Bonded (29 page)

When she’d first
heard Peter’s tentative whispered calls, she’d thought she had
somehow let down her guard and tapped into Reno’s mind, something
she tried to avoid doing both for ethical reasons and her own
emotional health. But when her name was repeated with increasing
urgency, she’d realized the sound wasn’t in her head but coming
from the grate in the wall.

Peter had heard
the commotion when she was brought in—she hadn’t come along quietly
and she knew Victor sported at least one bruise on his shin if not
more. Familiar with his jailers’ routines, Peter had bided his time
until he was sure all the Lycans had left the building and then
made contact. According to him, there were several other humans in
the building as well, all being held in the old jail section near
the back. Being one of the last ones ‘collected’ there’d been no
room for him in the cells, so he’d been put in his present location
instead.

Grateful to have
someone to talk to, Peter had filled her in on the pack’s decline
from simple conservatism to the state it was in now. He still held
out hope that not all the members completely prescribed to the
Purists’ tenets. “After all,” he’d reasoned, “if they were all
devoted believers, I’d likely be dead by now, right? There must be
enough dissent among the pack to make Victor proceed with
caution.”

Brandi was
somewhat in awe of how calm the man was, but then again, he’d had
weeks to think about the situation and work his way through his
anger and disbelief into acceptance of this turn of events. Not
that the man had turned belly-up and was meekly waiting his fate.
He just wasn’t wasting his energy on useless emotions.

“If worse comes to
worse, I have an escape plan,” he’d shared.

Brandi had pressed
closer to the wall as his voice fell into an even softer whisper.
“There’s a floor grate in my room under the bookshelf in the
corner. It leads to the cellar below.”

“What?” If a wall
hadn’t been separating them, she’d have stared at him as if he were
insane. “Then why haven’t you used it?”

“Because my mate
and pups are still in this town. If I escape, Victor will take it
out on them and the other families.”

She’d bit her lip
and nodded to herself. The Langstaff case came to mind. It was now
a text book example of the extremes of what could happen to those
left behind.

“So you’re just
going to keep waiting until...?”

“There’s more. You
see...”

But he’d never
finished the sentence. Footsteps had echoed in the hallway as Walt
arrived to inspect his prisoners. Brandi had sunk down to sit on
the floor, trying to appear as if she was just dozing. When the
door cracked open she’d looked up, blinking and yawning.

Walt had stood
silhouetted in the doorway. “Why are you on the floor?”

“The sofa’s too
soft and lumpy.”

He jerked his head
towards the wooden chairs by the table. “Then sit over there.”

“Too hard,” she’d
quipped back.

“What are you?
Some red-headed Goldilocks? Too soft, too hard...” He’d mimicked in
a falsetto voice.

“And this floor is
just right.” She’d finished with a smirk, patting the wooden
surface.

Walt had flicked a
glance up towards the air grate and then at her but she’d pretended
not to notice, instead yawning and stretching some more.

“Go sit on the
sofa and stay there,” he’d demanded.

“Fine. But if I’m
Goldilocks, then you’re an awfully crabby papa were-bear.” She’d
grumbled and made a fuss trying to distract him from thinking too
much about why she’d been sitting directly under the grate that
connected to the other prisoner’s room.

“Stop being a
smart-ass or I won’t bring you any breakfast.”

“Will it be
porridge?” She’d asked wide-eyed. “Make sure mine isn’t too hot or
too cold. Okay?”

He hadn’t seen the
humour in her comment and slammed the door shut. She heard the lock
snicking into place followed by the sound of his footsteps moving a
few feet away. There was no sound from next door. Apparently, Peter
was feigning sleep, for Walt paused for a moment before walking
away.

That had been
during the night. Morning had passed—muffins not porridge had
arrived for breakfast, and grilled cheese for lunch. Walt had taken
her to a small bathroom to use the facilities and she’d cleaned up
as best she could, though the thought of a shower almost had her
drooling.

Brandi hadn’t
dared to try and talk to Peter again even though she could hear him
moving about and being given his meals. There was always someone in
the building and she couldn’t chance being overheard. Still she
wondered what he’d been going to tell her. He’d said ‘there’s
more.’ But what?

She’d pondered the
situation while checking her own room for a floor grate—there was
none—and attempting to break down the door—also pointless. Hitting
the door with her shoulder did nothing except give her an aching
joint—the room was definitely werewolf proof—but it did pass the
time.

Pounding and
calling for help had been futile as well. Walt had stopped by at
one point, commenting that no one could hear her and even if they
did, there’d be no assistance as Victor’s word was law. The Alpha
had placed her there and there she’d remain until he decided
otherwise. If she persisted in making so much noise, Walt said he’d
use some duct tape on her mouth to solve the problem.

She’d growled at
the very idea but wisely remained quiet after his warning. Now,
with nothing else to do, she analyzed the situation over and over.
What was this all about? What did Victor plan to do with her? If
he’d meant to kill her, he could have done that easily enough last
night. What was the point in keeping her locked up?

Unless... She
pursed her lips considering another angle. Victor knew she’d called
someone. Was he waiting to see if anyone came looking for her? And
what would the Alpha do if someone did?

The only person
who might come would be Reno, but would he? He’d only heard part of
her story and their relationship was rocky at best. True they’d
parted on better terms but was that enough to make him travel
halfway across the country looking for her?

She sat down on
the lumpy couch and focussed on Reno, trying to sense him, to
determine where he was. It wasn’t something she did very often,
finding it too painful, too heartbreakingly lonely, to experience
such a one-sided bond, however dire times called for dire
measures.

Surprisingly, a
sense of his thoughts came to her with greater ease than ever
before. He must be close by or thinking intently about her too. Her
heart beat with an excitement matched only by that of the wolf
within her. The animal sensed him and wiggled with joyful
anticipation of a reunion.

Down girl, she
admonished. The beast’s antics were distracting and she desperately
wanted to figure out exactly where Reno was and what he was up to.
Pulling her legs to her chest, she rested her head on her knees and
concentrated on the thready link to the man who was her
almost-mate.

She pictured him
in her mind, going over each feature, his height, the faint drawl
in his voice. The image was so vivid she was sure she could even
detect his scent.

Unfortunately a
sound at the door broke her concentration before she’d made much
progress. She got to her feet, muscles tensed, ready
for...well...whatever might happen next.

Victor entered,
closing the door quietly behind him. His appearance—dressed in
denim that looked too new and a buttoned up light blue shirt—made
Brandi think of some crazed serial killer or a cult leader in a
movie. Even the way his dirty blond hair was gelled back seemed
perfect for the part. The resemblance wasn’t at all comforting.

“Brandi.” He
nodded at her in a regal manner and she mimicked him.

“Victor.”

He gestured
towards the table and chairs and she slowly took a seat. Pulling
out one for himself, he sat opposite her and laced his hands on the
table.

“I apologize for
your accommodations last night. I trust the sofa wasn’t too
uncomfortable?”

“Actually, it was.
Rather musty as well.”

Victor inclined
his head. “Pity, but it couldn’t be helped. Dampness does creep
into these old buildings, you know.”

He studied her for
a moment, his icy blue eyes seeming to hold her own captive. A hint
of a smile turned the corners of his mouth upward and he began to
speak in smooth, soothing tones. “I want you to know that I care
about you, Brandi. As Alpha of this pack, your well-being, and that
of your wolf, are my primary concern. During your time away, you’ve
been exposed to a variety of influences, some of which might have
given you a skewed perspective on the Lycan world.”

Reaching out, he
took her hand in his, rubbing his thumb slowly back and forth
across the back. His grip was warm and it was easy to sense the
strength in his fingers. “I worried about you while you were gone
and hoped you wouldn’t stray from the true path. Do you know how
important you are to this pack? To me?”

With his other
hand he reached across the narrow table and gently brushed a curl
from her cheek. “When one of my members leaves, it’s like a void
has been created, an actual wound that needs healing. Only you can
fill that void, Brandi. Only you can make this pack complete
again.”

A certain power
seemed to exude from him and Brandi suddenly realized that she was
leaning closer to him. The edge of the table pressed against her
body as she strained towards him.

Tearing her gaze
from Victor’s, she stared down at their joined hands in surprise.
Damn, the man was good; it was easy to see how a pack could fall
under his spell. She’d dealt with a number of Purist Alphas before,
but he was the first to knock her off kilter like this. Well,
thankfully she wasn’t some inexperienced young pup who was easily
swayed by dulcet tones.

After a lousy
night’s sleep, the fuse on her temper was short. She didn’t feel
like utilizing the diplomacy that she was so well known for and
decided to allow herself a small luxury. Tugging her hand free, she
leaned back and spoke plainly. “Okay Victor, let’s cut the crap.
Why are you detaining me? And why is Walt strutting around like
some wannabe thug? All I did was call a friend. That’s not a
punishable offence last time I checked.”

Annoyance flared
in Victor’s eyes. Obviously he wasn’t used to having his ‘concerned
Alpha’ facade ignored. “If we’re ‘cutting the crap’ as you so
succinctly put it, why not be honest?”

Narrowing his
eyes, he slowly stood up. Balancing his weight on his finger tips,
he leaned over the table and spoke in a low, menacing voice. “You
weren’t just calling a friend. You were calling an Enforcer; Reno
Smith from the ACS. And it wasn’t a ‘friendly’ phone call. Despite
our best efforts you’ve discovered that Kolding’s Pass is now
following the Purists’ way—the true way of the Lycan—and you
decided to report us to Lycan Link.”

There was no point
in denying it. So Brandi shrugged and decided to move on. “So what
are you going to gain by keeping me here? Eventually someone will
notice I’m missing and come looking for me.”

“You’re right. In
fact, Reno’s in the front office right now asking about you.”

Her heart leapt at
the news and she couldn’t quite stop the flair of relief and
excitement from showing on her face. Little wonder she’d been able
to access him so easily through her bond!

Victor looked at
her thoughtfully before continuing. “I’ve instructed Walt to tell
Reno you’re in a meeting with me but will be able to speak with
him, briefly, later today.”

“Why can’t I talk
to him now?” She clasped her hands tightly in her lap, trying to
stay calm. Damn, why did her wolf have to react like a crushing
school girl whenever Reno was around? It was inconvenient
and
embarrassing.

“Because, as I
said, we’re having a meeting.”

“About what? So
far you haven’t said anything earth-shattering. As a matter of
fact, I think our business together has concluded and I’ll just be
on my way now.” She started to stand but he snapped out an
order.

“Sit down!”

Instinctively her
wolf responded to the barked command and she found herself seated
before she even realized what had happened.

“Such quick
compliance. Excellent.” He flicked his gaze over her before
continuing. “We’re meeting to discuss your future... and
Reno’s.”

Not liking the
sound of that, Brandi fought to keep her face passive and her
temper in check. She’d let it loose a moment ago, but a cool head
was needed right now. “Explain.”

“You have two
options. You can tell Reno you’ve made a mistake. That while a few
members might have Purist leanings, no violations have occurred and
he should head back home. You will then resign from Lycan Link and
remain here unharmed.”

“And the
alternative?”

“I’ll kill both
you and Reno. It will be listed as a hiking accident. He came to
visit. You took him to see the sights, but due to your long absence
you forgot which trails were safe and fell into one of the gorges
or perhaps an abandoned mine shaft. A cave-in prevented your
rescue.”

“Nice set of
choices. I guess you know which one I’ll pick.”

Victor gave her a
cool smile and straightened. He slowly circled the table until he
stood behind her, his hands resting lightly on the back of her
chair. She could sense his presence behind her and fought not to
jerk away; she didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of knowing
how much he unnerved her.

“So sensible of
you. That’s one of your more appealing qualities. No hysterics or
annoying pleading.” He was using his mellow tones again.

“Thanks. Your
opinion of me is of my utmost concern.” She kept her eyes fixed
straight ahead and did her best to ignore his proximity.