"Do you know who these people are?" Lukah asked, showing me a picture of two painfully familiar faces. I struggled to place them, although eventually it clicked in my mind, bringing everything else back with it. I didn't even realise I'd forgotten so much...

"Chase! Zion! Please, you have to let me go, I'm begging you! They probably think I ran away!"

Lukah shook his head, waving his finger in my face. "No no no. That's the way we want it. Now tell me again who these people are -friend or foe?"

"Friends! They're my friends!" I yelled, struggling against the restraints of the chair I'd been tied to.

Lukah chuckled, pressing a button on the remote he held in his hand. At that moment, electricity sapped through my body, causing me to cry out in pain. It was almost as if someone was directly heating every nerve in my body, times a million.

"Please! Stop!" I cried, my nails digging into my palms aggressively, but it still wasn't enough to cancel out the pain of the electricity.

Surprisingly, he did as I asked, and the pain stopped. "Oh, my dear Fabian. Or should I say, Seventeen? We're going to keep playing this little game until you tell me these men are your enemy. No- I take it back. We're not stopping until you truly they're the enemy, with no doubt in your mind. Funny how pain and a small dose of this drug we developed in the lab can influence a person so drastically. Now, again. Friend or foe?"

It was a whole day until we found what remained of Fabian's bracelet. Two green stones and a piece of elastic, his scent almost gone.

I wouldn't have found it if I'd given up like Zion told me to, but I'm so glad I kept searching. Although it's not much to go off, now I know Fabian didn't run away. He would never destroy his bracelet, ever. I know how much it meant to him. Therefore, he must have been taken, and knew this was the only way to guide us to him, clever boy.

I have a pretty good idea of where he's been taken. I just hope we're not too late.

Stupid.

Absolutely ridiculous.

How long does he plan to continue to live his lie?! Fabian is gone, and he needs to accept it before keeping his hopes up damages him permanently.

Every day he gets up early, searches for god knows what, and then goes to bed late. He's been carrying out the same routine for almost a week now, and I still don't understand what he expects to find.

When I ask him, he just replies with: 'Fabian is a clever boy, he'd always leave a way for us to find him, if he wanted to be found. I just need to work it out, that's all'.

Every time he repeats the phrase, his voice grows more and more frantic. Fabian really does have that foolish man I call my brother wrapped around his little finger. I swear if Fabian asked Chase to kill me, he would do it with no hesitation.

Hang on. I can prove to Chase that Fabian doesn't want us. Then he'll let him go for sure!

The tracking device, we'd both forgotten about it. We can use it to lead us to Fabian, and when he doesn't welcome us with open arms, Chase will be forced to let go. Then he won't get hurt by the adorable little shifter who doesn't want us.

Doctors' orders, I have to make Fabian believe Chase and Zion are the enemy, so we can experiment on him freely without interference. And after that, I've been promised that he's all mine.

Who wouldn't want a cute, innocent artificial shifter in their collection? Certainly not me. I'll treat him right. I treat all my boys right. He'll be gasping and moaning my name before he knows it.

Hearing Fabian's whimpering brought me back to the present again, and I jabbed the button on my remote, sending electricity through his frail body.

He's had several doses of the new drug we've been working on, and slowly, I'm mentally breaking him down and altering his memory. And by the blank, dead look in his eyes, I can tell I'm almost there.

"Friend of foe, Fabian?" I asked, flicking the photo carelessly in front on his face once more. After a pause, I got the response I've been searching for.

"Foe."

I grinned. By the tone of his voice, I could tell he truly believe in what he'd told me. Doctor Redi would be pleased.

And Fabian will be mine, a lovely addition to my collection.