by Linda Palmer
What the hell?
It was only when I got closer that I realized there were three people, not two, and I recognized them all—JT, Mara, and Akita. I also heard raised voices. Although dying of curiosity, I seized what was really a golden opportunity. I waited until all three went back inside the house before I slipped into the garage and looked for a place to hide. There were several possibilities. I finally ducked behind a jet ski.
Could someone have seen me? Of course. But if what was happening was what I thought it was, no one would be staring at multiple security screens. The return of the three soon confirmed what I'd guessed. Mara was finished with JT. Even more shocking, she and Akita seemed to have hooked up. And while the three of them yelled at each other, I slipped through the connecting door into a laundry room. I hid inside a walk-in pantry, my heart pounding painfully in my chest.
Outside sounds were muted now, but I heard the trunk close and then the side doors of a car slamming shut. An engine started. Moments later, one of the doors in the house banged shut. It was just me and JT now, unless he had security guards, and I hadn't seen or heard anyone else so far.
I had no idea what he'd do next. His leaving, too, was the most wanted, least likely scenario, of course. So I was nothing but thrilled when I heard the jingle of keys, doors opening and shutting, and, finally, the roar of a motorcycle.
It seemed that fate had smiled on me.
Was I really alone?
Boldly assuming I was, I burst from the pantry and headed straight to the door that led to the basement. It was locked, but I'd expected that and come prepared. The video I'd watched on YouTube had recommended a large, flexible card. I had a gift card I thought would work, so I got busy trying to slip it into a place that would release the lock. Of course it didn't work, and I wasted a good fifteen minutes trying, every couple of seconds glancing over my shoulder to see if anyone was about to pounce.
I put my mouth near the knob side of the door. "Cade? Are you in there?"
No answer, but I'd kept my voice so low that I wasn't surprised.
Desperate, I began looking for a key to match the lock. That took me to the kitchen, where I quickly opened and closed drawers. As I turned to head to the desk I'd seen in the den, I saw a set of keys lying on the table. Did that mean JT kept his motorcycle key on a ring by itself?
I grabbed the keys and ran back to the basement door, where I began trying each. Three keys in, I found one that fit. I turned it. The door opened into a dark basement that smelled musty and felt like a fridge.
"Cade!" I kept my voice one notch above a whisper. "Cade, are you down here?"
No answer.
I returned the keys to the table and left the door slightly ajar before I started down the steep steps. That's when I heard it—the roar of JT's motorcycle. He was already back. I flew up the stairs intending to hide in the pantry again. There wasn't time. I had to settle with closing the basement door completely.
Sinking onto the top step, I heard JT walk by. The clink of glass told me he'd probably made a liquor run to a twenty-four-seven convenience store. I heard the fridge open and shut, footsteps, and then the muted sound of the TV that put him in the game room.
Time to get out of there.
As quietly as possible, I rose, turned, and reached for the doorknob.
It wouldn't turn.
A low laugh on the other side of the door told me I'd been had.
Chapter Forty-Three
Cade
According to my watch, I'd been stuck in this godforsaken hole for four damn days, which meant it was Sunday night. Even my water was long gone. I'd made like a cat when nature called, using the dirt floor as my litter box. As a result, my prison smelled of sweat, but nothing worse.
Having explored by feel, I now knew that the walls were made of stone—the natural kind that an experienced rock climber could maneuver. But I was no climber, and even though I practiced by trying, so far I'd gotten nowhere fast.
Sitting there in the dark, my back against the circular wall, I couldn't help but think of what I'd lose if no one ever found me. Certainly not my dad, the root of wolf evil. The man had no conscience. I was sorry I hadn't found a way to kill him outright. I might've wound up dead, too, but my death would've been worth it.
As it was, I'd let my heart overrule my head and rushed blindly into a situation easily turned into a trap.
There would be no pat on the back from Ben, no reunion with Mom, no future of any kind with Lily.
Ah, Lily.
How could one guy—me—love one girl—her—that freakin' much? It was surely unnatural. Or maybe it was supernatural. A wolf thing.
"I should've told her how I feel."
It was then, while I wallowed in regret, that I knew what I had to do.
Try.
Try again and again and again. My mom had taught me that, and she'd be ashamed if she could see me giving up before I gave escape a good Messig go.
I got to my feet, cursing when my head swam. Dehydration, no doubt. When my foot and swollen ankle took my weight, I spit out a curse to keep from crying out in pain. I deliberately hopped to the wall. There wasn't enough light to see clearly, but maybe that was a good thing. I could focus on my hands and arms without dreading what lay ahead, or in my case, above.
I found my first toehold with my good foot and dug in so I could slowly raise my body. My fingers crawled over the rocks for a recess I could use. Found one! I reached up with my free hand to find another niche. Then I raised and planted my injured foot on a higher rock. Clinging like moss to a river rock, I excruciatingly worked my way up.
Too dehydrated to sweat, I still managed to feel clammy cold. Unbelievably, I made progress. The trapdoor finally loomed above me, no more than a body length away. I felt a rush of confidence, the thrill of victory.
Sweet freedom.
Until my injured ankle buckled, sending me crashing to the dirt below.
Chapter Forty-Four
Lily
"I knew you were up to something the minute you told me your name."
It was JT, apparently standing or sitting right outside the basement door, taunting me. He'd done that several times in the hours I'd been down there. Thank goodness I'd worn a watch, something I didn't do that often because of my job. By my calculations, it was midnight on Monday. By now, Neecy and Theo would be frantic.
My hope, of course, was that she'd guess where I was, call the law, and come to my rescue. But things weren't that simple. What cop in his right mind would believe their story? And Ben would be no help, either. He'd made that plain enough.
"So you'd heard of me?"
"My informants report every relationship in every pack. That keeps me one step ahead in the game."
"And gives you an edge when it comes to getting what you want?"
"Smart girl."
"Did you know Cade was your son?"
"No. That was a shock, the reason I responded so…violently. Thinking back, there were better ways to handle the meeting. Cade's bright. With the right motivation he could've been useful, but there's no chance of that now."
My heart skipped a beat then started thumping like crazy. "Did you kill him?"
"I did not."
"He's alive?"
"The last time I saw him. But that was early Thursday."
Oh my God. "Where is he?"
JT did not speak.
"You have to let me go. I promise I won't turn you in. All you have to do is take me to Cade. We'll leave Missouri. Heck, we'll leave the US. You'll never have to deal with either of us again."
He laughed heartily.
"I mean it," I said, and I did. At that moment I'd do anything to get Cade out of there in one piece.
The scrape of a chair told me he'd been sitting but was now moving on. I pounded the door with my fists.
"Can you at least turn on a light? I think there are spiders down here."
Silence was my only reply.
Chapter Forty-Five
Cade
Just after midnight on Sunday, I triumphantly nudged the trapdoor with my head. Locked, of course, and I couldn't let go of the rocks to push any harder. I did note that there was some give, though—enough for me to see that a rusty slide bolt was all that secured it. The wood of the door felt dry, old. Squeezing my fingertips in the crack between it and its wooden frame, I was able to reinforce my precarious position.
So I hung by four wedged fingers, carefully checking out the hinges. Bolts and nuts, the nuts on my side. I tested them. Rusty. Probably impossible to turn. It took three hand switches, my legs dangling over the vast hole, before I loosened a single one. By then, my entire body trembled and my biceps burned. I pushed out the bolt, which eased tension on the door. Using my head as a battering ram, I worked until it gave enough for me to slide it aside. The rest was easy, considering my exhaustion. And once I heaved myself free, I rolled onto the grass, where I lay panting until my muscles stopped screaming.
The moon was up, a crescent sliver that didn't penetrate the dark of night. That worked for me. After sucking in some moist, cold, fresh air, I revived enough to roll to my hands and knees. Lights in the distance helped me orient. I was in the woods quite a ways behind JT's place. Unless he had a security camera mounted somewhere, he'd never know I'd escaped.
I jumped up and limped through the trees, torture to my bare feet. Rocks jabbed my frozen toes. I tripped more than once over tangled vines. I couldn't remember ever being this dizzy and shaky before. I hated it.
My destination? Anywhere but there. Keeping the house to my left, I circumvented it via the cover of the forest. I slowed down of necessity, but stopped only once to pull thistles from my bloody foot. That's when I saw some kind of vehicle—maybe a truck—parked among the trees on a dirt track that went nowhere.
My heart kicked into overdrive. Keeping myself low, I crept forward through the shadows. The only reason a truck would be here was poachers—deer roamed this area—or maybe some lovebirds in search of privacy. Dropping to a squat, I scanned the trees for any sign of hunters. I saw and heard nothing.
It was only when I'd confirmed the truck was empty that I realized it was an older model SUV.
And not just any SUV. This one belonged to Lily.
Chapter Forty-Six
Lily
"Hey, JT. Are you out there?"
"What do you want?"
He wasn't right outside the door. That confirmed what some delicious smells had already told me. He was in the kitchen making himself a midnight snack.
"Are you going to share what you're cooking? It smells sooo amazing, and I'm sooo hungry. Thirsty, too. Don't forget I'm down here."
"As if I could."
Honestly, he sounded like he was enjoying our wars of words. Well, that was okay with me, the girl who desperately needed him to think she was harmless.
Not that I wasn't. I mean, I had no weapon to speak of. My leather belt would only work if I could strangle him with it—fat chance. My UGGs wouldn't kill a fly.
"Are you ever going to turn on a light? It's spooky down here. A flashlight would even be okay. I keep hearing stuff. I think there are mice around."
The door suddenly opened a scant inch. Something shot through the space. Stunned, I didn't have time to react before the door clicked shut and he secured the basement again.
I cursed like a gang member, but not loud enough to be heard. On my hands and knees, I frantically searched for whatever he'd thrown. My fingers found a crispy bug and some cobwebs before they touched what felt like an ink pen.
But that's not what it was.
With a gasp of joy, I switched on a penlight. Its tiny beam was better than sunrays in a black-dark forest. I quickly checked out my surroundings. Concrete floors and walls. Not much clutter. And a single door.
Surely that wasn't an exit, and if it was, it would be locked.
I tried the doorknob. It turned.
With a gasp, I fumbled on the wall for a light switch. Found one. The room lit up….
Wine.
Bottles and bottles of it, kept at the perfect temperature.
I remembered what Mara had said about JT's obsession with the wine. His careful inventory; his fear that she'd open one.
For a split second, I thought of opening every bottle and pouring them out. Then I thought of breaking a couple to use as a weapon. Finally, I realized what these precious bottles really were: hostages.
I quickly grabbed one. It was heavier than I expected. When I got to the top of the steps, I kicked on the door. "JT!"
He didn't answer. Had he finally gone to bed? There was always tomorrow, but the thought of possible freedom made me too impatient to wait.
"JT, are you still up?"
"What the hell do you want now?"
"You might need to get down here. I'm holding something very precious to you. Rhymes with fine. Tastes like…well, I don't actually know what. I'm not old enough to drink, but I know there are grapes in it."
I heard a crash, possibly the chair. The door rattled. I backed down a couple of steps just as the it flew open, took one look at JT's purple face, and backed down some more. He pretty much charged me. Standing right in front of the wine room, I waved my wine-bat like a hitter about to take a swing. "One more step and I'm breaking this."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa." He had both arms out and looked pretty damn panicked. "There's no need for that."
"Oh yeah? What's Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Romanee-Conti Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits, France worth?" I'd badly butchered the words, I felt sure.
JT's purple face went instantly pale. "That bottle costs over ten thousand dollars."
Yikes. I was so shocked that I almost put it back in the rack. Then I came to my senses and threw it on the floor. It shattered. Wine went everywhere.
"Bitch! I'll kill you."
But he didn't advance because I now had another bottle in my hand.
"What do you want?"
"I want out of here."
"Fine. Go."
Wow. Was he desperate or what?
"And I want to know what you did to Cade."
JT's brow had beaded with sweat. "Put down the bottle, and I'll take you to him."
"I'll put down the bottle when we get there. We'll swap. Cade for the wine. Deal?"
"Deal."
Did I trust him? Absolutely not. So I grabbed another bottle and tucked it under my arm. "Let's go."
"We'll have to walk a ways." He never took his eyes off the wine. His desperation was almost comical.
"Fine, let's go."
JT turned and went back up the stairs, glancing back every step to see if I was following. Of course I was.
It felt amazing to walk into the kitchen and then through it to the door in the den. JT opened it and stepped outside, into the dark night. A rush of frigid air filled the space between us. I found a light switch and flipped it up, illuminating JT standing on his deck. He beckoned for me to hurry, but a blur of motion stopped me in my tracks.
What the…
Cade came out of nowhere, tackling JT. They both hit the wooden deck and then sprawled down the steps to the frozen ground. I heard the sound of ripping fabric. I saw fragments of clothing fly into the air.
Before my eyes, two men became two wolves—wolves with deadly fangs and claws that tore at each other. This would be a fight to the death. Crying out in horror, I ran to them.
"Stop! Stop!" No one had to die. Especially not Cade.
A blood splattered tangle of fur and fangs, they rolled around. Their snarls and yips filled the night. I watched in desperation, tears streaming down my face. I couldn't let JT kill Cade, and that's what was going to happen.
JT had him in size and skill, but his son wasn't going to go down easily. A brutal flip suddenly put him on the defensive. I watched as JT sank his fangs, sharp as daggers, into Cade's neck and shook him like a chew toy.
Screaming, I dropped the spare wine bottle and slammed the other against the de
ck rail. It didn't break.
I tried again and then again. Finally it shattered, leaving me holding the neck of a weapon with sharp, jagged edges. I charged the wolves, desperately stabbing JT's back. With a yowl of agony, he spun around and charged me. I hit the ground so hard I lost my grip on the bottle. JT went straight for my throat, but his fangs had barely grazed me when I heard an earsplitting explosion. Blood sprayed my face and torso. His full weight suddenly pinned me.
Frantically, I squirmed to get out from under him. I felt hands slip under my arms. Someone pulled me free. I spun to see Cade, now a guy again and holding a gun.
Bursting into tears, I threw myself at him. We kissed and kissed and kissed, each of them more frenzied than the ones before. I practically climbed his naked body.
A sharp gasp brought me to my senses. I made myself step away. "You're hurt." I began checking him for injuries. "Where?"
His wry laugh was my answer—everywhere.
I didn't doubt it. He was filthy with blood and gore.
"We need to go inside." But first I had to check out JT. I saw that he'd morphed back into a man, too, and now lay on his side with his back to me. Gingerly, I felt for a pulse. I got a nothing. "I think he's dead, but I'm not sure." I spotted the gun. "Where'd you get that?" I was pretty damn sure it wasn't JT's.
"Your bag."
"Crap." Shaking my head, I stood. "What do we do now?"
"We call Ben."
Epilogue
Lily
Three Months Later
I sat on Neecy's couch as close as I could get to Cade, which meant we overlapped a little. My arms encircling his midriff, my head against his shoulder. He held me just as tightly. Neecy and Theo, who sat nearby, didn't seem to notice or care.
Ben DeLuca was a different story. He had the floor, and had just cleared his throat as if he had a lot more to say. I didn't doubt it. He'd been yapping at us for days.