Read The Guardian (Callista Ryan Series) for Free Online Page A

refuse?” she asked. “What if I don’t want to be a lab rat?” She leaned forwards, enunciating each new word with care. “What if I just want to get the hell away from you freaks?”
                  The dark-haired man looked at her calmly, not flinching under her scrutiny. “Well, you see, we have strict rules with regards to dealing with security threats. I am sure you are aware of these rules by now. And, frankly, we’d really like to avoid the mess.”
                  Callie felt fear well up as, for the first time that night, she saw cruelty behind the placid face. She knew what her fate would be if she refused them. What was worse, he knew that she understood. He was just biding his time until he got his way.
                  Leaning forward, the man propped his elbows on his knees, and now looked upon her sympathetically. “You see, Callista, my way, everybody wins. This is really the best option for you at this point. So may I assume we have a deal?”
                  She glared at him. Her hatred was still foggy now, but more present, pressing up through the drug-induced haze with fury. If she could have, she would have slapped him. But she knew that he was stronger, and she knew that she would likely pass out at any moment.
                  “Do I have a choice?” she whispered, her voice breaking.
                  He smiled as though he were a friend, and, patting her knee, he stood up. She looked down at her feet, unwilling to let him see the hot tears upon her eyelids.
                  “That’s alright,” he said, stepping over to the doorway. “I am positive that, in time, you will come to regard us as good people, and you will be more willing to help us. We may even become friends.”
                  Callie choked at the suggestion, wiping her cheek with the back of her hand.
                  “But I am sure that you’re very tired now,” he said, and she could have strangled him for reminding her of the power he had over her, of the way that he had drugged her without her even knowing. “I will let you rest. Tomorrow we will begin to get to know one another. But for tonight, you will stay with the Healer. Shay?” he asked. “Will you make up the couch for our guest, please?”
                  Callie looked to her left and saw the tiny woman reappear, nodding at the man’s request. The man stood in the doorway, looking curiously at Callie for the moment. At his left, there was a movement, and Callie saw the other man, the blond man, whom she had almost forgotten about.
                  He stood in the shadows again, eyeing her cautiously, and again Callie felt as though she were some circus animal, on display for everyone to watch. But this notion was suppressed for a moment as that eerie glimpse of something familiar flashed again, and she narrowed her eyes at the blond man in suspicion. As she watched him, he looked momentarily surprised, and Callie wondered if he had felt it, too.
                  But then, intimidated, Callie averted her eyes and looked at the ground.
                  “Sleep well, Callista,” the dark-haired man said. She wondered once again how he knew her name. The rustle of wind drew her attention upward just in time for her to witness him leap out of the door, into the air, and catch himself on outstretched wings. She gasped as she watched him soar into the trees, disappearing behind the branches and leaves in a matter of seconds.
                  The blond man followed soon after, but only after pinning Callie with another unnerving glance. Callie watched him leave with awe, unable to comprehend the picture before her. It was almost graceful, the way their wings, like a bird’s, maneuvered through space, undulating fluidly and filling the sky with feathers.
                  But the shock