Full Moon Feral Read Free Page B

door?
    Please let me keep the madness at bay for a little longer. He tried to call out to the handsome man, but a harsh growl slipped from his throat.
    He’s mine.
    Madness.
     
    * * * *
     
    Brendan startled awake as the feral on the other side lost control, screaming and tearing up the mattress inside. Scrambling up, Brendan approached the bars as the feral clawed at the mattress, causing pieces to fly into the air.
    The feral stood and turned, gray eyes predatory as they pierced Brendan.
    His breath quickened as he stood frozen in place. The feral was there in less than a second, reaching for him, when a hand shot out and pulled him back.
    “What the fuck, Bren. You know better. You’ve been here for a week. You know you can’t approach the bars,” Dalton shouted at him.
    “I…” Brendan didn’t know what to say. He felt like he was losing his own sanity.
    Slumping back onto his mattress, he scrubbed a hand over his dirty hair.
    “You need a shower and to eat.” Dalton stood before him.
    “But…”
    “No. Don’t even start on the I can’t leave him bullshit. I’m sick of hearing it. You’re wasting away in front of these bars. You haven’t eaten or showered. You need to take better care of yourself.”
    “I’m not leaving him,” Brendan gritted out.
    “Too fucking bad. You are if I have to drag your ass out of here. You will shower, and you will have a hot meal.” Dalton made a grab for him.
    “Don’t try to handle me, Dalton.” Brendan got in his friend's face, the feral growling menacingly on the other side of the cell. They were upsetting the feral and that was making Brendan more pissed off about his friend pulling this stunt.
    “I need to. Someone needs to step in and take care of you. You aren’t thinking of yourself, and you’re wasting away. I won’t stand by and watch it anymore!” Dalton yelled back commandingly.
    Brendan glanced over at the feral. He was gripping the bars, staring at him. Brendan knew he wasn’t taking care of himself. He hated this. The situation was out of his control.
    “C’mon, Bren. Let’s get a shower and a quick bite, then you can come back here. We’re all worried about you. Please, let us take care of you when you can’t.” Dalton held out his hand.
    Looking over his shoulder, Brendan saw Colin, Sloan and Oren.
    “Okay.” Brendan gave in. He turned, staring at the feral. “I’ll be right back. Okay?”
    Nothing. No acknowledgement that the feral understood. If only Brendan knew his name. He walked back to his cell, Dalton next to him. He went straight into the cubby of a bathroom that each cell contained. Big enough to take care of his needs but easy enough to seal up when in lockdown during the full moon. He stripped and turned the water on, not caring if it was hot or cold, then stepped into the spray. Cold water sluiced his skin, and he cleaned, washing his hair and body, doing everything mechanically. He was thin to begin with, but staring down, the sight of his ribs beginning to show through his skin made him frown. It had only been a week? What had I eaten? Nothing substantial, for sure. Shrugging, uncaring, he finished up. Stepping out, Oren stood holding out a towel.
    Brendan grabbed it, muttering a “Thanks.”
    Oren was another one of his friends who had yet to go through his shift. He still had a couple months, but the Omega had a laissez-faire approach to it, so he wasn’t sure if his friend was nervous or not. He was the spitfire of the group, and Oren was good at always making Brendan laugh. Now, Oren stood there, gazing at him in concern.
    “Bren, you want company tonight when you sit with him? I’ll pull out my mattress, and we can sit together.” Oren grabbed his towel and began rubbing Bren’s brown hair vigorously.
    Brendan didn’t have it in him to protest and just stood there while Oren grabbed a pair of jeans and t-shirt for him. He dressed without saying a word to Oren, not answering his question. He wasn’t sure