Chapter 29

29

" H ey, beastie," I announce gleefully as I enter the holding cell below the squad complex, finding Cam sitting in the same spot against the wall as when I left him to attend the meeting. I haven't been gone all that long, but it seems he hasn't even worked up the effort to move a fraction of an inch. Guess the big bad hunter isn't so tough now that he's the one under lock and key.

He lifts his head to shoot me a glare in response to my greeting, but he doesn't fire off any verbal retort. Not gonna lie, it's a little disappointing. I was looking forward to giving him hell with this role reversal, but that requires him playing along, not giving me the silent treatment.

"Aren't you going to call me ‘warden' now?" I ask, clucking my tongue as I tilt my head to the side mockingly. "I thought that was our bit."

Cam makes a scoffing sound in his throat, but again, he doesn't reply. He seems committed to this act of quiet resignation.

I lean a shoulder against the doorframe, studying him for a long moment. The man in this cell is a far cry from the arrogant, entitled bastard I've had to endure for the past two weeks. His bruises are healing, but a crust of dried blood still coats his skin, telling of his torture. His eyes are vacant, his body slumped against the wall. I hate that I feel bad for him, but I can't help it. The dude looks pathetic.

"Door's wide open, aren't you gonna try to rush me and escape?" I taunt, deliberately trying to push his buttons and ignite his spark.

"Don't have anywhere to go," he mutters.

"Aw, c'mon," I coax. "This is no fun if you're a willing captive."

Cam tips his head back to rest against the cinderblock wall, heaving a sigh. "It is what it is."

I frown, chewing on the inside of my cheek. Getting under Cam's skin has always been effortless, but now he's like a broken wind-up toy, seemingly impervious to my efforts to rile him.

Guess I'll just have to try harder.

"I brought you something," I announce, backing into the hall to grab the ten-gallon bucket I left just out of sight. Picking it up, I step back into the doorway, tossing it toward him.

The plastic bucket bounces noisily against the floor, upending onto its side and rolling across the room in his direction. He eyes it as it rolls to a stop, scrunching his nose in distaste before his gaze pings back up to meet mine. "You can't be serious."

"Why not?" I ask, folding my arms across my chest and lifting my chin. "You threatened me with pissing in a bucket."

He averts his gaze. "I never actually made you do it, though," he mumbles.

"I suppose that's true. But I figured you'd prefer a bucket, since you've got that weird pee fetish and all."

His eyes snap up, jaw clenching .

Got him.

"I don't have a pee fetish," he grinds out, the muscle in his jaw ticking.

I roll my eyes, flipping my long hair over a shoulder. " Sure you don't," I reply sarcastically, winking. "Well c'mon, then, if you don't want to use the bucket, I'll take you up to the locker room."

Cam glowers at me for a full minute before he finally moves to push up from the floor, grunting with the effort of maneuvering his stiff limbs. He stretches his arms over his head and it's embarrassing how quickly my gaze drops to catch a glimpse of his lower abs when his shirt rides up- even more so when my pulse immediately kicks up a notch.

Keep your head in the game, Avery.

"Do I need to cuff you, or are you gonna be a good boy?" I ask as he begins stalking toward me from across the cell. Not that I've actually got a pair of cuffs on me, but he doesn't know that. Cam glowers harder and I grin in satisfaction, stepping back and gesturing for him to continue through the doorway. "After you."

Of course, I'm not going to make this easy on him. The moment he steps into the hall, I grab for his arms, pinning them behind his back like he's done to me so many times. It's a shame he doesn't resist. Wrapping my hands around his thick wrists, I urge him forward, directing him down the hall, past the locked door of the squad's arsenal, and up the flight of steps.

We emerge in the supply room adjacent to the indoor arena, and I bark orders at Cam to continue through the door and along the wall inside the arena to the locker room further down. It's only used when we have training drills in here- otherwise, everyone uses the locker rooms in the squad dorms- so I know it's vacant. I also double-checked before heading down to the basement .

"This door is the only way in and out," I say, yanking on his arms to jerk him to a stop outside of the locker room. "There's showers and toilets, towels and clothes, everything you need in there to freshen up. Just c'mon out when you're done."

He casts me a suspicious glance, probably expecting this to be some sort of trick, but I just push against the door to swing it open and wave him through. "I'd give you five minutes, but I'm feeling generous, so you can have ten," I say smugly, tipping my head toward the open doorway. "Chop, chop."

Cam grumbles something under his breath that's too quiet for me to hear, but I can only imagine it's along the lines of ‘ thank you Avery, you're the best warden ever' - because I totally am. Then he breezes past me, disappearing into the locker room and the door swinging closed behind him.

I blow out a breath, moving beside the door and relaxing back against the wall while I wait for him to do his thing. I'm not actually going to time him, but it'll be interesting to see whether he even attempts to cooperate. Part of me hopes he won't- his compliance thus far has been boring as hell.

I'm still standing there, absently inspecting my freshly pink-painted fingernails, when I hear the exterior door to the arena open. I snap my head in that direction and my eyes immediately narrow in suspicion when I see my friends Andie and Lo stepping through, looking like they're up to no good. They whisper conspiratorially to one another before waving awkwardly and making a beeline toward me.

I push off from the wall, pacing a few steps away from the locker room door to meet them. "What are you two doing here?" I ask as they approach, arching a skeptical brow. I made myself abundantly clear in our meeting earlier that I didn't want anyone else near Cam's cell, so the fact that they're here is pretty damning.

Lo at least has the decency to look sheepish, while her red-haired bestie boldly meets my eyes, coming right out with the truth.

"We just wanted to see what he looks like," Andie admits, her lips curving in a coy smile. "C'mon, can't we at least go down and sneak a peek?"

I toss a thumb over my shoulder toward the locker room. "He's showering."

"Alone?" Lo asks, brows creasing in concern.

"Where's he gonna run to?" I scoff.

"Fair point," she concedes, nodding. "I mean, he wouldn't leave his mate."

I snort a laugh. "Well, he doesn't know the first thing about being a shifter, so he probably would. But also, I'm pretty sure he doesn't even know we're mates."

"What?!" Andie gasps, eyes flying wide. "How is that even possible?"

I shrug. "Don't know. Probably because he refuses to accept his wolf."

"Some part of him has to know," Lo reasons. "Either way, though, you should tell him. If he's just figuring out the whole shifter thing, he probably needs a little guidance."

"If his wolf isn't telling him, then why should I?" I snap, suddenly on the defensive.

"How else are you going to get him to seal the bond?"

"I'm not."

"Are you kidding me?" Andie interjects, gaping at me like I just sprouted a second head. "You heard what happened to Ace's parents, right?"

I scowl, kicking the toe of my sneaker against the ground, because of course I have. Everybody around here knows the cautionary tale of Cal and Nessa rejecting their fated bond. I mean, they still got their happy ending, but only after months of pain and misery. The outlook is a lot bleaker for me.

"It's fine," I mumble, even though it's definitely not fine.

"Avery, be reasonable here," Lo sighs, stepping closer. " Like Archer said earlier, fate had to have put you two together for a reason. You've gotta at least give him a chance."

"This isn't the same as you and Javi," I mutter, hating how bitter I sound. I was never the girl who dreamed of running off into the sunset with her fated mate, but I sort of assumed he'd at least be an appropriate match, not my sworn enemy. With the way things stand, I have no idea what our path forward is, or if there even is one.

"Bullshit," Andie declares, folding her arms over her chest and staring me down with a knowing grin. "If you didn't care about him, you wouldn't be protecting him from your brother."

"Not true," I lie.

"You just don't want to admit you like him because of who he is," she continues, pointing an accusatory finger in my direction.

"Are you done?" I snap, already sick and tired of her psychoanalysis.

She rolls her eyes dramatically, huffing out a breath. "Fine, you don't like him," she concedes. "Which means you'll have no problem with us going in and sneaking a little peek at him in the shower, right?"

My heart stutters in my chest, my wolf rearing up in defiance, but I keep a tight grip on my composure. "Don't," I reply flatly.

Andie smirks, eyes glittering with mischief. "Why not?"

As if on cue, the locker room door opens, and I whip my head around to see Cam striding out with only a fluffy white towel slung low on his hips. His bronze skin is practically glowing, his monochromatic ink glistening beneath a thin layer of moisture and water dripping from the mess of curls atop his head. The man looks like sex on a stick, and all I can do is stare at him like an idiot with my mouth hanging open, my brain short-circuiting.

The corner of Cam's mouth lifts as he stares back at me for a long moment, my obvious reaction to him clearly fanning the flames of his fragile ego. He slides his gaze to my friends and he tips his head as he drawls, "Ladies."

That low, raspy voice of his has a direct line to my pussy. The greedy bitch starts throbbing, heat rising to my cheeks as I get all kinds of flustered. "I told you there were clothes in there, go put some on!" I admonish, scowling at the dripping wet Adonis that just stepped from the locker room.

Goddamn, I forgot how hot he is.

Cam turns to head back in, but not before I clock the smirk on his lips. Asshole . He totally did that on purpose, and I was so caught off guard with my friends out here that I fell for it.

The second the door swings closed behind him, Lo and Andie are on me like flies on shit, tittering about Cam's appearance.

"Damn, girl," Lo breathes, followed by a low whistle.

" Damn is right!" Andie laughs. "That towel didn't hide shit, I could totally see the outline of his…"

Lo slaps a hand over her friend's mouth before she can finish, staring at me wide-eyed. "Watch your mouth, that's her mate!"

"So?" Andie giggles. "She doesn't even like him, right Aves?"

"Well clearly her wolf does," Lo remarks, gesturing toward me, and it's then that I realize how close my wolf is to the surface. Her possessive instincts are on overdrive and she's making a thinly veiled threat to my friends through my irises. Damnit.

"You sure you're gonna reject that man?" Andie teases like the relentless brat she is.

"Don't you two have somewhere to be?" I huff, folding my arms over my chest.

"No," Andie smirks.

I roll my eyes, reaching out to give her a playful shove. "Go! "

The two of them wisely take off, snickering to each other the whole way, while I pivot to face the locker room door and practically glare a hole through it.

My wolf and I need to get on the same damn page. Trouble is, I still need to figure out exactly which page that is.