Filed to story: My Kidnapper Is the Wolf King
The other is Blake. His dark clothes make him look at one with the shadows.
A jolt of hate surges through me-so powerful I almost cry out. The worst thing is, I feel betrayed. I shouldn’t. I should have known Blake would turn on me. How naïve I have been.
I try to calm my breathing, afraid they will turn their attention to me.
I need to think. I need to get out of here.
“The Highfell wolf is secure, by the way,” says the man.
My pulse accelerates.
Callum.
“Good.” Blake adjusts his cuffs. “Did he cause you any trouble?”
“A little. We handled it. He may cause you some trouble when all this is through, though.”
“I imagine so. And what news from the continent?”
“My men looked. Couldn’t find him.”
“And the Snowlands?”
“Cold. Dark. They fear the night that spreads.”
“Hm. Interesting.”
“Is it?”
Blake shrugs. “Depends on your interests, I suppose.”
“We have an eavesdropper, by the way.”
My heart stills as I squeeze my eyes shut.
“Oh yes, I know,” replies Blake. “She’s been awake for a couple of minutes now.”
My blood runs cold and I grit my teeth, trying not to shudder.
“I’ll leave you to it,” says the man. “See you back at the castle once this is all through?”
“Yes. Be careful with him, Jack. I need him alive.”
“Right. I’ll do my best.”
There’s the sound of a door opening and shutting. Jack’s footsteps fade into nothing.
For a moment, the air is thick with silence.
“There’s no use pretending to be asleep, little rabbit.” Blake’s voice is like silk. “I can hear your heartbeat.”
He walks to the barred wall of my cell, his footsteps echoing in the cavernous dark. I open my eyes to glare at him.
“Where’s Callum?” My voice is hoarse. I’m not sure if it’s the aftermath of whatever Blake drugged me with, or from screaming in the forest.
“The rabbit wakes up in a cage, and her first thought is of the wolf who captured her.” He clucks his tongue, eyes dancing in the firelight.
“You are my captor, you idiotic man.”
A dimple punctures his cheek. “I suppose I am. Callum is not here, but he is safe. You will be too, if you play along.”
I push myself upright. My head pounds, and I put a hand on my forehead, wincing. Feeling Blake assessing my weakness, I quickly force my arms to my sides, and slide my legs off the cot. I straighten my back.
“Play along with what?”
“You’ll find out soon enough.”
If I felt stronger, I would strangle him through the bars. Blake smirks as though he knows it. It stokes a fire within me so fierce I fear I will combust. If it weren’t for the bitingly cold air, perhaps I would.
“My orders are to take you to the Wolf King, now you are awake,” he says.
I calm my breathing. I need to be smart. I need to find out where I am, and what his intentions are with me, if I am to escape.
I swallow. “Where are we?”
“An abandoned manor house, close to the Borderlands.”
My stomach drops. “Is Sebastian coming for me?”
“Yes.”
The temperature in the cell seems to drop even further. “You truly are a snake, you know.”
“Oh, come now. It’s not so bad. I could have been worse to you.”
“You drugged me! You captured Callum! You let us go, then you came after us anyway! You locked me in a cell, and now you’re handing me back to Sebastian! You. . . You acted as if you were helping me and forfeited my life anyway! How could you possibly have been worse?”
I trusted you, I don’t say. But the words spread through my body like poison.
He leans against the bars, dangling his arms in the gaps between. His gaze lazily travels to some handcuffs hanging from the ceiling in the center of the cell. “I could have bound you in chains.”
A feral sound escapes my throat and Blake laughs.
“You’re not even a snake,” I spit. “You’re a coward. I know why you’re doing this, you know? You’re not as mysterious as you like to think.”
“Oh, no? Pray, tell me-why am I doing this?” His eyes glint in the darkness.
“You weren’t born into the Kingdom of Wolves, were you? That must be lonely, to be a wolf, but be born among men. How hard it must have been for you. And how pathetic, for you to want so desperately to belong to them that you lie, and scheme, and play with people’s lives. Though I suppose handing me to James will gain you the favor you desire.”
Blake clucks his tongue. The gesture is almost teasing, but something cold flickers across his face.
“Come now, you’re smarter than that. Do you truly think I want to belong to the Wolves? My father was a wolf, and I killed him.” He steps back, unbuttons his sleeve, and rolls it up to reveal the jagged white scar on his forearm. “A wolf bit me and activated this curse, and I killed him too. And the wolf gene that has always been a part of me. . . well. . . it condemned me to the darkness from the moment I was born.”
He smiles coolly. “No, darling, I do not want to belong to the Wolves. I want to rule them.”
Darkness emanates from him, twisting with the shadows. For a moment, words evade me.
Then I laugh, shaking my head. “You wish to be the Wolf King?”
“Is that truly so amusing?”
“Amusing? No. Deranged, perhaps.”
“Perhaps.” He shrugs, pulling his sleeve back down, seemingly unaffected by my derision. “Perhaps not.”
“What if I tell James what you’ve just told me?”