Page 13 of The Werewolf Cowboy
Chapter 4
Dark. So dark. Even her acute wolf senses couldn’t pick out a single thing in the ink-black room.
Katy sat up, wincing as she rubbed her temples. She squeezed her eyes closed, shutting out the terrifying blackness, trying to recall what happened.
She’d been outside the bar to look for her friends. And then her world went dark.
When she woke, she was here.
Terror threatened to surface, but Katy pushed it down. Her parents hadn’t raised a namby-pamby wolf who panicked. Dave taught all of them to think on their feet, or paws, and how to survive on their own. Her adoptive mother had taught her how to fight males who got too friendly and showed unwanted attention. Her family might be overprotective, but they also wanted her to know how to get out of trouble if the occasion warranted.
I’d say the time is right. What irony! She’d wanted to be free of her family and finally start to live. Experience adventure. Now she had plenty of it.
Dragging in a deep breath, she smelled dampness and mildew, and a stench warning she was in unfamiliar territory. A cave, perhaps.
The thought sent shivers through her. She’d hated caves since childhood…since…
When?
A dim memory tugged at her. Having no recollection of life before she was eight years old truly sucked. Every once in a while a memory flickered like a light bulb, but never enough to fully understand. Certain sights, or smells like this, triggered the past.
All she knew was she’d been orphaned and found by Darius, the Mitchell pack beta, wandering on a dirt road bordering the ranch. He’d taken her and given her to Dave and Mary to raise, and she’d been happy ever since. But every once in a while she wished she could track down her real origins. Who were her parents? Did they have a pack? Did this kidnapping have anything to do with her origins?
Made no sense, since Charles was her abductor. Still, the smells here, even the taste of the air, were oddly familiar.
She touched the ground beneath her. Nothing but cool concrete. In the distance, she heard the rustle of wind, and murmured voices above her.
Definitely a basement. But that stench…it smelled like lost hope mingled with decay. Her sensitive wolf’s nose twitched and the wolf inside her whined, wanting to get away from this terrible place.
It’s okay, she soothed her wolf.Let’s figure out a plan. We’ll get out of here.
A door to her right opened, spilling in harsh light. Katy’s eyes watered from the sudden pain.
She said nothing as the person stomped across the floor and then seized her arm, hauling her upright. Biting back a cry, she waited. And then she heard a switch snap on, and blazing light filled the room.
She blinked fast, willing herself to calm. The scent of her captor slammed into her before her pupils could adjust to the light.
Charles.
Trying to calm herself, Katy scanned the room, assessing her prison. An open, sturdy oak door showed a hallway blazing with light. The room where she was held was painted gray, without windows, and looked almost like a safe room. Concrete floor…her nose twitched…and walls. Impossible to break into or out of…
The open door remained her only option.
“Charles. I hope this is a joke,” she told him.
He squeezed her arm painfully, but she bit her lip, willing herself not to cry out.
“I got paid good money to bring you here.”
Katy’s heart raced faster. She turned her head to study her captor. Charles’ dark hair was rumpled, his clothing stained and torn, and he looked as if he’d been dragged backward through a ditch. “What did I ever do to you?”
“You don’t belong with us. You never have. Ever since the day you came to live with us, everyone’s given you extra attention to make up for you being abandoned. I felt sorry for you, so I asked you out. And you had to turn me down in front of everyone. You’re different, bitch. And different in a pack is bad. You’re not good enough to pick and choose. I was doing you a damn favor.” Charles released his vise-like grip on her arm, his bloodshot gaze wild.
Maybe it had been slightly cruel to spurn him in front of everyone, but she was glad her instincts proved right. Charles had a point, however. Shehadfelt different from the others, ever since her birthday last month.Maybe he’s right. I’m not good enough for anyone.
And then a deep male voice spoke in her mind from memory. Grayson.You ever need me, Katy, day or night. I’ll be here for you.
“I am good enough, Charles,” she said quietly, knowing her words were futile, but needing to state it aloud. “I just wasn’t interested.”
