5. XAN

“I met your mate today.” His lips curled into a nasty smile. “She’s a pretty little thing. Small and shy.”

I snarled at him.

“Too bad, she’s already taken,” someone else commented.

He chuckled. “I’ve never had a thing for pregnant women but…” The sentence was left hanging in the air.

“If you fucking touch her, I will kill you!” My words only made him laugh harder.

I thrashed, trying my best to free myself from the chains holding me prisoner. “I did what you wanted!” I yelled. “You got what you wanted, now let her go!”

Instead of answering, he walked over to the door and pulled it open. A few minutes later, two of his men entered, and one of them was dragging someone behind him.

Dread flooded me when he dropped the body a few feet away. I took in my mate’s unconscious form and then focused on her bruised face.

“You said you weren’t going to fucking hurt her,” I snarled, jerking on the chains again.

“I said a lot of things, and you were stupid enough to believe me.” Stopping behind her, he leaned down and jerked her up by her hair. She whimpered, her trembling hands reaching up to scratch at the hand holding her.

All the air escaped from my lungs when her eyes opened. Pale blue eyes, filled with fear, locked with mine.

“A shame really. I don’t know how you could accept someone who has already been used, but don’t worry, I’ll help you with that.” One of the men stepped forward and handed him something. With the nasty smile on his face, he leaned forward and pressed the knife to her stomach.

***

“Fuck, he’s strong!”

“Hurry up, little lamb!”

“I’m trying!” It was a woman’s voice; one I had heard before. “He knocked it all off the table. I don’t know where the sedative is.”

Sedative?

The hold on my body tightened, sending panic flooding through me. I was suddenly back in that basement, but then one of them spoke again, snapping me out of my memories.

“Can’t we choke him out?” The voice sounded familiar too.

“No!”

“I’d like to keep my arms in check, sweets.”

Silence settled.

Silence.

But it wasn’t exactly silent.

I could hear the beat of a song playing somewhere. I could feel the beat of it. Hearts were beating, matching the rhythm of mine. Besides it all, another heart was beating in panic. Scents flooded my nostrils, and it smelled nothing like the place he had kept me locked in.

Sucking in a breath, I forced my body to go slack.

My nails retracted, and I winced at the feel of warm blood soaking my skin. It took only a few seconds for the scent of blood to fill my nostrils.

I gagged.

The shackles holding me hostage disappeared, making me drop to my knees. Bile rose, and before I could stop it, I was puking my guts out on what felt like a very lush carpet.

“Ah hell, he’s ruining the carpet!” a familiar voice called.

“Then get him a bucket,” someone growled.

“There are no buckets!”

A minute later, something was shoved in my face, making me rear back and drop on my ass. Pain shot through my body as it connected with something hard. Curse filled the air, and then suddenly hands were touching me.

My beast took control, forcing himself to the surface and lashing out at whoever was touching me.

“Easy, easy. Just breathe. No one is going to hurt you.”

“Don’t touch me!” I snarled.

“Okay.”

The word repeated over and over in my mind as I sucked in shaky breaths.

“Should I go get Knox?”

“To do what? Kick him out because he’s being aggressive.”

“To use his alpha voice to get him to calm down.”

“Bad idea.” The voice was unfamiliar and deeper. “It will only make him feel trapped. Let me try something.”

I held my breath, waiting for one of them to reach out to touch me again. Then I heard it. Tilting my head to the side, I listened carefully. The icy cold that had clutched me the moment I woke up slowly faded, only to be replaced by a tingling warmth.

“I don’t get it. What’s he doing?”

“Shh.”

Tension drained from my body, making me slump against whatever I was leaning against. It took a lot of effort for me to force my eyes open. I blinked and then blinked again. The sharp light made sharp pain shoot through my head, but it was manageable.

My eyes locked with glowing hazel eyes. I sucked in another breath and frowned.

The scent that flooded my nostrils made me feel relaxed and slightly sleepy. It was almost like I was drugged. Panic flared, but then the man made a sound that had my heartbeat slowing once again.

“You’ve made a mess of your wound.” A woman knelt next to the big man. “Do you remember me?”

I frowned. “You…” It was the only word I managed to croak out before the coughing fit hit.

A tall glass of water appeared in my line of vision.

Grabbing it, I spilled half the glass all over myself and the floor before I managed to press it to my lips and take a few sips.

“I’m Talia, and this is my mate Wilder.” She nodded to the tall man next to her and pointed to someone to my right. “That’s Vesper.”

He was the vampire that wanted to suck me dry.

“Knox and Seth are downstairs.”

“All mates?” I managed to get out.

She nodded, frowning. “Do you have a problem with that?”

I shook my head. Cora had three mates, which was one less than the woman. It was surprising, but not as shocking as I knew some shifters found it to be.

Looking away from them, I took in my surroundings.

“Look at me.”

The soft command made my body tense, but I was unable to fight the urge to follow his order.

Hazel eyes locked with mine again. “If you attack us again, we’ll have no choice but to restrain you.”

A shudder raced through my body, one that none of them missed.

“You’re bleeding all over the floor,” Talia said softly.

“He already puked all over the place,” Vesper growled. “What’s a little blood added to the mix?”

Her lips twitched, but she didn’t give in to the smile. “Wilder is going to help you to the bathroom, and then he’s going to help you clean up and get you some new clothes. When you’re done, I’m going to have to check your wound.”

I reached down and pressed a hand to my side. The shirt was warm and damp from blood. Frowning, I tugged my shirt up with trembling hands and stared.

“Do you remember what happened?” Wilder asked.

It was on the tip of my tongue to lie, but I nodded. Telling them the truth doesn’t mean that I was planning on telling them how it had happened.

“I had to cut the infected skin around the wound,” Talia said softly. “I’m afraid that it might scar.”

She sounded apologetic, and she looked it.

Not that it mattered, my body was already covered in scars, another one wouldn’t matter. Dropping the shirt back into place, my eyes automatically locked on the vamp.

Crimson eyes were focused on me.

For a moment I was hit with a wave of longing that was so intense, it knocked the air from my lungs again.

“He won’t hurt you, right, Vesper?” Talia’s eyes narrowed.

“I won’t.” He glanced at her. “As long as he doesn’t hurt you again.”

My eyes instantly snapped back to hers, searching for wounds I might have inflicted.

“This morning,” Wilder said softly. “I healed her.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Apology accepted.” She stood, eyes darting to the other side of the room. “Now, let’s get you and this place cleaned up.”

I nodded. A shower sounded good because the last time I had one was a few months ago. I usually just stopped and made quick work of washing in the bathrooms of gas stations before I got caught and kicked out.

Getting up was a struggle. I felt weak and still a little sick, but I managed to get to my knees. And then I had to stop because the room was tilting dangerously to one side.

“I’m going to have to touch you in order to help you,” Wilder said softly. “If you don’t want me to help you, then I’m afraid you’re going to have to crawl to the bathroom.”

It would be more embarrassing than to have him help me. I sucked in a breath and slowly blew it out before I gave him a nod. There was too little time to mentally prepare myself for his touch. I flinched when he took hold of my wrist and guided my arm around his neck.

Wilder paused for a few seconds, allowing me to suck in another breath before he wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me to my feet.

My stomach rolled, and bile threatened to rise.

The last thing I wanted was to make more of a mess. They were already doing more for me than anyone else ever had.

“No soaking,” Talia called after us. “The wound is not fully closed yet.”

“Don’t worry, little lamb. I’ll take good care of him.”