AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Why don’t I believe you?” I snarled and his smile just widened, showing off slightly pointed canines. He shrugged and slid his boots off the table, letting the chair fall back down onto all fours. He unfolded himself with a sort of effortless ease. It was as if he had muscles in places that I didn’t. When he came to his full height, he towered over me. I felt insignificant compared to him, even from across the room. Everything about him was lean, deadly, and his stance screamed ‘killer.’
I slowly angled my body away from him, glancing down the hall behind me. I wondered if I could make it out the front door before he caught up. Almost as soon as the plan entered my mind, something whizzed by the front of my face - so close that I could feel the rush of air as it passed.
Startled, I looked back to see the knife he had been tossing into the air embedded into the wall, inches from where my head had been. I turned, as slowly as I could, back to face him. My hands came up of their own accord, I think to reassure him that I would not make any sudden movements and that I was unarmed. My entire body was vibrating with shock. I was terrified.
“Don’t even think about it, Kitten. I would skin you alive before you made it down the hall.” He purred and began to stalk toward me. I made eye contact with his eerie eyes and wondered how a daemon had gotten through the wards without alerting Conrad. I brushed my aura against him and realized with a shock that he wasn’t a daemon. His aura was as different from mine as Conrad and Meredith’s, but he wasn’t magick folk either. That left one more creature that I knew about. He must be a shifter.
The more I focused, the more information I could gather from him. He didn’t seem to be aware as I poked and prodded, which I took as a small blessing. His aura was constantly changing, from deep rich greens to browns and cool shades of grey. He smelled like the rainforest. There was a humidity about him and I was starting to guess that he changed into some sort of large cat from the way he moved.
I blinked and he was in front of me. I gasped.
Damn, he was fast .
20
He hadn’t been kidding. There was no way I would be able to outrun him. It was frustrating and scary coming up against a creature that was more monster than I was. I was used to being the fastest, the strongest, and even the meanest.
By the way this shifter was looking at me, I knew I had been bumped from my long-standing seat at the top of the food chain. This was not some teenage asshole looking to bully me to show off to his friends. This man was a professional.
I tried to call out to Conrad with my mind, but there was no answer. Had he even followed me home? Had he left once he realized I’d made it here safe? I swallowed and forced myself to stop shaking. No one was coming to my rescue. I had to get out of this myself. I had to get this thing out of the house before Jeremy or Clair came home. I had no doubt he would kill them on the spot if they interrupted whatever it was he was planning to do with me.
“Who the hell are you and what are you doing in my house?” I growled. My voice was low and to my pleasure, steady. He was now so close I could smell his aftershave. He was inches away and he kept eye contact with me as he reached behind me to pry his knife out of the wall. I thought for a second he would do something lecherous, but he surprised me by taking a step back. He flipped and rolled the knife nimbly through his fingers without looking at what he was doing. I hoped he would cut himself.
“I’m here to kidnap you,” he said with a smile that I think was meant to be charming. “Now be a good girl and turn around so I can tie you up.” I scowled at him.
“You honestly think I’m just going to let you tie me up?” I forced a laugh and spat at his feet. “Go to hell.” He looked at the spit on his boot for a second before glancing back up at me.
“Now…why did you have to go and do that?” He asked, his voice soft. I suddenly regretted being a smartass, just in time for him to slam me against the wall by my throat. I cried out as he plunged the knife into the wall by my head with the hand that wasn’t suspending me several inches off the floor.
Wrapping both hands around his wrist, I clawed at his skin as I struggled to breathe. He didn’t budge. He leaned in and whispered in my ear, making me shiver with revulsion.
“Don’t make me hurt you, Kitten, not before I have to.” He inhaled deeply, then exhaled against my neck. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to stop myself once your blood starts flowing.” He said, nuzzling into my throat. I kicked at his shins and bucked against the wall trying to get him away from me. “You smell like… power.” He breathed against me, and then to my complete and utter horror, he licked my neck. I thrashed in fury as he pulled back, chuckling at my efforts. I couldn’t speak with his hand crushing my windpipe, so I settled for hissing into his mind. ‘I’m glad this is amusing you.’ He grinned, his yellow eyes twinkling.
“Kitten, you have no idea,” he purred out loud.
Finally, I gave up struggling and let myself hang limp. I wanted him to underestimate me, then when he was least expecting it, I would take him out. I wouldn’t be able to do that if I struggled until he strangled me to death.
Unfortunately, I was too terrified to fall back on my usual rage. His touch sent waves of fear through me. The skin beneath my triquetra was on fire and the spot on my chin where Amon had touched me was so cold it almost hurt. Was this about him? Had he sent this creature to collect me? I felt tears well behind my eyes and I blinked them back. I would not let this monster see me cry.
After what felt like an eternity, the nameless shifter seemed convinced that I was done fighting him. His grip loosened on my neck and he made soothing sounds as he lowered me gently to floor.
“That’s my girl.” He murmured, “Shh, there you go. Sorry it had to come to that…” Once he let me go, my hands flew to my throat, massaging it where I knew a bruise was already blooming. I kept my head bowed and watched him through my hair. He didn’t step back or give me any room to maneuver.
“I’m not your girl.” I croaked, cringing. He just chuckled in that condescending way of his. He pulled handcuffs out from somewhere and grabbed me by the shoulder, spinning me around to face the wall.
“Put your hands behind your back,” he demanded, and I forced myself to obey. The cuffs felt cold against my skin and he tightened them enough that the metal cut into my wrists. I hissed at the pain.
“Sorry Kitten, can’t take any chances with you.” He deftly pulled his knife out of the drywall again and helped me turn to face the back door on the other side of the kitchen. “We’re going to go out the back. You will keep quiet or I will gag you. And Kitten…” He grabbed a fistful of my hair and yanked my head back so he could look me in the face from behind. “I would love an excuse to gag you, so it would be in your best interest not to give me one.”
My heart was hammering in my chest again. I had no idea how he planned to spirit me away in broad daylight, though I didn’t really plan on finding out. The second he let go of my hair I leaned forward, putting all of my weight on my left foot and pivoted, kicking my right heel directly into his groin. It was a move Jeremy had taught me when I was younger. I had never had to use it until this moment.
My captor swore loudly and doubled over in pain, just as I knew he would. I didn’t stop to marvel at my work… I ran. I was at the back door in seconds, but I immediately realized I would lose precious time opening the door with my hands tied. Whipping around, I started to fumble with the knob behind my back, all the while watching as the shifter cursed and shouted, trying to push past the pain to stumble after me.
Finally, I heard that lifesaving ‘click ’ and the door flew open. I slipped through it and sprinted into the backyard. As soon as the fresh air hit my lungs, I opened my mouth to scream. Before I could even get a syllable out there was a thump and a crack followed by a blinding pain in my head. Then, everything went black.
21
The first thing I was aware of was the pain. I felt like someone had hit me on the head with a hammer. Probably a concussion. I groaned out loud and tried to touch the thudding pulse in my skull. That’s when I realized that my hands were tied up. I peeked through my eyelids, wincing at the dim light. Nausea roiled through my stomach, and I bit back bile. Yep. Definitely a concussion. It took a second for the horrifying events of the afternoon to come back to me, and even longer than that for me to get my bearings and take in my surroundings. It wasn’t looking good.
