Twilight Siege

25

I smiled warmly at her and agreed, “No more secrets.” That afternoon, once it was late enough in New York for businesses to be open, I called Ashley’s office hoping to track her down. The receptionist answered and informed me that Ashley was working from home because of her broken arm and was not expected back in the office for another week. I was immensely disappointed that I still hadn’t gotten through to her. She hadn’t returned any of my recent texts and it had been days since I’d heard from her. There was little I could do from an ocean away and the helplessness and frustration gnawed at me. Pulling out my burner phone, I texted Lochlan telling him about Ashley and received a surprisingly quick text back that he would look into it. While I hadn’t specifically asked for his help, I had to admit that I had hoped there was something he could do and I appreciated that he was quick to offer me help. OceanofPDF.com 9 That evening I fed Knight and took him for a quick walk before getting ready to train with Lochlan. “All right buddy, time for you to go outside for a bit.” The giant lump of fur didn’t budge and instead blinked his sad doggy eyes at me from where he lay sprawled out on the couch. “I know you’re used to being outside, don’t look at me like that.” He sighed and rolled farther onto his side in protest. “You are such a lazy bum! What did you do before you found me to mooch off? Yeah, I’m talking to you, which is really just talking to myself. Ugh! Fine, but you better not tear anything up while I’m gone or I’m going to make me a new dog-skin rug.” I slammed the door and hurried over to my car—I wasn’t sure if it was technically my car, but that’s what I was calling it. The street in front of the Huntsman building was lined with parked cars. Seeing as I was not hugely comfortable parallel parking where the driver’s side and the streets were all backward from the States, I had to go farther than I would have liked to find a spot large enough for me to be comfortable parking. I hadn’t expected such a long walk so I had only grabbed a hoodie instead of a warmer coat. Tucking my hands inside the long sleeves, I wrapped my arms around my body and began to jog toward the building. Only about two buildings away from my destination, I heard a muffled wail come from nearby and I slowed to listen for the sound again. I had no idea what I planned to do if someone was in distress, but it was one of those reactionary behaviors, like staring at a car wreck after it’s happened, something you can’t simply ignore. I stood still for a solid minute listening to the sounds of the active city, but nothing struck me as out of the ordinary. Assuming it had probably been a stray cat, I ducked my head against the cold and hurried down the sidewalk but I didn’t make it far before the noise came again, just behind me this time. I came to a stuttering halt as the blood in my veins turned to ice—this time the wail had been followed by my name. Even more terrifying, I recognized the voice. It was Ashley. I would know her voice anywhere, and she was in distress. Without hesitation I raced in the direction of her screams. When I rounded the corner to the nearest alley I stumbled to a stop and gasped out a horrified ‘No.’ Twenty feet away in the shadows of the narrow alley Ronan stood with Ashley held to him, a knife at her throat. Tears streamed down her battered face, one of her eyes already swollen nearly shut and her busted lip quivered in fear. Her arm was still in its cast from when we were attacked by a Draug in an alley strikingly similar to the one we were in now. If I made it out of this alive, I swore I would never go near another alley again. A swarm of intense emotions fought for dominance inside me—anger at myself for putting Ashley in this situation, frustration that I didn’t know what to do to get her out, and blinding rage at Ronan for more reasons than I could count. I could feel my power surge and my eyes shift to black as leaves and debris in the alley swirled in a cyclone of air stirred up by my magic. Ashley’s jaw dropped in astonishment as she took in my Fae eyes. I hated that she was seeing me like that for the first time without any warning but there was nothing I could do about it. “You should know by now, Rebecca, that it’s not wise to be out walking in the dark all alone. You and Ashley both have that little problem in common, that’s where I found this one—walking all alone at night on the streets of New York.” Ronan tisked and then goaded me with a twisted grin. “Let her go she has nothing to do with this,” I growled in return. “She has everything to do with this—you wouldn’t give me what I wanted so now I have something you want. You forced me to use Ashley as leverage, what happens here tonight is on your shoulders.” “That’s bullshit, Ronan. You didn’t have to do anything and you could still let her go—she’s innocent and you’re hurting her.” “Oh no, she’s entirely too valuable to release. She’s my collateral, I had to go all the way to New York to find her, and you’re going to do what I say or she will end up in much worse shape than she’s in now.