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lot longer than eight hours. No matter how successful Rosa had made her small desert community, it wasn’t safe—not if they were working on superstition and incorrect data. Part of him, the Before part, wanted to set them to rights. But working against entrenched prejudice tested his patience and would get him skinned. Scared, angry villagers didn’t like hearing that Frankenstein’s monster was just like them.
    That hard-eyed kid opened the hatch and threw something down, then disappeared again. Despite hands bound before him, Chris groped in the dark until he found a sack that contained a skin of water and some flat bread. They didn’t intend to spoil him, it seemed, until they knew his nature. Such a primitive waste of time, but he didn’t let that deter him. He devoured his meal, then rolled onto his side and went to sleep.
    “You’re napping?” The light of purple desert dusk flooded the cellar, which meant he’d passed their absurd test.
    It hadn’t been bad, actually. The cool cellar was far from the worst place he’d slept since leaving Mason and Jenna’s home. At least it had been dark, safe, and out of the sun’s heat. Having food in his belly helped too.
    Still groggy, Chris rolled to face Rosa. He wasn’t surprised to see her checking on him personally. The possibility of facing a feral, thoroughly pissed-off shifter? No problem. La jefa was the first down the rope ladder.
    Two sets of male hands grabbed his upper arms. Rio and Brick forced him to his knees, but he didn’t resist. Their trust would be hard-won.
    Rosa stood before him. Later he’d dwell on how she smelled, like caramelized sugar and pure sex.
    Instead Chris squinted up at the gun she held against his forehead. “Time’s up?”
    One look at Rosa’s face should have sobered him, but he liked how fast she breathed when she was pissed. “Get him up,” she said. “I can see he doesn’t take this seriously.”
    “What? I was tired.”
    Rio and the other man yanked him up. Blood rushed to Chris’s head and spots blinked as rapidly as he did—lack of food, lack of water. What they’d given him hadn’t been enough to stave off the effects of long months of deprivation. But he couldn’t give in to the dizziness. He had too much to prove, though he had no idea why he wanted to impress this woman.
    Rosa stood toe-to-toe with him. She barely reached his chin, but confidence made her seem divine. She’d bring the whoop-ass no matter her stature. Chris found himself wanting to grin again.
    “You’ll have to take the test again. There’s no stress in sleep, therefore, there’s no telling what the hell you are.”
    “Don’t be dense.” He shrugged out of his guards’ hands. “If you’re using this to determine citizenship for your town, then I guarantee your population is roughly ten percent shifter.”
    Those ripe, full lips fell open. She nodded toward her guards and said, “Get out.”
    “ Jefa —” Brick started.
    “Wait for us outside.”
    Brick and Rio climbed out of the cellar. A match flared and Rosa lit a candle. Chris resumed his seat, fingers laced in his lap.
    She leveled the gun at his chest—a big fucking gun, one more suited to Mason than her small hands. He felt sure he couldn’t rush her without Rosa ventilating his chest.
    “Talk.”
    “I’ve been wearing the same clothes for a long damn time. A wash, a shave, some food—I’d appreciate it.”
    “I bet you would.” Her words were deadly sweet.
    “I’ll tell you anything you want to know.” He chanced another look up and down her compact body. “Not that it’ll matter.”
    Her fingers tightened on the grip of the gun. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
    “You’re throwing people into a basement in the hopes they’ll shift. It’s like dunking a woman to see if she’s a witch. You’re working off hearsay. It’s not worth my time trying to correct so much bad information.” He stretched his legs. “So maybe I’ll just