Chapter 4 #3
Section by section, she started at the right and moved to the left. Up and down the rows she’d mentally drawn over the garden, she worked hard not to let her mind wander as she looked for something, anything that could be used as a way of escape.
Moving on autopilot, sure, she would have to fight her way out of the Blackwood Mansion. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of light. Instantly on high alert, she focused with every speck of Magic she had on the exact spot where she’d seen the light and held her breath.
Seconds became minutes as she prayed to see it again.
Her hopes soared. She was just sure the tiny Bobcat who’d seen her in the cave had gotten to Defiance.
“She told them I was there. Gave the Bobcat Queen, Tamsyn, my name. Cyrus knows we’re here.
” Instinctively rubbing her belly, she whispered, “Your daddy may not exist, but he’ll come for us.
” Nodding to reassure herself as much as her unborn child and the Polar Bear Princess with whom she shared her soul, Nessy repeated, “I know he’ll be here. ”
Looking over the entire garden one more time and seeing nothing, Vanessa cursed under her breath, “Dammit! I know I’m not losing my mind…”
“No,” Celeste agreed. “I saw it too, but I’ll be damned if I can find it now.”
Turning away from the window, tired of waiting for anyone else to save her, Vanessa stalked across the room.
With her fists clenched tightly at her side and her teeth gritted, she ground out, “I’ll knock that blasted door off the hinges.
The three of us have made it this far all on our own, and we’ll make it to Defiance the same damned way. ”
Once again, she grabbed the knob and pulled so hard that her arms shook and her hands cramped.
The thought of beating it down resurfaced.
She even had both fists in the air and had inhaled a huge breath to scream as loud as possible when she heard footsteps heading in her direction.
Listening more closely, she could tell there were two people.
One with a very heavy step, the other, lighter, wearing those blasted stilettos.
“Oh, lookie there, Celeste,” She whispered conspiratorially. “Our hosts are coming to check on us.”
“Good! I haven’t delivered a good ass kickin’ in a really long time.”
Spinning on the balls of her feet, Nessy ran across the room, hopped into bed, pulled up the covers, and pretended to still be unconscious.
The louder the footsteps, the louder her heart pounded.
Her breath caught in her throat as the key scraped the lock and the door swung open.
Working hard to calm her nerves, she felt Celeste preparing to jump into action.
“She’s still sleeping.” It was Big Lady I, aka Angelica, her voice so full of regret that the bitter and stale scent of spoiled milk filled the room.
Of course, Angeline was pleased as punch– so happy that she exuded the spicy, hot aroma of freshly cut jalapenos and overly sweet oranges. The two scents battled for supremacy and tickled Vanessa’s nose with such gusto that she was forced to hold her breath.
Then Angelica asked, “Are you sure we have to dress? She’s resting, and she’s…”
“I have eyes, Little One,” Angeline snapped. “I told you it must be done, and you will do it.”
The atmosphere turned tense. The silence was deafening. The scent of burnt wood and dead flowers filled the room. The soon-to-be Luna of the Blackwood Pack was pissed.
For a second, Vanessa worried that the bitch might strike the younger, but way bigger, She-Wolf. Then she wondered why she cared.
Of course, Celeste was right there to say, “Because you can tell that the poor dear is caught between her family and what she knows is right. However…”
“However,” Vanessa jumped in. “She’s big enough to take care of herself.”
“Damn straight,” the Polar Bear Princess huffed. “Now, play possum until we get an opening.”
Ready to give Celeste some sass, the words were stolen from her mind when Angeline sniped, “She must be awake and dressed when the hairdresser and makeup artist arrive. We have thirty minutes.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Angelica’s clipped answer spoke volumes. Sure, she was very tall and extremely muscular, but she was scared shitless of her older sisters. It was sad, but there was nothing Vanessa could do to help. She had to protect herself and her unborn baby.
Following the movements of two of the Blackwood sisters as they shuffled around the room, she was surprised when the thud of heavy footsteps came closer, stopping just outside the door. “You called for me, Miss Angeline?”
“Oh, yes, DeeDee,” the bitch happily chirped. “WE are going to need your help getting Miss Bryant dressed.”
“Yes, Miss.”
There was instantly more rustling and bustling, and with every passing second, Vanessa's heart beat faster, and more droplets of sweat covered her top lip. It was infuriating. What the hell was taking them so long? Why were they…?
“Okay, I will leave you two to it.” Angeline’s snippy tone had such a haughty tone of arrogance that Nessy thought about jumping out of bed and smacking her across the face.
Thankfully, Angelica quietly said, “Yes, Sister.”
The sound of stilettos leaving the room eased Vanessa’s rattled nerves. Slowly exhaling the breath she’d been holding, careful not to move the sheet, she waited for the two large She-Wolves to speak.
Inhaling slowly, she instinctively felt Angelica Blackwood walk across the room and stop at the side of her bed.
Pulling down the covers, the tall, muscled She-Wolf stood there silently.
Vanessa knew she hadn’t moved. She was also well aware that the other She-Wolf, Big Lady II, or DeeDee, as Angeline had called her, wasn’t moving a muscle.
The buzzing static of them speaking telepathically tickled Vanessa’s arms and legs. Then Angelica whispered aloud, “I just can’t do this.”
“But you have to, Sis.”
“Sis? Is the blond part of the family, too?” Celeste hissed.
Before Nessy could respond, DeeDee continued. “You know Angeline will send you out to Malick just like she did Aamon, and he’s still…”’
“Yes, I know, my brother is still bleeding and can barely walk.” Angelica’s tone turned rough and angry.
“But it was no more than he deserved. They all deserve it. Look at this. This woman is pregnant with another man’s baby, her Fated Mate’s baby, and those nasty bitches don’t care.
They just want to give mom a grandchild before they kill her. ”
“Holy shit!” Vanessa gasped. “She’s not with them.”
“Oh, hell, no!” Celeste snapped. “You are not…”
But Vanessa wasn’t listening. She saw a way out and took it.
Opening her eyes, she looked directly into Angelica’s sad, dark eyes. Ignoring the She-Wolf’s gasp and shock, she whispered, “If you help us, I will help you.”
“How can you help us?” DeeDee lowly spat. “You’re the prisoner here. We have to…”
Eyes still wide but her fists clenched at her side, Angelica turned to her blind counterpart and shook her head. “We have to help, Sis. Enough is enough. We have to…”
“We have to do as we’re told.” Pushing Angelica out of the way, DeeDee leaned over Vanessa as she matter-of-factly stated, “It’s your ass or mine, lady, and I will not be…”
Before her brain or the Polar Bear Princess with whom she shared her soul had the chance to thwart her plan, Vanessa pulled her knees as close to her pregnant stomach as she could, and in one fluid motion, rolled onto her side.
Slamming the heels of her hands into DeeDee’s chest at the same time that she kicked the massive She-Wolf in the stomach, she tried not to smile when the crack of the woman’s ribs reverberated off the walls of the cavernous room.
Stumbling backward, her arms cartwheeled in an attempt to catch her balance, DeeDee's eyes were wide as she begged Angelica, “Please! Please help…”
But Angelica just stood there as DeeDee crashed into the dresser and crumbled into a heap on the floor. Up on her feet, Vanessa took three steps backward, lifted her hands, and got ready for Big Lady I’s retaliation.
But there was none. Opening her mouth to ask Angelica if she was with her or against her, three small explosions, one right after the other, shook the house, throwing the room into total darkness.
Thanking the Heavens for night vision, Vanessa jumped when the She-Wolf grabbed her arm at the same time that a gruff, male Wolf shouted, “Everything okay in there, Miss Angelica?”
There was no time to lose. Angelica had to answer, or that bastard was going to barge into the room, and then Nessy would once again be at the mercy of the Blackwood Pack.
Jerking her arm from Big Lady I, she whispered harshly, “What are you…”
“Hit me,” Angelica ordered, a strength and determination in her voice that hadn’t been there before.”
“Hit you? What the…?”
“You have to knock me out.”
“But they’ll…”
Shaking her head, Angelica was adamant. “They won’t do anything to me, and you need to get out of here. Just pick up that marble-topped table over there.” She pointed in the darkness. “And hit me over the head.”
“But…”
Ignoring Nessy’s protests, she kept going. “It won’t knock me out, but I’ll pretend, and be ready when Josiah charges in.”
Feeling the truth and conviction of Angelica’s words, Nessy did as instructed. Sprinting across the room, she grabbed the table. Racing back, she didn't even stop before lifting the table over her head.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered at the same time that Celeste mentally said, “Thank you, Big Lady,” and in a fell swoop, she clocked Angelica right over the head.
Falling to the floor, Big Lady’s brown eyes were clouded with pain, but her belief in their plan shone brighter.
Whipping the comforter off the bed, Vanessa stopped before covering the She-Wolf and whispered, “Are you sure you won’t come with us?”
“I can’t,” she whispered. “I need to clean up this mess.”
“Okay,” was all Nessy could say as Angelica closed her eyes and let her head fall to the side.