by DJ Phoenix
Adam pulled her in for a quick hug and then stepped away just as quickly. It was almost like the Fae was abhorrent to physical displays of affection. “You look lovely, cousin. Your parents would be proud and happy that you found your true mate. He is an honorable man.” With that said, Adam flashed out of her room.
Cynthia let out a sigh at the Fae’s antics as she made her way to an armchair. She sat down and closed her eyes. She needed to be in tune with herself to be able to focus. She relaxed her shoulders, rolling them back a couple times, then relaxed her arms, letting them rest at her sides, hands palm up. She inhaled deeply and released her breath slowly. She cleared her mind and imagined her body. Then she dug deeper and imagined her cells, how they flowed through her, how they moved in and out of her organs distributing nutrients. Another deep breath and a slow exhale.
As she prepared to take another breath, a cloth pressed to her face and the smell of chemicals assaulted her senses. She tried to bring her hands up to dislodge the cloth, but she was jerked upright and her hands were clasped painfully behind her back. Before she could let out a single scream or see her attacker, the world turned black and she fell unconscious against a chest.
Luke
It looked like the entire pack was already present by the time Luke pulled into the drive. The smell of food filled the air, along with his pack’s excited chatter. There was no doubt they were all happy he had found his mate. It would make him stronger, and in turn their pack would be stronger.
He made his way around the cabin to the backyard. Rows of chairs covered in white cloth faced a rustic dais strategically placed near the edge of the forest facing the backdoor where his mate would make her entrance. Just like in a human marriage, he would be waiting for her in front of the dais. The dais had no saints or images, just a podium where Jack would stand to officiate the ceremony. An aisle had been left between two sections of chairs to lead his mate to the dais. Beautiful flower arrangements were strategically placed along the aisle and on the dais as decorations.
He walked straight to his beta. “Matt, how is everything? Do we have men running the perimeter?”
“Everything has been quiet, and no one has picked up on that scent from the forest. So far, all is well.”
Luke ran a hand through his hair. Something didn’t feel right. “Keep your guard up. Something feels off, I just can’t figure out what.”
Matt put his hand on his friend’s shoulder. “You worry about sealing the deal with your mate. We’ll keep watch. If anyone is out there, we’ll find them.”
Luke nodded and walked over to see if Lucy and Margaret needed anything. The two women assured him everything was ready to begin and shooed him toward the dais. Lucy excused herself to go get his mate, so he made his way to the front where Jack stood going through an ancient book.
To say he was anxious was an understatement. He knew Cynthia was his and would always be his. She already bore his mark and his scent to prove it. The ceremony was their declaration to the whole pack that they were meant to be together. The gods would bestow their blessing on them and Cynthia would be bathed in magic. That was what worried him—they weren’t sure how the magic would affect her.
Looking out onto the many rows of chairs, Luke saw his pack taking their seats, all dressed in their best, even the pups. They all radiated a positive energy; they were happy for him. He had been alone for so long they had probably feared he would never find his mate.
Jack cleared his throat and Luke turned to his old friend and mentor. “She’s perfect for you. Our pack is lucky to welcome her as our Alpha Female.”
Luke smiled and nodded in agreement. “I’m lucky she didn’t run for the hills when I told her my wolf and I love her. She’s become my world, Jack. I truly don’t understand how I survived all these years without her.”
“Well, you’ve found her now, and it’s time to seal the deal. She should be coming through that door any minute.”
Luke’s smile grew wider, and he stood tall, waiting to welcome his mate. Just as he had fixed his gaze on the door, Lucy burst through it yelling for help. Everyone was on high alert at once, and Luke felt his blood run cold. Joe was by his side in an instant, as was Matt.
Lucy ran toward them as she continued to yell. “Luke, Luke she’s gone! She’s not anywhere in the house. I looked everywhere and can’t find her. She wouldn’t have left, something had to have happened to her!” Lucy’s face contorted as a sob escaped her.
Jack pulled her in and wrapped his arms around his mate, giving Luke an ‘I’ve got this’ look.
Luke didn’t waste any more precious seconds. He ran inside and straight to their bedroom. Everything seemed to be as it should, except one of the armchairs was out of place. He inhaled long and slow, deciphering each scent, until he found that evasive barely there scent hidden within all the others in their bedroom. It was the same scent as the woods. A growl erupted from his chest, followed by a howl that was answered by every member of his pack. He would hunt whoever had dared take his mate, and they would pay. He was going to spill blood before the night was over.
He turned to follow the scent, which was fading fast. Matt, Joe, and Evan were there, sniffing the air, ready to move at his command. He had no doubt the rest of his pack were already searching the surrounding woods. This was an attack on the pack as a whole, and they would all join the search.
Matt spoke first. “It’s the same scent from the forest.”
“There’s no way anyone got past us. We’ve been combing the surrounding woods and running perimeter around the entire property all day.”
Evan had a point, how could anyone get past all of them?
A flash of light made them look to the window, all four males taking a defensive stance. A tall slim male stood where the flash had appeared, his hands held up in a show of surrender, his expression amiable yet guarded. “Alpha. I mean you, your pack and your mate no harm. As I told you before, I am here to help Cynthia. I spoke with her no more than twenty minutes ago, and she was fine when I left her. I have been flying circles around your property and only pack members have entered or exited. If anyone took her, it had to be through the use of an alternate entrance.” Adam closed his eyes and seemed to be deep in thought for no more than thirty seconds. When his eyes popped open he shook his head. “She wasn’t taken by a Fae. There is no trace of another’s magic in the house.”
Luke fought to control his wolf. They were wasting precious time here, and his wolf wanted to be let loose to do what he did best: annihilate threats and protect what was theirs. “Why are you truly here, Fae? We have not had one of your kind here before.” His words were more of a growl with his wolf so close to the surface. “Did you take my mate?”
Adam took on a relaxed stance in an attempt to show the angry and on-edge male he wasn’t a threat to him or his mate. “I assure you, Alpha, I did not take your mate. I am here to help. I was sent by our grandmother to watch over my cousin. To help her when the bonding magic descends over her. I would never harm her or prevent this bonding from happening. She needs this in order for her magic to be released.”
Luke scoffed at the Fae. “Why now? Her parents kept their heritage hidden from her and her sister. Why do your people care now?”
Adam took a deep breath; he had to convince the angry wolf he was not a threat. “She is in danger. That is why her parents hid her and her sister, and never told them about supernaturals. I can explain later, but right now we need to find her before she is delivered to whoever hired this wolf, because I am sure he is not working alone. He knows what he’s doing, and this scent he leaves behind, I’m pretty sure it’s the work of one of my people.”
Joe spoke for the first time. “Luke, he’s right. We need to move. The males outside have already taken to the woods in search. We need to move.”
Luke took in a deep breath and painfully let it out. His heart pounded in his chest, the fear of what Cynthia might be going through almost crippling. He let his wolf loose a l
ittle and used his enhanced senses to start his search. “Let’s go. Fae, your help is welcome. Whatever you can do to help find her, I will be forever in your debt.”
Adam nodded and followed the men out the door.
Luke followed the faint scent down the stairs to the fireplace in the living room. “How is it possible? The scent stops here.”
Joe tapped the wall. “Your father built tunnels going from here to different places in town. Is there one here?”
“I only know of four, and neither entrances are in this room.” Luke ran an agitated hand down his face. They were getting nowhere. This mystery wolf had been a step ahead of them all along.
Adam stepped up to the fireplace and placed his hands on the bricks. He closed his eyes and his hands began to glow. It was only a moment when his eyes shot open. He ran his hand to the top of the fireplace and pressed down on a brick. The fireplace slid to the side just enough to let someone through a dark opening. “I think we found how they got in and out undetected. Where does it go?”
“I don’t know, Dad never showed me this tunnel. Joe, you were close to Dad. You’ve been in the council for as long as I can remember. Do you know where this goes?”
Joe hesitated a bit then answered. “Your dad had plans to build a tunnel that led out of the city. He said it was needed in case we were discovered here. I’m not sure where he would have the tunnel end, though. He never elaborated much on it, we all thought it was more like a project that never came to be, so we never asked.”
Luke walked to the opening in the wall and took a deep breath. “There are traces of the scent in here, but no sign of Cynthia’s scent.”
Adam came close to the opening. “He probably used the potion on Cynthia, too. Anything to try and throw us off his trail.”
Luke took a step through the opening. “Alright, we follow the tunnel. The scent continues through here. Keep as quiet as possible, and keep your eyes and ears open. We don’t know what we’re walking into.”
Chapter 26
Cynthia
Cynthia’s head throbbed. She looked around and realized she wasn’t at home. So, where was she? Her head felt foggy, her eyes felt grainy, and her throat was as dry as the Sahara Desert. She slowly moved her arms and legs, taking inventory; though they felt like lead weights, she was glad they were working.
She eased herself up, making sure her head stayed attached to her neck, and took in her surroundings. Beside the simple bed she was laying on, a small table and one chair against the wall to her left were the only furnishings in the room. There was a door right across from where she sat, and no windows. Thankfully it looked like the mattress she was currently sitting on was clean.
Taking a deep breath, she tried to focus and remember how she had gotten there, but the throbbing in her head wasn’t helping. It felt like she had the worst hangover ever. She stood on unsteady legs and straightened up. Maybe the answers awaited beyond the door. Slowly, she made her way to the door and found it was locked. Great, apparently she was being held against her will.
She banged on the door with her fists and called out to whoever had looked her in. “Hello? Anybody out there? Let me out! Let me out!” Her yelling and banging went on for a while until she heard keys clinking outside the door. She backed up, ready to bolt the minute the door swung open. She would figure out how she had gotten there after she was safely away and free.
The door slowly opened and she froze. Her eyes knew what they saw, but her brain couldn’t believe it. There, blocking the doorway, stood Dylan Lacroix. A wicked smile appeared on his face as he moved to cross the threshold, closing the door. Her stomach knotted with dread and her heartbeat increased with fear. How was this possible? She hadn’t even seen him during the divorce process, so how had he found her?
His stance was relaxed, exuding confidence, and the look on his face was one of diabolic giddiness. “Hello Cynthia, you didn’t think that silly divorce paper was enough to break our bond, did you? I’m sure the woman I married was much smarter than that. Then again, you weren’t very good at much. Much less smart.”
“Keep him talking,” her wolf urged her.
Cynthia’s throat felt too dry, but she managed to make her vocal cords work. “Where am I? How did you get me here?”
Dylan clucked his tongue and took a step closer to her.
Cynthia took a step away.
“Don’t show him weakness, we are strong,” her wolf spoke in her mind.
Dylan continued stalking her. “Now now, didn’t you learn anything? I am in charge. I am always in charge, and you don’t get to question me. You get to do as I say, when I say. Now, before we go, I need to know where it is.”
“What are you talking about? Where what is?”
His face contorted with rage and his right hand connected to her left cheek. “Don’t play games with me! Your mother had it!” He advanced, grabbing her shoulders painfully as he shook her.
Her head jerked back and forth, making her headache spike. Her stomach churned, and she wished she could throw up all over him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about!”
His hands released her shoulders, one moving to grab her hair, while the other delivered a punch to her stomach. She doubled over in pain, but he pulled her up by her hair. “I can do this all day and all night, bitch! You decide if I consider being merciful or not. You just have to tell me where it is.”
Cynthia reached up to hold her hair hoping to alleviate the pain. “I don’t know anything! I don’t know what you’re looking for!”
Another punch to her midsection was followed by one to her left cheekbone, splitting her skin open. “I will deliver so much pain before I kill you … you will beg me to stop.” Another punch, this one connected to her left side, and she heard some of her ribs crack.
Cynthia knew this could last a while. She had endured many nights living this same horror. In the past, he had always been drunk, though, making his movements clumsy, or at least slower. At the moment, however, he looked sober, and she feared that diminished her chances of survival.
“We will not give up! Our mate is looking for us, he will find us.”
But Cynthia didn’t even know where she was. How could her wolf be so sure Luke was coming?
“Our mate is strong, and he will always come for us.”
Dylan let go of her hair, and she stumbled back, her arms flailing in an attempt to catch her balance. She couldn’t end up on the floor, because that would give him more of an upper hand. She steadied herself and looked him in the eye. She had always cowered before him, but she wouldn’t do it again. “How did you get me here?”
His fists clenched at his sides. “Alright, it was such an amazing feat on my part I think I’ll enlighten you before I have to kill you. You see, I’ve been here before. Your idiot mate and I … we met many years ago.” His voice rose maniacally, a sinister laugh resonating through the room. It made her skin crawl. She had escaped this man to fall right back into his clutches. Why was life so unfair? He spat the next words with venom, his hatred for her mate evident. “It’s ironic, really. He thought himself better than me, exiling me, treating me the way he did. I never imagined I’d have the opportunity to take his mate. This will show everyone what a weakling he is! Incapable of protecting his own mate. How could he protect a whole pack? It’s perfect! The pack will turn on him and demand a better Alpha, a capable Alpha; that will be me. I will be ready to sweep right in and save them.”
As his words filled the silence in the room, her mind spun. She had to keep him talking just like her wolf had told her to do. Maybe she could find a way out of this, she just needed time. “You haven’t told me how you got me here. How did you get in the cabin with the guards outside?”
His face lit up in a disturbingly evil expression before he started pacing. “Ah, you see, fate finally smiled upon me. I knew who your parents were when I approached you that first time. But right after the wedding your father seemed suspicious. So, I had to put some space
between us while I devised my plan. I took you to New York and kept you there, and everything was going just right. Your father’s accident went just as planned, but then you had to go and leave me.”
Cynthia’s blood ran cold. This man had killed her father. She fought back the tears and tried her best to not let the anger bubbling up inside of her show. Luke had been right, someone had been responsible for her father’s death, it hadn’t been just an accident. She determined right then and there that she would do everything in her power to get out of there, and she prayed that in the process this monster would pay for what he had done.
Dylan’s voice resonated through the room, and with every word that spewed out of his mouth, her determination grew. “Then you filed that restraining order and I couldn’t risk getting arrested, so I had to bide my time. And I did. I waited until your mother’s people took care of her and then I followed you here. You can’t imagine the surprise when I saw you and Luke. It was karma. I had already had the pleasure of breaking you. I got to use your innocent body for my pleasure. I got to torture your mind and your body as I made you into the obedient and submissive wife you should have been. And all along I was breaking his mate, his one true mate.”
His laughter filled the space, and she couldn’t help but bring her hands over her ears in an attempt to drown out the shrill sound. The man was crazy. She was trapped who knows where with a crazy man that wanted her dead for revenge. But he wouldn’t kill her until he got what he wanted from her, or at least that’s what she hoped for. The problem was she had no idea what he was asking for.
“Let him boast and continue talking, it buys our mate time,” her wolf whispered in her mind, and she agreed with her. Luke would be looking for her, and he wouldn’t stop until he found her.
“You still haven’t told me how you got me here.”
He stopped pacing and stared at her. “I told you, your mate and I met before. My father helped Luke’s father with some security projects before we were exiled. They weren’t a secret to the pack, it was something everyone knew in case an emergency arose, so my father talked about his work during many family conversations. I listened and tucked that information away. It’s how I was able to get to you, and no one was any the wiser. They probably didn’t even notice you were gone for quite a while, giving us plenty of time to escape.” He pointed at her as he stopped right in front of her. “As the slight headache you must have at the moment can testify, I used chloroform to knock you out. Then all I had to do was carry you to the first floor and exit through one of the tunnels. I used the last one my father built. I’m pretty sure no one knows about it, because this one was only known to my father and the old Alpha. So, you can be sure no one will be following us here.” He took a step closer to her. “You are going to tell me what I want to know. There’s only so much pain one could take.”