Hunted (The Half-Breed Prison Book 1)

by Jen L. Grey

  “I wonder why he was willing to risk it with you.” She tapped her pointer and middle fingertips to her lips.

  “What do you mean risk it?” She was beginning to make me regret what I’d done.

  “If you’re mates, it will speed up the bond.” She arched an eyebrow at me.

  “But I’m part vampire and fae. I don’t have any shifter in me.” When I had heard of mates growing up, it was related to wolves and stuff. Not with vampires and fae. Though, to be honest, I didn’t know much about them.

  “Every supernatural race has mates.” She rolled her eyes and sighed. “You really are clueless.”

  “What part of I was raised human and only found out I was a supernatural right when I got taken did you not comprehend?” She was talking to me like I was out of my mind when she shouldn’t think that I would know about all the nuances in the supernatural world. “And secondly, don’t you know if it’s your mate right away?”

  “Honestly, no.” She walked over to the fireplace and ran her hand along the mantel. “That’s the part humans got wrong. It’s a slow process. Your soul takes time to bond together. The more time together, the faster it happens.”

  “So us being half-breeds means we could have two mates?” Hell, one guy was enough trouble, let alone two.

  “No, the more dominant half is the one that has the mate attached to it. So I’m half-mermaid and half-wolf, but my wolf side is the most dominant. If I ever find my mate, it’ll be another wolf shifter.”

  “So how do you know which half is the most dominant?” I needed to begin understanding what I am and who I wanted to become. Being clueless wasn’t going to work for me, not anymore.

  “Well, it’s going to be pretty much impossible here with our magic gone anyway.” She tapped her foot for a moment. “Maybe you can get the blood obsessed doctor to slip it to you.”

  “What do you mean?” That mad scientist guy, Doug, hadn’t appeared as if he cared about us at all. He wouldn’t be willing to help, not unless it was part of his precious research.

  “He’s not going to be willing to hand it over.” She shrugged and leaned back in the wobbly chair. “So you’ll have to try to con it out of him.”

  A shiver ran through me. “That means I have to go back.”

  “We all have to go back at some point.” She sighed and frowned. “The only good thing about there being so many supernaturals imprisoned here means our visits are spaced out longer. The more there are of us, the more they have to go through the whole population before it’s our turn again. At least, most of the time.”

  “How often do you go?” I’d been here for at least a month by now, and she hadn’t gone once in that time.

  “About every three to four months. I went right before you got here.” She nodded toward the napkins. “How much longer are you going to be? You better get some rest.”

  “It’s almost gone.” I shoved the last bite of steak into my mouth. “See.”

  “That right there shows me why Knox is intrigued by you.” She snorted. “You have such grace and manners to boot.”

  “Bite me.” I made sure I opened my mouth real wide with each word.

  “Apparently you don’t mind biting, but that’s not really my thing.” She winked at me as she passed and got in her bed. “Come on, let’s get some sleep.”

  “Fine, but I need a drink of water first.”

  It only took minutes for me to freshen up and get a drink from the faucet. I was glad they didn’t have a mirror in our bathrooms here. I bet I looked horrid. Even though the room wasn’t spinning, my body still felt haggard.

  Once I hit the pillow, it didn’t take long for me to fall right to sleep.

  “Girl, get up.” Deissy smacked her hands on the creaky railing by my head. “We need to get going. We’re planting carrots today.”

  My eyes popped open. I’d expected to feel sluggish and tired, but I felt energized. “Okay, let’s do this.”

  Deissy startled back. “What’s gotten into you?”

  “No clue.” Hell, I was surprised myself.

  “Well, hey. It works.” She laughed as I climbed down the ladder and headed into the bathroom.

  It only took a few minutes for me to get ready, and I joined her in the living room. “I don’t remember a time I got out of bed before you had to start screaming at me.”

  “Neither do I.” She tossed me my brown bag. “We already made the raised beds for the vegetables yesterday, so today we’ll be doing the planting.”

  The door opened, and the guard with the red eyes glared at us. “Get a move on. It’s time for you all to get to work.”

  “Oh, that’s why you opened the door.” I snapped my fingers and laughed. “I thought you were coming for a visit.”

  Deissy laughed and tried to cover it with a cough.

  “Is this a joke to you?” He took a step inside and glared. “Because I bet I could make you lose that sense of humor real fast.”

  Yeah, I bet he could. “Well …”

  “What the hell is going on here?” Aaron’s too-familiar voice came from behind the guard.

  “This girl has turned into a wisecrack.” He moved so Aaron could enter the room next to him. “We might have to give her a wakeup call.”

  “Did she hurt your feelings, little Petey?” Aaron’s voice dripped with sarcasm. “I didn’t realize you were that insecure.”

  “Hey, what’s your problem?” Pete turned to face him. “She’s the one out of line, not me.”

  “Let them go and eat.” Aaron shook his head and scowled. “They’re more important working the fields than you having fun smacking them around.”

  A vein in between Pete’s eyebrows bulged. To say he was pissed would be an understatement.

  “Go on.” Aaron motioned for us to leave. “Hurry to the fields, you got it?”

  “Yup.” I hurried out of the cabin as fast as I could.

  “What was that all about?” Deissy caught up to me and glanced behind us once more.

  “That’s the guard that Knox saved me from last night.” I couldn’t fathom what the hell Aaron was doing.

  “Red eyes or dead-sexy?” Deissy looked over her shoulder once more.

  “Stop looking and dead sex …” Wait. No. “The one without red eyes.”

  “Uh-huh.” She giggled. “You were going to say sexy. Admit it.”

  “Only because of the question you asked.” There was no way I was going to admit she was right. He was hot, which made it more frustrating.

  “But he’s the pretty boy who doesn’t want to get dirty kind of hot, you know.” She laughed once more. “Unlike the sexy mysterious-looking hot that’s heading toward us now.”

  Unfortunately, that meant Knox was heading our way.

  “Was he harassing you again?” Knox’s jaw was clenched.

  “What are you talking about?” He couldn’t have seen Aaron. We were already halfway to the cafeteria.

  “That guard from last night.” Knox arched an eyebrow at me. “He was at your place this morning.”

  “How the hell could you know that?” That was creepy.

  “Doesn’t matter.” Knox closed the distance between us and scowled. “Was he harassing you?”

  “No, he wasn’t.” In all fairness, that could’ve been his intent, but I had no proof.

  “Well, I’ll go handle it now.” Knox took off toward the cabins.

  I grabbed his arm and tugged him back toward me. “What do you think you’re doing?”

  “Telling him to leave you alone.” He jerked his hand from my grip. “No guard should be sniffing around the girls here.”

  “Oh, when did you become so noble?” Deissy winked at him. “The last I heard, you didn’t have a problem with it.”

  Something swirled in his eyes. “Bad things happen to those who stick their nose in other people’s business.”

  “Did you threaten her?” Oh, hell, no.

  “You have an annoying habit of getting involved in thin
gs you shouldn’t.” Knox took a step closer, getting into my bubble.

  He was trying to make me back down, and there wasn’t a chance in hell that I’d allow it to happen. Instead of stepping back, I lifted my chin. “So do you. The guard doesn’t concern you.”

  “What do we have here?” Jenee’s annoying voice rang in my ears. “Are we having a lovers quarrel?”

  Knox chuckled and shook his head. “You always seem to be where I am here lately. How does this keep happening?”

  “Well, I have my own that I have to take care of. And one of the biggest threats is you.” Jenee glanced back and forth between me and Knox. “It’s kind of funny. I’ve never seen you act this way about a girl before. Some might think you’re getting soft.”

  “The only thing that’s getting soft around here is your ass.” Knox’s nostrils flared. “You might consider doing your share of work to take care of that.”

  “You son of a bitch.” Jenee growled the words. “Do you know who you’re talking to?”

  “A self-absorbed person that isn’t worth another second of my damn time.” Knox crossed his arms and smirked. “You keep sniffing around me, and I’m not interested. It’s kind of pathetic.”

  All I wanted to do was go eat breakfast. Instead, I was stuck here while two people, who thought they were worth more than they were, verbally struck at one another.

  “As fun as this is,” I said as I pointed back and forth between Jenee and Knox, “I’m going to leave. Good luck getting this all sorted out.”

  “You weren’t dismissed.” Knox growled the words at me.

  “See, that’s the thing.” I couldn’t believe he had the nerve to talk to me that way. “I didn’t ask your permission or, frankly, give a flying fuck what you think.”

  “You going to let her talk to you this way?” A smirk filled Jenee’s face. “I knew you would fall but wasn’t expecting it like this.”

  “No one is falling.” Knox took a few menacing steps toward her. “She doesn’t know her place yet.”

  “Maybe that’s one thing we can agree on.” Jenee scowled in my direction. “How is she so damn perky the day after being taken to the doctor? Makes me think that something fishy is going on.”

  “Believe me, they stuck me over and over, drained damn near all my blood.” I hated being talked down to, especially by these self-righteous assholes. “But thanks for your concern.”

  “You’re getting too mouthy for your own good.” Jenee snarled at me. “It might be time to take you down a notch.”

  “Don’t worry.” Knox glared at me with pure disgust. “I’ll make sure it happens.”

  Great, now I had the two alphas of the prison targeting me. I was sure the rest of the day wouldn’t go smoothly either.

  Chapter Ten

  “Sometimes it might be best for you to keep your mouth shut.” Deissy chuckled as we made our way toward the cafeteria. “But I’ll say things haven’t been boring since you came around.”

  “I’m so glad I can fill your life with humor and meaning.” I needed to focus on eating and getting to work. Everything else was a distraction. “But, yeah, I don’t mean to say the things that fall out of my mouth.”

  “Broken filter?” Deissy opened the door to the cafeteria for me.

  “Yeah, maybe.” I saluted her as I entered the building and marched straight to the buffet line.

  “Well, maybe try to think before you speak?” Deissy shook her head as she grabbed a grimy plate from the holder.

  “I’ve tried.” I got a plate myself and began piling it with bacon. “It comes out before it even pops in my head. Sometimes I’m just as surprised as the other person.”

  She grinned as she piled on some pancakes. “I, for one, enjoy it. I’m not sure Knox feels the same way.”

  “Eh, I don’t care.” Maybe I should, but caring makes it harder to live. That’s how I had started out, but no matter what, I always felt different, and others weren’t accepting of me. I would blame it on some type of behavior or tick that I had. I hated myself so much while growing up. I had hoped college would be different but never had the chance to find out. The first week there, I was kidnapped.

  Now, granted, I still didn’t love myself as I should, but I was getting closer to it every day. Finding out the reason I was different gave me a push in the right direction. I didn’t have to wonder what if anymore. It didn’t matter. I was different, and there were others like me.

  “You’d better be glad I’ve got your back.” She popped a strawberry into her mouth. “Otherwise, you’d be hurting for a sidekick.”

  “It’s best if you don’t do that.” It was odd to think I might have found an actual friend. It took a stint in prison for me to get there. “I don’t want you to go down in flames with me.”

  “For some reason, I don’t think you’ll be going down in flames.” She finished her plate off with some sausage and made her way to our usual seat.

  “Now you have set your expectations for me too high.” That would never end well for her. “We need to figure a way out.”

  “Hey, I heard you were taken to the big building yesterday.” A girl who had to be in her thirties with dark hair and curves headed over to us. She sat next to Deissy at our table. “Are you doing okay?”

  “This is Sol.” Deissy nodded in the girl’s direction. “She’s been hesitant to meet you just the same as most are of all newbies.”

  “What’s your crime?” This girl was gorgeous.

  “My crime?” Her forehead wrinkled.

  “Well, my crime is being half-vampire and half-fae.” That’s the whole reason why we were in here, for being a half-breed, right?

  “I like your style.” The girl chuckled and chomped on a piece of bacon. “My crime is half-vampire and half-witch.”

  “What, really?” I had no clue why, but that had to be one cool combination. “I can’t imagine how awesome that is.”

  “Definitely had its perks.” She leaned over the table and wrapped her hands around her lips. “I was the strongest witch out there.”

  “Really?” That sounded so cool. “How so?”

  “My vampire strength gave my magic a boost.” She glanced toward the door with a longing face. “I miss it so much.”

  “How did you get taken?” I realized I’d never asked anyone that question before.

  “My sister and I went to a magic store. Even though my family loved me, I never fit in. I was the only half-witch in the coven, and the coven only allowed me to stay because of my momma. As Luna was shopping, I snuck off into another aisle and ran into someone. Anyway, long story short, I got kidnapped by some sort of wizard.”

  “That’s awful.” I mean, technically I was kidnapped too though I saw the signs.

  “Yeah, we all have a shit story of how we got here.” Deissy shook her head and huffed. “Now we’re stuck here for the rest of our lives.”

  “I refuse to believe that.” I hadn’t given up hope yet.

  “Don’t you remember how we thought we’d bust outta here too?” Sol bumped her shoulder into Deissy’s. “That’s what all newbies think.”

  “You do realize I’ve been here a few months.”

  “You do realize I’ve been here for over twenty years?” Sol arched an eyebrow.

  “Eight for me.” Deissy took another large bite of eggs.

  “Fine, you made your point.” Something shifted inside me as the door to the cafeteria opened.

  Of course, it had to be him.

  Knox’s eyes landed right on me. It was as if he already knew where I was sitting. He held my gaze until he made it to the food.

  “What’s going on?” Sol turned in the direction where I’d been looking.

  “Nothing.” I probably said the word too fast, but there was no taking it back now. “Yesterday was kind of rough, and I’m still in a daze.” That was a lie. I felt better than ever, but the last thing I needed was to put more focus on him.

  “You look a hell of a lot better than m
ost of us coming out of there.” Sol shook her head and took a bite out of her biscuit. “Now that you’ve managed to make it through it, you should get assimilated more.”

  “Meaning?” I thought I’d already gotten at least mostly adjusted to my new life.

  “More people will be friendly toward you.” Sol grabbed her glass of water and took a big swig.

  “Why now?” That made no sense. I was still the same person now that I was two days ago, only with a lot less blood.

  “Most people don’t want to get stuck with newbies.” Deissy’s eyes took on a glow. “Honestly, half of them never last after their first trial experiment. Now that you’re still around and kicking, it’s safer to get attached.”

  “And looking real good after, I might add.” Sol pointed at me. “People will be more open. You’ve paid your dues, so to speak.”

  “Yeah, and others will target you more.” Deissy arched her colored eyebrow. “Like good ol’ Jenee.”

  “So by surviving, I'll gain friends and enemies.” That sounded about right. We were in a messed up alternative version of high school hell. Here I thought I’d graduated and never needed to deal with that drama again.

  “But hey, remember who was by you the whole time.” Deissy winked at me and stuck out her thumbs, pointing at herself. “This girl.”

  “Very true, but not sure why.” Her sincerity always bugged me at first, but I was beginning to let my guard down. This place was so scary and lonely to navigate by yourself.

  Familiar footsteps headed in my direction, and too soon, someone was right behind me. “Mind if I sit here?”

  Sol’s mouth closed and opened similar to a fish. Deissy’s devilish grin spread across her face.

  “We were telling Lexy about how she’ll be targeted more since she survived the big house.” Deissy tilted her head as the newcomer took a seat next to me.

  “She’ll be fine if she can learn to control her mouth.” Knox huffed and side-eyed me.

  “In all fairness, I’ve already tried with no success.” It was a problem.

  “It’s your mouth.” Knox's forehead wrinkled, and he looked at me as if I’d lost my damned mind. “Who else controls it?”