My wolf could literally feel the pain and agony of those inside that terrible place.
Instead of wanting to turn around like any smart wolf would I push on needing to save Gage and Rowan and whoever else I could save along the way, if that was even possible.
Deeper into the trees the light becomes all but tiny slivers of light fighting their way through the dense leaves of the canopy above.
It was both beautiful and eerie.
“We need to stop before we come out on the other side so we don’t draw any attention.” I mention quickly as the trees begin to thin.
In a matter of seconds all four of us are skidding to an abrupt stop.
The trees had ended without warning and a heavy darkness hung over the building in the distance.
“Holy…that’s just scary as hell.” Harley mutters exactly what we had all been thinking.
Changing into my human form I watch as Dillon, Damon, and Harley all change.
“What’s the plan?” Magnus questions from Harley’s lips.
I smirk thankful that he was taking over right now since he would be able to protect my best friend.
“You’re going to hate it.” I begin.
“The only way we would hate it is if you do something stupid.” Dillon sighs before looking at me with a raised brow. “You’re going to do something stupid, aren’t you?”
“Maybe, but hear me out. We need one of us on the inside in order to gather information and the layout of this place. If I go inside I can help you find your way when you three break in to get us back out.” I reply.
“That’s actually kind of a good idea but it should be one of us going in, not you, Parker.” Damon sighs roughly.
Dillon and Magnus grunt in agreement.
“I’m the strongest of all of you that’s why I need to be the one to go in, plus I can heal myself faster and help anyone inside that needs it.” I explain.
Again, they all nod and grunt in agreement.
“I still don’t like the idea of sacrificing our alpha.” Dillon shakes his head.
“You don’t have to like it, Dillon, but this is the only way.” I reply gently.
He nods. “I know, Parker.”
“Alright, so how do we get you inside?” Magnus grunts out in question.
I grin. “That’s what we have Damon for. They don’t know that he is a wolf now, and he wears the Hunters mark still, so they won’t question him if he is the one bringing me in.”
“But what if they don’t fall for it?” Dillon questions.
“Then we have two of us on the inside.” I answer.
Magnus and Dillon nod.
One way or another, this would end up with either only me inside or both of us but that still meant that we would have help on the outside and that was the most important part.
Without anyone on the outside we would be doomed.
Turning my full attention towards Damon he bows his head watching me from under his lashes. “Do you think you can handle presenting me to those Hunters inside?”
He nods. “I can, I’ve done it many times before this.”
“How many times have you done this?” I inquire curiously.
He sighs sadly. “Fifty-eight times I’ve had to bring both innocent and guilty wolves here.”
I curse under my breath along with Dillon.
“Can we trust him after that little confession, Parker?” Dillon questions inside my mind only.
I take a long moment to watch Damon closely.
Searching his eyes as I step closer I find the answer I was looking for.
He was ashamed of what he had done, and he held a deep sadness for those that he had brought here now that he knew what we were.
“We can trust him.” I answer out loud. “He’s ashamed of what he did.”
Not another word is said about his loyalty to us and our kind.
“When are you going to go in, Parker?” Harley’s voice comes from her lips this time.
“Soon, but don’t worry about me, Harley, I’ll be fine.” I whisper back as I pull my best friend into my arms for a tight embrace.
“I don’t want to let you go.” She whispers sadly. “I know Magnus won’t let me hold you back but that’s all I want to do right now.”
I nod as I lean back. “Trust Magnus to do what is right. You two have come a long way and learning to trust each other is something you have to do.”
She nods and as I stare into her light blue eyes they change to the dark grey of Magnus’s eyes.
“I’ll take care of her.” He smiles through her lips.
I nod, I knew no matter what he would protect her for me.
Turning back around to Damon I raise my brow to the chains he was now holding in his hands. “What are those for?” I question.
“These are our tickets inside.” He answers.
I move closer and trail my fingertips over the chains that were encrusted with dried blood from other wolves who had found themselves bound in these chains.
“Will they hurt?” I ask softly.
“They can, but I won’t hurt you, Parker.” Damon answers honestly.
I nod and stare up into his eyes for a moment. “What do we have to do?”
“Just close your eyes.” He replies softly.
I nod and do as I’m told, although reluctantly.
As the cold hard metal of the chains wrap its way around my wrists and neck I fight hard to keep my inner wolf from panicking.
She was scared, and I couldn’t blame her.
I was just as scared.
“Don’t let your wolf to come out, Parker. If you do the chains will hurt her.” Damon warns as he picks my chin up and my eyes open to look upon his face.
I whimper in response.
“I’m sorry.” He whispers just before a loud click reverberates through my body.
He had locked the chains tightly around my body with one twist.
“Don’t fight against the chains either. They will tighten on their own if you do.” Damon warns quickly as he sees the panic rising in my eyes.
I nod stiffly in understanding as I lift my bound hands into view.
The chains looked so foreign against my skin.
“You’ll be fine.” Dillon whispers as he takes one of my hands in his.
“I hope so, Dillon.” I reply quietly.
“Are you ready to go, Parker? The quicker we get inside the sooner I can take these chains off of you.” Damon grunts.
“I’m ready, I guess.” I answer while forcing a brave smile.
Damon nods as he holds tightly to the other end of the chains.
With quick grins from Magnus and Dillon we start off on our way towards the road that would lead us right to the front gate of the Island.
“Just stay calm until we get to the gates, Parker. I might have to act a bit harsh towards you in order to make this appear legit.” Damon states quietly as I follow close behind him.
“Just do whatever you have to do, Damon, I can handle it.” I reassure.
He nods in understanding as we continue on, the building and large fence quickly becoming more visible as we near.
“Who’s there?” A voice calls out as we finally reach the gate.
“It’s Damon, Hunter of the Red Devils.” Damon answers loudly.
I raise my brow in amusement as he glances back at me with a smirk.
I had no idea that the Hunters had groups or even names for those groups.
“Ah, Damon, what do you have for us today?” A man appears before us with two guards on either side.
“I brought the Onyx wolves’ young female alpha.” Damon grins as he tugs on the chains bringing me closer.
“How did you get a hold of such a prominent wolf?” The man questions with a raised brow.
Damon smirks while glancing back at me. “I have my ways of getting the females I want. She had no idea what I was until it was too late.”
He tugs the chain just hard enough to pull me right nex
t to him where he strokes his hand over my cheek.
Playing my part I snarl and try to bite at his hand in anger.
“That was luck on your part, Damon. She could have easily torn you to shreds.” The man laughs.
“But she didn’t and now I’ve got her. How much am I going to gain from her?” Damon questions curiously, moving the conversation forward.
The man moves closer to the gate to look at me. “Is she secured enough to get a closer look?”
Damon nods stiffly. “She is.”
He glances back at me for a moment. “Just let him do whatever he needs to because if you don’t those two guards will hurt you or even kill you.” He warns in my mind.
“I’m scared.” I reply.
“Don’t be, I’m right here.” Damon reassures.
The large gate squeaks loudly as it swings open and the three men walk through closer to me.
I absently back up as they approach until Damon snaps the chains again bringing me forward once more.
“She’s a lovely creature. She would be perfect for our little project.” The man states as he raises his hand to touch my hair.
I snarl and lunge forward to hurt him but again Damon expertly snaps the chains so that I’m left panting for air on the ground.
“She is by no means sweet, Sir. She will tear off your hand just like the rest of them if you give her the chance.” Damon warns as he kneels down next to me to loosen the chain from around my neck that was cutting off my air.
“She seems to like you well enough.” The man grunts.
Damon glances up at the man for a moment before he shakes his head. “She doesn’t like me, hell the second I turn my back she would be tearing my throat out for what I did with her.”
“Bite me, Parker. We have to make this look real. I don’t think he’s buying it.” Damon grunts in my mind as his eyes remain on the man before us.
“If I bite you he will notice how fast you heal.” I clip out.
Thinking of something even better I move quickly managing to catch Damon off guard along with the man as I pin Damon to the ground as my teeth sharpen.
I growl fiercely as I move my face closer to his neck.
It works well when the guards tug roughly on the chains pulling me off of Damon.
I fight against them all until Damon finally takes back his control and I’m once again on the ground gasping for air.
“She is stronger than she looks, Damon.” The man grunts as he pants for his own breath.
Damon quickly kneels down to loosen the chains once more. “You better listen to me next time, dog.”
I snarl. “I hate you and I will kill you.”
“No you won’t.” Damon barks out in laughter. “You’ll never get the chance.”
The men surrounding us laugh out with him before Damon roughly pulls me up to my feet.
He turns to the leader of the group. “So, what can I get from her or am I going to just have to put her down?”
“I’ll take her. She would be perfect to pair with the other young alpha male we had brought in not long ago. Although he has killed nearly every mate we’ve tried to give him.” The man states before continuing on. “We can talk the price over once you bring her inside.”
Damon nods. “This isn’t normal, Parker.”
“Just do whatever he wants. One way or another we will get out of here, Damon.” I reassure quickly.
“That’s fine by me but why exactly do you need me to take her inside for you, can’t your men handle her?” Damon questions.
“Normally I would, but these two behind me haven’t dealt with an alpha before and I’d rather not lose any of my men today.” The man explains.
His explanation would have seemed legit to anyone who was normal but being what we were we could sense the lie on his tongue.
He knew something, either that, or he was testing us.
“It’s going to cost you more if I have to take her in there myself.” Damon grunts out.
The man nods. “That’s fine by me.”
He motions us forward and we follow him and his two men through the gate and down the short path towards the building.
“He knows what I am, doesn’t he?” Damon questions inside my head.
“I don’t know but I’m going to warn the others.” I sigh before focusing my mind on Dillon and Magnus. “We might not get out of here. The plan will still be the same but you two need to keep on your guards in case they figure out that I came with a pack.”
“Alright, Parker, just be careful.” Dillon replies.
As we reach the doorway into the building both Damon and I stop for a moment both of us sensing the fear and agony of others inside that we had never felt so strongly before.
The man glances back at us. “Is everything alright, Damon?”
Damon nods as he places one foot in front of the other as he tugs me to follow. “Everything is fine. She just wants to be difficult.”
“They never like coming through that door.” The man grunts. “I figure they can sense the others we hold captive in here.”
“Do you really think they are that much more advanced?” Damon questions, playing his part well enough.
The man shakes his head. “Honestly, I’ve seen some amazing things that these creatures can do so it wouldn’t surprise me.”
Stopping for a moment the man turns to face both Damon and I.
He motions towards my neck. “Most wolves, especially the alphas carry a small vial that contains the spirit of a wild wolf inside. She is missing hers which means one thing, either she lost it or she created a new wolf like herself to be forced into her pack.”
“But how can she have a pack when she’s only a lone female? I never found any other wolves with her.” Damon inquires.
It was a bit unnerving how much these people knew about our kind.
“That is the real question.” The man grins. “If she did have a pack you would be dead right now.”
After that bit of information I had the feeling he already knew what Damon was, or at least he had a suspicion.
Turning back around the man ends the conversation by motioning us forward once more.
He leads us down a long dark hallway until we reach two doors which open to reveal a large elevator.
We reluctantly get on between the two guards who pull out two guns and aim them directly on me.
“This isn’t good for us.” I mutter in Damon’s mind.
He nods ever so slightly.
Minutes later the elevator stops and we follow the leader into a brighter hallway.
He leads us past large glass windows with what appeared to be fake forests inside of them.
Damon studies them all closely. “What are these?”
“These are where we keep the wolves we plan on using to make a whole new species of wolves that we can use for ourselves.” The man answers.
“Each window we pass has a pack gathered in them.” He motions towards one of the windows where a group of wolves gather around a dead carcass.
This wasn’t how life was supposed to be for us, but it did surprise me that they weren’t kept in chains like I had imagined.
24-Trouble Ahead
At the end of the long hallway we come to a door where the man in charge pauses for a moment. “The beast that’s on the other side in here can’t hurt you but keep your guard out for his second. He can be a sly wolf.”
Damon nods and we enter into a large room with grass covering the floor along with a sparse cluster of trees.
The man turns to the left and I gasp in horror at what I’m forced to see.
Gage is chained against the wall.
Wounds covered his body and blood ran freely down the wall behind him.
The man turns towards me with a curious look. “It seems your girl there knows this young alpha.”
He then turns towards Damon. “I will be just outside while you free her. I’d rather have fewer people inside that she can kill.”
> Damon nods and we watch as the three men exit the room slamming the door behind them.
We hear the distinct click of a lock and I curse under my breath.
“Either they want you dead or they know what you are.” I state out loud.
There was no reason to hide now.
Damon nods. “They probably do.”
“Well, this just sucks.” I sigh as he begins to unlock the chains binding my wrists.
As Damon begins tossing the chains to the ground something runs past us in a blur of motion.
Damon curses as he lifts his now wounded hand. “What the hell was that?”
“That was the second. You might want to fight him off, you traitorous Hunter.” The leader’s voice calls out over some sort of intercom.
“Well, that answers that. And as for Gage’s second hurry and unchain me so I can deal with him.” I order.
Damon quickly hurries to free me as his hand continues to bleed.
Once I’m free I take his hand into mine and allow my wolf through just enough so she could lick his wound so it could heal.
It heals quickly and I fall to the ground changing quickly into my wolf form.
Rowan rushes towards us and clamps his jaw down on the back of my neck as I place myself between him and Damon.
I snarl and fight him until I gather enough strength to pin him down to the round.
As his eyes soften they also show a hint of surprise as he takes me in.
Stepping back I let him go and transform back into my human form.
He does the same before jumping up to his feet to pull me into a tight embrace. “I never thought I’d see you again, Parker.”
“Me either, Rowan, I’m so glad I found you.” I reply softly as I nuzzle my face into his neck.
As Damon’s presence draws closer to us Rowan lets out a low growl. “Who is he?”
“He’s part of my pack, Rowan.” I answer as I pull back and move towards Damon.
Rowan points towards Damon with confusion. “But he’s a Hunter, Parker.”
I nod. “I know but he’s on our side.” I sigh roughly as I pinch the bridge of my nose. “I have a lot to explain, so much has happened since you were taken away.”
“I’ve got a lot to explain to you too, Parker.” Rowan sighs as he bows his head. “But first I need to tell you what they’ve done to Gage.”
Bound (The Onyx Wolves Book 1) Page 15
