Page 9 of Connected

“I’m a drug dealer,” he laughs, “what do expect me to do with you? But you know, pure ‘Ruby’ like yours—it makes alotof dollars. Almost a shame I can’t keep you. You are young—many years to give—many pups to have.”

He strokes his fingers over her cheek, down her neck. Again, almost fascinated by them, his hand gently gropes at her breast. He smiles and his hand traces a line up along her arm. Near the top of her shoulder, he stops. Hesitating, he strokes his fingers over the same small area of flesh and feels more firmly against the muscle. “What is dis?” he scowls and staring her in the eyes he scratches with his manicured nails at Kat’s implant under her skin.

“Nothing,” she shakes her head.

“I said, what is dis?” He’s up close, only inches from her face. The heady, overpowering scent of his aftershave fills her nostrils, and its sweet floral smell makes her gag. “Is it a tracker?” He frowns as he grabs a hold of her arm and examines it. “Dis is a tracker, si? Luiz, why you no-check dis?” he scowls.

“No, no, that’s not what it is. It’s not a tracker.” Kat swallows nervously as she stares at him.

“Check him. See if he has one. I heard before military fit soldiers with them.”

“No, they don’t. Why would they? I told you it’s not that. Really, it’s nothing—not a tracker.”

“No, Boss, he got nothin’.”

Alvarez turns back and facing Kat, he just stares motionless into her eyes. “So, I ask you again, what is dis? Tell me, now!”

“It’s um, it’s nothing. I told you, nothing.”

“Well, if dat truth. It is no’thing then you don’t need, si? So, we make sure it’s no’thing.”

He holds out his hand and Luiz provides him with a blade—her blade, the one he took from her back at the village—and then without a word, he cuts into the skin at the top of her arm and removes the small plastic implant.

Inside her head, she screams at the pain, but grinding her teeth in steely determination she shows him no emotion as he continues to dig the tip of the blade into her flesh. She takes a breath, inhaling deeply through her nose, holding it in her chest as the blade slices cutting into the tissue of her arm. The knife is sharp and just like when Darius cut her hand, at first, she doesn’t feel it, but then as the nerves react the searing pain follows.

“Fuck.”She swallows the word as he removes the small plastic rod from her flesh.

“I want to know what d’hell dis is?” He questions more angrily as he holds it up to the light and examines it.

At first, she doesn’t answer and just silently stares at him, but then when she remains quiet, he smirks. Clicking his fingers, they both hear Zak’s muffled cries and Kat watches as the silver-tipped cane is pressed tightly against his balls.

“I can keep it there all day unless you tell me what I ask.”

“Stop. Stop it, please! Don’t hurt him. I’ll tell you. It’s…” she hesitates a moment—almost embarrassed—she closes her eyes not looking at him. “It’s contraception—an implant.”

“Contraception?” he laughs. “You serious? Oh lord, a wolf taking precautions. My God, I didn’t know this existed?”

“Go fuck yourself!” She sneers as she clamps her hand firmly against her arm. With the open wound sore as the blood drips onto the floor, she’s not sure which is the worse pain—this or her neck which she’s become accustomed to. Covered in blood, her whole-body aches and wracked with pain, she just wants to curl up in a ball and sleep away the hurt.

Brushing a loose lock of hair away from her sweaty brow, Alvarez stares hard into the deep green of her eyes. “I have to leave you now. But Luiz and Raul, they take care of you while I gone. Behave. I hate to have to gag that pretty mouth of yours too.” He sweeps his thumb over Kat’s lip. “Take them. Put them with the others. I bring the doctor when I return. The buyer wants her checked before we ship her. Bring the pup from the other one—I take it. I be back tomorrow. I need to confirm my money transfer—shit internet here,” he smiles. “We arrange a container for her.”

Kat’s lip judders as a leash is clipped to the ring on the collar and she’s lead from the room. Pain rockets through her body each time a tug on it pulls her forward, and she hisses angrily as the fiery metal moves against her skin. Focusing, she tries to not think about the pain—blanking out the discomfort—she turns around concerned as she watches them unclip Zak from where he’s shackled to the wall.

Alvarez stares Zak in the eyes as he places his hands on his chest. Smoothing his palm gently over his muscled torso, he smiles and licks his lips. “Be a good boy for Daddy. Don’t make them hurt you before I get back. I hate to miss out on fun—and we are going to have so much fun.” He snaps his teeth together and laughs. “Take him. I have to go and he too much distraction. If I start on him now, I won’t want to stop and I need much more time for this one.”

Still gagged, Zak pulls against his bonds. Yanking the leash attached around his neck; he snarls angrily. Following Kat—they lead him away.

Alvarez wipes his hands on another silk handkerchief and straightens his shirt. Then picking up his suit jacket from the back of a chair, he puts it on. “Come. Let’s get out of dis stinkin’ hole. The sooner I have my money, d’sooner we leave and I so look forward to have caviar for breakfast again. It take me a week in goat-milk to get dis stench from my skin and if I wanna look my best for my new toy, I need full-body wax—remind me book one when we get Wi-Fi again.”

Chapter 4

Kat gags as an awful smell fills her nostrils and bile is forced from her stomach to the back of her throat. “Oh God, what the hell is that?” she questions Luiz, the larger of Alvarez’s two sizeable guards as he unlocks the heavy iron door at the end of the corridor and swings it open. Immediately they are hit with the stench—a heady wall of stale wolf scent that crashes against her face and makes her eyes sting.

As Kat peers into the darkness, with Luna still trapped somewhere deep inside her mind, it takes her eyes a while to adjust to the gloom.

She blinks rapidly as Luiz switches on the light; a dim red bulb that casts a low hazy glow over the room. “What the fuck is this place?” Hesitant to step forward; Raul shoves her inside.

“Tu nueva casa,” he says with a smile.

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