This isn’t happening. It can’t be happening. I am not about to become this thing’s breeder, or whatever the hell he had planned for me. I have to get out.

My eyes darted frantically around the glass cell, my body pressed flush against his. The tendrils coiling around me tightened, constricting my chest, making it harder to breathe. The scent of burning coals radiated from his skin, sharp and acrid, assaulting my senses. It was suffocating, an invasion of everything I was.

But I wasn’t going to give up. I’d gotten myself into this, and I’d get myself out.

In a desperate move, I opened my mouth wide and sank my teeth into his shoulder. Hard. The taste of him—metallic, bitter—hit my tongue, and his cry of pain filled the cell. The tendrils slackened, releasing me in a moment of shocked agony. I didn’t hesitate. I bolted for the heavy entrance door, swiping my card as his growls echoed behind me. The door creaked open just as his cries morphed into something primal, something inhuman.

I threw myself through the door, slamming it shut and locking it behind me with trembling fingers.

Am I safe?

I stood there, frozen in the pre-check chamber as the scanner flickered on, confirming my humanity. A second later, the lab entrance clicked open.

Bang! Bam!

I jumped, instinctively backing away from the cell door. He was hammering against it, trying to break through. His growls were unlike anything I’d ever heard—feral, guttural, something born of pure rage. The bone-chilling roar that followed made my head spin. How could they let people study something like this? How could they let me in there with him? I could have been killed. I almost was killed.

But… despite the fear, despite the terror still coursing through me, I couldn’t shake the fascination. The mere existence of such a creature defied logic. He was sentient, intelligent—and fully capable of killing.

The banging against the door continued even as I hurried back into the lab, heart still racing. The cold, sterile room felt like a haven now, a sanctuary from the nightmare I’d just escaped. I grabbed my clipboard with shaking hands, scanning it for his schedule. That was his last dose for the day. Thank God. Any more interactions with him, and I wasn’t sure if I’d make it out alive next time.

I was panting. The shallow, ragged breaths didn’t register until I made it to the lab restroom. As I approached the sink, I froze. My mouth—my lips and teeth—were stained black. A smear of darkness against my pale skin. The metallic taste that clung to my tongue hit me then, sharp and bitter. Blood. But not my own. His blood. Pray’s.

Panic gripped me, but my body moved on instinct. I fumbled with the faucet, splashing cold water onto my face, my neck, scrubbing my hands raw to rid myself of the black stains. My skin prickled beneath the harsh water, but I couldn’t stop. The black rinsed away easily enough, swirling down the drain, but the feeling of it—of him—clung to me. My hands trembled as I turned off the water, droplets still slipping off my fingers and onto the floor.

Silence. The only sound was the soft drip of water, the rush of blood in my ears. Pray had calmed…at least for now. But I hadn’t. I couldn’t. The adrenaline still coursed through me, leaving my limbs heavy, my chest tight. I looked up, catching my reflection in the mirror. I barely recognized the woman staring back at me. My blond hair was a wild mess, the mascara smudged around my blue eyes. At some point, I’d been crying, tears mingling with black mascara, and I hadn’t even realized it.

“Fuck…” The word slipped out on a breath. “Fuck…fuck!” The last one came out louder, more desperate, echoing off the sterile walls of the restroom. This is where I am now. In a government lab, babysitting a monster. How could it get worse than this? I let out a hollow, humorless laugh. Who was I kidding? It could get worse. Much worse.

I leaned back against the wall, letting myself sink slowly to the cold, tiled floor. My body was still shaking, the adrenaline refusing to fade. My mind raced, replaying the scene with Pray over and over. His tendrils, his grip, the look in his eyes. Was this…normal? For him? My gaze drifted up to the ceiling, but there were no answers up there. Was it even worth it to stay here now? I rubbed my face, my fingers digging into my temples as I tried to ease the pressure building in my skull.

This—he—was the discovery of the century. The kind of breakthrough that scientists dreamed of. Something hidden deep within the FBI’s grasp, something no one else in the world had access to. And I was here. I was here to study it. To study him. To find out where he came from, what he was…or what he could be.

But was it worth dying for?

My thoughts spiraled into that question, my thoughts wandered into still numbness. Did I want to die just to be part of something bigger than myself? I didn’t know how to answer that. How could I? How could anyone? And yet, despite everything—despite the danger, despite the terror, despite the fact that I had barely escaped with my life—I was still fascinated by Pray. Still drawn to him. My curiosity wouldn’t let me leave. If he could be tamed, if he could be controlled…just imagine what we could learn from him. What I could learn.

But this? This wasn’t what I signed up for. This wasn’t what I had been told. I thought I’d be observing an anomaly, a strange creature kept behind glass. I wasn’t prepared to deal with a sentient being, a predator who had decided I was his next target. My stomach twisted at the thought.

I pressed my palms to the cold floor, the chill seeping into my skin as I tried to ground myself. The question still hung in the back of my mind, unanswered. Was it worth it?

I wasn’t sure. But I knew one thing—I wasn’t ready to give up. 

Not yet…

I didn’t wait to give Graves a piece of my mind. The moment I returned the next day, I stormed toward his office, my fists clenched. As soon as I reached his door, I pounded on it with both hands.

“Doctor Graves!”

My voice rang out down the sterile hall, drawing the attention of nearby military guards. They tensed, watching me closely, but I didn’t care. Let them watch. Let them hear. I banged harder.

“Doctor Graves!”

The door flew open, and there he was, his expression dark with irritation. “Have you lost your—”

“Now you listen to me!” I growled, cutting him off. My eyes locked on his wrinkled, indifferent face, my anger boiling over. “You left me alone! With a monster! The cameras were on, and I was in danger! No one came to help me! What the fuck was that? What the hell is he?! And this!” My voice cracked as I waved my arms, trying to keep my composure. “I almost died, or whatever the hell he had planned for me!”

Graves folded his arms, his gaze narrowing with that familiar, unflinching coldness. “You signed the papers, Serenity. You knew what we kept here.”

“I knew about vaguely described animals,” I shot back, my voice shaking with fury, “of possible different origins! Not a goddamn otherworldly being with tentacles!” My voice was rising, practically echoing off the walls.

“Calm down before I have you arrested, Doctor Serenity.” His voice was flat, icy, cutting through the air. “This is in your contract,” he added with maddening calm, stepping back into his office. I followed him inside, my glare burning into his back.

“You think I care about a damn contract right now?” I spat.

Graves didn’t bother turning around, already pulling a file from his desk. He flipped through it slowly, deliberately, as though I wasn’t standing right there, trembling with rage. “As it clearly states,” he said, tapping one of the pages, “we are not responsible for what happens in Subject 003’s cell. It’s beyond our control.”

I stared at him, dumbfounded. “What?”

“No,” he repeated, turning the packet toward me and pointing to the fine print. “See for yourself.”

I leaned in, barely processing the words. The Erebus Containment Facility of New Jackson, Mississippi (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Facility’) shall not be held liable for any illness, disease, injury, or other health-related complications, including but not limited to death, that may arise as a result of direct or indirect exposure to Subject 003. By signing this agreement, the undersigned acknowledges and accepts all inherent risks associated with working in close proximity to Subject 003 and agrees to release the Facility from any legal claims or responsibilities pertaining to such risks.

I wanted to yank my hair out. Scream. Cry. “But it doesn’t—” I stopped, forcing myself to take a breath.

“You are a xenobiologist, Miss Collins,” he said, his voice gruff. “Get a hold of yourself.”

“How am I supposed to stay calm when it told me it wanted to mate with me?!” I snapped, crossing my arms.

Graves blinked, his entire demeanor shifting. His voice trailed off, his brow furrowing as he stared at me. “Now… what did you say?”

“You heard me,” I said, arms folded tighter across my chest. “The damn thing wanted me.”

Graves shook his head slowly, disbelief settling in his expression. “Pray…” He paused, his voice low. “Pray has been at this facility longer than either of us have been alive. He’s never shown any sexual interest. Therefore…” His voice wavered slightly. “You must have misheard him.”

Before I could respond, a lab scientist burst into the room, panting, her face pale. “Dr. Graves!” she gasped. “It’s Pray—he keeps shouting about someone named Serenity! He’s destroying his room, trying to break the walls! The guards are there, but we can’t get close enough to calm him down!”

Her voice trembled with panic, and for a moment, the weight of what she was saying settled between us like a stone.

Graves shot me a sharp look, his eyes narrowing with an intensity that made my stomach twist. “Stay here. We aren’t done yet,” he said before quickly following the scientist out.

But I wasn’t about to just sit there and wait. Not when this was happening. I followed them.

Chaos had already erupted in the facility. Guards rushed past us, their boots thundering against the floor. Distant shouts echoed through the hallways, and the sharp staccato of gunfire sent a chill down my spine. My heart pounded in my chest. This place didn’t know what calm was, it seemed—only the constant threat of disaster.

As I hurried after Graves and the scientist, the air felt thick with tension, like the building itself was holding its breath, waiting for something worse. Something that couldn’t be contained.