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The metal door rumbled and Delilah stirred, gasping the moment the cool evening air hit her.
“Get up, girl.” Maddox grabbed her ankle and dragged her to the opening at the back of the truck. The dirty floor scraping beneath her skin and rubbing it raw.
Delilah was so weak and dehydrated she fell onto the paved road, slamming her head into blacktop as pain exploded through her skull. She instantly wanted to vomit, but there wasn’t time. He shoved her with the toe of his shoe, and she rolled to her hands and knees, her palms scraping along the gravel.
He gripped her hair and she whimpered as he hoisted her to her feet. “Look familiar?”
She blinked at the dark fields. Stars dotted the sky overhead, undisturbed by modern lights. They were there. He’d made it, directed by her blood alone.
A tear rolled from her eye as he shoved her forward. “Take me to her.”
Delilah stumbled into the grass and fell to her knees again. She thought of Adriel. The woman was Christian’s only family. She couldn’t lead this maniac to her door.
The brunt toe of his shoe slammed into her ribs, lifting her off the ground and knocking her to her back. She coughed and sputtered, the wind kicked clean out of her lungs.
“That wasn’t a request.”
Rolling onto her hands and knees, she pressed her face into the cool grass. Christian, where are you?
Her head was yanked back as he fisted her hair. “If you want to see him again, get up and walk. Otherwise, I’m going to rip your eyes from that pretty little head of yours, and you’ll never look at sweet Christian again.”
She staggered to her feet, her balance off and her hair still knotted around his fist as he shoved her forward. She trudged toward the farm.
Adriel, can you hear—
Her body reeled forward as pain exploded in her skull. He shoved her face into the ground and snarled in her ear. “Don’t test my patience, girl. Piss me off again and I’ll make sure your mate never finds you.”
He yanked her up by the wrist, and she whimpered as his claw dug through her veins, slicing open her skin. She screamed at the sharp burn of his fangs puncturing her tender skin. The intense sting was nothing like the gentle way Christian took her blood.
He held her arm in an unbreakable grip, sucking down several painful gulps of her blood. His fangs released her and he grinned, dark crimson staining his teeth. “We’re close.”
He shoved her forward, not bothering to close the wound. She licked her fingers, but she was so dehydrated her mouth was too dry. She didn’t have the necessary saliva to heal herself.
“I need…water,” she rasped.
“Keep walking.” He shoved her and she flung forward, tripping over her feet.
She glared back only to quickly drop her gaze. There was no kindness in his soul. He was a cold, merciless, immortal. Nothing like the gentle-mannered ones she’d met through The Order.
He wouldn’t hesitate to hurt her if she didn’t do exactly what he said.
She led him toward the Schrock property, still somewhat unsure of the layout of the farm. As they walked, she put pressure on her arm and studied him. By the look of his designer shoes and finely tailored attire, this was not someone inhibited by Amish culture. There would be no pacifying him with thoughts of moral righteousness.
Where was Christian? He should be there by now. Why couldn’t she reach him through their mental link?
Maddox jabbed a finger in her back, prodding her forward. “Hurry up.”
With no way of warning Christian’s mother, she would be caught completely off-guard. What would happen once they found her. Did he plan to kill her?
Delilah stumbled down a hill toward the school house. The land was dark and quiet, hardly any candles glowing in the windows. If someone would see or hear them, Christian’s mother might have a fighting chance.
“Why do you want Adriel?”
“She owes me a debt.”
Christian said The Order could protect them. She wondered how they would protect Adriel.
Maddox laughed, the sound shooting ice into her veins. “Nothing short of death will stop me from taking back what’s mine, little girl.”
She looked up at him, her heels sinking into the dirt as she clambered along. He could hear her thoughts, so any attempt she made to warn anyone would have a consequence.
“You’re a fast learner.” He lifted his nose and scented the air. “We’re close.”
Juniper awoke to the rattling of keys. Her heart rate spiked and she swallowed a whimper, her lashes flickering against the tear-stained blindfold that covered her eyes. He’d just left. How could he possibly be back for more?
By the dank smell of the damp musty air, the torches were out. It was late. The sound of the bars opening marked his progress. She struggled to sit up, but her body ached from the earlier assault, and she lacked her usual strength.
