Page 6 of A Twist of Luck (Shifter City Fated Mates #2)

CHAPTER 6

EMME

T he next eight hours were spent in a stringent routine. Slade removed the chains connected to our cuffs to make life easier, but other than that, he worked in silence while I dished up food and water, replacing the bowl of rice and stew until there was nothing left. The magical cuffs, while annoying, didn’t hinder either of us in our tasks.

Weirdly though, it wasn’t an uncomfortable silence. We kept each other company and it was almost… pleasant.

Around midnight, a sharp cramp in my lower stomach rocked through me, and I excused myself to use the bathroom, groaning at the spots of red on the toilet paper. As an omega and shifter, we were fertile for the week before we bled and during the first few days of our periods.

I’d always been very consistent with my fertile time—every six weeks—with the pain and blood finishing in four or five days. Despite the faint cramps and overall general neediness I’d had recently, I’d been hoping this portion of my cycle would give me another day.

Periods wouldn’t be an issue if I wasn’t in a house with no pads, tampons, or painkillers. “ Fuck ,” I muttered, as I opened every drawer again, triple-searching in desperation. Slade had said he’d be done in a few hours, so I’d just have to tough it out and use toilet paper until then.

Wouldn’t be the first time.

Bundling up layers of paper in my underwear, I pulled my jeans back up and rubbed my hand over my stomach. The discomfort would continue to worsen over the next two to twenty hours, and without painkillers I’d struggle to sleep. Again, though, a few hours without sleep wouldn’t kill me. I was tougher than this, and if we got out of here before the Rogers pack returned, then any amount of pain and blood would be worth it.

When I returned to the living room, the hole was now big enough to get my head and shoulders through but was still a way off for Slade’s massive form. Holding my stomach, I sank gingerly onto the old, dusty couch, its floral patterns all the rage in the eighties.

Slade lifted his arm to smash into the corner again, only to pause, his nostrils flaring as he turned from the window. “Are you hurt? I smell blood.”

Ah, fucking excellent. Alphas and their sense of smell.

“I have my period,” I said shortly, nipping this shit in the bud immediately. I also refused to feel embarrassed about a perfectly normal biological occurrence. “There’s nothing but toilet paper in the house, which isn’t the best for absorbing the scent. But I’m not injured.”

I had no idea how the generally reserved shifter would take this information, but to my surprise he didn’t blink an eye. “Are you in pain?”

He’d warned me not to lie to him, and I took the warning seriously. “Moderate discomfort, which will most likely grow worse over the next few hours. How long until we’re out of here?”

Slade rolled his thick shoulders, rotating them as if to work out muscle fatigue. “I’ll continue for another two hours, take the four hours of required rest, and then have us out of here by morning. Just hold on for a few more hours, Snow. I promise I’ll get you out of here.”

“I trust you.” Another truth.

Despite every shifter in the world, even my own pack, warning me that Slade was a loose cannon and couldn’t be trusted, my gut and wolf said differently. My wolf couldn’t always be trusted when it came to her pack, but when my gut backed her up, it felt like a safe bet.

“You don’t want to bond with me, do you?”

The words slipped out, and it took me a second to realize I’d said the quiet part out loud—the part that was my realization of why I trusted this alpha. Slade showed no inclination that he wanted me or my power, and it was… nice.

Slade met my gaze, his biceps bunching as he slammed the iron shovel into the spot he was working on—the poker had snapped two hours ago. “No. I don’t.” There was no tone to tell me why, just the matter-of-fact statement.

I remained quiet in the hopes he’d expand on his reasons, but he didn’t, and I wasn’t about to push. I’d never expanded on my reasons for not wanting to bond either, and despite the ache in my chest at his rejection, I wasn’t a hypocrite. I had absolutely no grounds to demand anything more from him.

Half an hour later, exhaustion got the better of me, and despite the pain shooting through my uterus, I slid down on my side and curled up in a ball. “Wake me when it’s time for you to rest,” I said around a yawn. “I can keep an eye out for the assholes to return .” My last words were mumbled, but I heard his grunt, which I took as alpha speak for Okay .

My sleep was fitful, the pain keeping me from falling too deeply. Add in the chilly winds streaming in through the ever- widening opening in the wall, and it was an uncomfortable rest. At some point, while dreaming about bleeding to death in the snow, a band of heat pressed against my stomach, and it brought such blessed relief that every tense muscle in my body relaxed.

Half asleep, I remained too drowsy to explore where the heat originated from, and when I eventually woke, it was to find a dragon shifter on the floor in front of me, his head very close to mine—I could smell his sweet scent—as he pressed his hand against my shirt.

No other part of him touched me except that one huge hand spanned across my stomach, the natural heat he exuded easing my pain. Despite the uncomfortable way he was sprawled across the hardwood floors, he appeared to be asleep, his chest rising and falling rhythmically.

Scared to move and disturb him, I let my gaze drift around the living room to find that the hole was now large enough for me to escape through, and?—

A face appeared in the gap, and I almost screamed, only managing to stifle the sound at the last second. The early morning light reflected off familiar blond hair, and warmth flooded more than just my stomach.

Kellan!

I met his wide-eyed and shocked stare, which would have been comical if I wasn’t so fucking relieved to see him. Hunter’s snarling, gorgeous face appeared next, and I caught a glimpse of Finley standing a few feet back.

“You okay?” Slade rumbled, and I jumped, wondering if he was ever asleep enough not to be aware of his surroundings.

“Yep,” I squeaked. “Our pack found us.”

Another rumble, his chest shaking the couch. “I sensed them as soon as the witch appeared. Her magic is strong enough to leave an echo.”

Witch? “The bad witch?” I shot back, lifting panicked eyes toward Kellan.

“No,” Slade said, straightening. “This one is on our side.”

Oh, right. Hunter must have figured out that magic was involved, and in his control-freak, anal retentive ways, he had already planned ahead and brought his own magical weapon.

Slade shifted away from me, and when his heated palm left my gut, an intense cramp almost took me down. Along with a gush of blood from between my thighs.

Shit . I should have changed the paper hours ago, but apparently I’d been too busy enjoying my dragon hot-water bottle.

“You tell them what happened while I clean myself up,” I said to Slade as I stumbled to my feet. He grunted in return, and I was pleased to see we were on the same page.

“Pretty girl,” Kellan called, his voice hoarse, dragging my attention back to him. His features were strained as he met my gaze. “Where are you going?”

Deciding a little blood on my clothes wasn’t that big of a deal, I segued toward the opening, my heart bursting to life in my chest as I basked in a dose of golden sunshine. “Don’t touch the walls,” I warned him as he leaned closer, even though I wasn’t sure he’d get zapped without the cuffs and bands.

He nodded. “Yeah, the witch already told us that the house was warded.”

The way he said witch indicated he wasn’t a fan. Odd for my normally happy and accepting alpha.

Through the gap, I noticed he was dressed as if they were heading into war. His all-black outfit included a heavy armored vest that made his already broad chest look massive. He also had weapons strapped across his body, and no lie, I never even knew he owned a gun.

It was a gloriously sexy look on Golden Boy, minus the matching dark circles under his eyes. “I can’t believe you guys tracked us down so quickly,” I breathed, reaching through to touch his face. “I missed you so damn much.”

He closed his eyes briefly as my icy fingers landed on his warm cheeks, letting out a long blissful sigh. “How could you ever doubt we wouldn’t find you fast, Shortcake. We haven’t stopped searching for you from the second we felt the attack.” He opened his eyes again, expression sobering. “Where are the alphas who took you? I feel a great desire to end them in the most painful way possible.”

Leaning forward, careful not to bump the walls, I kissed him on the lips. Just one gentle taste that I needed more than my next breath. “Slade will explain everything. Give me a second in the bathroom and I’ll be right back.”

His nostrils flared slightly, and the blue of his eyes darkened as he met mine. “Period,” I murmured, not wanting him to worry.

Kellan’s expression softened. “Okay, pretty girl. I’ll be waiting right here. I’m not leaving your side for the rest of my life.”

I snorted. Elegantly . Like a lady. “What if I die first?”

“Not a chance. Absolutely unacceptable. We will die together, and I’ll accept nothing less.”

A month ago, his declaration would have had me freaked out and running for the hills, but today, all I felt was a comforting warmth in my chest. “I’ll hold you to that, Golden. Now, don’t go anywhere.”

I pulled away from him and almost crashed into Slade, who stood closer than I’d expected. “Be right back,” I called, noticing Hunter in the background arguing in low tones with a blond chick—the witch I would guess.

I did my best not to run through the many reasons she was connected to my pack or why my wolf wanted to scratch her face off. We needed a magical ally, and I wouldn’t let my jealous beast ruin that. Provided she kept her hands to herself, we’d be just fine.

In the bathroom, I spent a good fifteen minutes cleaning up the blood on my underwear and pants, thankful the material was dark enough to hide the stain. Changing out the paper for more, folded even thicker this time, I got dressed again and washed my face in the icy trickle of water from the rusty faucet.

What I really needed was a long, hot shower, and access to all my toiletries. There was hope, with the rest of the pack arriving, that we’d be out of here shortly and on our way back home. Rogers Pack clearly hadn’t returned with their army in time, and for that, I was eternally grateful.

Ignoring the pessimistic voice in the back of my mind that felt it was all too convenient, I focused on the positives. The most important was that Slade and I weren’t alone.

We’d be back home and safe very soon.

Home.

At some point over the past weeks, I’d started to think of the alpha’s gorgeous house with its white cladding and gray stone as my home, while continuously reminding myself that this happy bubble couldn’t last. One day, the alphas would grow tired of my inability to bond with them, and they’d either force me or reject me.

Both options ended with me having to run, which I already knew would feel like cutting out a vital organ and expecting to keep living without it. Just a bleeding, gaping hole in my person that would never be repaired. As much as I was glad to have met these alphas and learned that there were decent and amazing shifters out there, I wasn’t sure I’d survive now I knew what I had to lose.

When I ventured back into the living room, I found the rest of the wall and window were gone, and my entire pack—including Warrick, who I hadn’t even known was here—standing in the threshold.

“Warrick,” I cried. “I can’t believe you’re here.” The entitled alpha who’d given me my first glimpse of a true pack and home, pressed his hand to his chest.

“We’ve been worried about you, Emme. I’m so happy to see you’re okay.”

Kellan distracted me when he side-stepped Hunter and hauled me into his arms. He gave the most perfect hugs, and my chest was doing that stupid heaving sensation again.

I’d never get used to being held like this, with so much strength and need. It was my eternal undoing. With a groan, I sank into his energy, ignoring the pain in my lower half, exacerbated by his tight embrace.

“Remember how I told you I lost ten years off my life when you were attacked by our security,” Kellan rasped brokenly, pulling back far enough to see my nod. “Yeah, well, it was a hundred years when you were blasted off your bike and kidnapped out from under us. I’m running out of years, Shortcake. Can you pretty please with sunshine on top not get taken again.”

This alpha was the perfect dose of good endorphins. “I’ll do my very best,” I chuckled, relieved to feel happiness once more.

Slade left Hunter’s side and I wasn’t the only one who gasped when he pressed his hand against the center of my back, over the material of my shirt. His warmth was so much stronger than Kellan’s, and it was a relief to my aching uterus once more.

“She’s in pain, Kel,” he said in his softly menacing way. “Loosen your grip.”

Kellan immediately released me from his firm grasp, his expression falling into concerned lines as he examined me. “Baby, I’m sorry. You should have said something.”

With a shake of my head, I buried my face in his chest. “You could never hurt me, Golden Boy. Never. This is exactly where I want to be, held as tightly against you as shifterly possible.”

For a second, everything was right in my world, but I knew it wouldn’t last for long.

I had an evil alpha pack and their magical witch to deal with.

Well, two witches apparently. Time to find out who blondie was.