Page 129 of Quarterback Sneak
We approach the warehouse silently. Most of the pack has shifted, but Joe and my father and I stay in human form.Evie,I try when we get close; but I get nothing from her. We walk slowly towards the front door, ready for anything.
Chapter 53
Evie
I open my eyes slowly as consciousness begins to return. My surroundings instantly remind me where I am, as does the searing pain in my shoulder. I blink, trying to clear my vision. Jace sees that I’m awake and heads over to me. He pulls out a chair and sits across from me, like we’re old friends catching up. “Where’s my mom?” I demand. I glare at him and hope he feels every bit of my anger. Before he says anything, the man in charge, the one that’s been giving the commands since we got here barks at Jace. Jace and Sam simply call him master. “Go check outside. Make sure it’s safe.”
Jace stands to his feet and leaves without a word. I can’t stand having Jace near me, but this guy somehow is worse. Much, much worse. He doesn’t say a word as he steps close to me and peels back the neck of my shirt. I can’t control the hiss of pain that escapes my lips. But when he smirks down at me, I don’t give him the satisfaction of seeing my pain. I look him right in the eye. “Where’s my mom?”
He chuffs out a laugh. “She’s not here. We only used that to get you here.”
A rush of relief flows through me followed by swift anger. “Zane will come for me, you know.”
He grins at me, but it’s cold and empty. There’s something behind his eyes that’s downright sinister. “I’m counting on it.”
Before I lose my nerve, I blurt out. “Why are you doing this?”
He stares down at me with eyes so black they don’t look human. A shudder runs down my spine, and I am fully awarethat I have caught the attention of a very dangerous predator. He studies me a moment and then grabs a chair and straddles it. When he focuses on me, I struggle to breathe. “I want to tell you a story. I once met a woman. She was easily the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. She was kind and gracious, and she was the smartest girl I’d ever met. I met her our freshman year of college. I was interested in her, but she turned me down right away. But I didn’t give up. She was into me; I could tell. But for some reason, she wouldn’t let herself be into me. I kept after her until she finally went on a date with me. I thought she was finally into me. Only, she used that date to tell me that she wasn’t into me,couldn’tbe into me. I didn’t understand. She had tears in her eyes when she told me, like I was hurting her.Me.I hadn’t done anything except try to convince her that I was in love with her. I let her be, but I kept an eye on her all that year. The next year, a guy transferred into our school. She fell for him immediately. I could see it clear as day. She was into him from the very first day. I didn’t understand. She barely knew him. What did he have that I didn’t? I kept following her, trying to get her to give me an answer. And then one day, she felt threatened by me.” A cold smile crosses his face. “Heshowed up. But he wasn’t a human.” He lets those words settle over me. “He didn’t kill me that day, but he told me if I didn’t stay away from his mate, he would.” He smirks. “A wolf. So, I decided if that’s what she wanted, that’s what I would become. I sought out the right people. It took me fifteen years, but I did it.” He chuckles. “I transformed into a wolf. Of course, by now, she’s been mated for years. She has a son and a daughter.” His face distorts into a look of contempt. “While I’ve spent the last fifteen years trying to find a way for us to be together, she’s been with him living her perfect little life. When I approached her, she didn’t even recognize me.Me!The woman I'd devoted my entire life to didn’t even know who I was.” His voice is cold now. Any emotion he had is longgone. “So, now I’ll do the next best thing.” He leans forward. “I’ll take away her son’s mate and watch her bond to another. It’s fitting, don’t you think?”
My blood runs cold as the pieces lock into place. My heart hurts. All this because of a man scorned. I scramble to think of something to ask him. I need to figure out exactly what’s going on here, so I can warn Zane as soon as the stuff they gave me wears off. “How did you get it to work? How did you figure out how to become a wolf if you’re a human?”
He smiles that chilling smile at me and cocks his head to the side. “Just like anything else. You find the right people. I found an old alpha that dabbled in dark magic in his day.”
With that, he moves away from me. I watch him warily and push away thoughts of the pain in my shoulder. I need to be strong when Zane comes for me. Worry fills me when I think about what he could be facing when he gets here, but he told me he wasn’t coming alone. I have to trust that he’ll be okay; that they’ll all be okay. Jace comes back inside. “Nothing,” he reports. “How long before the connection between them fades completely?” Jace asks without looking at me.
“It should have already been cut off.”
A sick feeling fills me. I try to reach out for Zane, but I’m met with what feels like a brick wall. I fight the despair that claws at my chest. I feel Jace’s eyes on me, but I don’t look at him. “Are you sure she’s not able to connect with him?”
“No. The shot kept her scent blocked and kept them from communicating while we came here, and now, your bite will finish the job. He’ll have no way of finding her. Now grab those boxes and carry them out to the truck.”
I stay quiet, not bothering to mention to them that their shot didn’t work. I’m not sure how, but I was able to communicate with Zane for a few blessed seconds. I don’t know if it was enough, but I’m praying it was. I steel myself against the battlecoming. I won’t leave with them. I have to believe Zane will find me here. With no way to communicate with him going forward, I can’t leave from here or I might never see him again.
I hear a scream come from somewhere in the building, and a shiver runs up my spine. The master spins around and starts shouting orders, and then everything turns into a chaotic mess. A huge explosion rocks the room, and I rear back in my chair. There’s more screaming, and people are running. I stand to my feet and start running towards the exit. My steps are uneven, and the world tilts sideways as I run. But I push forward anyway.
“Evie!”
I hear the sound of Zane’s voice and nearly fall over in relief. Suddenly, he’s in front of me. “Zane?” My voice is hoarse. His face is a mask of cold anger.
“Let's get you out of here.”
I nod, but it makes the world tilt more and I can’t stay upright. His arms come around me, and he lifts me against his strong chest. And then we’re running. There are wolves on either side of us as he runs towards the door. Somebody tries to stop us, but they’re no match for the wolves beside us. Zane throws the door open and races across the parking lot and away from the building.
The next hours are a blur. Zane holds me as the world shifts in and out of focus. I’m aware that we’re outside for a while. At another point, we’re in a truck. Then we’re somewhere else. I fall asleep several times. Finally, I wake up and find myself in Zane’s bed in his room. I roll over and take a deep breath. When I smell Zane’s scent, it helps to calm me. His bedroom door opens, and the man himself steps inside. His eyes meet mine, and I see the concern there. I push myself up, tensing at the pain I’m expecting to feel. But I don’t feel anything. I push my shirt aside and stare at my shoulder.
Zane sits next to me on the bed, and I turn to him in confusion. “His bite mark is gone.” I know this because Jace’s bite left a nasty mark on my shoulder, completely different than Zane’s. Zane’s mark reminded me almost of a star.
Zane nods solemnly. “It is. His bite mark left your body when he died; it wasn’t there long enough to hold.” He says the words with absolutely no emotion.
I blink in surprise. “Jace is dead?”
“Yes.”
“You’re sure?”
“I killed him, Evie. He will never hurt you again.”
I stare at him, even as relief flows through me so hard, I can barely contain it. I throw myself into his arms, and he catches me. “Thank you, Zane.”
