Birkin blinked, obviously dumbstruck that Stein actually numbed him. The last time he had used anesthetic on a test subject was in 1986. Maybe he didn't know Stein as well as he thought. "Are you this possessive and affectionate with all your test subjects or are the three of us just special?"

After a short pause, Birkin closed his eyes. "And keep Vanessa out of this. I don't care what you do to me but, if you lay so much as a finger on her, you will learn from experience exactly what this feels like." His eyes snapped open and he looked directly into Stein's eyes. "Understand?"