10. Apryle
Chapter 10
Apryle
A s much as I hate to admit it, there is something super sexy about the way Kye rolled in here like a damn action hero to save my life. That feeling fades pretty fast when I realize he’s barely keeping himself upright. My stomach twists as he leans heavily on the edge of the gurney I’m lying on, and I don’t miss the way he sways as he starts undoing my bindings.
“Hey,” I say softly, wishing my arms were free so I could touch him. “Are you okay?”
He blinks, as if trying to clear his head. “Are you hurt?” he rasps, dodging my question as he reaches for the buckles holding my arms down.
“Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”
“I’m fine,” he grinds out, freeing my left arm first.
“Sure you are.” I roll my eyes, and the motion makes my vision wink out momentarily. “Is being a stubborn asshole part of your persona?” I ask as I blink to bring things back into focus. I’m so tired, I just want to sleep, but we have to get out of here, and I’m not sure how the three of us are going to handle that.
He moves to the right, ignoring my words, but his lips twitch in what I’ve come to understand is amusement. I study every inch of his face as our bond pulses between us, growing in strength every second. I thought we were connected before, but this is deeper than I could have ever imagined. I don’t know where he starts and where I end.
And I don’t hate it.
In fact, I feel whole for the first time in my life. Kye has given me something I never expected—a sense of belonging. More than that, he makes me feel like I’m part of something.
As soon as my arm is free, I sit up—or try to. My body is sluggish, my movements awkward, but I pull him against me, crushing my face to his chest, and I hold on to him as if he is my salvation.
His arms wrap around me instantly, cocooning me in his warmth as his fingers trail through the hair at the back of my neck. It is as if all the rotten pieces of my life are replaced with shiny new ones—and they are Kye-shaped.
I cling to him, my body light for the first time since I woke in that room. “I was so scared,” I admit.
“I was too. Do you have any idea where we are?”
I shake my head. “These lunatics aren’t with the Order, though. They have something to do with Revna.”
He stares at me for a moment, his thick brows coming together. “What?”
I slip off the table, but my legs buckle as they hit the tile. “Whoa,” I murmur, gripping the edge of the gurney as Kye holds me up. “I don’t know what she gave me, but everything is spinning.”
Concern pulses through the bond. “Can you walk out of here?” I can see the cogs turning in his mind, trying to figure out if he has the strength to carry me, but he’s barely standing himself.
“Oh, I’m walking. I’m not staying here,” I mutter.
One way or another, we are leaving this fucking place. I try to focus, but everything still feels hazy. I don’t think that bitch managed to get a lot of the drug she was giving me into my system before Kye interrupted her, but it’s enough to make my legs uncooperative and my tongue thick in my mouth. I fumble for the wheelchair, motioning for Kye to sit in it.
He stares at me as if I’ve lost my mind. “I’m not sitting in that thing.”
I lean toward him, glaring. “Now is not the time to go all macho on me,” I hiss. “We have to get out of here, and out of the two of us, you’re worse off, so sit in the damn chair.”
“You can barely stand. How are you going to push me out of here, Apryle?”
It’s a fair point, but time is ticking as we stand here bickering about it. “I’m not the one who was shot multiple times.”
His hand moves to the gauze covering his chest. “They patched me up.” Yeah, they did, which makes me wonder how long we were out for. “Get in the chair, Apryle.”
Stubborn wolf. I try to ignore the dizziness and not make it obvious how much I’m leaning on the edge of the gurney. “You first.”
“They’re going to come,” Savannah interrupts our argument.
A renewed sense of purpose fills me. I promised her I was getting her out of here, and I plan on keeping that promise. I hold out my hand toward Savannah, and she slips her palm into mine. I can feel her trembling, so I squeeze her, letting her know we’re with her.
“Both of us are in bad shape,” I say to Kye, “and I know it goes against every instinct you have to let me take care of you when you feel like you should be taking care of me, but we don’t have time to have this argument. We need it to get out of here before anyone discovers we’re free. Please, please just get in the wheelchair.”
He glares at me, and I can feel his dissatisfaction through the mating bond, but he moves over to the chair and slowly lowers himself into it. The way he winces tells me this decision was the right one, even though my movements are sluggish, and my eyes are so heavy it’s a task to keep them open.
Grabbing the sheet off the gurney, I wrap it around Kye’s naked form, ignoring the blood splattered all over his body. Taking a life isn’t a good feeling, but it was them or us, and I’m not going to cry about the fact that we’re still here and they’re not.
“Savannah, stay close, okay?”
She presses against my side as I wheel Kye toward the door, all my weight on the handles. My legs are half asleep and I’m stumbling more than walking, but I’m all we have right now, and that forces me to fight against the drug in my system.
“Wait,” Kye says. “He hit me with something, so he had a weapon. Get it. We may need it.”
Good point. I stumble over to the bodies. Using the tips of my fingers, I grab the end of the cattle prod thing the guy dropped and pull it out of the pool of crimson spreading around his body.
Savannah lets out a shudder. “Ew.”
I hand it to Kye and he takes it, gripping it between his fingers, not giving even a single shit about the blood on it.
“Stay alert,” he says to both of us.
As we step out into the corridor, I hold my breath, but it’s empty. Relief doesn’t come, but I do breathe just a little easier.
This place is a maze, and I try to follow the room numbers as I did before, hoping they count down toward the exit. My legs feel jellied, and my vision rolls as my body tries to fight off the drugs that bitch gave me. Luckily, wolves have fast metabolisms, but the small amount she injected before Kye stopped her is enough to slow me down. This is worse than being drunk.
“Savannah?” I glance over my shoulder, sensing the little girl is no longer at my back.
She’s barely on her feet, dragging her little body behind me. She’s too thin, too vulnerable; we’re never going to make it like this, and I’m terrified I’m going to pass out before we find the exit. I stop pushing, and Kye turns to look at me, a question on his face.
“This isn’t going to work. She’s barely standing.”
“You’re not doing any better,” he says. “Swap with me.”
He’s crazy if he thinks that’s a solution. Stubborn ass.
“It’s just the drugs.” I wave his concern off even as everything rolls around me. Fuck. We need to get out of here. I don’t know was ‘coming’ for us, but I don’t want to stick around and find out. “I promised her I’d free her, Kye.”
The male I once pushed away, who I thought only wanted to use me for his own gain, looks at Savannah and then back at me. The way his eyes soften makes my belly dip. “Can’t have you break that promise, can I? Put her on my knee.”
Kye, the most antisocial, growly wolf I’ve ever met, wants to let a little girl sit on his knee? He isn’t keen on interaction—I’ve seen the way he keeps to himself—but he’s doing everything he can so I can keep my word to a frightened pup.
“Are you sure?”
“All that matters is getting out of here, Apryle. I don’t care how we do it. I’d rather you were in this chair and I was pushing us out of here, but we work with what we have.”
I don’t mention the fact that we don’t know where we are or if there are more hunters waiting for us. Even if we escape the building, we may not get any further.
One problem at a time, Apryle, Kye says in my head.
His reassurance soothes me in a way only he has ever been able to. I gesture to Savannah to come, but she’s already moving, and she scrambles into Kye’s lap as if she has known him for years.
“Let’s go,” he mutters.
It’s harder to push the two of them together, but we move faster without Savannah trailing behind me. The adrenaline pumping through my body is helping to flush the drug from my blood. If I could access my magic, I could remove its side effects instantly, but the bracelets around my wrists are heavy enough to remind me why that would be a bad idea.
I slow as we approach a set of double doors. They are solid, offering no glimpse of the danger that may lie beyond them. Nervous energy crackles through me, urging caution as I move closer.
Tension rolls off Kye too, both of us preparing for the fight that may be on the other side. Despite thinking about those things, it still catches me off guard when the doors suddenly swing open.
Barrels of semi-automatic weapons are pointed in our direction. I can see faces hidden beneath ski masks and bodies encased in all black clothes. It’s a menacing sight, and my pulse races frantically in my throat as I back up the wheelchair a few steps.
I swallow the terror that threatens to erupt out of me. Kye is in no position to fight, and I’m not strong enough to take on this many enemies.
Despite that, I bare my teeth, and I ready myself to protect my mate, but Kye reaches behind to grab my arm.
“Wait.”
One figure steps forward and tears his ski mask off. My knees almost give out as I stare into Callum’s piercing eyes. Fear dulled my senses because I’m now suddenly flooded with familiar scents of the others who left the compound with us. When they remove their masks, I’m staring into the faces of the friends I thought had been captured too.
The tightness in my chest eases, leaving me able to breathe for the first time since we were taken.
“I have never been so glad to see you guys,” I say, pushing the wheelchair toward them.
Beck roams his gaze over my body, as if checking every inch of me, only stopping when Kye gives him a threatening growl.
Possessive asshole.
I smile to myself, refusing to show how much I like that he is. That’s also a new development. Before Kye and I mated, that show of possessiveness would’ve pissed me off.
“Sorry it took us so long to get to you. It wasn’t easy to track where they brought you.” Callum’s hand cups the side of my face like a father greeting his child. It stuns me until I see the genuine fear dancing behind his eyes. He was worried about us. “Are you both okay?”
“Kye’s been shot and I’ve been drugged, but we’re fine,” I answer.
His gaze moves to Savannah, who slides in behind me, clinging to my back.
“This is Savannah. Savannah, these are my friends. You don’t have to be scared of them. They’ll keep us safe.”
I don’t bother telling Callum she’s coming with us. There’s no argument there. I’m not going without her.
Callum’s brows knit together as he takes in her waif-like, dirty-haired figure, and I wonder who he’s killing in his mind.
“Let’s get out of here.”
The others surround us, their guns raised. The tau among them could use magic, but guns are more effective in these kinds of situations.
Beck pushes Kye in the chair, though the annoyance radiating through our bond tells me he’s not happy about it. I smile despite the situation, and stumble behind them, my arm wrapped around Savannah so I can hold her little body close to mine. Now that someone else is here to handle the danger, my eyes are heavy as I feel my adrenaline taper off.
Everything happens in a rush of motion. I’m pushed against the wall as the rat-tat-tat sound of bullets rains down. The noise is deafening in the small space, hitting everything around us, pinging and thudding into the plasterwork. The scent of magic mixes with the smell of the guns discharging, and I clutch Savannah to me as Kye smothers both of us, taking us down to the ground and cocooning us beneath his huge frame.
The heat of his body and the weight of him on top of me don’t allow me to draw more than shallow breaths, so I remain frozen until the firing stops.
The silence that follows lasts only a second before the guys start barking out commands to each other.
“You okay?” Kye rasps in my ear.
I check myself and don’t feel anything is hurting or bleeding. “I’m fine. Savannah?”
“I’m okay,” her small voice says from beneath me and relief floods my body.
Carefully, Kye stands and helps me and Savannah up off the floor. I can smell the blood in the air, see it spattered up the white walls, and although I know I shouldn’t look, my gaze moves around the hallway as I press Savannah to me.
Bodies are slumped wherever they fell, pools of red spreading around them, staining the white tiles. I should care, I should feel bad they’re dead, but I don’t.
They wanted to hurt us, to make us suffer for their twisted games. I hope they felt the same fear Savannah has every moment she’s been in this hell hole.
Callum urges everyone to keep moving, and my legs tremble as I follow them. Kye doesn’t get back into the chair, and I don’t argue with him. I want to get out of here and demanding he does will only delay that. Besides, through the bond, I can feel his emotions, and I can tell he needs this.
So I let him tuck me against his body while I keep Savannah pressed to my side, trying to shield her from the gory, macabre sight around us.
I don’t relax until Beck opens a door and sunshine floods into the corridor. I’m eager to be outside, and it feels like an eternity before it’s our turn to step through the frame.
The heat of the sun beats down against my skin, making me shiver against a cold I didn’t know I was feeling. The asphalt beneath my soles is hot and cuts into my skin, but that small amount of pain is a price I’m willing to pay for our freedom.
As we walk, I tip my head up to stare at the blue sky and suck in a lungful of fresh air. We’re free… but we’re not safe yet.
The guys lead us across a small parking area that seems so normal it’s hard to believe what was happening inside the building behind us. I glance over my shoulder at the three-story, unassuming structure that kept little girls locked up and starving. Surrounding us are fields and hills, with taller mountain ranges in the distance. There are no houses, no towns, or signs of civilization as far as the eye can see.
Where the hell are we?
There are several vehicles in the parking lot, but there is a long van parked away from everything else, and that is where we head. As we approach, the doors open from the inside to reveal Archie and Ayden. The latter grins at me and Kye.
“You think we were going to let you have all the fun?”
“Nothing about that was fun,” Kye mutters.
“You need a better sense of adventure.” Ayden moves aside to allow others to start climbing in. I have no idea how we’re all going to fit.
“You think being shot is an adventure? Worrying about my mate’s safety is a joke to you?”
“No, but?—”
“Don’t upset him,” I interrupt. I’m not sure why Ayden is toying with him, but the irritation rolling off Kye would scare the average person into an early grave.
Ayden’s expression slides off his face, remorse clear as he glances toward Kye, who has blood staining parts of his skin that can be seen beneath the sheet he’d at some point tied around his waist like a skirt.
“Sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”
“You never do,” Kye snarls at him.
I’m not sure what happens; maybe it’s the drugs that bitch injected me with, or maybe it’s the adrenaline fleeing my system, but my vision rolls like I am on a fairground ride. I sag forward, unable to hold my weight as my legs crumple beneath me.
I brace to hit the ground, but Kye’s strong arms wrap around me, holding me up even though I can feel him trembling with the exertion.
“Apryle?” The thread of panic in his voice has Beck jumping back out of the van.
I want to reassure him that I’m okay, but instead, I cling to him desperately.
“Was she shot?” Beck demands.
Kye’s presence probes through the bond, searching for any sign I’m hurt beneath what he can see.
“No. They gave her something,” Kye says. “Only a small amount, but it’s screwing with her.”
“It was a sedative…” I mumble, trying to stand upright on my own without wobbling and failing miserably. “She needed my blood and correctly surmised I wasn’t going to give it without a fight.”
“She wanted your blood?” Kye repeats, horror lacing his words.
That is weird, right? I didn’t think about it at the time, I was too busy trying to save myself, but why did she want my blood?
“For what purpose?” Beck asks the question rolling around my muddled brain.
“Can we debrief this later?” Callum says, shoving Beck toward the van. “We need to get the fuck out of here in case reinforcements are on the way.”
They’re coming…
The human female had said. They . Running far away seems like the best idea.
Callum’s words are enough to get everyone moving, and the last of the group climbs in. Kye lifts Savannah into the van, wincing against his own pain, and when he turns to me, I climb in without his help. I don’t want to add to his injury. Bodies are pressed tightly, and I try to find a small space for us.
Kye sits against the paneling and pulls me between his legs, my back to his chest. I position Savannah in front of me as he wraps his arms around us both. All that fear and terror leaches out of me as I let myself relax into his hold.
“We’re safe,” I murmur against Savannah’s hair. “I told you I’d get you somewhere safe.”
“You’re safe too,” Kye whispers against the shell of my ear.
It didn’t seem possible, but as the van rumbles to life and we drive away from that evil place, I know we’re going to be okay. My eyes drift closed, and I let the pull of the drugs finally take hold. I don’t think I’ve ever been this tired in my entire life, and as I drift away safe in the arms of my mate, I know Kye will always be my protector, just as I’ll be his.