Page 61 of The Finder

“It’s a little too late to be asking those questions, isn’t it, Emersyn?” he asked.

“Don’t call me that,” Emma snapped at him.

“Why? Does that bring back bad memories? Memories of your family?” he asked.

“Who are you?” Emma asked, trying to keep the fear from her voice. Emma couldn’t breathe. Her fear was keeping her from getting the oxygen she desperately needed.

Ignoring her question, he said, “You have a very rare talent. I hear you can see wolves’ mates just by touching them. Is that true?” he asked.

Emma sat quietly; her mind barraged with thoughts.Is that what’s happening when I touch the guys?Immediately, thought after thought slammed through her mind. The fact that nothing happened when she touched Garrett or Kyle. The images she saw when she touched Max’s hand, Liam’s hand, and Paul’s. They were all wolves. But why hadn’t it worked with Garrett and Kyle? Maybe because Kyle was married?

“I can tell you’re thinking. So, it’s true then?” Kevin didn’t wait for an answer; he just pushed on. “Do you even know how valuable a skill that is? Every alpha in the world would pay top dollar to get you to come to their pack just for a few days. Can you imagine? You are going to make me a massive amount of money, Emersyn,” Kevin said gleefully.

Emma had no response to any of that. It was too much to take in. Emma put her head back against the seat and squeezed her eyes shut. How had she been so wrong about this man? How had she ever gotten into this predicament? A tear leaked out from the corner of her eye. Her impulsiveness was going to get her killed. She didn’t ask any more questions. It was quiet as they drove. The only sound in the car was the loud beating of Emma’s heart. She couldn’t make heads or tails of the situation. All she knew right now was that she had to figure out a way to escape. She glanced at Kevin from the corner of her eye. Was he a wolf? Would he be incredibly fast? She wasn’t sure, but it didn’t matter. She’d escaped before, and it was time to do it again. Emma stayed perfectly still, hoping Kevin would think she was asleep as she thought through her escape. She would have to get it just right. Once again, there was no room for error. She would only get one chance at this.

Chapter 34

Emma looked out the window trying to figure out when she could escape. They were on a semi-busy two-lane road. Before she could decide what to do, the car suddenly started slowing down. Emma looked at Kevin, panicked. He pulled the car over to the shoulder and parked. Without looking at her, he climbed out of the car.

Emma froze for a moment, trying to decide if she could get out and make a run for it. Before she could decide, her door opened. Kevin reached in, unbuckled her, and yanked her from the car. Emma fought against him, trying to get away. He yanked both hands behind her and put handcuffs on her wrists. His hold on her arms was so tight, she knew it would leave bruises. He opened the back seat of the car and tried to push her in. She fought against him with everything she had. He cursed and slammed her head against the side of the car. Black spots swam before her eyes.

“Get in the car!” he yelled at her and shoved her in, closing the door behind her.

Emma righted herself on the seat and blinked her eyes, trying to get her vision to clear. A moment later, she blinked as wetness dripped into her eyes. She closed her eyes, trying to keep the blood from her cut out of her eyes. The front door opened, and Kevin climbed in cursing her name. A moment later, the passenger front door opened. Emma squinted and was shocked to see Levi. She felt hope for the first time since she had gotten in the car.

Levi turned to look at her. He smirked when he saw the cut on her forehead. “You already having problems with her?” he asked. “You should have just knocked her out,” he mumbled before putting his seat belt on.

Any hope Emma had felt upon seeing Levi died inside her. She felt sick. Levi had betrayed them. Of course, she wasn’t much better. She had pretty much just done the same thing. Nausea churned in her belly.

Emma put all her efforts into trying to escape the back seat. Kevin looked back and laughed. “You do realize you’re in the backseat of a police cruiser?” He smirked. “There’s no escaping. Believe me, smarter, tougher criminals than you have tried and failed.” Emma glared at the back of his head.

They drove for several hours before stopping. Emma had no idea where they were; she had gotten lost a long time ago. She peered out the window now but didn’t see anything. “This is where he said he’d meet us?” Levi asked.

Kevin nodded. He parked the car and climbed out. Levi climbed out a moment later. Kevin opened the door and yanked her from the car with a bruising grip on her arm. She stumbled as Kevin jerked her around. The handcuffs were throwing off her equilibrium. Kevin jerked her to stand next to him against the car. “Now what?” Levi asked.

“Now, we wait,” Kevin said. Emma shivered out in the cold, night air.

Emma looked around her, trying to figure out how she could escape. She wasn’t going to wait around to find out who was coming for her. A howl sounded in the distance, shaking Emma to her core. She would wait until the best possible moment, and then she would run for her life. If they caught her and killed her, well it would be better than whatever else was going to happen to her.

She made herself patiently wait for the best opportunity. Her opportunity finally came when Levi ducked into the car to grab something. She turned quickly and kneed Kevin hard and sent Levi into the car with a harsh kick. She couldn’t do anything more than that. Her hands were tied behind her back. She ran as fast as she could towards the woods. She heard shouts behind her and knew she had to do something or they would catch her quickly. There was no chance she could outrun them or hide from them. She pushed herself to run faster, but she could hear them gaining on her.

She tripped over something and fell hard, unable to catch herself. She heard an angry growl and rolled over. She screamed as a wolf leaped towards her. The wolf never touched her. A magnificent, huge black wolf collided with it mid-air. Emma turned her head at the fight going on between the two of them, but it was over almost before it started. The black wolf turned its head and stalked towards her. “Garrett?” Emma whispered.

The wolf moved closer to her, staring intensely. Emma sat up awkwardly, and the wolf settled next to her side. “Th-thank you,” she said in between shivering. The wolf moved even closer to her, and Emma let herself lean against his warm body. He didn’t move; but his ears were up and alert, his body tense. A few minutes later, a howl rent the air; Emma shivered in fear. Soon after that, she heard loud noises coming towards them. Emma glanced quickly at the wolf. His head was turned that way, but he didn’t seem worried about it.

A moment later, Liam stepped into view. He was barefoot and bare-chested, wearing only a pair of black sweatpants. He tossed another pair of pants towards the wolf at Emma’s side. The wolf caught them in its teeth and left. Emma immediately missed his warmth. Liam came close and knelt in front of her. “You okay, Emma?” he asked.

“We need keys for the handcuffs,” Garrett said striding towards them. He was dressed now just like Liam—in black sweatpants.

“You don’t want to just break them?” Liam asked.

Garrett shook his head. “Don’t want to chance hurting her wrists.”

Liam nodded. “I’ll find them. Max is taking care of the, uh…” He glanced down at Emma. Garrett just nodded, and Liam disappeared.

Garrett knelt in front of her. His eyes narrowed at the cut on her forehead. “What other injuries do you have?” he asked in a gruff voice.

Emma closed her eyes for a moment, blinking back tears. When she opened them, she looked Garrett in the eye. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “I, I thought I was doing the right thing.” She paused. “I was wrong, and I’m really sorry.”

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