Alpha Blood Box Set(2)

The older man gently extracted my hands from his clothes with a strength I wouldn’t have given him credit to own, and he didn’t let go of my hands. The stranger held me close beside him, and that’s when I realized he wasn’t going to help me. He was holding me still while Luke walked closer and closer toward us. I thrashed and pulled trying to break his hold and dash down the hall, but nothing worked.

Luke came up to us and smiled down at me. “Good morning,” he greeted.

I glared at him. “Fuck off,” was my dainty reply.

Luke only chuckled, which was probably better for me. I couldn’t have defended myself if he got mad and struck me. “Such a feisty personality, don’t you think so, Alistair?”

“Very feisty, sir,” replied the man who held me.

“I’ll take this young woman, and could you make breakfast for two?”

“Certainly, sir,” Alistair agreed.

Luke reached out for one of my hands while Alistair released his hold. In their trade-off I pulled my arms against me, eluding Luke’s hand, and shoved my shoulder first into Alistair and then Luke. The force of my push and their surprise meant I was able to knock them into opposing walls and dash down the hall. Their pounding feet chased me to the winding, circular stairs where I took the steps three at a time as it wound its way downstairs. At the bottom I slipped on a rug and toppled to the ground, knocking my shoulder hard on the wood floor. Pain shot through my arm and I cried out.

The two men were on me at once, but they didn’t haul me to my feet. Instead Alistair held me still while Luke tore open my shirt and looked over my shoulder. “Nothing broken, but it’s bruised. This will take a day or two to heal.”

“Perhaps the girl is too feisty, sir?” Alistair commented.

Luke shook his head. “Nonsense, she’s perfect, but not quite ready for freedom outside the room.” He pulled me to my feet while I clutched at my pained arm. I was shaken and scared, and tears ran down my face. I shuddered when Luke brushed his hand against my cheek to wipe away the tears. “None of that now. You’re safe with us, and we won’t hurt you.” I turned my head away and tightly shut my eyes. I wanted to wake up and have this nightmare end. “Can you walk?” he asked me. I still didn’t reply, I couldn’t. My voice was choked up with sobs that wanted to escape and show the world my fear.

My eyes shot open when I felt myself lifted into Luke’s strong arms and carried up the stairs. I instinctively clutched onto him to keep from falling, and he chuckled. I scowled at him and would have broken free if he didn’t have such a tight grip on me. Luke pressed me tight against his body, and through his thin shirt I could feel his muscles ripple with each step. He was a powerful man, one I probably couldn’t escape from without the aid of surprise.

Luke carried me back to the white room where he shut the door behind us and laid me on the bed. The moment I hit the covers I pulled away from him and swung my legs over the bed. I tried to make a dash for the door, but he was fast, very fast. He was around the bed before I reached the foot of it, and I stumbled backward away from him. “I’m afraid I can’t let you out for a few days, not until I can trust you.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Then I’m never going to be let out.”

He smirked. “I very much doubt that, but right now wouldn’t you rather rest on the bed? That shoulder bruise must hurt.”

It hurt like hell, but I didn’t care. “I’d much rather be home, so just let me go,” I ordered him.

Luke shook his head. “I’m afraid that’s just not possible. You see, I’ve chosen you to be my mate, and once chosen there’s no going back.”

The finality in his voice scared and infuriated me. “I don’t care what bullshit you say! Just let me out of here!” I rammed into him, but this time he was prepared. He caught my upper arms and pushed me onto the bed.

I glanced up and shrank from the wild look in his expression. His eyes were bright and wide, and his lips were curled back in a grin that showed off some long, sharp teeth. When he spoke his voice was more growl than human, and the feral noises in his words made me shudder. Admittedly, it wasn’t from fear so much as from a small thrill of desire in me. Everything about him told me he wanted me, and a little wildness deep down in me told me I wanted him. “You shouldn’t fight me. It only makes my Beast want you more.”

“B-beast?” I shuddered.

Luke slipped onto the bed and I scuttled back to the head. He followed me and placed his hands on either side of my body while he leaned forward so our faces were only a foot apart. “It’s what controls me, and chose you as my mate.” He glanced up and down my body. I felt stripped naked by his thorough, unblinking eyes, and covered myself with my arms. “I must admit it chose very well.” At that moment there was a knock on the door and Luke pulled back. I realized I hadn’t been breathing and swallowed a big gulp of air. “Come in,” Luke called out.

Alistair came in with a large tray in his hands. He set it down on the small table beyond the mound of pillows and turned to us. “Would you be needing anything else, sir?”

“Just some privacy,” Luke replied. The color drained from my face at the subtle context in those words.

Alistair frowned, but gave a bow at the waist. “Very well, sir.” He left the room, and I heard the distinct sound of the door being locked behind him.

Luke slid off the bed and wandered over to the table. On the tray I noticed all kinds of fruits, juices, and cereals, and my stomach betrayed me by growling. Luke picked up an apple and grinned. “You must be quite hungry. Take what you want, there’s plenty for both of us.”

I turned my face away, but the gnawing in my stomach wouldn’t leave. “Not until you let me go,” I insisted.

Luke tossed the apple at me and it fell at my feet. “At least eat enough for you to escape. You’re going to need all your strength and wits to get away from us.”

“I almost did,” I shot back.

“I must admit you gave us a merry chase, but that wouldn’t have lasted long. Alistair and I are proficient hunters, and even if we had lost sight of you we wouldn’t have lost your scent.” I wrinkled my face. He made himself out to be some sort of an animal. “What an interesting expression on your face. Do I really disgust you that much?” he asked me.

“I don’t care, just let me go!” I repeated.

“I’m afraid I can’t let that happen, but why don’t you have a taste of that apple? I can guarantee you’ll like it.” I was so mad and afraid that I grabbed the apple and chucked it at him. He effortlessly caught it in one of his hands and grinned. “Nice throwing arm, and a good aim. Yes, I can see how you would make a good mate.”

“Stop calling me that!” I shrieked at him.

He shook his head. “I think not, at least not until you start behaving.” He paused and rubbed his chin. “Perhaps that would be a suitable punishment. For as long as you disobey me you won’t have a name, but you’ll still be my possession.”

“I’d rather not have a name than be your possession!”

Luke tossed the apple onto the tray. “You’ll change your mind. Until then keep your strength up and fight me all you want.” He strode to the door, unlocked it with a key from his pocket, and left me alone in my white dungeon.





3





I pressed my back up against the wall behind the bed and hugged my legs to myself. Tears rolled down my cheeks and all I could think about were those plain walls around me, trapping me in this horrible place with this insane man and his servant. Only yesterday I’d been a happy college student with my biggest worry being if I was going to miss my friends’ calls and if that stupid geology teacher was going to give us homework. Now here I sat in this strange room threatened by these men and with no chance at escape.

Still, there were lingering hopes for escape even in the confines of that white room. I glanced up and looked over the boarded windows. They looked secure, but where there was a will there was a way. I slipped off the bed and hurried over to the window on the left to try to pry the boards off; no luck. They were nailed on with thick nails that resembled railroad spikes, and the other window was the same. I’d need something heavy or sharp to break the wood, or at least to pry the boards loose with leverage.

I looked around the room and spotted the food tray. My stomach growled, reminding me that fear, my earlier mad dash, and trying to pull off the boards had given me an even greater appetite than before. I slunk up to the table and inspected the food. It all looked perfectly normal to me. The apple he’d tossed to me lay beside the other fruit, and I grabbed that and sat down for a breather. I intended to eat only as much as I needed and nothing more, but when I bit into the apple and chewed on the piece I was overcome with this strange, overpowering urge to eat more. My body flushed with a desire to savor everything on the tray, to have all those textures roll across my tongue and slide down my throat.

It wasn’t the flavor of the apple that made me grab another apple. It was more like an added spice brushed over the food that created a sensual, overpowering need to consume it all. I dug in like an animal and devoured fruit, juice and cereal. My hands clawed off fruit skins and I drank down the juice, and I relished every moment as my body heated up with each bite and drink. My clothes were splattered with my food, but I didn’t care. There was only that burning inside me that demanded I feed the fire. I finished off the last of the food and drink, and found myself craving more. My tense, flushed body ached for another bite, another drink, and I whimpered when I found I couldn’t satisfy my need.