82. Henri
Chapter 82
Henri
I missed not doing this regularly, coordinating meetings and talking events. Being at the heart of showing humans all the best parts of wolves and our impact on society became a mission I didn’t even realize I’d had.
It’s been good to get back out with the Ardeleans for positive public appearances, even with a reduced schedule over the past couple weeks.
I miss not being right at Deacon’s side all the time, but as much as Kyle was a pain in my ass, he was a warm body, without which I wasn’t able to attend the wolf’s induction into the Rock N Roll Hall of fame with Deacon in Ohio because I had to handle events here.
He got in late last night, and we only had a few minutes to catch up before we collapsed into bed. My wolf is on edge without him, and she isn’t settling with the promise that we’re catching up with him after this discussion panel with Finn and Lena on the next steps with the lab.
Soon. We’ll see him soon. I try to settle her.
My phone vibrates, and it instantly distracts me. One thing that has massively changed is the difficulty to schedule a meeting with heads of state. Please be the governor’s office .
I tap my security detail on the arm and indicate to my phone. He nods and steps out of the convention center into the hallway with me. We walk a ways down the corridor to a more private area.
I slide the green circle to answer. “Hello?”
“Hello, Henri,” Nathan answers, but it’s like I’m hearing him in surround sound, as though he’s nearby.
A grunt sounds behind me, and as I turn, a scream lodges in my throat. My security detail is lying on the floor, one of Nathan’s friends squatting over him.
Arms wrap around me from behind, and I don’t need to look to know who they belong to. Nathan’s familiar scent floods my nose.
No, my wolf snaps.
I fight hard, drawing on her strength to push against Nathan. But he only squeezes me tighter.
“If you don’t want to get hurt, you need to stay quiet,” he whispers in my ear.
Nathan’s friend pulls my phone out of my hand and drops it next to the security agent.
“Scream and we’ll kill you.” Nathan’s friend threatens me.
“They’ll notice I’m missing,” I warn them. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
I struggle harder against Nathan, but it doesn’t do me any good. He’s so much larger and stronger than me.
I try to shift to get away, but fear overwhelms any other thoughts or feelings. My wolf is there, but she won’t crack the surface. I squeeze my eyes shut, focusing on her, but I can’t take her form.
Nathan grips my arm and neck. He drags me down the hallway, walking backward, and then turns us, forcing me out into a corridor. He shoves me against the wall, and my head connects with it face first, rattling my brain with the force.
“You had to go and be a fuckin’ slut.” Nathan’s voice cuts in through the ringing in my ears.
Disoriented, I struggle against him the best I can, but it’s futile.
He drags me down the quiet hallway with me held to his side. Neck bent at an odd angle. Shoulder contorted in another. My feet stumble, trying to get purchase on the ground.
“Hel —”
Nathan removes his hand from my neck to put it over my mouth. “Don’t. I’ll kill you.”
With his hand covering my mouth, it pushes up against my nostrils, cutting off my air entirely. I’m quickly losing energy from the lack of oxygen.
No. I can’t die . I force my jaw down against his hand, sucking in a breath, prolonging what feels like the inevitable as blackness creeps in at the corners of my vision.
I’m thrown up against another wall—no, a door. The wood is different from the wallpaper. He pushes the central bar to open the latch, and I fall forward. Lightheaded, I get my hands out in front of me to catch myself.
As quickly as I can, I crawl to get away from him and attempt to push myself up to my feet.
Run. My wolf urges.
Nathan’s hand wraps around my ankle, pulling me back to him. The low-pile carpet burns against my palms.
I yelp loudly.
Shift, dammit! I scream in my head.
“You went and got yourself knocked up by some asshole. I wasn’t good enough for you, Henri?” Nathan’s foot connects with my stomach.
I curl in on myself with the impact .
Everything hurts. I can’t breathe. I try to gasp for air, but my lungs refuse to cooperate. I can’t hear anything over my pulse pounding in my ears and the panicked screams to survive in my brain.
When I gasp and finally fill my lungs, he lands another blow to my chest, but it’s weaker, and I’m still able to draw ragged breaths.
“You’re a fucking whore, Henri.” Nathan laughs at me. He grabs my hair at the roots, pulling me up to almost sitting from where I’d been prone on the floor. “That’s someone who gets paid to fuck. You’ve always said ‘he’s my employer.’ Yeah, because he’s your fuckin’ pimp. Letting him fuck you while you get paid for it. That’s disgusting.”
I don’t know what to do. Arguing with him has only escalated things in the past, and I’d hate to even imagine what an escalation from this would look like. Begging seems like what he wants.
My breaths are coming fast, and tremors are taking over my body as my fight-or-flight response doesn’t know what to do.
Every conversation that Cade and Thalia have ever had in passing about hostage situations and negotiations goes out the window. Safety briefs with Finn are completely forgotten. My wolf isn’t coming to save me.
Tears, however, pour from my eyes.
“You got off your heat pills for him. Bet you fuckin’ couldn’t wait to screw him,” Nathan spits, dragging me by my hair along the ground.
I kick out at his leg, trying to trip him. When that doesn’t work because I barely have any strength left, I dig my fingernails into his forearm.
“Fuck!” Nathan hisses, letting go of my hair.
My reprieve doesn’t last long.
He grabs my arm, and his foot lands square in my ribs. I feel the crack after I hear it, but I can’t get the scream out of my chest.
Through bleary eyes, I can just make out Nathan, but I don’t miss the knife in his hand. Backpedaling on the floor, I try again to get away from him.
Pain shoots up my arm, through and across my chest, and I force myself to keep moving. But I’m no match for him.
“Should destroy you for cheating on me.” Nathan pulls me back to him, my arms dragging on the floor.
I gasp and try to scream, but he’s on top of me, and the pain is taking my breath away.
I’ve never felt something like this. But this must be where they get the term stabbing pain from.
Keep fighting, my wolf encourages.
Deacon’s going to be crushed.
I keep trying to push him off me, but the thick, heavy scent of blood tells me it’s hopeless. I’m going to die here like this.
Poor Deacon.