Emily's Captive (A Lilly Town Shifter Novel Book 2) (6 page)

Emily stepped into the dining room again. She
wanted to see if Paul was hungry, and maybe hurry
him up a little.

She didn’t say anything, just watched as he
looked at the map. This was something she was
really enjoying, him being bent over the table and
his eyebrows scrunched up in thought. She couldn’t
believe she was thinking he was handsome. She
couldn’t seem to keep her eyes off of him. She was
happy to just stand there and watch him work, but
she knew she should let him know she was there.
There wasn’t anything wrong with having her fill
first, though.

His hair was a little rumpled and messy, but it
just added to his sexiness. And the fact that he
wasn’t even trying for it just made it so much
better.

Paul looked a little thin, which was her fault,
but there wasn’t anything she could do about it,
other than try to fatten him up. His being thin
didn’t take away from his muscular frame, though.
You could tell he used to work out, and probably
had while in the cell. After three months of no
use, there was no way he’d look that good. Emily
looked a little further down and saw his perfect
ass. The jeans one of the maids had gotten him fit
perfectly. All she wanted to do was walk up to him
and squeeze it. She knew she couldn’t, but that
didn’t make her want to any less.

“Are you done staring?” he asked her with a
knowing smile as he turned around.
***

Paul had known Emily was there from the moment
she stepped into the room. He just wanted to see
how long she planned on standing there. He knew
she was eager, and he seriously wondered if she was
just going to stare at him until he had answers for
her. When she didn’t say anything for a few
minutes, he couldn’t take it anymore.

He held in his laugh when she jumped at the
sound of his voice. It was hard, but he did it.
He was shocked he could scare a shifter. Looking
at her, he saw anger in her eyes. She apparently
didn’t think he would notice her.

“I came to see if you were hungry,” she said.
“Actually I am. Can you ask Maggie to make me
a sandwich?” he asked her.
“Sure, I’ll be right back,” Emily said
haughtily.

Paul watched as she stomped out of the room.
She was beautiful when she was angry. He knew he’d
never have her, but there was nothing wrong with
looking.

He went back to the map. He hoped Stacy was
staying in one of the locations he’d marked. He
couldn’t think of anywhere else she’d be kept. He
wanted to take one last look, though, just in case.

Emily walked back in a minute later and said,
“She’ll bring it in in a few minutes. Have you
found anything?”

“Yeah, I think I’m just about done. I want to
take another look, but we’ll talk when lunch gets
here,” he said with a smile and sat down in a
chair. He patted the one next to him, trying to
annoy her and to get her to sit next to him. She
gave him an evil look before sitting down.

“What now?” she asked after a minute of
silence.

“Now, we wait for our food,” he smirked. He
knew she was having a hard time sitting next to him
in silence. He didn’t mind talking to her; he just
had no clue what to talk about.

“So…” he began, and that was when Maggie walked
in with their plates. Saved by the cook.
“Here you go,” Maggie said, putting their
plates down.

“Thanks Maggie,” Paul said with a smile. It
was always good to kiss up to the cook, especially
when they were as good as Maggie.

“No problem,” she said, smiling back at him and
leaving the room.
***

After they had finished eating, Emily wanted to
get down to business. She was getting antsy.
Standing up, she looked over Paul’s list. The
locations were all over the country: Alabama,
Nevada, Maine, and Illinois. How was she ever
going to find her sister when she could be kept in
any place across the country? She could be moved
from place to place, meaning Emily might never find
her.

“I have a plan,” Paul said as he came up behind
her. She didn’t know why that felt so right, but
it did. She wanted to think more about it, but she
was too worried about the list in front of her.
“If we try to hit the compounds one at a time and
from one side of the country to the other, they’ll
be able to figure out our next move. I want to
start at a random one. I know she probably won’t
be there, but I think if we take down a few she
might not be in, together with the ones she might
be, it will probably throw them off. I know it’ll
take a little longer, but if we’re caught and
killed, she may never be freed.”

“That’s actually a good plan,” Emily said with
a smile. She never thought he would be so
conniving. She’d see how things went, and maybe if
there was no sign of double-crossing, she’d let him
go.

“I know, I’m a genius,” he said with a big
shit-eating grin.
***

Stacy had been waiting for Zeke to come all
day. She still wasn’t ready to talk to him, but
she did enjoy listening to him. She never would
have thought that a Hunter would be so interesting.
If she ever got out, maybe she would tell Lucy
about him – she might be able to use the stories in
one of her books.

Stacy listened closely for those familiar
footsteps, but nothing. She heard the guard
shuffling outside and the sound of muffled voices
in the room next to hers, but no Zeke. She was
starting to wonder if he’d given up on her.

Bill was hoping Paul and Emily had a plan.
He’d been thinking of the best way to find out
where Stacy could be, but there was no way of
knowing. They could capture Hunters and try to
find her that way, but that would probably take too
long. Odds were, unless they captured Zeke or his
new second, they wouldn’t be able to get any real
information.

When he got to Emily’s, he actually knocked.
He knew Maggie would be pissed if he made that much
noise again. The woman may be younger than some of
them, but she was one to be afraid of. As long as
you respected her and listened to what she told
you, she’d love you with all her heart. And no one
had better go after those she loved.

Emily answered the door with a smile. Good,
that meant they had a plan.

“So?” he asked her.
“Paul came up with a brilliant idea to keep us
from getting caught while taking out a few Hunters
in the process.”

“Good. Tell me over some waffles,” Bill said
with a sigh.

They walked into the dining room and found a
full spread of food. There were waffles, pancakes,
fruit, eggs, bacon, sausages, and anything else you
could imagine on the table. Bill loved Maggie so
much. She always knew when he was coming over.

Paul walked into the room and headed straight
for the food. Bill guessed he hadn’t had much real
food while he was locked up. Maybe he was making
up for lost time, but he didn’t seem to stop until
he’d cleared two plates.

“Okay, so what’s this brilliant plan?” Bill
asked when Paul had finished eating.

Paul told him and he couldn’t help but be
impressed. It was the best way for them to not get
caught, and they could seriously wound the Hunters.
He just had to assemble the team, which wouldn’t
take long. Then they could attack.

“Good. I’ll call Jason now and have them on a
plane within the hour.”
***

Jason was sitting in his living room, enjoying
the peace. He’d been on a mission all week and was
happy to finally have a day off. He was hoping to
have the whole week, but he knew that wasn’t going
to happen. There was always some shifter crisis.
He was happy to help, but sometimes he just wanted
a chance to relax.

His phone rang, and there went his day off.
Maybe he could talk Bill into getting a few weeks
off. He could use Emily instead. She was just as
good as he was. That was something he was
seriously considering.

“Hey,” he said when he answered the phone.
“I need you here,” Bill said.
“Why?” he asked. He was never called to the
East Coast. Emily always took the missions there.
“Because you’re the best soldier I have and I
need you,” he said.

“What about Emily?” he asked. He wasn’t trying
to be a prick, but handling one half of the country
was hard enough. He didn’t want to take on the
other half.

“She’s in trouble.”
That made Jason sit up. “What?” he asked.
“It’s her sister. She’s been kidnapped and
Emily needs your help.”
“I’m on my way,” he said and hung up.

Jason called in some of his best men and told
them to meet him at the airport. He knew Bill
would give him more men, but these were the best
ones on his team. Emily deserved the best.

He used to be really close friends with Emily,
so he didn’t want to let her down when she needed
him the most. He couldn’t do that to her. He
would find Stacy and maybe fix their friendship
along the way. He had never wanted anything more
from her, but one stupid night had ruined it all.

***

Richard watched as the girl sat and waited for
Zeke. He knew she was becoming attached to him,
and him to her. He also knew it was too late.
They both seemed to have found a friend in each
other, even though the girl never talked. He’d
have to try to keep them separated, and maybe get
the girl to hate Zeke. That might work. He just
had to make sure he broke the attachment.

The girl stood up and walked around the room,
he guessed in the hope of finding Zeke. He knew
she wouldn’t. He had told Zeke there were problems
at another compound and had told him he should take
care of them in person. It had worked this time;
he just didn’t know how long he could find excuses
to keep the man away.

Paul was sitting at the dining room table.
He’d written down the most likely locations, as
well as some others he thought they should hit. He
was getting tired of staring at the same thing over
and over again. There wasn’t much more they could
do until Bill’s friend arrived.

He stood up and walked to the porch. As soon
as he was out of the house, a guard appeared. He
knew he’d been followed, but he wanted some air.
He was getting tired of just sitting there
uselessly. He wanted to get Stacy back, just to
see the worry gone from Emily’s eyes. He didn’t
like seeing her stress.

He felt like a lot of this was on him because
he was the one who had brought Zeke here in the
first place. He didn’t want to see an innocent
child hurt just because she could turn into an
animal. Now that he’d spent time with the
shifters, he had found the whole thing amazing.
The fact that they could turn into animals and run
through the woods, feel the wind in their fur, and
feel free. He dreamed of doing that, feeling the
freedom.

There was a rustling in the woods next to him.
He knew it was Emily watching him. It was so quiet
that there wasn’t really anyone else it could be.
Paul smiled, knowing she wasn’t as unaffected as
she pretended to be. He looked in the direction of
the sound and saw some orange through the trees.
She was beautiful, and he wasn’t afraid to admit
that… to himself.

***

Emily watched Paul walking. She knew Sean had
been watching him, so there was no way he could
escape, but she couldn’t seem to take her eyes off
of him.

He seemed to be enjoying the walk, because
there was a smile on his face. He took a deep
breath and exhaled, letting out his frustration.
He looked a little more relaxed after the breath,
his muscles unbunched, his shoulders relaxed. She
liked that look on him. After this was over, she
was going to have to make sure she put that relaxed
look on his face more often.

Not wanting him to catch her, she ran off into
the woods. She didn’t want to chance him thinking
there was more to it than there really was. It was
nothing. She was just checking up on him, making
sure he didn’t escape. Nothing more. That was her
story and she was sticking to it.

Zeke was in a meeting with Gus, the man in
charge of the compound that was supposedly having
trouble. Neither could figure out why he’d been
called in, considering there were no problems and
no one had reported anything. Well, Zeke knew why
he was there: Richard wanted him gone.

“Sir, I don’t know why you were called.
Everything here is going fine. I’m sorry you made
the trip out here for nothing,” he said, looking a
little scared.

“Gus, don’t worry about it. It wasn’t a wasted
trip. I got to see what you’re up to when I’m not
here, and I like it. You’re organized and your men
listen to you. I was glad nothing was wrong,” he
said with a kind smile. Maybe he was getting soft
in his old age. Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad thing
to show some kindness to his people. They might
think something was wrong with him, though. Maybe
it was the girl getting to him?

“Thank you, sir,” Gus said, sounding a little
confused.
“I’m heading back. If you need anything, just
call,” he said.

Emily was going stir crazy. She had been in
her tiger form for a few hours, trying to blow off
some steam. She knew Jason was on his way, but she
didn’t understand why they couldn’t start looking
before he got there. Why couldn’t he just meet
them there? Why had Bill insisted on Jason meeting
them at her house?

She put on another burst of speed and ran
around the house. She was worried about Stacy and
didn’t know what to do.

Then there was Paul. She didn’t know what to
think about him. For so long he had been the enemy
and now… Now she was seeing him in a different
light. She was starting to like him and for some
reason, he didn’t seem to be holding the fact she’d
locked him up against her.

Emily needed to clear her head, get both Stacy
and Paul out, just for a little while. She needed
to calm down and let her tiger take over for a
while, so that was what she was doing. She let her
tiger loose and roamed the woods catching prey.

***

Bill was standing in the kitchen, watching
Emily. He didn’t know how she was coping with
everything. He knew she could handle Stacy being
taken. She was strong and able to handle hard
situations. She would put her feelings aside and
get the job done, even if it was about someone
close to her. It was her feelings for Paul that he
was worried about.

Emily was never one to express her feelings;
she was more likely to ignore them and go on, but
for some reason she was having trouble ignoring the
ones she had for Paul. This was the first time
Bill had ever seen her like this. He didn’t know
what to do to help her. He knew if she needed him
she would come to him, and he’d always be there for
her.

Bill walked over to the fridge and Maggie came
rushing in. He swore the woman had a silent alarm
on it. She always knew when he opened it.

“What are you looking for?” she asked.
“I don’t know, just seeing what you have,” he
said with a smile. He always knew how to get to
the woman.

“Now you know I can make you anything you want.
All you have to do is ask,” she said with an
offended look.

She said the same thing to him every time.
“Okay, I’d like some of your famous cookies and
cream.”

“That one’s easy. Give me a little bit of time
and I’ll have them ready for you,” she said with a
smile. Bill was never one to eat a lot of sweets,
but he could never get enough of Maggie’s cookies
and cream. Nothing else compared. “What’s she
doing out there?”

“Running,” Bill said, and sat at the table.

“She’s going to run herself to death. I know
she has a lot going on, but she can’t keep running
away from it.”

“I know, but you know she won’t listen. She’s
stubborn. She needs to work this out by herself,”
he said with a sigh.

“Maybe you could talk to Paul, maybe see if he
can knock some sense into her,” she said with a
grin.

It seemed they both knew what Emily’s problem
was; they just didn’t know how to help her with it.
“I think he’s probably just as bad as she is. He
knows he feels something for her, but he won’t do
anything about it. At least not for a while. I
know his type,” Bill said after a moment.

“You are just like him. You still haven’t
talked to Lexi yet, have you?” she said with a
knowing smile.

“How did you…?”
“I know everything,” she said as she began
crumbling up cookies.

“No, I haven’t talked to her. She’s too young,
too inexperienced. She’s into the club scene and
partying. She seems superficial sometimes and I
know she’s not deep down. I just want to give her
some time to grow up.”

“Just don’t wait too long. She might get
scooped up by someone else. From what I’ve heard,
she’s a very attractive woman. Someone might think
she’s perfect before you think she’s ready. Just
keep that in mind,” she said and started stirring
something, leaving Bill to his thoughts.

He was attracted to Lexi; he’d give anything
for just one night, one kiss. He just didn’t want
to hold her back from anything she wanted to do.
With his life, it was difficult. He was always
involved in some rescue mission or taking down
Hunters or helping the local pack. To top it off
he ran a bar and was the local shifter emergency
doctor. The pack had one, but she was the pack
doctor; there were a lot of other shifters in the
area. He couldn’t subject Lexi to that life, not
while she was so young and wanted to let loose and
have fun. It wasn’t fair to either of them.
***

Paul was sitting out on the porch enjoying the
cool night. Bill was inside and Emily was running.
He was enjoying the peace. Even his guard was
inside, watching him from the window, so he had
some semblance of privacy. He saw Emily running
around outside and couldn’t take his eyes off of
her. She would pace back and forth, then crouch
down and pounce on something, then start pacing
again.

It was something odd to watch and he was
surprised to see it. He’d seen Emily run, but he
never thought he’d see anything like that. He was
so engrossed in watching her movement that he
missed it when she turned and looked at him. He
must have made a noise and alerted her to his
presence.

As she stalked toward him, he became afraid.
She was pissed off and coming straight for him. He
wasn’t going to run and he wasn’t going to show her
he was afraid, but he did feel a little like
pissing himself. He never wanted to see that look,
at least not directed at him.

***

Emily had heard someone laughing at her from
the porch and looked over to see Paul. She never
wanted anyone to see her like that. She was
embarrassed to be seen like the fool who was
playing with leaves, trying to burn off some
energy. She wasn’t going to let him know how she
felt. Instead, she stalked toward the house with
murder in her eyes.

She wasn’t going to hurt him; she just wanted
to scare him. She wanted him to know that she was
a lethal killer who could rip out his throat and
not look back. She could see the fear in his eyes,
but he wasn’t budging. She respected him a little
more for that. He was willing to face a murderous
tiger with no weapons.

When she reached the porch, she let out a hiss,
warning him to never tell anyone. Well, she hoped
that he would figure out what it meant, because she
was not shifting in front of him. She would rather
him tell the world what had happened than have him
see her naked. She stalked into the house and saw
Bill standing in the living room, giving her the
evil eye.

“You didn’t have to do that, you know. We all
have to get out there and let our animals have some
fun, even the big bad killers,” he said sternly.

She nodded and walked upstairs to her room.
She wanted a hot bath and a warm bed. She knew she
wasn’t going to be getting all that much sleep, but
that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to try.