Coveted (24 page)

 Chapter Twenty-five

“
T
here had been a church
here centuries ago. When it fell into ruin, a series of tunnels were
discovered. Years later smugglers had used them to store things until they
could be unloaded.”

The three men fell silent,
looking around the room with renewed hope. Lassie rushed to the wall and
started knocking on the wood. The rest quickly followed suit. Shayla moved out
of their way. When she stepped on the rug, a current of freezing air reached up
from beyond the grave and grabbed her ankle in its tight fist. She scrambled
backward, nearly falling over her feet to get away.

And immediately felt
better.

“Guys.” She bent and
tossed back the rug.

Aiden reached her
first. He scooted around her, brushing against her side in a way that made her
want to run her hands all over him.  

When he bent to grasp
the handle, her eyes unashamedly dropped to his ass, unable to keep from admiring
the view. Aiden caught her in in the act, appearing startled at first, but then
he shot her a roguish grin.

The smile quickly
dropped. “Stay behind me. If there is any sign of trouble, I want you to run.
Understand?”

Shayla wanted to
refuse, but suspected if she said anything else, she’d be trussed up and returned
to the castle. She gritted her teeth. “Fine.”

When the door cracked
open, atrocious smells invaded the small space. She coughed, covering her nose
and mouth when her stomach threatened to toss up its contents. Feces, urine and
rot were blended into a toxic mess. If it was that bad for her, she couldn’t
imagine how the guys could handle it with their more sensitive noses.

There was something
in the darkness, something oily and evil that seeped up the steps, and Shayla
retreated as if it would reach out and drag her down there. Dread built in her
bones, and her skin crawled with the need to run.

Aiden descended into
hell on silent feet, his face grim, and she had to struggle not to yank him
back. He glanced back at her, and her resolved hardened. She would not let him
face what was down there alone. They’d taken him once. She would not allow it
to happen again. That didn’t mean she wasn’t scared shitless. She ended up
following him so closely she bumped into him twice.

Without looking at
her, he reached back and threaded their fingers together. Her heart tumbled at
the gesture, and she tightened her grip.

If possible, the
smell became worse, like she had fallen into a cesspit. Emergency lights were
strewn down the long hallway, their feeble light never fully banishing the darkness,
each huddling in its small circle as if afraid of what lurked beyond.

The deeper they went
underground, the more her anxiety increased. Her breathing sped up until it
didn’t feel like she was able to get enough air. She was psyching herself out. She
concentrated on her surroundings until the vise around her chest slowly
loosened.

Water dribbled down
the walls. They were close to the ocean, maybe even in a connecting tunnel
where she’d first located Aiden. She couldn’t see squat, so shouldn’t have been
surprised when she slammed into Aiden when he halted. The impact knocked her
off her feet.

Aiden whirled with
his normal incredible speed, but fumbled when he pulled her up against him. Her
guts pitched with foreboding to see him so affected by such a small dose of
wolfsbane. She clutched his arms as he set her back on her feet, reassuring
herself that he was going to be okay.

Then she saw what lay
beyond him.

Her lungs, her heart…everything
seemed to stop working as she tried to process the sight. The scene was like
out of a concentration camp. Wolves in human and animal forms lined the walls.
They didn’t have cages; the thick chains around their necks were enough of a
deterrent.

The metal irritated
the skin until there was nothing left but raw flesh. Infection was rampant, the
wounds leaking a green puss that made her stomach revolt. They sat in their own
excrement. Bones littered the floor around them, tooth marks prominent on all of
them, most were cracked and the marrow sucked out.

She must have made a
noise. Those closest didn’t even bother looking up, just curled their emaciated
bodies into tighter balls. They were skin and bones, their flesh withered away.
It made her realize how much Aiden had suffered, how hard he’d struggled to stay
alive and not cower and give up.

The few in the group who
were in wolf form were in the worse condition. They were subdued, diminished to
timid little housedogs that peed and hid at any noise. Their fur was matted, as
if they were already decaying, their chests barely moving, so she couldn’t tell
if they were alive or not.

Wounds were half healed,
and when she looked closer, they appeared to have been inflicted by an animal.

Another wolf.

“They have them
fighting each other.”

Aiden stiffened, his
face white. So much anger shimmered in his green eyes that he looked ready to
do murder.

Shayla brushed her hand
down his back, giving him the only reassurance she could. “We found them.”

He stiffened, but
gave a curt nod and knelt to check the body that lay curled up at his feet.  

A growl rose from a
few in the back. Chains snapped as two people charged forward. Aiden surged to
his feet but refused to budge from his protective spot in front of her. He
bared his teeth and surprisingly, they backed down, looking confused.

Lassie pushed forward,
standing nose to nose with one of the prisoners. The man licked his parched
lips, his chain stretched taut, and motioned his companion back. “You have to
get out before it’s too late.”

Lassie ignored the warning
and grabbed the chain as if he, alone, would tear apart the walls to get his
men free.

A hoarse laugh from
the prisoner echoed down the tunnel. “It’s no use. The only way to get out of
the chains is by the key.” He turned away, his chain dragging behind him as he
shuffled back to his spot.

He coughed, then collapsed
to his knees under the strain. “They rigged the vents with wolfsbane. Every
breath infects us, not merciful enough to kill, but so we don’t fight back when
they come for us.”

Shayla inhaled, but
couldn’t smell anything.

Aiden shook his head
at her. “They must be harvesting the pollen and venting it through the tunnels.
For any of us exposed over a long period of time, it can do permanent damage. In
higher doses, it can kill us outright.”

The chained man
struggled to his feet. “If you stay, the symptoms will only get worse.”

“Where’s Shawn?”
Lassie studied each wolf, as if he could see the person beneath the fur,
whirling from one to the next, his movements becoming more and more agitated.
“He’s not here.”

“Those of us still
alive are used for surplus. The blood is more potent in the really old or the
very new.” The man in the chain hunched over, his shoulders curving in defeat
for the first time. “They took him at the start of his change.”

Lassie’s face crumpled,
devastated under the blow of being too late. Deep grooves cut into his face,
aging him in seconds. His eyes went yellow as his wolf rose. Teeth elongated, claws
slowly emerged from his fingertips as he lost control. He tipped back his head,
as if the pain was too great, and howled with such despair tears gathered in her
eyes.

When he looked at
them, nothing of the Lassie she knew remained in his eyes.

He was all beast.

And very, very angry.

His eyes scanned the
small tunnel, muscles bunched as if ready to launch himself at the first thing
that moved.

Aiden stepped forward
and gathered Lassie in a giant bear hug, pinning his arms to his side. Lassie struggled
and kicked, bellowing in rage.

All the wolves were
dying, Aiden included. He would never leave his men down here to suffer alone,
but Shayla knew she could help these people.

Help him.

She had been born for
the job.

She could find that
key.

She slowly backed
away, surprised that Aiden permitted the move. If he knew what she’d planned,
he would never let her go.

She memorized every
aspect of Aiden until the inky blackness of the tunnel wrapped around her, and
he was stolen from view. Without him by her side, fear came rushing back in a
near-paralyzing wave. Not allowing herself time to doubt the wisdom of her
plan, she whirled and sprinted down the first turn that angled off the main
tunnel.

Much to her surprise,
a curious tug drew her further. She crept along the tunnel, the dirt-thickened air
heavy in her lungs. A bare bulb dangled every ten feet or so, and she resisted
the urge to linger under the light.

She had to hurry before
Aiden used that nose of his to track her. Ignoring the way her stomach lurched
at the prospect of entering the Frost World again, Shayla clutched the necklace
in her fist. Heat nearly singed her fingers. Shadows began to move like water, the
puddles pulling together until a wolf took shape.

The wolf from the
necklace.

Shayla nearly sagged
in relief, abjectly grateful for its presence. “You have a lot of explaining to
do after the way you tricked me.”

The big beast cocked
his head. He took a step toward the darkness then glanced back at her.
Excitement made her pulse race, and hope burned brighter. “You know where the
key is, don’t you?”

Shayla took off after
the loping wolf, barely able to keep up, listening for any little sound that
she was being chased. When she rounded the next corner, the glare of bright
lights took her off guard, and she skidded to a stop. Dirt floors gave way to
stone. Litter lined both sides of the tunnel, the first signs of occupation
since she’d abandoned the group.

And, unfortunately, no
sign of her wolf.

The necklace cooled
against her skin, and her heart lurched to find herself truly alone. She
stepped forward again, careful not to let her feet scuff against the floor.

The first room was
pitch black. She took a step forward when a gust of decay slapped her in the
face. She took a cautious step…only to have her foot met open air.

She teetered over the
edge. Felt herself slide. Her heart slammed against her ribs, and she threw
herself backwards, clutching at the doorway. With solid reassurance of stone
against her back, Shayla glanced down.

And looked into a pit
straight from hell.

Dead bodies were
piled up haphazardly like broken dolls, tossed away and forgotten. They had
been stripped of valuables, anything that marked them as a person. They were a
commodity, used and discarded here to rot, no one the wiser.

 Many were at least
partly submerged in water, reducing the stench. The surf crashed in the
distance, waiting for the tide to sweep the dead out to sea, but there were just
too many bodies to hide anymore.

Who could’ve imagined
that humans were the biggest monsters?

Another gust of wind
pushed, at her as if shoving her out of the room. Wraiths of the dead pressed
against her, swirling around seeking vengeance. Overwhelmed by their violent
emotions, Shayla backed away. They followed her like shadows. She couldn’t
brush them off, couldn’t escape, the relentless chill of death ruthlessly
clinging to her.

This had been a
horrible idea, but there was no going back, not without the key. Shayla hurried
toward the next room, wishing her Neanderthal was at her side.

The room was dark.
She paused, but couldn’t see or hear anything. The need to hurry surged through
her, and she took a step back to leave when a pair of glowing eyes reflected
back at her from the darkness.

Wolf eyes.

She had to force
herself to not run. Adrenaline pumping, Shayla crept into the room, feeling
increasingly jumpy and ready to flee at the first sign of aggression.