Chase points down the hall where it ends with another door. “When you go through that door, you’ll see a hallway with another staircase. Go up to the main floor and then up to the second level. There’s a bedroom three doors down on the left for you. Your belongings are already in there.”
I study him for a second, waiting for him to burst out laughing and say it’s all a joke, but that’s not what I get. “What’s the catch?”
He shakes his head. “Contrary to what you might think, I’m not a heartless dick. I’m not going to leave you in the cellar even if you do deserve it.”
Heart racing, I glance down the hall at the other door. It’s times like these where I wish I had my wolf senses. And unfortunately, I can’t sense anyone around. Until I get my abilities back, I’ll be going through life blind. For the first time, I feel vulnerable. Swallowing hard, I take a step toward the door and another.
Chase’s voice echoes down the hall behind me. “I know you’re hungry. There’s food in the kitchen. And just so we’re clear, if you attempt to leave, you won’t get far.”
I glance at him over my shoulder, and there’s nothing but seriousness on his face. When I get to the door, I turn the knob and take a deep breath. How the hell am I going to get away from here?
4
KARA
Slowly, I make my way through the basement and up to the main level of the house. The smell of food from the kitchen makes my mouth water, but I feel disgusting and could use a shower. Looking down at my body, I see that my dress is ripped in spots, and my skin is covered in dirt and dried up blood. I didn’t need my wolf’s sense of smell to know I smelled hideous. Hurrying up to the second floor, I find the third door on the left and open it quickly, slamming the door behind me. When I turn around, I breathe a sigh of relief. Even though I despise Chase, I’m thankful for the change of scenery. The room has an earthy feel to it with its soft yellow walls and wooden beams. The windows have long, sheer curtains over them to allow the natural light to filter in. I walk over to the windows and peer out, gasping at the view. The moon is high in the sky, casting a shimmering glow across the vineyards. It’s breathtaking and serene, but the beauty of it doesn’t last long. I know where I’m at, and there’s nothing peaceful about it. I’m in a prison and surrounded by people who hate me.
Turning away from the windows, I notice my bag on the bed. I rummage through it, and discover most of my clothes are there, along with my toiletry bag. Chase must’ve grabbed them before he took me from Wyoming. After finding a pair of leggings and a sweater, I turn for the bathroom to take a shower. I don’t know how long I stay under the hot water, but I have to wash my hair three times to rinse away the matted blood. Of course, having whitish-blonde hair doesn’t help when stained with blood for a month. Once done, I change into my clean clothes and toss my tattered dress into the trash. When I walk out of the bathroom, something catches my eyes. My cell phone is on the dresser.
I rush over and tap the screen, excited when it lights up, showing I have a full battery. However, when I look at the date, reality hits me in the chest. I have been asleep for a little over three weeks. It’s the end of January. There are several missed calls from Nolan Lowe, but I can’t bring myself to bother with him right now. We’ve kept each other company the past year, mainly only for sex. He’s alpha of the Rich Valley Pack, the strongest man I’ve met that isn’t a royal, but that’s as far as it goes. I can’t even begin to think about sex at the moment; I have way too many problems to deal with.
The rest of my missed calls are from Brooke McEntire, the woman I entrusted Channon Vineyards to while I was away.
I type in my password to unlock my phone and the first thought to come to my mind is to call my brother. My finger hovers over his name, and my chest tightens. Family is supposed to be loyal, but Knox only cared about Amelie and his selfish desires. Now that he’s gone, I’m truly alone in the world. Lips trembling, I try to fight back the burn behind my eyes, but I can’t. A tear escapes down my cheek, and I angrily wipe it away. I can’t be seen as weak. The one thing I know how to do well is to cut off all emotion to my heart.
Anger has always fueled me in all aspects of my life. It drove my ambition to build my winery, and it fuels my desire to be the best. Anger is a powerful emotion. Without it, I wouldn’t be successful today. Looking down at the bracelet, I channel all my outrage and grip the cold, silver metal. I pull with every ounce of strength I have until my muscles shake with fatigue.
“Dammit, come on,” I hiss, pulling again. Finally, when it’s no use, I give up and suck in a few ragged breaths. Just exerting that amount of energy has weakened me even more. I walk over to the bed and sit down.
Laila and Kami’s voices echo in my mind as I remember back to that New Year’s Eve night when Laila stuck the bracelet on me. Only herself or I can remove it. Somehow, I don’t believe that. My lips pull back into a smile as I search through my phone. I know who can help me, but I can’t call her yet. Not when there are most likely ears listening to my every word right now.
I scroll through all my missed calls and texts, and like I thought, the ones from Nolan are about us getting together. However, the last one he sent says he’ll leave me alone since I haven’t responded to him. If I thought he could help me, I’d tell him where I was. Nolan is strong, maybe even on par with Chase, but I don’t think Nolan would win if they fought. The best thing to do is let him go. It doesn’t look as if I’ll be heading back to Virginia anytime soon.
The most important texts I scroll through are from Brooke. She’s worked her ass off for me for the past eight years; I’ve grown to trust her more than anyone. I met her eight years ago at a wine competition in New York. She worked for a prestigious winery, but the owner was the biggest douchebag I’d ever met. He overworked her and treated her like shit. It was because of her that his winery was doing as well as it was. After that competition, I approached her and asked if she’d like to work for me. I offered her twice her regular salary and even agreed to pay for her move from New York to Virginia. That was all it took, and it’s the best investment I’ve ever made besides my vineyard.
I read through her text messages, and luckily there aren’t any saying the vineyards have been taken over by fire. I press her number, and the line begins to ring. It’s been a month since I’ve talked to her.
“Hey,” she squeals into the phone. “I’ve been trying to reach you for weeks.”
“I know. I’m sorry. Things have been a little hectic here.”
“Are you okay?” she asks, genuine worry in her tone. Brooke cares a lot about people, and I know she cares about me as her boss. There have been times I’ve wanted to open up to her, but she’s human. I can’t fully be honest with her about my life, and because of that, I can’t get too close.
“I’m fine. Is everything okay out there?”
“Oh, yes! We’re doing fantastic. The team pruned the vines about a month ago, and they’re all protected for winter. But, get this … we got a couple more clients since the last time I spoke with you. And I’m not talking just piddly little stores here and there who want to try selling our wines. I’m talking huge clients, like large, chain hotel type of clients.”