Chapter 12

12

I guess the warden isn't in the mood to play today. Not that I want to spend time with the dickhead, but it would've been helpful to my escape plan to try to identify more of his weaknesses and ply him with a little sugar. Then again, if our run-ins thus far are anything to go by, he seems to respond more to salt.

Honestly, that works for me. I don't have to put on an act when it comes to being sexually attracted to Cam, but pretending to actually like him would be an exhausting effort. Hate-fucking is so much easier, not to mention it'd be hot as hell to finally let all this pent-up sexual tension between us loose. With any luck, I'll be able to get an orgasm or two out of it before leaving him with his pants down.

After hearing the beep of the door lock engaging at the top of the stairs upon his departure, I wander toward the front of the cell to collect my tray and see what's on the menu. As soon as I pick it up, I grimace at what I find.

Why people take perfectly good things like chicken and mix them up with mayonnaise, I'll never understand. I despise everything about the condiment; I'd rather starve than choke down the glob of chicken salad on my plate. The crackers are a hard pass, too, since I'm pretty sure that's what they're using to keep me dosed up with wolfbane, so it looks like I'll only be eating an orange today. Good thing I like citrus, and the fact that it's already peeled is a nice touch.

Perching on the edge of my cot with the tray on my knees, I take my time separating the segments of fruit and eating them one by one, savoring each mouthful. Captain douchebag hasn't been stingy about feeding me, but sometimes he leaves me waiting a while between meals, so I make every bite count. As I nibble on the orange, I ponder the plan I've got worked up for getting out of here once my wolf comes back, carefully going over each detail in my mind. I'll only have one shot at this, so my plan needs to be foolproof.

Once I'm finished eating, I decide to flush the rest of the food down the toilet since the warden has implied he won't keep feeding me if I don't lick my plate clean. That's how I got rid of the crackers after he called me out on not eating them yesterday, and it was an effective way to dispose of the evidence of my non-compliance. He was clearly none the wiser when he dropped the fresh tray today. Sucker.

Except yesterday, the crackers went down without any issues. I'm not sure if it's because I didn't break them up as well this time or that I'm trying to flush too much at once, but right after I press down on the handle to dispose of the remains of my lunch, water starts rising in the bowl. My panicked response is to push the handle down again and hold it, but of course that only makes things worse. The water in the toilet bowl rises faster, trickling out over the rim and splashing onto the floor.

"Shit!" I hiss, jumping back to avoid my feet getting wet.

How the hell am I going to explain this?

Maybe I won't have to. It could still just go down on its own… right?

But that's clearly not happening, because I have the world's worst luck. A streak of bad luck is what landed me in this cell in the first place- some wrong place, wrong time bullshit that had these guys thinking I'm my brother's Luna and therefore a valuable hostage. Not that being the sister of an Alpha doesn't make me just as valuable, but still. Getting kidnapped in a case of mistaken identity just adds insult to injury.

I don't know anything useful about plumbing, so I'm seriously considering sticking my hand down in the toilet bowl to see if I can somehow dislodge the clog when I hear the beep of the door lock upstairs, my stomach bottoming out.

Shit, I've got about three seconds to think of a plausible explanation for flooding my cell. Though short of being honest, I'm not sure what I could even say. If Cam catches onto why I'm flushing the crackers, he'll probably go back to injecting me, and then I'll have no hope of getting my wolf back. Or he'll put the wolfsbane in something else, and then I'll be back at square one with the process of elimination. Either way, my carefully constructed plan will go up in flames and I'll need a damn miracle to get out of here.

My heart pounds in time with the sound of heavy footsteps descending the stairs, my palms sweating and my mouth going dry. My captor emerges from the stairwell… with a plunger in his hands.

How did he know?

As he strides in my direction, the realization hits me like a ton of bricks. That fucking camera. I'd completely forgotten about it mounted in the upper corner of the cell, giving my captor constant access to watch my every move.

A snide smirk curls his lips as he approaches my cell, idly swinging the plunger beside him like a batter walking up to the plate. "Having some trouble?" he asks, cocking his head in amusement as he takes in the embarrassing scene I've found myself in. His eyes trail down my form, all the way to my bare feet standing in the puddle of water on the floor.

I cut him a glare, folding my arms across my chest indignantly. "You've been spying on me?" I ask, jerking my chin up to indicate the camera.

"You're a prisoner, of course I've had to monitor your activity," he replies flippantly.

"Yeah, you sure you're not just getting off on watching me sleep?" I scoff.

His bemused expression dissolves in an instant. "You want me to fix it or not?" he snaps, holding up the keys to the cell and jangling them in the air.

I roll my eyes, clicking my tongue as I look away. "Duh."

"Then stand back," he growls.

I begrudgingly retreat a few steps, doing as he says even though I have no intention of making a break for it. My prior attempts haven't gotten me anywhere, so I've already decided I'm better off biding my time until my wolf is back at full strength. Once she is, all bets are off.

Cam unlocks the barred door, pushing it open and stepping into the cell. He immediately closes it behind him and re-locks it from the inside, slipping the keys into his pocket before striding over to the toilet with the plunger and looking down at the water still swirling in the bowl. He narrows his eyes, then snaps his head in my direction, anger flaring in his expression.

"Why the fuck would you flush your food?" he demands.

Because yeah, it's pretty fucking obvious by the disgusting chunks of chicken salad and crackers floating in the toilet what I was trying to do.

My mouth falls open, my brain scrambling to string words together. "I… I hate mayo, okay?!" I blurt, admitting a partial truth since I'm backed into a corner here. "You said if I didn't eat everything, you'd stop bringing me food, and I didn't know what else to do, so I just flushed it!" I throw my arms up dramatically, really playing up the whole ditzy, innocent mistake vibe I'm trying to display while holding my breath and wondering if he's buying it .

The muscle in his jaw feathers, his eyes darkening. "Clearly I'm feeding you too well if you think you can pick and choose what you eat."

Well shit, I don't really know what to say to that. Apparently he isn't expecting an answer, though, because he just turns away with an annoyed grunt and stuffs the plunger into the toilet bowl, his tattooed biceps bunching and flexing as he works to remove the clog.

Damn, I never thought watching someone plunge a toilet would be a turn-on.

Cam wields the plunger like a weapon and fuck me if I'm not getting a little hot and bothered seeing him in action. I totally get the allure of naughty plumber pornos now.

Water splashes out and lands on his boots, which he's obviously not happy about if the way he curses and jumps back is any indication, but he does manage to work the clog out within a minute or two. When he depresses the handle of the toilet to flush and the water goes down, a sigh of relief gusts out of me.

Shaking the water off the plunger, he aims an icy glare in my direction. "If this happens again, I won't fix it," he mutters, the low tone of his voice making my thighs clench. "I'll bring a bucket for you to piss in instead."

I arch a dubious brow. "Wouldn't that just be more work for you?"

He narrows his dark eyes on me in question, so I go ahead and elaborate.

"I mean, then you'd have to empty it, and unless you've got a weird kink about bodily fluids…" I trail off with a cringe. "I mean, you do you, but I'm not into that, so let's go ahead and set that as a hard limit now."

He scrunches his nose, brows pinching together. "The fuck are you talking about?"

I shrug a shoulder nonchalantly, flipping my hair back. "I mean, I'm open-minded, and I'm generally up for experimenting. I usually say I'll try anything once, but I've just never personally seen the appeal of golden showers. So if you want me to pee on you, I'm not sure…"

"Why the fuck would I want that?" he cuts in aggressively, unwittingly falling into my trap and allowing me to get a rise out of him. Game on, dickhead.

"You tell me, you're the one who wants me to pee in a bucket," I scoff. Then I clutch a hand to my chest, eyes widening in horror. "Oh my gosh, is that why you've been spying on me? You've been watching me pee ?"

"What? No!" he sputters, growing more agitated by the second.

Got him.

"You totally have, you perv!" I cackle, throwing my head back on a laugh. "I mean, I knew you were twisted, but that's next level…"

Before I can even finish my taunt, Cam's dropping the plunger and stalking across the cell toward me, backing me up into the wall. "Stop it!" he shouts, crowding me in and slapping a hand up against the concrete beside my head.

"There he is," I declare, smirking up at him as the weight of his body sinks into mine, pinning me in place. "Whatcha gonna do, big man?" I lick my lips tauntingly, batting my lashes. "Just couldn't resist getting close to me, huh? You want me so bad you can't even stand it."

"Shut up," he grits out, wrapping a hand around my throat threateningly.

Too bad I'm not so easily cowed. I cover his hand with my own, encouraging him to squeeze my airway tighter as I rock my hips into his. "Oh yeah, choke me daddy," I moan breathily.

He jerks his hand away like my skin burns him to the touch, stumbling backwards while mumbling a string of angry curses under his breath. He reaches down to adjust himself in his jeans as he continues backing up, my gaze flickering down to the sizable bulge straining the denim.

"Tell me again how you don't want me?" I taunt, tilting my head mockingly as my eyes return to his.

"Shut the fuck up," he snarls, snatching the plunger off the floor where he left it and digging the keys to the cell door out of his pocket.

I fold my arms over my chest as I watch him smugly, cocking out a hip. "You couldn't handle me anyways."

There's no mistaking the heat in his eyes as he cuts me one last glare. Then he whips around, stalking over to the door and shoving the key in to unlock it. It turns over with an audible click and he immediately yanks it back, stepping out and slamming the door closed behind him. The bars rattle as he re-locks it from the outside while I take pleasure in watching his temper tantrum, chuckling to myself in satisfaction.

He doesn't say another word before leaving, and neither do I. I've already sufficiently pissed him off enough that he's shown his cards, and now I get to ruminate on how to knock him off balance again by reshuffling the deck. Good thing I've got an ace up my sleeve.

It isn't long before I hear the door at the top of the stairs open again. The warden must be a glutton for punishment, because I'm still riding the high of my victory over him and am more than ready for round two. I stroll toward the bars at the sound of his boots clomping down the steps, my lips pulling into a feral grin as I call out, "Back so soon?"

It's not Cam that emerges at the bottom of the staircase, though. It's a stranger outfitted in all black; another hunter. I never forget a face, so I know I haven't seen this guy before. He's about my height- give or take a couple inches- and he's stocky and broad-shouldered with reddish-brown hair and a close-cropped beard. He's not particularly attractive, but the way he's looking at me… well, he obviously likes what he sees.

Is he here to let me out?

It's probably too hopeful of a thought, but I'm not about to squander an opportunity if it presents itself. Stepping closer to the bars, I wrap my hands around them, peering out at him curiously.

"Expecting someone else?" he asks, licking his lips as he eats me up with his gaze.

Oh, so it's like that.

I give him my best fuck-me eyes, batting my lashes. "I was, but I'm not disappointed," I reply in a seductive purr, really playing it up.

The idiot takes the bait, a smirk curling his lips as he approaches the cell. From up close, I can see a jagged white scar cutting through his thin upper lip. "Too bad Knox took the keys with him, or you and I could have some fun," he drawls, waggling his brows suggestively.

Gross . Is this dude for real right now? Bile crawls up my throat at the thought of him putting his filthy hands on me, but I force myself to play along. He could be useful. Maybe I can get him to come back and let me out of my cell under the guise of a sleazy hookup.

"That's a shame," I pout.

"It really is," he agrees, reaching his hand toward mine.

I fight back a cringe as his fingertips brush against my knuckles, but I'm completely unprepared when he suddenly reaches in to grab my wrist, yanking it out between the bars. The momentum pitches me forward and I let out a startled yelp as the corner of my mouth clips one of the bars with enough force that it splits my lip.

"Bet you like it rough, don't you, bitch?" he sneers, twisting my wrist painfully in his grasp.

I wrench my arm free, stumbling backwards and licking the blood from my split lip. Fuck, I was not expecting that, and for once I'm actually thankful that I'm locked behind these bars. This guy is even more unhinged than my warden.

He eyes me menacingly, the corner of his mouth tugging up in a crooked grin. "Knox may not like to share his toys, but it's only a matter of time before he gets bored and passes you off," he says with a sinister chuckle that makes my skin crawl.

Fear prickles at the back of my neck, but I don't let it show. Instead, I straighten my posture, meeting his stare unflinchingly.

"Not so chatty now, huh?" he comments, giving me a slow once-over. "Doesn't matter. I've got somewhere to be, anyways. But I'll be back." He winks, leaving me with that chilling threat as he turns on a heel and strides away.

I suck in a deep breath as he starts ascending the stairs, closing my eyes and searching the recesses of my consciousness for my inner wolf. The second she's back at full strength, I'm so out of here.

I mentally reach for any sign of her, but I'm only met with silence.