Ezra was nowhere in sight this time as I made a beeline for the same sedan I scoped out a couple nights before. I doubted Kaiden nor Ezra expected me to be out here again.
Still, I moved as quickly as possible. A quick jimmy down the window, and I got the driver’s door unlocked. A little more finagling with my trusty screwdriver, and the wires beneath the steering wheel were exposed. A couple snips with my wire cutters, some sweet love with the copper lines, and I’d be good to go. I slid back out to the asphalt, the weird position already putting a kink in my back and reached for my duffel…only it now sat between a pair of high-heeled shoes.
I followed the scuffed pumps up to a pair of dirty skinny jeans, paired with a torn blouse. The raven-haired woman wore a feral smile—one I shouldn’t have been as familiar with as I was. Shit. This hunter seemed broken already. Her right hand was held close to her chest with chunks of it missing. What was she doing here? Fuck, how did she find me so quickly?
My instincts screamed at me to run, to jump in the car, hit the gas, and not look back, but I needed that duffel. It held all the basic necessities for going on the run; clothes, some food, and a wad of cash that I wouldn’t get very far without.
“This makes it all worth it,” the hunter laughed, and her cruel smile sent a shiver down my spine.
Her deranged eyes widened and began to glow. There was a change in the air, like a shift in the natural current around me, and I knew she was drawing on her power. I gathered my own in defense. We weren’t making contact, but the hunter’s mind was fractured, that much was obvious to me. I could sense the bleeding, jumbled mess from over here, and I pounced before she could make her move, my mental claws sinking deep.
I tunneled into the hunter’s psyche, hammering home the only thought I could formulate in my panic; go away. Her knees buckled, and she dropped my duffel. I cautiously leaned forward to grab it, keeping an eye on her shredded mind, when a dark shadow speared its way through her chest. The hunter collapsed in front of me, revealing Kaiden behind her, looking every inch the vengeful god who wasn’t above smiting those under his protection.
He glanced at my duffel, trapped beneath the hunter’s legs, the open car door with the steering wires hanging out, and shook his head.
“And here I thought our last conversation went so well.”
“I don’t belong to you, Kaiden. You can’t tell me what to do,” I snarled.
“We both know that isn’t true, princess. You belong to me as much as I do to you.” He stepped forward to grab my duffel and sling it over one shoulder.
My heart pounded away in my chest, and I wasn’t sure how much of that was from fear and how much was the bond Kaiden claimed I didn’t reject. From the other side of the now-useless getaway car, Ezra approached, whistling at the pool of blood forming around the fallen hunter.
“Sorry, cuz. That one got away from me.” He glanced at the scowl on Kaiden's face and then over at where I now stood at the hood of the car, trying to inch away. I froze. “I’ll let you deal withthatwhile I take care of clean up.”
Kaiden nodded his reply, then looked back at me and pointed a finger toward campus. “Back to your dorm. The kind of conversation we’re about to have is better dealt in private.”
I swallowed. “What kind of conversation?”
He smirked, but there was anger beneath it. “Discipline,” he clipped. “Now walk.”
I tried to keep my back straight and my knees fromwobbling, even with a twisted ankle. I refused to let him see my nerves. This wasn’t a conversation I wanted to have, especially while he was angry. He told me bonds couldn’t hurt one another, and I held onto that with everything I had.
“Stop,” he called. My arms circled at my sides as I stumbled and tried to keep my weight off that bad ankle. “You’re hurt.”
No shit, Sherlock. I kept my mouth shut, though. He was mad enough already. He moved closer as if to pick me up, and I hopped backward. No way was he touching me right now, I didn’t care how much pain I was in. I’d rather walk on glass. He didn’t look happy about it, but he let me continue on my own, at least until we got back to the dorm.
I was a panting mess, my forehead damp and chest heaving as we stopped in the courtyard. Kaiden looked up at my open window, down at my pathetic mess of a self, complete with throbbing ankle, and growled. He swung me into his arms before I could protest and carried me the rest of the way in silence.
Once inside my room, he set me down and locked the door behind him. The tension shot to smothering levels with that action alone, and it only got worse as he laid his leveled gaze on me.
“Turn around, put your hands on the desk, and bend over.”
My body locked up. He couldn’t have just said…he wanted me to dowhat? His hand twitched at his side, and I blanched. Oh gods, he threatened to, but I didn’t think he’d actuallyspankme. I leaned away from him, reluctance in my every move as I reached behind me to grip the desk he wanted me to present myself on. That wasn’t going to happen.
“You have two choices, princess. The first, you can take your punishment like a good girl and keep your freedom. I’ll go easy on you since you seem to be new to the concept of discipline.” He smirked at that and moved on. “Option number two is, denythe punishment you’ve earned, but move in with me where I can keep a better eye on you.”
My mouth dropped. “W-what? You can’t do that!”
He crossed his arms and leaned against the door, taking me in. My breath hitched under his gaze as I thought he might decide to punish me regardless. But he spoke softly instead.
“If you trust me enough for this, I can move forward in good faith that you’ve learned your lesson, and as such, I will allow you to maintain your freedom. By refusing the punishment, you’re telling me you refuse to admit that putting yourself in danger is wrong. Your consequence will mirror the behavior you choose.”
I gripped the desk behind me even harder, my nails peeling the varnish. Either option sucked. I’d never been spanked before but…it couldn’t be that bad, right? I wasn’t sure how much freedom he meant to give me if I couldn’t even leave my dorm, but it was better than the alternative—being trapped at his place. It didn’t mean I wanted him to hit me though.
“Will it hurt?” I instantly wanted to take it back. That was a stupid question. Of course it would hurt. The better question was, could I stand it?
Kaiden’s eyes softened, and he uncrossed his arms. He didn’t move to touch me, but the small action made me tremble regardless.
