Southern Secrets (The Southern Series Book 2)

by Shelley Stringer

  He pulled back, and smiled, tracing my lips with his finger. “You think I’m kidding, but I’m serious. I want you, when you’re further along, to have one of those photos taken. You know, the ones so in fashion now…in black and white, with your hand across your bare tummy and your wedding ring showing.”

  “You’re serious, aren’t you?”

  “Yes. And if I know you, you’ll be too embarrassed to go to a studio, so if you are, I’ll take them myself.”

  “You’ve already been thinking about this, haven’t you? You are something!” I exclaimed. His eyes twinkled at me in the dark room. He leaned down and placed slow, deliberate kisses on my abdomen. As he slid his thumbs up under the lace at my hips, I gasped. I ran my fingers through his hair, pulling his face back up to mine. As he drew my gown up over my head, I forgot all about pregnancy, photo sessions…everything else ceased to exist except the way his muscles rippled across his tanned chest, the way the muscle ticked at his jaw line, and the way his lips felt on my skin.

  * * *

  I rolled over and stretched, sliding my hand across the spot where Banton had been hours before…his side was already cold. Leaning over, I placed my face on his pillow and inhaled the smell of his cologne. As I rose back up, I noticed a large vase of roses on the nightstand. I leaned over to take in their scent, and then checked the card. It read, “All my love, my life forever…Banton.”

  I’d forgotten Valentine’s day altogether, so I would have to slip away to get him a card sometime today. Maybe I could cook his favorite, crawfish etouffee. I smiled to myself as I continued to plan his surprise dinner. I couldn’t imagine being any happier than I was at this moment. Banton was home, I was pregnant with his babies, my closest friends all around me, and we were going to see his family in less than thirty-six hours. Aunt Sue and Uncle Lon had accepted an invitation from Banton’s parents to attend the ball, and they were going to drive up for the weekend and stay with all of us at the Gastaneau’s. It was hard to believe I’d felt so alone only six short months ago.

  I threw the covers back, bounding out of bed and over to the bathroom to shower. As I turned the water off, I heard a knock, and then our bedroom door open and shut. That will be Everett or Mr. Philippe, I thought. The past couple of days, the SEALs had taken turns going to work out, the Aldon stepping up their patrols till they returned home after lunch. Everett, Mr. Philippe and Grant took turns escorting us to class.

  I dressed hurriedly since I wasn’t sure what time it was, and I didn’t want to make Constance late for class. Not stopping long enough to dry my hair, I just pulled it up in a clip and then opened the bathroom door. As I stepped out into the bedroom, I caught a scent that stood my hair on end.

  I could smell…Orco.

  I gasped as I spotted them standing, one behind Constance, the other behind Brie, each with fangs extended as if holding each of them hostage. They studied my reaction as I slowly began to turn, sensing the presence of another in the room. The third Orco stood behind me beside the window. Pale skin, muscular build…shadow of a beard on his face, dirty work coveralls…I recognized him instantly. A lazy smile curved his thin lips as his eyes blazed with a deeper green. He was the Orco from Colorado, the one who’d chased us on the mountain. He was the one who bit Banton. And he was the Orco who had tried to take Constance and me only weeks before. I stood immobile, wondering where the Aldon were and how the Orcos got past them.

  I cleared my throat and asked hoarsely, “What do you want…please, let them go. It’s me you want. Take me, and let them go.”

  As I spoke, Constance shook her head furiously. Brie looked terrified, and I was terrified for her. The Orco holding her kept his fangs extended, hovering over an artery in her neck only an inch or so away from certain death for her.

  “We want both you and blonde girl, there. If both of you go with us, we’ll let her live,” he said gruffly, pointing at Brie. “If you give us any trouble at all, Nikko will gut her and never think twice. He will savor every inch of torn, delicate flesh. Now think about it as we drop you silently out the window. Once we are on our way and have you safely tucked away somewhere, we’ll let her go.” His lips curved again in a thin, sick smile which never touched his eyes. I could smell his rank breath from across the room, and my stomach rolled. I knew the bargain he offered was meaningless; they had no reason to spare Brie’s life once we were out of sight. But we had no choice.

  I nodded silently as Constance began to cry. The Orco holding her jerked her around and placed his filthy hand across her mouth to silence her sobs, tightening his grip on her.

  “That one won’t give us any trouble, she hasn’t transformed yet, she’s still a weak human. We’d better tie this one’s hands up. She’ll put up a fight, trust me,” the one holding me spat out as he drew a white braided cord from his pocket and drew my hands together, tying them behind my back. I searched frantically around the room for something, anything I could hide in my pocket to cut through the cords. After he secured my hands, I spotted my manicure clipper set lying on the chest as he jerked me around. I brushed my hands across it to palm it, concealing it from site as he dragged me toward the window.

  “Remember, not a sound, or Nikko will rip her from the inside out before anyone comes back to check on you. Now, I’m dropping you down into the bushes below to someone waiting for you, and you’ll be as cooperative with him as you’ve been with me,” he murmured in my ear, sliding his teeth down my earlobe. I pulled away in revulsion. Constance struggled across the room as the other Orco dragged her to the window. Jerking my head around, I caught her eye and shook my head, warning her to stay quiet and comply. The Orco slung me up over his shoulder as I caught sight of Brie; she strained against Nikko’s arms. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she watched, horrified as I dropped out of sight through the window.

  I hit the arms of another Orco roughly, and he unceremoniously dragged a sack over my head and then threw me across his shoulder. He was huge, and his shoulders were massive; my abdomen hurt where my hipbones jarred across his shoulder as he strode across the backyard. I watched the flagstone path underneath his feet…I knew he was crossing the yard beside the greenhouse. A van door slid open, and as he dumped me into the vehicle I hit the floor with a thud, landing on my right hip. Worrying about the babies, I knew I was being handled too roughly and I was terrified I would start bleeding again.

  A few moments later, I heard Constance’s muffled sobs as her body hit the floor beside me. Then the two front doors of the van opened and shut; I felt two bodies rock the van back and forth as they were seated in the front. I struggled to hear every sound. I knew it was important to keep my wits about me, and to take in every aspect of our surroundings in case an opening appeared. The two Orcos said little, except a word here or there. I knew they were being careful not to let us know where we were going.

  I felt a hand on my leg, and then a gentle pat. I knew Constance was feeling for me, needing my reassurance. I wriggled over closer to the direction of her hand and felt her body against the back of mine. She felt down to my hands, and then clasp them in hers – it was my chance to give her the clippers. I worked my fingers around, and grasped them between my thumb and index finger, and thrust them into her palm. She gasped, and then took them from me. She knew what I wanted her to do, but I patted her hand, letting her know she needed to wait, not to do anything with them now. She put her head up against my shoulder and nodded. After about fifteen minutes the van came to a halt, and the front doors both opened and closed. I knew we were alone.

  “Constance…” I whispered.

  “Yeah? Andie, are you all right?” she choked out.

  “I’m good. Listen, hurry. We don’t have much time. I just remembered… my new cell is in the right front pocket of my sweat pants. Can you reach it?”

  “I’ll try,” she answered. “Got it!”

  “Ok, now, feel up to the button on top right side, it takes instant video. When they start to get us out, palm it,
and turn the video on. Take as much as you can, maybe you will catch a landmark, or them saying something we can send to Banton, to let him know where we are. Be careful, don’t let them catch you. It’s our only chance,” I whispered as we heard footsteps coming back towards the van.

  “Okay, got it!” she whispered back, just as the van side door slid open. Someone grabbed my ankles and dragged me out, and then hoisted me up on shoulders again. I struggled to see anything under the sack, and the weave of the material was such I could make out images through the holes in the fabric. I could see mud and gravel under us, and as I turned my head to the right I could see the outline of vehicles in a parking lot and a few small boats. I heard big metal doors sliding and water rushing, and I could smell…the river! They had us somewhere close to the river. The faint sounds of traffic became apparent, and a low humming, such as a large engine. It seemed to be coming closer…and then I recognized the sound, a barge coming down the river. I was certain we were still somewhere in Baton Rouge. We hadn’t traveled far enough to be anywhere else.

  The Orco carrying me moved swiftly, and then darkness enveloped me. The smell of grease and metal greeted me, it smelled similar to my next door neighbor’s garage when I was little, and would go there with my dad to watch our neighbor work on his hot-rod. I was certain we were in some kind of industrial building or warehouse. He stopped abruptly, dumping me to the ground. I landed on my shoulder and moaned. With the odd angle of my casted arm, he had to secure them higher than he would have, and it put my shoulders in a bind.

  “Yeah, you’re safely tucked away, now. You can moan and cry all you want to, there’s no one to hear but some irritable, hungry Orcos. I’d be careful if I were you,” he snickered as he jerked the hood from my head.

  I glared at him as he pulled the hood from Constance’s head as well. Blood trickled down her forehead, and a cut on her lip oozed fresh blood. A bruise was darkening on her right cheek. The Orco leaned over close to her face, inhaling her scent. As she cringed he laughed, licking the blood off the side of her face, his fangs gleaming in the darkness.

  “You need to be more careful, Moron, he wants them in good shape, unharmed. He won’t be happy about the rough stuff and bruises. Besides, we’ve got a few Orcos here who haven’t fed in several nights and blood will be a temptation,” the Orco who had carried me spat out as he pointed at her face. She turned a sickly shade of white as she pulled her lip in and wiped away the blood from her forehead with her sleeve.

  “Leave them…they aren’t going anywhere! Guard the doorway outside until the others return!” A booming voice commanded from the shadows. I fully expected James Earl Jones to come striding out of the darkness in front of us; his accented voice was so deep and commanding.

  “The boat will be here before dark, and I want the women and everything loaded fast. Stack the supplies out on the loading dock and have them ready.”

  I saw a massive form stride back toward the back of the warehouse and into the deep shadows. The other two who brought us left back out the door through which we’d entered, and then closed it, shutting out most of the light. Constance and I sat in semi-darkness.

  She shivered as I struggled to focus on her face.

  “Did you get the video?” I asked as I battled to steady my voice. Since I’d heard the deep voice in the darkness, a sickly sort of nervousness welled up inside. As she brought her hands around slowly, she showed me the phone with the camera still running.

  She held it up and I whispered into it quickly, “Banton, they have us somewhere by the river. They are loading supplies, and they are leaving with us on a boat on the river before dark. Please hurry, and be careful. There are lots of them, and the one who chased us in Colorado is here. We are in some sort of warehouse, tan I think…There are cars, and two boats on trailers in the lot. The Orcos brought us here in a van, and I know it’s black, I could see the side as they carried us in the building. It’s parked on the side by the river. Okay, hit send to, and speed dial…Banton’s number is one.” I instructed as she nodded, touching the screen as fast as she could.

  After a few moments she glanced up at me and nodded, just as the warehouse door began to slide open again. She quickly dropped the phone in her pocket as the Orcos returned. I closed my eyes, and prayed Banton got the text and could make out something, anything to lead the SEALs and the Aldon here. At the very least, he’d know on what side of the city to look and could search up and down the river for the building we were in.

  The two Orcos returned with others, picking up crates and boxes and moving them outside. We watched silently as they worked, a couple of them kept staring at us hungrily as they would pass to go out the door. The sick feeling I had seemed to multiply in the pit of my stomach each time they would look our direction. They seemed to be drooling as if they were starving and we were the meal. I felt Constance shudder next to me.

  After about ten minutes, I heard my cell phone vibrate in her pocket, and I knew Banton was answering my message. Looking up at the Orcos, I was afraid they’d heard the vibration, but they never paused in their work. I sighed in relief and looked over at her. After the boxes were all moved, one of the Orcos returned and shut the door, disappearing toward the back of the warehouse in the shadows.

  “How long do you think we’ve been here?” Constance whispered.

  “I don’t know, maybe forty minutes or so. I sure hope that boat is late getting here. Banton and the others don’t have much time to search for us.”

  “I can’t believe you, Chandler.” She studied my face.

  “What?” I asked, not understanding her meaning.

  “You’re suddenly so in control…watching for details, the cell phone…I’ve just cried and taken instructions so far. When did you get to be the tough one?”

  “I guess after I was bitten. I’m tired of being just a victim.” I nodded to the scar on my shoulder. “Speaking of, do you still have those clippers?” I asked her.

  “Yeah, right here.”

  She pulled them from her pocket, and then twisted them open.

  “Oh, I see…,” she looked up at me, and grinned. The tool kit resembled a man’s folding tool knife, complete with file, emery boards, scissors, and a small blade, which I knew from experience could be quite sharp. I moved my hands over closer to her and she began to work on the cords. I’d already been pulling on them, and had managed to stretch them enough the outside cords felt loose. She stopped abruptly as we heard footsteps coming back our direction. My heart pounded painfully in my chest in anticipation of getting caught.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  “Give both of them water. We’ll feed them when we get underway on the boat.” The Orco in charge with the deep voice commanded.

  The Colorado Orco who had stalked Banton and me came forward, thrusting a thermos in front of me and tipping it to my lips to let me drink. I took several gulps, and then he handed it to Constance. She took it from him and took several big gulps as well. Alarmed, I glanced at her and shook my head as she started to drink more. It tasted funny, I was sure there was something in it. He flipped the thermos shut and then started to walk away.

  “Do we get a bathroom break, or anything?” Constance asked. I knew she was hoping they would take us outside, and we might get the chance to break away.

  “Good try, you can go over in the corner, for all I care. I’d just be careful, pulling any clothes down. This bunch doesn’t need much of an invitation, if you know what I mean.” He knelt down between us, and then slowly ran his lips across my shoulders as I shuddered. Pulling back, he smiled slowly at her as she shrunk away from him. He then returned to the shadows at the back of the barn. A large door slammed, echoing in the darkness, and then silence. We were alone again.

  “Chandler, you remember what Everett said about why they want us,” she choked out as she began to saw at the cords on my wrists again.

  “Yeah, that’s why as soon as you get these off my wrists, we are going to make a run for it�
��the way I see it we have nothing to lose. If the other Orco hasn’t freed Brie yet, he isn’t going to anyway. Come on, there is a door over at the back corner of the building behind me, I can see light coming thru the cracks around the bottom. If we can get it open, maybe we can make our way between the cars in the parking lot back there, and make it to the river without them seeing us.”

  She continued to work away, and after several minutes I felt the cords give way. I strained and they snapped, freeing my hands.

  “How did you do that?”

  “Super human strength, remember?” I pointed to the bite marks on my shoulder again and she nodded. Wincing, I rubbed my shoulder with my good hand; the muscles were beginning to spasm from my arms being bound too high because of my cast.

  “Follow me and stay close.”

  I pulled her along behind me. Trying the handle on the rusty door, it squeaked slightly and then gave way. I let out a sigh of relief and then gave her a warning glance as I pushed the door open slightly, peeking out to see if any Orcos were watching the side of the building. I couldn’t see anyone, so I pulled Constance through and then shut the door.

  Hurrying along the side of the building to the corner, I assessed the distance between the building and the first car parked in the parking lot between us and the river bank. It was about ten feet. I nodded to her, and then to the car. She nodded back. I leaned around the corner of the building, and I could see the Orcos over on the loading dock, stacking the boxes they had carried out earlier, and unloading others from two vans parked next to the dock.

  “Now,” I whispered to her. I huddled over, scurrying across the open space to the car parked in the first spot and pulling her along behind me. We continued to race across the lot, from car to car, until we came to the edge beside the road and the river. Adrenalin was pumping in such a rush, my head was pounding.