They nodded and looked at me like I was crazy. They were right and they were wrong. I was nuts, but I could also break the chains thanks to Dwayne.
“Hold tight, ladies. This may hurt since your skin is so raw, but if you can shift when I’m done, you’ll heal.”
Quickly and efficiently I yanked the chains from the wall much to their delighted shock. Removing the shackles was more difficult and I blanched at the pain I caused them, but their stoic bravery awed me. They made small grunts and whimpers, but no one cried out.
“You need to shift and run. I want you out of here quickly.” I helped them to their feet and herded them towards the door.
“Essie, what about you? We’re not leaving you here alone,” Frankie Mac insisted as she came to an abrupt halt. The girls agreed and refused to move. Why in the world had I ever left this place? Loyalty like this was virtually impossible to find…
“Guys, while I was gone, I trained and became an agent for WTF. I work for the Council. I was sent down to find and rescue you.”
“Are you back home to stay or are you leaving again?” Jenny asked.
“I don’t know,” I admitted and blushed. “But, um…”
“You mated with Hank!” Sandy squealed and gave me a hug. “I can smell it and I’m so happy. But even more important than that, you’re our new female alpha,” she added reverently and got down on her knees followed by my other friends. The air in the room swirled with magic and my skin heated. I froze and watched them. My inner wolf chuffed with pride, but my human side was torn. I didn’t deserve this kind of worship. I hadn’t earned it, but I could change that in the next hour…and I would.
“Get up,” I whispered frantically. “I’m just Essie, the goof ball from high school. Don’t bow to me.”
The girls stood slowly but kept their heads bowed in respect.
“I’ll bend you over and kiss your butt for saving my life,” Frankie said as she lifted her grateful eyes to mine. “But the timing is wrong. Essie, you’re right about us shifting to heal, but wrong about us leaving. We stay and fight. I don’t care if you’re WTF or WTH or WWW…you’re Pack and Pack sticks together. Period.”
I wanted to cry, but didn’t have time. I knew no amount of begging or threatening would make them leave, so I had to formulate a plan.
“Okay, fine,” I mumbled as I paced the room. “I’m armed and you’re not. I also drank Vampyre blood, so I have super strength for a while.”
“Oh my god,” Sandy gasped, totally impressed. “Can you fly?”
I laughed and shook my head. “I wish. I want all of you to stay here and go back to where you were chained. Keep the chains near you, but don’t let them touch your skin. You need to be able to shift at a moment’s notice. It’s dark enough in here that they won’t notice you’ve been freed immediately.”
“What are you going to do?” Jenny asked fearfully.
“What I’ve been trained to do,” I answered her honestly without spelling everything out. “Will you gals be able to kill the Tinas if they come back?”
They stared at me like I’d grown an extra nose.
“Let me rephrase the question…if the Tinas try to kill you, which I guarantee they will, will you defend yourselves?”
“Do we actually have to kill them?” Debbie asked.
“Well, if you want to come out of here alive…I’d say yes.” Maybe I should make them run. This was looking like a bloodbath in the making.
“I’ll kill them dead and then I’ll kill them again,” Sandy said. “They’ve beaten the hell out of us on a daily basis for two weeks.”
God, I liked Sandy.
“Wouldn’t it be better if we held them and had them shunned?” Frankie suggested.
We all contemplated the ultimate punishment silently. Shunning was the most horrific thing that could happen to a Shifter. It was a fate worse than death. I mulled it over. Frankie did have a good point.
“I don’t know.” I hesitated. “I suppose if you can restrain them and get them chained up, we can leave their punishment to the Pack.”
“I do vote for roughing them up a bit—maybe knocking out a few teeth,” Jenny added hopefully.
I smiled at her enthusiasm. “I’m good with that as long as you also kick them in the stomach. Preferably till they vomit. Now, I have to go and see what’s happening. Backup is on the way and we’ll get you out of here soon.”
“Essie, be careful,” Sandy said. “We’ve missed you and it would just suck if you died today.”
I grinned and gave her the thumbs up sign. “I have no plans to die today. I have too much to live for.”
Chapter 13
Where in the world was my backup? I was actually going to try to do this one by the books, but the longer I waited the more danger the girls were in. If it was discovered they were out of their chains all hell would break loose. I sniffed the air and caught no sign of Hank, Junior, Granny or Dwayne. Not good.
Staying low and close to the dilapidated buildings, I made my way toward the sound of voices.
“We have what we need,” Puck said. “I have no more use for the ones in chains, but I want Essie to go with us.”
Awesome, that was exactly what I wanted to do with my life…be the egg slave to a smarmy Dragon. Not happening.
“Absolutely not,” Tina #3 screeched. The two others voiced their displeasure quite vocally as well.