Chapter 68

Fiona

If I want to get out of here, I have to do something. Anything.

My eyes roam the area around me then I glance at the man holding me. There aren’t any weapons, and even if there were, he’s holding me too tightly. Plus, there’s the knife. If I try to immediately pull away without him lowering his weapon, he could slice my throat in two seconds flat.

So, I do the thing I always see people on TV do in this situation.

Throwing my head back, I slam my head into my kidnapper’s nose. A sickening crunch sounds at the same moment burning pain embeds itself in my skull. He groans simultaneously with me, his grip on my arm growing tighter, so I do the only other thing I can think of.

I throw my elbows back and slam my foot down on his at the same time. He cries out, and I cringe at the pain, but I also feel the moment when his fingers loosen their grip.

Relief fills me at the small victory, so I lift my bound hands and shove the man’s knife hand away, ducking beneath his arm and lunging forward. I stumble, but soon, I’m running as fast as my shaking legs can carry me toward the fight.

Toward Ethan.

Toward the wolf.

The thought of running toward a beast that could easily rip me to shreds within moments is scary but so is dying here with no one around. The idea of Ethan dying here with me also terrifies me. He- the wolf- is injured, and if he’s injured, so is Ethan.

He’s still fighting even though he’s hurt. His determination spurs me forward, forcing me to move around crates and fallen boxes. I push past anything in my way like he’s pushing past the pain and fear he probably feels.

I’m still mad at him, but I shove the feeling aside. The important thing is getting out of here. I can deal with everything else once we’re safe and no longer about to die.

Stumbling forward, I move around a pillar and toward the circle of men. I don’t know how Ethan will get us out of here, but he has to. The woman said to trust him, and I want to. He may have kept this from me, but I know he won’t let me get hurt if he can help it. If there’s a way to get out of here, Ethan will find it.

And I’ll help him in any way I can. I don’t have much, but I can at least try. I have to for both of our sakes.

So, I yank the dirty rag out of my mouth and yell.

“Ethan!”

Eleven pairs of eyes immediately zero in on me, but I only care about one of them. The yellow, glowing eyes of the wolf widen as I push through the stunned men. I want, no, need to get to him, but before I can get into the circle, a hand clamps down on my arm.

Suddenly, I’m yanked back into a hard chest. My body collides with the man, and even though I try to fight to get away, the hand on my shoulder pins me in place.

Pain, heavy and solid, digs into my shoulder, making me cry out.

The wolf answers with a vicious snarl.

“Look what we have here,” the man in charge says with a chuckle. He smirks and nods to whoever is holding me. I look up to find a bloody nose and angry eyes staring down at me. Of course it’s him.

Ethan’s wolf growls at the man holding me, but when he goes to step forward, a line of men step between us.

“Ethan, I—”

“No one gave you permission to talk,” the leader says, waving a hand at my captor.

The cold metal of his knife touches my throat again, and I go still. I should’ve tried to get the knife away from him earlier, but now I don’t have a chance.

“You’ll regret hitting me, little girl,” the man holding me growls low in my ear. I shiver at the threat, my eyes going to Ethan’s wolf who growls again. Did he hear that? Was he growling at the man’s threat?

The leader moves to stand between me and Ethan’s wolf, looking between the two of us. The mischief and anger in his eyes fit the terrible personality I’ve already seen from him, even though he’s young. From the looks of him, he couldn’t be any older than me; maybe early twenties.

So, how is he so evil at such a young age?

“Ethan, if you do not give up, your mate will die?” The man in charge says. I glance at him then back at Ethan’s wolf, who has his teeth bared. The hair on his upper back and neck rises when he snarls and steps forward.

The knife at my neck pulls closer to my skin, pain pricking and causing warm blood to trickle down from the cut. I whimper, fear and pain hitting me at the same time. I thought I was okay, that I’d be okay once I got to Ethan, but again, I’m the helpless one.

“E-than.”

My voice cracks, the pleading clear in my tone. I try not to let my eyes tell him how scared I am, but I don’t know if I can hold it back.

“That’s right, Ethan. Your mate is in my hands, and if you want to keep fighting, I’ll have her killed. Then what will you do?” The blonde man taunts. “Bring her here,” he then orders, speaking to the man holding me.

“Move it,” the man behind me says.

When I don’t move, his knee hits the back of my leg, and I almost fall forward. The knife at my throat digs into my skin more, making me pull back as much as I can.

“Better be careful, little girl.” From the chuckle he releases, I know he did it on purpose. I want to fight against him, to deny him the pleasure of ordering me around, but the only thing I can do is walk forward.

They have all the power here. Not me.

The leader grins at me as we come closer, and when we’re within reaching distance, his hand comes out. I try to turn away, but I can only move so far as turning my head. Still, he reaches out and touches my face.

“She’s pretty, and…” the leader’s eyes run up and down my body. “Around my age I’d guess.” Fingers grip my chin, turning my eyes to meet his gaze. Boring brown eyes meet mine, searching my face. I don’t know what he’s looking for, but when another hair-raising growl reaches my ears, he grins again.

“Maybe after I kill you, I’ll keep her around for a while,” the leader says, the smirk pulling at his lips turning more and more maniacal as he looks toward the wolf. “She’d be fun to play with for a while at least.”

“Don’t touch me!”

I yank my head back, ridding myself of his fingers, but before I can say or do anything else, his palm cracks loudly against my cheek. Pain sparks, stars swirl, and my head snaps to the side.

I turn, my eyes connecting with Ethan’s, as his wolf form charges forward. The loudest roar I’ve ever heard thunders through the building, shaking everything in the room and promising retribution.