42. Mai

Iblinked my eyes open and found myself staring at the back of a seat. My head felt fuzzy, my limbs weren't working, and I couldn't remember where I was or how I had gotten here.

"Wharrrrttt," I gurgled.

I guess my tongue wasn't working either.

Seth looked over his shoulder at me and smiled. My gaze caught on the steering wheel that he was gripping. My thoughts came slowly but I realized that we were in a car.

"Hiya, sleepyhead."

"Fuuucccck yuuu," I slurred, my tongue only just coming back online.

Seth laughed. "I always did love that mouth of yours."

It took about ten minutes before I could feel all my limbs again. My hands were tied in front of me by an old rope that smelled of fish, but I managed to pull myself up so I was sitting.

"Feeling better, are we?" Seth mocked from the driver's seat.

I was about to swear at him again when I saw a passing sign.

"Sampton?" I whispered, not believing it. That was over two hundred miles from the Three Rivers.

"You've been out, Mai. I gave you a little something to make you sleep. Just enough to give me time to put some distance between us and your old Pack."

I dropped my head against the backrest. Two hundred miles. There was no way Ryan, Jem, or Sofia would be able to find me. I was on my own. My stomach cramped as I remembered Ryan not calling after his meeting, and the silence on the end of Sofia's radio.

My hands were still tied to each other, but I leaned forward and grabbed Seth's hair, yanking his head back. "What did you do?"

He slapped my hands away. "Sit your ass back, Mai."

"Tell me what you did to them!" I growled.

"Me?" He laughed again, and I wondered how I ever liked that sound. "I didn't need to do shit. I got contacted by someone in your Pack. Told me you were in the Three Rivers. Said your brother wouldn't be Alpha for long, and they would clean house afterward. So, no need to worry about anyone coming after us."

My heart tried to burst out of my chest. He couldn't be right, could he? My wolf howled inside of me, wanting me to Shift, wanting to be in control. I took deep breaths and forced her back down.

"I… I'm going to throw up," I gagged, fighting to keep the bile down.

Seth whipped his head around to look at me. Whatever he saw, he didn't like as he hissed, "Fuck!" and swerved the car over to the side. He grabbed the keys, jumped out, opened my door, and pulled me out by my hair, dumping me on the ground. I threw up, barely missing his boots, and sending him scurrying back a few paces.

"Fuck!" he repeated.

I had to get away from Seth. I had to get back to my Pack and see if Ryan, Sofia, and Jase were okay. I had to stop whoever was planning to take out my brother. My wolf squirmed, and I felt her pushing against my skin. No! I'd be too vulnerable Shifting now. As soon as Seth saw it, he'd stun me again. I had to stay human, at least for now.

"You done?" Seth growled at me, his disgust obvious.

I wiped my mouth and nodded, waiting on all fours until Seth came closer. The tips of his black motorbike boots came into view, and as soon as they did, I drove up, smashing my fists, still bound together, into his face. He reared back, and I followed, kicking him in the gut. Seth doubled over, and I sent my knee into his face, feeling the satisfying crunch of bone under my kneecap. He hit the ground, clutching his nose and writhing in pain.

With shaking hands, I patted my pockets, but my phone was gone. I sprinted to the car, quickly searching it. My phone wasn't here, but Seth's was. I punched in his code, but it didn't work.

Shit! He must have changed it.

I eyed Seth, still on the ground. "What's the new code?"

"You're not very good at this, Mai," Seth said, slowly getting to his feet, his hand clutching his bloody nose. I charged him. He sidestepped at the last second, grabbing my arm and flipping me onto the ground.

I looked up at him standing over me as he said, "I'm going to enjoy showing you how it's done. Then I'm going to enjoy teaching you your place, Mai."

Seth was bigger and stronger than me. In a fight, with Isaac's training, my odds of winning against Seth were maybe forty-sixty. But I'd been stun-gunned, given sleeping pills, and my hands were still tied together with rope. There was no time to try to get the ropes off me. I looked at Seth and saw the determination in his eyes. Out of choices, I launched myself at him, kicking and hitting.

Seth blocked my punches and slammed his fist into my solar plexus. I stumbled back, gasping for air, but he gave me no time to rest. He kicked my knee, and I yelled in pain as it collapsed, and I stumbled to the ground. Seth didn't stop there. Pain jolted in my ribs and made me gasp for air as starbursts of agony blossomed behind my eyelids every time Seth struck.

"You gotta learn, Mai," he said, panting heavily as he stood and stalked back to the car.

I lay on the ground, trying to take shallow breaths—anything deeper sent spikes of agony into my chest. Seth fumbled around in the car, then came back toward me, holding something that glinted black and metal. Not again.

I tried to push myself up, but my left arm collapsed under me, and my face smacked into the ground. I felt Seth's boot kick me in the shoulder so that I rolled over onto my back. I watched, helpless, as Seth brought the barrel of his stun gun toward my chest until it touched against my skin, and with blood dripping down his face, he smiled. A bolt of electricity jolted through every inch of my body like white-hot lightning. The world dimmed around me as pain overwhelmed all my senses; then, I felt nothing at all.

When I came to this time, everything hurt. I managed to turn my head slowly. It was dark, with just a sliver of light peeking through from an opening in the wall. The floor was concrete and cold. The air smelled musty. A basement, perhaps? There were no other sounds or smells that gave any clues as to my whereabouts. I was alone. I had no help and knew none would be coming. Wherever I was, I was going to have to get myself out of here.

With slow movements, I brought my hands to my face, wincing as I touched the bruises and cuts that littered my skin. My left eye was swollen, and I couldn't see properly out of it. Blood was caked on my shirt and pants, and I could feel the stickiness of it on my skin. At least a couple of my ribs were broken, and it hurt to breathe. Taking small, shallow breaths, I felt inside for my bond to Ryan. Nothing. My heart squeezed tightly, and it felt like a bowling ball had landed in my stomach. No. It didn't mean anything. The bond was new. I don't know why I thought I'd be able to feel him. I just wanted to feel his comforting presence. To know that he was okay, but I had to get myself back to my Pack to do that.

My wolf pushed against my skin, urging me to let her out. She was right. I should Shift; it would heal a lot of my injuries, and I would rather face Seth again in my wolf form. I felt too vulnerable as a human right now. But I knew I stood a better chance of finding a way out if I stayed in human form. I reluctantly shook my head at my wolf.

Not yet.

I don't know how long it took, but I finally managed to sit myself up. The room spun in a dizzying whirlwind. My mind felt foggy, my right knee wasn't working correctly, and my vision swam. I closed my eyes and tried to take a deep breath, but it sent sharp, shooting pains along my ribs.

Fuck!

I sat there, my body shaking with pain and exertion. My wolf was howling inside of me, furious that I was still in human form. She wanted out; she wanted to hunt and hurt Seth, to take revenge for what he had done to us, for taking us away from our mate.

I made my way to my feet, swaying as pain shot through my knee. It took my weight though. The room shifted and swam again, and I almost fell back down. I gritted my teeth and held myself steady. I wouldn't give up. Not now. I took a few faltering steps forward, my hand outstretched to feel my way around.

The room was small, with no windows and only a single door that was solid and heavy-looking. There was no furniture or furnishing, just six concrete posts that held up the house above us. Nothing that I could make a weapon from. I stumbled, and I let out a cry of pain as my injured knee hit the ground. Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes, and I hung my head.

I couldn't give up, not now, not ever. I struggled to my feet again, holding onto the wall for support. I needed to find a way out, and fast. I couldn't afford to stay here any longer.

I reached the door and pressed my ear to it, listening for any sounds outside. It was silent, except for the sound of my own rapid breathing. I tried the handle. Locked. Of course, it was locked. Why wouldn't it be locked? I didn't have any tools or anything to pick the lock with, and even if I did, my hands were still bound together. I was trapped. That was when I heard movement outside. My heart pounding, I leaned against the door. I could hear footsteps coming closer. Panic squeezed at my chest, but I pushed it down. I had to be ready for whatever was on the other side of that door.