“I’m not hungry, and I don’t want water. All I want is to go home,” I snapped.
Tension radiated through Damon’s jaw, and a coldness became reflected in his eyes. “And you will—as soon as you paint me what I ask.”
“I already told you I can’t paint what you want. My gift doesn’t work like that.” I shook my head, ignoring the way it made bile rise up the back of my throat and swallowed hard. “I can’t be here. I have to go back. Now.”
Gran needed me.
The painting of our hands and the energy sparking between them flashed through my mind. My stomach bottomed out. With me being gone, that energy had stopped flowing.
I needed to get back to Gem Creek.
My gaze locked on the door to my right. If I could make it there, I might have a chance of getting free.
“As you can see, I don’t care. You will use your talent to paint what I ask,” Damon insisted. “And you’re not leaving here until you do so don’t even think of running. My guys are just outside the door, ready and waiting to haul you right back inside. Save yourself the struggle.” There was such harshness to his tone, such certainty, that I knew no amount of begging or pleading would get me anywhere with him. And as he rolled up the cuffs of his perfectly starched white button-down with his eyes never wavering from mine, I knew no amount of fighting would get me anywhere either. Damon was six feet tall and easily had a sixty pounds or more on me. He didn’t need the help of the guys waiting beyond the door to take me down. He could do it all on his own.
My bear nudged me, reminding me she was here and willing to try and take him if I let her. I couldn’t, though. Not because I didn’t think we would win, but because we weren’t in Gem Creek anymore. The view of skyscrapers outside the floor-to-ceiling windows behind Damon were proof. Shifting into my bear in a penthouse apartment in the middle of a city probably wasn’t the best idea.
City?
My mouth fell open. I focused on one of the buildings in the distance. It was a place I’d been before.
“You took me back to Denton?” I asked, dumbfounded.
“Yes.”
My hands flew to my temples. Shit. That meant I’ve been out for at least five hours, depending on how fast the moron driving me here had gone.
My stomach twisted because I knew Gran and Nash had to be flipping out.
Heck, I was sure everyone in the clan was by now. I’d gone to answer the door and was abducted from the campground.
“You didn’t hurt anyone when you took me, did you?” I asked, praying he said no.
Damon’s eyes flashed with his snake again. “Only those who tried to get in the way.”
My pulse hammered in my ears as pure rage swam through my veins.
“If you hurt my Gran, just know that I will kill you,” I seethed through clenched teeth, not holding back the venom in my tone.
Damon’s head flung back, and he laughed. It was deep and venomous sounding, exactly like I’d expect a villain’s laugh to sound. “What kind of monster do you think I am, Miss Mathers? I would never hurt an old woman. Especially not one as sick as your grandmother.” His eyes darkened, and his expression seemed to harden.“If you’d like to return to her before she passes, I suggest you paint what I request.”
Angry tears built in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of seeing me cry.
“I need to use my phone,” I said.
Damon grinned. “Not happening.”
“I need to make sure my Gran is okay and let her know that I’m okay too.”
Damon rubbed his chin in thought, his eyes never wavering from mine. “Okay. I’ll agree to let you call her. You can ask how she is, and let her know you are unharmed, but nothing else. You will not tell her where you are.”
“Why?” I asked. “Are you afraid some bears might come for you?”
I knew I shouldn’t provoke him, but I couldn’t help myself.
Damon dashed across the apartment, his eyes flashing with his snake, and grabbed hold of my upper arm. His fingers squeezed so hard I knew they’d leave a bruise. I didn’t make a noise though. I refused to give him that satisfaction. My bear grew agitated. I could feel her fur bristle, and a low grumble rippled through her. She wanted Damon to remove his hand from us. I allowed her to scratch the surface close enough to brighten my eyes, sending him a reminder that I wasn’t a weak human. He needed to tread lightly.
“Call your Gran. Tell her I’ll return you unharmed if you do what I ask,” Damon seethed through gritted teeth as he released my arm. “If you breathe a word of where you are, I can guarantee you won’t like what happens next.” His tongue flicked out like a snake as his eyes elongated again, and for the first time since I’d met him, I wondered exactly what type of snake he was.
“Noted,” I breathed.
He reached into his back pocket and pulled out my cell, then tossed it to me. I dialed Gran’s number.
“Sam! Are you okay? Where are you?” she answered on the second ring. “And who the hell were those guys?”
“I’m fine. I’ll be home soon. Please take care of yourself, okay? Rest.”
“Rest? How can you tell me to rest when you were taken off my front porch by slimy snake shifters?” Gran demanded.
“Tell that bastard I’ll kill him,” Nash shouted in the background. “All of them.”
“Shh, be quiet.” Gran scolded him. “Sam, tell me where you are.”
Damon snatched the phone out of my hand and ended the call before I could reply. “You said what you needed. Your grandmother is fine. Now
