Cyrus: #11 (Luna Lodge)

  Table of Contents

  Copyright

  Title

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-one

  Thank You

  Also By

  Author Bio

  This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, locations, and incidents depicted in this work are of the author’s imagination or have been used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, locations, or events is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved.

  Copyright © 2017 Madison Stevens

  No portion of this book may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, or by any means, without the prior written permission of the author.

  Cover designed by Najla Qamber Designs

  Cyrus (Luna Lodge #11)

  by

  Madison Stevens

  Cyrus enjoys his job training other hybrids. When Titus orders him off training to escort a government auditor around, he isn’t pleased. With Luna Lodge targeted by so many foes, producing a new generation of skilled hybrids is vital to their future. It’s more important than playing tour guide to some pencil pusher.

  April hopes her assessment of Luna Lodge for the US government will fast-forward her career. She just didn’t count on an amorous and arrogant general, a bigoted senator, and her attractive escort: the hunky Cyrus. As the two spend more time around one other, they can’t deny the call of their bodies and souls.

  Despite their growing passion, April still has a job to do, and that involves figuring out if Luna Lodge is a risk. When she’s caught up in a threat to the Lodge, the bravery and desire of one hybrid might not be enough to save both the woman he loves and his fellow hybrids.

  Chapter One

  Cyrus watched as two teen hybrids charged each other, throwing out their fists. After a few quick blocks and dodges, the hybrids circled each other warily.

  He glanced around, checking on the other pairs of fighters dotting the field, even though he was mostly interested in the two sparring in front of him.

  Peter, the younger of the pair, kicked out, nailing his partner, who let out a grunt. The struck hybrid staggered for a moment, but his face suggested no pain.

  No matter where one stood in Luna Lodge, people could likely hear the loud grunts erupting from this battleground, a large field just off the main road in the center of the grounds. The hybrids wouldn’t even need their enhanced hearing.

  It was the sound of men learning the hard way: with their bodies. You couldn’t train for battle if you were afraid to get hurt.

  “Make sure you keep your shoulder straight, Peter,” Cyrus shouted. “You need to train like you’ll fight. To train your muscles to move without your mind. A second could be the difference between winning and losing in a fight.”

  “Yes, sir,” Peter called back.

  The young hybrid aligned himself with his opponent and thrust forward, this time with his weight more balanced. He slammed into his opponent, sending the other man sprawling to the ground. In a real battle, Peter would have had a good chance to finish his enemy off.

  Cyrus grunted in satisfaction. The hybrids of Luna Lodge needed all the men to be able to fight. Peter might be more a boy than a man, but that didn’t change the fact that he was a hybrid, and needed to be able to defend himself.

  The young hybrid demonstrated a lot of potential. He was quick on his feet and would make a fine soldier, even by the standards of Luna Lodge.

  Of course, they would all make fine soldiers when he was done with them. That was his job after all, to make sure their people survived and could handle whatever shit might come their way. At this point, they might as well be buried in it.

  Their creators, the ruthless Horatius Group, might have left the hybrids to die in an abandoned facility, but that hadn’t prevented them from launching several attacks against Luna Lodge once the hybrids were free. Other hybrids, mercenaries, the bestial and mutated Glycons, no tool seemed beyond the Group.

  Cyrus tightened his hands into fists as he watched Peter throw another few punches. He bit back a growl.

  The damned Horatius Group. They didn’t care who they killed.

  There’d been another young hybrid, Dean, who’d been close to Peter. He’d died when the Horatius Group raided Luna Lodge. The boy didn’t have a chance.

  That was bad enough. The fact that traitorous Army soldiers had aided them made it only worse. The stupid soldiers were supposed to be there to help protect the hybrids.

  Things would have been simple if it was just the Group they had to worry about. After all, the Group was known as a dangerous entity that helped terrorists, not something that the average person would support, whether or not they liked hybrids.

  But many in the government didn’t trust the hybrids, men like the hybrid-hating Senator Woods, the asshole who’d likely been involved in getting the soldiers to help the Group.

  Cyrus didn’t know all the details. His leaders kept a lot of info to themselves, as that wasn’t his area, but he knew enough.

  Whether Woods was a pawn of the Group or just happy to use them to kill hybrids, it didn’t matter. The end results were the same: attacks and dead hybrids.

  The rest of the public never trusted the hybrids to begin with, and that distrust had only grown. Even when the hybrids defended themselves, people acted like they were the aggressors. It was ridiculous.

  Reverend John, the leader of a fanatical anti-hybrid cult, had come after them several times, including trying to poison them, yet somehow ended up a anti-hybrid martyr to many.

  The madman had finally taken it a step too far when he’d kidnapped a Vestal, a mate of a hybrid, and planned to kill her live on television. Her mate Varius had no choice but to take him out.

  So the whole world witnessed a hybrid kill a human live on television. They didn’t give a shit about nuance or justifications. They saw what they wanted to see.

  AMERICA’S ENEMY NUMBER ONE. That’s what one news report had said. Others were even more hysterical: BEAST MEN ON RAMPAGE AGAINST HUMANS?

  Though the hybrids saved a reporter, and she was doing her best to push back, the public had soured on the hybrids. And that was ignoring the fact that some sort of weird government signal had been used to influence people in town, probably as a mind control experiment to direct them against the hybrids.

  Everyone at Luna Lodge could all feel the tension, the shift in the air that whispered violent change was coming. Something none of them were really equipped to handle.

  Their enemies had grown in type and number since they hybrids had gained their freedom. Freedom wouldn’t do them any good if they were all dead.

  He chuckled darkly. At least they knew what to expect when they were prisoners of the Horatius Group. They knew the nature of the threat. On the outside world, it was so much harder.

  It wasn’t cowardice. Cyrus, like most hybrids, was confident in his abilities. The truth was, the humans were right to be nervous. A hybrid was stronger and faster than a normal human, with vastly better senses. They didn’t want trouble with humans, but they weren’t going to roll over and die if they were attacked.

  But that
didn’t change the fact that humans numbered in the billions, the hybrids in the hundreds.

  Sure, there were other hybrids out there they might be able to rescue from the clutches of the Horatius Group, but if humanity turned against the hybrids, or even just the country, extinction might not be far behind.

  This was why his training was so much more important than it ever had been. Depending on the restraint and protection of humanity would doom them. They needed soldiers, and he knew how to mold hybrids into just that and how to maximize their potential.

  The wind carried a stray scent to his nose, a familiar scent. Damn.

  Cyrus lifted his head and frowned. Time for him to make a hasty retreat. This, too, wasn’t cowardice. One thing any good soldier knew was that discretion was the better part of valor. At least that’s what he told himself.

  “Take a break. Ten minutes,” he shouted across the field.

  Cyrus needed to hurry if he was going to escape in time. He turned to walk away but stopped as a voice reached him.

  “You know you can’t avoid me forever,” the man said. “I never took you for a coward.”

  He spun and gritted his teeth. His leader, Titus, stood before him. If anyone else had called him out like that, he would have laid them out.

  Not that many would have the balls to dare. He wasn’t sure if he could take Titus or not, but it didn’t matter. The man had earned his respect through these years of freedom, blood, and conflict.

  Cyrus sucked in a breath. “I know what you’re here for.” He waved a hand. “I still think it’s a terrible idea.”

  He lifted his head and stared defiantly at the man in front of him. Respect didn’t mean blind obedience. The cold wind blew across his face as if sending a warning that Titus didn’t care.

  There was no fucking way he was following along with his leader’s little plan. He already had a job at the compound, and he didn’t need another one.

  Titus stepped closer. He could instantly fill the air shift as his leader made his presence known. Cyrus knew in the end he would comply if Titus forced the issue, but he hoped the other man would come to his senses before they came to that.

  This was bullshit, and the other man had to realize that.

  “It really won’t take long,” Titus said. “They just need a quick look around.”

  Cyrus ground his teeth. “I already have a fucking job. Did you forget that?”

  Titus shook his head. His jet black hair shifted in the wind. He stared back at Cyrus with the amber eyes that all Luna Lodge hybrids shared.

  “I haven’t forgotten that at all,” Titus said. “And you’re doing a good job. Your men will be here waiting for you, but for now I need you.” He stepped slightly closer and leaned his head in. His voice dropped low. “The military doesn’t want me near this. We’re steps away from having them come in and take over. This isn’t our only thing we’re working on to deal with that, but it’s an important one.”

  “What else are you working on?”

  “Some things you don’t need to know about. All you need to know is we can’t have the government trying to take over.” His eyes flashed for a second, real anger coming through briefly. “And we all know how much we can trust them.” He stepped back, his face and eyes now showing nothing but calm. “We need someone with your expertise and ability to hold their cool. You’re the best man for this job.”

  Cyrus could already feel his resolve slipping. There was a good reason Titus was the leader, and it wasn’t about his genetic makeup. Instead, it was more about his ability to reach every hybrid at the Lodge.

  “Now, can I count on you?” Titus said and stared at Cyrus.

  “Fine,” Cyrus said after a moment. “But I’m not a fucking babysitter. And I do this my way.”

  Titus nodded. “Sure. I just need a full report when you’re finished. We need to know everything we can about them. Even if they’re satisfied this time, this won’t be the end of it.”

  Something in Cyrus perked up. “So, really, this is more a recon job.”

  “Yeah, and we need all the info we can get.”

  Cyrus almost grinned. This was more like it. Something other than just babysitting some desk jockey with a hard-on to prove a point.

  “I’ll do my best.”

  Chapter Two

  April leaned on the counter in the public bathroom inside the federal building. She stared at herself in the long mirror. The florescent light above her bleached her skin, making it look even paler than usual. The few freckles she hadn’t been able to conceal dotted her face, and she wrinkled her nose at them.

  Once again another concealer that claimed it’d produce flawless skin didn’t live up to its hype.

  At least she hadn’t paid a lot for it. These days, she’d take whatever small victory she could find.

  She turned on the faucet and slapped some water on her cheeks. Several deep breaths followed.

  “You’ve got this,” she mumbled to herself. “Don’t worry.”

  She shook her head and watched as her chin-length deep red hair swayed back and forth. April still hadn’t gotten used to the new length. Normally she kept it shoulder-length so she could pull it back, but during her last visit to the salon, they convinced her to try something different.

  April sat up and straightened her cream-colored blouse. She ran her hands down her pinstriped pencil skirt she wore and nodded to herself, satisfied with her appearance.

  Yes. She definitely looked the part.

  No-nonsense. That’s what her current appearance screamed. Anyone looking at her would know she was someone ready to take the next step in her career.

  Her stomach churned, and April had a hard time hiding the grimace that came to her face.

  She could handle the next step of her career as an analyst and auditor, but she wasn’t so certain about the path she needed to travel to get there.

  A deep breath filled her lungs, and she closed her eyes for a moment. She could do this. It was only one job, and then she’d be on her way to being a full-fledged government contractor.

  With her references from the job, she could take her independent work to the next level, both with the government and many large companies.

  True success was within her grasp.

  April opened her eyes and stared into the mirror. Sparkling green eyes stared back at her, and she gave a final nod.

  Tension remained, tightening her shoulders and neck, but she ignored it, focused only on the task at hand.

  Her heels clicked loudly on the tiled floor as she made her way outside of the restroom. She walked down the hall with purpose and stopped just outside of a door.

  WOODS adorned the door, written in giant letters. Someone sure seemed to be compensating. At least the good senator managed to avoid a bright color or gold plating.

  She swallowed the fear starting to rise and knocked sharply on the door. The sooner this was over, the better.

  “Come in,” someone called from inside.

  April pushed open the door. She arched a brow, surprised by the presence of two men in the room.

  She recognized Senator Woods from television. The other unknown man was obviously military. His polished dark blue jacket was adorned with various patches and metals. They certainly looked impressive.

  His two-star rank insignia indicated he was a major general. Her father had always told her the only man more ambitious than a colonel wanting his first star was a major general who realized he was halfway to earning four stars.

  Senator Woods stood from behind his desk. The stocky man still towered over her, but that was nothing new. Most everyone seemed to tower over her. Heck, even more than a few kids at times.

  He reached out his hand, and she took it with a smile. April tried not to focus on his sweaty bald head as he bent over the desk toward her.

  “April Piper, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” he said. “I hear you did good analysis work with the Cromwell protest situation and thought you might
be our best solution, considering the sensitivity of the issues involved. We need someone who has a keen eye for detail and can evaluate weaknesses and risks involved in potentially volatile situations.”

  April continued to smile and nodded. As important as her work was, connections were still everything when she needed to line up jobs.

  “Thank you, sir,” she said.

  “And this is Major General Richard West,” Senator Woods said, nodding to the other man in the room.

  She turned and studied the man standing next to her. She reached out, and he took her hand in a firm shake.

  Now that she was staring directly at him, April could see that the general was still quite young for his rank. Or at least she assumed he was. She couldn’t remember seeing many others with so many medals and decorations without them being closer to their fifties.

  “A pleasure to meet you,” she said.

  The general flashed a brilliantly white smile and nodded to her.

  “Please, both you take a seat, and let’s get down to business,” Woods said.

  After what felt like an uncomfortably long amount of time, he finally released her hand and took his seat.

  “As you both know, Luna Lodge has been making the rounds in the news as of late. Several of my colleagues and I are concerned.” He let out a sigh. “We’re concerned both about the safety of the hybrids and the safety of the American people.” He frowned slightly. “When it was decided that the hybrids would be allowed to stay on American soil, there were certain expectations about profile and relative risks. It’s hard to say with everything that’s happened if those expectations aren’t being violated.”

  “I don’t understand,” April said.

  “We need to know just what sort of danger they pose to the American people. I don’t think any reasonable person can continue to ignore the potential risks.” He shrugged. “And let’s face it. They are genetically engineered super-soldiers.”

  April resisted frowning. The job had been pitched to her as her coming to help evaluate the safety and risks of Luna Lodge to protect the hybrids. Woods sounded like he’d already made up his mind and just wanted evidence. She wasn’t comfortable taking part in a witch hunt.