Her mind drifted, exploring the possibility of meeting Rome Kategan without having taken the path via Conlin. She saw herself holding hands with Rome in front of the Kategan pack, her parents were standing at the front looking proud. Rome kissed her as the truemate knot was tied by the Elder. He whispered he loved her.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she registered shouting and a dull pain her stomach, but she didn't feel it. She almost smiled.

Rome slammed his fist into his desk. The wood splintered and cracked under the power of his fist. She was gone. Taken from his own damned house. He should have been there. A red blanket of fury enveloped him like a cloud. His beast was out of the cage and snarling. He jabbed his fingers at his cell phone and growled like a beast when he pressed the wrong number. It took everything in him not to crush the phone in his hand. He dialed it correctly the second time.

"Where the fuck are you, Jackson?" The animal in his voice made his words a deep, frightening baritone.

There was a pause. "Fuck, I was just on my way. I had a...hang up. Why what's happened?" He sounded winded, but his voice turned all business.

"You're supposed to be watching Conlin's house, Jacks. He took her. The son of a bitch has her and you can't even tell me if she's at his house?" Realizing his desk was shaking, he looked down and saw his thighs shaking with the force not to run.

"Fuck. Shit, I'm already on my way there. I'll be there in seven minutes. I'll call you after I scope out the place. Dammit, I fucked up."

Rome couldn't wait anymore, he sprinted through the office building and down the twenty flights of stairs and wasn't even winded when he flew through the garage to his car. He dialed the Justicars and told them what had happened. After getting their promise that they'd be there immediately, he called Vane who was already on his way. He'd been performing his rounds of the grounds when he saw that two of his guards were dead near his house.

The first piece of relief all day: he'd taken the car today. The BMW's speed was needed as he ripped across the city. It would take an hour to get there, so he pushed the pedal to the medal and planned to make it in thirty.

Never had thirty minutes seemed so long.

"Motherfucker."

"Aw, baby, don't go. We were only getting started."

Jackson ignored the woman and jerked on his clothes, snatching his keys and making sure his wallet and money were still in there before heading to the door.

He'd seriously fucked up, but he'd make it up to Rome...somehow. As long as she wasn't dead yet. Fuck. He threw open the door, but her voice stopped him.

"Poor human. You're too late. He's going to kill her. He's going to fuck her brains out and kill her. I don't know which order he's going to do it in though."

Turning sharply to the shapely woman who'd called herself Sandra, Jacks felt a ripple of awareness. Shit. He'd really fucked up—twice.

Grabbing his tazer from his belt, he pointed it at the women and pulled the trigger. She screamed as bolts of electricity scoured through her body. She bucked and then collapsed on the body. Her chest moved with the flow of breathing, but she was out. She had something to do with this, and he'd be sure she was brought to justice.

"Not if I get there first, bitch," he said and shut the door quietly behind him. 

Arms stretched above her with manacles tightly cinching into her skin, Alison’s happy images faltered. Like a movie reel breaking, her happy thoughts were stopping with quick efficiency. The pain from the blows brought her to the surface frighteningly fast.

              Just ignore it. Ignore him.

But Conlin wasn't one to be ignored. No matter how hard she focused away from him. He'd hit harder, push her harder, and say something worse than before. He cut her clothes off using a knife with a jagged, serrated edge. He touched her with soft hands that curled her gut and produced bile in her throat.

Ignore it.

Hands squeezing her thighs, her breasts, touching her as if he owned her. He cursed and screamed, railing at her for making him lose Sarina. For leaving him two years ago.

"That bitch would have made me so much money. You ruined that for me." The man acted like he didn't live in a mansion and wasn't a royalty in the lykaen community. But, who knows, maybe he'd run out of money. He always was a big spender and hadn't worked a day in his life...for anything.

She struggled to bring back her safety images. Alison forced herself to think about the nights she spent in Rome's arms. How safe and content she felt, even while she was struggling to trust him. She pretended that she trusted him all along that he was hers and she he really cared about her, as much as a man can with a woman. He held her like he cared. She understood now with that he did care. He was a trustworthy male.

"You think you can ignore me?" A brutal, harsh laugh lashed over her. "I don't think so. Jenner, bring me the table." A servant in the corner of the room bowed and quickly exited, then brought back a metal tray table that looked like it belonged in a hospital.

Alison stared at the ceiling seeing Sarina happy and kissing her mate on her wedding day. The image faltered at the hiss of metal sliding against metal. Cold fear had her sweating. She chanced a look down and saw the table. It took everything in her not to gasp at the line of knives, and at the end, a hatchet.

He didn't miss her fearful gaze. "So you finally see what I've been working on, love? You know, I let you go two years ago. I know you think you escaped, and you did, but if I had wanted you back then I'd have gotten you. Even your father's pathetic threat couldn't have stopped me."

Alison stared forward, her heart once again racing too fast in her chest. She wanted to run. Her body was screaming at her to do something.

"I contented myself at the time with punishing Gerald."

Her stomach dropped out from her. Not the man who helped her! She finally turned her face away, her vision blurring with tears.

"Of course he didn't come back after his little...affair with you. I had him tracked by my best sentry. Years of tracking experience, you see." A soft hand cupped her breast and she flinched. He squeezed and tugged the flesh. Her skin crawled like a million centipedes walked over her.

"I killed him so slowly, so thoroughly, it satisfied me for quite some time. Then I relegated myself to pretending you never betrayed me." He laughed suddenly, the sound loud and mocking. "Then King Brunes came to me with a little offer. A bride with an extravagant dowry. And to top that all off, just who happens to be Sarina's best friend? Alison Bennson. It couldn't have been more perfect. Money, a biddable wife, and her closest friend my runaway female." His hand curved around her throat.

Alison gagged with a mixture of disgust and hate.

"She never would have been biddable, and she never would have married you." She glared into his cold eyes.

"Well you're right about one thing. She married that disgusting dog. Not even a Pride member, but her reaction isn't unexpected. After all, when a man's an Alpha the females are more than ready to drop their panties and spread before them. Did you fuck him, Ali?" His hand squeezed her chin until hot blood pulled there in his vicious grip.

"Fuck you!" It hurt, but she jerked her head out of his tight grasp. Her skin throbbed with pain.

He only smirked down at her. "I plan on it. Later. I saw you noticed my special tray here. I decided to try something new seeing as you’re my honored guest tonight. I had each of these weapons, oh I mean tools, made specifically for you. See, they're made with pure silver."