Chapter 21 - Mira
I looked out the window, watching the trees, now almost entirely stripped of their leaves, blow in the wind. My eyes moved downward, looking at the ground below. We were on the fourth story, too high to jump. Even if I had wanted to risk it, the window was locked shut, and breaking the glass would have been too noisy.
I had no idea where we were now, beyond that we were in a cabin tucked deep in the woods. When Rex and his crew dragged us out of the mansion, there had been a large SUV idling outside. Rex had shoved us in. Dani and I were squeezed into the middle of the back seat, wedged in place by a massive male on either side. They had at least let me put on new clothes before we got in the car. I held Dani’s hand as they peeled out of the driveway, speeding down the winding roads at a breakneck pace.
No one in the car uttered a single word during the entire drive. I didn’t bother asking where they were taking us; they wouldn’t have answered. And I didn’t need them to answer, anyway. I suspected that they were taking us northwest, back to the old pack. Which didn’t make much sense to me. I wasn’t sure what Harrison’s plan was once he got his hands on us, but I couldn’t imagine he would take me back there right now, not unless he had decided to cut his losses and kill me after declaring me guilty of Jay’s murder. But if that was his plan, then why kidnap Dani as well?
It turned out I was wrong, though. Instead of taking us to the pack, the car gradually veered off the man road onto a thin dirt one. We trundled up the mountain a bit before Rex killed the engine and the others got out, pulling Dani and me along with them.
The men shifted and tore through the woods. It was all I could do to grip the wolf’s fur and hold on as they raced forward. I may have tugged harder than was strictly necessary out of sheer pettiness. If it annoyed my captor, he didn’t let on.
Eventually, the wolves slowed moments before a large house emerged in the woods, one almost as big as Declan’s. When they shifted back to human, they didn’t answer any of my questions, instead pushing us toward the front door.
The instant they dragged me inside, however, I knew immediately who it belonged to. Harrison’s scent was stale, but it permeated the entire house.
On instinct, I started to struggle, trying to break away. I’d take my chances in the woods over staying in Harrison’s secret house. But the instant I began putting up a fight and attempting to wrench myself out of a shifter’s grip, I heard a squeak from Dani. Turning, I saw Rex with his hand around her throat, claws pressed into her flesh but not breaking the skin.
“Keep misbehaving, and we’ll take it out on the girl,” Rex warned.
I shot him a glare but obeyed. I wasn’t going to risk them hurting Dani, and I knew they weren’t bluffing. The only reason Harrison would have wanted her was for leverage, both against Declan and to make sure I stayed in line. The worst part was that it would work. Declan wouldn’t risk Dani’s safety, and neither would I.
When I stilled, Rex nodded and released his hold on Dani’s throat. He and his men pulled us further into the house, dragging us up several flights of stairs until reaching the room we were currently in. When they tried to pull Dani away, she shrieked and started flailing, gnashing her teeth as she tried to break free.
“I’m not going anywhere without Mira,” she declared.
“Knock it off, kid,” the guy holding her grunted.
In response, she turned and tried to bite him.
“Let her stay with me,” I pleaded. “Please.”
The shifter looked at Rex, who shrugged. “If it’ll shut them up, might as well,” he said. “Come on.”
And they pushed us into the room. The instant we were inside, they swung the door shut. A bolt in the door slid into place.
That had happened yesterday. No one had spoken to us since throwing us in this room, not even when bringing us food.
After Dani’s initial aggression, she had grown more timid and frightened once the situation and its severity sunk in. I didn’t blame her. She was only seven. I was over twenty years older than her and terrified. The only reason I managed to keep a brave face was because I didn’t want to scare Dani any more than she already was. She clung to my side every second, barely moving two feet away from me. When we were both sitting, she would press against me, sometimes climbing into my lap. I would wrap my arms around her and hold her tight, trying to soothe her as she trembled and let her know it would be all right.
All of this replayed in my head as I looked at the scenery. As I glanced at the storm drain, the faintest spark of an idea ignited in my head. But before I could kindle that spark into a full-on flame, a knock on the door broke through my thoughts, smothering the idea.
Cursing, I turned as the door opened. Rex stood at the door, blocking the exit. He looked over at Dani, who glowered at him even as she shrank against the wall. His gaze slid off her to land on me.
“Harrison wants to speak to you,” Rex said.
“Why?” I demanded, not moving from my spot.
“Don’t ask stupid questions,” Rex growled. “Now, come on before I drag you out of there.”
I stayed still as my mind spun. It had been over twenty-four hours since they’d kidnapped us. Declan would know we were missing by now. There was a chance he had even made the connection to Harrison. But even if he’d found that out, there was no guarantee he would find this place. And even then, it would take them several hours to get here. I had no doubt he was looking for us, for Dani if not me, but he wasn’t going to be here for a while—if he ever found out where we were.
I couldn’t rely on him to come anytime soon. We were on our own for the foreseeable future. Which meant I had to comply until I came up with a better way of protecting us.
“All right,” I said. I moved toward the door when a small yank from behind me stopped me short. I turned to see Dani holding onto the hem of my shirt.
“Don’t leave me,” she begged, tugging softly.
“I don’t have a choice,” I murmured, stroking her hair as I crouched to her level. “I’ll be right back, I promise.”
She looked behind me at Rex, glared at him, then nodded.
He led me back down to the first floor. As we walked, I caught a glimpse of the front door behind him and had a wild urge to try and make a break for it. But I knew I couldn’t. Not without Dani. Still, that didn’t stop me from dragging my feet as he forced me deeper into the house, leading me to what appeared to be an elegant sitting room.
Harrison stood in the middle of the room, turning when he heard the door open. He gave a small, satisfied smirk, looking like a man who knew he had won before the game was even over.
“So glad you could make it, Mira,” he said. “How was the journey?”
“Unpleasant,” I said bluntly.
Harrison chuckled, then turned to look at Rex. “Leave us,” he ordered.
Rex nodded, giving his alpha a half-bow before retreating and closing the door behind him. The instant the door shut, Harrison turned toward me.
“I was trying to avoid doing it this way,” he said. “But that alpha of yours left me no choice.”
“Let me and Dani go,” I said. “Otherwise, you’re in for a world of hurt.”
If the threat worried him in the least, he didn’t show it. “I’ll let Dani go when you agree to marry me and be my mate,” he said.
“I’m already mated,” I snapped. “You know that.”
“Mating bonds can be broken easily enough, especially when it’s early.”
“I’m not going to break the bond.”
His smile faltered, replaced briefly by a flash of annoyance that was gone a second later. “I thought you might say that. But I think you should consider how unpleasant that might be for Dani. She seems like a sweet girl.”
A ripple of fear ran through me. For a brief moment, I considered listening to him for Dani’s sake. I didn’t want her hurt. But then my rational side took back over, and I gave a feral grin.
“The instant you hurt Dani, you lose your leverage,” I said. “Because if you do anything to hurt her, I’ll never agree to anything you say.”
He shrugged. “If you won’t break it, then I’m sure we can take care of it via other means.”
I wasn’t sure what he meant by that, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to know. At the moment, it didn’t matter to me.
“Why?” I demanded. “Why the hell do you want me to marry you in the first place? You’ve treated me like dirt since I moved to your pack.”
He shook his head, clearing the distance between us. I wanted to recoil, but I held my ground, glowering at him.
“You really don’t realize how alluring you are, do you?” He reached up, brushing a strand of hair from my face before cupping my cheek. Even as he did, his eyes slid up and down my body, lingering at my breasts. Shivers of revulsion rippled through me.
“Let go of me,” I hissed.
My hand shot out, grabbing his wrist and jerking his hand away from me. His free hand grabbed mine in a vice grip, forcing me to let go. He held on to my hand, keeping it in place as he continued talking as though nothing had happened.
“You’re attractive, timid, pliable. Who wouldn’t want a demure woman they could bend to their will?”
I tried to pull away. The instant I moved my head, his hand moved to my chin, gripping it so tight, I was sure it was going to bruise. He jerked my head back, forcing me to face him.
“I’m never breaking the bond, and I’m never going to marry you,” I spat. “The sooner you realize that, the better it is for everyone.”
His eyes darkened, flashing wolf for a second. Then, he stepped away, finally releasing my chin. The pressure of his fingers lingered like a phantom hand was still grasping it.
“It seems like you need some more time to think it over,” he said conversationally, as if we were discussing a pleasant business deal instead of him threatening a hostage.
He snapped his fingers. A split second later, as though he had been on the other side of the door listening for that precise sound, Rex opened the door and marched in, his face expressionless. Not a shred of guilt or remorse anywhere on his features, as if kidnapping a woman and a girl was no big deal to him. He stood just inside the room, watching his alpha for his order.
“Take Mira back to her room,” Harrison said.
Rex strolled over and grabbed me by the arm, fingers digging into my bicep almost as hard as Harrison had held onto my chin. Almost.
Harrison said, “I’m not going to be patient forever, Mira. Just remember that.”
Before I could respond, he gave a short, dismissive motion to Rex, who hauled me away without another word.
He dragged me back to the room. I followed him back numbly, head spinning as everything Harrison had said and threatened washed over me, soaking into me as I began to process every word. The time back up to the room seemed to take twice as long as the journey down. Eventually, however, Rex unlocked the door and threw me inside, where Dani was waiting on the couch.
He slammed the door shut behind him, leaving me and Dani alone again.
My legs trembled, threatening to collapse out from underneath me. I took a deep breath, willing myself to stay upright. The instant I gave into the fear and collapsed, it would all be over.
“Are you all right?” Dani asked, rushing to me. “You look pale.”
“I’m fine,” I promised, jaw tightening as I stared at the door. Rage had begun to build inside me, replacing the initial fear that had emerged. Not red-hot rage, the kind that boiled, but ice-cold, the kind that cleared your head, giving you that anger-fueled clarity and drive to take matters in your own hands. I wanted to tear Harrison limb from limb, but I knew that wasn’t what I needed to do.
For too long, I had been content to wait and let things play out with the hope everything would sort itself out in the end. I’d been too passive, and look where it had gotten me. I had to take action, or this situation would keep getting worse. But I needed a plan.
My eyes went back to the window, and the idea that had been lingering in the back of my head sparked into a full flame. I remembered Dani’s escape what felt like months ago. We didn’t have a way to pick the lock here, but maybe…
The second part of the plan came to mind. I turned and crouched in front of Dani.
“We’re getting out of here,” I said. “But I need you to listen to me and do what I say when I say, even if I tell you to run and save yourself. Do you understand?”
“I don’t want to leave you behind,” Dani said, her voice turning to a whisper.
“Hopefully, it won’t come to that. But I need your word you will listen. It’s the only way this might work. Do you understand?”
Dani hesitated, swallowed, then nodded.
“Promise me,” I pressed.
“I promise.”
“Okay. Good.” I nodded. “Now, have you started partially shifting yet?” Most kids wouldn’t start shifting until they were around nine or so, but some kids were able to shift their teeth and claws early. They hadn’t bothered putting a collar on Dani, and I knew she could pick locks. If her claws were small enough, they might be able to break the lock on my collar. If not, she still might be able to pick the lock on the window.
Unfortunately, Dani shook her head.
“You’re going to have to learn now, then,” I said. “Sometimes, really strong emotions can help you do it. Remember how angry you were when that shifter caught you?”
“I was scared,” she said.
I shook my head. Anger was better than fear for this. A stronger, more fiery emotion. “Beforehand. I saw how angry you were. You need to focus on that emotion.”
She nodded and squeezed her eyes shut. After a moment, I saw her face contort in anger. She gave a snarl.
“He grabbed my arm and hurt me,” she recalled. “So I bit him.”
Considering she had been using human teeth, I was still impressed. Regardless, I stared at her fingers, barely breathing as I prayed they would change.
Nothing.
“How did you feel?” I asked.
“Really, really mad. I didn’t like him grabbing me, and I knew you were in trouble, too, because of the way you looked. I didn’t like that they made you scared or that you were in trouble. I wanted to hurt him.” She opened her eyes and glared. “I still want to.”
Her eyes flashed wolf, and her teeth turned to fangs. I let out a breathless laugh as her fingers elongated, turning into a tiny, sharp claw. “Wonderful!” I exclaimed.
Dani marveled open-mouthed at her hand. “I did it?” she said, sounding incredulous. Then she broke into a grin. “I did it! I shifted! I’m a shifter!”
Her terror at the situation had vanished in her excitement.
“I want to fully shift now,” she said.
“We’ll try that later,” I promised. “In the meantime, do you think you could pick this lock on my collar with your claw?”
“Oh. Right.” She peered at the lock, then looked back down at her claw as she frowned.
“It’s too small,” she said. “I can’t get into it.”
I sighed. That was what I had been expecting. “Okay, what about this one?” I asked, pointing at the lock on the window.
Dani examined it, then her new claw. She beamed and nodded. “I think so! Give me a minute. I’ve never picked a lock with claws before.”
It took her a couple of tries, but after a little bit, Dani gave a triumphant squeak as she pushed the window up. “I did it!” she said, beaming again.
I took a deep breath as the brisk air brushed against me. My arms trembled with adrenaline as I leaned forward, checking the ground to make sure there weren’t any sentries. When I knew we were alone, I pushed back and turned back to Dani.
“Do you remember how you got down that time you ran into the woods?” I asked. When Dani nodded, I said, “All right, good. So we’re going to do something similar. First, we need to get on the roof. And then we’re going to go down that storm drain at the corner, all right?”
Even in her fear, Dani couldn’t suppress a glint of excitement at the thought of the adventure. She nodded enthusiastically.
“All right. We have to be quiet. You’re going to go first.” Truth be told, I wasn’t sure the storm drain would hold my weight, but it was the only thing I could think of. I had to risk it.
I helped Dani clamber out the window, then followed suit. There was a brief moment of panic as my hips wedged themselves in the frame, refusing to budge. After a bit of wiggling, I managed to work my hips out of the tight space. Once they were free, I scrambled onto the roof.
We moved slowly, trying to make as little noise as possible. Every creak made me wince, and my heart rate skyrocketed as we made our way to the drain.
“Run into the woods the second you get down to the ground,” I hissed to Dani once we had reached it. “I’ll be right behind you.”
She looked as though she might argue. When I flashed her a warning look, she nodded. She scurried down the drain like a monkey, clearing the distance in no time. She glanced up at me, then to the woods, and ran into them.
As I looked down, my instincts screamed at me, telling me I was insane. I was pregnant and about to climb down a storm drain that I had no business climbing down. But what other choice did I have? I would just have to be careful.
I started moving, stomach churning as I started to shimmy down, my senses on high alert for any sign of danger.
I was only a third of the way down when I heard an unsettling creaking sound. My stomach plummeted as the drain began to groan beneath me. I saw one of the bracers above me pulling away from the side of the house.
A snap later, I began to fall backward as the storm drain pulled away from the house. For a moment, I felt weightless, soaring through the air in no particular direction. Then I was looking up at the sky as it moved further and further away from me. A second later, I slammed to the ground, gaping like a fish as the air rushed out of me. As I struggled to catch my breath, an alarm bell rang in my ears. I had to get moving. There was no way they hadn’t heard that. They would be here in a moment, and I still couldn’t shift. I had hoped we would have at least an hour to get away, at which point I would have been able to find a rock and break the padlock. That had now been shortened to about two minutes.
Dani materialized above me. She had bolted from her cover to come back and check on me.
“Get up, get up.” She grasped my arm and tried to tug me to my feet, her eyes darting around wildly.
I forced myself to my feet, quickly checking myself all over. I didn’t think anything was hurt too bad, and my wolf would know if something had happened to the baby. I was fine enough to keep moving. Head still spinning, I ran into the woods with Dani in front of me.
We ran for a ways, but I knew I would have to shift if we had any chance of escape. When I thought we had put enough distance between ourselves and the house, I held up a hand. Dani stopped, and I listened. I couldn’t hear anyone following us.
I searched for something to break the collar’s padlock, and my eyes landed on a heavy, jagged rock. I crouched down and picked up the rock, preparing to slam it into the lock.
Just before I could bring it down, Dani screamed, “Mira! Look out!”
Before I could turn, a hand grabbed my wrist and jerked me to my feet. The rock fell from my hand and landed on the ground with a thump. Harrison’s scent filled my nose.
“You really have a rebellious streak, don’t you?” he sneered in my ear. I gasped in pain as he twisted my arm behind my back. “I’ll knock that out of you eventually. Trust me.”
“Dani, run,” I ordered. “Get out now.”
She turned to run, then pulled up short as Rex appeared in front of her. He lashed out for her. She stumbled backward, out of his reach, his hands missing her by inches.
She managed to keep her feet, but a new problem emerged as more wolves appeared, surrounding us. Undeterred, she darted forward, trying to thread the needle between the shifter and the tree. For a wild, hope-filled moment, I thought she might get away. But then the shifter lashed out, grabbing Dani’s wrist just before she would have been out of reach. She screeched and fought as he jerked her back.
“Careful,” the shifter from the mansion grunted. “That one bites.”
Still gripping my wrist, Harrison spun me around so I was forced to look at him. His hand tightened around my arm as I tried to wriggle from his grasp. He leered at me as he gave a sinister smirk that made my stomach curdle with fright even through the fear.
“I’m going to give you one last offer,” he said. He jerked my wrist toward him, making me stumble forward, my body pressing against his. His other arm wrapped around my back, holding me in place even as I pushed against him.
“Let. Me. Go,” I snarled.
He ignored me. “Once I’ve put you back in your room, I’m going to go pay Declan a little visit. When I’ve killed him, your mating bond will be broken.”
I froze, the air escaping from my lungs as his words registered. Declan. He was going to kill Declan.
“Here’s my offer.” He pulled me in closer, so every inch of my body was pressed against him, his scent clogging my nostrils. “Marry me, and the girl can live… or you both die.”