"Gods, you know I never thought of that either; no wonder he was in such a foul mood. Good thing Colton is back to normal, otherwise we'd probably have a full waiting room of men complaining that they pulled a muscle so that they could get away from Aiden."

"Was he really depressed?"

Adam nodded. "I was on the verge of pulling him in here for a chat when you showed up."

"Why wasn't I affected?"

Adam raised an eyebrow. "Weren't you?"

Rheia shook her head then stopped. She remembered her reaction to hearing his voice in her dreams. It hadn't been sexual, she would have dismissed that for what it was; the result of a dry spell. No, his voice had made her feel like she was complete, as if she had everything she ever wanted. Somehow in her dream she knew that no matter what, the faceless voice would be there for her. When she'd woken up she'd been relieved the nightmare was over, but at the same time she'd wept because he wasn't real. Each night when she went to sleep she'd been torn, she knew that with the terror came the knowledge that she wasn't alone. She'd  been willing to suffer through one to get to the other.

"I take it from the look on your face that he affected you as well?"

"I didn't realize it until now, but in my nightmares, he was always there."

"There you go. Matings affect people differently. For some it's a grand passion, dramatic and lusty. For other's it's the quiet, simple, small things, like your mate knowing your favorite tea, or remembering that you always forget your keys. No two couples ever come together in the same way."

"Meryn said for her it was like getting a roofie," Rheia said looking up at Adam.

Adam's mouth dropped before he began to laugh. "Fate had her work cut out for her with those two. It probably would've been easier to drug them. Did she tell you that she beat Aiden unconscious with the back of his toilet?" he smirked.

"No! Little, itty, bitty Meryn took Aiden down? Are you sure she didn't drug him?"

Adam shook his head. "She's a force of nature. She threatened every single unit warrior with a revolver smaller than my shoe. What's even more unbelievable is that she had them shaken. But there's one thing I learned about Menace, there are no half measures. Either she loves you or she hates you. If she loves you she hugs you, if she hates you, she shoots you. There's a measure of comfort in that type of honesty."

"She is stable though, right? She's watching Penny."

"They'll be fine. Meryn's rough around the edges, but she isn't stupid. Everything makes perfect sense... to her." He winked.

"Okay, now I really need a project. If I sit here and think about what could be happening I'll lose it." Rheia stood.

Adam thought for a moment. "I have the perfect project for you, come on." He opened the door and headed down the hallway.

"Where are we going?" she asked, jogging to keep up with his long stride.

"The morgue."

Peachy.

CHAPTER SEVEN

"What is that?" Rheia asked, pointing to the body lying on the gurney.

"This, this is my enigma. He was brought in as one of the ferals killed during the attack of the Alpha estate, but unlike regular ferals, much less dead ones, he hasn't started decomposing. In fact, if I didn't know better I'd say this guy wasn't a feral at all since he's decomposing like a regular paranormal." Adam pulled back the sheet to reveal a plain looking man with nondescript brown hair and average build.

"When you say 'decomposing like a regular paranormal' what do you mean?" she asked stepping closer.

"Paranormals have a naturally regenerating cellular structure; it's why we age so much slower than humans. The same is true after death; the cells take a long time to break down. Ferals on the other hand, begin to decay while they're still alive. That's why this man's appearance is such a mystery. Not only do ferals have visible signs of decay while alive, once killed they practically rot in front of us."

"Did you take samples?" she asked.

"Of course. I have samples from a living paranormal, from this charming character and from a dead feral. They're in that locked cabinet. One of the keys I gave you should unlock it. I've been keeping them in a small travel sleeve with the portable microscope. It made it easier to take it all home for homework."

"Sounds like a challenge." Rheia was already heading to the cabinet.

"I'll leave you to it then." Adam gave a salute and left.

She pulled out the slender leather slide case, set it on the counter and turned back to the body. Visibly he was no different from any other corpse she'd ever seen. She turned to the counter and pulled out a pair of gloves and mask. There was no 'Y' incision, meaning there had been no autopsy. She wondered if Adam deliberately delayed the procedure or if that just wasn't a common practice with paranormals. She'd have to ask before she proceeded. She was about to head to the door to ask Adam for permission to proceed when she noticed a flicker out of the corner of her eye. She stared and then blinked. Why had they left a necklace on the body? She walked around to the long counter and pulled out a drawer. She found a pair of scissors and returned to the body, carefully cutting the leather thong and pulled the necklace free.

Instantly the smell of sickness and death overwhelmed her. She watched in horror as the body began to decompose right before her eyes. The once average corpse was becoming the thing of nightmares.