like I’d hoped, so I went for the chair next. It was heavy and wooden, slamming into his skull with a sickening thud.
I held it ready to bring down again, but Kale didn’t move. I nudged him just to be sure he wasn’t trying to fake me out. I set the chair down but kept it close while I fixed my clothing. Thank God for having gotten my hands in front of me. I wouldn’t have stood a chance with them behind me.
‘I really don’t give you enough credit,’ came Arys’s relieved thought.
‘Isn’t that what I’ve been saying for a while now?’
I pressed a hand to my neck. Blood streamed through my fingers to drip on the floor. Kale hadn’t taken it easy with that bite. This could be bad.
‘You need to get out of there. I’m coming for you.’ His insistence was worrisome. This place would eat him alive.
‘Don’t be an idiot, Arys. This place will kick your ass. Again. If the FPA don’t do it first.’ I glanced around the dimly lit room. The lamp base had shattered, but the bulb remained lit.
I didn’t think Kale would be out for long. I went to the door and stood on my tiptoes to look out the window. I saw only the door across from me. A faint light glowed beyond, but I couldn’t see the occupant.
I banged on the window a few times, fearful of rousing Kale. If he started to move, I might have to hit him with the chair again. I banged again, adding a shout along with it. It was futile I knew. If anyone heard me, it would likely be Agent Asshole and his pitiful excuse for a partner.
‘Don’t come here, Arys. Get a hold of Juliet. Tell her I’m here. And, find Jez if you can. I need to know her and Willow made it out.’
‘Of course, you had accomplices.’ His disdain was evident.
A shadow moved in the hallway. Someone was approaching. I tensed. The surprises kept coming. It was Bianca, and she was in a hurry.
I backed away from the door and grabbed the chair. I’d let Kale kill me before I let Shaz’s lover lay a hand on me. She opened the door and slipped inside, closing it fast.
“I’m here to get you out,” she said in a rush, eyeing the chair in my grip and Kale’s prone form on the bed. “We have to hurry.”
“Are you kidding me? I don’t trust you.”
“I don’t blame you. I wouldn’t trust me either, but you’ve got to believe me; I’m sorry for what happened with Shaz. I respect you, and not just because you kicked my ass.” She glanced furtively toward the door. “But, we really don’t have time for this now.”
“I can’t leave without Kale. He’s the reason I’m here.” The prospect of freedom was promising. However, the thought of leaving this building for the second time without Kale was crushing.
Bianca’s long black ponytail swung as she opened the door and peeked into the hall. “I’ll come back for him later. We’ve got to go. Briggs doesn’t know you’re here yet. Trust me when I say you want to keep it that way.”
I was torn. Could I trust Bianca? For all I knew she could have unsavory plans for me. Despite what he’d just done to me, I didn’t want to leave Kale.
‘What are you waiting for? Get the hell out of there before Briggs knows he has you,’ Arys warned.
I cast one last glance back at Kale and followed Bianca into the hall. “How did you know I was here?”
Instead of heading back the way I had come in with Jez and Willow, Bianca led me through a maze of halls in the opposite direction. She paused to remove the horrible handcuffs. I rubbed my bruised wrists and gratefully tapped my power. It surged through me, a comforting sensation.
“I ran into your friends. I recognized the leopard. She told me about Hunter. The man is an oversized child with a gun. It’s ridiculous.”
“Hunter? You mean Agent Asshole?”
Bianca laughed, a short clipped sound. “Yeah, that’d be him.”
A tall, leggy thing, Bianca had ebony hair and eyes that glittered with sensuality. She’d seduced my wolf mate, making him her willing blood slave. I hated her. That she sprung me from Kale’s prison rubbed salt in a wound that might never fully heal. It was one of life’s little kicks in the teeth.
“So, where is Jez now?” We passed a wing of empty rooms rife