by Lilly Wilder
“Fuck you!” I screamed.
“I’d like that,” he countered with a wink. “And if you keep up this feisty nature of yours, I’ll like it even more.”
“Rot in hell.”
“Oh, I plan on it.”
This guy was getting under my skin in the worst possible way. I hated everything about him and I wanted nothing but to kill him myself but as long as I was stuck to this damned chair, there was nothing I could do.
The pup gave a powerful kick that had me thinking that he was of a similar mindset.
“I’m going to get us out of here,” I promised.
The door had been kept open. It seemed like an added layer of insult. Freedom was at my fingertips and yet, I couldn’t reach it. And then, that’s when it dawned on me. If I could only transform, I’d surely burst through the cords that held me. But transforming in the last trimester was dangerous. Or at least, that was what Cynthia had told me. It could do some serious damage to the baby. And I wasn’t willing to take that risk.
My shoulders fell with disappointment. With transformation out of the question, there wasn’t much else for me to do.
“Unless… I attempt a partial transformation…” It was so obvious that I felt like an idiot for not having thought about it beforehand. “I just need to get my fingernails to turn into claws and they should be sharp enough…”
I closed my eyes and envisioned exactly what it was that I wanted to accomplish, because if I fucked this up then I could potentially lose my baby and I couldn’t let that happen.
“C’mon,” I whispered to myself. “You can do this, Jane.”
I felt a familiar surge of energy rip through my body and I almost gave in to its call. At the very last minute, I held back and redirected that energy into my hands. To my relief, my nails started to stretch and sharpen.
My eyes snapped open and a puff of air escaped my lips. I had done it.
Quickly, I sawed away at the rope until it gave way. With my hands free, I worked on my ankles.
My legs felt like they were going to collapse under my weight but I locked my knees and kept myself standing. My body was giving me a million reasons to give up but I couldn’t let myself accept defeat. I had a baby to protect and a couple of partners to reunite with.
Footsteps echoed just outside the still open door. I pressed myself against the wall and prepared myself to attack. But they didn’t enter my holding cell. I released the breath I had been holding and inched forward, peeking into the hallway. It was empty. Good. Now was my chance.
I kept my posture low and my movements as silent as possible. My hand hovered around my upper thigh, ready to grab the concealed dagger that I usually wore but of course, they had taken it with them when they took all of my clothes. Without a proper weapon, I was at a serious disadvantage but I wasn’t going to let that stop me.
The hallway turned out to be a maze. I no longer had any idea where I was going. Everything looked painfully similar and I could swear, I was running around in circles.
My swollen feet begged me to stop.
“I can’t…” I whispered as I laid one hand over my tummy and felt the pulsating life beat of my child. “I have to get out of here…”
“Where do you think you’re going?”
I was so concerned with soothing my baby that I hadn’t noticed the female shifter that blocked my way. “Please,” I begged, thinking maybe I could get through to her. “You don’t want to hurt me.”
She chortled. “And why not? Because you’re pregnant?” This time, she snorted. “The boss does not care about that and neither do I.”
“And yet, you haven’t attacked me.”
She frowned and glanced at my stomach. I could see the doubt in her eyes.
“Tell the truth. You don’t like that leader of yours. And I don’t blame you. He’s a serious creep —”
“Shut up!” she shouted, loud enough to alert the entire den. It made me flinch. One-on-one I had a fighting case but if the whole pack came this way to check out the commotion then I was royally screwed.
“Look, you can come with me. Our pack is small right now —”
“I’m not going anywhere and neither are you.” She started forward.
“You don’t want to do this.”
“Don’t tell me what I want,” she growled. “He does enough of that.”
“Then leave!” I exclaimed. “If you don’t like him then leave. Trust me, I know how easy it can be to let yourself be trapped by a shitty relationship. You start convincing yourself that you’ll never find someone else. You start belittling yourself. But you’re worth more than you think.”
She stopped. “You’re just trying to trick me into letting you go.”
“No, I’m trying to save you from that monster.” It was a risk but I took her hand. “And I’m trying to prevent you from making the same mistakes that I made not so long ago.”
She didn’t pull away but I took that to be a good sign.
In the distance, I could hear the sound of running. The other members were coming our way and if we didn’t hurry, I was as good as dead. “Please.” I squeezed her hand, praying that I would get through to her.
“Come on, the exit is this way.” While still holding my hand, she towed me towards the left. From there, it was an endless volley of twists and turns. It was difficult for me to keep up but with my life on the line, I just had to suck up the pain and keep going.
After what felt like an eternity, we approached what looked like the entrance. The moonlight was making its way inside, giving me hope that maybe, just maybe, I’d make it out of this kidnapping in one piece.
“There will be two guards posted at the entrance — one to the left and to the right. We have to sneak up on them and take them out before they can sound the alarm. If they get to that alarm then it’s game over for the both of us. Do you understand.”
I nodded.
“Can I count on you?”
“Yes,” I answered. “Always.”
She nodded her understanding and tiptoed forward. I mirrored her every move because I knew that coordination was critical to our survival. My head was starting to get light and a little bit foggy but I didn’t dare to breathe.
“And 1… 2… 3…” she mouthed before we made our attack. I barely remember it happening. One second, I was lurking behind a stone wall and the next, I was jumping onto someone’s back with my arm pressed against his windpipe. He did everything he could to knock me off but I held on for dear life. “Well… that’s one way to do it, I suppose,” she said, as the second guard finally passed out. “But you’ll have to work on that technique of yours.”
“You sound like my mates.”
She grinned. “Well, let’s hope that I get to meet them.”
“You will and I’m sure that you’ll like them too.”
“You better pray that I do because I’m sacrificing a whole lot by doing this. If this all goes south, then I’m left with nothing.”
“You won’t regret it,” I promised. “They are the best.”
“I’ll make that judgment call myself.”
“Fine by me.” Knowing that it would be foolish to stay standing at the entrance of their den, I hurried towards the forest, knowing that it would provide the coverage we needed to slip away. “But first… we have got to find them.”
“What if they are in the thick of it?”
“What do you mean?”
“This is going to be an all-out war.”
I frowned, knowing she was right.
“They could be in the heat of battle as we speak. If I were you, I’d get somewhere safe and make sure that baby survives long enough to cry for the first time.”
“And abandon my mates? That’s not going to happen,” I said with a certain firmness to my voice that signaled that there wasn’t room for argument.
The female shifter held up her hands. “I can’t force you to do anything. Al
l I am saying is that, if it were me, that’s what I would do for the sake of my baby.” Her eyes were brimming with unshed tears. “And what I should have done…”
I rested my hand on her shoulder. “I never got your name.”
“Fiona.”
“Fiona,” I repeated. “That’s a very pretty name.”
She blushed slightly. “Thank you. Gerald thought it was stupid…”
“Your mate?”
She nodded. “The leader. He was always putting me down and making me do things I didn’t want to do.”
“Well, that’s all behind you now. You never have to think about that man again. You’re a free woman and the world is yours for the taking.”
To my surprise, she pulled me in for a hug. “Thank you,” was all that she said, before she burst into tears.
I wanted to give her a moment to gather herself but we really didn’t have that sort of luxury at our disposal. With every second that ticked by, I was afraid that they would find us. “Come on, we have to go — we have to find my mates. And maybe it’s crazy of me to put my unborn child at risk but I can’t even stomach the thought of losing my partners. So, if they need me, then I’m going to be there, no matter the cost.”
“Alright, then I’ll be right there beside you…” she trailed off. “I never got your name either.”
“Jane.”
“Jane,” she confirmed.
“You don’t have to do that, Fiona. You’re free to leave. This isn’t your battle.”
“If it means taking down Gerald then it’s definitely my fight.” Her hands were balled into fists by her side.
“Alright, then let’s do this.”
***
My training on tracking had been brief, neglected for other skills like hand-to-hand combat and marathon running. Now, however, I was really regretting my ignorance. “I can’t smell a damned thing,” I said. “It’s like they’ve disappeared off the face of the planet.”
“Have you tried connecting with them?”
“No answer.”
“Hmm.” Fiona was trying to help me look for clues but it was like finding a needle in a haystack.
“What if they’re…”
“They’re not,” she said without a single ounce of hesitation. “If they were dead, you would know it.”
“How?”
“It would feel like someone had just carved out your heart with a dull blade.”
“You sound like you speak from experience.”
“I do.” I waited for a bit of elaboration on the subject but it never came. That wound was still much too fresh for her to discuss it with me. But it was my hope that with time, she would open up and relieve herself of that pain.
“Our temporary den is this way,” I directed.
She grabbed me by the arm. “I don’t think it’s a very good idea for us to go back there. Gerald knows about this temporary den of yours and I’m sure he left a couple of men behind in case your mates ever decided to show up.”
“So, what am I supposed to do?” I ran my fingers through my hair and paced back and forth. It felt like I was going nowhere fast.
“I know this is going to sound cliché, but I need you to listen to your heart. If your mates are really alive out there, then your heart will let you know. Follow that instinct and you should be able to find them.”
“Listen to my heart…” I repeated to myself as I nodded my head and closed my eyes. My hand came up, fingertips just barely grazing the mating mark the boys had given me. And that’s when it clicked. Our connection was established and it was almost like I could see an invisible pattern laid out on the ground that would lead me directly to wherever they were. “Landon? Roman? Can you hear me?”
“Jane?”
“Oh my God! Roman, is that you?”
“It is. Oh, thank Heavens you’re alive. Where are you?”
“Uh, the forest… It’s not like there are street signs out here.”
“Are there any distinct landmarks?” Landon joined the conversation and again, I was flooded with relief. Both of my mates were still alive.
I did a full 360, trying to spot something that might help tell them where I was but it was just a bunch of trees. “Fiona?”
“Hmm?”
“Do you have any idea where we are?”
“Hell Pass Creek,” she answered. “Or rather, we’re pretty close to there. The north end, where the water splits into two paths.”
“Okay, I’ll take it.” I relayed the information to the boys and was glad to hear that they knew exactly where to go. “You’re a lifesaver, Fiona.”
“I guess my passion for map-making wasn’t so stupid after all.”
“Huh?”
“It’s a story for another time.”
“I’m counting on it,” I said.
She smiled and off we went.
Chapter 26: Roman
We were on our way to find Jane but of course, something had to get in our way and that something just had to be the leader and his gang of thugs.
“So, we finally lock horns,” he said, as he stepped forward. “You know, it was my personal pleasure to take down your father. You know, he begged me for his life. Pathetic.”
Landon looked like he was about to lose it. I could practically see the smoke coming from his ears. “Don’t let him get to you. He’s just playing mind games,” I said, hoping it would calm him down. “Your father was the strongest man I knew and he would never go down without a fight. If this guy killed him then he did him dirty.”
“You lie,” Landon spoke up with a level of calm that I didn’t expect from him. “You murdered my pack in cold blood.”
“Did I? And how do you know that, when you were not even there?” Gerald laughed. It sounded just like nails on a chalkboard.
“Shut your mouth,” I snapped.
“And why should I?” he returned. “I am not subservient to a couple of mutts. The wolves in my pack are the best of the best — this following you have, they only make me laugh. Savages? Really? That’s the best that you could come up with?”
The old leader of our new pack stepped forward, wanting to defend the honor of his people but Roman held out an arm, stopping him from doing so.
“But he insults us.”
“We’re going to put an end to this, once and for all,” said Landon. “You and me. Whoever wins becomes the alpha of both packs.”
“Are you sure about this?” I whispered. “What happens if you lose?”
“I won’t,” he answered with such an air of confidence that I could not doubt him.
“I can agree with that. What are the terms?”
“We transform into our wolf forms and fight it out. No holds barred.”
“To the death?”
“To the death,” Landon confirmed.
Gerald smirked. I didn’t like the look of it because it confirmed my suspicions that he was hiding something. What that something was, I didn’t know but it couldn’t be a good thing.
“Maybe you should reconsider.” I tried to grab Landon but he was already out of my reach.
“Would you look at that? Your own beta does not believe in you. Now that’s sad.”
“Enough talking,” snarled Landon. “I want to get this over with.” Without waiting for another second, he made the transformation. His fur glistened in the moonlight and his eyes seemed brighter than usual. Landon was a beast by every definition of the word. There was no way he was going to lose.
The opposing packs closed in and formed a circle around their two leaders.
“Roman?” Jane’s voice came through. “Where are you guys?”
“We got intercepted by the enemy,” I answered. “But don’t worry, Landon is taking care of it.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” She sounded panicked. “Roman?”
“He’s about to fight the leader.”
“Is he crazy! He’s going to get him
self killed!”
“Have faith,” I said. “He’s going to win this.”
“How can you be so sure? This guy isn’t someone who plays by the rules.”
I was about to respond but the fight had already begun. The sound of wolf fighting wolf was ten times louder than that of a thunderstorm. It was hard to gauge who had the upper hand. From what I could tell, they both seemed pretty equally matched.
“Come on, Landon, we’re counting on you,” I whispered under my breath before joining in on the chanting that had broken out on our side of the circle. “Kick this guy’s ass!”
Landon was doing well but Gerald was one hell of an opponent. He was big and bulky but, somehow, he had speed on his side as well.
Crash!
My worst nightmare came to life when Landon was thrown into the crowd. Gerald’s pack jumped on him, biting and clawing at him from all sides.
An outcry was heard from our new pack as we witnessed the act of injustice and retaliated. It was chaos from there. Men and women fought tooth and nail. Tufts of fur were yanked from flanks. Blood stained the ground a deep shade of crimson.
I barreled my way through the sea of enemies, trying to find my mating partner. “Landon!” I shouted but it did nothing. There was so much going on that it was hard to focus.
Wham!
Someone tackled into me, knocking me to the ground. All the air in my lungs was driven out of my body. While trying to catch my breath, a rabid wolf was trying to bite my face. I had to use every ounce of my strength to push him off me.
Something wasn’t right. These wolves were deranged.
Members of our pack were falling like flies. The enemy showed no signs of mercy.
“They’re monsters!” someone cried, as they attempted to flee. They didn’t get very far before they were cut down, their organs scattered every which way. I could barely stand to look. It was a complete repeat of the past and I felt powerless to stop it.
“Watch out!”
Jane’s voice had my instincts on full alert. Like a madwoman, she was running right into the middle of the battlefield. There was a woman chasing her and I feared it was a member of our rival pack.