Karen Kelley - The Wolf Prince

She tried rocking her body to a standing position, but she had no strength. Now what was she going to do?

Excoria strolled back into the room. “Good news!”

“You’re going to let me go?”

She frowned. “No, your father has the money. I told him where to take it. I said that as soon as I had it, I’d call and tell him where you are.”

Hope rose inside her. “You’re going to let me go after all?”

Excoria shook her head. “No, I just told him that.”

“And that’s your good news?”

“Well, yeah.” Confusion wrinkled her brow.

God, could she be that stupid? “You can’t just kill me!”

“Yes, I can.” She held up the small gun. “I’ll just load up the gun with enough of the drug to kill you. It won’t hurt. I’m not that cruel. Just think of it like this, you’ll be going to sleep … forever.”

She went to a black box that was sitting beside the sofa and began going through the pellets.

“Please don’t kill me,” Darcy begged. She hated begging, but it was her last hope.

“You know what I look like. You’d tell everyone. I’ve watched enough of your television and that’s what they do. The victim tells the captor she won’t say anything, but the minute the captor lets her go, bam, she runs to anyone who will listen. Then the poor captor is locked away when all the kidnapper was trying to do was make a decent living.”

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me?” Darcy said, staring at her.

“No, I’m not. I saw it on television.” She stood and raised the gun, pointing it at Darcy.

“Yes, but did you see the CSI episode where they capture the kidnapper?”

“CSI ?”

“Oh, yeah, that’s the show to watch. You’ve got to be careful of the evidence you leave behind. Pfftt, they could have you in custody within a few minutes after getting the ransom money. You wouldn’t want that to happen.”

Excoria glared at her.

“You’ll tell me everything you know about this evidence,” Excoria said.

“Or what? You’ll kill me?”

“I can remove the sleep agent and exchange it for something that will make you scream in pain for hours before you finally die.”

“You can do that?”

“I can do many things.”

“I’ll tell you everything I know,” Darcy said and wondered how many investigative procedures she could come up with before Excoria felt she knew enough, and then killed her anyway. It didn’t matter. Darcy would suck up every last second she could get.

Ten minutes later, Darcy knew she was quickly running out of time. Excoria’s eyes were glazing over. Hell, Darcy’s brain was glazing over.

“You’ll need to get some booties to wear on your feet,” Darcy said. Yes, she was inventing stuff now. “That way they won’t be able to trace the tread of your shoes. And a surgical mask.”

“Why would I need a mask?”

Mask? Why would she need a mask? Think! She drew in a deep breath. “So they won’t pick up your scent.” Okay, that was really lame.

Excoria nodded. “You’re right.”

“I am?” She cleared her throat. “I mean, of course, I am. I told you I could get you through this.”

“I have plenty of information.” Excoria looked sad. “Now I must say good-bye.”

She looked sad? Ha, she wasn’t the one about to sleep forever.

“You don’t have to kill me. Just leave me tied up. At least give me that much. We’re practically friends now. I swear I won’t tell a soul.”

Excoria shook her head and Darcy knew this was it. Her mother and father might never know what had happened to her.

“I’m truly sorry.”

“At least let my parents know I’m”—she cleared her throat—“dead. Give me that at least.”

Excoria nodded, tears filling her eyes. “I will send them a letter.”

Darcy sighed with relief, then closed her eyes and braced herself.

Something crashed through the window in the other room.

Darcy’s eyes flew open. “I’m saved!”

Excoria jumped and screamed. The gun went off, the pellet thudding into Darcy’s chest.

Well, hell!

She glanced down at her chest. “Great, someone crashes through the window to save me and it’s too damned late.” She blinked, wondering if it was the drug that was making her see a wolf. It was crouched in attack mode, teeth bared, hair standing up on its back.

Darcy’s gaze transferred to Excoria. She looked scared shitless, which served Excoria right for killing her. She sniffed. Now no one would ever know what had happened to her. The wolf could dine on them for a solid week. Her bones would be buried all over the neighbors’ estate.

Eww.

“No, don’t hurt me,” Excoria screamed.

A hawk suddenly flew into the room, circled, then landed on the coffee table. Next came a jaguar, then a unicorn.

Wow, she was really tripping. If this was what drugs were all about, she wanted no part of them. Although the unicorn was pretty. Still, she’d much rather live in the real world. Except that would never happen.

A tear slipped from the corner of her eye as a heavy fog rolled across the room. This must be the end. Everything was getting foggy. Good-bye, Mom and Dad. Good-bye, Surlock. Oh, God, they could’ve been so good together.

The fog began to clear.

Maybe this wasn’t the end just yet. She blinked, but her eyes were still filled with tears so it was hard to tell what exactly she was looking at.

Had she died and gone to heaven? There were three naked men and a naked woman in the room and the animals were gone. She blinked again.

One of the men was Surlock. What a nice fantasy to have before she checked out. Damn, she was so sleepy, she couldn’t … she couldn’t …

She closed her eyes on a sigh.

Surlock rushed over to Darcy and began untying the ropes that bound her wrists. He glanced at the woman who was cringing on the sofa, immediately recognizing her. She’d thrown herself at him more than once on New Symtaria, but he’d rejected her advances, knowing that she only wanted his wealth.

“Darcy, I’m here. Can you hear me?”

Nothing. Darcy didn’t move.

“I should kill you for this, Excoria,” he said.

“You can’t. It’s against Symtarian law.” Her voice trembled.

“Maybe I’ll get my father to change the law. He is, after all, the king.”

Excoria whimpered

“What did you shoot her with?” Rogar asked.

“Perepsicol mostly,” she whispered. “But I added the sleeper so she wouldn’t have pain. I’m not so cruel that I would want her to suffer,” she whined.

Karinthia had grabbed one of the sheets that covered a piece of furniture and was tucking the end between her breasts, but when she heard Excoria’s words, she drew in a sharp breath. “The drug of death. Do you have the antidote?” She didn’t wait for Excoria to answer, but rushed to the box on the floor and began searching inside.

“The green capsule, but it may be too late,” Excoria whispered.

Surlock hurled himself toward Excoria and wrapped his fingers around her throat. “By the gods, I’ll kill you for this,” he growled. He wanted her dead, no matter the outcome, no matter the consequences.

Rogar grabbed his hands, but couldn’t break his hold. Surlock watched Excoria’s eyes begin to bug out and felt intense satisfaction.

“Kristor, I can’t break his hold,” Rogar said.

“Leave me!” Surlock told his brothers, but they didn’t listen and pulled him off Excoria.

Excoria grabbed her throat, coughing, then curled into a ball and began to cry hysterically.

“Our laws will take care of her,” Rogar told him. “Would you end Excoria’s suffering now? Or let it carry out through the rest of her life?”