Wanted: Undead or Alive

Chapter Twenty-three

“Any sign of Brynley?” Phineas asked.

“Nope.” Digger was sitting on the roof of the stable, hidden behind a turret capped with a large weathervane. Wrapped in a dark horse blanket, he surveyed the surrounding area. His dog, Jake, was safe inside with the horses.

“Ain’t seen hide nor hair of her.” Digger chuckled. “You get it? She could have skin or fur.”

Phineas groaned inwardly. “I’ll check back with you later. Thanks.” He teleported to the front of the house, where Phil was stationed in a tree.

“Haven’t seen her,” Phil muttered.

Phineas sighed. They’d been watching the house for five hours. “You’d think she’d at least look out a damned window.”

There was plenty to look at. Werewolves were shifting back and forth, dragging back carcasses, cutting them up, and roasting them. Some of the guests had opted to remain human tonight so they could party at the house. They were drinking beer on the patio, making out in the garden. He’d spotted a few making love in the woods.

“I’ll check on you later,” he told Phil, then teleported to his station at the back of the house. He sat on a branch high up in a tree and scanned all the people once again, searching for Brynley.

Zoltan had teleported to the Carson ranch to report on what they’d heard in the stable. Meanwhile, Phineas, Phil, and Digger kept watch. No sign of Corky or Dimitri. They were either inside the house, or they’d teleported elsewhere. Rhett had taken off with a group of his minions in an SUV.

No sign of Brynley. What the hell was she doing in there? She didn’t seem to be using her bedroom. Did her father have her locked up in a prison cell? Was she miserable? Or did she have her Big Boy 1000 EXTREME to keep her company?

He snorted.

She probably never used it. After all, she’d left it behind when she ran away from home. And why should he worry if she did use it? It was better than jumping any of these werewolves who strutted around naked, covered with blood and grime.

He shifted on the branch. The sun would rise in less than an hour. He’d have to leave to do his death-sleep. His cell phone vibrated, not nearly as good as the Big Boy 1000 EXTREME, and he checked his text message. Zoltan was back, and he’d landed by the stable.

Phineas teleported over to Phil, picked him up, then materialized by the stable. They all sat out of view of the house, on the back side of the roof, close to Digger.

“The cabin has been quiet,” Zoltan told them. “No action there. Angus and his team defeated all the werewolves at Bleddyn’s ranch. Robby’s got a team there, keeping it secure. I told Angus that we saw Corky and Dimitri here, along with Bleddyn.”

“What does Angus want us to do?” Phineas asked.

“He’ll send us more men tomorrow night,” Zoltan said, “but he doesn’t want us to attack. We would end up killing Caddoc Jones’s pack members, and we don’t want to weaken his forces in case Bleddyn attacks him and his family.”

Phil shook his head. “This could escalate into a werewolf war, pack against pack. I need to get my brother and sisters out of here.”

How? Phineas wondered. He was tempted to walk up to the house, ring the front doorbell, and tell Caddoc Jones that he and his family were about to be slaughtered.

“If we see Corky or Dimitri, we’re supposed to grab them and teleport them straight to the Carson ranch. Angus has some silver chains and handcuffs there.” Zoltan took a deep breath. “And of course, if you see Brynley, you can grab her.”

“If we see her,” Phineas grumbled.

“We have thirty minutes left here,” Zoltan continued. “Then we’ll go to the Carson ranch for our death-sleep.”

Phineas groaned. He’d have to wait another night to rescue Brynley.

The next evening, Brynley forced herself to eat some of the buffet. It tasted like dry chalk in her mouth, but she needed to keep her strength up. She’d been awake for only two hours, but she was already stressed out.

First, her guards had escorted her to her bedroom so she could try on the wedding dress. After all, the wedding was tomorrow. She nearly choked on the deer meat she was chewing and drank half a glass of wine to fortify her nerves.

A female werewolf/seamstress had marked a few areas she wanted to alter, then Brynley had been escorted to a small office being used by her wedding planner. She hadn’t even known she had a wedding planner. But it wasn’t that surprising, really. Her father was not the sort to fool with mundane details. He commanded others to do it.

Since the wedding was happening so quickly, the invitations were merely passed out among the guests who were already there. Tonight was the third night of the full moon, and normally the last night of the monthly party, but the guests would simply stay one more night to witness the wedding.

She swallowed another bite of deer meat. It was all a farce, really. The wedding planner had acted like she wanted Brynley’s approval of the dinner menu and flower arrangements, but it was all going to happen whether she liked it or not.

Much to her sister’s dismay, she’d managed one small act of rebellion. She’d gone downstairs to eat dinner in her jeans, plaid shirt, and cowboy boots.

She glanced at the window. The sun was going down. The guards made sure now that she didn’t get close to a window. Her father’s orders, no doubt, after he’d caught her eavesdropping on Rhett.

She scanned the dining room and counted three guards. There was no escaping them. At least she hadn’t been forced to endure Rhett’s company today.

She groaned. Speak of the devil. He strode into the room, dressed in his tuxedo, wearing a white silk scarf around his shoulders and an obnoxious smirk on his face.

He stopped in front of her. “I have a surprise for you.”

Her eyes widened. “You have dog mange?”

Nearby guests chuckled, and his smirk twisted with anger.

He seized her arm. “Come with me.”

As he dragged her from the dining room, she glanced back and saw the guards following. Would they defend her if she was attacked, or stand by and applaud?

Rhett pushed her out the back door, making her stumble forward onto the empty patio. He grabbed her once again and pulled her close.

“You will show me respect in public,” he growled softly.

“Then I can be rude in private?”

His hands tightened painfully on her arms, and she winced. There would be bruises tomorrow. How fortunate her wedding dress had long sleeves.

“You don’t want to know what we’ll do in private,” he hissed. He whipped the white silk scarf off his shoulders and spun her around.

She lunged forward to escape, but the three guards blocked her. Suddenly, the silk scarf covered her eyes. She gasped and felt a tug at the back of her head. The scarf had been knotted.

She reached up to pull the scarf down but her hands were grabbed by a pair of tight fists.

“Come with me.” Rhett pulled her forward.

Her heart raced. She heard the guards following behind, but she doubted they would help her. “What are you doing? If you harm me, my father will kill you.”

Rhett chuckled. “Harm you? I plan to marry you, you nitwit. Now two steps down.” He held on to her hands and guided her into the backyard.

“Where are you taking me?” she demanded.

“I told you. I have a surprise for you.” Rhett wrapped an arm around her shoulder and steered her to the left. “It took all night and all day for me and my men to pull off this feat. You’ll be very impressed.”

“Only if you all managed to castrate yourselves,” she muttered.

He chuckled. “I like the way you resist. It will make your final submission so much sweeter.”

The air was chilly against her cheeks. The temperature was dropping, a sure sign that the sun had set. Would Phineas come looking for her?

She strained her ears and could hear the soft thud of footsteps behind her. The guards were still following. Up ahead, she heard voices. Something about ropes? Tying something down? She swallowed hard.

Images of her last assault flitted through her mind, and her heart thundered in her ears. No! She pushed the memories aside. She wouldn’t panic. She would be brave.

Rhett stopped her and placed her hands on a horizontal wooden beam. It was the horse pen. She dug her fingers into the wood.

Rhett whispered, his mouth close to the white silk covering her ear. “Your sister told me what you admired the most in the world. I’m giving it to you as a sign of my devotion.”

He whipped the scarf off her head, and she gasped.

Her heart lurched, and tears instantly sprang to her eyes.

The wild white stallion was imprisoned inside the pen. It pawed the ground furiously. Its eyes rolled about in fear and rage. Three ropes had been tied around its neck and secured to the fenced enclosure. The horse strained to move, its neck already red with welts as the ropes cut into its white coat.

“You’re hurting him,” she whispered. You’re killing him. You’re killing me. She could almost feel the ropes around her own neck, squeezing tighter and tighter.

“It’s the only way to contain him,” Rhett said. “Damned horse put up quite a fight.”

She noted the dried blood on the horse’s flank. “Let him go.”

Rhett scoffed. “Are you kidding? Do you know how much trouble we—” He looked at her. “Are you crying?”

She wiped the tears off her face, and jutted out her chin. “Let him go.”

He leaned on the fence, studying her. “I’ll let him go if you’ll be my willing bride.”

Her heart skipped a beat as it plummeted into her stomach. A feeling of doom sucked her down. Submission, the way of the Lycan world.

She gazed at the wild white stallion, and more tears stung her eyes. If she agreed, at least one of them would be free.