by Jacey Ward
The hallway was empty.
She stepped out at once, her entire body shaking with fright yet determined enough to attempt to make her escape. The whole house was silent, as though it were holding its breath as it waited for her to move. She had no idea where to go or what was waiting for her.
Closing her eyes, Sasha drew in a deep breath and began to creep along towards the stairs, remembering how Torin had been forced to half drag her up them when he’d first taken her there. Moving as quickly as she could, Sasha cringed as the stairs creaked under her feet, but she was not about to stop and go back. Wherever Torin was, he probably assumed she was still showering. She had to take her chance.
The staircase led directly to the front door, with other rooms on either side of it. Her heart slammed into her chest in fright as she tried to turn the door handle, her hands slipping on it as it turned.
It opened immediately. Sasha let out a breath of relief, every sense buzzing with awareness. She didn’t even pull the door closed, leaving it ajar as she began to race across the gravel covered driveway.
There was nowhere to go.
Fields lay to her left and to her right. There was only a single-track road but, if she took it, then Torin would easily find her. She had to take her chances with the fields.
The flagstone wall was tall and painful to climb over. Her hands scraped on the stones, her feet already torn by the gravel, but Sasha carried on regardless. Terrified, she literally threw herself bodily over the wall, crying out as her shoulder screamed in pain once more. Shaking all over, tears pouring down her cheeks, she gasped for breath as she crawled along the wall, knowing she couldn’t run out into the open fields. Torin was bound to be stronger and faster than she was. He’d catch her in an instant. The only thing she could do was keep her head low, ducking behind the wall, and move as fast as she could. Sobbing, she started running, ignoring the pain in her bleeding feet and screaming shoulder.
Her heart was racing and her breathing was labored. It was like every nightmare she had ever had as a child, where she was running from a monster, but never getting farther ahead. She could almost feel the heat of Torin’s breath on the back of her neck.
Finally, she was nearing the trees. If she could just make it there, she might be able to lose herself in the dense growth. She wasn’t sure how she would be able to survive if she didn’t find a helpful neighbor soon, but she had her wits and determination. Anything was better than being a captive.
Suddenly, she heard a roar of rage emanating from the direction of the house.
Torin had discovered her escape.
Panic clawed at her mind. The forest loomed to her left, the distance suddenly seeming to grow instead of it getting closer. Damn nightmares! If she made it there, then perhaps she might be able to escape him.
Her hopes died a moment later. She heard pounding feet, and a loud roar as Torin shouted her name, closer than he should have been able to get that quickly. She fell forward against the rough rock-strewn ground, covering her mouth for some reason to keep the cry from escaping. She prayed silently that he wouldn’t be able to see her sprawled flat as she was, but it was as though he was drawn to her. She could hear him approaching, as if he’d put a tracker on her and was following its guidance.
His hands grasped the back of her shirt and her hair, and she screamed aloud, pulling herself to her feet as best she could. Torin lifted her upright and started to drag her back toward the wall.
She stumbled frequently, but he didn’t slow. She chanced a glance at his face and recoiled from the sight. He looked furious, his jaw clenched hard and his eyes looking almost feral.
“What the hell do you think you were doing?” he roared, his face a deep, dark red and eyes ablaze with fire. “You don’t try to escape from me!” he roared, as if what she had done was the epitome of rudeness.
Sasha couldn’t say a word, her entire body shaking so badly she couldn’t even stand up. Sliding down against the wall, she covered her face with her hands and pressed her knees against her chest, unwilling to try to explain to him that that was exactly what any captive would do.
“My brother didn’t escape and you’re not going to either!” Torin growled, hovering above her. “You think you’re strong? You’re nothing here. You mean nothing. You’re worth nothing.” He grasped her arm and tried to tug her up to standing. “Now get yourself back inside!”
Sasha couldn’t even stand, her legs trembling too hard to hold her up. She had no choice but to slump against him, her breath coming in ragged sobs as the fight left her body. Torin stepped away, and she collapsed on the ground, not making any effort to protect her shoulder.
“Get up!” he shouted again, but Sasha didn’t move. She didn’t care. Her one shot at escaping and she’d lost. Again. There was no point in trying to fight him. He was too determined to believe that she was in the wrong, that she was the one who needed to pay.
“Whatever you’re going to do, just do it,” she finally said, her head hanging down. “I’m done, Torin. I’m done trying to fight you on this. You’re blind but you won’t let me help you see.” Her breath came in shuddering gasps, her mind swirling with possibilities of what he might do to her. “Whatever it is you’re going to do, please, just do it,” she whispered, her entire body shaking violently. “Don’t torture me like this.”
There was a long silence. Sasha waited for him to do something. The way he’d been coming in and out of her room, saying nothing and doing nothing, had been torturous on her mind. It was like Chinese water torture. She was always tense, waiting for the drip, drip, drip. Waiting for him to take his revenge in the way he threatened, but him never actually hurting her had made her almost crazy, wondering and worrying about what he intended to do. Surely now, after she’d tried to escape, he’d have no choice but to carry out his plan, whatever it was. Sasha had never been this tired. She just wanted an end to all of this.
To her surprise, his arms came around her and he lifted her up as though she weighed nothing. Sasha kept her head down, tears still trickling down her cheeks. Of course he wasn’t going to hurt her out here. It would be too obvious. It would have to be done indoors, where no neighbors or prying eyes could see, although they felt pretty isolated out here. Sasha had yet to see another dwelling or person beyond her window.
Now she had the sinking feeling she wasn’t going to get out of here alive.
Torin’s stomach was churning so badly he thought he might throw up right there in the hallway. Leaning heavily against the wall for a moment, he drew in three deep breaths, one after the other, until the nausea passed. He couldn’t believe what had almost happened. Sasha had almost escaped, and after his anger had died down, he’d realized just how terrible a man she thought he was. He’d seen it in her face. She truly thought he was going to beat her half to death, right there in the field.
What made it worse was that the sight of her bleeding hands and torn feet had made something in his heart burn with sympathy.
He’d thrown her on the bed and left. Now he was battling with himself about what he was going to do.
Gritting his teeth, Torin walked back into the bedroom and saw that Sasha was right where he’d left her. Walking into the en-suite, he stuck the plug into the tub and turned on the hot water, letting it run. He left the bedroom again, not bothering to lock it, and strode down to the kitchen.
What am I doing?
He didn’t have time to question himself. He just knew the look of defeat on Sasha’s face when she’d thought he was going to kill her was something he would never forget.
But you wanted to punish her for what she did to your brother.
“I know, I know,” Torin muttered to the voice in his head, not knowing exactly what he was doing. “I just can’t leave her like that.” His wolf growled inside him, unsettled by the confusion going on in his mind, but his wolf wanted to go to Sasha, to make sure she was alright. What the hell was wrong with him? Couldn’t his wolf see that she was responsibl
e for his brother’s death? How could he want to protect her?? He didn’t really know what was going on in his head, or his heart for that matter.
There was no comprehensible reason as to why he was behaving like this, but something was driving him to do it. Hoping that James wasn’t about to walk into the kitchen and ask him what he was doing – since he was pretty sure he couldn’t explain it – Torin took the tray he’d made and walked back up the stairs.
The bedroom door was just as he’d left it and so was Sasha. She didn’t even look up when he set the tray down next to her.
“Here,” he said, as quietly as he could manage. “You’re hurt. This will help.”
Remembering the bath water, he quickly made his way into the en-suite and turned off the water, a soft cloth in his hand. Dipping it into the steaming water, he walked back into the bedroom and knelt down in front of Sasha.
Her eyes slowly lifted to his, half hidden by the curtain of hair around her face. He didn’t know what to say and so decided not to say anything. Taking her hand, he felt her jerk at his touch but grasped it firmly anyway.
“I’m not going to hurt you,” he muttered, not able to look into her eyes. He gently began to wipe at the deep cuts and scratches on her palms, suddenly aware of just how terrified she must have been to scramble over the flagstone wall in such a way as to get these injuries. She didn’t move, didn’t even flinch as he began to wipe the dirt away.
Something stirred in his heart. His skin was warming from the touch of her hand against his. He paused, looking up at her and was suddenly caught by just how much despair was in her eyes. Torin caught himself wondering just how they would look if she were to smile, if she were happy.
Dropping the cloth, he rose to his feet but kept a hold of her hand.
“There’s antiseptic cream there, and some band-aids and gauze if you need them,” he said, gruffly, not sure why he couldn’t drop her hand from his. It was as if he needed to reassure her that he wasn’t the monster she thought he was, even though he’d always intended to be more terrible than any monster she’d ever experienced before. Clearing his throat, he let go of her fingers and stepped back towards the door. “The bath is there for you. Clean yourself up. Rest. I – I have some things to do. I’ll be back later.”
He couldn’t account for the calm way he was speaking to her. By rights, he should be furious, but instead all he was doing was trying to make her feel calm. It didn’t make sense.
“Sasha?” he asked, desperate to have her look at him. “Sasha? Are you going to be okay?”
She finally met his gaze, confusion in her eyes.
“Drink the tea and eat something,” he said, when she didn’t answer. He waited for her to respond, but she just continued to look at him mutely. Wondering what else to say and growing more frustrated with himself by the minute, Torin cleared his throat, gestured at the en-suite one more time and stepped out into the hallway.
Chapter Ten
Sasha had not slept well. She’d stayed awake for as long as she could, terrified that Torin was going to reappear at her side and scream at her, his fists punching into her soft skin, but, in the end, she’d been unable to keep herself awake.
This was now the second day since her failed escape attempt, but still Torin had done nothing to her. He kept coming in with plates of food and glasses of water, which she was thankful for, but he’d just look at her, set it down and leave again. She’d tried to talk to him, to ask him about Bramble or whether or not he’d gone to Thomas’ house but he’d remained perfectly silent, refusing to answer a single question.
Sasha was quite sure that he was doing it on purpose. He was intentionally trying to keep her off balance, to make her mind her own worst enemy, as she imagined what was coming every minute of every day. She would never know what he was doing or what he had planned. She would always be left guessing, waiting for the pain to come.
But, still, Torin did nothing.
Sasha couldn’t explain it. She had no idea what was going on in his mind, but her thoughts were driving her crazy. Unless, maybe he had started to really listen to what she had been saying all along. Maybe he saw the holes in his logic finally and he was second guessing his actions after all. Or, maybe he was just planning an even worse revenge. Argh!! The not knowing was driving her crazy!
“I have to do something,” she whispered to herself, looking out of the window at the cold morning sun. “I’m going to go mad with worry.”
Without Bramble by her side, and with the awareness that no one would be looking for her or even be worried about her, Sasha felt the aching hopelessness envelope her once more. There had to be something she could do to help herself.
Sniffing, she wrinkled her nose, aware that she’d been in the same clothes for a few days now. There was a shower, of course, but she had no clean clothes to change into. There were Torin’s things around the place, but the thought of putting on something of his made her stomach clench.
Then again, it might make you look like less of a threat, she reminded herself, recalling the various training tips she’d been given over the years. It might endear you to him a little.
Drawing in a shaky breath, Sasha walked into the en-suite and tried to work out how to put on the shower. Cold water spurted from the shower head, catching her by surprise. Managing to turn it off, she stepped back, her shirt soaking wet – only to hear the sound of the key in the lock.
Her eyes widened as Torin appeared in the doorway to the en-suite, his eyes dark.
“I – I’m sorry,” she stammered, backing away until she hit the sink. “I just wanted to have a shower.”
He stepped towards her, putting down the tray of food in his hands and Sasha cringed, awaiting his reaction.
He entered the bathroom, crowding her against the tub and leaned forward, getting into her personal space. She thought for a moment that he was going to push her bodily into the tub. Her heart jumped as she realized this was it. He was finally going to take his retribution. She squeezed her eyes tightly closed, readying herself to fight back, to use every dirty trick she had learned in self-defense at the academy. Instead, she heard the sound of flowing water behind her. Torin had reached around her and turned on the shower.
Opening her eyes, Sasha’s heart thumped wildly in her chest as she looked up at him, seeing the sudden darkness in his eyes. Please don’t touch me? Wait a second! Why the hell had that sounded like a question in her mind?? Of course she didn’t want him to touch her! What was her traitorous body thinking. She clamped down hard on her errant thoughts, wrangling her out-of-line body parts back onto the no-touch wagon. It was one way he could easily take his revenge Just because there were moments where he almost seemed human, instead of a cold-blooded kidnapper, didn’t mean she should soften her heart – or any other body part – to him.
“Be quick,” he grunted, moving back towards the door. “I’ll leave some clothes out for you.” Picking up the tray, he stepped out of the door, and shut it firmly behind him.
Sasha flew to the door at once, wondering if she’d be able to lock it, only to discover that the lock had been disabled. She couldn’t shift it and, try as she might, it remained exactly where it was. That meant that Torin could come in whenever he wanted.
Then again, he’d always been able to do that.
Glancing back at the hot shower, Sasha set her jaw and quickly began to pull her clothes off, throwing them all over the bathroom. She’d sort them out after she’d dried. She was just going to have to brave it. She got the impression that if she didn’t do what he said, he’d probably remove her clothes for her and throw her in the tub. The hot water ran over her skin but Sasha couldn’t enjoy it. Her thoughts were rough and jagged, her eyes constantly on the door. Did he want her to shower so that he could take her afterwards, as revenge for his brother and punishment for running away? Would it be more of an enjoyable experience for him? Her stomach tightened with fear as she kept her eyes firmly fixed on the door handle. Yes, fear w
as the only thing she was feeling, she promised herself sternly.
As she washed her hair, making sure to be as quick as possible, Sasha reflected on the fact that Torin hadn’t actually done anything to her so far. Apart from his threats and taking Bramble away, he hadn’t laid a finger on her. His anger had slowly dissipated, until his eyes were no longer filled with rage. Certainly, he didn’t say very much still, but there wasn’t that fury in his expression every time he looked at her. The problem was that it had been replaced with a calculating look that meant she had no idea what he was thinking or feeling.
Was his lack of action just another one of his mind games? Or was there the possibility, however slight, that he wasn’t able to bring himself to actually inflict any kind of pain on her?
Just as she thought that, the door to the bathroom was suddenly pushed open. With a shriek, Sasha tried to cover herself, only for Torin to scoop up her clothes, shoot her a single glance, and step out again.
Sasha sank to her haunches, her breath coming in short, sharp gasps. He’d taken her clothes. She had nothing but a towel to cover herself with. Everything she’d thought about him was wrong. He was going to use her in any way he wanted.
The door opened again, and Sasha instinctively wrapped her arms around her legs, as though she could hide herself from him. She expected him to wrench open the shower door and drag her onto the floor, but instead, he just threw a wadded-up pile of clothes towards her.
“Hurry up,” he growled, before closing the en-suite door again.
Sasha’s entire body began to tremble with relief, confusion spiraling through her.
___________
“Everything okay?”
James was standing in Torin’s dining room, which Torin used as an office, a sheaf of papers in his hand. He had one eyebrow raised, a look of concern on his face.
