Chapter Four
Nate’s fear was manifesting right before his eyes. He’d been terrified Ryker would walk away once he found out he’d been lured there, causing Nate to be stuck in the motel forever. But the abandonment felt far worse than he could’ve imagined.
The look of disappointment and disgust in Ryker’s gray eyes hurt so badly Nate stood there frozen, unable to move or even breathe.
If only he hadn’t fallen asleep. His demon powers kept the storm raging and his scent masked, but it had weakened with every inhale during his peaceful slumber.
This had been the first time since his imprisonment Nate had slept so soundly. He’d felt safe in Ryker’s arms, enough that his guard had lowered, even in his sleep.
Now Ryker would leave without a backward glance. A sob caught in Nate’s throat at the thought of never seeing the bear shifter again. The guy had been there for roughly twelve hours, yet Nate had become attached to him.
The loneliness was to blame. Nate couldn’t even say when the last time a traveler had been there because he didn’t have a calendar, which wouldn’t have done him any good since time worked differently in limbo.
The only reason Nate knew he’d been there for a century was the fact his uncle, Diobno, loved to remind him as a part of the malicious game of revenge he played. “I wonder how much you’ve missed in the sixty years you’ve been trapped here”
or “Oh, has it been twenty years since the last time I showed up at this ramshackle motel?”
What infuriated him the most was the fact his uncle could come and go as he pleased, sometimes leaving Nate alone for decades on end with nothing to do but wander the empty halls.
Honestly, it was a miracle Nate hadn’t gone insane by now.
It was the dreariest motel imaginable, but it hadn’t always been that way. When Nate had stumbled upon it in the 1920s, there had been a friendly owner, fully booked rooms, even a touch of luxury for the time.
But Diobno had to go and ruin it—like he ruined everything else he touched—when he’d found Nate hiding there. His uncle had made the motel appear haunted so the owner would abandon it, and then Diobno cast a spell, causing the building to exist in limbo, trapping Nate within its walls for the last century.
Now, the motel was nothing more than a rundown dump. Diobno only allowed it to appear once every decade or two, always around Christmas time. He got a sick thrill out of watching Nate desperately try and fail to escape each time he brought it back.
And the only way to escape was to kill his uncle and end the spell. Since Diobno had stolen most of Nate’s powers, he was screwed. But Nate thought of another way he could possibly get out of there.
Each time the motel appeared, he created a snowstorm, hoping to lure someone who could help him.
So far, all he had attracted were humans who dismissed his story as lunacy. Once, he’d tried to prove he was telling the truth by turning the lobby into a snowscape, but all that had managed to do was freak the guy out and make him run into the snowstorm. Since then, Nate had resorted to pleading, but a lot of good that had done him.
Despair filled him each time he watched them leave, something he was incapable of doing. Although Nate knew the humans couldn’t defeat Diobno, what choice did he have but to try?
His frustration only grew with each failed attempt, especially when his desperation wasn’t always met with kindness. The last guy who’d shown up had turned out to be a complete jerk, yelling at Nate about the lack of amenities and the musty smell clinging to everything.
How was that his freaking fault? Sure, Nate may have conjured the storms, but it was Diobno who’d allowed the interior to become so dilapidated. Knowing how badly Nate wanted out of there, the vile demon took pleasure in making his nephew’s life as miserable as possible.
And Nate was beyond depressed.
If that wasn’t bad enough, the despicable manchild relished in denying Nate even the simplest pleasures, like hot water. He hadn’t had a hot shower for nearly five decades.
Five freaking decades!
Nate had taken so many cold showers his bits and pieces had shriveled up ages ago. On the bright side—if you could call it that—Diobno had taken away Nate’s need for nourishment, but that didn’t stop him from missing his favorite foods and sweets.
At least he had a television, even though it had only one channel, which was why Nate had been shocked when Ryker had guessed the correct price of the handbag instead of him. Before that, Nate had watched old westerns on repeat. Although the shows were family-friendly, he honestly missed catching glimpses of rugged cowboys with muscular bare chests glistening with sweat.
The commercials also allowed him to stay current with the times, though a lot of the things advertised confused the hell out of him.
But finally, Nate had lured—he detested using that word—a preternatural being to the motel, someone who could potentially help him fight against the powerful and petulant crybaby whose sense of humor was as dull as the faded wallpaper surrounding them.
Nate remembered how it all started. He’d made Diobno the butt of a joke—a risky move, though the details of what he’d said had long slipped away. What hadn’t faded was his uncle’s reaction.
Diobno had gone deathly still, his smirk vanishing as the air around them grew heavy. Before Nate could react, Diobno’s hand was on his throat, his grip like iron.
“You think I’m a joke?”
his uncle sneered, his voice dark and venomous. “We’ll see who’s laughing now.”
The memory twisted in Nate’s gut. His uncle had been looking for any excuse, and Nate had stupidly handed him one. He might hand Diobno another one if he wasn’t careful.
The only reason Nate hadn’t told Ryker about his uncle was the fact that as soon as Diobno had discovered what Ryker truly was, he threatened to trap the guy in the motel if Nate breathed a single word about his imprisonment.
That had been the topic of their argument after Ryker had checked in. Otis, one of Diobno’s lowly minions and the demon who worked the front desk, had telepathically informed his master that instead of the usual human, Nate had lured in a bear shifter.
Despite wanting desperately to escape from his situation, Nate refused to drag someone else into this hellish existence, even if it would’ve been incredible to finally have some company.
Someone who wouldn’t leave him alone for long stretches of time or treat him like garbage. Diobno was a migraine and a half to deal with, but terrible company was better than none at all, because when his uncle went on one of his hiatuses, he took Otis with him, leaving Nate all alone.
Even the thought of Christmas—which he’d once thoroughly loved—and the chance to escape hadn’t cheered him up. Since his imprisonment, it had turned into a holiday of desperation instead of a joyous occasion.
Ryker mentioned having a young nephew, and Nate didn’t have the heart to separate the bear shifter from his family, no matter how lonely he felt. Too bad Nate couldn’t permanently separate himself from his own family.
Every cell in his body craved to get away from Diobno.
But Ryker had walked out, like everyone else had, so Nate no longer had to worry about watching what he said around the guy. He also didn’t have to be concerned that Diobno would conceal his physical form and eavesdrop, knowing Nate couldn’t detect his presence.
Hugging himself, Nate wondered if he would ever experience the kind of comfort the bear shifter had given him now that Ryker was gone. But he didn’t want anyone else to try.
He wanted Ryker.
Tears welled up in his eyes, and a heavy, burning lump formed in his throat. Being immortal, a century might seem short in the grand scheme of things, but it was an excruciatingly long time to endure isolation, to simply exist without any joy, connection, or love. Just unbearable anguish and despair.
“I hate you!”
He screamed at the top of his lungs while throwing up his middle finger. Hadn’t he already paid a high enough price for a stupid joke?
He was done letting Diobno punish him. If Nate couldn’t walk out of the motel a free man, he would burn the retched place to the ground. At least then he would no longer be at his uncle’s cruel mercy.
Anything would be better than living another second in this miserable hellhole, praying futility that the next traveler might help him defeat his uncle so he could get out of there. He was sick and tired of the never-ending cycle of hope turning into despair.
Now that Nate was once again alone, the motel felt even bleaker than before. He wiped the tears from his eyes, his heart and mind filled with a level of desolation not even his imprisonment had been able to achieve.
“I’m going to assume your declaration of hate was aimed at your buddy.”
Heart hammering, Nate whipped his head up at the sound of Ryker’s deep, silky voice. “Why… You’re still here.”
Tension-filled butterflies swept through his stomach as Nate gazed into Ryker’s beautiful gray eyes. The bear shifter hadn’t abandoned him. He hadn’t walked out and left Nate to his isolation and despair.
“ We’ll discuss things later,”
Ryker said as two huge men flanked the guy.
Taking a step back, Nate’s gaze darted between them. “Who are they?”
“My dad and brother.”
There was a hint of pride warming Ryker’s tone.
Nate glanced at the two, something about them screaming danger and devotion in equal measure. They weren’t just here for Ryker—they looked ready to tear apart anyone or anything standing in their way of reaching him.
“This is so messed up,”
Nate muttered, his voice tinged with disbelief.
Ryker furrowed his brows. “That my family is here to help us?”
“No.”
Nate waved a hand toward the two men. “You’re gone for twelve damn hours and your father and brother mount a rescue to find you! I’ve been stuck in this hellhole for a century, and my family probably hasn’t even noticed I’m gone!”
“I warned you.”
Diobno’s voice echoed, soft but icy, threading through the air like a whispered curse. Around them, the motel began to waver, its walls dissolving inch by inch into a slow, creeping void.
“Get out!”
Nate rushed forward to shove at Ryker. “If you stay, you and your family will be stuck in limbo with me!”
Ryker grabbed Nate around the waist and hauled him off his feet, everyone racing toward the exit. Nate didn’t tell Ryker he couldn’t leave the motel. A huge part of him prayed, just this once, it actually worked.
The father and brother shot out of the front exit. When Ryker crossed the threshold, Nate was yanked back, the door slamming shut.
“Nate!”
Ryker pulled at the door, desperation clear on his face as he tried to get it to open.
“Ryker!”
Nate plastered himself against the wood, staring at the bear shifter through the wired glass window in the top portion of the door. Nate sobbed as the motel faded even more.
“Your mate!”
the father shouted, his eyes wide. “How is he still trapped inside?”
Mate? Ryker was his mate? Nate blasted the glass with the icicles quickly forming from his palms, just as desperate as Ryker to get the door open.
Using his shoulder and sheer size, Ryker rammed his entire body into the door. The wood splintered, and the wired glass shattered but remained intact. Nate stared in shock. He’d tried to break the glass a million times in the past, but nothing he’d ever done had worked. Despite the motel’s battered state, its doors had always been unyielding, impervious to any real damage. But for some reason, it had worked for Ryker.
“Do it again!”
Nate shouted, glancing around for something heavy he could use to help.
All three men used their momentum to heave their colossal bodies toward the door, Ryker in front, his family shoving him forward. Their impact made the entire wall surrounding the door shake, rattling loose flakes of paint and dust from the frame, before a rush of cold air blasted into the room.
Shards of glass scattered across the floor, while the wire mesh buckled inward, the bottom edge curling upward in a jagged, almost spring-like arc.
“Grab my hand!”
Ryker reached for him through the gap in the broken wire.
Nate lunged forward but knew he wasn’t going to get out in time. The motel was fading even faster now, leaving them only less than a minute before it would completely vanish.
Nate shrieked when he was grabbed from behind, a strong arm around his waist. Diobno hauled him away from the door, walking him down the hallway. “Now where do you think you’re going, Nathan? I’m nowhere near done punishing you.”
As hard as Nate fought, he couldn’t get Diobno’s arm from around his waist. “I hate you!”
“Feeling’s mutual.”
Nate landed on the musty, threadbare carpet when his uncle threw him to the floor. “Just for that stunt, it’ll be a good eighty to ninety years before I allow the motel to reappear, or maybe it’ll never reappear again.”
When his uncle vanished, Nate didn’t attempt to get up. There was no use. The sensation of his stomach dropping told him the motel was back in limbo.
Nate lay there, too numb to feel anything. If he hadn’t masked his demon scent, Ryker would have told him right away they were mates. He knew the only reason the guy hadn’t was because Ryker thought Nate was human and was probably trying to figure out a way to tell him.
No wonder he’d become attached to Ryker so quickly. It should have dawned on Nate that the guy might’ve possibly been his mate, but he’d chalked up his feelings to loneliness.
But none of that mattered now. Diobno would never let the motel reappear again.
Nate had lost Ryker forever.