by Peyton Banks
If only it were that simple for me . . .
I felt the presence of my alpha before I heard his voice.
“Surprised it took you so long,” Rinnick commented as he ordered a whiskey. The shot was placed before him and slung back quickly before he slammed the glass on the bar and eyed the pretty blonde bartender with a wink. “We need a round of beers at our table. Don’t take too long, sweet stuff. We’re thirsty.”
She swung a towel around the bar in mock anger and sashayed her shapely ass over to the tap, filling mugs as Rinnick led us over to our usual table. We sat in the corner, watching the crowded bar and patrons for a few minutes in silence. Once our beers arrived and Rinnick’s gaze left the blonde’s perky tits, we got down to business.
“I lasted as long as I possibly could,” I finally replied. “Jedd doesn’t want my interference, but it’s too late now.”
“No, and that’s why I said as much after you left.”
“Thanks,” I mumbled, not feeling any better.
Rinnick watched me closely. He had this way about him that was quiet but intense, powerful but controlled. I supposed most alphas were like that. All the ones I had ever met shared those same qualities. “Fuck, Theo. I know this isn’t easy.”
Choking on a large gulp of beer, I swiped my hand across my mouth. “Easy? I’ve been dealing with this shit for five years. Just when I thought I could have some kind of life without her, Bec ends up missing. Fate fucking hates me.”
Rinnick snorted, slapping me on the back. “Grow some balls, man. This isn’t karma. Your woman needs to be reminded of who you are and what you mean to each other. Fate has given you another chance. Take it. Don’t be a fucking fool.”
Sighing, I ran my hand through my hair. “She made it perfectly clear where I stood with her.”
Becca had ordered me to stay away from her nearly a year ago. It was the last conversation we had and an endless argument about something so insignificant I couldn’t remember what we fought about now. Her lack of emotion and willingness to fight for our relationship had ended the last spark of romance between us.
Or so I thought.
“Theo,” he began but I slammed my fist on the table and he leaned back, shaking his head. “Five years is a long time to live with regret but forever is a lot longer.”
“What do you know about it?” I asked with anger. “You’ve never fallen in love.”
Rinnick growled as he leaned forward, his presence suddenly menacing. “You forget your place, old friend.”
I crossed my arms over my chest, not the least bit intimidated. “That shit works on the rest of the pack, not me. We’re too close for bullshit. You, me, and Cole. We don’t fuck around.”
Rinnick blew out a breath and downed his beer, shoving the empty mug away. “There may be some truth in that statement.”
Damn straight.
“Listen, I know you’ve been through your fair share of hardship. Cole is finally dealing with his past and that’s a good thing. Losing Seth was a devastating blow to you both. I get that, but we’re not talking about siblings. Becca is my mate.”
He smirked, leaning back as his feet rose and rested on the surface of the worn wooden table. “You said she is your mate, as in present tense.”
Cringing, I shrugged. “Is, was, doesn’t matter.”
“Yes, it does. Your wolf hasn’t forgotten.”
Shit. He was right but I wouldn’t admit it. Not at this moment. It hurt too much to consider the idea. “I don’t have any idea where to begin the search.”
He let me change the subject, but I didn’t miss the twinkle of humor in his eye. “Why not the Blazing Bull Motel? That’s where Max found her things.”
True, but I had a feeling it wasn’t where she actually spent her time. Becca wasn’t a cheap motel kind of girl. She was too girly and didn’t like squalor. For a wolf, it was both humorous and endearing. “I’ll probably check it out, but I have a feeling something more sinister is at work. Bec didn’t have any problems with family.” Rinnick lifted a brow in protest and I nodded. “Alright, nothing other than an overbearing father and overprotective brothers. She wasn’t unhappy to my knowledge.”
Rinnick laughed, the sound both a little frustrated and slightly sarcastic. “You speak to her about that often?” His question alluded to the fact that maybe she wasn’t happy, and I didn’t want to entertain that idea any more than I wanted to discuss her feelings about me or our past.
No, I didn’t speak to her and he knew it. That was another problem. Becca’s continued silence completely cut me off from her life. I didn’t know shit about why she left the pack grounds to begin with, much less what kind of trouble she was in. “Fuck off,” I growled, rising to my feet. “You know what I mean.”
He stood, clapping my shoulder with a wide grin. His smile was only remotely apologetic. “This is going to be a turning point in your relationship. I’m sure Bec will welcome you with open arms.”
Swinging my fist, he ducked the blow as I chased him out, both of us laughing hard as we exited the bar. “You’re a shit friend,” I observed, “asshole.”
Rinnick couldn’t stop laughing, hands on his knees as he shook his head. “We both know what this means to you.” He sobered as our gaze met. “You have my full support. Bring her home to her family. That’s got to count for something.”
“Yeah,” I answered slowly. “Maybe. I’m not going to win any points with her father but maybe Bec will be reminded that I’m the same guy I was five years ago, and nothing is going to change how I feel about her.”
“I truly hope so, Theo. It sucks to see you so down.”
Turning away, I didn’t betray the level of emotion that surfaced with those words. “Night, bro.”
“Stay in touch. Don’t forget to text me while you’re out there.”
“I won’t,” I assured him and jogged home, already far more sober than I wanted.
The long night stretched ahead, and I knew I would chase sleep and Becca Harlow for many endless nights to come. I was pretty sure she would haunt me the rest of my days.
2
Becca
“She’s coming around.”
I blinked, moaning as I shifted my sore body in an attempt to find the slightest comfort. The cold metal of the cage and bars left my body in a constant fight for warmth as the zip ties at my wrists bit into the flesh relentlessly. Dried blood caked around the plastic where my skin was raw and chafed. Disoriented, I tried to understand where I was and failed to recognize anything familiar.
My mouth was dry, and I could barely swallow. “Hello?” I croaked, blinking several more times to focus clearly.
“Hey there, little wolf. About time you woke up.” The male voice was one I didn’t recognize. “There’s water in the bottle to your left.”
A plastic drinking bottle was clipped to the side of the cage. I was immediately reminded of a dog kennel and cringed. Swallowing my pride, I leaned in and sucked through the metal straw as cool liquid trickled down my throat. After a few minutes I had enough to quench my thirst although I couldn’t help the overwhelming sense of dread that sank into my weary bones.
“Where am I?”
The man leaned forward, his dark hair falling into his face in stringy long strands. A corner of his lip lifted up, but it wasn’t with a smile. A jagged scar tugged at the flesh and distorted his looks, transforming the man from an average looking human male into something decidedly more sinister. “The factory. A fun little place where we like to conduct our experiments in privacy without interference.”
Experiments? “I recognize you from the forest.” I didn’t say he’d been snooping around Cedar Creek pack lands. We both knew that information to be true already and I wasn’t interested in riling him up. Right now, I needed as much knowledge as possible to escape.
“Ah, yes. That’s when we had the pleasure of locating your pack. I didn’t expect to find such a sweet little shifter among your kind. I admit, I’m quite intrigued
.”
Something about the way he said those words made my skin crawl with an itch I couldn’t reach. His dark blue eyes were dull except for the hint of aggression and promise of pain that steadily held my gaze. I could sense he was toying with me and I would soon regret that I ever noticed this particular human and his friends.
When I didn’t respond he continued, leaning closer to the bars of the cage. “Have you ever heard of the term conditioning?” At my blank stare he sneered. “It’s the process of training or accustoming a person or animal to behave in a certain way or to accept certain circumstances.” A wide grin tugged his smile into some kind of demented leer. “Person or animal . . . how about both? That is what you are, isn’t that right?”
For the first time I began to feel afraid. I knew I could shift into my wolf but in his eyes, I saw a determination to bring suffering and harm. Trembling, I was tempted to beg. Would he give up this foolish pursuit if I pleaded for his mercy? As his gaze traveled the length of my body, I knew I could never pay the price for such a bargain.
“I’d rather stay in my cage,” I finally answered with more bravado than I felt.
“You won’t think so for long.”
Numerous men stepped forward, all with guns as my cage was unlocked. I didn’t jump out in a hurry and the man with the scar laughed, the sound viciously hungry and deeply disturbing.
“No one believed me when I said you weren’t a fool. Much too pretty to for your own good, too. I think we’ll have a lot of fun cataloging the results of your trials.”
“Stop fucking around, Hall. We need to begin before she gains back her full strength.”
Hall, the scarred kidnapper, yanked me from the cage roughly and hauled my body close to his own. “Let’s see if we can bring your wolf out to play.”
I stumbled as he shoved me toward his friends, and I was led down a dark tunnel that hid most of the interior from view. Too dark to make out where I was, I tried not to panic. If I shifted now, I’d end up killing these men. No matter what they believed, I wasn’t a murderer. It was this precise moment that I realized I hadn’t heard from my wolf at all. She didn’t whine or howl or snarl. It was almost as if she was sleeping.
I’d been drugged. That was the only explanation, but I didn’t remember being injected with any needles. The only recollection I had was a faint memory of darts from multiple guns. Stifling a gasp, I realized I’d been tranquilized like a wild animal on the run. Fury boiled beneath the surface of my skin and I felt the faint stirring of my wolf in response.
Something burned the side of my thigh as I jerked and fell down to the ground, shocked when I realized I had been zapped with a stun gun. My wolf snarled as she fought against the heavy blanket of lethargy that covered her whole body. My nails lengthened as she tried to push through and tear these humans apart.
“Another dose!” Hall yelled as I was shot with a dart and it impaled the opposite thigh.
Screeching with pain and rage, I lunged toward the shooter but dropped when two more darts imbedded in my body.
“We have plenty more where those came from. Don’t worry, we already know the drugs burn off fast with your metabolism. Shifters like you are an abomination. We’ll end your kind and the stain you have placed on humanity.”
The torture continued for hours.
Every time I began the transformation to shift, they would drug and prod me, forcing my wolf to retreat. This went on for so long I lost track of time. Hours blended into days. Days blurred into a week. Back and forth, I was shuffled from the cold metal cage to the room where they continued their endless torment. I knew it was bad when my wolf no longer answered the call to violence, she had been reconditioned and no longer wished to surface, effectively making me unable to control my wolf form.
Just as Hall threatened, I was now useless. No longer a threat.
Depression quickly settled in and I didn’t care what they did anymore. I allowed their beatings and snide remarks, the insults and abuse. There was no other choice. Only enough food and water were given to keep me alive. I was far too weak to escape and continue the fight.
The Society cheered as they realized I had been completely broken.
My limp and naked body was returned to my metal prison.
As I lowered my head and succumbed to the fatigue, I could only hope that Theo decided to come after me and found my note. If not, I would probably die here before the pack would ever find my location. Eyes fluttering, I sent out a desperate signal to any shifter from the pack close enough to catch it.
Danger. Hunters.
3
Theo
The Blazing Bull Motel was a cheap, rundown, low rent strip of rooms located right off the highway about three hours outside of Cedar Creek lands. I assumed it was used for quickies and drug exchanges as I couldn’t imagine sleeping there intentionally for any length of time. Stained carpet and odd smells permeated the rooms while graffiti littered many of the chipped and stained walls. A persistent drip echoed so loudly I had to ignore the urge to cover my ears. Cockroaches and bedbugs roamed the bed linens and side tables. Glad I wore my boots, I stomped on anything that moved in my direction.
Cheap cigarettes clung to the air with a stale musk and mixed with sweat and the faded but bitterly metallic stench of dried blood. Someone had vomited a short distance from where I stood, and the odor nearly overwhelmed my hypersensitive sense of smell. One of my ears flicked back in reflexive response and I couldn’t fight the expression of disgust on my face. A faded trace of lust and sexual conquest joined with the rest and the only saving grace was the knowledge that Becca’s sweet clean scent wasn’t entangled with any of these repugnant smells.
The front desk clerk was a pimply faced youth smacking gum loudly and watching television, barely noticing who came through other than to take money. I glared at him as I cleared my throat and he didn’t turn around or acknowledge me.
“Hey,” I shouted with a growl, my wolf impatient. “Pay attention.”
He swung around, a snappy retort dying on his lips as he took in my size and no-nonsense attitude. “What can I do for you?”
“I’m looking for someone. A pretty girl with caramel skin, long brown hair, and hazel eyes. She had a backpack and was traveling alone but could have had a companion.”
He shrugged. “I see a lot of women.” He started to turn his back on me when a rumble deep in my throat stopped him.
“You’d remember this one. She was clean, had money, and didn’t stay long. She was here recently.”
He jumped up, reaching underneath the register to hand me an envelope and Becca’s torn backpack. I recognized it as the one she carried when we used to go hiking together. Something had stained the back of it a dark brown or red. Blood? My wolf began to pace and growl low, his presence pushing to the surface of my skin.
Calm down, we’ll find her, I soothed.
My beast listened, but probably not for long.
“Yeah, I remember. Cute little mixed chick, right? She said if some scary big guy with dark hair, tattoos, and the propensity to growl his words came in looking for her to give him this.” He shoved the items my way. “I assume that’s you.”
“Did she say where she was going?”
“Nah, I assume that’s why you have the envelope.”
“Thanks,” I muttered, leaving in a hurry as I practically ran to my truck and hopped inside, slamming the locks down as I searched her bag. The usual travel items were inside like toiletries and a change of clothes. Nothing personal was included which was a bit suspicious.
Setting the pack aside, I picked up the envelope. The seal was intact, so I assumed no one saw the contents but Becca. Sliding my finger across, I ripped it open and dumped everything out to be sure I didn’t miss any clues.
My wolf instantly inhaled as fresh linen, cherry flavored lip gloss, and female filled our senses.
“Becca,” I moaned aloud, my heart stirring with the achingly familiar scent.
Funn
y, but the backpack didn’t smell like her, even the items inside. My guess was she either didn’t open it on purpose or never had a chance. The smell of blood clung to the pack’s outer fibers, but it wasn’t Becca. A stranger perhaps but I catalogued the distinct metallic scent for later use. I’d know if I ran across it again since the blood was human. No shifter. My throat tightened and I had difficulty breathing for a minute. My wolf snarled and whined as the knowledge that she’d be taken against her will filled my thoughts.
There was a note, her state driver’s license, cherry Chapstick, some cash, and a thin gold chain with a wolf’s head charm next to another charm with the letter ‘B’. I remembered when her mama gave her that necklace many years ago. Becca never removed it, at least not in the past. She must have been concerned it would become lost, broken, or stolen. She chose to give it to me for safekeeping instead. There was no doubt in my mind this was left intentionally for me to find.
My heart beat a little faster as I realized she trusted me even after all this time.
“Becca, baby,” I whispered aloud. “What did you do?”
She knew I would come after her and was counting on it, which only meant one thing. Becca was in greater danger than I first realized. My wolf snarled as I cracked my neck and rolled my shoulders, trying to prevent a foolish display of rage. The last thing I wanted to do was shift in front of the humans at this rundown motel. I placed everything back in the envelope but the note and exhaled slowly before reading.
* * *
Theo,
I don’t know who to trust other than you. The pack will send a delegate, but they won’t find me. You and I both know I can hide and never be found if I want. This time that’s not the case. Don’t get pissed, just listen.