Too bad she hadn't realized that sooner and stuck by Sebastian's side. If she had, then she might not be in this situation now.
"Shit," she said, still clutching her face.
"Soon you'll be cursing a lot more than that." In his rage, Jake kicked her leg and then whirled around.
She watched him walk out the door—and then began to cry.
****
After spending what felt like ages bawling her eyes out, Emmy's eyes were raw. Still, as she trembled on the floor, she was filled with the same fierce, protective urge to protect her baby. Because of that, she knew she had to find a way to escape. And hopefully by getting free, she'd be able to save Sebastian from being murdered too. After all, if something happened to him because of her, she'd never forgive herself.
She looked around the room, trying to find anything that was sharp enough to cut through the ropes that bound her wrists together. A jagged nail? Nope. A knife? Nope. There was nothing. Why the hell did her captor have to be so damn smart? Panicked, Emmy looked around the room. Unfortunately, she heard the door to the basement open. She drew back in horror when she saw Jake standing at the threshold. Not him again.
"Get away from me." Emmy crawled backward along the floor, trying to think of a way to save her child.
Instead of heeding her words—not that she thought he would—Jake headed over to her side and pulled her to her feet by her arm.
"Sebastian's here." Jake sniffed the air. "I can smell him."
"No." She twisted in his arms.
Jake tightened his grip on her arm and sniffed again. "And he came alone, just like I told him to. Good. That will make this so much easier."
No, Sebastian was falling straight into his trap. She had to save him.
"Sebastian, don't come down here!" she screamed.
Unfortunately, she heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs. When Sebastian burst into the room, she cringed, knowing what was to come. And when she met his eyes, she felt so much worse.
Because she realized that she loved him.
And how could she not love him? He cared about her, despite the fact she'd fled from him. Even now, his gray eyes were filled with fury at the sight of her being held captive by Jake. Yet now she couldn't tell him that she loved him. Still, she reached for her lover, trembling, and Sebastian let out a string of curses a mile long.
"Stop squirming, you cunt." Jake held her so close that the breath was chased from her lungs.
"Don't you dare talk to her like that." Sebastian took a step toward her.
"I wouldn't come any closer if I were you." With a wicked grin, Jake curled his fingers in her hair. "All it will take is one tiny bite for your precious mate and your baby to die."
Emmy let out a sob of despair.
"They're innocent," Sebastian said. "You can hurt me, but don't do anything to them. Please. I'm begging you."
"How noble." Jake grinned at her trembling form. "Of course, I thought you would be."
"Don't hurt them," Sebastian repeated. His eyes were wide with terror.
"I won't if you do what I say," Jake said.
"Don't listen to him." Emmy dug her nails into Jake's skin, trying to pry his fingers away. "He's lying to you, Sebastian. He doesn't intend to let me go."
Jake covered her mouth with his hand to silence her. For a moment Sebastian didn't say anything. Instead, his eyes remained trained on her. She stared back at him, frantic.
"If you kneel before me, your mate will go free." Jake held her tighter.
Silence fell. Still Sebastian's eyes remained on her face. She could see the wheels in his head turning, but she wasn't sure what he could do to save her and her child. Jake was strong. And her baby…her baby was so fragile.
"Well?" Jake's grin widened. "What are you going to do?"
Jake's knees twitched, but he didn't move. Judging by how Jake tensed, the man was losing patience. And it was never good when the person losing his patience was psycho.
"Get on with it," Jake said, a vein throbbing in his neck. "I've waited a long time for this."
Finally, Sebastian groaned and kneeled. "Please don't hurt Emmy."
Watching the man she loved kneel before a person so evil was harder than being punched in the face a thousand times. And what was worse was when she felt Jake's hand tightening around her neck. She knew that the man was going to kill her in spite of Sebastian's begging. Her baby was never going to enter this world. She would never hear her child speak or giggle. It wasn't fair. Just when she'd grown accustomed to the idea of being pregnant, somebody planned to murder her unborn baby.
Her eyes narrowed. No, she couldn't let that happen. Though the baby hadn't been born yet, she was a mother now. And while Jake may have been a werewolf, she was a pissed off woman who's child was being threatened. As Jake's body shook with laughter, something in her snapped.