With Her–1
Thea’s POV
“Wake up!”
I groaned but didn’t open my eyes. The voice sounded so distant that I thought I was dreaming.
“Thea, goddamn it, wake up!”
This time my eyes flew open. The voice sounded too real to be a dream. And why the hell would I be dreaming about HER voice?
My vision was blurry as my eyes tried to adjust to the light. As time passed, memories of what had happened earlier came flooding back.
Shit! I’d been abducted again.
My brain still felt foggy from what I guessed was chloroform. I quickly checked myself, hoping the chemical wouldn’t affect my baby.
I was tied to a chair, my hands bound behind my back. Trying to move proved futile. The ropes were tight, cutting into my skin. Whoever had kidnapped me clearly didn’t want to
risk me escaping.
“Are you done examining yourself?” she asked.
I thought it was my imagination, but it wasn’t. I jerked my head to the left and found Aurora also tied to a chair. She looked more alert, which meant she’d been here longer
than me.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” I asked stupidly.
I looked around. It was a large room, almost empty. Besides the chairs Aurora and I were sitting on, there was no furniture. Nothing to indicate where we were or who the house belonged to.
“Isn’t it obvious? We’ve both been kidnapped,” she answered sarcastically.
1/3
With Her–1
I rolled my eyes at her. “No shit! I know that! I meant to ask why the kidnapper would
take both of us?”
I didn’t know who had taken us, but I had my suspicions. The only threat left was from someone who thought Aurora meant more to the Sterling Pack and Sebastian than I did.
“I don’t know.”
“How long have you been here?” I tried to breathe calmly. Panicking wouldn’t do me any
good.
The more I tried, the more I was taken back to the night Kane betrayed me. Hadn’t things happened in almost exactly the same way? The difference was that it was Iris and me who had been kidnapped then, not Aurora.
Fear gripped me as I recalled that day. Fear that the same thing would happen again–or perhaps another trusted person would betray me.
“I’m not sure. I was just regaining consciousness when they carried you in,” Aurora’s voice pulled me from the painful memory.
“How long was I out?”
“Probably fifteen or twenty minutes.”
I fell silent after that, trying to calculate the time. But it didn’t help. I wasn’t sure how far they’d driven from the ice cream shop.
Panic set in again when I thought about Leo. God, who would pick him up? School let out at 3:30, and it was already close to noon when I was at the ice cream shop. What if they
decided to take him too?
“Calm down,” I told myself. “You know if you can’t pick him up, the school will call
Sebastian. He’ll be safe.”
kept repeating this to myself until I calmed down, my breathing no longer rapid. Leo would be fine. Now, I just needed to focus on myself.
“So it’s true, you’re pregnant,” Aurora spoke up, making me turn to her. She was staring at my belly.
2/3
With Her–1
I froze for a moment, then remembered she hadn’t known before, must have seen that report. I didn’t answer and wasn’t planning to, ignoring her and turning forward. My pregnancy was none of her fucking business.
I started wrestling with the ropes, trying to loosen them. The ropes cut into my skin, but I kept trying. I wasn’t going to stay here with her any longer than necessary.
“Why are you always so rude?” she frowned at my actions. “That’s not going to solve
anything.”
“Why don’t you shut your mouth and let me think?” I snapped at her.
With Her–2
She just wouldn’t stop. Her voice was getting on my nerves. She always irritated me, but now it was unbearable.
The door suddenly opened, and a tall, hulking man walked in. He had cold brown eyes and sharp features, and his exposed arms and neck were covered in intricate tattoos. I guessed he was the one who had kidnapped us.
“Our guests are awake, how wonderful,” his voice was surprisingly light and cheerful. “I’m Graves, your host. Pleased to meet you, Princess of the Sterling Pack and her-” he paused, looking at me with amusement, “infamous sister.”
I blinked in surprise. He’d told us his name so casually, as if he wasn’t worried about being identified. Either he was extremely confident, or he believed we wouldn’t have the chance to tell anyone. Both possibilities made me shiver.
“Why don’t you untie me and I’ll deal with her first, then it’ll be your turn,” I growled at
him.
The guy just laughed. He found it funny because he knew fighting me would be like fighting a child.
“I’d like to see you try,” he mocked me.
“Is this what you do in your spare time? Kidnap helpless, unarmed women? Does drugging women into unconsciousness make you feel more like a man?”
“Shut up,” he yelled at me, his face twisting into an ugly expression.
“Or what?”
“What are you doing? Stop it,” Aurora hissed, fear evident in her voice. “Don’t provoke
him.”
I ignored her, staring directly at the tall man with a smirk. “They should cut off your dick. Any man who drugs two women is nothing but a coward who doesn’t deserve to be called
a man.”
Honestly, I didn’t even know why I was antagonizing him.
1/3
With Her–2
Unexpectedly, however, he just burst into laughter. Then, ignoring my taunts, he slowly began pacing around the room.
“You see, your ex–husband has done some things that have made a lot of people angry,” my heart pounded in my chest when Graves spoke again. “Unfortunately, you two got caught in the middle of it.”
Aurora looked scared, but she kept her composure. I was trying to figure out how to get us
out of this situation.
“What did he do?” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.
Graves stopped pacing and looked at me, a smirk playing on his lips. “He betrayed a very dangerous man. One who doesn’t forgive betrayal easily.”
“What does that have to do with us?” I countered, trying to sound braver than I felt.
“You’re leverage,” Graves said simply. “If we can’t get to him directly, we get to him
through you.”
My heart sank. This was bad. Really bad.
“We have nothing to do with his actions,” Aurora said, her voice trembling slightly. “Why punish us for what he did?”
Graves laughed. “Because, my dear, that’s how the world works. Sometimes, innocent people suffer for the crimes of others.”
I clenched my fists, feeling a surge of anger. “You think this is right?”
“Whether it’s right or wrong doesn’t matter,” Graves said, getting closer. “What matters is
that it gets results.”
The door behind Graves opened, and another man walked in. He looked equally
intimidating, with a similar build and a serious expression.
“Boss, everything’s ready,” the man said to Graves.
Graves nodded, then turned to us with an unsettling smile on his face. “Well, ladies, we’ve
had enough fun with you, now it’s time to get down to business.”
2/3
With Her–2
I watched nervously as he pulled out a phone from his pocket and started dialing. Fear coursed through me like ice water, and I had no idea what he was planning, but it couldn’t
be good.
“Who are you calling?” I asked warily, my voice mixed with trembling.
Graves glanced at me, a victorious smile spreading across his face.
“Your dear ex–husband, of course.”
