“I’m going to go and get you something to eat. You feel a little warm to me. Are you feeling all right?”
“I’m fine.” Except maybe she was running a temperature. Maybe she was delirious. Because she wanted nothing more than to tear off her clothes. And then she’d do the same to him and . . . okay, she needed to get her mind off sex.
“I’ll be back in a few minutes. Stay seated, okay? I don’t want you getting up and then fainting and hitting your head.”
“Such a concerned jailor.”
He smiled. “Well, you being unconscious would kind of ruin the plans I have for you.” He moved to the door then turned back. “By the way, as much as I like my nickname, I figure that if we’re going to become lovers you should know that my real is Garret.”
He disappeared out the door before she could tell him that there was no way they were going to become lovers. Oh, fuck, who was she trying to kid? Every time he touched her, she lost her mind. She sighed and leaned her head back against the wall. She frowned as she heard scratching noises from the other side.
What was that? A rat?
She strained, listening. It didn’t surprise her this place had rats. What did surprise her was that she could hear them through the thick stone. She turned and knocked on the brick. Her eyes widened.
It sounded hollow. Holy shit.
The scratching seemed to grow more frantic as she tapped her way along the wall. A few feet along it went from hollow to thick. Okay, think Gigi. She didn’t have a lot of time before Garret came back. She might only have one shot at this. She figured they had to have a camera on her, but she just hoped she wasn’t monitored all the time. She started pressing her hand against the bricks.
“Come on, come on,” she muttered to herself. Sooner than she’d thought possible, the wall moved, and she stumbled forward, nearly losing her balance.
She felt like crying. A tunnel. There was a tunnel. The door slid shut behind her, shrouding her in darkness. She took in a breath. For a moment panic threatened to derail her. What if this tunnel led nowhere? How would she find her way out?
She whimpered. She still couldn’t see a thing. She wasn’t afraid of the dark . . . not exactly. But she couldn’t even see her hand in front of her. She had no idea what lay ahead. And she was all on her own. Maybe she would have been better off staying where she was.
Something ran over her foot, and she cried out. There was a squeaking noise from below.
Wait. That noise sounded familiar.
“Roger?” she whispered.
Squeak.
“Oh. Thank God.” She crouched and held out her hand, knowing he could see much better than she in the dark. He pressed his body against her, and she ran her hand over his back.
“Well, how did you find me, you clever rat?”
He made a happy noise. Most people thought rats were dirty and ugly, but Roger had been with her for years. He was her best friend. And, yeah, she was aware of how pathetic that sounded.
“Think you can lead me out of here?” she asked in a hushed whisper.
Her eyes were adjusting a little. But she still couldn’t make out much.
Roger squeaked, and she heard him scuffling along the floor.
“All right. Here goes nothing.”
* * *
Sawyer couldn’t believe his eyes. He rubbed them then stared down at the screen.
Nope. Still not there.
He picked up his phone and dialed Joseph as he raced out of the security room and down the stairs.
“Yeah?” his brother answered.
“She’s gone!” he roared. He brushed past Garret, who was moving down the stairs, a glass of juice in his hands.
“Hey, watch where you’re going!” Garret warned him.
“She’s gone! She’s fucking gone!” Anger and shock boiled inside him. The beast strained, so close to the surface that he had to check he wasn’t changing. He looked at his hands. No sign of fur.
He crashed through the door, nearly smashing it off its hinges. Garret was close on his heels, the juice gone, probably dropped.
“Where the fuck is she?” Garret asked.
“How should I know?” he snarled.
He grabbed the mattress, picking it up and throwing it across the room as though he expected her to be hiding beneath it. He stormed into the bathroom, checking it thoroughly.
“What’s going on?” Joe asked as he raced into the room.
“The girl is gone.” Sawyer’s voice held a warning rumble.
“How can she be gone?” Joe searched the room, as though they’d somehow missed her, a five-foot-two, hundred-pound sprite.
Sawyer turned to Garret. “You were the last one who talked to her. What did you do?”
Garret held his hands up. “Do? I didn’t do fucking anything. When I left her, she was sitting over there.”
They all stared at the wall. There was nothing to see. No sign she’d ever been there.
Garret moved closer to the wall, sniffing. He crouched down. “Her scent is still strong here. How could she disappear?” He looked back over his shoulder at Sawyer. “Weren’t you watching the monitors?”
“I went to the bathroom and when I came back, she was gone. But the cameras were recording.” He stormed out of the room, taking the stairs three at a time and racing into the control room. He sat in his seat, barely aware of the others entering the room and standing behind him.
He rewound the camera and watched in surprise as the female turned to the wall behind her, knocking at it. Then she started pressing against the bricks.
“What’s she doing?” Garret asked.
“She’s searching for a way out,” Joe said.
Then suddenly the wall gave way, and she disappeared inside. Sawyer froze. “There’s a fucking secret tunnel.”
Joe ran his hand through his hair. “I don’t remember the dads ever telling us about tunnels.”
“Maybe they didn’t know,” Garret said.
Sawyer was up again and taking off for the dungeon once more. His skin was on fire. The beast felt like it was trying to claw its way out. He pressed against the brick he’d seen the female touch before she’d disappeared. The wall disappeared, revealing a tunnel on the other side.
He let out a roar that rattled his very bones. Then the beast erupted. He felt hot then cold. The world spun. Dark spots danced in front of his eyes before he crashed to the floor in a faint.
* * *
Joseph froze, staring down at Sawyer in horror. Or what he assumed was Sawyer. Because gone was the scruffy man who desperately needed a haircut and in his place was a huge, brown-haired bear. His clothes had torn with the change, lying in rags around the bear.
“Holy fuck. What just happened?” Garret whispered, as though he was worried about waking the bear.
“I believe that Sawyer’s bear just broke its way free.” Joe shook his head. Surely, he was seeing things.
They’d all seen their parents shift into their bear shapes, but they hadn’t changed that often. At least not in front of them. And that had been years ago.
Suddenly, Sawyer opened his eyes. He climbed onto his feet then shook his head as though still dizzy. He looked at Garret then over to Joe then opened his mouth and roared.
Joe stared at him. “Impressive.” Even though he was freaking out on the inside, he figured it probably wasn’t a good idea to let that show. Sawyer was freaking out enough for the three of them.
Sawyer stood up on his back legs then looked down at himself as though realizing he was now a bear. He bellowed again.
“Yeah, you’re a bear,” Garret told him.
Another loud growl reverberated against the walls.
Joe dug at his ear. “You need to tone it down before you make us all deaf.”
The bear gave him an irritated look.
“Are you sure he can understand us? That he knows who we are?” Garret asked.
“He knows.” At least Joe hoped he did. Or they were all in b
ig trouble. “Our parents always did.”
“Yeah, but they had their parents to guide them. We have no one.”
Like Joe needed the reminder. He was supposed to be the leader, the one to guide them, and he felt like he was floundering in the dark.
“What do we do?” Garret asked him.
Worry stirred through him. The bear looked down at himself. Then he made a low noise.
“Does he know how to turn back?” Garret asked.
He had no idea. But he was guessing no.
“And what about the girl? I can follow her scent through the tunnel and capture her.”
And then what? Their unease grew. “How come Sawyer was able to change?” He looked over at Garret, who looked to be having the same “oh shit” thought he was.
“Could she really be our mate?” Garret whispered.
If she was, wouldn’t they all have changed? And she was human, so what did that mean?
“I don’t know. You and I haven’t changed.” Obviously.
Garret looked thoughtful. “Sawyer was furious before he changed. Maybe that’s what helped the bear gain control? Because he lost it?”
Joe had no idea. And he hated not having the answers. His parents hadn’t told him any of this.
“So, what do we do?”
He studied the bear. “Sawyer, nod if you understand us.”
The bear nodded, giving him a disgruntled look.
“You don’t know how to get back to human form, do you?”
He shook his head.
Joe sighed and looked at Garret. “One of us needs to stay here and help Sawyer change back and one of us needs to go after the girl.” Not just because they had no idea who she was or what she wanted, but also because it was looking very possible she was their mate.
And they’d managed not to just lose her, but to completely alienate her as well.
“I’ll go after the girl,” Garret said.
Joe chewed his bottom lip for a moment. “She’s not going to welcome you with open arms.”
Garret snorted. “Don’t worry about that. Out of the three of us, I got all the charm.”
“She could be our mate, and we just locked her in a dungeon and terrorized her.” Just thinking about it tied his gut in knots. Their mate was supposed to be cherished and protected. Not terrified.
“We didn’t know who she was,” Garret defended.
“Think that will make any difference to her?” Joe asked incredulously.
“She’s attracted to us. Well, to me. That could help.”
Joe didn’t think it was going to be enough.
“We’re going to have to prove we’re not jerks. We’ll have to win her over.”
Garret sighed. “It would be easier if we just kidnapped her and brought her back here. Keep her under lock and key.”
Joe gave him an incredulous look.
Garret raised his hands up in supplication. “Hey, I said it would be easier. I didn’t say I was going to do it. Sheesh. Don’t worry, I’ll get her back here. And it will be all her idea.”
“You really think you can charm her into coming back?”
“Of course I can. I haven’t met a woman yet who’s immune to my charms.”
6
She stumbled into her bedroom with Roger running along next to her. Tripping over her own feet, she tumbled to the floor, bashing her elbow when she hit.
“Ow. Shit. Shit. Shit.”
She rolled onto her back, just trying to breathe. Roger had led her through the tunnel until she’d reached a part she was familiar with. After that, she’d moved at a faster pace. The tunnel came out on the other side of the forest, near the city outskirts. From there she’d had to slip through the streets. Thankfully, it hadn’t been quite dark yet.
Night was not a good time for a female to be out by herself.
She’d waited for the break in the guard, when she knew she’d have a few minutes to climb over the wall that surrounded the compound where she lived. She’d had one moment of panic, when she thought Gerry wasn’t going to take his usual, sneaky cigarette break. He’d seemed to be taking guard duty seriously for once. But it seemed his good intentions only held so long. He’d finally broken down and snuck off to have a few puffs, and she’d scurried over the wall.
She knew she should tell her brother about the weak spot in his security, but she didn’t want to get Gerry in trouble. Truth was, he was an okay guy. Just, you know, lazy.
As she lay on the floor, she became aware of someone entering her bedroom. A face crossed into her line of sight, and she tensed, ready to dive away.
When she saw who was staring down at her, she had to force her body to relax. It wouldn’t do to show any fear. Not that she worried about Carlin hurting her. But he used emotion as a weapon, and it was never a good idea to give her brother ammunition to use against you.
“Hey, bro,” she said weakly. “How’s it hanging?”
“Bad,” he replied in a dark voice. “Very bad.”
“Yeah?” She sat up, aiming for casual but certain she didn’t achieve it. “You should get that looked at.”
“This is not the time for your jokes,” he snapped. “Where have you been?”
“Been? What do you mean?”
“Damn it, Georgina,” he roared. Turning, he grabbed the door and slammed it shut then he smashed his fist into it. The wood creaked, and when he turned back to her, his knuckles were dripping blood.
“Shit! Carlin, what the hell did you do that for?” She got to her feet, grateful her legs supported her, and walked into the bathroom. Grabbing a cloth, she wet it then pulled out the first aid kit.
When she returned, he was sitting on the bed, his elbows resting on his thighs and his head hanging down. He looked defeated. She paused for a moment, shocked. She’d never seen him like this.
She knelt before him and gently grabbed his hand, dabbing at the blood with the cloth.
“You have a few splinters.”
He watched her in silence as she fixed him up. It was weird. He was never this still. Or quiet.
When she finished doctoring him up, she leaned back on her heels and met his gaze.
“Where were you? I couldn’t find you . . . I thought . . .” he took in a shuddering breath.
“You were worried about me?” she asked, in shock.
He narrowed his gaze. “No, I wasn’t worried. I was fucking terrified. I had no idea where you were. No one had seen you. You’d just fucking disappeared. I thought Gio had somehow gotten to you. I was just getting ready to send some of my people out to sneak into his compound to find you when I got a report that someone saw you cross the compound. Where have you been?”
She nibbled at her lip. “You’re not going to be happy.”
“Look at me. Do I look like I’m happy right now?”
She sighed. “I need you to promise that you’re not going to kill anyone.”
His gaze narrowed. “Now, see, when you start off with something like that it makes me think I need to go kill someone.”
“Which is why I don’t want to tell you. I don’t need anyone’s blood on my hands. And I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“Me? It won’t be me getting hurt, sunshine.” That was his nickname for her. She figured it was because of her blonde hair.
“I’m not telling you until you promise.”
He stood abruptly. “Was it Gio?”
“If it was Gio, I wouldn’t have left there alive.”
He stared down at her. “Where are your clothes?”
“They, ah, got ruined. I borrowed these ones.”
“You’re lying. And those are men’s clothes. Do I need to send the doc up?”
Why would he need to do that? She wasn’t injured. Oh, shit.
She stood. She was exhausted. She wanted nothing more than to climb into bed and sleep. Maybe once she got some rest, she’d figure out what the hell to tell her brother.
“I’m not hurt,” she told him gently.
“You are going to tell me where you were.”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea. I’m back now. No harm done.”
“No harm done? No harm done?” he spoke in a low, controlled voice, but she still flinched. “I’ve had my men out there, searching for you since we figured out you were missing. I took them off every job they were supposed to be doing to find you.”
He had? Her eyes widened.
“Do you know how much you’ve pushed back my schedule? How much money I’ve lost?”
“I’ll pay you back.”
“Yeah? And how are you going to do that? You got some money secretly stashed away?”
Nope. She had nothing. If she did, she wouldn’t have needed to break into the castle like she had.
“I’ll get a job.”
“You will fucking not!” he yelled. He swung his hand around. “Do you know why all of this exists? Do you know why I built up this fucking criminal empire?”
“For money?”
“Yes, for money. And power. And protection. Because in this town, only the strong survive. And, by God, I swore I would be stronger than everyone. Because that way I could protect what’s mine. That way I could keep my people safe. So I could keep you safe.”
“Carlin—”
“I have over two hundred people living in this compound who depend on me to keep them safe, to put food on their tables, to keep their kids clothed.” He grabbed hold of her shoulders and shook her. “And those two hundred and something people combined don’t even come close to being as important to me as you. Don’t you get that?”
She shook her head. “What?”
“I would sacrifice each and every one of them for you.”
“But I’m just your sister. I’m not important.”
“Jesus, Georgina. Of course, you are.” He ran his hand through his hair. “I always tried to keep some distance between us because I thought it would be easier on you if something ever happened to me. Seems I did too good a job if you don’t realize that everything I fucking do is to keep you safe.”
Golden Binds Page 7