Read Online Sol: Luna Lodge #1 by Madison Stevens - Free Book Online
Authors: Madison Stevens
Ads: Link
questions.” He glanced over. “I’m a tracker. That’s my specialty.”
Erica fell silent as she thought about this. Did it mean something, him telling her this? She had a hard time believing that it didn’t. Asking him more seemed out of the question, so she settled in for the rest of the ride.
It was surprising how comfortable it was, sitting in silence with him. In many ways he seemed menacing and scary, but here, with her, he offered a feeling of safety that she had been missing the last few days.
She smiled and looked out the window.
* * *
After some time, she recognized the path to the lodge. In the distance, Erica could see people gathering at the front gate.
“Are those all reporters?” she asked.
“Some,” Sol replied and turned down a road to the left. “Some are protesters, and some just want to see the freaks.”
Erica gasped. “You aren’t freaks!”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” he replied. “We had to go through a number of tests before we could even get to the point where we are. If we were normal, we would have never had to go through all this. They would have rescued us, and we would have been able to lead a normal life outside of these walls.”
“That’s a reflection on society, not you,” Erica said softly.
She wanted to badly to soothe the aches the hybrids’ continued rejection had caused. These men had been the subject of so much and treated so poorly.
“What about the protesters? How could they have some sort of problem with you? It’s not like you all asked to be altered.” She could feel the irritation rising.
Sol shrugged. “Who knows? Some think we are an abomination to God. Some think we go against nature, and some just hate anything that might be threatening to them.”
She snorted. “Threat. These people are idiots and bigots.”
Sol nodded. “Maybe, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t a danger. If enough people get it in their head that they want us gone, the government could decide to pull our funding. Titus is trying to prevent this from even being an option, but it’s still there.”
“That’s terrible,” she shouted.
“That’s life,” he said.
Erica glanced out the window at the wilderness around them. They had been driving away from the front of the lodge, but there was still no sign of the back.
She frowned. “Where are we going?”
Sol chuckled at her question. “Near the lodge we have the offices and training facilities. This is also where we keep guests and live. We’ve tried to keep the lodge and the community as separate as we can.” He looked over at her, and her heart picked up at his lopsided smile. “This is where most of us live, and we didn’t want anyone finding us out. Now it’s more a worry they might sneak in and take pictures of us naked.”
“They’d get a lot for those,” she mumbled and then blushed at his chuckle. This super hearing was going to be hard to get used to.
Gates camouflaged by vines swung open, and she was surprised to find a whole new area. Sol nodded at the guards, mostly hybrids judging by their size and eyes, and drove through. A decent-sized building that looked like some sort of hospital stood to the right. A creek ran to the left and veered off farther into the woods.
She had wondered before how many men lived at the compound. Now, it was clear there were far more than she had anticipated. Not only that, but their ages astounded her. Most were fully grown, but there were several that were just barely teens. More boys than men.
“They are so young,” she whispered to herself.
“These were the ones at our facility,” Sol said quietly. “We know the Horatius Group have some sort of birthing center. Only a few of us can remember it, and even then it’s broken memories. Just something else they took from us.”
His muscles tensed on the steering wheel. She could hear the cheap plastic groan with the pressure.
“So there’s a place somewhere, with just mothers
Erica fell silent as she thought about this. Did it mean something, him telling her this? She had a hard time believing that it didn’t. Asking him more seemed out of the question, so she settled in for the rest of the ride.
It was surprising how comfortable it was, sitting in silence with him. In many ways he seemed menacing and scary, but here, with her, he offered a feeling of safety that she had been missing the last few days.
She smiled and looked out the window.
* * *
After some time, she recognized the path to the lodge. In the distance, Erica could see people gathering at the front gate.
“Are those all reporters?” she asked.
“Some,” Sol replied and turned down a road to the left. “Some are protesters, and some just want to see the freaks.”
Erica gasped. “You aren’t freaks!”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” he replied. “We had to go through a number of tests before we could even get to the point where we are. If we were normal, we would have never had to go through all this. They would have rescued us, and we would have been able to lead a normal life outside of these walls.”
“That’s a reflection on society, not you,” Erica said softly.
She wanted to badly to soothe the aches the hybrids’ continued rejection had caused. These men had been the subject of so much and treated so poorly.
“What about the protesters? How could they have some sort of problem with you? It’s not like you all asked to be altered.” She could feel the irritation rising.
Sol shrugged. “Who knows? Some think we are an abomination to God. Some think we go against nature, and some just hate anything that might be threatening to them.”
She snorted. “Threat. These people are idiots and bigots.”
Sol nodded. “Maybe, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t a danger. If enough people get it in their head that they want us gone, the government could decide to pull our funding. Titus is trying to prevent this from even being an option, but it’s still there.”
“That’s terrible,” she shouted.
“That’s life,” he said.
Erica glanced out the window at the wilderness around them. They had been driving away from the front of the lodge, but there was still no sign of the back.
She frowned. “Where are we going?”
Sol chuckled at her question. “Near the lodge we have the offices and training facilities. This is also where we keep guests and live. We’ve tried to keep the lodge and the community as separate as we can.” He looked over at her, and her heart picked up at his lopsided smile. “This is where most of us live, and we didn’t want anyone finding us out. Now it’s more a worry they might sneak in and take pictures of us naked.”
“They’d get a lot for those,” she mumbled and then blushed at his chuckle. This super hearing was going to be hard to get used to.
Gates camouflaged by vines swung open, and she was surprised to find a whole new area. Sol nodded at the guards, mostly hybrids judging by their size and eyes, and drove through. A decent-sized building that looked like some sort of hospital stood to the right. A creek ran to the left and veered off farther into the woods.
She had wondered before how many men lived at the compound. Now, it was clear there were far more than she had anticipated. Not only that, but their ages astounded her. Most were fully grown, but there were several that were just barely teens. More boys than men.
“They are so young,” she whispered to herself.
“These were the ones at our facility,” Sol said quietly. “We know the Horatius Group have some sort of birthing center. Only a few of us can remember it, and even then it’s broken memories. Just something else they took from us.”
His muscles tensed on the steering wheel. She could hear the cheap plastic groan with the pressure.
“So there’s a place somewhere, with just mothers
Similar Books
