“What did you do with Gregory?”
“Gregory?”
“Yes, Gregory. He was with me when you took me.” She said it calmly.
“Don’t worry, he’ll live. Here eat this.” He handed her a sandwich and a glass of milk, then sat at the table across from her.
She nibbled on the sandwich as he drank his last beer. Kitty kept looking at him in an odd way and it had a part of him stirring again.
“So why the name Kitty?”
“My grandmother called me it since I was a little girl.”
“What’s your real name?” He felt kind of stupid as she stared at him a little shocked. Here he’d kidnapped her and only knew her last name.
“Katarina Callaghan.” Her eyes twinkled a little.
The microwave beeped, making them both stare over at it.
“Looks like the power is back on. You want some coffee? I know I need one.” He stretched out his arms and stifled a yawn. The simple movement drew her gaze. He flexed his muscles in his arms, and her face glowed warmly as he caught her looking him over. He couldn’t help but smile.
He got up and made a pot of coffee and checked to make sure the heat was coming from the heaters.
“What’s your name?” Kitty asked.
“I’m not going to tell you,” he told her with a chuckle.
“What do I call you then?”
“You don’t. Look, we only have to wait until the banks open on Monday morning. Then I let you go after we have the money we want.” He said it, making it seem so simple, even though he knew it would be far from easy.
They sat quietly for about a half hour and then she looked at him.
“What if I just give you what you want? Cut out the other guy and you can let me go.” Her eyes looked hopeful.
“As tempting as that is, you don’t even know what it is I want.” He said it before he caught himself and realized by the look in her eyes she took it to mean the wrong thing.
“Look, Kitty, I’m not going to touch you or hurt you, but I will tell you I’m not really in this for the money.” It was mostly true. He’d be a complete liar if he didn’t want that kind of money. He also didn’t plan to touch her.
For most of the day they played cards and she even laughed at a few of his stupid jokes. Caleb enjoyed himself and lost track of time. Soon the other two would be there and then everything would get ugly once Trites found out about Kitty having seen his face. He was unsure now of what he’d do about that.
“Kitty, you need to go downstairs now,” he said and saw her eyes turn afraid again.
“Please, can’t I stay up here?”
“No, I’m sorry. Come on, let’s go.” He took her downstairs and put her into her small chain-link cage and tied her up. As he locked her in, he felt horrible, but if the other two saw her upstairs there would be trouble.
Chapter Five
Kitty sat with her hands tied behind her back and her ankles bound up as well. Her kidnapper was still treating her with kid gloves, trying to be gentle, making sure she ate and was comfortable given the circumstances. She wasn’t sure why he was doing that, but felt there was a heck of a lot more going on than he’d told her. The person on the phone had to know her personally, and very personally. Only close family and friends ever called her Kitty.
As she sat there, she made out the sounds of a vehicle coming up the driveway. It sounded as if it suffered from engine trouble, and she strained to listen. She heard two doors open and close and footsteps coming inside. There were muffled voices, which sounded to be male and there was a thud of something being placed on the floor. Kitty could barely hear a bit of a rise in a man’s voice and then another’s. The heated conversation lasted for several long moments before she heard a door slam and then the vehicle start. It didn’t leave, but now she could just make out a pair of men’s voices outside again.
An inside door opened and the sounds of footsteps coming down the stairs made her heart race again. She stared at the door to her tiny cell and waited. After it was unlocked and opened a large man wearing a ski mask, dress pants and dress sweater stood eyeing her. He wasn’t as tall as her other kidnapper, nor was he as muscular-looking. However, he was broad and beefy, but only about five nine. Through the ski mask he smiled. His green eyes darkened as he carefully undid the padlock on her cell and stepped inside.
Kitty was afraid now as he stepped up to her and moved to touch her hair. She cringed away, and he grabbed a handful, yanking her face to look up at him.
“Please don’t, you’re hurting me.” She whimpered.
He didn’t say anything as he kissed her. He tasted foul like cigarettes and coffee. This man wasn’t like the first. This one would hurt her, and she cried. His hands traveled over her, feeling her breasts up over the material of her sweatshirt and then he groped between her legs.
The more she sobbed and cried the harder he kissed her and pulled on her hair. The rough feel of his hand as he tried to shove it up her shirt made her scream against his mouth and she managed to bite his lip hard enough to draw blood. With a hiss, he let go and stared down at her. A snort came out of him, and to her horror, he undid his pants.
Her mind went wild with fear, rage and disgust. She looked at the horrible “c” shaped cut on the masked man’s left hand. She knew instantly who he was. He saw her stare at his hand and then his cold green-eyed gaze locked with hers. Kitty could identify him.
“Gregory!” She said it with hate. The ringing in her head was immediate as was the blast of pain from his backhand. She landed on the floor and was stunned by the blow.
* * * *
Caleb had only been outside for maybe fifteen minutes, fixing the knocking sound in the van. As he and Henderson walked back inside he noticed Trites was nowhere to be seen and the basement door was open.
“Shit,” he said and headed down the stairs, grabbing his ski mask and slipping it on over his head. His heart raced out of control as he heard the soft muffled sobs from her cell. Before he even opened the door to her little room, he smelled the other man’s lust.
He opened the door and saw Trites standing in front of Kitty. She laid on the floor in front of him, crying, blood dripping from her nose and mouth. Caleb roared in anger and grabbed the man by the sweater and tossed him out of the cell onto his ass. Rage threatened his control of his animal side, and the tendrils of the change edged closer as he looked the man over. He had his pants partially undone, a large bulge visible in them. He knew what Trites would do to Kitty, and Caleb was about to lose it.
Trites stared up at him, fear had crept into his face and Caleb knew he’d seen the glow in his eyes from the change he fought to control. Kitty’s sobbing, however, brought him back down. He didn’t want her to see him like that, to know he was a monster.
“Get the fuck up stairs and take him with you,” he said with a growl as Henderson poked his masked head down the stairs. The two men went as ordered and then Caleb turned his attention to Kitty. “Are you all right?” he asked, helping her to sit on the cot.
“No!” She sobbed as blood trickled down her face.
“Did he…oh, god, here let me.” He didn’t know what to say, so he just brushed her hair from her eyes. “Let me get something to clean that.” He removed his shirt to wipe her bloody mouth and nose.
The little slip of a woman shuddered and shivered against him, and he cradled her in his arms. It felt right to protect her. He’d never let them hurt her. He kissed her forehead before he let her go so he could untie her hands and ankles. She wrapped her arms around him as he held her. Caleb’s heart swelled at the feeling.
“It’s okay. I won’t let him touch you.” He tried to stand, but she clutched his arm.
“Don’t leave me,” she whispered against his bare chest as she held him tighter still.
“I have to go upstairs and deal with that idiot.” He growled, and she looked up at him. The look in her eyes was one he’d never forget. It was of gratitude. Gratitude toward the man
who had kidnapped her, locked her in a small cell and left her alone where she was attacked. He felt sick.
Caleb stormed upstairs and into the kitchen. Trites glared at him from the table. A beer sat in front of him, and Henderson paced back and forth. His face was a bit gray-looking.
“What the hell do you think you were going to do?” he yelled.
“Look, Lazerath, what’s done is done. We have a bigger problem,” Trites said, his eyes cold.
“No, you have a bigger problem if you try that stunt again,” Caleb threatened.
“She can ID me. She knows who I am.”
“Oh, for fuck sakes… How?”
“It doesn’t matter how. Just before we get the money dropped, we need to get rid of her.”
“We…you mean me!” Tendrils that heralded a shift crept up his spine again.
“Well, that’s what you do, isn’t it? Mercenary work?” Trites snorted.
“Maybe you should look up the meaning in the fucking dictionary, idiot. It means soldier for hire. Not a hit man, not a personal prison guard, and definitely not a murderer.” Caleb spat the words out angrily.
He stormed over to the fridge and grabbed two beers. He downed the first in a few mouthfuls before cracking open the second. He eyed both men. He needed a plan, one that would get his ass out of this mess without having to hurt Kitty.
“Fine, tomorrow night bring a truck. I need a four-wheel drive with no lo jack in it. Something old but reliable that can go off road, and a shovel as well as a bag or two of lime,” he said, putting his game face back on.
“But the transfer won’t be until Monday morning.” Henderson finally piped up.
“Yeah, so? Trites is the inside guy. He can figure out how to get the money from the lawyers. You just make sure my brother gets out of jail before then.”
It was late before they left and Caleb’s nerves were frayed. He still was unsure of how he’d pull off getting her to safety and get his brother released from jail. He needed five hundred thousand dollars for the judge, and he didn’t know where to get it other than this job. The night Caleb was given a choice of helping get his brother set free or join him in jail he almost wished he’d refused. Henderson and Trites were well-connected it seemed.
* * * *
The hours went by and no one came downstairs. She heard them arguing, then it quieted somewhat and she could make out the light murmur of them talking. They were planning something, and she felt nauseous. Now she knew who two of her kidnappers were and she also knew there was no way they would let her walk out of there alive. Kitty decided she’d try to make a run for it again just as soon as the opportunity arose.
The sounds of a vehicle starting and then leaving made her tense. What if Gregory was the one left behind. Fear gripped her and she struggled not to cry as the loud sound of hurried footsteps descended the wooden stairs. The door opened and revealed her kidnapper without his mask, and she felt a sense of relief.
“Come on,” he said and led her upstairs and straight to the bedroom. She was afraid as she looked at the bed and then at him.
“I’m sorry but I still need to keep you here until I can get my brother out of trouble.” He gently pushed her down onto the bed.
Using a set of handcuffs, he secured her to the headboard and did the same with her ankles.
“It’s warmer up here than in the basement. The other two won’t be back tonight so you’re safe. I’m not going to hurt you, okay? Are you hungry?” His eyes seemed soft and tender.
“No, I’m not hungry, but he’ll hurt me. Please don’t let him touch me!” She cried. If this man hadn’t saved her, Gregory would have done bad things to her.
“He’s not going to touch you. I promise.” He brushed the hair from her face and then pulled a blanket over her.
“Get some sleep. I’ll be over in the chair, so don’t be afraid, okay?”
Kitty lay there for a while and then looked at him. His eyes were closed, his arms folded across his broad chest. The muscles there bulged in the t-shirt he wore, and both his powerful-looking denim-clad legs were stretched out in front of him, crossed at his ankles. He looked so much more like a guardian angel rather than a criminal who’d kidnapped her.
“What trouble is your brother in?” she asked softly. He cracked an eye at her, then the other. He seemed to be trying to assess her.
“He refused to do this job.” He loosened his arms and sat up straighter.
“What happened to him?”
“He was arrested for smuggling.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Those two planted evidence in my brother’s van to make it look as if he were a drug smuggler. He got arrested and their good friend the judge gave him the maximum sentence for it. They gave me the same choice with a carrot hanging in front of me. If I did what they wanted, then my brother gets released,” he said, his body language now stiff.
Kitty saw the bigger picture. As she twisted a little he eyed her.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m getting a leg cramp.” Pains shot up her inner thigh.
“Here, let me undo your feet.” He moved quickly, unclasping the cuffs from her ankles. “Does that help?”
“No, it hurts still.” She whined as the muscles clenched painfully tight in her leg.
“Which leg?”
“My right one.”
The sudden feeling of his hand massaging her leg sent a rush up to her inner thighs, and she caught her breath. After a few moments, the cramp vanished and all she felt was the heated flesh of his hands through the material of her sweatpants. As he continued to rub, she didn’t bother telling him it was gone. The feeling of being touched by him gave her a rush of excitement she’d never felt before and she didn’t want him to stop.
He looked up at her, his gray eyes filled with curiosity. She felt the heat rise as her cheeks turned red. Slowly he leaned over. He swallowed hard as his face came very close to hers. Kitty’s heart raced as his hand travel up off her leg, over her hip and along her waist. He’s going to kiss me. She panicked. Need and desire rushed into her at the thought of his lips on hers. The lightest of touches was all she felt of his mouth. His phone rang, breaking the moment.
He pulled away quickly and grabbed his cell. He looked at the number and left.
“Yeah, what is it?” she heard him say as he walked down the hall away from the room. “When?” he asked the person on the phone. “Well, how much more to have him out by tomorrow? First thing Monday morning? No, I want him released tomorrow before we finish this,” he said. The way he said it gave Kitty a terrible feeling in her tummy. “Fine, and have him call me from The Broken Cue.” Then there was just the sound of his boots as he walked toward the room.
As he came back in, his face was a blank, cold expressionless mask, and his body language was extremely stiff.
“I’m leaving you here for a little while. I won’t be gone more than a couple hours.” Panic washed over her again.
“But what if they come back, what if…please, don’t leave me here.” She cried. The thoughts of Gregory finding her there alone and doing something to her filled her mind with fear.
“I’m sorry…I have to do this,” he said and put a gag into her mouth.
Chapter Six
Caleb felt a little less than okay with leaving Kitty tied up and completely vulnerable at the old farmhouse. But right now he needed to ensure a few things for his plan to work tomorrow night. As he pulled into The Broken Cue, he saw Tim’s car and knew he’d gotten his text message. If nothing else, his uncle would at least help him to save Kaiden’s ass once he got him out of jail. And he might even help him save the human girl too.
As he walked into the smoke-filled bar, he saw several of the pack at the pool tables. Their gazes followed him as he neared. His Uncle Tim sat on a stool near the small lip jutting out of the wall where several empty bottles of beer were lined up, and he was just finishing off another.
“Caleb, let’s go talk
in the office.” Tim stood. At sixty he was still an intimidating sight, and even though their kind aged a great deal slower, his uncle still had a splash of silver at his temples. It was what marked him as the alpha of this pack.
Sitting at his mother’s desk, he watched Tim as he leaned up against the wall and absorbed the information he’d given him.
“You two boneheads really got yourself into a pile of sh—”
“Tim, don’t talk to him like that,” Tammy snapped at her twin. Their mom may be an outcast, but she wasn’t afraid of her alpha brother at all.
“Look, even if you do manage to get him here by tomorrow evening, the cops will most likely be casing this place out. If this Trites and Henderson are as well-connected as you think they are,” Tim said, glaring at his sister as he talked to Caleb.
“Well, that’s where you come in as the distraction,” Caleb said. Tim looked at him with a leery stare.
Caleb waited as Tim seemed to mull the idea over for several moments and then took a step away from the wall.
“Let me discuss it with my boys. We haven’t had a good chase in a long time. Oh, and Caleb, as far as the girl goes…bite her first,” he said as he turned to go talk to the pack.
“Caleb, are you sure she’s the one?” his mom asked after she took a long chug on her beer. Lately she looked tired. Having a mate grow old had been hard on her and them. Now their father lived in his native country and only spoke with them on the phone. It’d been for the best as it wouldn’t raise too many questions about his very slow-aging wife and sons.
“Yes, Mom, she’s the one, but I’m not sure if I should bite her. She’s so small and fragile-looking. I don’t know if she’ll survive the change.” His own fears echoed in his voice.
Tammy walked over to where he sat and roughed up his hair with a loving tousle like she used to when he was small.
“Do it, Caleb, then you’ll be part of the pack and so will she. They’ll protect her with their lives then, and you won’t need to worry about those men.” She kissed him on the head.
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