Page 20 of Curvy Hostage Mate (Gold Wolves Black Ops #4)

Running off hadn’t really been part of the plan.

It had just sort of happened. After Chris had stormed out, the entire house rattling with the force of the slammed door, I stared at it for a long moment, my mouth slightly parted in disbelief.

Anger, hurt, and betrayal coursed through me.

To me, lying by omission was as bad as straight-up lying to my face.

Once again, a man had taken away my autonomy. He’d bent me to his will and strung me along, not giving me a say in my life or my choices, all in the name of keeping me safe. And he had locked me in here. Again.

The longer I stared at the door, the angrier I got, my fingers curling into tight fists. It took a lot to get me angry. It turned out I had found my limit.

I made up my mind within a few minutes. I was done.

I was done with men dictating my life. I was going to take matters into my own hands, even if it was risky.

I wasn’t going to sit around for Cain to come find me, or for Chris to whisk me away to some other location where I would still be locked away “for my own good.”

I wasn’t going to let my baby be stowed away out of fear, either.

I had spent the last several years of my life without having a say in what happened to me, who I was sold to, or where I was going, barely allowed to use my magic.

I wasn’t going to subject a baby to that sort of life if I could help it. I needed to do something.

Cain was a threat, and he needed to be taken down. I couldn’t stand by and not help. And I could do something that none of the Gold Wolves could do.

I came up with a plan fairly quickly. It was risky. I wasn’t an idiot. I knew what I was doing was dangerous at the best of times. But I couldn’t sit idly by. Not anymore.

I wouldn’t need much. I grabbed a knife from the kitchen and walked over to the door. I tried it, and the knob jiggled back and forth but didn’t budge. I hissed, my hand falling to my side. Chris may have locked the door, but he forgot I had my magic back.

Murmuring under my breath, I twisted the handle once more. This time, the door glided open, revealing the woods beyond as a gentle breeze trickled through.

If only getting rid of Cain would be that easy, but the ruby ring he wore made it impossible to get to him.

Which was why I planned on taking it from him.

Ever since Chris had asked me about Cain’s strengths and weaknesses, thoughts of how to get rid of that protection without Cain realizing it had churned and rolled over and over again in my head.

Eventually, I had come up with an idea. One that, though reckless and risky at best, would make him vulnerable when the Gold Wolves came hunting, without him even realizing.

I created a portal that would bring me near Cain, no matter where he was, and stepped through.

When I reemerged, it was in a patch of forest. Flickering firelight to my right beckoned me through the woods, and I pushed through the trees, hearing murmuring voices.

I slowed as I neared, coming to a halt before I became visible.

I saw them through the branches. Cain lounged by a fire, several of his Inner Circle and his biggest cronies milling about as well.

As I neared, I caught the glint of gold and ruby red as the campfire light caught the ring on Cain’s finger.

I sucked in a breath as I stared at it. I remained crouched behind the bushes.

Slowly, I pulled out an identical ring: a gold band with intricate runes and designs carved into it and a large ruby with a tiny black flaw in the middle, a result of the spell.

This one, though, was as magical as the stick resting on the ground three feet from me.

Whispering, speaking just loud enough to cast the spell, I muttered an incantation I used to use when Kendra and I were grounded and sent to other rooms. Back then, we had passed notes between us.

They hadn’t been on someone’s finger, but I had gotten stronger since I was a kid.

Even if I hadn’t tried this precise execution of this spell before, I knew I could do it.

Still, I wished I hadn’t had to be in such close proximity to the item. I’d rather be safely in the cabin. But this had to be done if we had any chance of stopping Cain. If that meant being here, despite my skin crawling and all instincts screaming at me to run, then so be it.

The ring in my hand shimmered and disappeared.

A split-second later, what looked like the exact same ring reappeared, precisely where it had been a moment earlier.

Except this one thrummed with magic. I gave a grin, then glanced back through the woods.

My heart pounded as I waited to see if Cain had noticed.

He was still talking to one of his men, completely unfazed.

He hadn’t noticed, then. I breathed a sigh of relief. Another spell, and the magical ring vanished entirely, transported far away.

I turned, ready to make my escape and return to the cabin, when I heard something behind me.

“Quiet.” Cain’s voice was a command as it echoed all around. The other voices went silent, as if cut off by a knife.

I twisted back around to peer through the bushes. My heart had jumped into my throat. Had he noticed something was wrong with the ring? It was impossible. He shouldn’t have been able to notice a difference, or have even felt the switch.

Cain had risen to his feet. His nostrils flared as he straightened, head swiveling in my general direction. Fear lurched through me. He hadn’t noticed the ring at all—he could smell me. I’d dropped the spell I used to mask my scent when I switched the rings, and I hadn’t brought it back up.

“I know you’re here,” Cain called out. “Why don’t you come out so my men don’t have to go traipsing through the woods after you?”

I closed my eyes in frustration as anxiety rippled through me.

Remaining motionless, I thought about conjuring a portal, but I wouldn’t have time to cast one and step through it before they grabbed me.

I could turn myself invisible, and I might get away, but it was risky, and something told me it wouldn’t work.

Cain snarled when I didn’t emerge. “I doubt they’ll be particularly gentle,” he added. “As long as you come back in one piece.”

There was no safe exit. Taking a deep breath, trying to ignore the unpleasant crawling sensation running up and down my spine, I stepped out into the clearing.

Cain’s eyes landed on me. Hunger flashed in them as he gave a slow, lecherous smile. He rose languidly to his feet and strolled over to me.

“Morgan,” he said, the word a sort of savage purr. “I’ve been so worried about you.”

His hand reached out. I took a large step back, keeping my distance. “I came here to strike a deal,” I said.

“Is that so?” he asked, sounding almost amused as he stepped closer once again.

“Take one more step, and I’ll turn you into a toad,” I said.

He tilted his head, a small smirk playing on his lips. “You’ve gotten a bit of spirit to you since you’ve been away, I see.”

With a fluid motion, he cleared the distance as his hand darted out, grabbing my wrist and yanking me toward him so I all but fell against him. His free hand grabbed the side of my face and forced it roughly upward so I was looking into his face. His thumb stroked my cheek as he held me in place.

“I look forward to breaking it,” he growled.

I tried to pull away, but his grip on my wrist tightened, nearly breaking bone.

“Now, now,” Cain said. His thumb stroked my chin as he pulled me even tighter against him. “There’s no point fighting. You’re here now. You came willingly.”

Glaring, I opened my mouth, preparing to utter an incantation.

“None of that.” He stuffed something rough and woolen into my mouth. “There. That’s better.”

Laughter from his men behind him. As the sound reverberated through the clearing, my hand slipped behind my back, dipping to my waistband and the sheathed knife hidden there. A moment later, I whipped out the blade and tried to drive it into his stomach.

He grabbed my arm inches before the tip of the blade would have pierced his skin. He looked down, almost with curiosity, then glanced up at me with an amused smirk.

He let out a laugh, taking the knife and plucking it from my hand. “You didn’t actually think that would do anything, did you?” he mocked. “I guess that bit of fight you got didn’t come with any more brains.”

I hadn’t expected to kill him. That hadn’t been the goal, but I couldn’t give away the real reason I had come.

I had managed to switch the rings, even if I had been caught.

The real ring was gone, transported far away into a drawer in the safehouse.

Somewhere, Cain would never find it, not until it was too late.

Still holding me tight, Cain’s fingers ran along my neck, gently caressing as he studied it with interest and mild distaste. “You lost your lovely collar,” he said. “We’ll have to fix that.”

He snapped his fingers, and his cronies sprang into action. One of his men wrapped a dull iron collar around my neck and handed the chain to Cain. The instant it closed, I could feel my magic dampening, muted. After several weeks of freedom, the change made me feel almost sick, like I wasn’t whole.

Cain plucked the fabric from my mouth. I spat out the loose threads.

“This will do until we get you a prettier one,” he said, the back of his hand caressing my cheek, sending shivers of revulsion running through me.

I tried to pull away from his touch, but he yanked on the chain, locking me in place. “But at least now you won’t get any more silly ideas about casting more spells.”

“Go to hell, asshole,” I snarled.

His eyes flashed dangerously, narrowing slightly as he let out a growl. He jerked on the chain, bringing me close.

“I would suggest you mind your tone,” he hissed. “In case you haven’t noticed, you aren’t exactly in a position to be mean to me, now are you?”

My lips curled into a sneer as I glowered up at him, but I said nothing. He gave a rough laugh as he looked down on me.

“You’re so cute when you’re angry,” he said. “But I would recommend you learn to behave yourself before the mating ceremony. I don’t want to have to retrain you more than necessary.”

He paused, and his nostrils flared as he’d caught scent of something. His eyes dropped down to my stomach, and with a stab of terror, I realized he had noticed the scent change with my pregnancy. I’d hoped that it might have been long enough that he wouldn’t have noticed. I’d miscalculated.

“Interesting,” he remarked, his tone light but still dangerous, making my skin crawl. “Someone’s been having a bit of fun.” He clicked his tongue, eyes burning. “We’ll deal with that when the time comes.”

Tugging on the chain again, pulling me down into a sort of half-bow, he turned lazily to look at the rest of his men, all of whom were watching with interest. “Open up a portal,” he ordered one of them, one I vaguely recognized as one of his witches.

The man nodded and turned. I watched with growing dread as he held up his hands and heard the incantation. A moment later, a large circle filled with spiraling black and purple appeared on the other end of the campfire.

Cain glanced at me, half his face cast in flickering shadow as he gave a sickening smirk that made my blood curdle. He tugged on my chain, forcing me to take two steps forward.

“Let’s get going,” he said.

He dragged me through the portal even as I struggled and jerked, trying to get away. I knew it was pointless, but I kept going until the portal swallowed me.

We emerged in the throne room. I took several deep breaths, gulping in stale air after my chest had been constricted during the trip through the portal.

Cain watched with mild disinterest, his hand still wrapped around the leash.

“So what now?” I asked when he continued to regard me silently.

He gave a small, amused snort, tugging on the chain until I stood directly in front of him. I tried not to recoil with obvious revulsion as the back of his fingers caressed my cheek.

“I think it’s best you stay right by my side for the foreseeable future,” he said, his voice almost a purr. “We don’t want some other shifter kidnapping you again, now do we?”

I stayed put, forcing my eyes to meet his, refusing to let him see the fear radiating through me.

“Stop hunting the Gold Wolves,” I said. “And spare the other slaves. You got me back. You got what you wanted.”

He barked out a laugh that one could have mistaken for a snarl.

“Adorable that you actually think I’ll spare any of the shifters that took my bride away from me,” he said.

He leaned forward, grinning and showing fangs.

“I’m going to hunt down each and every one of the Gold Wolves and kill them slowly, starting with the two still here in the Underside, and leaving the kidnapper for last.”

A dull ringing sounded in my ears as the words hit home. “And the other slaves?” I croaked, my voice dry.

“Oh, they’ll live,” he said. “Though we can’t have another incident like this one, now, can we? I think we’ll put up some additional security measures.” Another sickening grin spread across his face. “Once everything is said and done, you and the other slaves could only dream of leaving.”

Blind panic raced through me as I stared in disbelief.

“Please don’t,” I said. “Please. I’ll do whatever you want. I’ll go through with the ceremony without fuss, and I’ll stay here, even if the Gold Wolves come looking for me.”

He laughed again, this one derisive and amused. “Darling, you’re acting as though that isn’t already a given. You’re not going anywhere. You don’t have anything to bargain with.” He jerked on the chain. “Come along.”

A feeling of overwhelming helplessness washed over me as I followed behind him, Cain occasionally tugging to force me to speed up as we moved through the halls.

I should never have left. I should have listened to Chris.

I needed to find a way to warn him, to make sure he knew the danger coming for him.

The thought of him dying, or even just being hurt, sent shivers down my spine.

I had to find a way to convince Cain to let them be.

I couldn’t let Chris die, even if it meant being under Cain’s thumb for the rest of my life. Because I loved Chris.

I hadn’t realized it until now, but I did. I loved that he helped give me strength, that he believed in me, that he thought I was strong. He had given me confidence that I hadn’t realized I could ever possess.

I loved Chris, and I wasn’t going to let him get hurt. I’d fight back. I’d find some way of helping him.