by J. E. Cluney
I strained against my chains in an attempt to ease some of the aching in my body from this position. I was hating this whole stringing up thing more and more as time passed.
The soft pitter-patter made me freeze as my eyes dilated to see in the darkness better.
A small rat was carefully making its way closer and closer to Jackson and his smashed plate of food that had been left down here.
I held my breath as I watched it.
It was worth a shot, even though I’d never done such a thing. I was not going to die here when they figured out I didn’t have any information for them tomorrow.
I closed my eyes, the darkness in my mind reaching out, the tendrils snaking into the tiny mind desperate for food.
I blinked at my sudden tiny stature as I looked around the room from my new vantage point on the floor.
Well I’ll be damned.
So I could indeed possess animals. Good.
Although I could feel the little rodent fighting me in its mind. It felt strange and wrong, and I doubted I could maintain this possession for long.
I needed a person.
I scampered forward, my nose twitching as my tail slid around behind me. I didn’t dare try to read into the rat’s thoughts to get a better understanding of its coordination. I had a feeling that wouldn’t go too well.
Instead, I found the pipe leading up through the wall and began the treacherous climb.
Thank Satan that this house was old and not properly rodent proofed.
I slid into the tiny gap in the wall, forcing my strange little furry body through the gap and squeaking as my body ached from the force. But the star-scattered sky greeted me overhead.
I looked up at the towering trees and vehicles further away, and an evil thought came to mind.
I had some quick work to do.
I scampered towards the nearest vehicle, keeping an eye out for any predators as I climbed inside the hood.
I spent the next fifteen minutes making sure these fuckheads wouldn’t have a way out of here easily. Why make it easy for them?
With that done and dusted, it was time to find a more suitable vessel.
I leaped down from the red sedan and eyed the area carefully.
Which way to go?
I flicked my tail in uncertainty, then decided to just pick a path and roll with it.
I took off, scampering across the dirt and into the grass, my tiny body darting through the undergrowth with ease as I slipped through all the brambles and grass.
My mind was getting tired quickly, and I knew this possession was not going to last. The rat couldn’t handle it for very long.
I screeched as something hard and firm wrapped around my abdomen and lifted me into the air.
I glanced up at the barn owl whisking me away to feed.
But instead of fear, I felt some satisfaction as I focused my mind.
My mind slipped into the winged creature instead, and I swooped down on uneasy wings as I dropped the rat off safely. He’d done his job.
I took a few minutes to adjust to flying, my flight faltering and my wings struggling, but I caught on fairly quickly. Possession was like that. Things became natural quickly in new vessels.
I hadn’t been absolutely sure about the animal ones, but they’d worked.
I spied a house in the distance, quiet and isolated.
Good. I needed it.
I beat my wings under the soft glow of the moon, focusing on the task at hand as I glided down and landed on the window sill. I was on the second story, and I looked through the window at the little girl sleeping.
Ugh. As much as I hated it, I knew the hunters wouldn’t hurt a young girl. And being so little, I could use that to my advantage.
My mind transferred, and I sat up in the bed, my small body nothing new considering I’d just been a rat.
I scrambled out of bed quietly, grabbing her jacket off the door handle and sliding into it.
I wouldn’t let anything happen to her if I could help it. And I’d wipe her mind afterwards. Right now, she was still sleeping in her mind, unaware of me taking the wheel.
I crept down the stairs, hearing the distant snores in a bedroom down the hall. The stairs creaked softly under my weight, but I continued tiptoeing down them until I reached the back door.
And then I was outside, dashing across the yard and back the way I came. It wasn’t too far, and with me driving her, she wouldn’t tire out as easily.
I ran up the dirt road, keeping my senses alert both back in my main body and in this one.
I needed to be on my full guard.
The little girl’s bare feet were quick and light as we slid around the cars outside the old home, a light on in the kitchen now. I caught my breath as I ducked behind a car, peeking out to see what was going on.
A man was in the kitchen, yawning and stretching.
Was he intending to go downstairs or did he just need to pee or something?
I narrowed my eyes as I shifted my jacket around my small body.
I watched patiently as he disappeared from sight, and my other body with its heightened senses heard the toilet flush after a few moments.
I continued waiting, the minutes ticking by until the kitchen light flicked off again.
I gave it another minute just to be certain before I hurried over to the house, keeping low and silent as I slunk around the edge of the building and to the small basement window.
I looked in and caught my own eyes, always a strange feeling to do, seeing myself from both sets of eyes.
I tested the window softly, leveraging it with a stick off to the side to force the old, rusted hinges to give.
It groaned as it slowly opened, and Jackson stirred at the sound.
“Jackson,” I hissed from my true body as his head came up and he glanced around groggily.
“What’s going on?” he groaned, and then his face twisted to shock as he spied the small girl at the window.
“Relax, it’s me, she’s getting us out,” I said, not sure if my explanation made any sense. Whatever, it would have to do.
Jackson looked even more confused as he glanced between us.
I moved the girl forward, yanking the window open wider using my demon strength since her little arms wouldn’t have the power. And then I was turning around and sliding my little legs through the small window. We wouldn’t be able to get back out this way. But at least I could free us.
“I don’t understand,” Jackson growled as he blinked the sleep away.
“I’m possessing her,” I murmured from my young vessel, my soft, childish voice almost inaudible in the basement.
Jackson frowned but didn’t say another word as I dropped to the floor next to him and looked around.
Jackson would be the easier one to free, and then he could free me, considering I was too small to help myself.
I hurried over to the table at the foot of the stairs, being careful to avoid the broken plate. I didn’t want my young vessel getting injured feet on account of me. I wanted her to have no recollection of this and to be completely unharmed. That was the plan.
I searched the table with my eyes, smiling to myself as I found a strand of wire. It would have to do.
I snatched it up and hurried over to Jackson, who was watching me carefully, still grasping the fact that I was in two bodies at once.
That was my ability as a demon-born. I could possess others while still being in control of my own body.
I got to work getting the cuffs off Jackson, working silently at the lock with the wire.
“How’d you possess her?” Jackson asked softly.
“Had to take over a rat and work my way up,” I murmured as I jiggled the lock.
“I didn’t know demons could do that,” Jackson murmured.
“They can’t. Demon-born can do more. I’ve never really possessed animals before, I think I possessed a dog once as a kid, but can’t really member,” I said, annoyed that I couldn’t pronounce all th
e words correctly. Guess being a five or six year old did that.
“Huh,” Jackson cocked his head.
“Once I set you free, you help me back through the window and I’ll return her home to bed. She won’t remember any of this, she’s still sleeping in her mind. Then you set me free and we get the fuck out of here,” I said, wincing at the curse word escaping the little girl’s mouth. It really didn’t sound right.
“No killing,” Jackson stated, and I sighed as I rolled my eyes.
From my main body, the little girl with her still chubby cheeks looked ultra sassy as she pouted about this. Yep. Definitely me.
“Not even Sean?” I moaned as the cuffs finally gave way and clicked open.
“Fine, you can kill him. He’s a prick anyway,” Jackson muttered as he slid his hands down and massaged his bruised wrists.
He got up and stretched, and I just looked up at him with my arms crossed as I waited patiently.
Once he had the blood flowing properly and had shaken his hands, he lifted me up and guided me back out the window. I checked the area before I shot off, my short legs carrying me as fast as they could.
Jackson worked on freeing me as I focused on getting the young girl back to her room safely.
When I reached her house, I made sure to clean her feet off properly and check her over for any marks or scratches. I’d done extremely well in leaving her unscathed, and I snuck back into the house, locking the door behind me and creeping back upstairs.
I took her coat off, and got her tucked back into bed before I slipped out of her mind.
9
I sat beside Izzy with the blanket off the bed wrapped around my shoulders while she had it over her lap.
“I still can’t believe you’d be so willing to be their plaything,” she said in disgust.
“I want to survive, I’ll do what I have to do,” I murmured, knowing full well the cameras were on us.
“Samson would be so disappointed,” Izzy murmured.
“What’s he like?” I asked, wanting to move away from this annoying subject. She’d understand eventually why I was willing. Why I was so quick to leap at the idea. I was not something to be caged and held prisoner. I would get myself out of this.
“Samson, well, he’s Dorian, like you, so he’s a pretty good fighter. Taught me a bit, but I couldn’t beat the guy after Nate,” Izzy murmured as she averted her eyes.
I frowned, searching her face as realization struck me.
“He raped you,” I murmured, fury burning through me at the thought.
“You lose, they get to take their prize,” Izzy sighed as she pulled her legs up to her chest and rested her chin on the blanket over her knees.
“That’s wrong,” I growled.
“I got put in the cage with him, he had his way with me for about a week before they sent me back here. I didn’t conceive, so they’ll pit me against another one soon. I’ll probably lose again too,” she murmured, her lower lip trembling as her eyes glittered.
I just stared at her, at the evident hatred but fight still in her eyes.
“No, it’ll be okay,” I said as I touched her shoulder and smiled softly.
“You’re a Dorian, you can fight naturally,” she gave a sharp laugh. “I’m not. I’m a Walter, I stem from royalty lines. Non-fighters.”
I didn’t know what to say to reassure her, so I just ran my thumb over her shoulder soothingly as she closed her eyes. I could tell she was struggling not to cry.
“Tell me what they’re like, my brothers. My fathers,” I murmured. If she was mated to them all, then surely she knew more about them.
Her doe eyes glittered as she opened them, but a small smile played at her lips as she thought about her mates.
“Samson spars and trains a lot of the time, works in security too,” she said, her eyes flicking to me. I instantly knew there was more to this security thing, but she didn’t want to say it while we were being watched. She would be careful with her words, not sharing too much for the Collector to gleam anything from her that was too revealing. I’d have to do the same.
“Lachlan is a werewolf, his father is Lionel, they both work construction. Lachlan loves working with his hands, he would talk about building all the cots and furniture for our new place once I started having our children,” she murmured, her voice hitching as a tear trailed down her cheek. My throat tightened at her despair, but I let her continue.
“Chris is a witch. He loves to cook and makes a lot of potions, his father, David, was the one who died with their mother. Your mother,” she said, correcting herself as she caught my eyes.
So the father who died that night was a witch. I was saddened to hear this, the regret inside me about not knowing my true parents swimming to the surface once more. I pushed it back down hard.
“Ben is a werepanther, his father is Bernie, they both work with their hands a lot,” she sniffled, and I knew that was all she could tell me. Whatever work they really did might give them away.
“Samson’s father is Soren, your father,” Izzy finally said as she wiped at her eyes and sat up straight. “He works in security too. They all seem to share their work with their sons. You were the only daughter, and they were incredibly grateful to have not one but two kitsune children,” she smiled.
So these men were my family. My real family.
Somehow, just knowing this little bit more about them was enough to make me happy. I just hoped I could eventually meet them, have the chance to get to know them.
“I wish I could’ve known them,” I murmured as I pulled the red blanket tighter around me. It was chilly in this stone and brick room with no windows or outside light. I had no way of knowing what the time was either.
“You still can, maybe,” Izzy murmured.
I just nodded as I looked around at the other women.
“What’s your name?” I called out to the nearest cell, the blonde curled up inside giving me the briefest glance. She didn’t answer, and I just frowned.
“I’ve tried to talk to them, but there’s no trust here. They’re scared and hurting. Most of them have been here longer than me,” Izzy sighed.
Why not talk to us though? If we were willing to work together, maybe we could get out of this place.
But as I glanced around at them, it was obvious they’d all accepted defeat. That their lives were over now.
And it made me pissed.
I would not allow them to remain broken like this. To be used for this so-called breeding program.
“If you conceive, where do you go?” I asked softly.
“Lucy says that you get your own room and stuff in the main house, but once the child is born, they take it away and raise it as their own. As to why, I’m not sure. Maybe the Collector just wants loyal kitsunes,” Izzy shrugged.
Hmm. Interesting.
I wanted to ask more about my family, to learn more about them, but with the cameras on us and probably microphones, there was little way we could do that without risking the Collector finding out too much.
My mind wandered to my mates, and sickness welled up inside me at not knowing if they were okay. Would I feel it if one of them died?
“When my parents died, did the other fathers feel it?” I asked softly.
“Yeah, when a bond gets severed like that, you feel it. They all felt it like a kick to the gut, the loss inside them,” Izzy said.
I nodded, relief flooding through me. I hadn’t felt anything. No tragic loss inside me, so maybe they were all fine, at least they were all alive.
I’d take comfort in that, believing Izzy’s words. I needed to. I needed the strength right now.
The door on the far side of the room clanged and slid up into the ceiling as it opened. A man who resembled a security guard strolled in, his eyes set on me. His aura was the purple of a witch, and from the intensity, he was a strong one.
I watched him cautiously as he strode right over to our cell, dragging his hands along the bars.
&nbs
p; “Savage, the boss wants to see you,” he said with a smug smile.
He was a broad shouldered man with tanned skin and a bald head. His beard was scruffy and hung down over his black sleeved tee.
“Why?” I asked carefully. I did not trust this man at all. I just felt something off about him.
“To talk, thinks you could be a good girl,” he gave me a grin that made my skin crawl.
“Okay,” I murmured, trying not to show how much I despised him. I needed to play this right.
“Don’t do this, Sav,” Izzy pleaded as she grabbed my arm.
“I’m not staying down here if I have a choice,” I shot back, needing her to get the point.
The hurt that marred her features pained me, but I couldn’t tell her the truth. I wish she would have caught on by now.
The bald man unlocked the cage, and I tugged free from Izzy’s grip as I headed towards him.
“Precaution, little lady. Put them on,” the man stated as he tossed a set of cuffs to me that I caught mid air.
I smiled, forcing the scowl away as I clasped the cuffs on. I’d considered barging through him, but I had a feeling that the door into the room would slam down before I had a chance to escape. And using him as a hostage probably wouldn’t work. I didn’t doubt the Collector had men he could toss aside for these jobs. Witches weren’t rare beings.
So I had to play along for now.
He led me out of the cell, locking it behind him and then continuing to the far wall.
I’d keep note of my surroundings, of exits. I needed to know how to escape when given the chance.
The door slid down behind us as we entered a hall, and I followed after him as we came to a set of stairs and ascended to another door. He unlocked it with a key, and then we stepped into a bright, luxurious hallway with red carpets and cream walls. The high ceiling was what looked to be white marble, and the antique statues of knights and vases on pedestals lined the hall.
“This way,” the man said as he headed left and down the hall. I flicked my eyes around, searching for windows, and glancing into any open rooms. None of them had windows, which made my heart race a little faster.
Why were there no windows?