Bound by Passion: The Alliance Series, Book 4

by Davies, Brenda K.

  * * *

  Elyse paced from one side of the cabin to the other as she tried not to think about Saxon and what was happening with him, but it was all that filled her mind. Kadence stood by the door, staring out the window next to it. She’d been as still as a statue since she took up the position shortly after Elyse returned.

  Simone sat on the couch with her head bowed and her hands clasped before her. Every few minutes, she would get up and circle the cabin before returning to her spot.

  Elyse wanted to scream. This was not the way things were supposed to be. It was the twenty-first century for crying out loud. The little women were not supposed to be waiting at home for the menfolk anymore.

  But then, she had no idea what she could do to help Saxon and the others. Kadence and Simone were at least vampires; they were stronger than she was, and they’d been training to fight.

  “Killean still has me shut out,” Simone said.

  “The same with Ronan,” Kadence murmured.

  “Shut out?” Elyse asked.

  “Mates can communicate telepathically,” Simone explained.

  Kadence turned away from the window. “But when they decide to shut us out, they do. Ronan says it’s because we would be a distraction if we were talking to them during a fight.” She rested her hand against her chest and over her heart. “I know he’s still alive; I can feel it.”

  “I don’t have that connection to Saxon,” she said.

  Kadence gave her a sad smile. “You will, one day.”

  “I hope so.”

  Elyse turned away and paced across the room. “I should have ignored him and gone with him into that place.”

  “He never would have allowed it,” Simone said.

  “Did you know they were thinking about going in there today?” she asked.

  “Yes,” Kadence said, and Simone nodded. “It’s why we wanted to go with them, but we’re not ready for a fight in the field yet.”

  “We’ve been training, and one day they won’t be able to leave us behind, but right now, we’re more of a distraction and risk to them than we are a help,” Simone said.

  “I’m sure they’ll try coming up with some other excuse to keep us out of it when the time comes,” Kadence said.

  “By then we’ll be strong enough to kick their asses.”

  Elyse chuckled over Simone’s words and tried to picture a time when Simone or Kadence would be able to take on their mates. She didn’t see it happening, but stranger things had occurred.

  Unable to think of anything else to say, Elyse paced back over to the kitchen before returning to the room she’d shared with Saxon. Kadence resumed staring out the window while Simone leaned back on the couch before sitting forward again.

  Unable to tolerate the silence anymore, Elyse lifted the remote and turned on the TV. She flicked through the numerous channels until Simone cried, “Wait! Go back!”

  Simone rose from the couch as Elyse flipped back a few channels.

  “There!” Simone said and pointed at the TV.

  Elyse stopped on the news station with her face remained plastered on it. Beneath her photo were the words Found safe.

  “Police say the woman was found last night and safely returned home,” the reporter said.

  “Do the police know if the woman was abducted or ran away?” one of the anchors asked.

  “At this time, all the police are saying is the woman is home and safe.”

  “That’s wonderful news,” the anchor said. “It’s good to have a happy ending to this story.”

  “That it is,” the other anchor replied. “And now, with the weather, is meteorologist—”

  Elyse muted the TV when a map of Maine filled the screen.

  “So does that mean the police have been called off?” Simone asked.

  “I hope so. Ronan said he had taken care of this; do you think this is what he did?” Elyse asked Kadence.

  “It must be,” Kadence said. “With the result of the search for you being a happy one, no one will be on the lookout for you, or Declan and Asher.”

  “Nobody wanted to look for those two ugly bastards anyway,” a new voice said.

  Elyse turned to find Logan standing in the doorway and slumped against it. His face was haggard and pale, his eyes sunken, and he looked as if he’d lost five pounds over the past two days.

  “You’re awake!” Kadence cried and rushed toward him.

  “I’m awake,” he muttered.

  “We thought you’d be out for another day at least,” Simone said.

  He gave her a half smile. “Not even death can keep me down.”

  “You didn’t die,” Kadence said.

  “Okay then, not even near death can keep me down.” He dropped his head into his hand and rubbed his temples. “My head is pounding and my throat… it’s on fire.”

  “It’s okay.” Kadence draped his arm over her shoulders and led him toward the couch. “We’ll get something to make it stop.”

  She shot an anxious glance at Simone, who started to edge toward Elyse. When a tingle swept Elyse’s spine, the hair on her nape rose as she recalled Ronan’s words. “We need to be back before Logan wakes up; we’ll have to make sure he has a blood supply.”

  She was the only blood supply anywhere near this cabin unless they included the animals. Logan was halfway to the couch when he stopped to sniff the air. “What’s that smell?”

  Elyse’s throat went dry when she realized that smell was probably her. When Logan’s reddened eyes landed on her, she knew it was true. They’d all expected him to be out for another day, but he was awake and ravenous.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  “This is a lot bigger than the last bunker I was in,” Killean muttered as the tunnel stretched endlessly before them.

  The beams of the flashlights only lit twenty feet ahead of them, leaving the rest of the massive tunnel in shadow. Fifty feet after the side tunnel, they discovered doors lining the sides of the hall and had been opening them to reveal small, eight by eight rooms with only a cot within. They’d opened at least twenty doors so far but hadn’t encountered any more side tunnels.

  “Where are they?” Lucien asked.

  Saxon was wondering the same thing. This place looked big enough to house a few hundred Savages, if not more, but all they’d encountered was the group in the side tunnel. Stopping outside a closed door, he gripped the handle and went to turn it, but it didn’t budge.

  “Lucien,” he said. “Give me the light.”

  “What is it?” Ronan asked.

  “The door’s locked,” Saxon said.

  Lucien swung the beam of light toward him as the others stopped walking. Saxon held his stake at the ready as he yanked down on the knob and ripped it away from the door. The knob clattered against the metal floor before Asher stepped on it.

  Saxon held his hand out to Lucien. “Let me see your light.”

  Lucien handed it over as Saxon rested his hand against the door, shoved it inward, and ducked in preparation of something coming out at him or firing at him. Springs creaked, and someone whimpered as the beam flashed over the concrete walls before landing on the man huddled in the corner of the cot. He shook so bad that the bed rattled as he tried to meld into the wall.

  The awful stench of body odor and waste filled the room. The man smelled as if he hadn’t bathed in months, and Saxon suspected the bucket in the corner was the closest to a bathroom he’d come since arriving here.

  The hand against the wall was missing all but the thumb and forefinger. Judging by the burnt flesh surrounding his missing fingers, they’d cauterized the wounds. As the man hugged his drawn-up legs, Saxon saw the other hand lacked the same fingers.

  His gaze fell on the raw remnants of the man’s toes. On both his feet, he was missing every toe except the big and second ones. The Savages had probably left him with these digits so he could feed himself and still be a little mobile, but they would have come off soon. The flesh here was also blackened.

/>   The man’s torn and filthy clothes hung off his skeletal frame. Something about the way his skin sagged made it obvious he’d once leaned toward the pudgy side. A full, scruffy beard covered the bottom half of his face, and like his hair, gray-streaked the brown strands.

  In all his years, Saxon had seen the Savages commit many atrocious acts, but he’d never seen them draw out torture like this. Sometimes they lingered to enjoy the torment for hours, possibly days, but never months. Savages were vicious, bloodthirsty creatures, but this level of sadism was something new for them.

  The man whimpered again when Saxon rose and stepped into the room. His eyes remained closed as shudders racked his body to the point where his bones had to be knocking together. Dried blood caked his beard and where his ear should have been. They must have cut it off to send to Elyse, but she’d never received the present.

  No matter what it took, he would make sure Raymond returned to his daughter and they were both safe for the rest of their lives.

  “Raymond?” he asked, though it couldn’t be anyone else. An eye cracked open, but when Saxon stepped closer, he whimpered again. “Raymond, I’m a friend of Elyse’s.”

  The man’s eyes flew open to reveal that they were the same arctic blue color as his daughter’s. This realization caused a tug at Saxon’s heart. “Elyse?” he croaked.

  “Yes. She sent me to get you.”

  For a moment, hope shone in the man’s eyes before it vanished, and a deadened look came back into them. “Lies. More lies.”

  The words revealed his missing teeth.

  “No,” Saxon said and returned the flashlight to Lucien. “Not lies. Your daughter sent me. I found her in the cabin where they were keeping her. She’s safe now, and she led us to you.”

  “No, no, no,” Raymond muttered. “I don’t believe you. Elyse can’t track that long. Lie. Lie. Lie. You all lie.”

  “Normally, she can’t track that long, but she said you’re different because you’re her father. She never let these bastards know she could still feel you, but she’s been connected to you since they brought you to the cabin and maimed you in front of her.”

  Raymond stopped shaking his head though he continued to tremble. He opened his eyes to look at Saxon again.

  “We’re going to get you out of here,” Saxon assured him.

  Saxon held his hand out to the man who stared at it as if it were a snake about to strike. Then he slid what remained of his hand into Saxon’s and rose unsteadily. When Raymond’s knees gave out, Saxon caught him and restrained himself from reacting to the stench Raymond emitted.

  Encircling his arm around Raymond’s waist, he helped him limp toward the door. Every one of the man’s bones pressed against Saxon’s fingers. The man walked with a stoop to his shoulders that made him appear more like ninety than the middle-aged man he really was.

  “Oh shit,” Killean breathed when he saw the man. Horror filled his golden eyes along with a sympathy Killean rarely exhibited.

  Saxon didn’t say anything as he led Raymond into the hall. He saw the disbelief and revulsion in the eyes of the others as Raymond nearly went down again. “We have to get him out of here,” Ronan said. “You two”—he pointed at two of their turned recruits who had been with them for a few months—“get him out of here and take him to the vehicles. Wait for us there, but if we don’t return by dusk, return to the cabins.”

  Neither of the recruits looked thrilled with their new mission, but they eased Raymond from Saxon’s grasp. “Raymond,” Saxon said, and the man’s head turned toward him. “What about Elyse’s mother? Is she somewhere in here? Can we find her?”

  “She’s here, but it’s better if you don’t find her.”

  “Why not?”

  A tear slid down Raymond’s cheek as he held up one of his brutalized hands. “Because she’s the one who did this. She’s one of them now.”

  Saxon felt like he’d been hit in the gut as the air rushed out of him. That might be one of the most twisted things he’d ever heard about the Savages, and when Elyse found out, it would break her heart.

  “Take him out of here,” Ronan ordered.

  The recruits nodded, and everyone parted to let them pass as they walked Raymond down the tunnel. Saxon wanted to feel joy over bringing Elyse’s father back to her, but all he felt was a relentless need to end the bastards who’d done this.

  * * *

  Afraid to trigger Logan’s predatory instinct by moving too fast, Elyse edged toward the door. Unfortunately, her unhurried movements didn’t matter as Logan licked his lips and his eyes burned hotter. Simone stepped in front of him, blocking Elyse from his view, but his head popped out around the side of her, and he focused on Elyse.

  He’d marked her as his prey, and when he bared his fangs, Elyse knew he was going to attack. She gave up on being slow when Logan lurched forward. Kadence grabbed his shirt and yanked him back, but the material tore in her hands.

  Heart hammering, Elyse bolted for the door as something thudded behind her.

  “Logan, no!” Kadence shouted.

  Elyse’s fingers slid across the door as she tried to keep her rising panic under control while fumbling with the knob. She got the door open a crack, but before she could flee, a heavy weight shoved her against it.

  “No!” she screamed as the door slammed shut and a hand entwined in her hair.

  Lifting her elbow, she spun and smashed it into Logan’s nose, but it didn’t do any good as his fangs snapped at her. Gone was the calm man she initially met, and in his place was a bloodthirsty demon who would tear out her throat.

  She had not survived months with the Savages to die now! She kicked him in the shin, but a mouse would have had more effect against an elephant as he yanked back her hair to expose her throat.

  A chair crashed against his back; splinters of wood flew through the air as it shattered. Holding what remained of the chair, Kadence lifted it and bashed it against the back of Logan’s knees. His legs buckled, but he didn’t go completely down as his grip on her hair helped keep him standing.

  Simone landed a solid blow against his jaw, knocking his head to the side and loosening his grip on Elyse’s hair. Grasping her hair, Elyse felt it tear free of her scalp as she yanked the rest of it from him. Before he could completely recover, Elyse planted her foot on his chest and shoved him away from the door.

  When he lurched for her again, Kadence gripped his arm, and though he had a hundred pounds on her, she dragged him away from the door. Logan thrashed against her hold and broke free as Elyse flung open the door and plunged outside. Her feet thudded against the porch, and she skipped the steps by leaping to the walkway.

  Duncan was out of the SUV and coming toward her before she reached it. She skidded to a halt in front of him and tilted her head back to take in the giant. She’d known he was a giant in the SUV, but now he towered over her.

  “What’s wrong?” he demanded.

  “Logan’s awake!” she exclaimed, her breath pluming in front of him.

  Duncan frowned at her before his mouth parted and understanding dawned. “Get in the SUV.”

  Placing his hand on her back, he pushed her toward the vehicle and opened the door. Elyse scrambled into the driver’s seat, and he slammed the door behind her. It wouldn’t do any good, but she hit the button to lock all the doors.

  “What’s going on?” Saber asked, sounding bored.

  “Logan’s awake,” she said.

  “That’s not good.”

  Elyse turned to face him. “What’s going to happen?”

  “He has to feed, and human blood is the only thing that will get him through the rest of the transition.”

  “But I’m the only human around.”

  “Sucks for you.”

  Elyse glared at him, but his gaze was focused on his knife as he wiped it with a cloth. She’d never seen anything like that knife. It had two honed blades that were at least six inches long on each end. The blades had a watery design on them and wer
e joined in the middle by a steel handle with strange etching on it. A silver band stretched over the handle in an arc. From that, an inch-long third point rose from the weapon.

  She’d never seen anything so unnerving and beautiful. “What is that thing?”

  “This?” When he lifted it, the sun caused the steel to gleam in the light. “It’s a triple-bladed haladie knife made from Damascus steel.”

  “It’s… it’s beautiful?”

  She couldn’t decide what it was. It was beautiful, but there was also something hideous about it. How many lives had it taken? Her gaze shifted to Saber’s profile as he returned to polishing the weapon. She’d almost preferred to be in the cabin with a ravenous Logan than in this suddenly too small SUV with this pitiless man.

  The door of the cabin banged open, and she turned to find Logan charging down the porch stairs. Kadence and Simone followed him out the door, but he was already on the walkway. Blood seeped from his lips and trickled down his chin from where his fangs had sliced through his flesh.

  Duncan planted himself in front of the SUV, and when Logan went to the right to dodge him, Duncan seized his shoulder and yanked him back. Logan thrashed in his hold; the animalistic sounds he emitted caused the hair on her nape to rise as he clawed at the air.

  The Savages had never been this mindless or terrifying. Hunger was the only emotion in Logan’s fiery eyes as spittle flew from his mouth.

  “Interesting,” Saber murmured.

  Elyse had an overwhelming urge to punch him. She didn’t see what was so interesting about someone wanting to eat her. Logan lunged against Duncan, and the giant stumbled back.

  “Shit,” Elyse whispered.

  Saber sighed as if they were a bunch of children who required a time out. She was really beginning to dislike this guy.

  He slid scabbards onto each end of his knife, but the smaller point remained exposed as he opened the door and climbed out. After he slipped the blade into a holster on his back, he lifted his coat from the vehicle and put it on before closing the door and walking around the front of the SUV.