Wolf's Promise (Caedmon Wolves) (6 page)

“If you’re tired, why don’t you sleep?”

She glanced at him then, but her eyelids were heavy. “Because I’m scared.”

“Okay, I’ll talk to you, but what about?”

“Anything.” Her speech slurred. “I love the sound of your voice.”

“Okay.
I’ll tell you a bit about myself.
” Nick swallowed. “I grew up in a very small town in Virginia. Near the mounta
ins. A place where everyone knows
everyone. M
y parents owned the supermarket
where I worked until I was old enough to move out
of their home
. I
then
attended a nearby technical school and began my career as a welder. It wasn’t my dream profession. I dreamed of something bigger.
” He frowned.
“
Something happened in my small home town of Virginia. Things weren’t the same.
Our close nit community began falling to pieces.
I wasn’t the only one who could see that. If it wasn’t for Devin,
my closest friend,
I probably would have given up on my dreams…
”

Nick stole a glance at Selene.
He knew
before he started that
he wouldn’t get to finish is boring life story.

Her
head had fallen on his shoulder
,
and she was fast asleep.

Selene was jarred awake
by the sound of a door slam. Her hands instantly went to her neck as pain shot through her spine. The tendons had become stiff as she slept on Nick’s shoulder through the night.

Nick’s body tensed beside her, and he turned in the direction of the door. “Patience,” he whispered. “We’ll get out of here soon.”

She hoped
he was right.

As he stood
over by the bars, she examined him further. He was built and tall. Hard around the edges, but yet he’d been so gentle, ensuring her throughout the night to stay calm.
His voice was deep, soft…and eased her fears.
If it wasn’t for him, she probably couldn’t remain in the right state of mind. She’d never been locked up in a cell like this and held against her will.

His bronzed muscular back rippled as
he
gripped the bars. His toffee colo
red skin complexion reminded her of
the candies she had always loved as a child. There were tattoos on eit
her side of his arms
. They were symbols of some sort. His head had been shaved, as if with a
sharp
razor. He was nearly bald.

Two men came down the stairs. They weren’t the same one’s who’d thrown her in the cell last night. One of them carried a tray in his hands.
He bent down and slid it
under the cell.

Selene thought she he
ard a growl escape Nick’s lips.

“Do you think we’
re stupid
? It’s poisoned!” He used his foot to push the tray back under the cell. The blunt force caused it to crash into the opposite wall and the bowls of soup splattered across the walls and onto the guards’ pants.

One of them came to stand outside of the cell, meeting Nick in challenge. “It seems you can’t be contained by cell. Perhaps you’d like to be tied up again like the rabid animal you are?”

“Do with me what you will, but what did she do to deserve being in here?”

“Direct orders from Darius.”

“She’s a woman, for God sakes. Have respect.”

The guards gaze shifted toward her. Selene lowered her gaze to the floor.

“The bathroom. We need to use it,” Nick hissed.

“There’s a drain on the floor behind you.”

“You asshole! You’
re no better than that sick crook
who leads you.”

“If you really need to piss, that’s where you should go.”

“The woman…
you want her to pee
on the floor?”

The guard shuffled his feet a bit, as if unsure on what to do. “Alright. One at a time. The human goes first.”

Selene rose on shaky legs from her sitting position. She met eyes with Nick as she walked toward the open end of the cell.

“It’s okay,” he whispe
red, and then turned
his attention to the guard. “If either of you so much as touch her, I’
ll rip your
throat
out.”

The threat seemed real, but the guard leading her to the small bathroom stall never laid a finger on her.

“Quickly,” he ordered, and shut the door behind her.

The first thing she looked for was a way to escape. It was pointless. The windows were barred and someone had hammered a board over it
from the outside
.

As she knelt over the toilet, careful not to
touch
the su
rface of it, she exhaled, releasing
the water she’d been holding in her bladder throughout the night. She would have died from absolute embarrassment if she were made to piss in the drainage on the floor while Nick
and the others watched
.

The water in the faucet was icy cold, but she rubbed her hands of dirt and blood anyway. Then she brought handfuls of water to her mouth, quenching her thirst. The mirror about the sink was old and clouded over with dust. She took the heel of her palm and cleaned off a corner of it. The ref
lection that stared back
revolted her. She looked like one big hot mess. Like a wild woman.

She dipped her head and splash
ed
water over her face and a
ttempted to rub her face clean.

“It’s enough.” The guard rapped on the door. “Your time is up.”

“Okay. Coming.” Using just the water, she ran her fingers through her hair combing it back and out of her face.

Before she exited, she stuffed the metal key
down
lower into her bra. It was her last hope, but she still hadn’t figured out how she’d get away all by herself once she was free from the confines of the cell.

She was placed back into the open cell, and Nick followed the same man to the bathroom
stall.

When Nick was gone, the taller one eyed her intensely, a smug grin on his face. “It’s a shame you won’t eat,” he drawled. “Our alpha has plans for you and you’ll need your energy.”

She shivered, and shook
her head to rid her mind of
what she’d almost been forced to endure the night before.

“I have no intentions of
being part of
his plans,” she said, keeping her gaze on the floor.

“Last night was your warning,” he said. “This is your cool down period. I’m not sure why he’d even spare you. I suspect you won’t be so lucky tonight.”

She glanced up. “Tonight?”

“You’ll get another chance…or be served your punishment alongside your cellmate.”

“Punishment?” Her heart seized in panic. “What do you mean?”

“He’s not too happy about you assaulting him before his business meeting.”

This time she laughed. “He’s saying that I assaulted him?” She stood up to face him with on
ly the bars separating them. “He’s a sick bastard who tried to rape me
.”

The man reached through the bars and
grabbed her by the throat.

Her breath rushed out of her as he squeezed
hard.

His teeth were barred, sharp and long. Like canine teeth.

She opened her mouth to speak, but
the heel of his hand was pushed
against her voice box.

There was commotion to the left of them as Nick emerged from the stall. The moment she blinked, Nick tore away from the one who escorted him and crossed the room.

“I warned you,” Nick growled, shoving her attacker violently
,
nearly ten feet across the room.

The man’s
body slammed against the wall
but he scrambled back up with malice etched on his face. This time his fangs dripped with saliva. He growled like a dog.

Selena’s gaze darted from her attacker to Nick. His expression was the same. Furious. With canines, fighter’s stance, clenched fists, and all.

They came together swiftly, flesh hitting flesh.

She screamed aloud, shattering her own ear drums and cowered in the furthest corner of the cell.

They fought like two pro wrestlers, pinning each other to the floor and trading punches to the face and mid torso.

The man standing of
f
to the side barged forward, trying to separate the two, but he ended up on the ground with a busted lip for his efforts. He got up and retaliated, grabbing what looked like a broken off piece of long metal pipe.

Selene cringed when he swung at the fighting pair. Her heart settled only a bit when he missed, hitting absolutely nothing but thin air.

One would have thought two animals were fighting by the way they tumbled across the floor, oblivious to everything else around them with sharp growls and fervent snarls escaping their mouths.

The taller man caught Nick off guard as he recovered from a blow, held up a clawed hand, and slashed Nick across the abdomen.

Nick howled in pain, and she pressed her own lips togethe
r, mentally sensing the agony
he must have felt.

The other man helped by taking the opportunity and hitting Nick across the back with the metal pole.

Nick fell to his knees right in front of her and cell.

At that moment, thei
r gazes met. His eyes were wild and savage
. His fangs were barred. Her pulse tripped, and her heart nearly stopped as she stared at the man she did not recognize anymore.

“Nick?” she whispered.

His stare softened
, but at the same time the pole was raised
over him
again
by one of his attackers
.

“Kill him,” the other enc
ouraged, holding his hand to his
bloody throat.

The man swung, delivering another blow.

Nick’s body lunged forward,
face first onto the floor.

Her legs moved on their ow
n accord and she rushed
to help him. When the man lifted the pole again, she shielded Nick with her body.

“Please. Stop,” she cried.

“Move, you stupid waif, or I’ll swing,” he warned, his eyes bulging in anger.

They were going to kill him. She couldn’t live wit
h the knowledge of someone dying
trying to save her.

“I will do whatever you want. Tell your alpha I will do it,” she pleaded.

The stunt man lowered the bar, but only slightly.

Nick didn’t appear to be conscious
as she pushed at his shoulder. She turned back to their attackers. “Don’t kill him…please.”

“It’ll be a while before he recovers.”
The man lowered the bar. “I’ll tell our leader
that you have acquiesced. We’ll be back for you.”

They
trekked back up to the stairs. T
he injured on
e left
a tra
il of blood behind. Even though
they’d been left outside the cell, she heard the locks being bolted shut, barring them inside once again.

Selene shifted her attention back to Nick. Using all her strength, she turned him over in her lap.

His chest moved up and down slightly, but she still put her hand close to
his lips to confirm that he still breathed
.

“Nick.” She carefully touched the skin surrounding the bloodied gash in his side. The sight of blood had been something she’d never been able to tolerate. Her stomach grew queasy as the red fluid continue
d to slo
wly spurt
from his side.
“Wake up.”

The strong smell of copper wafted under her nose. There was also another underlying scent. A scent that was unique to him.

She shook him again, but his body felt
heavy and
limp on her lap.

When he didn’t respond, she eased him on to the floor and then rushed back to the bathroom stall. Using the sharp end of a metal she found, she tore the bottom end of her shirt and drenched it with water.

Selene dragged Nick across her lap again
and gently pressed the cloth
around the wound. She wanted to apply pressure to stop the blood flow, but didn’t want to inflict pain. Biting he
r lower lip, she pushed as firm she could
into his side. She wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead with the other end of the shirt as she kept the pressure applied.