by Lilly Wilder
A vertical rock exposure. I almost laugh at myself for remembering the book explanation of a cliff. The girl stops right on the edge, but she still doesn’t turn around. I stop a few steps behind her, barely able to take a breath. A few moments later, I hear someone’s footsteps behind us. Yes, we’ve reached the end.
“Get back to the fucking van,” I hear David growl at us.
I don’t turn around. My eyes are focused on the girl. She is standing on the edge of the cliff, as if she is about to fly off of it and transform into a bird. I dare not move, even though David’s voice assures me he’s not messing around. At that moment, the girl turns around and looks back at me. I see she’s taken something out of her pocket, with trembling fingers. Something that looks like a photograph, but she is too far away from me to see it clearly. The wind is blowing wildly, as the girl’s hair flies all around her face, like an enchanted, dark spider web. She looks like a forest nymph, who had the misfortune of being caught by humans. Her entire existence is now in question and she doesn’t know what to do. I’m taking short, shallow breaths, afraid to move. I think I’m more scared than she is.
“Tell my son I love him,” the girl finally speaks, kissing the photograph that she is clutching with her fingers.
A thin veil of relief washes over her pale face, as she turns around, lifting her arms over her head. It looks like she is about to fly away, far away from here and leave me behind. For a moment, I want to fly, too. It seems like a fate better than the one we would have with these people. Escape has already become a distant hope, a memory which is dissipating slowly, but surely. Maybe the girl is right. Maybe we should just fly away.
My eyes are fixated on her, as she takes only two steps and then disappears from view.
“Stop!!!’ David rushes after her, but we both know she is gone.
He stops right at the edge and for a second, I contemplate pushing him over. I just need to take a few steps, silently and push. How hard can it be? But, I’m too far away and he turns around to face me immediately, as if he’s able to read my mind.
“Fuck!” he shouts again angrily.
He stomps over to me in an instant and grabs me by the elbow. We start walking back to the van and I don’t dare say anything. Dry, scorched dirt crumbles underneath our feet. He is breathing heavily. The grip he’s got on my elbow doesn’t loosen, not even for a second.
“You fucking bitches always have to make it hard,” he says out loud, not even looking at me.
I think of the girl who was just standing next to me, a minute ago. I realize, with sadness, that I don’t even know her name. How will her boy know that he was the last thing on her mind, the last word on her lips and to him belongs the last breath she ever took? I can only hope that he already knows how much she loved him. But it crushes me that he will never know what happened to her. Her death will remain a mystery. Tears start streaming down my face, not because of what will happen to me, but because this girl was braver than I am. I would never have dared to jump, never…
It takes us a few minutes to get back to the van and I see that the driver is out, leaning against the van, smoking a cigarette. We’re the only ones there, still. Whoever was supposed to come, wasn’t late. They aren’t showing up.
“Where’s the other one?” he asks, spitting out the remainder of his cigarette.
“The bitch jumped,” David snorted, angrily, letting go of my elbow and pushing me right onto the other guy.
“So, we’re just left with her?” the guy asks.
“Do you fucking see anyone else!?” David is mad as Hell now.
Their plan is obviously not going as they expected it to and I don’t know what I’m afraid of more: being sold to someone or going back to that horrid basement.
“Give me the phone!” David growls at the guy, who extracts his phone from his pocket and hands it to him.
David dials a number, then waits. My hands are still bound, but no one’s got their hands on me. And yet, I’m not even considering running again. I tried and I failed miserably.
“I know you said not to call, but we’re here and we’ve been fucking waiting for the last half an hour!” David shouts into the phone so loudly that a small flock of birds get startled and fly away from a nearby tree.
There is no one else around us. There is nowhere to run to. Maybe I should have jumped and now, I would be free.
“Fine!” David growls again over the phone. “You better be there this time!”
He hangs up the phone and shoves it to his partner, who looks at him questioningly.
“We need to head back,” David informs him.
I can see the little veins in his neck popping out and suddenly, I remember the first time I saw him. He seemed nice. I can’t believe how deceiving looks can be, even though everyone keeps telling me this.
“It’s all your fucking fault!”
David suddenly turns to me and smacks me hard against the cheekbone. I hear something snap and warm, copper-tasting liquid fills my mouth. I fall down to my knees, as my ears start to get filled with strange sounds that weren’t there before. I hear revving, tires screeching, motors firing up. I can’t lift my head. It’s too painful. I spit out some blood, but there is still more left in my mouth.
“Why don’t you try hitting someone who can actually hit back, motherfucker?” I hear someone say, but it’s too noisy.
My whole face hurts and I can almost feel the swelling going up by the second. I’m sleepy and can’t keep my eyes open. In a second, my head flops down onto the ground and the whole world goes dark.
Chapter 6
Dex
As we arrive to the small clearing in the middle of nowhere, I see something that makes me fucking raging mad. A girl taking a blow. There are no circumstances under which this is anywhere near acceptable. Revving our bikes, we surround the van and the two guys there. The confusion in their eyes is tangible. I’m just waiting for the moment when that confusion turns into fear. Once we’ve made a full circle, our bikes stop. Now, they’re just purring, softly, menacingly, like tigers hiding in the savannah, about to attack unsuspecting prey.
I get off my bike and walk over to the guy who just knocked out that poor girl. There isn’t a hint of wind in the air, as the stale hotness hits my nostrils.
“Why don’t you try hitting someone who can actually hit back, motherfucker?” I ask him.
I glance at the girl. The poor thing looks broken, like a doll no one wants to play with. But, when I see she’s closing her eyes, I know she can’t fall asleep. Who knows how hard that fucker hit her?
“Theron!” I shout and another bike stops making any sound. “Check the girl!”
Theron jumps from his bike. He’s always been the fastest among us. Probably because he’s pure muscle, no body fat. We all eat the same shit and yet, it all transforms into muscle with him, while the rest of us gotta work for our six packs.
I let Theron check the girl, as he takes her head into his lap and opens her eyelids. His fingers gently press on her jawbone, softly, like she was a porcelain figurine and he had to be careful not to break it by pressing too hard. I look at her a bit longer than I should, before I can focus my attention on the asshole responsible for this mess.
“You shouldn’t mess with things that aren’t for you,” the guy who hit the girl growls at me.
Well, he’s in for a surprise. I can growl way worse than that.
“You see, this here shit is on our turf,” I say calmly. He still hasn’t pissed me off seriously. Just a little. It all depends on Theron’s report on the girl’s condition. “So, this is our business.”
I take a step closer to him and I can see that he isn’t indifferent to what’s going on. Hell, I also wouldn’t be, if I were him. But, I’m not. I’m twice his size and I’ve got my brothers backing me in whatever shit this is. But, judging from the look of it, he’s one of Leo’s guys. Back in the day, Leo and our previous leader agreed to each
mind their own business. We had some bootlegging done and they would smuggle stuff across our turf every once in a while. It was one of those you scratch my back, I scratch yours kinda deal. When I became the leader, the agreement simply continued, without either side clarifying anything. Now, the thing is, smuggling stuff is one thing. but, smuggling people - that’s a whole different ball game. One we don’t play.
“You know Leo won’t like this,” the guy reminds me and I just snort.
“Like I fucking care what Leo thinks,” I growl a little louder and motorcycles rev in reply, like a roaring hymn. “What are you doing here with the girl?”
I glance at Theron. The girl’s head is still in his lap, but she’s unconscious. It’s taking me all my effort not to pounce on the guy right then and there, like that last time we beat the shit out of a guy who thought it was OK to hit women. We taught him a lesson he’ll never forget, plus he’ll have a facial scar to remind him of it, always. Those are the best lessons, with reminders.
“A swap,” the guy answers my question.
“You selling her?” I ask again.
I know the look on Theron’s face. I’ve seen it before. And, it’s making me even madder. This guy’s clock is ticking. He just doesn’t know it yet. And that guy next to him who’s just standing there doing nothing, he’s about to be served the same dish.
“How is she?” I ask Theron.
“I think her jaw is fractured and the inside of her cheek is torn, so we need to treat it immediately, otherwise it might cause an infection,” Theron replies.
I know we always make fun of him for reading all sorts of books, but he’s saved our asses more than once when he knew exactly how to treat an injury, or what plant could be used to reduce swelling, inflammation or stop the bleeding. His books proved invaluable more than once. The girl, whoever she is, will be in good hands with him.
“You figured you’d rough her up a little before the swap?” I continue, getting dangerously close to the guy.
I could now smell fear on him. I don’t know if he’s aware of the fact that we’re shifters. Leo knows. But, I’m not sure about his drones. Never mind. I could show them firsthand what it’s like to see a bear shifter.
“What, she didn’t put out?” I realize that I’m talking much more loudly this time and I’m pissed off as Hell.
The girl looks like such a sweetheart. Her long black hair is spilling out of Theron’s lap and her breasts are slowly moving up and down as she’s breathing. She’s dirty and her clothes are torn. Her bra strap is peeking at me from the top of her collar bone. I can see the lace. They were probably keeping her somewhere for a few days. Were they even feeding her properly? The thought of these guys treating this girl like an animal sends me over the edge.
I jump onto the first guy, not even bothering to transform. This fucker doesn’t deserve to face a bear shifter in his true form. In a second, he is transformed into my own personal punching bag. Blood spatters to the left and right, and I don’t spare him, even when he drops to his knees. My elbow lands onto his back and he falls face down, unconscious. Now, the two were even, only this guy won’t have anyone to take care of him here. I glance at the other guy. He’s shaking. I think of smacking him, but decide against it. Someone needs to drive this trash away from my turf. Now.
“Get him in the van,” I tell the other guy, whose eyes are wide open with shock and fear. “Then, get the fuck out of here. I don’t ever want to see you here. You can tell that to Leo, too. Our pact ends now. Is that clear?”
The guy just nods quickly, like a stupid bobble head. We all watch as he struggles to get the beaten-up guy into the van, but no one offers to help. A few minutes later, their van is disappearing into the distance and we are left alone with the girl.
“Dex, do you think that was wise?” Zarael, who is the closest to me, asks.
I know what they’re all thinking. The girl is a stranger. She is a human. She isn’t one of us. But these fuckers were about to sell her. They were about to give her to someone who would have made her their slave. They would have done God knows what to her. We can’t leave her here. Even if that means stepping on Leo’s foot, like we just did.
“Probably not,” I reply, not really worried. If something bad happens, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.
“We need to get the girl back to the village,” Theron suddenly says, as the girl’s breathing starts becoming faster, shorter, like she’s gasping for air. “I need to wrap her jaw.”
“She can’t ride, so I’ll carry her,” I tell them and suddenly, all eyes are on me. I guess no one expected me to say that. “Morus can take my bike back.”
“You need anyone to stay with you?” Theron asks, glancing down at the girl. For a moment, it looks like he’s reluctant to leave her.
“No, I know the way,” I grin. “She’ll stay at your cabin. Prepare everything by the time I get there.”
Theron just nods, as I walk over to the girl slowly. She looks so fragile. I understand exactly why Theron is reluctant to move. She’s already suffered enough trauma. She definitely doesn’t need any more. Theron helps me get her into my arms and she doesn’t even stir. She is lighter than I thought she would be, it’s almost like carrying an empty blanket.
“You’ll be OK?” Theron asks again.
“Fine,” I nod.
A minute later, all the bikes are gone and I’m left alone with the girl in my arms. She doesn’t smell like a girl should. She definitely doesn’t smell like the last girl I held in my arms, the girl who left me with scratches on my back and bite marks in places I don’t usually show the public. But, there’s something about her, about the way she sleeps, the way her little lips curl as if she’s bent on saying something, but the words just won’t come. I wonder what the story of this sleeping beauty is and I’m curious to hear all about it, when she wakes up.
A part of me is actually hoping that she’ll wake up while still in my arms. I want to see the color of those eyes. I want to hear the words that those lips want to say. But, holding her just feels right. It’s like she knows she is safe, so she can allow herself to sink into deep sleep and rest.
Chapter 7
I have no idea how long I slept, but it feels like forever. It was one of those you’re dead to the world kind of rests, when nothing could stir you. I was overwhelmed by everything and I still feel the weight of my current state bearing heavily on my shoulders, but gentle kiss of sleep on both my eyelids allowed me to take a breath with a revived sense of positivity.
When I open my eyes, for a moment, I think I see Vanessa’s room. I’m about to shout out her name, wondering where she is. Is she making me coffee already? But, a second later, I realize that it was just an image projection from the inside of my mind. Reality is much different. This is a room I don’t recognize and I immediately feel the rush of a thousand little ants running up and down, underneath my skin, crawling with a sense of urgency and anxiety. I quickly look down and see that I’m covered with a thin blanket I don’t recognize. I pull my hands from underneath and am relieved to see that there are no chains. My wrists glisten gently with some kind of ointment. I bring them closer to my nose and smell a faint fragrance of mint. The redness is almost all gone.
I prop myself up on the bed and look around. Wherever I am, it’s just one, big room. The walls are wooden and so is the door. I might even be able to break it down somehow, if I really try and run away. This time, I just need to keep going. Even if I have my eyes closed, I should just keep going. Maybe this way, I’ll forget how scared I am, how everything I start turns to shit and how I mess everything up, because that’s just how I am.
The door tempts me to run over to it immediately. I’m in a single bed and there is a little nightstand next to it. An oil lamp is placed there. I squint at something in the corner. It almost looks like a record player. I haven’t seen a record player in years, ever since my grandma used to play me her old records on it. I still
remember the touch of her dry, wrinkly hands, but despite that, they were always warm. Nowadays, no one has record players anymore. I guess they are just for old people and those who believe they were born in the wrong era.
A little further down, there is a huge bookshelf with tons of books. I almost smile at them. Ever since I was a little girl, books always managed to provide a kind of shelter for me. They never judged me. They never questioned what I did, what I said, what I thought. They simply accepted me as I am.
