Page 4 of The Jaguar's Flower
When the group stopped at an elevator bank, Violet noticed Renfield watching her in silence. She stepped to the side, uncomfortable with the attention from the doctor. She tied her long, blonde hair into a tight bun at the back of her head. Her light blue eyes never lingered on any one person in the group. She preferred to fade into the background rather than have anyone notice her. She learned it early on since she was not popular in school.
“We will meet on the third floor and work our way down and around the facility.” The group was divided into two, with a guard on both elevators. The silence seemed to echo in the elevator, which only increased her anxiety. She didn’t see the need for a full tour of the facility since she would never step foot outside of the lab. Technically, she was a medical doctor, but her area of expertise lay in genetic research. There were no requirements for her to see patients face-to-face.
The doors opened to reveal a metal door with a key card lock. “As a reminder, this is a research facility. The individuals within are nothing more than test subjects. You will unlearn any patient care as a certain decorum is necessary to work with our specimen.” That was all Dr. Renfield's warning before he slid his badge into the lock, and the doors opened in front of the group.
Violet expected to see jarred samples or people running on treadmills. She was unprepared for the sight that greeted her. Bile rose in her throat as she half listened to Renfield’s explanations as they toured the uppermost floor of the building. Her eyes darted to what she could only describe as cages where pairs were trapped. Sad eyes watched the group silently. This was nothing like she imagined when she was approached to join the team as their geneticist.
Her ears buzzed to block out whatever explanation Renfield gave for the treatment of these ‘test subjects.’ Her eyes continued to dart around the room as words echoed in her mind,‘Do no harm.’A voice barely penetrated the shock Violet found herself in.
“How is this considered humane?” One guard stepped closer to the woman who asked the question. Without a preamble, the woman was shot and handed off to another guard that appeared almost out of thin air. The gunshot sounded like a gentle puff of air before the woman fell slack in the guard’s arms.
Renfield continued as though annoyed with the disruption. “Questions are to be held until the end.”
It had to be some sort of macabre nightmare. Violet subtly pinched herself, but she didn’t wake. There was no way that this could be legal, but she had been assured all subjects were voluntary. The only test subjects that could not consent were animals, but these were clearly people trapped in various stages of undress.
“This is our breeding floor, and the genetics department will be highly involved with these test subjects,” Renfield continued to explain, though he pointedly watched her during his statement.
She steeled herself rather than meet the same end as the woman who the guards carried off. One look around the group told Violet that the other members were as unphased by this as the doctor. If this wasn’t a nightmare, it must be a cruel joke. Willing participants or not, no one should be treated in such a manner.
As they finished the tour of the third floor, Renfield redirected the group through the large metal doors and to the elevators. “Our next stop will be the surgical floor. We separated the floor into operating rooms and recovery rooms.”
Instead of dividing the group again, they were urged into one elevator while the doctor and the guards boarded the second elevator. During the descent, she heard whispers but refused to participate in the discussion. It appeared the pair whispered their excitement to begin work on the third floor. Any enthusiasm Violet felt evaporated after what she witnessed. Little did she know the worst was yet to come.
When the elevator doors opened on the second floor, the scent of pennies assaulted her nose. She knew that scent from medical school. It never bothered her in a clinical setting until that moment.
After their visit to the third floor, she felt overly sensitive to her surroundings. Her instincts clawed at her to run, but she couldn’t leave. Not only had she signed a contract, but she refused to leave after what she discovered on the floor above. The test subjects seemed hopeless with what they were forced to endure.
Renfield’s voice filled the corridor as he led the group while the guards brought up the rear. “On the left are the recovery rooms, while on the right side are the operating rooms. Those that will join this floor will receive earplugs as anesthetics are not used. We test the threshold of pain during the exploratory surgeries performed.”
A cold smile formed on his lips. “Those in the various research departments will gain access to our reports to help assist in strengthening the pain thresholds.”
As if on cue, several screams echoed through the hall. One man within the small group followed the sound. Renfield urged the others to join him. A window allowed them to view the ongoing procedure. Violet felt eyes boring into her, so rather than look away, she peered into the room.
The image would haunt her nightmares as she watched a woman struggle against the restraints while a surgeon’s hand sank into her body up to their elbow. Violet knew better than to show her distaste. Otherwise, she could wind up with a target on her back. She was already thinking of ways to alert the proper authorities to the horrors she had seen so far.
The rest of the second-floor tour went by in a haze, though Violet’s mind kept returning to the operating room and what she could only describe as torture. When she thought it was over, the still whimpering patient was moved from the operating room to one of the recovery rooms. Violet didn’t know how the woman survived the operation but didn’t want to know the particulars.
This was not what I signed up for.However, she feared it was. She hadn’t read the contract in detail. The paperwork was due the day after her parents’ funeral, and she’d been too distraught to read over every page carefully. It didn’t help that she received the packet the same day she learned of her parents’ death. It was all a blur, and she regretted not reading every detail. She had misplaced her trust in the recruitment officer from the DOD.
Once they returned to the first floor, Violet breathed a sigh of relief. Since the research labs were on the first floor, she knew the tour was almost over. She couldn’t wait to reach the quiet sanctity of her lab, where she would attempt to wrap her mind around all the information that was given today.
“The research labs will complete the tour and lead us back into the main building.” Renfield almost sounded bored as he gave the explanation. “We will proceed to the soldier training grounds, then the cafeteria, where we will take a quick break.”
He turned and faced the group. “Each of the researchers will be able to decide if you retrieve your own test samples or if the medical personnel will collect them for you. At the end of the tour, you will provide your decision.”
Any relief Violet felt was short-lived after Renfield’s comments. She followed the group silently, walking a few paces in front of the guards. When they entered the soldiers’ area, a sense of calm washed through her. She held no illusions the soldiers offered safety. They seemed too engrossed in their training to pay attention to the tour, but she felt more at ease with them.
Renfield’s voice nor the violence invaded her calm. It wasn’t until they entered another examination room that she paused. In the center of the room, a wolf lay on a table. Before she could voice her concern, another spoke.
“Why is there a wolf with the soldiers?” Unlike Violet, the speaker showed no sign of disgust, only confusion and curiosity.Were they already desensitized from the tour that none of this bothered them? Could it be something more?
The guards stood by the door while Renfield waved the group over. “This is not a wolf,” Renfield explained as he pointed out the muzzle and restraints that held the creature down. “This is the reason you’re all here. This subject is the same one that you will be working with until we make a breakthrough with the research. They are referred to as shifters, but their animal side is unnatural. They have no impulse control. Here we train them for the tasks we deem necessary.”
Another round of whispers followed Renfield’s speech as he moved a tray closer to the table. A brave or stupid soul spoke up. “So these are humans that can turn into animals?”
Renfield pulled a towel off the tray to reveal several medical instruments, which included a syringe and scalpel. “To call them humans is a disgrace. Before they are trained, they give into their baser desires without regard to humanity. Violent, detestable creatures that serve no purpose until they come here.” He pressed the syringe against the neck of the wolf and pushed the plunger down. Before the eyes of the group, the wolf transformed into a naked man.
Violet’s eyes darted away. She caught the pain in his eyes when she dared to look back. “What about ethics? Don’t they deserve the same care as those within a hospital?” Her voice was barely above a whisper. When Renfield turned toward her, his expression caused her heart to race in fear.