by Kim Schubert
I just hoped Logan still wanted to give this a try.
I dressed similarly to the previous night, opting to go with my hidden silver, leaving my pretty crossbow and swords. Twisting my dark locks up into a bun, I headed out, stowing my phone and room key in my jacket pocket.
I went down to the restaurant, ordering enough food for two people.
Two college-aged kids watched me closely and I pointedly ignored them as I stuffed my face with French toast.
Charging my meal to my room, I headed outside to walk the path I’d followed in my attempt to chase down my fire breathing warning system.
Fresh powder covered the tracks and I was just as lost as before. I huffed, deciding to head over to the scene where the last executioner was killed.
…
The cab dropped me off at a trailhead and I shifted my backpack, wondering if only bringing water and food was my smartest decision. But the last thing I needed was to get noticed by the police for brandishing my silver collection.
The hike had me breathing hard as I crested up the mountainside. The trail wasn’t more than an animal path and it made me think of Logan. I sat down hard on a smooth rock, betting I wasn’t the only one who had used it for a break.
The sky stretched out before me, the blue dotted with fluffy clouds. I thought about Logan, alone and dealing with his fragile little infant, and an idea formed.
Checking my phone, I found it had two bars. Hopefully that would be enough.
I dialed Mal’s number.
“Olie?” she asked groggily.
“Hey Mal, I’m sorry to wake you, but I have a proposition for you.” I woke Mallory up at a lot, poor thing. I honestly did feel bad for her. She ran security at the Centennial compound and occasionally helped out at Kitten. Our last conversation had not ended well; she wanted to keep me on the good side of the vampires, but too many others were working against her.
She groaned, “I’m not into chicks.”
“Logan’s daughter was born early.”
“How early?”
“She’s only thirty weeks.” I refused to let my voice crack.
“I’m listening, Olie. You have my attention.”
“Do you remember our last conversation about being on the wrong sides?” I was being intentionally vague in case others were listening.
“I do.” Her voice had lost the tensing.
“I’m willing to take you to the side you desire if you can help Logan.”
“Are you certain of this?” Mal asked, her voice low.
“Yes, I guarantee it.”
“What hospital are they at?”
…
I gave Mal the details and texted Mark to let him know what would be happening. Easing my eyes closed, I relaxed the shields in my mind. Golden threads sprung into my vision and I searched for Logan, finding his thread, thicker than the rest. I followed it back, nudging it against his consciousness.
I tried to give him my confidence and hope about the situation. He relaxed against my touch and his joy overflowed into me.
She’s beautiful.
I smiled, letting my emotions wrap around him, hoping he took comfort in it.
“Breathe deep, bitch,” a voice said. My eyes snapped open. I was staring into the eyes of the college kid from earlier today.
I slipped a dagger free, slicing out at his forearm as he held the wet rag to my mouth. My slice wasn’t nearly forceful enough, but it caused the kid to hiss, wincing in pain.
I stood, lunging my body weight at him. I toppled instantly, hitting my knees hard as the kid backed up.
“Careful Aaron, don’t let her get way!” another voice called out. Aaron pressed the cloth back, covering my mouth and nose. I attempted to get my limbs under me and kick his human ass, but the incoming darkness had different ideas.
The fog surrounding my brain wasn’t as deep as my captors thought, but it had effectively blocked my mate bond. Awesome, so glad that I actually might need to be rescued and the pack magic tracking system wasn’t available to me.
At least I wasn’t being thrown into a sweat-inducing nightmare.
How the feeble humans got me down the mountain and into the windowless van I didn’t know, but it was clearly a struggle based on the bruise forming on my hip. I rolled to my stomach, lifting my head up to take a quick glance at my surroundings.
My hands and legs weren’t bound. Idiots. I lunged for the driver, Aaron. My arm around his throat, I leaned back, closing off his airway. Sputtering met my efforts while the vehicle swerved.
“What the fuck is wrong with you two?” I demanded, leaning back, applying more pressure.
“Tsss,” Aaron hissed.
I leaned back, my bicep flexing uncomfortably.
Aaron batted at my arm, gurgling. The human next to him was searching for something, bent down. I’d deal with him in a minute. The van careened over a sidewalk and I was ready for this fucker to die.
My normal rule of not killing humans was voided when they tried to kill me first. Fair is fair.
The passenger pushed a black, hissing taser into my neck. I seized up.
“Fucking bitch,” Aaron coughed. “Give her more,” he hissed, rubbing his neck.
I’d never been tased and it wasn’t an experience I cared to repeat. My muscles locked up, my head rolling back while asshole number two shoved another gag over my mouth. I tried landing a kick on him, but the shaking reduced it to a harmless shutter before I was forced back into the darkness.
…
I was chained. The weight against my wrist and ankles was familiar, along with the smell of unkempt cells.
Could I go back to the basement chains? At least they smelled better.
“She’s pretty. They’ll pay good money for her.”
In another cell, chains shifted, and sobbing began. I inhaled, scenting human, only human.
Motherfuckers. I had been kidnapped by humans? The executioners were killed by humans?
Fuck, this was embarrassing.
“Don’t touch her, the boss wants first crack at her.”
Wonderful. I’d like first crack at the boss also.
I kept still on the floor until I heard the door close again. My eyes flicked open, rapidly adjusting to the low light. The door cracked again and I closed my eyes, not to appear still knocked out, but to save my night vision by not blinding myself on a sliver of the sun.
Chains directly in front of me rattled.
“No,” a soft voice chanted. My eyes focused through the gloom on the speaker, a dark haired beauty. Even the dirty smudges and dried blood couldn’t hide her high cheekbones and full lips.
She backpedaled in her cage, trying to wrap her stained and torn short sun dress closer around her.
I sat up, seeing her attacker’s legs and torso blocking out her frail form.
“Come on, pretty, Daddy wants a ride.”
“No James, please,” she whispered.
My chains rattled and he looked back at me as he unlocked her cell door.
“Oh good, you’re up. The boss will be having his fun with you after that little stunt in the car,” James taunted.
“You should run,” I warned him, my voice deadly low.
He stopped unbuttoning his pants, his belt flapping open. “What you gonna do about it?”
He kicked the cage and I didn’t back up or flinch. That unnerved him.
“Stupid bitch, you ain’t the first copper we’ve taken out.”
My lips turned up in a small grin. “I’m no cop.”
He huffed, “Yeah right, how else you explain the gear your carrying?”
“This isn’t the first cage I’ve been thrown in.”
He kicked the cage again. “Shut up, you’re ruining my wood.”
“I’m going to skin you alive, James,” I taunted in a singsong voice. “I’m going to make you eat your own wood first, though.”
His eyes widened when I licked my lips. I do crazy real fucking well.
&nbs
p; “Shut up, I’m not going to tell you again.”
I rattled my cage and James jumped.
“What is wrong with you?” James hissed.
“So much, James, so very much.”
I palmed my hidden silver, which I had brilliantly forgotten about during my kidnapping, and was ready to launch the pointy end at James’s little bits, when the door slammed open again.
“God dammit, James, what the fuck have I told you about sampling the merchandise?” boomed a deep voice.
I turned in my cell, seeing the dirty pile of rags next to me also lift her head, watching the large man. He stood in the doorway, blocking out the light, before moving into the space and shutting the door with the same force he’d used opening it.
“Shit, Nolan, I didn’t think you were back.” James scuffed his boot against the ground, not looking at his boss.
The woman next to me hissed. “Silence!” Nolan bellowed. The woman hissed again, her body sliding around the cage, her shoulder banging against the enclosure.
I took another look at her and my radar went off. She wasn’t fully human. I was doubting demigod, but she had a dash of the Supernatural running through her veins.
“I said silence,” Nolan repeated more quietly, stalking toward her.
Her beating increased.
Nolan sighed and I turned my attention back to him, inhaling deeply. I scented mint and sweat. I scented human.
A low growl rumbled up my throat. Logan would have been proud.
Nolan’s attention shifted. “What do we have here?”
He squatted down in front of me and I flicked my eyes over his strong jaw, dimpled cheeks and thick black eyebrows. He’d be attractive, you know, if one could overlook the whole sex trafficking.
“You know who I am,” I said softly, smiling.
Nolan’s gaze traveled leisurely over my chest, trailing over my hips and back up to analyze my face.
“You, my dear girl, will fetch quite a price.”
I laughed, tilting my head back before wrapping my hands around the iron bars. “Guess who I am,” I whispered.
Nolan wasn’t fazed by my unique brand of crazy, oh but he should have been.
“I don’t actually care.” He stood. “Open the cage,” he commanded James.
James fumbled with the keys, taking them from his previous rape victim’s lock and inserting one into mine.
My gaze never left Nolan’s, the self-confident motherfucker was smiling.
I was going to carve that smile off his fucking face.
The door swung open. Nolan reached down, fisting the front of my shirt and yanking me out, knocking my head against the top of the cage. The chains strained as James worked at releasing them.
Freeing my appendages, Nolan leaned down and kissed me hard, biting through the delicate flesh of my bottom lip.
I palmed my hidden silver and stabbed him between the legs. He went down with a wonderful, satisfying scream.
I rounded on James, his gaze flicking between his boss writhing in pain and me. I took out a throwing knife and let it fly. He reached down to cover his wood and the blade pierced both his hands.
I enjoyed his screaming as well.
“Alright ladies, how many more are there? I know of Aaron, but who else?”
The hissing woman next to me regained her composure first. “Three including Aaron, they are rounding up more girls and I expect them back soon.”
I groaned, pulling the keys out of my cell.
James freed his hands, holding the bleeding appendages to his chest, rocking back and forth.
I turned on him, picking up the discarded blade.
“Stop, stop, stop, what is wrong with you?” he chanted, crying.
I leaned close to him. “How many times did she beg you to stop?” I demanded. Seeing the truth in his eyes, I slammed my blade between his legs, severing his wood. His eyes rolled back into his head, blood flowing freely from the wound. He passed out.
“I wish I had more time with you,” I told him before I rounded on Nolan, still screaming.
With my booted foot I stomped on his face, cartilage snapping, teeth crumbling. I didn’t stop until he was unrecognizable.
“Feel better?” the hissing girl asked.
“Mildly,” I admitted.
“Are you going to leave us in here until they come back?”
“What’s your name?” I asked.
“Nila,” she answered.
“Okay, Nila, I’ll free you since I’m betting you would like to take a crack at the other three.” She nodded eagerly, wrapping her hands around the cage.
The other women started to cry out, begging to be released. I sighed, turning to face them.
“Shut up!” Nila yelled. I tried various keys, finally finding the one that freed her from her cell.
She held out her hands to me and I worked quickly at releasing her from the chains.
“Do you have any more knives?” she asked.
I pulled out two additional silver blades, handing them over to her. She held them, her shoulders relaxing.
“Do we hide the bodies?” she asked.
I looked over the mutilated corpses, chewing on my bottom lip, debating.
“Yeah, let’s move them. We need to trap them in here.”
We lugged the bodies to the back and I was surprised at how easily she completed the task.
“What are you?” I asked.
Her eyes flicked to me, alarmed.
“I’m Olivia, Head Executioner for the Council.”
Nila’s eyes narrowed in recognition. “The Council? Why are you here? You work for the Eastern Council, don’t you?”
“I do. Garrick sent two Executioners here who didn’t return and he hired me to find out why.”
Nila nodded slowly. “I’ve been here for a week, but no one like you has been here.”
I chewed on my lip, thoughtfully. “Well that doesn’t make any fucking sense,” I huffed, taking a hiding place behind the cages.
“Hey, you didn’t answer my question,” I added. “What are you?”
“A quarter dragon,” she answered, letting her eyes grow into red pinpricks of light.
“Nice,” I said, impressed, as she went around to the rear of the cages to hide.
“Hey, you don’t happen to know a being with human feet and claws for hands that can breathe fire?”
Nila turned to me, coming out from her hiding place, shocked. “That’s my father.”
“Oh, well he paid me a visit. Actually, talking to him would have been nice. I prefer to come in to kill the bad guys under my own power.”
Nila was opening her mouth to say more when the door rattled. We both ducked into our hiding places. The voices were complaining about how heavy the body was that they were lugging in.
I tightened my grip around the handle of my blade, waiting. I needed to block the exit, so I had to wait until they were all inside.
I fucking suck at waiting.
Aaron came in, tossing down the body of a girl with little regard to the way she landed wrong on her neck. I heard the snap but apparently they didn’t, Aaron dragging her by her arms, throwing her into a cell.
“Hey, where did the crazy bitch go? I wanted to take a run at her,” Aaron asked, locking a dead girl into a cage. What a surprise, the succubus is popular.
“Boss wanted her first,” said another, grunting.
“What’s taking so long?” said the third asshole as I fist pumped silently before putting myself between them and the door.
“Thanks for the joining the party, gentlemen. We’ll be relieving you of your genitalia now.” All three turned to me, shocked.
“Fuck,” Aaron stated. I let my blade loose, lodging it in his thigh. He went down hard, belting.
Nila turned the corner, slashing thick gashes into one of the men. I kicked Aaron in the head, snapping it back with a satisfying crack. He fell back dead. It was too quick a death for them, but I was a little pissed. Okay more
than a little, a lot.
I looked to see if Nila needed help, only to find her panting, her body sprayed with blood like a warrior’s.
I smiled at the mess of body parts. “Nice job.”
She nodded, her hands shaking as she pulled herself together.
“Let’s get everyone out and get you home.”
Nila nodded, blinking back the tears that were threatening to fall.
We worked quickly. Many of the girls had to be carried out, a few from fear, others from injury. We set them in the sun, leaned up against the old barn. I used Aaron’s cell phone to dial 911, handing the phone off to one of the more vocal women.
I turned to Nila. She nodded and we climbed into the van that had taken me here, driving away from the madness.
…
We dumped the van at one of the burn sites, hoofing it to my hotel room. I opened the sliding glass door to the room, ushering us in.
“Feel free to shower.” I waved her into the bathroom. “I have clothing that will fit you.”
A pounding at my door had me going for my gun. I peered through the peephole quickly, careful not to keep my body in front of the door for too long.
I breathed a sigh of relief, throwing open the door and letting my gun point at the ground.
“Hallo luv, did you have all the fun without me?” Blue asked, sauntering into my room.
I hugged him in my guts-stained, sweaty, dirty outfit. “I missed you,” I whispered.
He held me close, patting my back. “Rough time of it, luv?” he asked in his thick Irish accent.
I groaned, “We got one hell of a mess here.”
“Please, fill me in.”
I unloaded onto Blue, everything, all the dirty details, while Nila showered. He listened intently, nodding, asking questions to clarify where he needed to.
“Humans?” Blue asked.
I nodded, “Humans.”
“Where are the other executioners?” Blue asked.
“Dammed if I know.”
“I think I have an idea,” Nila said, coming out dressed in my yoga pants and tan top. They were big for her slight frame. “I think my dad has them.”
“Why would he have them? I thought he was trying to help,” I asked, confused.
Nila shrugged. “He has a unique way of helping. I’m assuming he thought to use the executioners as leverage to get me back from the humans with Garrick’s help.”