Chapter 36
Ember
My head pounds as I suppress a groan. Why does my head hurt so much? And why does my mouth taste like cotton? I move my hand, but then my body freezes when I’m not able to move it.
What the fuck happened?
Why am I tied up?
Slowly, memories come back to me.
Tico getting called to look at something in the middle of the night.
Corvus coming to sit with me.
Zane shooting him before attacking him.
Someone in black attacking me.
Being darted twice.
Fuck.
What did they dart me with?
Shit. Is Pyper okay? Fuck, I hope they didn’t kidnap her as well.
I try to keep my breathing under control, to keep it slow and steady like I’m still knocked out. I can feel that we’re moving, so I’m guessing that I’m in some sort of a vehicle. Carefully, I shift my foot and send up a silent thank you when I realize it’s not secured—they only secured my hands.
I listen, trying to figure out where people are located in the vehicle, but the only things I can hear are two unfamiliar guys talking. I crack my eyes open but I can’t see anyone or anything nearby.
We go over a bump in the road, or maybe a pothole, and I let my body move naturally with the vehicle. My body shifts just enough where I can see a bit more of where I’m being held.
I’m in the back of a stripped-down van. Taking a chance, I open my eyes a bit more and confirm that no one is back here with me.
Relief flows through me that Pyper might still be safe back at the clubhouse.
Steadying my breath, I listen again but I can’t hear anything except the two men in the front talking in low voices.
Carefully, I slightly lift my head and open my left eye before quickly shutting it and lowering my head. The only two seats in the van are occupied by the two men I heard talking. Knowing that the two men are occupied and that no one else is in here with me, I let my body relax.
I wonder how far we are… I’m assuming anyway that I’ll be dragged back to the Chrome Viper’s compound. I just hope that Diego can find me before The Collector gets his hands on me…because if he doesn’t…
I suppress a shiver.
No.
I’m not going to think like that.
I just need to gather as much information as I can and then try to figure out my escape.
I’m not sure how long we’ve been driving when the van slows down. From somewhere outside, I hear something big and mechanical moving and my stomach sinks.
I’m back.
We’re at the Chrome Viper’s compound again.
Grounding myself for what’s to come, I keep my body lax and eyes closed, hoping that they’ll think I’m still knocked out.
Voices raise outside but I can’t make out what they’re saying.
Then the door is opened and rough hands grab my arms, pulling me across the floor.
My skin burns from the friction, but I don’t react.
I let my head roll naturally and someone curses as they hastily cut the zip ties, nicking my skin in the process.
My fingers tingle as blood rushes back to them and I fight not to stretch them and ease the pain.
“Fucking hell, Cole, how much did you fucking give her? She should be awake by now.”
Cole… So that’s who attacked me? The masked man? Is he part of Oasis?
“I just darted her twice like I said, Buzz. Stitch said that was the max I could give her.”
Buzz curses and then my body lifts and I’m flung over his shoulder. I fight not to wrinkle my nose when I smell the stench rolling off him. Fucking hell. Did he not shower at all on the trip?
As Buzz walks, I pay attention to which way he goes and my stomach rolls when I realize he’s taking me towards the homestead buildings.
My fears are confirmed when I hear the heavy door of the main building being unlocked and then Buzz walks deeper into the building.
He opens a door and I fight not to move a muscle when I hear cage doors being opened.
Buzz drops me unceremoniously on the floor and I let my body roll naturally despite my breath being mostly knocked out of me.
“Welcome to your new home, Princess,” he sneers. “When you wake up, you’ll finally realize you’ve been knocked off that fucking pedestal of yours. You’re just a woman, a nobody. And personally, I can’t wait for the show when The Collector comes to pick up his newest conquest.”
Buzz half laughs, half wheezes as he locks the cage doors and then the door behind him slams shut, the mechanical locks re-engaging.
I listen to his fading footsteps and then I slowly open my eyes, looking around. I was right. They put me in the cages where they keep the women that have a bit more spunk and spirit. Women they feel they need to ‘break’ some more until they let them stay in the other rooms.
There’s only one, solitary bulb for a light source which is in front of the cell to my right.
Every now and then, it flickers slightly, adding more shadows to the room.
The floor is dirt and there’s a worn cot in one corner with a thin blanket and pillow on it.
In another corner is a bucket that I’m assuming is my ‘bathroom’, which I’m not looking forward to using it.
And that’s it. Just metal bars, a ceiling, and dirt.
Looking down at myself, I’m relieved that I’m still in my clothes.
Even more surprising, I’m still wearing my cut and boots, though I am missing my phone.
Now I’m wishing I had paid more attention to the others for where they hid weapons or tools on themselves for situations like this.
I turn, noting there are five other cells just like mine in here, all positioned side by side.
At first, I think I’m the only one in here, until something moves in one of the shadowed corners of the cell next to me, the cement pillar slightly obscuring whoever it is.
They’re sitting on the floor with their knees pulled up to their chin and their arms wrapped around their legs.
“Hello?” I ask, but all they does is shift slightly. “Who are you? How long have you been here?” I ask them as I grip the bars in between us, and for a while, I think they aren’t going to answer me.
“L-Lena,” she whispers. “I… I don’t know for sure.
I heard from the women that were here before, that they deliberately mess with time since there are no windows in here for us to tell if it’s night or day.
They’ll randomly turn the lights out and then back on and for varying lengths of time.
Though, they do feed us once a day. If you can call what they give us food, that is.
I’ve been fed twenty times. I use the cap from my water bottle to make a mark on the wall to keep track. ”
I swallow hard at how long she’s been here and what she must have already gone through.
Then my stomach tightens at the fact that the other women she mentioned are no longer in here, in the cells.
That means they’ve already been ‘broken accordingly’ and moved to the breeding room or they’ve been sold as a ‘feisty slave’ as I’ve heard it called before.
“Who are you?” she asks.
“Ember. Ember Foxx.”
She eyes me warily, her gaze fixated on my cut. “What does that vest mean? When they brought you in there, I caught a glimpse of the ‘Property of Tico’ on the back.”
“It’s a cut. My Ol’ Man is Tico, the President of the Royal Bastards MC out of Wisconsin.”
Her eyes widen in surprise. “Where in Wisconsin?”
“Sheboygan Falls.”
Lena scrambles to her feet and then grasps the bars in between us. “That’s my hometown.”
My stomach sinks. Did they kidnap her while they were in town looking for me? Or was she taken before then? Wait, no. She said she’s been here for twenty days if the whole being fed once a day thing is accurate. Shit.
“I didn’t realize that the Tico from your vest, I mean cut, was that Tico from back home. Does that mean the Royal Bastards are coming for you?”
“Yes,” I reply instantly, knowing Tico won’t let me go. I also don’t mention that my cut has a tracking device on it. I’m almost positive there are cameras in here. Honestly, I’m surprised Kane didn’t remove it unless her forgot about the trackers.
A broken sob escapes her and she collapses on the floor. “They took me on my way home from work. I’ve never had any problems walking home before. Still, I carried mace with me, mainly to appease my parents, not that that did me a lot of good. God, my parents must be so freaked out.”
I sit down on the floor and reach through the bars, holding her as she cries. Above us, the light suddenly blinks out and Lena’s body tenses.
“Tell me your story. How did you get here?” she whispers and I know it’s to try and keep her mind off of what could happen tonight.
From what I’ve heard from several women in the compound over the years, the men here don’t care what time of day or night it is when they come here to ‘correct’ the women.
Quietly, I start to tell her my story.