by Amber Lynn
He looks at me trying to figure out where in my response his answer lies. “She doesn’t know, dude. It is just another part of her being a unicorn. Hopefully, someday soon she will run out of surprises. Shift so we can get this over with,” Jonas tells him.
He quickly transforms into a chocolate colored wolf. I didn’t notice with Alex before because I was still recovering, but I must really be a tiny wolf. I haven’t seen another female, so maybe it is a gender trait.
I dart off through the woods at a fast clip, leaving them to follow. I can hear Jake running just off my right flank before I even get a yard away. I start thinking about how I will need to get some training in wolf form done soon, and before I know it, I have arrived at my vent. I quickly think human and shift back with no pain.
“Someone give me a boost this is my entry. I will be back in about fifteen minutes baring any interruptions. I am sure you guys can figure out what to do if you are seen,” I finish saying as I walk over to where Jonas has taken position by the wall.
He quickly lifts me and I unscrew the lid covering my passage. With that done, I grab on the edge and pull myself up and into the shaft. Now the fun really begins.
Chapter 20
Slight deviation from the plan
The vents work just as I expect and I make my way towards the holding area on the west side of the building. I have been there many times during early missions that weren’t assassination based. I know that if I go far enough, I will get to a vent that is behind the guards’ door, so they won’t even see me. There aren’t even cameras on the prisoners making this much simpler.
I reach my vent and as quietly as possible work the screws out of it. The guards may not have visual, but they do still have excellent hearing. This opening is a lot bigger than my original entrance. It is about twenty-eight inches by sixteen, so as long as Greg isn’t a body builder, I think we will be able to make our escape.
I lift the grate and stick my head down slowly to see if anyone is in view. I see nothing but the cells and hear only some soft breathing. I carefully swing myself down and drop to the floor in a crouch.
I start looking through the cells and am surprised to find them empty. When I reach the last cell, I see a form lying on the ground. He is the source of the breathing, so I know he isn’t dead. Not wanting to talk I tap on the bars lightly to get his attention.
The muted green eyes I am looking for look up at me in surprise. It looks like someone has taken a jackhammer to his face. It is extremely swollen, probably from taking several fists to it. I place my finger over my lips to make sure he keeps quiet and he nods in understanding.
I take out a lock pick kit that I knew would be needed and silently go to work on the lock. When it clicks indicating it is unlocked, I pause for a second to make sure it didn’t alert the guards. After a minute of no one running in to shoot me, I swing the gate open and run to the man. I check out the condition of the rest of his body and other than just being in his underwear, things look good. If I had to carry him out of here, we would have been in trouble.
I do the whole finger to the lips thing again and lead him out of the cell. I point up when we reach the opening and he nods understanding to go that way. He lifts me up on his shoulders and I crawl back into the vent. A second later, he leaps up and joins me.
I wave for him to follow and I head back towards an exit I believe will be easy to get out of. Three minutes of twisting and turning later, I am once again using the screwdriver to get us out. I hear nothing down below, so I imagine it is safe for us to exit. I slide down swiftly and grab the Beretta the second my feet hit the ground. I see no one, so I signal Greg to follow me out.
The exit is about ten feet behind us, so I push him in that direction while I follow and try to keep my senses open for any intruders. Everything is going just like I planned and Jake and Jonas are going to laugh when I get out within ten minutes.
“I thought I smelled you,” a voice I hoped to never hear again says way too close behind me. “I cannot say I like the hair though, it better be a wig.”
“Run Greg. Get outside and go left to the woods. You should be safe,” I tell him. I sense his hesitation, so I add, “Marie needs you and so does your baby. Now go.” That is all the reminder he needs and he takes off.
I turn around to face Tommy hoping to just shoot him and be gone, but he has other plans. He already has a gun pointed at me and rushes to take mine out of my hand. Now with two guns we stand staring at each other. My impression is one of hatred and his, well I really don’t want to know what his is, because it isn’t hate.
“So are you going to shoot me or turn me in?” I ask calmly.
“I don’t think I want to do either of those options. I think I am going to keep you all for myself,” he replies with a very creepy smile.
“I don’t think you have that option. It won’t take long for someone else to come along and find us here. I doubt they will shoot on sight, but I imagine they would raise the alarm,” I say.
“You know as well as I do that at this time of the night this hall rarely sees people. Your plan of escape was well thought out. I don’t know how you got in, but you have always been very clever. That is part of the reason I have always wanted you.”
I shiver in disgust. “It’s a good thing I know we aren’t mates because I couldn’t handle having you for one.”
“Oh, but we are mates,” he says simply with the grin stretching even wider across his face. “I can smell that you have been scented already, and I have to say you have been one busy girl, but it doesn’t matter anymore. You see I am in a special program here in the Collective. For the past year, they have been giving me experimental drugs that weaken the mate bond. Whoever my mate originally was is no longer important because I don’t have to worry about that bond. I am free to bond with any bitch I like and as you know, I marked you as mine a long time ago,” he says coming closer.
I grab one of my throwing knives and prepare to stop him, if he gets too close. He sees it and stops about five feet from me. “You need to let me leave now. There is no way I am letting you form any kind of bond with me.”
“That’s the reason I picked you. You are so feisty; I cannot wait to see what you do in the bedroom,” he states with a laugh. “The fact that you are the hottest female werewolf out there only adds to that initial appeal. I imagine the bit of vampire you have in you makes you pretty tasty.”
“What do you mean vampire?” I ask. He shouldn’t know about that. Sebastian said wolves shouldn't be able to figure that out unless they had access to my medical records and I don’t believe Tommy has that kind of clearance.
“No playing dumb. I have a better nose than most, so I have always known about you being a hybrid. Your little fangs peeking out, confirmed that you have already activated that part of you. Being young, you must be kind of hungry. Why don’t you come over here and take a sip,” he suggests tilting his neck to give me access.
“Gross. That is not going to happen. If you want to fight let’s, get this over with. I have places to be.” I move my tongue around in my mouth to verify that Lil and Bebe have made their presence known.
“You know what is better than fighting?” he asks rushing over and taking my hand. He places it over his zipper, so I can feel the effect this talk is having on him. I need to figure out how he can move so fast because it really isn’t natural. “Fighting without clothes. What do you say; want to give it a try?”
I jerk my hand back and wipe it on my pant leg causing him to laugh. When I get out of here, I am spending a week in the shower. “Clothes are a requirement and I will die before letting you try to mate me. I already found my mate, so you can’t just break that bond.”
“No? I believe I can. I can either do it by just marking you myself, notice I didn’t say scent; the bond would break if I fully mated you. If I do that, your current mate would die leaving you wide open for me. I could also pump you full of the drugs I have been given. That way, your guy
would probably live, but you would still be mine. I am leaning towards the full mating version. I don't think I want a guy alive that has scented you.”
“And you think my mate is just going to stand for this? You know he knows what I am feeling, right? Who’s to say he won’t come barging in here any second?” I ask hoping he doesn’t realize it is a bluff. I have been trying to keep my emotions relatively flat, so Sebastian doesn't show up. I am hoping disgust isn't a strong enough emotion for him.
“I am sure whoever your mate is doesn’t have the guts to step foot inside the Collective. It couldn’t have been a Collective wolf or you would have triggered the bonds years ago. So, quit worrying about him and why don’t you take your shirt off? I have only seen the bloody version of my mark. I am interested to see how great it looks now against your silky skin,” he says as he adjusts the front of his pants.
I hear something zip by my head from behind me and see Tommy switch his focus back there. Not wanting to take my eyes off him I choose not to move. Whatever it was, it didn’t sound like a bullet, so Tommy is still my number one threat.
“Her mate is not afraid of the likes of a little pup like you,” Alex says from behind me. I am so in shock that it is Alex, I cannot help but turn around. Just as I do I hear a thump from Tommy as his body hits the floor.
“Alex?” I question not sure how he came to be here.
“Let’s go. His body probably won’t take that long to metabolize the paralytic agent,” he rushes over and maneuvers me so he is carrying me bridal style and then runs out of the building. In my confused state, I don’t even argue about being carried.
He doesn’t stop until he makes it back to the penthouse where the gang is all waiting. He sits down on the couch with me still in his arms. As he settles, I hear him take a big inhale of my scent.
“Greg got out, right?” I ask remembering the original mission.
“Yes, we saw him running towards the woods and tracked him down, so he could fill us in on what was happening,” Jake reports.
“That is the important thing. Now would someone explain to me what Alex is doing here?” I ask. “Last time I checked he was three hours away.
“That is where I was, enjoying a nice shower until your guards called to inform me that my mate was meeting with a woman asking you to break into the Collective and it sounded like you were going to accept. When I hear something like that, I drop everything and get on my jet,” he explains. “If it wouldn’t hurt me, you would be being strangled right now, or paddled at the very least.”
“It wasn’t that bad. I freed the prisoner and would have been able to handle Tommy. I have fought him before and I didn’t have fangs or fur during those times. Not only that, but I learned valuable information about a secret Collective program,” I say defending myself.
“I heard. I am guessing the side effects of the drug are vampire speed and increased aggression. Granted I didn’t watch the whole scene, but he seemed to be moving faster than normal,” Alex says.
“That’s true, I don’t know about the aggression, though. He has always had it in for me. I have the scars to prove it,” I tell him.
“I heard that part too. Care to show me your back?” he asks.
“I don’t think I trust you in this mood to see it. Jake and Jonas have seen it. They can fill you in on what it looks like, while I take a shower. I really want to get his scent off of me,” I say trying to stand.
“Just a few more minutes. I am still calming down and your presence is the only thing that will help,” he says holding tight.
“How you feeling, Sebastian?” I ask. So far, he hasn’t said a word which is a little unlike him.
“I am actually enjoying watching someone else go through the same emotions I do every time you go on one of your missions, love. If nothing else, me and Alex should be able to bond over you taking years off of our lives.”
I laugh. “Well since you at least will live forever, I have to do what I can.”
“I am pretty sure Alex will live just as long as me. Sorry, it wasn’t me to come in and rescue you. When Alex showed up, we thought it best that he go in, since he is already on their assassination list. Plus, I would have brutally killed anyone that held you captive. Alex tends to be a little more level headed on that account,” Sebastian explains.
“Be thankful you didn’t hear the things the creep said to her. I had trouble not pulling out the silver ammo,” Alex tells him. “Pumpkin, you can go shower now. I don’t think I will smash things in your absence anymore.” He loosens his arms a little allowing me to move.
“Thank you for being there, even if I still don’t think it was all that necessary,” I say giving him a little kiss on the cheek before rushing to the bathroom.
Chapter 21
Slow down while I am hitting you
I tune the guys' conversation out while I start my rinse cycle. I should have asked Sebastian if he has any bleach available for my hand. I have been wavering between sticking my hand in bleach or just cutting it off altogether and so far the bleach idea is winning. Silliness aside, I use the antibacterial soap and the really hot water and scrub until I have taken a layer of skin off.
Hand taken care of, I work on the rest of my body to make sure any lingering scent is washed away. After thirty minutes, I deem myself clean. I step out of the shower and get all dried before I realize I didn't bring any clothes into the bathroom and I have to walk in front of the guys to get to them. Since walking out in my towel would reveal my back scars, I decide to call for reinforcements.
“Sebby, a little help please,” I ask in my normal voice knowing he will hear.
“Right outside the door, love. Just open it a little and they are to the right,” he answers.
I do as he instructs and find my pajamas sitting outside. “Hey, I was going to try to get some things organized at work,” I announce.
“Maybe in a little while. For now, Jake is making us some food and we are going to hang out,” Alex replies.
I put on the black boy shorts and the purple sleeping shirt he picked out. I brush out my hair real quick, gargle some mouthwash and open the door to rejoin the group.
“That is so much better. I never liked Tommy, but hearing him talk about mating with me made me want to wash out my brain,” I say making faces that show the yuck that I am feeling. I settle in on a couch in between Alex and Sebastian. They must have decided a Nyx sandwich was better than someone getting hurt feelings.
“We are going to have to watch out for him. He really wants you and I don't think he is just going to give up. I imagine this program is what your other fella was involved with as well. You mentioned he was getting a little aggressive and wanted to take your relationship to the next level, right?” Alex asks.
“Yeah, but he was never as cruel or crude as Tommy. When Tommy asked me to drink from him, I seriously threw up in my mouth. Can you imagine how nasty that would be? No offense to wolf blood, but yuck,” I say.
“No offense taken,” Alex replies. “I heard you shifted successfully by yourself.”
“I did with a little pain, but not too much. It was so much better than the first time.”
“I am glad to hear that. The guys were a little surprised by the gold. We probably should have warned them,” he says.
“Yeah well, Jonas doesn’t even believe me when I tell him who my father is, so I doubt he would have believed me when I said I shimmer,” I state.
“If you have the mark, your shorts are pretty close to showing it now. Why don’t you make us believers?” Jonas asks earning a glare from Alex.
“I see no reason not to,” I say moving my right hip so it is visible to all and then lift the shorts up a couple inches. “It will teach Jonas not to call me a liar.”
“How is that possible?” Jonas questions.
“My father might know, or mother if anyone has a clue who she is. Other than those two I doubt anyone would be able to answer that question,” I tell him.
&nbs
p; With Alex sitting on my right side, he decides to reach over and touch the mark. I get this tingly sensation and glare at him.
“Sorry, I felt the need to touch it and didn’t know it would cause a reaction. I have heard of the mark, but haven’t ever seen it. It is something that leaves you a little in awe once you have,” Alex says with a smile.
I settle myself back down and cover up so no one else gets the desire to be touchy feely. “How soon before food is ready? I am starting to get hungry.”
“I’m coming,” Jake announces entering the room with a large restaurant style serving tray. I glance at Sebastian wondering why he would even have that in the penthouse and he just shrugs.
Jake places the tray on the coffee table, so we can all gaze upon our bounty. It is heavily protein based with beef and chicken skewers, ham steaks, and sausages. It looks like he cooked up enough to feed an army. Everyone grabs a plate and starts digging in.