by Sky Winters
“Stop talking to her,” one of the others barked at him as they approached.
He said nothing, just walked her to her cell and put her inside.
“Help me get out of her,” she said in a pleading voice. “Help me get free and maybe we can see about getting together.”
He didn’t respond. Instead, he just closed the door and left her there alone again. She could hear his footsteps outside as he walked toward where the others had been. Frustrated, she lay back down on the bed and began studying the ceiling tiles again.
Eventually, she dosed off and woke up much later to the sound of the door opening again. It was just the faintest creak and someone stepped inside, shutting off the light as he did so.
“Shh. I don’t want them to know I’m in here,” he said.
It was the guy from the bathroom break. Maybe she had gotten somewhere, after all. She could hear him getting closer and she climbed off the mattress, standing against the far wall. The farther away from the door they were, the less chance there was of anyone outside hearing them talk.
“We need to hurry. Can we get past them if you let me out of here?”
“I don’t know,” he said.
His breathing was rough, shallow. He sounded scared.
“Can you shift in those chains?” he asked.
“No,” she told him.
“Good,” he replied, grabbing her, and flipping her around, pushing her against the wall. One hand reached up and clamped over her mouth while he fumbled to get her pants down with the other.
Lucy realized her mistake. She hadn’t garnered any sympathy from him. She’d entertained the idea that she was willing to be with someone like him and then those men out there had reminded him that she was their hostage. They didn’t know he was in here or he’d be letting her scream so they could hear him conquer her like she was a bitch in heat. Instead, he’d crept in here without their knowledge to take what he wanted without permission from them or her.
She tried to bite him, but he had his hand too tightly over her mouth. He almost had her pants pulled down now and she was panicking. No. No. No. This couldn’t be happening. This situation was bad enough without getting raped on top of things.
“Just shut up and take it, bitch. You won’t be here much longer. As soon as your Daddy pays for what he took from us, they’ll let you go and I aim to get me some wolf pussy before that happens.”
Lucy was stunned for a moment. This was because of her father? Couldn’t she get away from him without having to deal with his criminal dealings? She tried to steel herself against what was about to happen, resigned to yet another humiliation in her life thanks to her scumbag of a father.
“Fuck,” the guy muttered as he tried to push himself into her. She felt nauseous.
Apparently frustrated that he couldn’t get her legs apart, he unlocked the bar around her waist and popped open the ankle restraints. Leaving her only in the chains on her wrists. She seized the opportunity, whirling around with every ounce of strength she could manage. She might be an Omega, but he was a mere human and she was at least stronger than him. Before he could react, she flung her crossed wrists over his head and then pulled them apart, drawing the chain tightly around his neck.
He struggled against her, screaming, and making loud guttural sounds in the back of his throat. She kept pulling, hoping to shut him up before it was too late, but she soon heard the door opening behind him. He collapsed to the floor and she began to shift, breaking apart the chains on her wrists as her body changed in preparation for what could very well be her first and last fight.
As the door opened, she prepared to launch herself at whoever opened it, but instead, she found him being sent sideways by a large gray wolf she didn’t recognize. It took a moment to realize that the men were quickly shifting to defend themselves, but not against her. There were other wolves here to fight them. This was her chance to slink away unnoticed.
She began walking around the edge of the wall, keeping an eye out for anyone that might glance her way. Then she spotted him, his dark fur glistening in the fluorescent lighting of the old factory. Ryan! He had found her, but who were the wolves with him? His brothers maybe. The answer became clear as she spotted a wolf that was unmistakable in a fight with another wolf near the large metal doors that made up the front of the open space. Her father.
A wolf flew past her, thrown by Ryan. His large body cracked against the wall, but he stood and started back toward his attacker. Lucy abandoned her attempt to escape, instead jumping on the wolf’s back and tearing at the back of his throat. He threw her sideways and she skidded across the smooth concrete floor. She’d done very little damage, but she’d thrown him off his game enough for Ryan to attack again, putting him down, once and for all.
Rather than turning to any of the others that were still fighting, Ryan motioned with his head for her to follow him. They made a quick retreat from the fight toward the opposite end of the building where he pushed against the bar of a side door with his body and opened it, holding it for her to exit. Once she was out, he took the lead in front of her, leading her through the woods that flanked the back of the building for what seemed like several miles.
Finally, they reached a small side road. His bike was parked there, along with several other vehicles. He opened the saddle bag and pulled out a pair of sweats and pull on sneakers for her, then retrieved his own clothes to get dressed.
“How?” she started to ask, but he stopped her.
“No time. Later,’ he said, kissing her quickly. “Get dressed. We’ve got to get out of here.”
She did as he said, yanking on the clothes and hopping on the bike behind him. He cranked it and they roared down the highway, but she had no idea to where as she had no clue where she was. She was just grateful to be alive and have her arms wrapped around Ryan. She closed her eyes and lay her head on his back, enjoying the way he felt, even as the cold night air chapped her cheeks and lips.
Finally, they stopped. Ryan parked the bike behind an old building and told her to get off. She did so and watched as he opened the lock on the large roll up dock door. He pushed the bike inside and motioned for her to follow. It was dark inside, but the moon was high tonight and shined through the dirty broken windows of what looked like an old supermarket.
Ryan pushed the bike behind a pile of old shelving to one side and tossed an old tarp over it where it wasn’t easily noticed. Then he grabbed her hand and led her to a small office sitting to one side. She watched as he pulled up a section of the floor, revealing a stairwell downward. She cringed at the thought of having to hole up in some dusty old basement or storage area until they were safe, but it certainly beat any alternative she could think of right now.
Much to her surprise, Ryan reached over and flipped on a light, motioning for her to climb down and then following behind her, closing the door behind him, and pulling a large bolt across it from underneath. Lucy looked around her in wonder.
“What is this place?” she asked.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Ryan
“It’s an old safehouse used by my pack,” he told her.
“Why does your pack need a safehouse?” she asked.
“We don’t - not anymore. When I was younger, we dealt with some shady characters and they set this up for emergency situations. There are enough food and supplies down here to last for a month, but what I want to know right now is if you are okay.”
“I am now,” she replied, wrapping her arms around him, and settling her head against his chest.
He could hear her heart still hammering. There were so many questions he wanted to ask and yet, he was afraid of the answers. He decided none of it mattered right now. He pulled away from her and looked down at her, pulling her face toward his and kissing her, a long kiss that hopefully said everything he didn’t know how to say right now.
Finally, he pulled away, brushing a wisp of hair away from her eyes. She looked tired, but still beautiful. He felt such
relief about being able to hold her again.
“I love you, Lucy,” he said, not willing to hold it in anymore.
“I love you too,” she replied.
“Do you mean that? You don’t have to say it just because I did or because of what has happened.”
“I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t. I’ve had a lot of time to think while I was stuck in that closet they shoved me into and all I could think about was you and how I was going to get back to you.”
“Alright, let’s get it warmed up in here and we’ll relax for a while. I’m sure you can use a bit of that.”
“Is there something to drink in here? I am so thirsty.”
“Check the fridge and that small door to one side leads to a pantry where all the dry goods are stored,” he told her, adjusting the thermostat from air conditioning to heat, and kicking it on.
Lucy walked back with two bottles of cold water and sat down on the sofa, leaning back and closing her eyes after taking a long drink of hers. He sat down beside her and pulled her toward him, letting her rest her head against him.
“My father. I saw my father there,” she said in a half dazed voice.
“Yes. Him and some of his goons came with me.”
“How?” she said, pulling away and looking up at him.
“I didn’t know you were missing until Monday night. I got questioned when I got back to the station from my shift and they made it pretty clear that I was the prime suspect and that they weren’t going to put a lot of effort into finding you.”
“You? Why would anyone think that?”
“Because we had an argument and no one saw you after that. They jumped to conclusions. Anyway, I went looking for myself. I figured I had to find you before they hauled me in and tried to pin your disappearance on me. If that happened, no one would be spending any urgent time looking for you.”
“And how did you find me?”
“The sketch you drew. I finished tracking down the guy in it. You were right. He’s human. One of the detectives had asked me if Derek Jameson was your father and it didn’t mean anything to me, but when I looked at that guy’s record, I saw that they had been tied to some drug deals together.”
At this, Lucy looked down at her hands. It was a secret she’d obviously intended for him not to find out about.
“Don’t worry about it, Lucy. I understand why you didn’t tell me. You were trying to leave that part of your life behind. My family has some dark roots, as well. I think most wolf packs do, in all honesty.
She nodded, but said nothing, so he continued.
“Anyway, I went to your father’s office to ask him why the man was following you. I knew his name and had his record, but still no clue why he was watching you. Your father told me there had been some threats and he had sent him to keep an eye on you, but when he found out you were dating a cop, he told him to back off. He called the guy in and he confirmed that he had done that and wasn’t anywhere near when you were taken, but he had an idea who did it once he realized you were gone.”
“One of the men, he was human. He’s the one that drugged me at the house and took me to where they were holding me.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll find him and take care of him if your father and his guys didn’t already.”
“I killed him.”
“You what?”
“I killed him. He attacked me and I . . . I just, I killed him.”
“I’m sorry, Lucy. I’m sorry I didn’t get there before you had to do something like that.”
Tears fell down her face. It spoke volumes that it hurt her so much that even killing someone who was trying to harm her hurt so much. It wasn’t an emotion he shared, but he could understand that other people weren’t like Alphas.
“Why did those people take me? The guy that I . . . killed . . . said that they would let me go once my father paid them back for what he had taken. Did my father steal something from them?”
“In a manner of speaking. He was in the process of taking their territory. Your father had been laying low for a while, but he decided to get back in the game and he went into the east side to clear out anyone that might get in his way. Those kind of people don’t take too kindly to actions like that.”
‘That bastard,” she said, “but what does that have to do with me? I haven’t seen my father in years until tonight. I’m not in his business or his world.”
“You are still his daughter and he loves you. That is why he was keeping an eye out for you. Someone fed his rivals your name and they decided to use you as a bargaining chip. They contacted him to shut his operation down and make certain drug related concessions or lose his only daughter.”
“I can’t forgive him. I won’t. Saving me doesn’t change what he’s done or what he is.”
“He knows that, Lucy. He told me to tell you that no matter what he has done, he knows he’s made mistakes and that you are his one regret in life. He said he was too hard on you, demanded too much of you, broke you. He doesn’t want you to love him or forgive him. He just wants you to be okay.”
More tears fell down her face, full of conflict and pain.
“This involves a lot of different factions, Lucy. It’s bad. You aren’t going to be safe overnight and we will have to stay here until I know that you are. That might be a day or two, it might be longer.”
She nodded, seeming to accept this. It wasn’t completely great news, but it was something. He had Tate and the team working the east side on it already. The thought of Tate reminded him that he needed to call him and give him a heads up that he’d found her and there might be some bodies involved.
“I need to make a call. Why don’t you lay down for a bit? You can stretch out on the sofa or over in the bed if you prefer. I’m going to need to sort some things out real quick.”
“I don’t know if I can sleep after all this, but I could stand to just stretch out on something more comfortable than that hard mattress I was on.”
She kissed him on the cheek and went over to the bed, frowning down at its nakedness.
“There should be clean sheets in that dresser beside it. Blankets too.”
“Good,” she replied, pulling a drawer open and removing a plastic vacuum bag full of sheets pillows and a blanket. He heard the whoosh as she unzipped it and let the air in and then he pulled his phone out to make a few calls.
“Tate?’
“Oh, thank God. There you are.”
“I’ve got her. She’s safe, but there might be a mess out at the old chemical factory on Runhill Road.”
“Well, that would explain the explosion.”
“Explosion?”
“Yeah. It’s all over the news. Place blew sky high about thirty minutes ago. What are they going to find in there once they get it put out?’
“I don’t know. Maybe some bodies, maybe nothing. Derek Jameson helped me get his daughter home and I left him with the situation.”
“Got you. You were never there Derek. Lucy just came home and the two of you decided to get away for a bit to sort yourselves out. Are you somewhere safe?”
“Yes.”
“Okay. Stay there until I contact you. There’s may be some fallout from all this depending on who knows about the situation and if they decide they still want to come after your girl . . . or you. If we can keep your name out of it, that will be a lot better for everyone.”
“You’ll take care of Lark and Peters then?”
“Yep. I’ll talk to you soon.’
“Thanks, Tate.”
Ryan hung up the phone and called his mother. He explained that he and Lucy were in a bit of bother and at the safe house. She agreed to send someone with some clothes for both him and Lucy from the extras they kept there for situations where someone ended up shredding clothes without a spare. He checked the pantry for food while he had her on the phone and it seemed good, other than fresh food.
“I’ll get it sorted for you, son. I love you. Be careful.”
“Love you to
o, Mom.”
There wasn’t much more he could do now. He went over to the bed and lay down beside Lucy, pulling her close to him. She snuggled against him, seeming more at ease now. He felt a sense of relief like he’d never experienced before as they lay there just enjoying the silence and the warmth of each other’s bodies.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Lucy
Lucy was exhausted. She hadn’t slept well for days during her kidnapping and wasn’t sure that she could sleep now without nightmares, but Ryan insisted.
“Come on Lucy, try to get some rest. I’ll come lay down with you.”
“Okay,” she agreed, following him to the bedroom and getting undressed before climbing between the sheets.
Ryan slipped out of his clothes and snuggled in beside her, his hard body pressed against her softness as a reminder to her that she was safe, that he would take care of her. She drifted quickly off into what felt like a solid sleep, but the dreams began quickly.
She and Ryan were running through the woods again, but they weren’t alone this time. There were wolves behind them, gaining ground and she was afraid she wouldn’t be able to keep up the pace. Her body felt hot, fevered, pushed well past its limits as she struggled to breath and the clearing that opened up to where the bikes were never came. They just kept running and running and she got warmer and warmer.
She awoke to find Ryan up on one elbow, watching her, a bewildered look on his face. Even awake, she felt feverish, as if she had run every mile that had passed in the dream. Her body felt sticky with sweat and her hair was matting against her skull. Why was she so hot?
“Lucy?” Ryan began to say, but she couldn’t think right now. Something was happening to her – something that wasn’t a part of a dream. She stood and bolted from the bed.
“I need a shower,” she gasped, rushing into the bathroom, and closing the door behind her.
So hot. So unbelievably hot. She turned on the shower and left it on cold, climbing beneath the chilly water and letting it cover as much of her as possible. She felt like it might sizzle when it hit her skin. She stayed there for as long as she could, but she felt no cooler. Instead, she felt hungry, but not for food.