Page 6 of Alpha Fate

“It’s not your fault. They’ve screwed with your head somehow. Blank slate protocol or something.” His jaw tightens, eyes blazing. “They need to pay for this.”

Blank slate. Is that what I am? Fear creeps through me. Will I be trapped in this nightmare forever with no memory of who I really am?

He’s still talking, urgency lacing his tone. “Listen to me. Your name is Sierra Barr. You have a mate named Jagger who loves you more than anything.”

I stare at him mutely. I get a flicker when he mentions Sierra. But the other name? It means nothing, connects to nothing inside me.

He strains against the chain holding him to the wall as he tries to get closer. “You have to try to remember, Sierra. Can you do that?”

“Not…Sierra,” I mumble. Even though there’s something familiar about it, I just can’t feel like that’s me.

He looks pained. “You’ve lost yourself. But we’ll find you again, I swear it.”

My eyes drift closed. It’s too much effort to keep them open. Too much effort to keep listening. Maybe if I rest for just a minute, my mind will clear.

“No, dammit! Stay with me!” His voice lashes out, yanking me back from the brink of oblivion. “Sierra, open your eyes!”

I force them open to slits. His face swims before me, blurred as I peer through my lashes.

“There you go,” he coaxes. “Stay awake now. We need to get you out of here.”

Get out. Escape this nightmare. It’s a nice dream. My eyes start to slip closed again.

“No! Look at me!” The command in his tone drags me back one more time. I meet his gaze…or try to. The details of his face smear like a watercolor painting left out in the rain.

“Good. That’s good.” His voice sounds far away now. “Keep looking at me. Focus on my voice. Don’t slip away again.”

I try. But the void is too strong, pulling me under in its crushing grip. My eyes fall shut, too heavy to open again. His voice fades into the distance as I spiral down into unconsciousness. The last thing I hear is his muffled curse.

???

Savannah

I stretch and yawn, relishing the sensation of my muscles moving. My arm stops sharply as something restricts my movement. And then it hits me. Where I am. All that’s happened. I sit up abruptly, sucking in a breath.

“Ahh… There she is.” A voice rumbles from nearby.

I snap my head in its direction. “What do you want? Did he send you? Get away, or I’ll—”

“Relax. I’m not one of them. It’s Gage, remember?”

Gage.

He’d told me that before. Vague recollections start to filter back to me. It’s the male who was brought here earlier by the men. He fought them. They beat him. He spoke to me. He’s good. I can sense it.

“What are you doing here?” Stupidest question ever. He’s locked up, just like me.

“Thought I’d come down to take in the air. Doc says it’d be good for my dodgy chest.”

“What?” I frown in confusion.

“Sorry. Bad joke.”

“Right.” I manage to push myself up to sit against the cold wall. The fog in my head has lifted, and I can see more clearly. He’s sitting against the wall, like I am, leaning back, one knee propped up in front of him, his arms draped over it. I get the sense of long legs encased in something dark. Denim, maybe.

I reach my arms down, feeling the rough stone under my fingers as I set my palms on the floor, balancing myself. My head is clearer, but it feels like I need to stop the world from spinning. My limbs are still heavy, sluggish. I blink a few times, peering into the dim light.

“How are you feeling?” Gage asks.