Belligerent (Vicara) Read Online Free PDF Page B

to wherever it was that he was going. They led him down the brightly lit hallways, past several other holding cells and the cafeteria, and to an area of the detention center that he hadn’t seen during his stay.
    Ryan watched as one of his escorts swiped a card outside the entrance to a small hallway. The door beeped, then swung open, and Ryan was ushered in followed by only one of the disciplinary squad members.
    There were only two rooms in the hallway, and there were no windows or other escape routes except for the door they had entered though which was being watched by the rest of his burly entourage.
    Ryan was taken into the closest room which looked like an infirmary that had been taken over by holographic monitors. Seated in front of one of the monitors, watching the news, was a scrawny, elderly man dressed in a lab coat.
    “Delivery,” the disciplinary squad member announced as if she were a postal worker and Ryan was some package to be delivered.
    The man spun around in his chair. “Who do we have here?” he asked with a surprisingly friendly smile.
    “Candidate for Shifter's team,” she replied. The man grabbed for a tablet and after glancing at it for a few moments, addressed them again.
    “Ryan?”
    “Yeah,” he replied with a nod, nerves creeping into overdrive as he noticed all the medical devices placed around the room. Despite his best efforts, sweat formed on his brow.
    “I'm Dr. March. Looks like you're here for a first time band.”
    Ryan didn't reply. He clasped his right wrist with his left hand to keep his arms from shaking. A band? No. No, no, no.
    To his surprise, Dr. March addressed the disciplinary squad member next. “You can leave now.”
    The guard stepped out of the room but not before flashing a look of warning. The unspoken threat was as clear as it had been his entire stay: try to run and we will take you down.
    “Okay, Ryan, let's get started.”
    It wasn't so terrible at first. Ryan was weighed and measured. His eye color and hair color were marked down on a chart. His finger was pricked and a small sample of his blood was taken. Dr. March whistled an unknown tune between each test as he reached for instruments or his tablet. Just as his nerves began to settle, things unraveled when the doctor pulled out a tray of syringes.
    “First, we're going to test you for any allergies.”
    “I don't have any,” Ryan quickly assured.
    “You may have an allergy to something you've never been exposed to before,” the doctor said as he lifted one of the larger syringes filled with a thick substance. “Left arm, please.”
    Ryan hesitated, and the doctor's grin faded. “Please don't make me call in reinforcements. It's far easier if you cooperate, son.”
    Ryan's eyes flickered to the door then back to the doctor before he slowly held out his arm. “Will it hurt?”
    “Just a little,” he replied before injecting the serum. It pinched, but it didn't really hurt. After several long moments, Dr. March placed the shot in a bio-hazard container.
    “Now, we wait a few minutes before proceeding.” He resumed his soft whistling.
    “How will you know if I'm allergic to anything?” Ryan asked, staring down at the small red dot forming on his skin. The edges of the puncture began to turn an unsettling shade of purple.
    “That's how,” the doctor replied taking Ryan's arm in his grasp to study it. “Not too bad. You seem to have a mild lactose intolerance, but otherwise you're not showing any other allergies.”
    “You got that from a color?”
    “And the size of the ring it formed,” Dr. March replied. “Best medical breakthrough yet, that shot is. Can test for every allergy in mere minutes with only one prick. Saves a lot of time and pain. You know, a Belligerent came up with it.” He reached for the next shot on the tray. “Now for the vaccines.”
    “Are those all-in-one too?” Ryan asked hopefully.
    Dr. March chuckled. “Don't be silly. Of course they're not! Luckily, you've