Beta (13 page)

Thankfully, he was still fast asleep in his bed but I wasn't
going to risk just locking us in his room.

"Christian," I said in a hurried whisper as I picked him
up.

He
groaned, just like when Titus woke up suddenly, and threw his arms
around me, falling back to sleep. I ran us into Christian's giant
closet and into the hidden panic room in the back. I shut the
bullet and fire proof door as quietly as possible, locked it
thoroughly, and set Christian on the small couch. I took a breath
and looked at the monitors but my breathing quickly stopped when I
saw at least ten people surrounding the house. I grabbed the land
line and dialed Titus's number. With each ring, I started to panic
a little more. I didn't know what these people wanted but it was
clear their intentions were not pure.

"Hey,"
Titus answered.

"Elizabeth," someone outside the panic room sang my
name.

Shit.
They knew where we were.

"Someone
is in the house," I whispered, afraid.

I tried
not to panic but I was terrified.

"What?"
Titus asked, instantly on high alert.

"Please,
Titus, someone is here for me. I don't know what to do," I started
to cry as quietly as possible.

A loud
crash against the door caused Christian to jump up.

"Mom,"
Christian cried.

"Are you
in the panic room?" Titus asked quickly.

"Yes," I
choked out.

"I'm on
my way. Whatever you do, don't leave that room."

Another
loud crash sent the door flying inward. Christian scrambled behind
me as he cried harder out of fear. My hands shook as I realized who
was here. The phone slipped through my finger tips in shock but I
could still here Titus calling my name.

The
Master walked up to me slowly, a sinister grin played on his lips.
He bent down to pick up the phone as I instinctively moved
Christian as far as possible from the man.

"Beta?"
The Master asked.

"Who is
this," Titus demanded.

"I am
taking back what is mine."

"Don't
touch them," I could hear Titus growl in fury.

"I don't
want the boy. He is of no use to me but Elizabeth will be coming
with me."

"She
doesn't belong to you."

"Clearly,
she hasn't told you much of her past," the Master said as he
grinned at me.

His cold,
stone-like hand trailed down my cheek, followed down my neck and
traced the line of my collarbone. I wanted to slap his hand away
but I feared any reaction from me would cause him to use Christian
against me. I wasn't about to risk Christian because my stomach
churned at the thought of that man touching me.

"I will
leave your son here, unharmed, but you will not see Elizabeth
again."

With
that, he crushed the phone with a light squeeze of his hand. His
full attention turned to me causing every vein in my body to run
cold in fear. I knew what he wanted from me. I knew why he never
slaked his lust with me when I was younger. I had been promised to
him by my parents and he was collecting on that promise.

"Come,"
he commanded.

I pushed
Christian further out of the Master's view, if that was at all
possible.

"I don't
care about him. You are the one I've come to collect," he
assured.

I looked
back at Christian; his cheeks were red and puffy from crying, more
tears streamed down his face. What choice did I have? If I fought,
I was grossly outnumbered against vampires and they would kill
Christian or at least harm him until I agreed to go.

"Please,
just don't hurt him," I begged.

"I have
no reason to, ma chérie."

I turned
around and knelt in front of Christian. I pulled him into a tight
hug as he cried into my chest. Try as I might, I could not stop the
tears from rolling down my cheeks.

"Momma,
I'm scared," he cried.

"I know
but you have to be brave right now," I whispered.

"Like
Dad?"

I nodded,
"Exactly like Dad. I have to go with this vampire but I want you to
stay right here until Dad comes to get you. Can you do
that?"

I prayed
he told Titus I said this man was a vampire. It was the only clue I
could give my son without flat out telling him.

"But
where are you going," he begged.

"This
vampire raised me. I have to go with him."

"But I
don't want you to go," he wailed.

His
emotional anguish forced more tears from my eyes as I memorized
every feature of his face. It would be one of the only things to
keep me going while the Master kept me in captivity. I would do
anything for Christian, even if it meant a life of servitude to
keep him safe.

"I know,
Christian-"

"As
touching as this is, I am done with it. We are leaving now unless
you would like to see something happen to him."

I hugged
Christian one last time and kissed his cheeks; they were salty from
his tears and I would never forget that taste and smell. I would
never forget how terrified his milk chocolate eyes looked or how
his small body trembled. It was the single most crushing experience
in my life.

"I love
you, Christian. Don't ever forget that, okay?"

He nodded
and wrapped his small arms around my neck, sniffling and still
bawling.

I felt a
hand tangle to the base of my scalp and pull me away from
Christian. He cried out for me but the Master didn't care. He
roughly drug me from the room as I gripped his forearm to get him
to stop pulling my hair but he wasn't stopping. I was shoved into
the arms of another vampire and hauled downstairs.

I
listened carefully to make sure no one harmed Christian and to my
surprise, no one did. Everyone left the house with Christian still
upstairs crying. The sound of him crying had never been more
welcomed as I was thrown into a car and sped off. Now all I had to
do was form a plan.

*********

"Did you
honestly think I wouldn't come for you?" He asked
casually.

I didn't
respond. I simply stared out the window as we drove the winding
roads. He had this idea that if he produced a child with a
werewolf, it would be the start to a superior race but that's not
how genetics work. I was certain the lines couldn't be combined
naturally; not that there had never been a werewolf and vampire
couple, but it was rare. If a child was produced, it was either
vampire or wolf, never a blend. Maybe some day, in a test tube, a
blending of the lines could be possible but this man was
delusional.

"I expect
a verbal response when I ask a question," he bit out.

I knew
angering him would not do me any good so I chose to
comply.

"Yes,
Master," I responded nearly silent.

"Ma
chérie, you may call me by name. You will be mine in every
way."

I cringed
at the thought.

"Now tell
me, did you think I wouldn't find you?"

"I hoped
you wouldn't," I said, still staring out of the window.

"That is
rude, Elizabeth. Please don't force me to punish you."

"I
won't."

"Good
girl. Tell me, what have you been doing all these
years?"

It took
everything in me to actually respond to him. I wanted to scream and
shift but I knew I didn't stand a chance at getting away from this
group on my own. I wasn't sure how I was getting out of this but I
had faith Christian would tell Titus that they were vampires and
that they raised me. He would be able to put the pieces together
with that information. I had never regretted not telling him more
about my childhood until the moment I saw the fear in Christian's
eyes.

"I've
been married."

"I have
heard. Claire was none too pleased about that," he
commented.

Bitch. I
should have fucking known. The second Rachel told me where she was
from I should have known Claire had something to do with this
beyond the kidnapping. Was she really so hellbent on getting Titus
back that she would tell the Order where to find me? Obviously, she
was.

I felt
Andre's eyes on me but I refused to meet his gaze. I wouldn't give
him the satisfaction of knowing he had me in a bind.

"You have
nothing to fear from me as long as you comply," he said, "However,
I will not tolerate bad behavior."

"What do
you consider bad behavior," I asked.

"Back
talk, trying to escape, any contact with the Beta or his
son-"

"Christian is my son, too."

"He is
Claire's son again. She wants the Beta and I wanted you so we made
an arrangement. I would take you out of the picture and she could
win him back."

The
entire situation disgusted me. Andre was the worst kind of person
and Claire was his female counterpart. Why couldn't she just accept
that I married Titus and adopted Christian after she abandoned them
both? She was selfish, that's why. He couldn't have gotten a sane
woman pregnant, could he. It just had to be her, didn't
it.

I
instantly felt bad for thinking that way. It's not like he
intentionally got Claire pregnant. It was an accident. One, big,
horrible, accident that resulted in Christian. Christian was the
only thing that made this situation tolerable. He was the only
reason I wasn't angry with Titus for his indiscretion. If Christian
hadn't been born, Titus and I would probably be on a very different
level. I would have had a reason to be mad at Titus but how could I
be mad when I gained Christian from this? I couldn't explain why I
wasn't mad at Titus for sleeping with Claire before he met me but I
wasn't. However, if Christian wasn't there, I would have been
furious. I didn't even understand it myself.

"Why
couldn't you just let me be?" I asked, void of any
emotion.

"You
belong to me," he simply answered.

"My
parents promised me. I didn't agree to anything."

"Yes,
well, your parents were devout followers. They believed in
something bigger than them and that is why you were born. You never
belonged to anyone except me."

Even
though that was nothing new, it still hurt to know my parents never
actually wanted me and they made that very clear through my short
time with them. They had me out of necessity. My brother knew it
too and resented me for it. He saw me as the reason they moved from
the pack to live with the Order. When I had to live with him while
I was in school, he didn't speak to me once. I knew he hated me and
over the years I had accepted it but my acceptance never eased the
pain of knowing the people that were supposed to love me wanted to
give me to this power hunger vampire.

"What
happens now?"

"Now, we
go home. I'll give you some time to readjust and after that, you
will not leave our bed until you have my child."

A silent
tear rolled half way down my cheek before I wiped it away. I
wouldn't let him see me cry.

"How much
time do I have?"

"How much
do you need, ma chérie?"

"Fifty
years," I suggested.

He
laughed, "Nice try. You may have a week."

A week?
How was I supposed to come up with an escape plan in under a
week?

We pulled
up to the mansion he lived in with the other coven members. I was
brought here once when I was ten so he could examine my growth and
make sure I was up to his physical requirements. He wouldn't just
choose any girl. It had to be me because he thought my parents had
a strong bloodline even if they weren't ranked.

"Now
Elizabeth, I understand that being away from your mate will be
difficult at first but you must understand you don't have a choice
in this. You will never be with him again and the sooner you accept
that, the better. If you do come into contact with him, I will kill
him."

HA! Like
he could kill Titus. Please. Titus was the Beta of one of the most
feared and respected packs in the world. He didn't get to that
position by being weak. Even though the position was passed down
through generations, anyone could challenge him for it and Titus
had been challenged before. He wore the battle scars to prove his
resilience. If Titus came for me, he would not hesitate to kill
Andre and Andre wouldn't stand a chance. He may have been thousands
of years old but he failed to realize the deep bond Titus and I
shared. Even if Titus hated me, I would still be his mate and he
would always protect me.

"You
couldn't kill him if you tried."

"Is that
something you are willing to gamble?"

"Yes.
Titus will kill you and if you touch me, he won't kill you
mercilessly. It will be slow and painful. I hope that's a gamble
you are willing to take."

A sharp
slap sliced across my cheek and no matter how much I expected it,
nothing could have prepared me for how quick and intense the pain
would be. I gasped but instantly stopped when the pain only
intensified. I had never been hit before and it was something I
never wanted to experience again.