Prologue

Tiger snarled, storming into Cell Block D wearing nothing but a pair of sweatpants and a thunderous expression on his face. His blue eyes registered the presence of three others standing vigil in the basement as he strode towards the large holding cell, but once they honed in on the unconscious male locked inside it he wanted to throw his head back and roar. The sight of Arrow's ankles secured with chains to the floor, along with cuts and bruises from yet another fight he'd initiated with a Wild Zone resident, had become far too frequent over the past eight months for Tiger's liking.

It was three o'clock in the morning, damn it, and all the exhausted feline wanted to do was get this meeting over with, so that he could return to his mate and newborn cub.

Taking a calming breath, he raked a hand through his disheveled hair and turned to Slade, the canine appointed as Head of Reservation. Unlike Tiger, his friend had managed to grab a decent pair of jeans and a t-shirt for the occasion. His eyes were red-rimmed from his disrupted sleep, but when he sensed Tiger's gaze on him they crinkled with amusement.

The feline scowled. "My man, how the hell can you find this shit funny?"

"Perspective," Slade replied, stifling a yawn as he crossed his arms over his chest with a grim smile. "Shield tied Arrow's arms and legs with a rope, and then he dragged his ass all the way here by his tail."

"What?!" Tiger blanched. He glanced back into the cage, noticing the tip of Arrow's spotted tail now had a small kink that hadn't been there before. After processing that bit of information, an unsettling thought struck him. "Wait a minute, you're telling me Shield brought him in this time?"

"Alive, thankfully," the younger Dr. Harris mumbled from across the room. He stood next to his mate, Midnight, sipping coffee from a Styrofoam cup while he studied the prisoner with a grimace. "Jesus."

"The male will survive his injuries," Midnight reassured him, although the female's tone suggested she didn't care if he did one way or another. "Shield interrupted a territory challenge between Arrow and a canine when the idiot males ended up accidentally crossing into the bear's territory during their fight. We put the canine in Cell Block F until he calms, though physically he is in far better shape than this one."

Tiger shook his head, feeling little sympathy for the damage the obstinate feline sustained at the hands of the former rogue.

Arrow was out of control.

He had been, since the very beginning.

It took only twenty minutes after the feline's rescue from the Nicolai testing facility for his case file to initiate as a result of his unpredictable behavior. The moment he and the two females in his company were freed from the burning building, the task force had been forced to tranquilize Arrow—formerly known back then as 328— after he attempted to escape into the out world. Hours later, Young Doc Harris became his first casualty. During the initial medical examination, the male had broken his restraints and fractured the doctor's wrist in a fit of rage. This would attest to Midnight's hostility towards Arrow, for if the injury to her mate hadn't been minor Tiger was certain the female would've killed him. Even now, her lips were curled in utter contempt as she glared at the male contained within the holding cell.

Tiger balled his hands into fists and closed the remaining distance to the cage with caution, the sound of the male's deep, steady breathing reaching his ears. Reinforced steel bars separated the 20 x 20 foot space from concrete floor to ceiling, which contained a large cot, a sink, and a toilet. Initially, the medical staff had furnished the cell with a television and more comfortable bedding, but he would often destroy these within a matter of hours. Glancing over at the prisoner, Tiger felt a familiar sense of disquiet creep up his spine at the sight of the two hundred and sixty-five pound male. He was sprawled over the cot on his stomach, knocked out cold from either the sedatives or a blow to the head. Tiger assumed it was the latter, if the bandages wrapped around his cranium were any indication.

But even in repose, Arrow was a scary son of a bitch.

Although his face was concealed partly by his golden-brown mane, Tiger had seen him pacing in this cage often enough to memorize his exotic features. His long tail and the rosette patterns on his skin had been particularly shocking the first time he had encountered the feline in person, but it was nothing compared to his primal eyes as they tended to track everything in the room like it was potential prey.

"Why is he wearing those?" Tiger said, noticing the NSO sweatpants on the male. Usually he wore ragged cutoff jeans, and not much else. "I thought he stopped running around naked two months ago. Did he start again?"

"No, we had to discard his clothing," Dr. Harris replied coolly. "They were caked with filth, and he had a nasty cut on his left thigh that needed stitches." He hesitated. "My patient's going to have to stay in observation for a couple of days, but you know how he gets when he's locked up down here…"

Tiger sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'll assign a round of officers to guard him while he recovers."

Slade walked up to him and patted his shoulder. "Look on the bright side, yeah? Until the good doctor here discharges him, it'll give the Wild Zone residents and you a little break—"

"—And enough time for me to finalize securing more land for Reservation," a deep voice interjected from the doorway.

Startled eyes turned as Justice North entered the basement with a smile. He was shadowed a step behind by Bishop, who instead of following Justice into the room, he remained by the entrance and leaned his shoulder against the doorframe with a detached expression on his face. Both males wore jeans and a black tank top, their feet unhindered by shoes. It was evident neither of them had been expected to arrive tonight, but Tiger was relieved to see the NSO leader anyway—even given his special circumstances.

Four months ago, Justice had nearly lost Jessie and their son during labor due to complications. His mate wouldn't stop bleeding, and the cub had been born with a weak heartbeat. Tiger shuddered, pushing the horrible thought of the tragedy that could've befallen upon their leader from his mind. Instead, he felt the corner of his lips tilt up in a smile as he took in the feline's altered appearance.

For the duration of his mate's birthing recovery, Justice had taken a leave of absence and moved to a cottage secluded within a private sector in the Wild Zone. Since then, the feline had scarcely left his family's side and the council had taken over his duties. On occasion, however, he would wander into his office and work for half a day before returning to the Zone. Tiger recalled it was during one of these particular visits Justice had entered a Council meeting and shocked them all with an unexpected makeover. Even now, the NSO officer couldn't help but stare at his leader's short, black hair and be reminded of the males from the task force. The new look had caused quite a stir among the Species females, though Tiger suspected Miles Eron would not be sharing the same sentiment when the feline returned to Homeland.

"How badly is he hurt this time?" Justice directed the question to Dr. Harris, drawing their attention back to the matter at hand.

"He's stable," Slade grumbled before the doctor could reply to the question. He approached his leader to clap him on the shoulder. "We didn't want to concern you, my friend. I've got this, and Bestial is on his way. Go back to bed and be with your family. I will bring you a full report in the morning."

Justice chuckled. "Jessie and I were already awake when my phone alerted me of the situation. It is connected to the NSO's security mainframe, remember?"

"Is Honor still unable to settle at night?" Midnight asked, concerned for their leader's cub. "Do you wish for Trisha to have a look at him in the morning?"

Tiger grimaced, recalling his own cub's erratic sleeping schedule the first couple of weeks after he was brought home from Medical. He and Zandy had to take shifts during the night to get any sleep at all.

"Jessie and I have resigned ourselves to Honor's nocturnal habits for the time being," Justice informed them with a rueful smile. "My mate believes it's the panther in him."

Slade snorted. "How like a female to lay the blame on the father."

"I will be certain to repeat those words to Doc Trisha when I see her tomorrow," Midnight piped up.

Unconcerned by the threat, Slade grinned and turned his attention to her mate. "Lay it on him, Dr. Harris."

The doctor nodded and placed the Styrofoam cup on a nearby table, taking Arrow's medical chart in hand. He opened the thick file and read, "Three cracked ribs, a minor concussion to the head, and two of his caudal vertebrae are broken. The abrasions on his body should heal on their own within a matter of hours, but the tail…" He pursed his lips. "Well, it's not going to mend properly, I'm sorry to say. There was some ligament tearing where the section of the appendage is bent. I couldn't use the healing drug on him to repair it properly, even after resetting the bones."

Justice frowned at this. "Couldn't?"

"He seems to have an adverse reaction to something within the chemical compound of the drug," Dr. Harris explained, leafing through the folder. "Based on the limited information we gathered of the male's medical history, my father believes that during his captivity he developed a hypersensitivity to it and as a result it's only to be used under life of death circumstances."

"Life or death." Justice tilted his head, frowning in the direction of the male in question. "The healing drug makes him sick?"

"In a manner of speaking, yes. Aside from the symptoms we've already documented on other New Species when under the influence of the Mercile drug, Arrow displays an unusual form of mild psychosis. We're talking absolute regression of his mental state." Dr. Harris closed the medical chart and lowered his voice a notch, as though afraid his next words might carry beyond the basement's walls. "From Dr. Yard's clinical assessment when she was present during one of his episodes, she concluded the symptoms are linked to a traumatic event he experienced during his captivity. It manifests itself in either the persona of his animal counterpart or that of a child, both of whose personalities are so far apart in the spectrum it's as if there are two versions of this Arrow dormant inside him."

Justice remained silent, pondering the disturbing revelation with an unreadable expression on his face. Tiger knew the NSO leader was measuring the wisdom of releasing the male back to the Wild Zone, knowing that if he continued to provoke other residents, sooner or later the drug might be needed on him to save his life.

Species were lethal by nature, but one with a damaged mind was a publicity nightmare waiting to happen. With Arrow's track record, what if he escaped Medical under the influence of the drug and fled beyond their walls into the out world?

The anti-Species groups would have a field day at the NSO's expense, that much was certain.

"What about using a lower dosage?" Tiger asked, his mind reeling with the alarming scenario. "By my count, Arrow has been admitted to Medical thirty-seven times—"

"—Thirty-eight," Midnight corrected him. "And even a lower dosage will trigger the same reaction. Trust me, we have already tried."

"You're kidding me," Tiger groused at the unpleasant news, turning to Justice. "So far, his injuries have been manageable, but a life or death situation will change that. At the rate he's going, it's only a matter of when and not if. We need to strategize a better contingency plan if the healing drug is to be used on the male in the future." Tiger hesitated. "I also think we should give Sheriff Cooper a heads up, just in case. Some humans own property near Reservation."

Justice shook his head. "This is a Species matter, and it will be treated accordingly. We collaborate with the sheriff and his deputies to extend our solidarity, but only when it is a human problem they cannot resolve on their own. While I believe Cooper is a good man, I would not feel comfortable involving his entire department. Not all of them are Species friendly, although they attempt to hide their prejudice from him."

"Assholes," Midnight growled, curling her lips back with distaste. "They are too stupid to realize we can scent their lies."

"Didn't you mention something earlier about securing more land for Reservation?" Dr. Harris asked the NSO leader, steering the conversation to more pleasant ground. "Are all the negotiations settled?"

"Our lawyers have assured me that within a matter of hours, Reservation will be expanding its terrain with the addition of one hundred and fifty acres of woodland. Plenty of more space for our current residents to stretch their territories, and enough left over for more arrivals in the future." Justice's gaze strayed back to the unconscious male. "Arrow will be assigned a large section of land that will be located far enough away from the other males to appease his territorial needs, and dissuade him from seeking further confrontations. I will organize a patrol shift with some of the less hostile of the residents to make certain Arrow does not stray."

"There will not be many volunteers for that task," Midnight assured him, casting an icy glare towards the cage. "I would not hold my breath if I were you."

From the corner of his eye, Tiger caught a flicker of movement as Bishop suddenly let out an impatient growl and spun on his heel to leave. Before doing so, the male halted mid-step and glanced over his shoulder to lock his pale eyes on Justice. The act was so unexpected, they could only stare in stunned silence. Yet the NSO leader returned the canine's heated stare calmly, keeping his posture relaxed and his expression guarded. Neither exchanged a single word, but the longer their silence stretched the heavier the tension became until Tiger wondered if the two males would end up in a fight for dominance. He and Slade exchanged an uneasy glance, shifting an imperceptible inch closer to Justice in case the other attacked. Midnight maneuvered herself in front of a startled Dr. Harris, her cat-eyes narrowed on each male with annoyance.

"Enough," Justice's voice rumbled with authority, as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Speak your mind, Bishop. I would have your words."

After another uncomfortable moment of silence, Bishop finally slid his gaze from his leader to the cage and growled, "Territory alone will not fix problem with kot. A male needs purpose to find his place in strange world outside cages, but that feline has none. You will gain nothing by isolating him." A muscle along his jaw ticked. His hands clenched into fists as his voice lowered to a harsh whisper. "A male without purpose is nothing."

Delivering those parting words, Bishop stalked out of the basement without a backward glance.

"Well, that was…" Dr. Harris trailed off when he stepped away from Midnight's protective stance, casting an uneasy glance at the door before clearing his throat. "Never mind."

The Species exchanged a knowing look, all of them drawing the same conclusion from the canine's behavior. Bishop hadn't been the same male after the death of agent Natasha Delaney months ago, and it seemed Arrow's circumstances had triggered memories that were still too painful for him to cope with.

"He is still adjusting," Justice murmured, his tone resigned. As he turned to leave, he let out a weary sigh and focused on Dr. Harris. "I need Arrow to remain confined in Medical for at least a week before he can be relocated to his new home. Will this be a problem?"

Dr. Harris shook his head. "We'll make it happen, Justice."

Midnight and Slade murmured their agreement, bidding the NSO leader farewell.

Tiger inwardly groaned as Justice exited the basement, knowing damn well Medical would require extra shifts to guarantee the safety of its staff when dealing with the ornery feline. Arrow hated humans, almost as much as he loathed the scent of other males, and since a doctor was required to be on call at all times their presence was unavoidable. Tiger only hoped relocating the male would improve his disposition, if only just enough to keep him from stepping foot inside Medical again.

With that reassuring prospect looming on the horizon, the NSO officer squared his shoulders and went in search of a hot cup of coffee.

It was going to be one of those nights.


Ten hours later, unable to modify the terms of the expansion contract once finalized, Justice North would discover a grave miscalculation with the land he purchased.

A minor hiccup, his lawyers assured him with winning smiles, their expressions bearing the resemblance of hungry fish with sharp teeth.

Biting back a snarl of frustration, he excused himself from the boardroom meeting and stalked back home to his family. Their presence would quiet the turbulence inside him, though he couldn't help but cringe when his thoughts wandered back to the contract and the fate of two people he'd sealed with the scribble of his own signature. It was moments like these the Species feline wished someone would remove the mantle of leadership from his shoulders.

Its weight was becoming unbearable.


Author's Note: Muahaha! I'm back, my lovelies. Looking forward to another roller coaster ride with you. I look forward to your reviews and questions ;)