I expected him to fight me about it, the way he seemed to fight me about everything. But he didn’t.
Instead, he said, “Well, whenever you’re ready, just know you have a willing audience.”
I gave him a coy smirk. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
The song was over far too quickly, and I almost embarrassed myself by asking for another dance, but the beat of the music changed to an up-tempo. That, I most definitely couldn’t keep up with, so I stopped myself.
“Thank you,” he said as we broke apart.
“For what?”
“Letting your guard down with me tonight. And for our first dance.”
Our first dance. He said it like there would be many more to come.
18
Ryn
I never saw where they took me. As soon as they managed to drag me out of the New York Coven, which was more like a nightclub on the outskirts of the city, I was bound and gagged. Dark material was wrapped around my eyes like a blindfold, and then I was thrown into what I assumed was the hollowed-out cab of a van.
My body hit metal, and I groaned against the impact as they slammed the door shut behind me. Now that I was out of the coven, the drug was starting to wear off, and the fear riding me clawed up my throat like a feral cat.
My screams for help were muffled by the gag in my mouth. Not that they would matter anyway. The van was already moving, dragging me away from Luke.
My eyes squished shut, and tears cascaded down my face. What if this was the last night I ever saw him?
Oh god... I was in big trouble. Whatever Brian had planned, it couldn’t be good.
The drive was long. Hours and hours drifted by, and yet, I refused to fall asleep. My wrists and ankles were rubbed raw from my attempts to burst free, but the bindings they used wouldn’t budge no matter how hard I tried. It was some sort of reinforced metal.
I didn’t know where Brian and his goons were planning on taking me, but it should have dawned on me sooner. By the time the van slowed, I could smell the clave right through the van doors. That sweet smell all vampires naturally carried was so heightened here. The smell of old stone, manicured lawns, and even the subtle hint of the human feeders inside.
My heart pounded. Brian was working for William and Loraine.
The realization was so sudden and obvious, I couldn’t believe I hadn’t already put two and two together. But now that it was glaring me in the face, I wanted to throw up. That bastard. He was trading me in. This man that I once cared so much about was literally carrying me to my execution.
The van doors yanked open, and rough hands grabbed me by my ankles, dragging me to the edge.
“I’ll take her,” Brian said.
The hands disappeared and then Brian was there. I could smell his cheap cologne across a football field. It made the bile in my throat even worse.
He scooped me up, flinging me over his shoulder as I thrashed against him. I couldn’t do any damage with my wrists and ankles immobilized like this.
As if to enrage me more, he slapped my ass hard. “Stop it now, princess. Or you’ll get yourself hurt.”
I snarled and wiggled harder, but he just chuckled.
Motherfucker.
The squeal of metal and the angle of our descent was my only warning that we had entered a building. Apparently, this place was tunneling underground. So, we weren’t in the castle.
The cold of this place caused gooseflesh to rise all over my arms and legs. A dripping came from the ceiling, and a bead of water splashed against my back, making me wince.
Voices drifted in – the sound of crying, raw, aching screams for help.
My blood chilled. The dungeons. They were keeping people down here right under all of our noses.
Another screech of metal, and then I was tossed through the air like a rag doll. I hit the cold stone with a thud, and all the air wheezed out of my lungs.
My blindfold and gag were yanked away, and I surveyed the small space I was in. It was a cell. Four stone walls and one big metal door. The smell made my nose wrinkle. There was urine in the corner and dried blood on one of the walls.
Nothing else was in the room. No bed. No blanket. No water.
Brian crouched down in front of me, sneering. “Take a good look at your new dorm, Ryan baby. You’d better get used to it fast.”
I tried to lunge for him, but with my limbs bound, I ended up flopping like a fish.
“Why are you doing this?” I seethed.
His smile turned cold. Suddenly, his mouth crashed against mine, hard and brutal. I tried to yank away from him, but his hand held the back of my head, crushing me against him. His lips pried mine apart, and then my bottom lip was between his teeth. He bit down, and I yelped as his fangs went straight through my skin.
Blood welled in my mouth as he released me, pooling down my chin.
He was still too close as he licked my blood off his lips. “You’re the reason they turned me into this. If it weren’t for you, none of this would ever have happened to me. And now you have the audacity to look happy with someone else?” He scoffed. “If you’re going to play dirty, Princess, then I’m game.”
He’d lost his fucking mind. There was no way this was about me and Luke for him. Brian had admitted that he’d been bribed into dating me in the first place. Now he was jealous of Luke?
He stood up and walked to the door before shooting me a casual wink. One of those winks he’d give me back at school when he’d show up in the morning with my favorite cup of coffee. The wink I used to find charming, but now made me see red.
“What’s that saying?” He pretended to ponder. “All is fair in love and war?”
He chuckled as the blood drained from my face. When he wrenched the heavy door open, two of his friends were already standing there waiting.
“Break her,” he told them. And then he left us alone.
I thrashed and screamed as the two men stepped into the room. And then the torture began.
19
Aella
“Well, I’m sorry this isn’t the Hamptons!” I growled at Seraphim over the phone. He’d called me four times already complaining about the cleanliness of his motel room.
“The bed comforter is green, Aella! Green! Who does that? And the carpet is stained with what smells a whole lot like piss.”
Tara snickered from her bed as I rolled my eyes. “We could have slept in the dirt.”
There was a pause on the other end of the line, and then he spoke, sounding annoyed. “Whatever, I guess it’ll have to do. But I’m picking the next hotel!”
“We’re not staying at any more hotels.”
The girls shot me sour looks. They were watching something completely inappropriate on the dingy motel TV. It looked like a movie about male strippers, but I couldn’t quite follow the storyline. My attention had been drawn away by all of Seraphim’s calls and Jamie’s nervous giggles.
“Hang on, Wilder wants to talk to you.”
My brow furrowed. I’d just seen him less than an hour ago. What could have gone wrong between now and then?
I listened as the phone rustled, being passed off between the two males, and then Wilder’s deep voice came over the line and I couldn’t fight off the onslaught of butterflies I felt hearing it.
“Hello?” he asked.
“...Hi,” I replied. “Is everything okay?”
He cleared his throat, and it struck me then that he was... nervous.
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. I just... wanted to hear your voice and say goodnight.”
I glanced over at Tara and Jamie who had all but forgotten the movie. They were gawking at me with impressed expressions on their faces.
My cheeks and ears burned. I would never hear the end of this. But it was the sweetest thing anyone had ever said to me.
I couldn’t hide the smile in my voice. “Goodnight, Wilder.”
“Goodnight, Aella.”
There was a long silence in the room as I put the phone b
ack on the receiver, but it was Jamie who said, “If you don’t marry him, I will.”
“Rise and shine, ladies!”
I jolted awake as the curtains were ripped back, filling the room with early morning sunlight.
Tara’s spot in the other bed was empty, and I could hear the shower running. Already up, as expected of the pack trainer. Jamie, however, hadn’t even budged. The girl slept like the dead.
I squinted at the light and glared at Seraphim, finding that he already had a scowl on his face as he stared at Tara’s empty spot.
“I can never beat her at anything.”
I snorted. “Are you just now figuring that out?”
He rolled his eyes. “Whatever. At least I got the jump on you.”
I started to climb out of bed and stopped myself. I’d slept naked. Same as the other two. We’d all wanted to wash our clothes out while we had the chance, and they were still hanging on a line in the bathroom.
“Where’s Wilder?” I asked, drawing the sheets up to my chin. I wasn’t worried about Seraphim’s wandering eyes. We’d been on enough hunting trips together that we’d seen each other naked hundreds of times. I knew he would hardly be bothered. But Wilder was a different story...
Seraphim snorted and bolted the door. “I sent him to get coffee. He’ll be back in a few minutes. I’ll guard the door while you get dressed.”
My cheeks colored, knowing that he’d guessed at my modesty. Lycans were not modest creatures by default, but there were lines with Wilder I shouldn’t cross. Boundaries that we needed to set as to not make mistakes.
I climbed out of bed and headed toward the bathroom, whacking Jamie with a pillow along the way. She groaned and peered up at me from under her tuft of blankets.
I flashed her a grin. “Wake up, Sleeping Beauty. Seraphim’s orders this time. Not mine.”
I thought I heard a very wolfish growl as I walked into the bathroom and started pulling on my clothes. Jamie was sweet as sugar except in the mornings.
Just as I was yanking my shirt over my head, the door to the shower opened, steam billowing out as Tara towel-dried her hair. “I thought I smelled testosterone. Morning Seraphim. You’re up late.”
I hid my laugh behind my hand at his scowl. They had a competitive streak, my friends, and it was hilarious to watch Tara win every time no matter the game.
“Where’s the hunk?” she asked.
I glared at her as I pulled Jamie’s clothes off the line and threw them over to her.
Just then, a light tap sounded at the door. Jamie grumbled and scampered into the shower room with her clothes in her hand.
“Speak of the devil,” Tara winked at me.
Seraphim grumbled, “What am I? Chopped liver?”
He surveyed me, assuring that I was indeed dressed, and then he undid the lock on the door and opened it up.
My heart galloped in my chest as Wilder stepped into the room, a tray of hot coffees in his hands. His eyes immediately shot to me, sweeping over my body from head to toe, assessing, making sure everything was in place. I couldn’t help it. I did the same.
He was freshly showered, and if the wrinkles in his clothes were any indication, it looked like he’d washed his outfit out just like we had.
“Good morning,” he said.
I swallowed. “Morning.”
The sound of the TV volume being turned up stole my attention away. Tara had the remote in her hand, a livid expression marring her face.
“Neighbors say they awoke to the sounds of a struggle next door. It was here, in the garage of the young family’s home, that they found the teenager barely clinging to life.” The news camera moved past the reporter to zoom in on a modest home where the garage was surrounded by police and caution tape. Blood caked the garage floor. Tons of it.
My eyes widened. “Wait, they said alive. She left the kid alive.”
“Maybe she heard the neighbors coming,” Wilder said.
“The teen, Dalton Brown, is in critical condition at Saint John’s hospital. It appears that he was attacked by a large animal that had wandered out of the woods nearby. Police suspect it was a bear looking for food. It remains uncertain if he will survive his injuries.”
Seraphim snorted. “A bear. Right.”
“We need to visit that house.” I jumped as Jamie appeared beside me, silent as a ghost. “The scent should be fresh. If we get there soon enough, maybe we can catch up to her.”
Wilder set the coffees on the table by the window, a hard look in his eyes. “Let’s go.”
20
Aella
The sun was starting to set by the time we made it to the scene of the crime, but the house lights were off, and the police were gone. The family was probably at the hospital with their son, hoping he survived. All was quiet.
Still, we stuck to the trees in our fur. Wilder’s wolf came up beside me, head high, ears perked to listen, but whoever the rogue was, she had to be long gone by now.
I lifted my nose, sniffing the air for a scent. The coppery tang of blood was overwhelming even with the garage door shut. But there was something else too.
My fur bristled. I’d caught this scent before when Seraphim and I had been tracking the rogue. It was the smell of sweat, fear, and something sweet and floral. It was her. Faint, but promising.
Jamie whined behind me as my lip curled over my teeth. Everything in me was screaming to find her, to end her before she could do this to someone else. As I looked over at Wilder, my anger only grew. She’d done this. She’d attacked him. And if fate hadn’t willed it so, she would have killed him.
Sensing my displeasure, Wilder tried to soothe me by rubbing his face against my side, but it was too late. My blood was boiling.
I took off through the trees, chasing the scent at a speed too fast for my pack. I knew the others would have a hard time keeping up, and I could hear their footfalls fading into the distance as I charged on. I was going to find her. I was determined to find her. And when I did, I would end this once and for all.
My paws pounded the dirt as her sweet, floral scent became stronger. It fueled my anger and determination. She was here. She’d stuck close this time. There was no way I was letting her slip past me now.
The wind shifted and I skid in the dirt, readjusting myself as I darted toward the fresh scent. The hairs on my body stood on end. My ears pressed flat against my skull as I charged. This was it.
The trees became a blur. I was practically flying at this speed, and as the scent became its strongest, I didn’t hit the brakes. I wouldn’t give the rogue a single opportunity to escape.
I crashed into her so hard it sounded like two boulders colliding together. We toppled over each other, a tangle of fur and skin. She wasn’t shifting. As we hit the dirt floor and skid to a halt, I got my first real glimpse of the infamous rogue.
She was just a girl, somewhere around my age, and so fragile looking I almost thought I’d made a mistake. But there was no second-guessing that scent. The small brunette in front of me had the face of an innocent, but there was still blood on her hands and face.
Her lips trembled as she looked up at me, her brown eyes round as dinner plates. My canines were bared, spittle dripping down into her face and hair. I wouldn’t let her fool me. She was a monster with an angel’s face. A demon in disguise.
Suddenly, a howl ripped through the tree. I lifted my nose to the air and recoiled at the scent that assaulted my senses. I could smell my friends in the distance, but just beyond that, the unmistakably sweet aroma of vampire permeated the air. My head spun. Why were there vampires out here? Unless… Unless they had found the rogue as well.
My slip-up was all the time she needed. One minute, I had the rogue under my paws, the next, her lengthened talons were digging into my throat. She had me on my back, her knee digging into my stomach, her hand pressing me back into the dirt. I watched as her eyes shifted from brown pools to red-rimmed silver.
Hot, trickling fear flooded me. It wasn�
�t an emotion I felt often.
I’d never felt strength like this. No matter how I tried to escape her, I couldn’t move. She had me completely immobilized with one arm.
“I’m not going back,” she snarled.
Time moved slowly as she raised her free hand. The nails attached to her fingertips were abnormal, a mix between wolf claws and a vampire’s dagger-sharp talons. I squeezed my eyes shut as she brought them down on me.
A female scream made me open my eyes. Somehow, it wasn’t mine.
Wilder was suddenly there, dragging the rogue off of me. He looked absolutely feral as he picked her up off her feet and threw her into a nearby tree. He’d shifted to face her. He was going to try to catch her like my mother wanted.
They were on each other in a move so blindingly fast, I could barely keep up.
Wilder swung at her over and over again. Somehow, even though I’d felt the incredible strength in her small hands, Wilder was stronger. The rogue was faster though. She used her size to her advantage, darting past him every time he nearly grabbed her.
It was a tedious game as her eyes seemed to grow more red. She was out for blood, and one way or another, that’s where this fight was headed.
I shifted and jumped to my feet just as Wilder caught her by the hair, hauling her to a standstill in front of him.
She thrashed in his arms, a look of shock and rage marring her otherwise pretty features. Her claws struck out, slashing through his exposed skin, and then, to my horror, she swung her hand up, sinking those nails deep into his gut.
“No!” I screamed.
Wilder’s eyes widened in pain before he dropped her. I watched in agony as he fell to his knees and collapsed in the soft dirt. Blood flowed freely from his abdomen.
Something whipped past me in a blur of motion. I was too focused on Wilder as his eyes rolled back to notice who it was. But suddenly the scent of vampire was overwhelming, and the rogue was gone.
Marked By A Rogue: The Rogue Hybrid Book Three Page 10
