Taken (8 page)

Caleb suddenly stood, drawing Kaiden from his thoughts as the cell phone vibrated on the end table. His brother picked it up and answered it.

“Yeah… Yeah, he made it here in one piece,” Caleb said, then looked at Kaiden with a smile. “I’ll tell him,” he told the person on the phone and then hung up. “That’s Uncle Tim…he just wanted to know if you made it here in one piece.”

* * * *

After Kitty had her shower and was dressed, they sat and ate pizza while Kaiden grinned and cleaned several of his guns.

“You sure know how to make a mountain out of a mole hill, Caleb,” Kaiden retorted as he eyed Kitty again with a smile.

Caleb could tell his brother was equally attracted to her, and that bothered him a little as Kitty may not want two mates.

“Turn the TV on,” Kaiden said suddenly as he got a text message. The look on his face seemed angry.

“Why?”

“Because you, me and our little girlfriend here are all over it,” he said snappishly.

Caleb turned on the older-looking machine and switched it to the all-news channel. There was a report about how Gregory Trites had reported Katarina Callaghan being abducted. Trites claimed he’d been attacked and beaten by an unknown assailant as he tried to protect the heiress.

An image of Kitty flashed across the screen along with a toll-free number as well as a reward offer for any information about their whereabouts.

“Fuck!” Caleb said and then started packing everything into the suitcases.

“But why would he do that? I know he was involved. This doesn’t make any sense,” Kitty said as she stood abruptly.

“Yeah, she’s got a point,” Kaiden agreed.

“Well, we can’t stay here now. For fuck sakes, what kind of game are they playing?”

“Why would he risk her being found if she can identify him as part of the kidnapping?” Kaiden asked as he placed his gun in its holster before he helped pack.

Kitty stared at the news channel. To his surprise, she grabbed the remote out of Caleb’s hand.

“Shh,” she said, and both he and Kaiden stared at her. “Gregory is giving a live statement.”

They both turned and watched the television as Trites stood in front of a dozen different microphones. He was with three men who looked a lot like they could be Feds.

The man had a black eye and a bandage on his forehead. It looked as if someone had roughened him up pretty good. The press bombarded the Feds with questions about a ransom, proof of life and how and when the kidnappers had contacted the family, and the Feds answered them very vaguely. When Mr. Trites got up to the podium, he had tears in his eyes as he made a plea to the kidnapper to return his beloved niece. To give him back the only family he had left. Trites explained he’d cared for Katarina since she was twelve and was like a daughter to him.

Caleb’s blood ran cold. He hadn’t known Trites was her uncle. The man wasn’t only willing to kidnap her and have her killed, but he was going to sexually assault her as well. He turned and stared at Kitty. His heart ached at what her life must have been like. What Gregory might have already done to her.

“Well, are we going or staying?” Kaiden asked.

To Caleb’s surprise, Kitty grabbed her suitcase and turned and looked at him.

“Let’s go,” she said, her eyes steely-colored and determined.

“I still haven’t slept and neither has Kitty. Kaiden you’re gonna have to drive.” He tossed his brother the keys to the car.

“All right. Kitty you get into the back with Caleb. Cuff yourself to her just in case. Take the pillow and blankets and cover up with them,” Kaiden ordered just before they exited the motel room.

Kitty grabbed the pillows under one arm and struggled with her suitcase. Caleb took the bag and looked at her softly.

“I’ll take this. You bring the pillows and blanket,” he said, wondering if this change of heart in Kitty was a ploy or not. A feeling of hope filled him as he looked into her pretty eyes.

“Thank you, Caleb,” she said and smiled.

After piling into the car, he and Kitty curled up in the backseat with the pillows and blanket as his brother sped away into the early morning light. The warmth of her body close to his and the smell of her hair had him smiling as he drifted off. His arms were wrapped protectively around the small frame of her as they slept.

* * * *

Two days had passed and the brothers took turns driving. They only stopped long enough to eat and get gas. Kitty wasn’t sure what they would do once they reached the Mexican border. It had her a little nervous. Her image had been all over the news, and there was no way they could cross legally. Caleb drove and had just entered Galveston, Texas. It was someplace she’d always wanted to go, but not quite under these circumstances.

“Head for the port. There’s a ship called
Morning Glory
waiting for us at pier twelve.”

“He’s here?’ Caleb sounded surprised.

“Yeah, so are a few of his friends,” Kaiden said, and Caleb became very quiet.

Kitty sat in the backseat, her hands cuffed to the door. Kaiden still didn’t trust her not to run. Both men, in fact, had become even more watchful of her and as they pulled into the marina. She saw them tensing up.

“Why are we here?” she asked.

“This is our trip out of the country, hon,” Kaiden said, looking at her from the front seat.

“Stay with her…I’ll go talk to him,” Caleb told his brother as they parked in the dark nearly deserted parking lot.

She watched Caleb as he headed for a large cigar boat where she saw four men stop him, frisk him and then two escorted him inside.

“Who is this and where are we going on a boat?” she asked Kaiden.

“You ask too many questions.”

“Kaiden, please…” She stopped as he turned and looked at her. His gaze locked on hers and she felt cowed by the glare.

Just last night as she’d slept in the backseat, she’d awoken to the two brothers discussing her. From the last bit of their conversation she’d gotten, it sounded as if Caleb and Kaiden both had designs on her. She felt the same way toward them. Both of them had qualities she found attractive, and it was hard to imagine them doing anything to hurt her.

“We’ll be able to stop running soon,” he said as she saw Caleb returning. Caleb glanced nervously around before he headed from the boat to the car.

“Come on, it’s all good,” he said, but his voice didn’t sound so sure.

“All’s forgiven?”Kaiden asked.

“Sort of…” Caleb replied. He still looked anxious.

“Sort of? I don’t like the sounds of that.” Kaiden nearly snarled and it made Kitty more than a little on edge.

“He says it has to be done tonight.” Caleb looked at Kaiden, and both of them gave her a sideways glance.

“What? Is he crazy?” Kaiden asked, not sounding happy about whatever it was they had to do tonight.

“We have no other choice right now,” Caleb said as he undid Kitty’s handcuff from the door handle and cuffed it to his wrist.

He didn’t look at her, and his gaze never made it to her face as they walked from the car. She felt the tension in both of them.

“Caleb, please tell me what’s going on,” Kitty said softly as they walked toward the boat. Two men came closer.

“It’ll be okay.” He still wouldn’t look her in the face. Something was wrong.

“Caleb, I don’t want to go on that boat,” she said as Kaiden’s hand firmly gripped her arm.

“It’s too late for that, Kitty.” Kaiden steered her in the direction of the two men. Both looked Latino and carried guns in holsters she could plainly see in the light of the full moon.

Fear seeped into her as she walked up the gangplank and was then immediately frisked by a rough-looking man with lots of scars on his face. They patted down Kaiden and Caleb, taking their guns before they were escorted inside. The three of them were brought before an older Latin-looking gentleman with white hair. He was tall and still very well-built for one who looked to be in his early seventies. He wore a crisp clean white light cotton outfit and smoked a cigar as he sat in an oversized armchair.

He eyed her from head to toe and then back again. There was something vaguely familiar about him, but Kitty couldn’t quite place it.

“This is the one?” the older man asked with a rich South American accent.

“Yeah,” Caleb said.

“Very nice choice, but why is she handcuffed to you? I thought you said she was here willingly?”

“She is… It’s just for show,” Kaiden said.

“Undo her then and come sit and have a drink,” he told them, not taking his gaze off her.

The boat began to move, and Kitty eyed Caleb as he undid her handcuffs. His jaw line seemed tight and as he stepped away. She noticed the older man carefully watching them.

“Well, now, little one…what is your name?”

“Kitty.”

“You’re kidding, right?” he asked with a light chuckle.

“No. It’s short for Katarina,” she told him sternly, not seeing the humor in her nickname.

“It’s beautiful as are you. Please sit.” He gestured to a place near him with a smile playing on his lips.

“My name is Caesar Lazerath. You must forgive them their poor manners. My sons are a little uncivilized at times.”

Kitty blinked. This was her abductor’s father.

Chapter Nine

Caleb waited for Kitty in the bedroom his father had assigned her. The shower stopped and he closed his eyes. Wearing only a pair of pajama bottoms as he sat on the edge of the double bed, he was nervous. He still hadn’t told her what would happen tonight. He wasn’t sure if she even wanted him. Her body did. He smelled her excitement every time they got close to one another. Yet that didn’t mean Kitty liked him.

He lifted his head as she walked out of the washroom. She stared at him for a long moment.

“Caleb, what’s wrong?”

“We need to talk, Kitty.” He patted a spot beside him on her bed.

“Why? Has something happened?”

“No… Not really,” he muttered as she sat next to him. She wore only a bathrobe, and as he turned to tell her, he froze.

Words would never work. She’d never believe he was a lycanthrope, or that she was about to become his mate and hopefully not die in the process. Then if the change didn’t kill her, he needed to explain that because he was a twin, Kaiden would also be her mate. He took a deep breath and smelled the air. Her fresh clean skin didn’t hide her musky desire, and he looked her in the eyes. Caleb didn’t bother with words. Lost in his need, he kissed her, not waiting to see if it was even something she’d wanted or not. He leaned her down onto the bed and pulled her bathrobe off her as he did.

Her long delicate fingers crept up into his hair as she returned his kiss with a delicateness that pulled at his heart. Their tongues slipped together, tracing along one another in a more intimate embrace. With a soft touch, he followed the outline of her face with a finger and trailed down her slender neck. Kitty was receptive and didn’t stop his hand’s slow descent toward her breast. As she moaned into his mouth as he fondled her with a light touch, he smelled her excitement, and he moaned as her need caused his cock to throb.

Her body stiffened slightly as he pulled his pajama pants off. He continued to kiss her as her shaky fingers traced the muscles along his chest on their way to his lower stomach. As he tormented her breast, she gasped lightly.

“Kitty, I want to make love to you,” he murmured into her mouth. Caleb pulled away, licking his way around her jaw line and down her neck. The taste of her skin sent a rush over him, and he wanted to taste all of her.

He found her nipple and teased it with his tongue until it stood at attention. He blew lightly on the wet tip, causing her to gasp again. Her puckered nipples were very responsive and he loved how they sat glistening in the light from the bathing of his tongue. His gaze traveled over her as her hand brushed his short, black curly hairs before it feathered ever so slightly over his cock. Caleb realized she was so much smaller than himself he’d have to be very gentle.

Kitty encircled him in her hand, her fingertips not able to touch. She blushed and bit her lip. It had to be the single sexiest thing he’d ever seen, and he gasped as his mouth descended to taste her sweet lips once more. Never had he wanted a woman so badly. Never had he been willing to risk so much for the chance to have a mate. Somehow in the past few days he’d found more than a mate but a friend and someone he could love. It scared him that it all could be lost this very night if Kitty’s body rejected the bite.

*

Caleb nibbled his way down from her jaw line until he found her nipple and licked the sensitive flesh. He bit it lightly as his fingers slid slowly into her. They were big and drew the wetness from her as they slid back and forth. He matched his movement with her hand wrapped around his large shaft. She’d never seen a man so big before.

She wasn’t sure if she was any good at this. Her only relationship had been a few years ago and it’d been a short-lived affair. Only ever having had sex a handful of times, she was far from skilled in the art of lovemaking. Kitty assumed Caleb must have had plenty of lovers, and she felt a bit out of sorts. What if she wasn’t what he was used to or any good in bed?

“I’m not very experienced,” she murmured.

“That’s okay. I think it’s a good thing.”

As she stroked him, he groaned and flexed his pelvis up. Caleb’s fingers matched his hip’s movements, and he buried them into her

“Oh yes.” She moaned as he rubbed the most exquisite spot inside her. It was as if a bolt of ecstasy had laced over her flesh. He did it again. This time Caleb hooked his finger and it increased the intensity of the feeling. She shuddered from head to toe, her legs stiffened and she jerked.

Suddenly he moved and kissed the soft flesh between her legs. The snap of pleasure coursed over her as his tongue darted over her clit. She groaned, pushing her pelvis higher to meet his touch. The feeling grew faster as he worked more feverishly and then it snapped. It sent her spiraling over the pinnacle of her orgasm. She thrashed as his fingers pulled free only to be replaced by his hot tongue.