by Linda Palmer
Chapter Sixteen
Erik and I celebrated by grabbing Chinese takeout. We wound up eating the egg rolls on the drive home. As I fed my driver, who needed to keep his eyes on the winding road, I thought about what my ancestor had said about me having magic within. Try as I might, I couldn’t figure out what she could’ve meant if she wasn’t referring to the shapeshifting. As for her saying my mother had sent Erik, just the thought gave me the good kind of chills. I’d never felt so���safe, I guess. The idea that she was watching over us made me very happy.
It was after 9:00 when we got to the cabin and quite dark. We got out of the Jeep. As before, Erik carried me across the snow and to the back step, while I clutched our sack of food that would definitely need reheating in the microwave. Though we were laughing when we walked inside the shadowy cabin, both of us instantly sobered. That smell.
We knew it.
Weres. Bad ones.
Erik put me down and shoved me behind him. He flicked on the light. Four men stood right in front of us. Three of them we knew well. The other one was a stranger—a stranger with a gun.
“Well, look who’s here,” said Red. “Surprised to see us?”
“Not really,” I told him. “I knew you didn’t have the brains to run when you had the chance.”
“Don’t, Bronte.” It was Erik. Trying to keep me from pissing off our guests, I guess. I tried to get around him. He nudged me back.
Red thought that was hilarious. “Better listen to him.” He motioned for his companions to step aside. “Why don’t the two of you come in and take a seat on the couch so we can talk.”
We reluctantly did, sitting so close together that our thighs brushed. Red sat in the chair, but Blondie and Buzz Cut walked over to stand near the fireplace beside the man I didn’t know.
“We’re here for a couple of reasons. First off, where’s the laptop?” asked Red.
I glared at him. “I gave it to the Corteggio.”
“Why?”
“I was hoping it would keep you out of our lives.”
“Didn’t work, though, did it?” Red smirked. “Here we are.”
“Well, you’ve put yourself in danger for no reason. I have nothing you want now.”
All of them laughed, a sound that sent a shiver up my spine.
“It’s the truth. The laptop is gone. What else could you possibly want?”
“Did I tell you that the Arm doesn’t forget or forgive?”
I didn’t answer.
Erik spoke up. “Look, dude. The Corteggio is monitoring everything we do, as in all of us. Hell, they’ve probably already got men on the way. If you’re smart, you’ll leave before they get here. We’ll tell them anything you want us to.”
“We?” They laughed again, but Erik and I didn’t get the joke.
“The girl’s coming with us, so the only one who’ll be here is you, and you won’t be much help to them.” He flicked a glance at the gunman, who immediately raised his weapon. Even as Red’s words registered, I shoved Erik to the couch cushions. The gun went off. Erik took me to the floor, immediately leaping up to lunge toward the shooter, who fired again. Erik’s body jerked back. He dropped to his knees and then collapsed on the rug, clearly unconscious. Or was he dead? A pool of red began to spread.
With my ears ringing so loudly I couldn’t hear my own screams, I tried to crawl over to him. Someone yanked me to my feet before I could get there and manhandled me toward the door. Sobbing, I fought all the way and actually managed to trip up whoever had me.
“Enough of this shit!” A fist connected with my jaw. I saw stars and, in the midst of them, a blurry image of the love of my life, lying in a puddle of blood. Then I saw no more.
****
“She still out?”
“Looks like it. Maybe you hit the bitch too hard.”
“Breathing?”
Someone put his smelly hand under my nose. “Yeah.”
“Then I didn’t hit the bitch too hard.”
I had no idea who was talking, though I thought I should’ve. For several seconds I just lay there, trying to get my bearings. I was in a moving car with my hands and ankles bound. I wasn’t gagged or blindfolded. I had a horrible headache. I needed to pee.
D��j�� vu.
This was not good. So not good.
Memories of my life in captivity slammed me. I didn’t open my eyes, but pretended to be unconscious in hopes that one of them would inadvertently give me a clue as to where we were going. Though they talked, no one gave anything away.
I’m not sure how long we were in that vehicle, which I assumed to be an SUV or van since it had third-row seating. I did know it couldn’t have been more than a couple of hours���unless I’d been out for way longer than I guessed. When the vehicle finally halted on a gravel road, judging from the crunch underneath the wheels, I opened my eyes. Yeah, an SUV. Four guys with me, three of them now piling out of it.
When Buzz Cut reached back for me, our gazes clashed.
“Where are we?” I asked.
“Texas.”
Liar. I knew exactly where we were the moment he dragged me into the frigid air, and it wasn’t in Texas. We were at Tablerock Lake, where the Hannigans had vacationed countless times. I knew the terrain like the back of my hand—the mountains, the water, even the two-story cabin I was being carried into. Somehow that knowledge kept me calm.
“You’ll never get away with this,” I said when Buzz Cut dumped me on a couch. I quickly scanned the room, recognizing the wide-open “luxury layout” the Hannigans had never splurged on. Though we’d long eyed this particular cabin, we’d always gone with the cheaper one-story dwellings of Lake Shore Rentals.
“Who’s going to stop us? Your boyfriend? Don’t think so, sweetie.” Buzz Cut grinned. “Yo, Mav. Where’d you shoot her guy?”
“Right in the heart,” said the man I didn’t know.
Buzz Cut hooted. “More like in the belly, hot shot, but it doesn’t really matter, does it. He’s bled out by now for sure.”
They all laughed, which made me sick to my stomach. This whole thing was a joke to them, and their cruelty shocked me. I don’t know why. I’d been around one of their kind for eighteen miserable months and would still be with him if the Corteggio hadn’t rescued me. My breath caught in my throat.
The Corteggio���not Danu, my goddess ancestor.
I suddenly remembered standing face-to-face with her in that conference room, trying to verbalize a question about just that. Though I’d been too rattled to do it at the time, my thoughts were crystal clear now, and I wanted to know why Danu hadn’t rescued me from The Arm sooner. Was it because I’d never asked her for help? It wasn’t as if I’d even known she existed.
But I could ask now. And the help I wanted first was help for Erik. Please Danu. Save him. I’ll be okay.
But would I really? “Why am I here?”
Red walked over to me, a knife in his hand, and cut the plastic ties binding my wrists and ankles. “We have needs.”
I tried to rub the feeling back into them. “Sexual needs?”
Though most of them laughed at me, Mav just sneered. “I do have a thing for gingers.”
My stomach knotted. Red took pity on me. “Your status as new member of this pack protects you from unwanted advances.” He shook his head. “Can’t believe Yarbrough turned you. It was him, wasn’t it?”
I nodded, not one bit comforted by this supposed rule. It sure hadn’t stopped Yarbrough from attacking. “I really need to pee.”
Red jerked his head in the direction of the bathroom. I scurried out of there and shot down the hall. After I did my thing, I washed my face and hands. My reflection in the mirror showed me a pale, frightened girl where an amazing Celtic goddess should’ve been. I thought of the powers Danu had hinted I might have. If I was truly gifted, how could I tap into them?
I held up my hands and examined each finger. Every fanciful being I’d ever read about or seen did thi
ngs with their hands. Could I, maybe, throw a fiery plasma ball? I focused really hard, forming imaginary energy into an invisible orb with my hands. Then I threw it.
Nothing.
I was barking up the wrong dang tree.
“Hey!”
I jumped.
“What are you doing in there?”
I yanked the door open. “Wiping my ass, if you must know.” I slipped past Blondie and headed for the living room. “Where am I supposed to sleep?”
“Up there.” He pointed to an exposed loft just above the wide-open second level that covered fully half of the cabin. I thought I glimpsed the corner of a bed.
“I don’t suppose you have any girl-type clothing around. Or am I going to be wearing this for the rest of my life?” I glanced down at my blingy jeans and those ridiculous wedges.
Red caught Mav’s eye. “Get her backpack.”
So they’d brought it along, minus, no doubt, the clothes I’d washed, dried, and left neatly folded on the dryer. But a quick peek into the bag Mav soon thrust at me revealed they’d brought all my things plus some of Erik’s, too. After slinging one of the straps over my shoulder, I crossed the room and began to climb the wooden ladder that would take me to the second floor. From there, I ascended into the loft.
As prisons went, this one wasn’t half bad since it actually evoked some pleasant memories. First thing, I looked out the window, hoping for a tree that might provide me a way to the ground. There wasn’t one, and my loft was so far up I’d never be able to jump. Suddenly exhausted, I kicked off my wedges and lay on top of the blanket covering my bed. Everything would look different in the morning, when the world was brighter both literally and figuratively.
****
But Sunday dawned dark with charcoal gray storm clouds spitting snow.
“Bronte! Get down here now!”
With a groan, I rolled out of bed. I didn’t bother changing outfits. Yesterday’s clothing would do just fine except for the shoes. I dug my Nikes and a pair of socks from my backpack, pausing to bury my face in Erik’s Sasparilla Sam T-shirt. Oh, how I wished I hadn’t washed it, but I had, so I got nothing for my trouble but the smell of Tide.
Goddess Danu, are you helping my Erik? How else will he save me? Or am I supposed to save myself?
“Bronte!”
“Coming!” I climbed down the ladder and found Red, who was definitely the leader, waiting on me. That meant his real name was Whit Wilson, not that I’d ever admit I knew it.
“I’ve made a list of things you need to do today.”
“Well, I hope that a visit to the bathroom is first on it. I have to wash up.”
“Then be quick about it.”
I rolled my eyes, making sure he could see the defiance. If I’d learned anything at all from my months in captivity, it was how to treat a Were. They respected sass. Liked it even. I had to hold my own no matter how mentally exhausting it was.
After a quick visit to the toilet, I swished somebody’s mouthwash and then spit. I finger combed my hair, which was a tangled mess, washed the goo from my eyes, and smoothed my wrinkled clothing as best I could. Without so much as a glance in the mirror, I then went back to the living area where six guys had now congregated.
“So where’s this list?”
Red slapped a piece of paper in my hand.
I read what was on it: (1) Have breakfast cooked by 7:00—enough for whoever is around (don���t forget the guards), (2) clean the cabin, (3) have lunch ready at noon—enough for whoever is around (don’t forget the guards), (4) set up the pack bank accounts on the computer, (5) create a spread sheet of completed jobs, (6) set up a payroll system, (7) have dinner ready by 8:00—enough for whoever shows up (don’t forget the guards). “There are only twenty-four hours in a day, Red.”
“What’d you call me?”
“Red.”
He just stared.
“Duh. Because of your hair? Oh! Is that what they call you, too?” I swept my hand to include the Weres lounging everywhere, seven in all. “Trust me, I don’t want to know anyone’s name, okay? So I should definitely give each of you a new one. I’ll stick with Red for you. I’ve already named Buzz Cut and Blondie. You’re calling him Mav, so—”
“Maverick. My name is Maverick.”
“Maverick, then.” I walked over to an older man with white hair pulled back in a ponytail and a scruffy chin. “Gramps for you.” I heard some chuckles as I moved to the next Were, who was probably in his thirties and pretty easy to look at. “You’re going to be Blue Eyes, and you—” I directed my gaze to the last occupant of the room, a guy with the thickest neck and biggest arms I’d ever seen. “Guns, I think.”
Was it my imagination, or was the mood of the room lighter?
“What are we supposed to call you?” asked Gramps with a chuckle.
I pretended to think about his question. “Snow White?”
A couple of the Weres hooted, clearly getting my pathetic joke. I figured they had kids at home.
“Her name’s Bronte,” said Red, ending the levity. “Kitchen’s over there.” He gave me a little push in that direction.
I counted the guys and myself and added four more since I knew there were guards outside. Breakfast for twelve, coming right up. It took a few minutes for me to find my way around the kitchen, but I soon had bacon on the griddle, eggs in a skillet, and biscuits in the oven. The men ate shortly after—four at the table and the rest in the den area. I ate mine standing up, leaning against the kitchen counter. One-by-one Weres finished and left, some to relieve the guards outside.
Once everyone had eaten, Red motioned for me to sit at the table. He sat across from me. “I think you know there always four Weres guarding the cabin, so don’t even think about trying to escape. I expect you to do what you’re told when you’re told with no lip. You’re familiar with our organization, which makes you an asset, but you’re not indispensible. Make too much trouble, and we’re done.”
“You’ll send me home?” I asked, though I knew better.
He wasn’t amused. “I’ll put you, your dad, and his brand new wife six feet under just like your boyfriend.”
Though I refused to believe Erik was dead, Red’s melodramatic answer told me all I needed to know: Same Freakin’ Nightmare, Act Two. “What about the Corteggio?”
“What about it?”
“They’ve taken an interest in me; they see more than you realize.”
“Then why aren’t they breaking down the doors?”
Good question. I had no answer. “How long do I have to stay here?”
“As long as I want you to.” Red got nose-to-nose with me. “We’re lifers, and whether or not you want to be, you are, too.” He jerked his head in the direction of the kitchen. “You’d better get to work.” Red scooted back his chair and left the cabin. As the door swung shut behind him, I realized it was snowing hard.
Finally alone, I immediately grabbed the butcher knife I’d seen in one of the drawers. Thought it wasn’t that sharp, I took it straight upstairs and tucked it under my pillow before straightening my bed and checking out the contents of the backpack, which I’d only half done the night before. Shaking out my clothes, I refolded them and hung a few things on some wall pegs that were all I had in the way of a closet.
That done, I went downstairs and cleaned up the kitchen. There was a dishwasher; I used it. I also swept the floors before moving on to the den area, trash bag in hand. These Weres were slobs, I quickly realized. Beer cans and cigarette butts littered the side tables and floor. The hearth obviously hadn’t been cleaned out in years. A thick film of ash and dust coated every surface in the vast room. I sneezed and sneezed as I dusted and vacuumed the entire cabin, which consisted of the standard den-kitchen-dining room combo, an office, a bedroom, and a bath on the first floor. The second floor, completely open and visible from the first, held numerous bunks, which I eventually straightened. Above that was my loft room with its sloped ceiling.
Noon rolled around way too soon, but I was prepared for it. A stew pot of vegetable soup simmered on the electric stove by the time the Weres began showing up. Since I’d lived separately from my former pack members, I had to guess how things worked in a den such as this one. I suspected the cabin was a sort of weekend lodge to the Weres, most of whom probably lived double lives. I wondered what they told their families. Did the parents, wives, girlfriends, and children of these guys think their men were hunting? And would things be different tomorrow, the first day of the work week?
After lunch, Red took me into the office. There we unpacked a brand new computer, which I set up. By 2:00, I was sorting through a massive pile of ledgers, unopened mail, and unidentifiable papers. There was a lifetime of work there. I could only hope I wasn’t around long enough to finish it.
Chapter Seventeen
I performed on autopilot all day. Bronte the robot. Doing what she had to do to keep everyone except herself happy. It was pretty scary how fast I adjusted to my situation, at least on the outside. Inside I fumed. I felt like a stick of dynamite, fully lit and ready to blow.
My last memory of Erik haunted every waking moment. All that blood. Every time I thought of it, I got sick to my stomach. While Red and the rest of the pack were treating me civilly enough at the moment, I knew what they were capable of. My situation could turn on a dime. So the tiny glimmer of hope to which I desperately clung did little to brighten my dark mood.
I thought about Danu a lot, probably because I kept sending her arrow prayers on Erik’s behalf. If he died, part of me would die, too. Or maybe it was all of me. We certainly loved each other on two levels—emotion that was all consuming.
Sunday night after a quick shower, I fell asleep from pure exhaustion. I was alone in the house except for Red, which confirmed my theory about the cabin mostly being used by the pack on weekends. There were guards outside, though.
