Chapter Twenty-one #2
“Start with the others first,” I urge quietly, determined not to let her overtax herself.
“I can withstand the effect of the chains better than the others. I can fight with them. I can also take more damage without healing. Tyler can’t.
While Dante can protect himself, he needs to be able to shift. ”
A furrow appears between Frankie’s brows, understanding darkening her golden eyes. The girl is too smart for her own good, but she listens and nods obediently. “Tyler first. He needs to be able to heal as much as possible.”
She shifts to sit on the floor, but my beast refuses to allow her to rest on the disgusting ground. Years of blood, sweat, urine, and other vile substances have soaked into the soil. She deserves better than to kneel in the dirt, especially to help us.
I snag her around her waist, then drag her into my lap, careful to keep my erection from rubbing against the delicious curve of her ass. An adorable squeak escapes her, her every muscle tensing, but I shush the sound.
“The floor is no place for you,” I murmur in a gruff voice, avoiding looking at anyone else.
I’m getting soft, but I don’t really give a fuck, not when it means protecting her, even if it’s from something as simple as dirt.
Frankie doesn’t move for a second, as if debating her options, then she slowly relaxes. Tension eases from my spine at her trust. With her curves in my arms, her scent filling my senses, my feral beast rolls over in my head, as docile as a puppy, completely content at her nearness.
I just can’t wrap my head around the change.
All the rage I carried for most of my life has mellowed.
That doesn’t mean it’s gone.
I can still feel it churning beneath the surface, just waiting to explode.
The smart thing to do would be to leave her the fuck alone, run as far away from her as possible to protect her from myself, and my hands instinctively tighten on her hips at the thought of her disappearing.
When she leans into my touch, involuntarily inhaling my scent, my chest puffs up, and I give in to the inevitable—I’ll never be able to let her go.
I thought keeping my distance from her would keep her safe, but the darkness that resides in my soul whispers that the only way to truly protect her is to keep her by my side forever. If anyone tries to fuck with her, I will end them.
Something settles in my chest at the decision, my beast so still that he’s not even moving, as if waiting for me to admit the truth.
That this girl is mine.
In all my years, only she has been able to tame my beast.
I don’t know why I didn’t make the connection sooner.
Maybe it was denial or a last-ditch attempt to keep her safe.
It’s too late now.
My beast recognizes her as my mate. If I fight him on it, attempt to deny it, I have no doubt the fucker will take over completely. The only thing that matters to him is keeping her safe.
I’m flabbergasted by the truth, having long ago given up on the possibility of finding a female. Truthfully, I isolated myself to prevent it from happening. Who the fuck would want someone as broken as me?
I am barely a step above feral.
No woman in their right mind would accept a mate like me, but it’s okay if she doesn’t accept me. I’ll prove myself to her, make myself indispensable.
It will be enough…for now.
As Frankie works on the chains, I can sense the energy she’s expending. It crackles in the air, crawling up my arms. When I run my hand through it, I swear it weaves playfully between my fingers.
Maybe it recognizes me as her mate?
That gives me hope.
The magic retreats, and my attention snaps up to see that the chains around Tyler are dull and lifeless.
I don’t miss the tremble in her limbs when she pulls back, nor her slight weight in my arms, and my brows knit in worry.
She’s been up for hours with little rest or food.
How much longer can she last before her body shuts down and she collapses?
Dante must notice the same thing. He’s been silent since we were taken. I assumed he was being his normal, surly self, but I realize he’s been watching Frankie almost as keenly as the rest of us.
When Frankie leans forward to break the chains, Dante crouches and takes over the task, being helpful, without being asked—a minor miracle.
Metal clanks as he grabs the chains and pulls, the muscles of his arms straining.
Even with his beast repressed, the fucker is still a powerhouse.
Bellamy drops down next to him, and between the two of them, the links warp and bend.
They’re sweating by the time the cuffs finally snap open with a crack.
Tyler grunts when the metal falls away, his eyes drooping, and he begins snoring almost immediately as his fox takes over healing him.
A tiny smile curls Frankie’s lips, and she turns, motioning Dante closer, not protesting what needs to be done or the toll it’s taking on her, and my admiration for her increases.
She could just walk out of here, leave us to our fate, but she stays.
My wolf sees that as her acceptance of us.
Energy crackles in the air again, and my chest tightens in worry. Wanting to distract her, I ask the first thing that pops into my head. “Maybe it’s time that you tell us about your past?”
I need to know who’s after her if I want to have any hope of protecting her.
Whether she knows it or not, our lives are now intertwined.
What is a threat to her is a threat to all of us.
Her magic stutters, her body turning rigid. I expect her to brush it off or avoid the topic. Instead, she glances at the other cages barely visible in the darkness, then releases a shuddering breath.
I expect her to argue, so I’m surprised when she reluctantly nods. “That’s fair, since I fear we’re going to be carted off soon if we can’t escape. You should know what’s to come.”
She runs her hand down her face, avoiding our gazes, and settles heavily against me. I almost groan when my cock throbs at her nearness. It’s been so long since I felt any attraction to a woman that I thought that part of me had died off a long time ago.
I’m not sure if I should curse the timing or rejoice.
Focusing back on removing the chains, she speaks softly.
“I live in a place called Kyperian. Near a millennium ago, humans fought supernaturals in a war that has been forgotten by many.
Even back then, humans outnumbered supernaturals a thousand to one.
So while we were faster and stronger, their numbers were impossible to beat.
“When it looked like we were going to lose, the strongest of each species decided to retreat. They sacrificed the weakest and decided to start over in secret. They created an oasis for the supernatural. It’s hidden by a dome, a place where our kind are able to live peacefully amongst ourselves.”
I snort at the fairy-tale bullshit, and her eyes snap to mine, searching my gaze.
A crooked smile twists her lips, and she nods at whatever she sees in my expression.
“You can probably guess how long that lasted. It was decided that a ruling council would govern the people to ensure that another war doesn’t happen.
They created rules and laws to preserve our way of life.
“A few squabbles happened here and there, tension between the races, but everyone successfully coexisted. Peace lasted for a few centuries before people became greedy. Those stronger believed they deserved a reward for protecting the weaker.”
The runes along Dante’s chains flicker out one by one, but not without taking their own pound of flesh.
Sweat beads the hair along her scalp, and it’s all I can do not to yell at her to stop.
By the time the last rune winks out and the chains look like they were tarnished by excessive heat, her pulse is thudding in her veins.
When she leans back, Dante barely has to flex before the links drop to the floor.
Frankie slumps against me, rubbing her palms along her jeans, her shoulders sagging under the strain.
Her voice is soft when she speaks. “And as always, greed destroyed the utopia.
The laws and rules were slowly bent and twisted to serve those in power.
We went from living as equals, to being virtual slaves to those who rule.
You have to get approval to apply for a job, approval to mate, approval to breed, approval to… do anything.
“Anyone who acts without permission is severely fined. If the council doesn’t profit from it in some way, your petition gets denied.” She motions for Bellamy to sit in front of her next, waiting until he is settled before continuing.
“No one can live or breathe without fear that someone will sell them out for a few coins over the smallest infractions. It doesn’t matter if we’re guilty or not. People are forced into jobs they hate, women are given to the men as rewards, while children are bred for power.”
A growl rumbles in my chest at the thought of her being given to anyone, and I pull her tighter against me.
Over my dead body.
Instead of fighting me, she leans into me gratefully, and I know she feels worse than she wants anyone to know. Despite being exhausted, that doesn’t stop her from wrapping her dainty hands around Bellamy’s chains.
“Choice became an illusion. Whatever the council wants, the council gets.”
“So you left?” Dante asks without inflection, but I can see the rage darkening his slate eyes.
A bitter laugh escapes Frankie, and I cringe when the caustic sound threatens to crush my heart. “No one leaves Kyperian—at least, not alive. The council would be left with no one to rule if they allowed that.”
She turns away from our intrusive stares, her attention focusing on the chains. The runes blink out even slower as she works, the static of her magic more like needles piercing my flesh.
“When women mature, we’re ordered to be brought in front of the council, where they check us for our ability to breed. I was a few weeks away from my twentieth birthday. If I ever wanted to leave, I had to act, or I would have spent the rest of my life trapped in a cage.”
She shoots a crooked, self-deprecating smile at each of us. “If you haven’t guessed, I’m not exactly normal. Even when I was little, I knew I was different from others. The only reason I survived so long is because I was adopted by a retired captain of the guards.
“Givvens saw something special in me, raising me as one of his soldiers, knowing that I would need those skills to survive.” She dashes her hands against her eyes, but not before I see the sheen of tears.
“It was always our intention to flee before I reached maturity. Our plans were in place. Unfortunately, we were caught.”
A moist snort escapes her, and she sniffs, rolling her teary eyes.
“I don’t know if it’s because I drew attention to myself when I stepped in when a boy was being beaten, or if it was something else.
It was decided that I needed to face the council for interfering with something that wasn’t my business. ”
A grimace twists her features when her magic fades. The last rune flickers wildly before it vanishes, and I snatch her to my chest, unable to see her hurt any longer. My wolf coos, and I run my hand down her golden hair.
It takes too long for her ragged breathing to slow and her heartbeat to settle. I almost think she’s asleep until she speaks in a hoarse whisper. “I barely arrived home before the Orion came knocking.”
A muscle ticks in her jaw, and her gorgeous eyes shimmer with rage. “Gramps told me to run, but I was a stubborn fool. I thought we could fight our way free. I refused to leave him behind to be punished for harboring me.”
My heart breaks when defeat slumps her shoulders. “We were almost out when another contingent of soldiers arrived. Before we were separated, my last sight was of him fighting for his life, bloody and bleeding at the hands of the very soldiers he trained.”
She releases a shaky breath and shrugs half-heartedly.
“By some miracle, I managed to escape, but the council refuses to let me go. They need to make an example of me. They must have framed me for his murder. Everyone adored or respected Gramps. It wouldn’t surprise me to find out that they used me as an excuse to kill him.
“They can’t stand anyone else having any sway over the people.” She gnaws on her lower lip, her golden eyes devastated. “I’m the perfect scapegoat. Not only will I now be hunted down for crimes I didn’t commit, I’ll be handed over to the council and brought to heel.”
Murderous rage darkens Dante’s face, his hands clenching into fists as if ready to fight an unseen enemy. Tyler woke up at the start of her story, a silent witness to her pain. He’s not any better than Dante—the loner who never lets anything touch him is practically frothing at the mouth.
He’s running his hand up and down her calf, trying to soothe her pain. While he might be the most laid-back and easygoing of the group, most people don’t look deep enough to see the real him—the shattered man who is just a little too broken for anyone else to want him.
A glance at Bellamy shows he isn’t as unaffected by her story as he’d like us to believe.
Though he tries to suppress his emotions, they’re bubbling close to the surface, ready and waiting to be unleashed.
It’s obvious he’s been a soldier for a long time, but only time will tell if he can break away from their conditioning or if he will be a threat.
Until we know, we’ll have to keep an eye on him.
I don’t trust him, not yet.
Frankie cuddles against my chest, and I pull her closer, my hands tangling in the silken strands of her hair. It’s only then that I see my chains are dull and tarnished. I was so distracted by her story that I missed her removing the runes.
The instant I was free, I expected my beast to wrench away control. Instead, he is content to hold her close. Though she told the truth, I sense that she’s left something important out. “Frankie…”
I trail off when her soft snore fills the silence. Glancing down, I see that she has fallen asleep in my arms, and I don’t have the heart to wake her. My questions can wait. Keeping her safe and figuring a way out of this mess is more important than my curiosity.
While she might think she is on her own, that’s the furthest thing from the truth.
She has us now.
She will never be alone again.