Chapter Four
Behind her gag, Cassie screamed as Dane shoved her out the cell’s window. Time slowed and she felt as though she fell in slow motion. Finally, the rope tightened around her chest, jerking her to a halt. She swung like the weight at the end of a pendulum. If the rope broke or the knots gave way, she’d plummet down the cliff and onto the rocky remnants of the road below.
Too scared to think, she screwed her eyes shut as Dane lowered her toward his brother. Her shoulders banged against rocky outcrops as he lowered her beyond the overhang. If he dropped the rope, she’d splatter on the ground—just like roadkill back when people had petrol for their cars.
She heard him curse up a storm, and realized he’d run out of rope. Nausea swamped her. When she forced herself to look down, she still dangled thirty feet above solid ground.
If Dane pulled her back up, the vampires might discover them. If they left her dangling... She didn’t want to think about that.
Below her, Eli gave a second thumbs up. Dane released the rope and she plummeted toward the rocks below. She couldn’t scream, couldn’t use her arms to protect herself as she fell. Thoughts blurred, unable to breathe for terror, she hurtled toward the rocks. Eyes closed, she tensed for impact. Her last thought was that at least her sisters still had their freedom.
Two muscular arms snatched her from the air. Still in werewolf form, Eli caught her against his chest. Fright knocked the fight out of her and she stayed still and limp.
Holding her close, he buried his face in her neck and inhaled her sweet essence. When he spoke, his voice rumbled like thunder. “You smell amazing. You were a brave girl, but I’ve got you now. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
She didn’t believe a word that came out of his kissable lips. Killer werewolves, remember? No kissing allowed. At least she was still breathing, but she’d almost died of fright. Eyes narrowed, she glared at Dane as he leaped from the castle and landed beside them.
Like Eli, he maintained his monstrous wolf form. Pulling her from his brother’s arms, Dane tossed her over his shoulder. His huge hand rested on her bottom, stroking and squeezing as he pinned her in place. Eli growled but re-coiled the rope and hung it over one shoulder. Job done, both Lycans raced to the harbor and leaped aboard their sailing barge.
Its sails were already aloft, and a two-man crew cast off the instant Dane and Eli’s feet touched the deck. A further three men waited, one in each of the three rowing boats attached to the front of the sailing barge. They turned werewolf and used their massive strength to pull on the oars. Muscles straining, they rowed like madmen. Their supernormal strength hauled the boat over the sandbank low tide had revealed. The sea had receded too far for any other vessel to leave the harbor tonight.
Eli turned back human. “That was a close-run thing, but thanks to the low tide, we have a head start.”
Cassie breathed a sigh of relief when Eli removed her gag. Dane knelt behind her and fiddled with the locks on the bar binding her arms. He had her free in minutes. She sighed and rolled her shoulders, enjoying the freedom of movement.
Eli pulled his shirt from his rucksack. “Put this on and stay back, or better still, go inside while I help the others back on board.”
Too scared to argue, she backed off and stood with her back against the cabin door. If she went inside, she’d be trapped by the beasts. Staying on deck gave her the illusion of freedom and she enjoyed the wind in her face.
Cassie pulled on the shirt. After almost a week naked and bound, the soft fabric felt luxurious against her skin. Much as she welcomed it, inside she was a raging tornado of doubts and fears. No matter how handsome or kindly these Lycans seemed, travelers said different.
“They’re wild savage creatures with neither compassion nor a conscience,” one young woman had said.
“They live to inflict pain,” an old man had told her.
They’d certainly scared her almost to death when they kidnapped her from the vampires. It would be a long time before she forgave them for the stunt they’d pulled back on the cliffs.
Back in human form, the rowers climbed a rope ladder to get back on board. She watched as Dane and Eli helped stow the rowboats and coiled thick lengths of rope. The land receded, and the sea churned in angry shades of gray. Intent on their duties, none of the werewolves paid her any attention. She sidled to the back of the boat, climbed over the railing, took a deep breath, and jumped.
Water closed over her head. The cold took Cassie’s breath. Her limbs froze and she struggled to move. A sluggish kick of her legs took her back to the surface. Gasping, she floated like a novice swimmer until her lungs worked again.
Waves broke over her, the salt water stinging her eyes. Cold water chilled her bones, but the furious shouts from the deck chilled her soul. She struck out for the shore using the powerful front crawl that had once been second nature.
Ten years prior, when the world had been normal, she’d trained nightly with City of Leeds Swimming Club. Cassie’s twelve-year-old self had qualified for the national marathon swim finals. The distance from the barge to the shore should have been a walk in the park. She hadn’t factored in a week’s imprisonment on a near-starvation diet though. Gritting her teeth, she kicked harder, but the shore didn’t seem any nearer.
Angry waves battered her slender form, swamping her and pushing her back under. The currents forced her to swim diagonally to move in a straight line. The cold froze the marrow in her bones. Her lips felt as numb as her toes. Hypothermia beckoned, and the shore still seemed miles away.
Eli’s shirt clung to her arms, weighing them down. The water felt as though it had come straight from the North Pole. Any minute now, she expected to see an iceberg or a polar bear. Only a combination of fear and muscle memory kept her moving. This was going to be a long, hard swim.
She heard a shout and splash behind her. Someone had jumped in to recapture her. Despite her head start, she hadn’t trained for years. Werewolves were natural warriors whatever their form. She kicked again, but a hand closed around her ankle.
Someone hauled her backward, their actions forcing her head underwater. She kicked at their chest, pushing off as if doing a tumble turn. Her captor hauled her to the surface and as she gasped in a breath, her vision focused on his scarred face. Fury radiated off Dane, making her shiver as he forced her compliance again.
* * *
Dane towed Cassie back to the barge, his powerful muscles making short work of the currents and waves. He shoved her toward a rope ladder. “Me and Eli will spank you for the stupid stunt you just pulled.”
He hadn’t thought her complexion could turn any paler, but she turned gray at his words. He hadn’t meant to terrify her, but her actions had consequences. As she reached for the rope ladder, the boat rocked through a wave. The ladder jerked away before her frozen fingers grasped it. She fell back in the water, going under before kicking back to the surface.
Exhausted, she let the waves take her, willing to drown rather return to the barge. Even if she had no fight left in her, Dane refused to lose her to the angry sea. Diving below the surface, he grabbed the back of her borrowed shirt.
When he towed her to the surface, she spluttered and coughed up salt water. Clutching her against his chest, he lay back in the water. She panted atop him, her head on his chest, shivering constantly. His strength and skill kept them from being pounded against the barge side. She trembled like a barely set jelly in his hold.
Dane stroked her short curls back from her face. “You’re not going to make it up the ladder unaided.”
She looked up, her gaze seeing the ladder stretched endlessly above her. Defeated, she went limp in his arms. Eli leaned out over the deck and tossed a rope into the water. Dane caught it one-handed and wrapped it around Cassie’s waist.
She didn’t resist as he bound her so her face rested against his chest. “Arms around my neck. Legs around my waist. Good girl. We’ll soon have you back on board.”
He liked that
her bare cunny rubbed against his chest as he hauled them back on board.
* * *
Goosebumps covered Cassie’s flesh. Tingles raced between her legs, tiny electric sparks that warmed her blood. One kind word and her good intentions would crumble—just like her sisters’ chance of freedom if she told this drop-dead gorgeous pair about them.
What with the vampire auction and that nightmare descent of the cliff, she couldn’t take much more. Cassie had been a fool to think she could escape. Completely drained, she was at the werewolves’ mercy
Her imagination worked overtime. Wolves were pack animals. Suppose they decided to share her around the crew? The vampires certainly would have, and she didn’t expect werewolves to behave any better.
She cowered when Eli pulled a knife, but he sawed through the wet rope binding her to his brother. Her legs folded, and only Dane’s strong grip kept her upright. Sheaving his knife, Eli swept her into his arms.
He gave her his best Pepsodent-white smile. “Foolish little princess, so eager to return to the vampires who will abuse you. You’re safe here, despite the unconventional start to our friendship.”
Like a half-drowned kitten, she dripped water onto his trousers. He smelled of summer breezes and crops ripening in the fields. So cold her teeth had stopped chattering, she let go of her fears and let Eli take charge. Heat flowed from his chest to hers, but it wasn’t enough. She felt like an ice cube lost at the back of a freezer.
He carried her through a narrow galley, and into the captain’s cabin. She’d expected twin bunks and a tiny space. Instead, this room reminded her of Nelson’s cabin on the HMS Victory. The back wall consisted of window panes, giving her a view of the distant cliffs. The view fascinated and delighted her but the cabin’s four-poster bed terrified her. It covered more than half the room and had enough room for three if not four.
Dane pulled towels from a trunk then tossed her one of his brother’s jumpers. “Get dry, princess then get into bed and warm up. We’re going to lock you in while we get underway in earnest, but we’ll be back with hot stew and a hot coffee soon.”
After living on half rations for a week, her mouth watered at the thought of a decent meal. That these dominant werewolves cared for her welfare stunned her. Then they offered her a coffee. Utter luxury.
Emotions set in, and tears filled her eyes. She broke into a cold sweat that turned her forehead clammy. She’d never felt so weary in her life—not even when she’d swum marathons.
Dane lifted her chin and gazed into her eyes. “Don’t cry, little human. You’re safe now.”
The intensity in his gaze felt like a shot of energy for her soul. It made her feel hot and tingly inside. She craved his touch, and maybe his kiss. A fresh set of shivers beset her. This time, they were more about her forbidden attraction for the werewolves than the cold.
Chapter Five
Cassie tensed when Eli sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her onto his lap. “No one will hurt you here, you have my word on it. When did you last eat, princess?”
His kindness was at odds with Dane’s threat to punish her. Rather than fear him, she relished his solid strength. Even his stern demeanor helped her feel safe. “Yesterday lunchtime, but it amused my jailor to keep me on half rations.”
Dane’s eyes glowed with dangerous, wolf-y lights. “Is that bitch responsible for the bruises on your ribs?”
Blushing, Cassie lowered her eyes and nodded. “There isn’t a kind bone in her body. She was like a cat toying with its prey, the way she beat on me when she brought food. Sometimes, while I scrabbled on the floor to eat, she kicked my ribs.”
Dane’s hackles rose. Eli’s fangs dropped and both men growled. Their fierceness made Cassie wrap her arms protectively around her body. Overwrought and exhausted, she shivered as she sat on the towel covering the bed.
As if speaking on some private radio channel, her werewolf captors exchanged glances. Dane lifted his chin as they reached an unspoken agreement and they stepped toward her.
Trapped in the cabin, Cassie backed off. The walls closed in on her and werewolves blocked the door. Her heart rate revved like a formula one car starting the race. Whatever this pair intended, escape seemed impossible.
Everything changed when Eli turned his mega-watt smile on her. He stood and held her in place while Dane unfastened her borrowed shirt. She shuddered, naked before them, expecting abuse and insults. Instead, Dane draped a towel around her and dried her body. The way he concentrated on his self-appointed task made her feel precious and cosseted.
Once satisfied he’d wiped every drop of water from her body, he stepped back. Eli gently set her down, picked up the jumper from the bed, and tugged it over her head. It hung to her knees and the sleeves dangled over her hands. She snuggled into it, enjoying the warmth as Eli lifted her into the bed. Dane tucked a blanket around her. “Try to rest, little human. We won’t be gone long.”
He pulled his brother from the cabin, and she heard the key turn in the lock. Too weary to move, she closed her eyes for a second. The next thing she knew, Eli stood at the bedside, gently shaking her arm. “Wake up, princess. You need to eat then you can go back to sleep.”
Grateful for the thick jumper that swamped her slender body, she sat up. Eli pulled a small table alongside her while Dane brought in a tray of something aromatic and steaming from the galley. Mouth-watering, she couldn’t wait to taste it.
Eli sat on the bed and pulled her onto his knee. He kept his arms around her while Dane fed her spoonfuls of fish stew.
After a week imprisoned in the vampires’ stronghold, it was the best thing she’d ever tasted. Occasionally, Eli popped tiny pieces of freshly baked bread between her lips. A delicious heat started in her belly and spread through her body. Too weary to fight them, she relaxed against Eli’s chest. She felt so safe and protected that she struggled to keep her eyes open.
Dane lifted her from his brother’s lap and placed her back in the bed. He looked ferocious and savage, a scarred warrior who’d risked his life to save hers. His kindness was as unexpected as it was welcome. If Eli was sugar-coated steel, Dane was a solid steel bar with a soft center. They were like mirror images of each other.
He tucked the covers around her. “Sleep, little human. You’re safe now.”
The rocking of the seagoing barge lulled her into a deep sleep. When she woke, she felt like someone had reinvented central heating. Relaxing into the warmth, she sighed softly. Whatever she snuggled against was crammed in around her. As she focused on her surroundings, she realized she was the meat in a Lycan sandwich. Her captors lay in bed with her, one either side—fully turned and toasty.
Her heart rate rocketed, and her muscles tensed. Travelers’ tales called werewolves crazed killers. Yet her captors warmed her better than any blankets. When she peered at them through half-closed eyes, she could make out their human forms beneath their monstrous wolf exterior.
For all his stern manner, Dane’s kindness had saved her from a watery grave. Eli’s easy charm and don’t-mess-with-me swagger made her smile, and he held her as though she mattered. The pair of them promised to protect her, and she trusted them more than she’d ever expected.
They were fearsome warriors who’d come to claim a breeder, but they’d snuggled up to warm her frozen body as she slept. That almost made up for the way they’d shoved her through a window and dropped her over a cliff. That nightmare descent would haunt her for years. The only thing worse was being the star lot in the vampires’ auction.
She’d spent the last week naked, terrified, and hurting. In this giant bed surrounded by werewolves, she felt cossetted and safe. Maybe they planned to impregnate her today, but they seemed kinder than the vampires. Sexier too, but she didn’t dare think about that.
She should hate they might force their pups on her. Only, thinking about that left her burning with unfulfilled needs. She craved their hands on her breasts and their lips pressed against hers. Her fantasies overwhelmed her, makin
g her feel unbridled and free—but deliciously naughty.
Uncertain what to say or do, she screwed her eyes tight shut and feigned sleep. The ache in her pussy left her restless and confused. As a breeder, she had a responsibility to bear babies. If these werewolf brothers impregnated her, it might not be all bad. Lycans were loyal to their family and their pack. With any luck, she could be part of her future children’s lives.
The few unattached males who’d made it to the smallholding hadn’t interested her. Most were older than her father, a few little more than boys.
These werewolves were larger than life heroes who’d rescued her from a fate worse than death. With their pantie-melting smiles and sculpted bodies, they made her libido hum like a telephone wire. Not that phones worked in the new world order.
Eli rolled onto his side, turned human, and stared at her face as though memorizing every detail. On the other side of her, Dane shifted back human and brushed her hair from her cheeks. “How are you this morning, little human?”
Not knowing what to say, Cassie stayed silent. Her Lycans were glorious and golden, the stuff of her dreams. She knew nothing about them, but they hadn’t hurt her—yet.
Eli’s gaze turned stern as she stretched awake. “We need to talk.”
Dane got up and leaned against the cabin wall, all stern lips and folded arms. When Eli moved beside him, her thoughts fogged. Hot damn, they look good naked. Their golden skin tones and muscular physiques made her cunny tingle. Eli grinned. “Like what you see, princess?”
Cassie’s blush deepened. “I’ve never seen a naked man before. You’re both so beautiful you take my breath away. Do all werewolves look as... good as you?”
Get a grip, girl. I nearly said lickable.
Eli laughed and struck a muscleman pose. Dane’s lips thinned, and his eyebrows merged when he frowned. “When you two clowns are done, we have a serious matter to address.”
Taken as Theirs Page 3
