Chapter Ten
It was dark out, the only illumination on the road coming from their headlights and the cold white light of the nearly full moon. The trees closed in overhead, thick branches from both sides of the road rubbing together. Driving on this road was like winding through a lightless tunnel.
Austin glared at his prisoner, who was slumped over in the seat next to him. He’d just been forced to use two more tranqs on him. Roy seemed to be waking up every two to three hours. He wasn’t just deadly and psychotic, he was also the most annoying son of a bitch Austin had ever met. He seemed to enjoy aggravating them just for the fun of it. Fun for him, anyway.
Austin would never have thought he’d want to see Jason’s face again, but now he absolutely could not wait to get rid of this passenger from hell.
Savannah spoke up from the front seat. “Based on the rate he’s burning through our supplies, we don’t have enough tranqs to keep him out until we get there.”
Austin nodded. His voice was strung tight with tension. “Just drive as fast as you safely can. How you holding up? Do you need a break?”
“Nah, I’m good, thanks,” she said cheerfully. “The adrenaline and sheer terror are doing wonders for keeping me awake.”
“Fun times, eh?” Austin sighed.
“The funnest.”
He had to hand it to her. She was being absolutely amazing about this. She wasn’t whining or complaining, just doing the job that needed to be done. It was a miserable job, driving slow, endless miles on this hell-road with a living bomb in the back seat that could go off at any moment. But she was a trooper.
And he would have to leave her.
Gloom settled over him.
What if they made it to Jason’s and somehow managed to walk away from the whole encounter alive? Then what would he do? He’d been ordered to leave Washington State, forever, and if he didn’t, Tully’s pack would pay the price. He’d have a huge stash of money, but what good was that to him if he was all alone?
The thought of never seeing Savannah again made him ill.Waking up in an empty bed… Never hearing her voice again… Nausea rolled in his stomach, and sweat beaded on his temples and trickled down the sides of his face.
He pushed it to the back of his mind.
Focus on the job.
They lasted about another two hours before Roy woke up again.
This time, instead of struggling against the chains, he started talking.
Or rather threatening.
“Do you have any idea what I’m going to do to you when I get out of these chains, girl?” he rasped.
Anthony yawned and opened his eyes, looking around to get his bearings.
“You talking to me?” Savannah asked, glancing in the rearview mirror.
“No, I’m talking to the little bitch sitting next to me,” he snarled. “Yes, I’m talking to you.”
“Um, let’s see. You’ll ravage my fair young flesh?” she guessed.
“No, that’s not really my thing. I’m going to slow cook you alive over an open fire.”
“Sounds fun,” she said cheerfully. “I’ve always liked it hot.”
Roy continued describing all the horrible things he was going to do to her, her pack, everyone she’d ever loved, everyone she’d ever known, even people she didn’t particularly like very much.
It involved a lot of talk of evisceration, stabbing out eyeballs, skinning alive, and general torture and mayhem.
Austin just sat there in stony silence, letting Roy ramble on.
“So, I’m just trying to figure you out,” Savannah said. “You’ve spent the last few hours reminding us that you’re a total freaking psychopath. A threat to shifters and humans and anything with a pulse. We know this. That’s why you’re in chains and we’re not. What is your point, exactly? We’d better let you go or you’ll kill us all?”
