Chapter 21
Cal put all of his will into breaking the hold of the chains. They were a simple enough design. Shackles at the wrists and ankles, held in place by some kind of mechanical magnetic lock. They were attached to chains that led to a lead in the floor. He had a reduced range of motion, but the chains allowed him to move around a little.
At times, he thought he could feel them loosening, but he’d lose it, distracted by the memory of Gemma being pulled back down the hall.
“Whoever touched her, I’ll kill him,” he muttered as he tried to refocus on the chains. They weren’t real, however much his mind was trying to convince him that they were. If he could just make himself believe it.
He flexed again, pulling with all of his might. Cal thought he could feel the chains start to give way, but then the door opened, and he froze, releasing the effort.
“Cal!” a voice shouted, and then Gemma was running toward him. She fell to her knees in front of him. “Oh, Cal!”
“Gemmaline,” he said, his voice shaking.
Sanri stuck her head in from the hallway. “Now you kids behave. I’ll be back in a jiff.” The door shut behind her, the lock clicking.
He wrapped his arms around her as best he could with the chains around him. Cal couldn’t believe how good it felt to touch her again. It had only been an hour, maybe a little more, since he’d last seen her, and it felt like an eternity. A Vartik was not separated from his mate lightly, and he knew Gemma was his mate without a doubt.
“I’m so glad to see you. I was so worried.”
“I was worried about you too, darling,” he said, stroking her hair. “I thought Sanri was torturing you with terrible things.”
Gemma buried her head in his chest. “It was horrible,” her tiny voice said. “I’ve never been so frightened.”
His heart ached, hearing those words. “I’m so sorry I left you. My brother was in danger, and before I knew it, we were swept up in Sanri’s illusions. I don’t know what I would have done if you’d been hurt. This entire time, I’ve been struggling to come back to you.”
She looked up with tears shimmering in her beautiful eyes and his heart grew another crack. “I’m so glad I found you.”
Cal hugged her tightly. “Me too, sweetheart. Now, we’ve got to figure a way out of here. It’s safe to say our secret is out, and at any moment, they could be back to subject us to far worse. Juston is being held in a room not far from here. Dunkel’s got him. If we can get me out of these chains, we can find a way to pick the lock.”
“Wait,” Gemma said, her voice shaking. “I don’t want to go back out there. Can’t we just stay here for a while?”
Cal looked down at her, planting a kiss on her forehead. “I know you’re scared, but I’ll be with you. We’ve got to get out of here, honey. There’s no time to delay.”
Her face fell in disappointment. Another crack, the pain in his chest terrible. Then she mumbled, “How do you expect to get out of those chains?”
Cal jerked his head toward the cabinets lining the walls. “Go look over there. See if you can find something to get me out of these.”
Gemma frowned, then buried her head in his chest once more. “I don’t want to leave you again.”
Cal frowned. “Look, I know you’re upset that I left you and that you’re afraid, but please, you have to be brave.”
She shook her head and burrowed deeper. “No.”
Trying to be patient, he took a deep breath. Gemma was acting strangely. This whole time, she’d been brave, fighting her way through overweight nurses and magical demons to get to him.
Maybe what she saw broke her. The very thought sent a chill through him, an agony in his chest like he’d been shot with a heat beam and left to die. If his presence was in any way responsible for the damage she’d suffered, he’d never forgive himself.
Nor would he forgive those that caused it. They would suffer before they died.
“Okay, little one,” he said, kissing the top of her head. “Calm down.”
He held her until she stopped shaking. She snuggled closer, planting a kiss against his chest. It was soft, and he loved the contact. Then she kissed him again. Then again, a little lower.
“Sweetheart,” he whispered. “Don’t get me wrong, I love the attention, but we’ve got to get these chains off.”
She looked up at him, her eyes filling with lust. Without a word, she kissed him, both hands on either side of his head, holding his mouth to hers.
The kiss was skillful, but he felt not one ounce of arousal.Strange. “Honey,” he said, pulling away gently. “Now isn’t exactly the time for this.”
