Twisted (Rogues Shifter Series Book 3) (3 page)

She looked at me gratefully with Jackie’s emerald eyes and I had to turn away and try to swallow down my pain. I heard a noise by the door as Sinc returned, followed by William. I told them what I had in mind. “William, this is Bridgett Brownlow, Jackie’s sister. Bridgett this is William Carlyle. He’s one of my nest. William, did you feed tonight?”

“Yes.”

“I’d like you to give Bridgett some blood. I won’t force you to do it, but you can see her wounds aren’t healing well and I’d appreciate it if you could help her.“

I watched them look at each other, sizing the other one up. “Yes of course, Garrett.” William answered.

I turned to Bridgett. “It
will help you heal faster.”

“K, I guesh.” She looked a little embarrassed, like I’d asked her to kiss him. As William sat on the couch next to her I flashed on when I’d first given Jackie blood. She’d been seriously injured and probably wouldn’t have survived without it. It crea
ted a bond: a protective link. I smiled thinking that a connection like that might be something good for them both.

I sent to Will,
"I'm trusting you with her. My rogue team is downstairs. Sash and Rick will be called back and should arrive in a few minutes. You will be gentle with her.
" Will nodded. “No more than one minute,” I said out loud. Bridgett turned to William looking curious. William would have blushed if he could have. “When you finish, I want both of you downstairs. You’ll need to eat something, Bridgett. We’re having a meeting, and you're a part of this now. I’ll be back in twenty minutes. I’m calling back Sasha and Heinrich.

I took the stairs two at a time as I
raced to find Liam. He was waiting for me by the front door with Samson’s leash in his hands. Samson was restless: pacing, growling and whimpering in turn.

“My thoughts
exactly. Have you contacted your father and brother?”

“Our full resources are at you
r disposal. I’m glad to see that you’re back with us.” He smiled.

“I’ll have plenty of time to fall apart afte
r I get her back. Thank you.”

“You’ve done the same for
me. I’ll take Samson and we'll search together for Jackie. My father is coming to your meeting tonight. He has a suggestion or two.”

“He honors me.”

“You are his ally and his friend. Now go and feed before you pass out.” Liam turned and left and I followed him out the door. I watched as he disappeared into the woods then walked in the opposite direction. When I reached the grassy area behind the house I switched into vamp speed. One minute later, I was standing in front of a small ranch-style house which sat back from a narrow one way lane. I rang the doorbell and Carol answered the door.

She smiled when she saw me. “Hello Garrett. I didn’t expect you.”

“I’m very sorry, Carol, but I need your help tonight.”

“It’s fine. My mom is here and she can watch the kids. You
’re always welcome. Come in.”

Carol’s husband had passed away in a car accident five years ago leaving her
with two young children, an elderly human mother and no health insurance. I paid for her families’ insurance and she allowed me to feed from her once every ten days or so. I had five donors with whom I had similar arrangements. I didn’t need to take blood from any of them because they were all shifters and I could drain energy simply by touching them. They experienced no pain and quickly fell asleep in my arms. On other nights, I would feed from Jackie, usually exchanging blood when we made love.

Feeding every night was the ideal, but I could last a long time without feeding at all. It just wasn’t very pleasant.

“Hello Mrs. Johansson.” I greeted her mother.

“Hello Garrett. How is your lovely Jackie?” Carol and her mom had been at the bonding party one month ago.

“I’m afraid she’s in trouble.” I didn’t want to go into too much detail. "I’m not going to be able to keep to a regular schedule anymore. I’m leaving soon and I’m not sure when I’ll be back.”

“Garrett, you let us know where you’re going to be and I’ll get you some volunteers in that area. Don’t worry about anything. You’ve risked your life for us and
it’s the least we can do. We’re so grateful for what you’ve done for Carol and the children. I’ll set it all up. Just tell me where you’ll be.

“I’ll call you when I know.”

“Perfect.”

I leaned over and kissed her on the cheek then f
ollowed Carol into her bedroom.

“I think my mom
has a huge crush on you.” She laughed as she sat on the bed pulling me down to sit next to her.

“She reminds me of my mom,
which is a huge compliment by the way.” I laughed.

I took her face in my hands and it only took a few seconds for her to fall into the trance. I leaned her head against my chest,
wrapped my arms around her, then tapped into the lines. As I drained her of energy, I could feel my strength returning and my mind grow clear. Shifter energy suited me the best because I'd been born a cheetah shifter myself and could still shift form to hunt with my mate. Visions of Jackie and me hunting made my shoulders sag and I blinked away a tear before I could shake it off. I had to stay strong until this ordeal ended.

When my skin temperature returned to near human normal, I laid Carol down on the bed and kissed her forehead. “Thank you, Carol.” I whispered and left.

Chapter Five

Jackie: 2:00 AM Wednesday

I’d fallen asleep again after eating
the simple meal of soup and bread and then making up the bed. I’d chosen to eat, because I knew that I'd need all of my strength to fight against this dangerous male. There was really no choice as far as I could see. I'd fight him with every ounce of my strength and then trust Garrett and Liam to protect the others from harm. If I just allowed him to take me, to rape me, then I'd never forgive myself.

T
errified didn't even begin to describe how I felt. I didn’t get off on pain and I knew that Kennet was capable of inflicting horrible injury with just a thought. My one hope was that he wouldn’t do too much damage because he knew that in order to birth a child I needed to be healthy. Of course, I didn’t have to be sane. What he could do to me mentally was what worried me the most.

I’d walked every foot of the rooms and felt every inch of the walls to look for some kind of hidden doorway, but it appeared that the only way in and out was through magic. I tried over and over to access the lines, but co
uldn’t seem to get past the block that Kennet had erected. I tried to send out thoughts to Garrett and Liam and Lord Caelen, but without the magic, I doubted that anything could get through.

There was nothing to do
, so I covered myself with a blanket and fell asleep.

I dreamt

Liam was walking with Samson through the woods next to our house. He reached out to rest his slim hand on Samson’s head and suddenly they were travelling through the lines. I could feel and smell the magic like I was right there with them. I saw Liam’s expression change and he turned toward me. I tried to show him my room, which was all that I knew of where I was. I heard him say “we’ll find you” and then he was gone and I was waking up
.

I tried to cling to the magic that had filled my dream, hoping to store a little of it inside of me to use later if I could. A small warm spot pulsed in my chest for just a moment before it faded.

I heard a sound and opened my eyes, then gasped when I saw a stranger standing by the table where my empty plate lay. He was about Ethan’s height, 5’10
or 11”, with an average build, and slightly wavy light brown hair. His skin was tanned and unblemished and his face was pleasant-looking, although it held a slightly bored expression at the moment. Although most of his features were neither handsome nor ugly, his eyes set him apart from any other creature I’d yet come in contact with. For three long heartbeats his bright orange irises took me in, then with a simple blink, turned an average brown.

He held up a hand and said in a soft reassuring voice. “I won’t hurt you
, healer. I’m only here to protect you.” He wore an outfit similar to Kennet's: breeches, boots, a loose shirt and a belt, yet there was something alien about him in a way unlike the fae. They were of the earth and the sun, even though they lived in Faerie. He was not of either world.

“Are you my
prison
guard?” Although I was nervous, I couldn’t take my eyes off of him. He had a very distinct smell. Not exactly unpleasant, just unfamiliar. In fact I liked it better than Kennet’s bloody rodent smell. (That’s what I called
his
odor, since I had no better analogy.)

The stranger looked at me with a deep curiosity, his ennui forgotten.

“If you prefer that title, healer, you may use it.”

“What’s your name?”

His mouth turned up slightly at the corners. “I will not give you my true name, but you may call me Isaiah. You are Kennet’s Lady, I am told.”

“No. I have a mate and we’re sealed. I’ll never belong to Kennet.”

He smirked. “Dreams are good up to a point,
my lady
, then reality tends to bite you in the ass.” I’m sure surprise showed on my face because he grinned at me, orange eyes flashing, which was more than just a little scary. He picked up the empty plate and it disappeared.

Okay, so
I could play the name game too. Plus my curiosity was piqued. “So, Izzy, what exactly are you?” Anger flared in his eyes, but I plowed ahead, hoping to find out more about him. “If I call you Isaiah will you call me Jackie and not healer or Kennet's lady?”

He mulled it over for a moment. “I will agree to call you Jackie when we are alone, but in front of Lord Kennet you are ‘my Lady’. In return you must agree to call me Isaiah all the time. Do you accept?”

Huh. This had the feel of a game, one that he excelled at. “I agree to call you Isaiah until I get away from Kennet and then I can call you Izzy if I want.”

He smiled. “I agre
e, since it is unlikely that you will be leaving Kennet anytime soon.”

Surprisingly, I found myself smiling back at him. “You don’t know me very well, Isaiah.”

He tilted his head and sniffed the air, then walked over to the bed and extended his hand. “May I touch your hand, Jackie? I am curious about something. I swear I will not hurt you in any way.”

I shrugged and reached out toward his hand, shocked by how warm it felt, as if he were feverish.
His fingers were wide and his knuckles large. He wore a silver ring with elaborate etchings on his index finger. He closed his eyes and breathed in very deeply, then started to laugh.

“I wonder if Kennet knows what he
has caught with his magic.” As he released my hand, he took a few steps back and I noticed for the first time that he was barefoot.

His attitude was beginning to interest me. “Will you sit down, Isaiah, and keep me company?” He hesitated then sat on
top of the small table, rather than in a chair, crossing his legs like a pretzel.

“What are yo
u, Isaiah?” He didn’t answer. I scowled and tried another question.”How did you come to work for a snake like Kennet?” Still nothing. I was getting annoyed, so I snapped, "What made you laugh when you touched my hand?”

“I have no good reason to give you any information.”

I narrowed my eyes. “What
would
be a good reason?”

“Information is valuable.” His plain brown eyes were staring at me intently, waiting to hear my response.

I took the time to look a little more closely at my new companion. He was obviously powerful, because he could travel the lines despite the block that my fae captor had put in place. He’d treated me decently so far and seemed reasonable, someone I could, maybe, bargain with? I needed to learn more.

“I’m willi
ng to negotiate. What is it that you want?”

Chapter Six

Bridgett:
12:45 AM Wednesday

“Gonnahuryou?” I asked. I still couldn’t speak because of the swelling, but that didn’t stop me from looking him over. He had nice eyes and really cool red hair. He looked smart too. I never liked
those jock-types who thought they were all that. The pack had been full of those guys and they were trouble. Give me a good brain and a nice smile and I was good to go.

William
was slim with long arms and nice hands and was wearing jeans and a button-down shirt with the top two buttons unbuttoned. I caught a glimpse of his pale chest. He saw me looking him over so I felt my face heat up in my usual blush.

H
ere
I
sat, my hair sticking up all over the place, my face swollen, my nose broken, my lip bleeding. Sinc had wrapped bandages around my chest to ease the pain of my broken rib, but there was blood covering my sweatpants and shirt, along with plenty of dirt. Oh yeah I was looking really attractive right about now. He probably wanted me to drink his blood about as much as he’d want a smelly werewolf drinking from him. I sighed and looked at my hands which were twisted together in my lap. Yep, they were bloody too.