Suzie made a scoffing sound that echoed in the locked room.“You won’t hurt me.If anything happens to me, Niall will go to the authorities.”
“I thought you said you and Niall are casual lovers,” Colin said.“Why would he care if anything happened to you?”
“Because he doesn’t claw over others to get ahead.”A subtle dig.Too subtle since neither of the bears even blinked.
Interesting.They didn’t consider their actions immoral or outside of the law.As far as they were concerned, every penny Niall earned belonged to them.Anger flooded Suzie.Sorrow, too, for the small bear who couldn’t fight back, so he’d left and found another family in a lonely old Highlander.
But Niall wasn’t content to kick back and spend his inherited money.He continued to work.Although he hadn’t told her, it was clear Niall donated some of his spoils and allowed the shifters to use the castle for the gathering.
“You disgust me,” Suzie snapped, not holding back her ire.The rope around her wrists snapped.
“Crap,” Colin said, freezing, his eyes wide when she kicked one foot free.
“Grab her,” Euan ordered.
Colin snapped out of his shock and pounced.He grasped her, and she lashed out with her fingernails, gouging lines on his meaty forearm.He cursed up a storm.Suzie instinctively elbowed him in the guts and stomped on his foot.While he swore and hopped ungainly, she kneed him in the balls and silently thanked Isabella and her take-no-prisoners training.Anger flooded her, counteracting her previous distress.
Euan’s brows rose as he observed his younger brother writhing on the floor.“You can’t get past me to escape, and I’m not leaving this room until I have your letter.”
Suzie thought quickly.They weren’t telling her why they wanted this letter.Maybe she’d cooperate and lull them into a false sense of security.Even if they left her alone, locked in this room, she thought she could pick the lock or use her strength to break down the door.
“What will happen after I write the letter?”she asked.
“We’ll keep you locked in here while we deliver it to Niall.We’ll release you once he follows our instructions.”
“What’s stopping me from going to the cops?”
An expression of shock slid across Euan.“You’d turn us into the human cops?”
“In a heartbeat.You’re criminals, and I bet you entered the country illegally.”
He didn’t react much, but she caught the twitch of his eye and knew she was right.He wanted nothing to do with the law.
“How did you get into the UK?”she prodded.
“Friends with a boat,” he said.
“Ah.So once Niall does whatever you want, you’ll disappear until you need more money.Then you’ll find another way to extort his wealth.”
Euan ignored that dig, too, but Suzie sensed the truth of her words.To them, Niall would always be the runt and someone for them to bully.They held no respect for his accomplishments.For him.
“Enough,” Colin snarled.
Euan prodded the paper and pen toward her.“Write.”
Suzie gave a long-suffering sigh.“Very well.What do you want me to write in this oh-so-important letter?”
“Write this: They want to exchange me for your honey and reschedule your product release date until next year.Bring the honey to the end of the lake at ten tonight.If you fail to comply or contact the authorities, you’ll not see me again.”
Suzie lifted her head to frown at Euan.“I told you I’m flying home next week.If you check with the airline, you’ll find I’m booked on the Air New Zealand flight from Heathrow.Niall doesn’t have feelings for me.We’re friends, that’s all.”
“I don’t believe you,” Euan said.“Finish the letter.”
Suzie shrugged.“Don’t say I didn’t tell you.”
She continued to write, not using Euan’s precise wording, but it was close enough and meant the same thing.Now that she knew her kidnapper’s identity, she wasn’t as frightened.No, they’d irked her fiercely, and she longed to knock their heads together.She handed over the note and watched Euan read it.Satisfaction slid over his smarmy face, and she trembled with the urge to strike out physically.
Suzie batted down her fury, and once she’d forced her muscles to relax during a casual stretch, she focused on information gathering.“I’ve told you Niall and I are nothing more than friends.We’ve enjoyed ourselves with a vacation fling, and that’s all we’ll ever have.”
