The Siege of Kadenburg

by T. E. Ridener

  Never, she thought sadly as she leaned down until she could brush her lips over his forehead. Funny how he didn’t feel very cold to her-in fact, he felt surprisingly warm for a dead person. She sniffled again, trying to keep from falling apart as she wracked her brain for ideas on how to escape.

  “Louisa? Did you hear me?”

  “What?” Louisa didn’t bother to lift her head as she buried her nose into Greg’s hair.

  “I know this isn’t the ideal time to be under so much pressure, but we’ve got to get out of here,” Sammy insisted as she reached down suddenly, grabbing Louisa’s arm. “Come on.”

  “No!” Louisa all but shrieked as she pulled away from her. “No, I won’t leave him here,” she blinked back hot tears, shaking her head furiously. “I can’t do that.”

  “Sweetie,” Sammy heaved a sigh, crouching down again as she tilted her head to the side. “I know the timing couldn’t be worse…and I’m sure he meant a lot to you, but he’s gone. We have to get out of here. If this man is as dangerous as you say he is, we need to get a move on, okay?”

  “I can’t leave him,” Louisa confessed in a broken whisper. “Please…”

  “Look, I get it. I’ve lost people who meant the world to me. People I could never imagine living without. It gets better. It’s not easy, but it gets better, I swear it. You know this, Louisa. You’ve lost family members too,” Sammy’s voice dripped with impatience as she tightened her fingers around the girl’s wrist. “Now come-”

  They both fell back in shock as Greg shot up into a sitting position, gasping for air.

  Louisa caught herself on her palms while Sammy fell right back on her ass. They stared at him with wide eyes as he sucked in another lungful of air, rubbing at his neck.

  “What the hell happened?” He asked in a raspy voice, turning his head to stare at Sammy first, and then finally twisting his body around to gaze at Louisa. He frowned upon seeing her tears. “Lou, what’s wrong?”

  “You’re…but…you….” Louisa couldn’t seem to find the words she wanted to say as her eyes moved over his face. Had she finally lost her mind? Had the stress become too much for her? How was this possible?

  “No fucking way,” Sammy stated flatly as she cautiously moved onto her knees and stared at him. “There’s no fucking way.”

  “What do you mean?” Greg asked as he blinked a few times, seemingly trying to focus his vision. “What happened?”

  Louisa flung her arms around him suddenly, causing both of them to crash against the floor as she pressed her lips firmly against his.

  “You’re alive!” She sobbed happily, allowing her tears to splash against his cheeks as she kissed him again. And again.

  “Of course I’m alive….” Greg managed to say between kisses. He wrapped an arm around her and stared at Sammy quizzically. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

  “You were dead,” Sammy replied. “I felt for your pulse. You didn’t have one.”

  “What?” Greg slowly pushed himself up with one hand, supporting Louisa’s weight against his chest as he tilted his head to the side. “Ow,” He winced.

  “Yeah, ow,” Sammy quirked a brow. “Your neck was broken….you were deader than a doornail.”

  “Obviously not,” Greg mumbled in disbelief as he ran his hand up and down Louisa’s spine. “Hey….it’s okay. Everything’s okay. I’m okay, Lou.”

  “But you weren’t,” The younger female whimpered as she pulled back to stare at him. “You were dead and I couldn’t fix you….and I was afraid I was going to have to leave you here and I didn’t want to do that,” she sobbed as her tears continued to fall. She hiccupped, lifting a hand to wipe at her eyes. “I don’t know how you’re back but I’m glad you are. Don’t you ever do that to me again!”

  Greg blinked rapidly, “I won’t. I promise.”

  Louisa was so happy at that moment and it became unbelievably clear just how much she actually cared about him. They embraced once more as Sammy gazed back and forth between them, totally and utterly confused.

  “We need to get out of here, remember?” Sammy said after a few seconds. “He’ll be back.”

  “Colin?” Greg asked in a low growl. He untangled himself from Louisa, easily breaking the chains that bound his wrists before he pried the metal links from around hers. Sammy watched in shock as he stood from the floor and towered over her. “He’s dead when I see him.”

  “How did you….” Sammy shook her head. “Never mind. Let’s just figure out a way to get out of here.”

  “Oh, I know how to get out of here.” Greg replied as his eyes began to glow.

  Louisa gasped, gripping his face between her hands as she pulled his gaze to her own. He couldn’t reveal himself to Sammy. Urseth knew they were in a dire situation, but that did not justify letting a human see them for anything other than….well, human.

  “Well?” Sammy asked. “What’s the plan?”

  Greg’s nostrils flared as he gazed at Louisa, allowing her touch to comfort him as his eyes returned to their natural color. His jawline tightened and relaxed before he offered the faintest of smiles to her-a smile of gratitude. He curled his fingers around hers and then turned his head to stare at the female deputy.

  “I’m gonna need somebody to scream.”

  “What?” Louisa frowned. “Why?”

  “Because he’ll come running to see what’s going on…and when he does….I’ll kill him.”

  Eighteen

  “Isn’t he the most beautiful baby you’ve ever seen in your life?”

  “He’s perfect. He’s absolutely perfect, Gnomey.”

  “What will we name him?”

  “Give him a strong name. He will do great things when he’s grown.”

  The conversation between a male and female drifted away like an early morning breeze as Presley slowly eased back into reality. The scent of mildew tickled at her nose, reminding her of a place from childhood. What place did it remind her of? A basement, perhaps. Basements always smelled musty-like wet dirt. And in a weird way, Presley had always been fond of the scent.

  As her eyes fluttered open, she could recall exactly how she ended up here, and that caused her entire body to go into defense mode.

  Oh no, she thought. Oh no, oh no.

  She stayed perfectly still aside from her heart beat picking up significantly. Even though her skin felt hotter than the pits of hell, she knew no change would take place. Mrs. Bamey had already explained a pregnant ursithrope couldn’t shift. Oh Urseth, why?

  How am I supposed to protect myself against him? She wondered as her eyes slowly scanned the dimly lit room. How do I protect my baby if I can’t shift?

  She released a soft breath and willed herself not to cry. This wasn’t the time or place to be crying-even if her hormones insisted she needed to at the moment-she had to keep it together.

  I can’t believe Tim’s a werewolf. How?

  She couldn’t help but to wonder if Breslin was really that sick of an individual. Did he go to Florida just to collect her ex-boyfriend and bite him? Did he take pleasure in adding to the demons she was already battling?

  I can’t let them get under my skin like this. She told herself as she lifted a hand to rub at the back of her neck.

  Wait. She wasn’t tied down or anything? What kind of abduction was this supposed to be?

  Why am I even able to compare abductions? That’s so messed up. She groaned softly, closing her eyes.

  “Are you awake now?”

  Her eyes snapped open upon hearing his voice, and she met his gaze within seconds. Tim was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest as he grinned.

  “I’m sorry for the theatrics of getting you here, Goldilocks. I just knew you wouldn’t come willingly.”

  “So your plan was to go barbaric and drag me here?” Presley asked in a raspy voice. She rolled her eyes. “I always got the feeling you had deeper issues than just being an asshole.”

  “I’ve missed you too,” he smirke
d. “But now that you’re awake, we can talk.”

  Presley watched him closely as Tim stepped towards her, shoving his hands into the front pockets of his jeans as he cocked his head to the side. He still looked like the same scrawny guy she remembered from Florida. He always had a nice tan from the sunshine and his darker skin contrasted with bright blue eyes he got from his mom. His mom was nice-he was not. He hadn’t always been a jerk….

  “Why are you whoring around with a nobody, Presley?”

  Oh no, he did not. Presley’s mouth fell open as she glared at him. Lorcan wasn’t a nobody! Lorcan was a wonderful somebody and she definitely wasn’t whoring around.

  “Aww, come on now,” he clicked his tongue against the roof of his mouth. “I know what’s going through that pretty little head of yours, Presley. I’ve known you for three years. You never even mentioned this Lorcan guy to me-not once. So how the hell did you end up with him so quickly?”

  “That’s none of your business,” she replied, squirming around on the cold floor. “Did you honestly kidnap me just to interrogate me about my relationship, Tim? You’re wasting your time.”

  “Am I?” He lifted a single eyebrow, tracing his tongue over his bottom lip. “I don’t think it’s a waste of time. Breslin doesn’t think it’s waste of time, either.”

  He noted the look on her face at the mention of Breslin, and that caused a malicious smile to slide over his lips.

  “Ah, so that’s how I get you to talk, isn’t it? You’ve met Breslin, haven’t you? He’s a good guy.”

  “No, he isn’t,” Presley blinked. “And you shouldn’t be hanging around him, Tim. He’s….you don’t want to sink to his level.”

  She watched as his eyes began to glow, and something about that terrified her. She was used to seeing it happen with anyone else…but for it to happen with Tim? It wasn’t right. She swallowed hard, slowly cowering away from him as he moved closer.

  “I’ve always been on his level, Presley,” he said in a lower voice. “And he’s opened my eyes to a lot of things. He told me that you lost our baby because of your….condition.”

  “My condition?”

  “Yeah, that bear problem you’ve got going on. It makes more sense now. My little swimmers didn’t stand a fighting chance because of it. But guess what?” He fell to his knees before her, reaching a hand out to touch her cheek. Presley flinched and pulled away from his touch. “I’m not some puny little human anymore, beautiful. I bet we could make a stronger baby this time. It would survive.”

  “What the hell are you talking about?” Presley asked, horrified. She got the feeling that Tim didn’t know the entire story. He obviously wasn’t aware that Breslin didn’t turn him as a favor-or even out of pity. He’d been bitten because Breslin needed an army, and he was another pathetic pawn in a game of war.

  “I’m talking about giving me another chance,” Tim murmured as he leaned in to kiss her. She narrowly dodged his attempt, falling back against the ground as the air escaped her lungs.

  “Stop that!” Presley scowled, smacking his arm. “I don’t want another chance with you.”

  “Why not?” Tim growled, crawling over her as his palms pressed flat against the ground on either side of her head. “I’m better now, Goldilocks. I’m stronger, faster, and my stamina is amazing….” His lips grazed over her jawline and she felt like she was going to throw up.

  “Get off me!” She shrieked, shoving him backwards with all her might. Her strength even surprised her as he went sailing through the air, crashing against the opposite wall before slumping against the floor.

  Her eyes widened as she scrambled into a sitting position, breathing heavily. Holy shit…did she just do that?

  “What the hell is your problem?” Tim growled, pushing himself up from the floor. His eyes were glowing more intensely and she knew he was getting angry. Well, she was one step ahead of him.

  Her skin was crawling, begging to shift as her head began to swell.

  I want to kill him, her bear declared. He is not allowed to touch us like that! He is not our mate!

  Tell me something I don’t know, Presley thought in annoyance.

  “We can be together now,” Tim insisted as he moved towards her again. He gazed at her with wild eyes, baring his fangs. “We can have everything we ever wanted, Presley. I can take care of you.”

  “Oh, sure you can,” she snarled, pushing herself up onto trembling knees as she stared at him. “I’m sure you’ll take care of me just fine, huh? Get what you want and toss me aside-or if you can’t get what you want, you’ll throw me out and humiliate me.”

  “I made a mistake!” He bellowed, towering over her as he chomped his fangs together. “Everybody makes mistakes. I’m only hu—oh wait. That’s not true anymore. I’m something so much better,” he laughed. “Come on, Presley. We were so good together, Baby. Tell me you don’t feel something for me anymore.”

  “I don’t feel anything for you,” she promised as her upper lip curled back in disgust. “I don’t know what Breslin told you, but there’s not a snowball’s chance in hell that I’d ever want to be with you ever again.”

  “You don’t mean it,” he growled, pinning her body against the stony, damp wall. “We had something special, Presley. We can have something extraordinary now. A wolf and a bear…think about it. Our baby would be invincible.”

  “Get away from me, you lunatic!” She shoved him backwards again, but this time, he didn’t budge. Shit!

  “You know you miss me,” he said in a huskier tone, pressing his forehead against hers. “We were going to get married, remember? We were going to have a happily ever after. What happened, Goldilocks? What made you hate me so much?”

  “You are….get away!” She screamed, stomping her foot down against his. He howled in pain, stumbling backwards. “You are absolutely insane if you think I want anything like that with you! You threw me out! You said I was broken!” Angry tears rolled down her cheeks as her body began to tremble uncontrollably. “That was your fault, Tim. I moved on. You can’t just waltz into my town and think your new wolfy abilities give you a pass to win me back. They don’t, and you never will win me back. You are a heartless bastard and so help me Urseth if you ever touch me again I will rip your head off.”

  She was breathing heavily. Her chest was tightening and the world seemed to be getting smaller and smaller by the second. Or maybe it was just the room…she had to get out. She needed to get away from him.

  Tim stared at her in shock, as if he didn’t know what to say. His sharp fangs grazed over his lower lip as he tilted his head the opposite way. What was running through his mind? Did she even want to know?

  “Breslin said there needs to be a baby,” he whispered. “A baby born with both gifts. We can make that baby, Presley.”

  “You are insane,” she spat back at him, shaking her head furiously. “Take a good listen, Tim. Use those new wolfy powers of yours and listen hard.”

  A confused expression crossed his features as he blinked, “What do you mean?”

  “Listen.” She repeated, resting a hand against her stomach.

  And he seemed to do just that. She knew he would be able to hear the rapid heartbeat that was not her own. It sounded like the flutter of hummingbird wings.

  “What?” He whispered in disbelief.

  “There’s already a baby.” Presley confirmed as she straightened her posture significantly. She felt braver in that moment. Perhaps it was only the mama bear making itself known, but she was no longer afraid of him.

  Tim sneered as his eyes darkened. The glow around his pupils disappeared as he bared his fangs, “You let him knock you up,” he muttered. “You little whore! I’m going to kill you!”

  A furious roar escaped her lips before she could stop it and she lunged at him. Everything past that moment became a blur.

  Another growl sounded in the air and Tim was suddenly being tackled to the ground. Strong arms wrapped around Presley’s torso and she screamed
bloody murder. She was not going down without a fight. She would not surrender to the wolves.

  ‘Lorcan!’ She shouted in her mind. ‘Lorcan, where are you?! I don’t know where I am, but I need you.’

  “It’s okay, Presley. Stop fighting me!” A hushed voice whispered near her earlobe. The grip around her body relaxed, but Presley couldn’t process the words being spoken to her. She was blinded by rage and the need to protect her cub. She flung her head back, listening to the loud crack of her skull making contact with a nose.

  “OW!” Her captor shouted in pain, releasing her completely as she fell to the ground.

  Presley scrambled back to her feet, darting towards the doorway. She didn’t even take into consideration that the door had been broken down. She was in survival mode and she wasn’t going to stop to ask questions. She just knew she had to run.

  So that’s exactly what she did.

  ———————————

  That. Hurt. Like. A. Bitch.

  Was this going to happen every time he tried to play hero? Rutley was beginning to question his life choices as he clamped his hands around his nose, groaning from the intense pain pulsating through his head. The hot blood flowed like a damn faucet as he doubled over and squeezed his eyes shut.

  “Get off me!” Tim wailed as he threw a punch at Dimitri’s face. Dimitri pulled back slightly, snapping his fangs in warning to the newer werewolf.

  Rutley blinked, trying to clear the tears from his eyes as he watched the two men scuffle on the ground. He would’ve enjoyed watching it had it not been for the agonizing pain of a broken nose-given to him by the one person he was trying to save.

  He wasn’t even sure how it happened, really. They’d been with Beau, determined to ‘hunt’ down the werewolf responsible for the attack on Arnold Goult. Dimitri started acting strange and before they knew it, he was shooting off in the complete opposite direction of where they were intending to go.

  Rutley didn’t have an explanation for it. Maybe Dimitri just had a better grasp on his senses. Well, duh-of course he did. He was born a werewolf. He’d had plenty of time to adjust to his talents-unlike Rutley. Either way, Rutley followed behind him, trusting his alpha’s actions.