All Chapters of Taken By The Beast: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

I envisioned my mother reading that text over and over, calling the police, crying to Amanda on the phone, and my dad trying desperately to pick up the pieces. The guilt would slowly eat away my insides. What kind of daughter am I? I'm not shackled. Not imprisoned in a cell or box somewhere, and I can't get out of the house without being almost eaten by an alligator. Sighing, I ran a brush into my hair, and stared at myself in the mirror. My skin glowed from the lack of makeup, not that I would give him the pleasure of seeing me try at all for him. The bastard. Slinging my brush onto my bed, I opened my door the next morning, ignoring the growl in my stomach, and stepping over the rose in my doorway. I wouldn't dare save the thing, and give it some water. It'd die just like I would. Slowly weathering to death. William and Zander's voices traveled from the kitchen, probably hovering over Vivian as she cooked for them, like the little puppy dog—no pun intended—that she was. Apparen

With the smooth door shut behind me, I slid down to the floor and curled my knees to my chin. That wasn't normal, not that I hadn't felt like Alice in Wonderland since I got lost, or Little Red Riding Hood finding the big bad wolf in the woods, either way you put it, that had been an indescribable feeling. The flood of white-hot fingers clawing at my skin, pouring lust and magic dust into my veins. I'd been kissed plenty of times in my life. From the first one in seventh grade, to the make-out sessions with my ex-fiancé on a daily basis, there had been plenty of in-betweens, but none, and I do repeat none, felt like Zander. For a brief moment, I thought perhaps Zander wasn't crazy, and the mate bond he spoke about was true. None of it was any worse than him turning into a beast, or William turning into a wolf. I hadn't woke up from the nightmare yet, so I figured I wasn't dreaming. I'd really been dropped down a deranged rabbit hole. Standing up with the help of the door, I walked

I slammed Zander's door behind me, feeling it shake the walls, as I stormed toward my room. Just when I felt bad for him, and decided I would treat him like a human being, he pulled off his mask and showed me the true beast inside. I was snooping. Sue me for looking around the castle I was trapped inside. He'd told me to stay out of his room, but something caught my eye from the crack in his closet door. I hadn't understood what it was at first, but the more I looked, I realized what it was ... a heart. Not the valentine's heart, or a kindergartener's drawing, but a true heart. Trapped inside of a glass case, with slender black fingers holding it, encasing it, as if it would move slightly and squeeze the heart to death. The worst part was that it looked real. Like a human heart, though the fingers looked like something out of a child's nightmare. As I neared my room, I passed William in the hallway. He looked frantic to get to Zander's room and didn't acknowledge me. I turned to

Dang him to heck for the new books. I hated that the book lover inside of me couldn't leave them there on the desk. He sat them there to taunt me, and I left feeling more teased than ever. With the books wedged between my arm and pressed against my ribs, I walked toward my room, feeling the walls staring at me. Maybe it was my guilt following me around. I did feel guilt that I felt this uncontrollable lust over the man that kidnapped me, while my parents and friends worried about me back home. I'd fallen into a twisted Stockholm multiverse. I never pictured myself as a woman that could be lustful after the man that ripped her from the real world, and tossed her into his own. I understood how people fell in love with their captor now. Granted, I was one hundred percent sure that all kidnappers didn't look like or act like Zander. Scolding myself, I marched toward my room and shut the door behind me. The books were new releases, and I couldn’t wait to dive in. I plopped onto my bed w

My eyes fluttered open to a high-vaulted ceiling, a warm blanket, and the sound of someone sleeping close to me. My toes stretched toward the end of the bed, and I lifted my arms above my head in a much-needed stretch. The memories of the night before hit me, and I sat straight up. An immediate blush warmed my body at Zander lying on the floor beside me. He was stark naked, and I shamelessly found myself ogling him. Every line of his body was defined, with well-developed muscles, and flawless blemish-free skin. I clutched my knees together in an unproductive way at keeping my hormones in check. The sunlight peeked through the heavy blackout curtains, letting me know I could sneak out since it was morning, and not look like a complete jackass for doing so. I'd faced the beast the night before. His yellowish eyes, define body, and bearish grin. A normal human— which, I was proving to myself that I wasn't—wouldn't have walked in there. But something deep down inside of me said to go.