with my mouth, trying to figure out if it seemed familiar. An-na-belle. An-na-belle.

Then I giggled. People don’t say their own names aloud all the time. It was silly to think that was how I’d remember mine.

Remarkable refractory period. That was Salt, holding a clipboard and staring at me the way most people look at lab rats or zoo animals. He acted like I wasn’t staring right back at him; at this point, I’d gotten so used to it that I didn’t even try talking to him. "Are you certain you took a pint of blood and gave her two CCs of solution?"

Positive. That was the white coat in the corner, the one with the tired eyes and the messy hair who never looked like she wanted to be here. She never goes into shock, sir. Based on the old needle scars on her body, this isn’t her first experience with needles.

With fingers so cold that they sent shivers across my skin, Salt reached out and touched my arm where they’d taken the blood. I would’ve swatted him away, but they kept me in restraints all the time these days, strapped to a medical bed like a patient in the psych ward.

It was almost insulting, how clean and proper they made my prison cell look, when the things they did to me were always so awful. It was a prison cell masquerading as a hospital room.

As soon as the experiment is past the testing phase, let’s go further, Salt was saying to the white coat, his expression alight with something like hunger. Or maybe it was greed. I’d like to see if we can take three or even four pints of blood before she goes into shock.

Yes, sir.

If the mother of two in the white coat cared about my well-being, she said nothing to protest his words.

My mind drifted back to names. Leigh. Suzanne. Courtney. Helga.

Helga. I think if my name was Helga, I would’ve hurled myself off a cliff by now.

The door to my prison cell opened, and in walked Lawrence Holt. I strained my neck to look at him, noticing the almost supernatural sheen to his bald brown head. Sometimes I wondered if he shaved it every morning just to keep it looking so shiny.

Director Holt, Salt said as a greeting. Good of you to join us.

Apologies for my tardiness, Salt.

That was all anyone ever called him: Salt. No title, no first name, not an inkling of humanity. I’d heard someone once call him Jacob, only to be immediately fired.

When I noticed your lateness, I imagined that something came up and you were taking care of it. Was my presumption correct?

Holt nodded once, sharply. It was. And no worries, sir, I’ve got a handle on it.

Good. Salt set down the clipboard and straightened out his suit blazer. Wipe her memories again after I’m gone. It’s been a week. It wouldn’t do for her to remember for too long.

Of course, sir.

Moments later, Salt was gone, taking the foul stench of his noxious evil with him—or so I imagined. In reality, Salt smelled like nothing more offensive than a bit of cologne, but just seeing his face made me feel nauseous anyway. There was something oozy about him that bothered me.

Alright, let’s begin. Hillary, hold her feet down for me. I don’t want to get kicked in the groin a second time.

The white coat nodded and came over to brace herself at my ankles. I watched Holt walk around to the head of my bed, his eyes never even coming close to meeting mine. With two slick, warm hands he pressed his fingers to my temple.

Hannah. Madison. Ingrid.

Something shot through me like a bolt of lightning, straight from Holt’s hands into my head. My spine curved, and if it hadn’t been for the white coat and my restraints, I might’ve tumbled right out of bed.

I could feel him messing around inside my mind.

Too bad for him, he didn’t know it wasn’t doing anything to me, especially taking away my short-term memories. Those I had; it was the others that were a problem.

Riley. Nina. Edith.

The more Holt poured his strange powers into me, the sharper my mind grew. It was always like that in these moments: the mind fog, which had haunted me since the day I nearly drowned, cleared for a while. With his hands on my head and his magic in my memories, I remembered what the water took from me.

My name.

Eden!

Like a drowning cat scrabbling towards shore, I held on to my name with tenterhooks. Eden. Eden. Eden. I was determined this time. I would remember it.

All done, Holt said, withdrawing his hands from my head. He looked at me, as he always did after wiping my memory, and there was something verging on pity in that glance. Seconds later, it was gone and he was stepping back from the bed, distancing himself from his subject. Put some morphine in her IV, will you? I’ve been told that when I do that, it hurts, though you wouldn’t know it by the dumb look on her face.

The white coat nodded and reached over towards my IV. I blanked out for a moment, scrabbling around in my mind. When I was back in the room, Holt was gone, and so was something else.

My name.

But it didn’t feel so bad for some reason. I had all kinds of other names that I could borrow if I wanted to—dozens and dozens of them. They didn’t even have to be girls names to be mine.

They belonged to all the other people standing in the room, pale as a cloud of fog and barely moving. The white coat walked right through them, but I saw every single soul crowded in my prison cell. They were there because of me.

And they gave me their names whenever I forgot mine.

Peggy. Fiona. Adeline. Jonny…

Chapter 2

The Registry

The tunnels that twisted and forked all around her made up Lily’s new home, and yet she still got lost half the time.

Let’s see, she muttered to herself, staring at the map in her hands, which was drawn on a scrap of paper. Left… no, right here…

Down beneath Belmont City, carved into the sewers by the water that made the city so strange, was a home for almost fifty shifters—and a few witches like Lily herself.

They had moved there together a few months ago when they realized the federal agents out to arrest them were really their executioners. Lily had been one of those federal agents once, before she realized her job would get the shifter she loved killed. Now she found herself living underground in a safe haven carved out by magic.

This is it! she exclaimed, coming upon a twist in the path that she recognized.

Though they seemed quite hectic at first glance, the tunnels that made up UnderCity were actually quite organized. Generations ago, they’d been used for other things besides sheltering rogue shifters and witches. Gas lamps lit the damp limestone walls, and signs carved into the rock long ago announced which tunnel was which.

As soon as she’d figured out where she was, Lily quickly navigated to the large, public room where she was meant to be fifteen minutes ago. Unfortunately for her, getting lost had cost her precious time, and the meeting was already underway.

I’m sure she’ll understand in time, Mara, another witch and one of the leaders of UnderCity, was saying to her werepanther boyfriend Riker. We just have to get her to come around to our side of it.

They were, of course, talking about her. And the registry—a list of shifters the FAIC was compiling, supposedly as a census. In reality, she strongly suspected it was a hit list of sorts, but that hadn’t stopped shifters from signing up voluntarily.

Sorry I’m late, she said, coming to the door of the meeting chambers and announcing herself noisily. Mara glanced at Riker guiltily, as if wondering whether Lily had overheard them. She decided to ignore the expression.

Glad you could join us, Mara said. We were just discussing the registry. You’ve come around to our point of view, I’m sure?

She made it sound like a question, but clearly it was a statement. Lily frowned.

While she was beginning to adjust to a life lived underground, Lily still couldn’t quite deal with all the politics that came along with it. Working as an agent in a federal bureau was nothing next to the free-for-all democracy of the UnderCity. While it was a haven under the street of Belmont City, a place in the darkness for shifters, witches, and warlocks to avoid persecution, it was also a constant headache.

Case in point: today’s meeting, which was mostly about convincing Lily not to make such a stink about the registry, especially if it made the shifters of UnderCity nervous and on edge.

I’m not sure that I’ve come around to your point of view entirely, Lily said, preparing herself for a bit of a fight. She took a spot at the creaky wooden table in the room, situating herself opposite the couple. I feel strongly that if we got the word out, we could save many people’s lives by preventing them from registering.

And we’ve done that, Riker said, his voice firm. Quietly, and where it matters. But there’s no reason for us to step out of the shadows in order to keep people from sending their names to your former bosses.

The words he chose were deliberate: former bosses.

I just don’t understand how you can accept what’s going to happen to them without even trying to stop it, Lily said, for what seemed like the one hundredth time since she’d moved underground two months ago. The shifters who have voluntarily registered with the FAIC may think it’s a harmless government census, but those of us in this room today know that’s far from the truth.

The room in question was more like a cave, since it was set underground, but these days, the artificially lit, constantly damp stone walls of UnderCity felt like normal to her.

We understand that you have concerns about the registry, Mara said, her voice gentle. She was ever the diplomat, a shrewd politician and leader despite her youth and inexperience. But it just doesn’t seem like something we can stop all on our own. Going up against the FAIC would be foolish. It would involve risking the safety of everyone who lives in UnderCity.

"I’m not saying we go up against them, Lily countered. But it would be irresponsible not to warn whomever we can that this registry business is a trap. How are they going to know otherwise, when the FAIC pretends like it’s simple information gathering? They’re not as benign as they’ve led the public to believe."

Riker chimed in again. As always, he was a man of few words in these meetings, but he tended to be absolute in what he did say. We’ve warned all the shifters we can not to trust the Federal Agency of Inexplicable Crimes. If they decide to do otherwise, that’s their business. Personally, I won’t stick my neck out for someone who wouldn’t bother pissing on me if I were on fire. That’s where I stand.

Then he stood up, as if he got to decide when the meeting ended. Lily had a few choice words she could imagine saying to him, but she knew Mason was friendly with him and she didn’t want to create tension. It’s difficult enough living in such tight quarters with so many half-feral shifters around the clock, she thought to herself. There’s no reason to stir up trouble where there isn’t any already.

I understand where you’re coming from, she said aloud, even as her frustration with the werepanther was increasing by the day. For me, it’s difficult to imagine letting the FAIC kill anyone innocent ever again. But you and Mara have a lot of people to think about, and you don’t want to dive in headfirst. So we’ll just have to sit on the issue and watch what happens for a while.

I’m glad you agree, Mara said, her relief palpable. We hope you understand why we don’t feel that UnderCity as a group can move against the registry right now. It would just be too risky.

I understand, Lily acknowledged.

And she did understand. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t do something on her own. She just had to figure out a way to get in contact with the right people in order to put some kind of plan into place.

Onto other subjects, Mara said, clearly glad to be rid of this contentious issue. I’ve still been looking for the other figures whose fate I see woven into our future. In particular… She trailed off, clearly somewhat self-conscious about her own prophetic abilities, which even Lily had trouble getting used to.

In particular, Riker continued for her, the girl of ‘lilac and ice,’ as we like to call her.

Yes. Biting her lip, Mara moved on to a subject Lily knew was eating away at her, even though she herself didn’t understand why. I’ve been looking for this girl… woman… I’m not sure, to be honest, but I’ve been looking for her since long before I found you, Lily. Mason has been helping me sniff her out with the lock of hair the ravens gave me, but the trail seems to have gone cold.

He’ll keep looking for you for as long as necessary, Lily said, knowing it was true. Her mate never gave up, and it was one reason why she loved him.

I know he will. I’ve also been looking for her myself, trying to see a glimpse of her location with my powers. But every time I think I’ve got a good lock onto her, she vanishes. It’s like my visions bend and break around her, and I can’t see her clearly at all.

That must be frustrating, Lily said, even though she had no idea what it was like at all. Compared to Mara’s newfound foresight, her own skills of telekinesis and telepathy were almost mundane.

"It’s more than frustrating, it’s dangerous. I don’t know who she is or where she is, but what I do know is that our futures are tied to her. And our best chances of surviving the storm that’s coming is to have her on our side."

Lily didn’t like the sound of that, and she could tell Riker didn’t either.

You haven’t mentioned that part before, he muttered, his eyes flashing with just a sliver of yellow.

To be honest, I didn’t want to bring it up until I was sure. The future I see changes constantly. But at this point, it’s become clear that the vision I have of our future involves this girl. Without her, UnderCity will fall.

But we’re so safe down here, Lily protested. "No one has discovered us yet, and even if they did, we have fallback locations further into the tunnels. Our underground position is easily defensible, and everyone down here has some powers. Even if the FAIC has changed significantly since I left, there’s no way they outnumber us. And even if they get the other shifters on their registry, they won’t get them on their side."

True, Mara acknowledged. But for some reason, it’s not enough. The visions I’m having make it clear.

For a while, the three of them fell silent, ruminating on Mara’s news.

You always say your visions change easily, Riker said, and Mara nodded. Then we’ll just have to hope that one changes as well. Because until we know more about this girl, we won’t be able to find her.

Mara glanced over at Lily. You said you’ve been scanning for telepathic chatter, just in case?

She sighed. Yes, I have been, but my telepathy isn’t that strong. And I’m not even sure what I’m looking for. I’m sorry, Mara, but I agree with Riker. We can’t depend on finding this girl, visions or not. We’ll just have to keep planning under the assumption that we’ll never find her.

Though she didn’t look happy, Mara nodded in acceptance of their point of view. Lily knew she wouldn’t give it up entirely, but she had bigger things to worry about besides some mysterious girl. For one thing, the FAIC was sure to find them eventually.

After that, they moved onto easier subjects, like reinforcing their doors and stocking up on supplies. Riker helped make a list of shifters who could leave the tunnels to go shopping, and Lily reported the latest inventory notes.

Inside, she knew they were just biding their time. Eventually the FAIC would find them. She knew from her time working there that their plans meant death for many shifters.

But Lily wouldn’t give up. She had to protect her future with Mason, no matter the cost.

Chapter 3

Up Above

He heard her cries sometimes in his sleep. The girl he couldn’t forget.

Almost every poor soul who wound up falling into the sinister water of Belmont City cried at some point afterwards. Alec watched them from his vantage point in the sky, making lazy circles around the protected grove that drew both the faithful and the suicidal. The ones that didn’t drown in the water often came up with cuts and bruises, and they often came crawling out of the murk with pain in their voices.

His hawk form had eyes so keen and sharp that he could easily make out what was going on from where he was, even