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.I know that Jenny and Terrence over there are having it off when they’re not actually researching, because they stink of each other.”Caitlyn glanced behind her.The two researchers were blushing and trying to look anywhere, but at each other.She found herself trying not to laugh.As long as they didn't let their relationship get in the way of their work, she wasn't about to order them to stop seeing each other.Besides, given that she had been spending her nights with Matt, it would be more than a little hypocritical.“I’d keep that quiet, if you would,” she said, finally.How many other secrets could a werewolf sniff out and then put into words? “What else can you do?”“It’s very odd,” Buckley said.“I felt nothing after I was bitten, even if I healed quickly.But now, after the first transformation, I feel like there’s a new muscle in my body, just waiting to be used.In fact.”Caitlyn stared in disbelief as his body seemed to darken suddenly, before hairs started growing out of his face and his hands started twisting into paws.His hospital gown ripped as his body twisted, falling off the bed and landing neatly on all fours.Caitlyn barely heard the alarm behind her as she stared at a giant wolf, only slightly smaller than a lion.Buckley prowled up to the bars, sat on his hind legs and winked at her, as if he were a dog begging for treats.His snout opened, revealing sharp teeth and a very long tongue.And then the fur seemed to melt away and he was human again.Caitlyn carefully averted her eyes from his nakedness.“I had the impression I could talk,” he said, ruefully.“I don’t think you could,” Caitlyn said, feeling her heartbeat starting to return to normal.“Your snout isn't exactly built for human language.”“I could probably use an oversized computer keyboard or something,” Buckley said.“The point is that I had total control just then.There wasn't even the feeling of being on edge.I could be a werewolf on active duty.”Caitlyn winced inwardly.Some of the werewolves had accepted their confinement philosophically, or because it was better than the alternative.Others wanted out, including Buckley, who was part of a unit that had been scheduled to head for Afghanistan after the exercises at Fort Hood.Caitlyn knew that those exercises – and perhaps the deployment itself – had been cancelled.The army might be needed in the United States.But there had been no reduction in operations – mostly covert – against terrorist cells all over the world.And a werewolf would be very helpful to the operators on active duty.“I think I want the doctors to check you first, carefully,” she said, finally.She didn't think Buckley was actually lying, but there were too many unknowns.What if he lost control in the middle of an operation? “And then I want Lesage to take a good look at you.He can make the final call.”She walked out of the confinement chamber and down the stairs, passing a pair of SEALs who had been told to guard the airlock that led into the ultra-secure confinement facility.There was a brief pause while they checked her identity and then allowed her into the centre of the base, where the designers had intended to bring patients suffering from a biological warfare attack.Now, it held a single vampire and a team of researchers studying her.Layla lay on a table, completely naked.Her hands and feet were secured to the table, but she didn't look worried; if anything, she looked as though she were biding her time.Up close, it was impossible to mistake her for human any longer; there was something about her face that screamed predator right into Caitlyn’s mind.She had seen criminals and terrorists, but she’d never been so afraid of anyone as she was of the vampire.Layla was very far from human.And how many other genetic time bombs are there? She asked herself.How many more monsters are waiting to be discovered?“Good news,” Doctor Franklin assured her.“Take a look at this?”Caitlyn looked at the display, but it meant nothing to her.“Tell me what it means, Doctor,” she said, “and please go easy on the technobabble.It's been a long day.”“This device here,” Franklin said, tapping the headband he wore, “monitors brainwaves.I originally developed the device to allow a handicapped person to control a wheelchair with their thoughts alone.Problem is, the driver has to be as intensely focused as Mr.Spock to make it work properly.”He smiled.“Thing is, we can tell when she is trying to manipulate us,” he added.“There’s a very definite change in her target’s brainwaves, whatever she’s trying to do.The headbands sound the alarm and we pull the victim out at once, allowing them to recover in the safe room before they go back to work.We also discovered that a sharp electric shock helps break people free of her compulsion if pulling them out isn't enough.”They also had a very high staff turnover, Caitlyn knew.Layla didn't just screw with their minds to try to escape.She fucked around with them for her own amusement, just as a human sadist might drop a hamster in the bath to see if it could swim.“Good work,” she said.“Have you uncovered a way of proving mind control?”“Not yet,” Franklin said, “at least not unless the victim was wearing a headband.”Caitlyn remembered the incident in New York and scowled.“Keep working on it, Doctor,” she ordered.“We’re going to need it soon.”Chapter Twenty-SevenNew York, USADay 33“Why are you not in the school itself?”Matt looked over at Golem and scowled.Stakeouts inevitably took their toll on policemen assigned to them – they required patience and discretion – but Golem, who was as close to immortal as anyone could hope to be, seemed to be taking it particularly badly
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