Chapter 5 - Liz

The weight of my new reality settles like a stone in my gut, pulling me further into despair with every passing second. I can”t believe this is happening. My wrists ache from the rough handling, and my heart feels like it”s been stomped on. Fin—my so-called owner and husband—stands beside me, his posture relaxed, a pleasant smile on his face as he chats with the auctioneer.

”Thank you again for your business, Fin,” the auctioneer says, shaking the man”s hand. ”It”s not every day we get someone from the Nightrunner Pack attending our little gathering. It”s quite the honor.”

Fin chuckles, slapping the auctioneer lightly on the back. ”Well, it”s not every day I attend such an event, either. A man”s got to diversify his interests, right?”

Diversify his interests? My eyes narrow at him, disbelief surging within me. How can he be so chummy with these people? Doesn”t he see them for what they truly are? Or worse, does he see them and just not care?

The auctioneer laughs, and the sound grates on my nerves. ”Absolutely, absolutely. Well, I hope your new acquisition serves you well, Fin. She”s quite the catch, if I do say so myself.”

”Of that, I have no doubt,” Fin replies, glancing briefly in my direction. His green eyes meet mine for a fleeting moment, but I can”t read them. There”s something there, something hidden behind that casual demeanor, and it unsettles me even more.

As they continue to exchange pleasantries, I struggle to keep my anger in check. I”m not some object to be acquired and displayed. I”m a person, dammit. A person who”s been humiliated and stripped of her dignity, and now I”m supposed to play the part of the doting bride? My wolf reacts with fierce revulsion.

”Hey, listen...” Fin”s voice cuts into my thoughts. His manner has changed again, becoming more serious. ”Sorry to rush things along, but we really should get on the road now. We have a long way home.”

”Of course,” the auctioneer agrees, clasping him on the shoulder. ”Absolutely. On behalf of the whole team, thank you for shopping with us, and if we can be of any assistance, feel free to contact us anytime. Enjoy the girl.”

At his words, the bitterness in my heart seeps over to my expression. ”Assholes,” I mutter.

Fin steers me toward the door. ”Keep those comments to yourself unless you want to attract the wrong kind of attention,” he whispers, his tone curt.

His grip tightens, and I can hear the low growl in his throat. We step into the fresh air, and for the first time in days, I can breathe. I make a concentrated effort not to look back inside the building. Though I want to run far and fast, I can”t exactly dart away into the darkness. Not when this man has a grip on me as if I”ll disappear before his very eyes.

The moment we step outside the building, away from the prying eyes of the auction attendees, hope ignites in my chest. My wrists are still shackled, but maybe now that we”re alone, I can convince him to let me go.

”Fin, is it?” I ask, putting on my sweetest tone.

”Fisher, actually,” he corrects.

We walk right past all the vehicles, and it takes me a moment to realize we”re headed for the woods. I dig my heels into the dirt, stopping him in his tracks.

”Where are we going?” I hiss. ”Why are you taking me to the middle of the damned woods? What kind of sick—?”

”Relax,” Fisher snarls. ”We”re walking home, that”s all. Probably won”t make it there tonight, though. My pack has a cabin nearby. I figured we could rest there for the night.”

”We”re walking?” I ask, confused. ”You mean, you walked here? Why didn”t you just take a car or a plane or a freaking Uber?” The guy obviously has all the money in the world. He could have a freaking helicopter waiting, but he wants to walk?

”I have my reasons, all right?” is his blunt response.

”Please, you have to let me go,” I plead, my voice trembling with emotion. ”I don”t belong to you. I won”t be your prisoner.”

Fisher”s expression hardens, his jaw clenching with tension. ”You don”t understand, Elizabeth,” he says, his tone terse. ”I can”t let you go. Not now.”

”Why not?” I demand, my frustration boiling over. ”What possible reason could you have for keeping me here against my will?”

But Fisher just shakes his head, his eyes darkening with an intensity that sends a shiver down my spine. ”It”s complicated,” he mutters, his voice strained. ”Just trust me, okay?”

Trust him? After everything that”s happened, after being sold like a piece of livestock at auction, he expects me to trust him?

I scoff, my anger flaring. ”Trust you? Why should I trust you? You”re just like all the others, taking advantage of my situation for your own gain.”

Fisher”s face twitches with something akin to hurt, but it”s quickly replaced by a steely resolve. ”I”m not like them, Elizabeth,” he insists, his voice low and urgent. ”I”m trying to help you, whether you believe it or not.”

I glare at him, my fists clenched at my sides. ”Help me? By keeping me captive? That”s not help, Fisher. That”s just... cruelty.”

He winces at my words, but his grip on my arm tightens as he starts to lead me away from the building. As we walk, he keeps looking over his shoulder and into the darkness as if worried we”re being followed. Every snap of a twig, every hoot of an owl, has him jumping. Despite the mystery surrounding him, despite his massive size and dangerous energy, I get the sense that Fisher is a man on edge, a man fearing for his life. Who is this man? The longer we walk, the more tense he becomes, and I can”t shake the feeling that he”s running away from something. Or someone.

”What are you running from?” I finally ask, unable to keep the question from slipping out.

Fisher”s jaw tightens, his eyes flickering with an emotion I can”t quite place. ”I”m not running from anything,” he says, his voice tight. ”I”m just trying to keep us safe.”

”Safe from what?” I press, my curiosity piqued despite my fear and anger.

But Fisher just shakes his head, his expression unreadable. ”You wouldn”t understand,” he says cryptically.

I can tell from his voice there”s no use arguing with the man. No matter what I say, he”s not going to answer me.

Fine. Whatever.

The forest around us grows denser, the trees taller, their canopies forming a natural fortress against the sky. Eventually, we reach a secluded cabin, its structure blending seamlessly with the wilderness that surrounds it. It”s quaint, rustic even, but there”s a sturdy charm to it that speaks of years of solitude.

Fisher unlocks the door and ushers me inside. The air is cool and tinged with the scent of pine, and for a moment, I”m taken aback by the relative comfort of the interior. A fireplace dominates the living area, and there”s a couch, a few chairs, and a small kitchenette. It”s modest but inviting.

”Go on,” Fisher says, nodding toward a hallway. He takes a key out of his pocket that the auctioneer must”ve given him and unlocks the bindings around my wrists. ”You can take the bedroom on the left. There”s a bed and some blankets. You”ll be comfortable there.”

His words surprise me. A bedroom? For me? Just knowing I have a little bit of privacy relieves some of the tension in my shoulders. I expected that we would be forced to share a bed in some kind of sick parody of wedded bliss.

Not knowing what else to say, I mumble, ”Thank you.”

Avoiding eye contact, I hurry to the room. Once inside, I find a simple yet cozy space. There’s a bed with a patchwork quilt, a dresser, and a window that looks out into the darkened woods. It”s a room that feels far removed from the events of the day, a quiet corner where I can catch my breath and gather my thoughts.

Closing the door behind me, I sit on the edge of the bed, feeling the weight of the day press down on me. I need to think, to plan.

I”ve always been strong. I”ve never had a problem standing up for myself. Now, though, I”m in a situation I can”t control, a situation so cruel and perverse that it makes me want to curl up and die. I need to find a way out of this, to escape this captivity disguised as protection.

Angrily wiping the tears from my cheeks, I cross the room and look out the window. There”s a full moon high in the sky, illuminating the forest with an eerie glow. Slowly, gently, I open the latch on the window and peer outside. It”s unlocked, which means if I can just be patient and wait until this Fisher character is asleep, I can climb out and run for my freedom. It”s not an elaborate plan, but it”s a starting point. It”s a fighting chance.

As the minutes stretch into an hour, I settle against the wall, arms wrapped around my knees. I stare blankly into the darkness, trying not to think about what will happen if my plan falls through.

And then, finally, a muffled sound of snoring comes from the next room. Letting out a sigh of relief, I silently ease the window open, feeling the cold air flow into the room.

Taking a deep, steadying breath, I pull myself onto the sill and carefully maneuver my legs over the edge. Leaning forward, I lower my body slowly, and once my fingers touch the earth below, I let go. I land gracefully on the soft, mossy ground, a smile tugging at my lips. My bare feet barely make a sound on the forest floor, and for a moment, I allow myself to hope that I might actually get away.

When I”ve put some distance between us, I pause for a moment, calling on the shift in my bones. I start to feel some sensation in my feet, my fingertips tingling with the power of my wolf…but nothing happens. Nothing but a distant whimper in my mind”s eye. Just emptiness where her fierce presence should be. The trauma of the kidnapping must have pushed her so far down that she”s gone dormant, leaving me defenseless and alone.

Tears blur my vision, and I let out a silent cry of anguish. Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no, no! Panic envelops me, wrapping its cold hands around my throat and squeezing until I can barely breathe.

And then, before I can fully comprehend the magnitude of my situation, I hear it—the soft crunch of footsteps on the forest floor, drawing closer with each passing second.

My heart lurches in my chest as I whirl around, only to come face-to-face with Fisher. The moonlight glints off his hair, and his green eyes are dark and unreadable.

”Going somewhere?” he asks, his voice a low growl.

Everything in me tightens. Shit.

Before I can react, he lunges forward, his movements swift and sure. I try to dodge out of the way, but he anticipates my every move. Strong arms wrap around my waist, pulling me close. Our bodies collide, and I thrash, my heartbeat pounding in my ears, but his hold is solid.

Trapped. Trapped.The word rings like a bell in my mind.

We grapple with each other in the darkness, our bodies pressed close as we struggle for dominance. Despite my best efforts, he pins me down easily, his weight pressing me into the forest floor.

For a moment, we”re frozen in time, locked in a battle of wills that neither of us is willing to lose. And in that moment, I can feel the heat of his body against mine, the tension between us sparking like a live wire.

There”s something primal in the air, something raw and untamed that ignites a traitorous flame of desire in my core. My heart thunders in my chest, and my wolf paces in the recesses of my mind, sending a thrill of adrenaline through me. I curse my treacherous body, telling it not to submit, not to give in.

I”m not supposed to be enjoying this.