by Lola Gabriel
Archer had heard enough, and he lunged towards the hunter, his knife raised and his attention flitting between the hunter’s face and his gun. Archer saw the hunter’s finger go for the trigger of the gun, but his hand was shaking so badly, he couldn’t quite pull it. One more step, and Archer would be on him, and he would make short work of the bastard.
The hunter seemed to be able to read Archer’s face as well as he was able to read his, because he dropped to his knees suddenly. He pressed his blade to Brianna’s throat.
“Stop!” he shouted.
His command was needless. Archer had stopped moving the second the blade had moved towards Brianna.
“Don’t come any closer, or she dies,” the hunter added. “Now drop the knife and kick it over here.”
Archer let the knife fall from his fist, cursing himself for not seeing this move coming. When the knife hit the ground with a jarring clang that echoed through the shed, Archer kicked it towards the hunter. The hunter reached down, picked it up, and pushed it down the back of his jeans without his eyes leaving Archer for a second.
Archer made a quick calculation. If he turned and leapt at the hunter, he could take him down before he could kill Brianna. He would most likely die. The hunter would have time to shoot at him as he leapt, and as a wolf, he would be a much bigger target. But it would save her.
“You have made a huge fucking mistake, pal,” Archer snarled.
The hunter looked up at the cold anger in his words, and Archer saw the fear on his face as he turned. Archer let the wolf in, relishing the claws, the enhanced senses, even the fur. He launched himself at the hunter.
He was mid-leap when he heard the bang sound that meant the hunter had pulled the trigger. He was about to die. He just had to cling to the hope that the hunter would keep his word and not hurt Brianna.
13
Brianna lay on the hard, dirty floor of the shed. She could feel the cold from the floor moving through her body, and she had a splitting headache where Mark had smacked her and knocked her out, but other than that, she wasn’t in any physical pain. She was scared; afraid of what Mark would do to her if Archer didn’t show up and afraid of what he would do to Archer if he did show up.
And he would. Brianna had heard it in his voice on the other side of the phone. For now, she was alone with Mark, and she had decided to play unconscious. She hoped she could get Mark to lower his guard long enough for her to run past him and escape. Maybe she could even find Archer before he got here and stop all of this, but if she was being honest with herself, Archer could take Mark if it was just the two of them. It was her presence that was putting Archer in danger, because he wouldn’t let Mark hurt her just to get what he wanted.
A ray of light penetrated the shed and widened for a moment before being blocked by a shadow. Her eyes like slits, Brianna watched Archer step into the shed. He blinked a few times, waiting for his vision to adjust to the gloom. She saw him take in Mark standing beside her, and she saw the desolation on his face when he looked at her. He must think she was dead, and she wished she could give him a sign that she wasn’t, but she was afraid Mark would see it and do something rash. She was confident that Archer would have some sort of plan, and she would just have to lay still and let it play out.
“You see,” Archer said, “you hunters think you’re doing the world a favor, but ask yourself this. Which one of us is really a monster here? Which one of us has killed an innocent girl to make some sort of a point?”
“I don’t kill mortals,” Mark snapped quickly.
It was strange hearing someone who had manipulated her and knocked her unconscious sound so disgusted at the accusation, but it gave Brianna hope that both she and Archer could get out of this alive.
She heard Mark shuffling closer to her. He pushed her legs with his foot. Brianna froze for a moment, not sure what to do. She had to react somehow. She had to let Archer know she was alive, that there was still hope. She moaned quietly, flickering her eyelids slightly, like she imagined someone being roused from unconsciousness might react.
She saw a light go on in Archer’s eyes, saw his face flood with relief. Mark pushed his foot against her legs again, and she moaned once more, still keeping her eyes almost closed.
“Don’t you touch her!” Archer shouted, his voice so angry that it shook.
He ran forward, going for Mark, but Mark was quick. He raised the gun and fired off a shot. Archer had to throw himself to the ground to avoid the bullet, and it still missed him by just inches. Brianna’s breath caught in her throat. Mark might be afraid of Archer, but he was focused on his mission, and he wasn’t going to be easy to stop. Brianna was suddenly sure this was going to get really ugly. She wracked her brain, trying to think of a way to surprise Mark and disarm him, but he could move a lot faster than her, and any move she made could end up getting Archer killed.
Mark’s cocky demeanor shifted a little as Archer calmly taunted him. He fired off another shot, but Archer’s words had distracted him, something Brianna was sure was the desired effect, and the bullet went so wide that Archer didn’t even have to dodge it. It hit the wall behind him and fell to the floor with a clang.
“This was a mistake, hunter. You see that now. Luckily for you, I am a reasonable man. Leave this shed and run. I’ll give you a two-minute head start. If you can outrun me, you get to live, which is more than you deserve after what you’ve done to Brianna.”
Brianna hardly dared to breathe as a momentary silence filled the shed. She knew Mark was considering fleeing and taking his chances.
“No chance. I came here to take you down, and that’s what I’m going to do. And then, I’m going to take out each member of your pack, one by one,” he said.
Archer burst into action, running towards Mark when it became clear that there would be no reasoning with him. Brianna watched the two men, her eyes open wider now, since no one was paying her any attention. Archer’s piercing gaze alternated between Mark’s face and his trigger finger.
Mark’s finger started to close around the trigger, and it was all Brianna could do to stop herself from shouting a warning to Archer. Mark’s shaking finger slipped from the trigger, and no shot came. Mark must have known he had only seconds to react before Archer was on him, and he changed tactics quickly. He suddenly dropped to his knees, his body behind Brianna’s. Brianna closed her eyes back to slits just in time as Mark pressed his blade to her throat.
“Stop!” Archer had immediately stopped moving. “Don’t come any closer, or she dies,” Mark added. “Now drop the knife and kick it over here.”
Brianna saw Archer’s throat working as he swallowed hard, his eyes dark and furious. He let the knife fall from his fist and kicked it towards Mark. Mark picked it up and pushed it down the back of his jeans.
“You have made a huge fucking mistake, pal,” Archer snarled.
The cold anger in his words sent a shiver through Brianna. He would make Mark regret what he had done. Her jaw dropped despite herself when she saw Archer changing in front of her. Tufts of sandy-colored fur sprang out of his body, and his clothes seemed to melt away. His face became long and pointy, his eyes blackened. Within seconds, Archer the man was gone, and in his place stood a huge wolf.
The wolf growled at Mark, showing his teeth, and then he leapt into the air, throwing himself at Mark. The next few seconds passed in a flash but also felt like they lasted an eternity. Brianna finally came up with a plan.
As the wolf launched himself at Mark, Brianna heard the banging sound that meant he had pulled the trigger of his gun. She knew what silver poisoning did to a shifter, and she had no intention of letting that happen to Archer. The bullet might kill her, but it might not if it didn’t hit any major organs. If it so much as scratched Archer, he was dead.
Brianna pushed herself up into the air. She felt pressure, like a fist had hit her in the back, and then she felt a sharp pain, an intense burning that made her cry out. She could feel warm blood running down her back, bu
t she had bought Archer the time he needed to end this.
She fell back to the ground with a bone shaking slam, and she rolled onto her side so she could see Archer. She was in so much pain, and her vision swam scarily in and out of focus. White light danced across her field of vision, and although she felt dizzy and sick, she held on, forcing herself to stay conscious, needing to know for certain that Archer was okay.
The wolf’s paws landed on Mark’s shoulders with a growl from his mouth, knocking him to the ground. Brianna could hear Mark’s terrified whimpers, him begging for his life, but she could no longer feel any pity for him. He had tried to murder Archer. He deserved whatever his fate might be.
Her head swam, and her vision went fully white for a moment, but she managed to keep herself conscious, squeezing her hands into fists and digging her fingernails into her palms hard enough to gasp. The stinging pain kept her conscious, but she knew she couldn’t hold on much longer. Pain burned through her back just beneath her lungs, and she wondered fleetingly if the bullet had hit her spine. Would she be paralyzed? Would she die at Mark’s hand, even after all of this?
She turned her head to the side as she heard wet, tearing sounds. She didn’t blame Archer for what he was doing to Mark; not after he had showed them both what he was willing to do to win this fight. But it didn’t mean she wanted to watch Archer tear him to pieces.
After just minutes, she felt a warm hand on her shoulder, and she turned her head. Archer knelt beside her back in his human form, his hand on her shoulder.
“Brianna, stay with me,” he said.
She gave him a half smile, trying her best to stay conscious, but the dizziness, the pain, was all too much. Now that she knew Archer was okay, there was no reason to fight unconsciousness, no reason to hold onto the pain. She let her eyes slip closed, and everything went black.
Brianna woke up slowly, swimming up through layers of unconsciousness until her eyes finally opened. She closed them again as a bright light assaulted her. She blinked a few times to get used to the brightness.
She was laid on something soft; a bed, and for a second, she allowed herself to believe she was in her apartment, and the whole Archer and Mark thing had been nothing but a bad dream. The pain in her back told her it was all true, though. She reached up and felt the side of her head, but the wound there was almost gone. Mark couldn’t have hit her as hard as she had thought he had. It must just have caught her in the right place to knock her out.
She pushed herself up into a sitting position, wincing as she wriggled up. At least she was no longer handcuffed, which didn’t make her any less of a prisoner. She was in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room.
The room was decorated in muted creams and browns. Brianna had never seen the room before. Had Mark somehow defeated Archer and brought her here? No, Mark was dead. She had heard Archer tearing his throat out. He must have had associates waiting in the forest around the shed, associates who had overpowered them and brought her here.
Archer. What had happened to Archer? Had the other hunters killed him, or was he somewhere in here with her, imprisoned as she was?
She kicked her legs over the edge of the bed and stood up. Her legs shook, and she tumbled back down onto the bed in a rush of dizziness. She swallowed hard, willing the room to stop spinning. She closed her eyes and put her head between her knees for a few seconds until the feeling passed. When she felt like she was steadier, she opened her eyes again. She realized she was wearing clothes that were too big, clothes that weren’t hers.
Brianna stood up again, and this time, she only swayed for a second before her head cleared and her legs held her up easily. She moved to the window, looking for some clue as to where she was, but nothing she saw helped her. She was too high up to see any road signs, and all of the buildings looked like apartment blocks. Was she still in Nebraska? The faceless buildings could be anywhere in the world. She pushed the window up, enjoying the breeze blowing against her face. She poked her head out and looked down. She was guessing she was on at least the eighth or ninth floor of the building, and if she shouted loudly enough to alert anyone on the street below to her predicament, her captors would also hear her cries for help.
She pulled her head back in with a sigh. There was only one option. She was going to have to try and get through the door. She had never picked a lock in her life, and she had no idea how to do it, but she looked around for a pin or a hair grip, a trick she had seen on TV. There was nothing she could see that could be useful, and she decided she was going to have to try and throw her weight at the door and break the jam around the lock. Maybe she could find somewhere to hide if she attracted attention from the wrong people, and maybe the neighbors would hear the commotion and call the police.
Brianna moved to the door as quietly as she could. She pressed her ear against it, but she heard nothing. She took a deep breath and took the handle in her hand. Her heart skipped a beat when it turned easily in her hand, and a quiet clicking sound told her the door had opened. Knowing she wasn’t locked in the room should have brought her some relief, and it did for a moment, but then the relief was washed away by dread. If whoever was holding her here didn’t even think she posed enough of a danger to them for them to lock her in, she was in serious trouble. Maybe even worse trouble than she’d imagined.
Or was she? Brianna took a moment to compose herself a little. She knew she could move quietly, and if she could just find the stairs, maybe she could get down to street level and escape without anyone even knowing she was awake.
She pushed the door open, holding her breath, waiting for the inevitable squeak, but none came. She found herself in a short hallway, and she moved down it quickly and quietly. A closed door sat at the end of it, and Brianna pushed it open a crack. She was looking out into a lounge area. She pushed the door open a little wider and eased herself out through the gap.
She instantly saw her mistake. A large man sat in an armchair that had been just out of sight until she was fully in the room. He jumped to his feet when he saw her, and her eyes went instantly to the gun he held. She swallowed hard, panic flooding her. Sweat was pouring out of every part of her body, and although she didn’t trust her voice to work, she surprised herself when it came out steady and even.
“Who are you? Why am I here?” she demanded.
“Go back to bed,” the man said.
“Not until you tell me what’s going on,” Brianna said.
“You will be told everything in due time. Now please go back to bed. I don’t want to have to force you to comply,” the man said, taking a step towards her.
Brianna had heard enough, and her eyes stayed trained on his gun. She held her hands up in submission and slowly stepped back behind the door she had come through. The man didn’t make any move to follow her, but that didn’t make Brianna feel any safer. She had been right about being a prisoner, and she had a feeling the man would be alerting the others here that she was awake. She figured she was going to get a visit from Mark’s boss.
Standing in the hallway seemed futile, and she wanted as many doors as possible between her and the gun, so she slipped back into the bedroom she had left. She just had to hope that whoever Mark was in league with took the same attitude as he did about not killing mortals, although apparently keeping them prisoner was cool with both of them.
Brianna looked around the room, searching for something heavy to pull across the door. She was trapped here and would have to face her fate eventually, but that didn’t mean she had to make herself an easy target. If Mark’s people wanted to get to her, they would have to work for it. She moved to a large chest of drawers and stood at one end, pushing it as hard as she could. The chest of drawers barely shifted an inch. She pushed again, moaning with the effort. She had barely moved the chest of drawers two inches when the door burst open. Brianna’s jaw dropped when she saw her captor.
“Archer? What the hell? Why are you keeping me prisoner?” she demanded.
14
> Archer jumped to his feet as his office door slammed open so hard that it bounced back slightly off the wall behind it. He relaxed slightly when he saw Sven, but the way he had burst in left Archer tense and ready for a fight.
“What is it, Sven? Is someone here?” Archer asked, already sweeping past Sven to investigate the lobby of the building.
Sven grabbed his arm as he moved past him, and Archer finally noticed he was smiling. “Brianna is awake. And from what Michael told me, she’s okay.”
Archer felt the tension leave him, replaced with relief. He ran away from Sven towards the stairs, not wanting to wait for the elevator. He pushed through the door to the stairs and shouted back over his shoulder.
“Thanks, Sven! Can you—”
“I’m already on it!” Sven shouted back, his voice tinged with laughter at Archer’s enthusiasm.
Archer knew he could trust Sven to hold the fort for a couple of hours while he went to talk to Brianna. He took the stairs two at a time. He had so much adrenaline flooding through his body that he was barely even out of breath by the time he reached the ninth floor. He ran along the corridor, stopping at the last second before he entered the lounge.
“She’s awake?” he asked Michael, hardly daring to believe it.
“Yes,” Michael smiled. “She’s been up and moving, so I’m guessing she’s no worse for wear.”
Archer felt relief flood him again. It had been touch-and-go with Brianna for a while, but the sheriff had managed to put him in touch with a good surgeon who was able to fish the bullet out of Brianna’s back without doing any damage. She hadn’t woken up since, but the surgeon had assured him that was for the best, as it would give her body the chance to heal. Archer had started to lose faith in that being true, and eventually, the surgeon had admitted she was in a coma, but he had been confident she would awaken, and now, five days later, she had.
