“Rise and shine, princess,” he says, his voice deceptively pleasant. “How are we feeling today?”
I say nothing, knowing from experience that engaging only prolongs his visits. He’ll get to the point if I don’t indulge his grandstanding.
“Not talkative? That’s fine.” He moves closer, and I force myself not to shrink back.
Bear’s noses are stronger than wolves, their sense of smell almost unparalleled, but I’m hoping my general stench from lack of hygiene is enough to cover any faint trace of my approaching heat. From the way his nose wrinkles and he stops short, I think I’m in luck.
“I just came to let you know I’ll be away for a few days. Important business at the Alpha Conference.” He rubs his huge, calloused hands together and gives me a smug grin.
The Alpha Conference. Where all the pack and clan leaders gather annually to discuss territories, settle disputes, and forge alliances. Somehow, I doubt Leon made the guest list.
“Don’t worry,” he continues, mistaking my silence for fear. “I’ve left Billy to look after you. He seems to have taken a special interest in your welfare. I’m going to enjoy reminding him of his place when I get back. I’ll make sure he cleans you up for me before I return, just to fuck with his head.”
My blood runs cold. Does he know? Has he noticed something between us?
“Though I can’t imagine why he’s so taken with you,” Leon adds with a cruel smile, as his lecherous gaze runs over my body. “You’re hardly his type. Bears prefer curves, she-wolf. Something to hold on to during mating.”
Relief mingles with disgust. He doesn’t know, he’s just being vile.
“When I get back,” Leon says, leaning closer, “we’ll have a different conversation about your... usefulness. If this all goes according to plan, you may have outlived your purpose as leverage.”
The threat is clear. Once he returns from the conference, if things go the way he’s hoping, I’m disposable.
“Until then, I’d think about what you might offer me that would convince me to keep you around.” Leon straightens, heading back to the stairs. I have nothing of use to him that would buy me some time.
Except my body. And unfortunately, I have a feeling that if he wants that, he’ll take it whether or not I offer it.
The door slams behind him, leaving me alone with my stomach in knots, my heart pounding and my thoughts racing. Leon is leaving for the Alpha Conference. Most of his men will go with him.
This might be my only chance to escape.
But how? The door is reinforced steel, the small window is too high and narrow to squeeze through. I’ve explored every inch of this prison over the past three weeks, searching for weaknesses but finding none.
My only hope is Billy. The son who disagrees with his father. The bear who brings me proper food and sits on the steps to talk. My mate.
The thought sends a fresh wave of panic through me. Already, I can feel the early signs of pre-heat, sore, heavy breasts, heightened senses, rising body temperature, and a restlessness under my skin. I’ve never experienced it before, but every she-wolf knows the signs. Every wolf knows what comes next.
Full heat. When it arrives, I’ll be at my most vulnerable. Desperate. Irrational with need. And it’ll attract the attention of any shifter close enough to scent it.
I pace the small confines of my cell, mind racing. If Billy is my mate, surely he must feel something, some pull toward me. Could it be enough to convince him to let me go?
Maybe not. His father is ruthless, and the consequences for him might be too great if he was to pretend I escaped.
Maybe fate is crueler than I thought, giving me a mate who can’t recognize what we are to each other.
I force myself to eat the second half of the sandwich left from yesterday despite the nausea rolling in my gut, knowing I’ll need my strength.
Hours pass, marked only by the steady drip of water from somewhere in the pipes, and the restless pacing of my wolf. When the door overhead opens again, I’m coiled tight with tension.
Billy descends the stairs, a different tray in his hands. Not food this time. First aid supplies.
“You’re hurt,” he says, nodding toward my arm. “I saw it yesterday, but I couldn’t get back without it looking… odd.”
He means suspicious. He can’t allow his father to think he cares in case he uses it against him. I don’t have the heart to tell him it’s too late for that.
Instead, I glance down, surprised to see a long scratch down my arm that I hadn’t noticed before. Must have happened when Leon was here, when I pressed against the rough wall to keep my distance.
“It’s nothing,” I say, but Billy’s already setting the tray down and opening an antiseptic wipe.
