dock exit. “Run!” I shouted. “Get out of here!”
She didn’t need to be told twice. As quick as a rabbit she scuttled out of sight, her shoes echoing into silence as she fled. I didn’t have time to congratulate myself on a job well done, however, because I’d failed to consider my next move, once I’d managed to rescue the girl. My strength was indeed impressive, but I hadn’t managed to incapacitate any of the men. And now that I’d stripped them of their fun, they focused their combined energy on a new target.
I cursed my foolishness that I hadn’t paid better attention to my surroundings. They came at me from all sides, two in front and two behind. The two men behind me were angrier, considering I’d roughed them up a bit. I reached for the shadows, desperate to join their company. A ray of early morning sunlight filtered in through the roof and my heart stuttered in my chest. Too late. Something swooshed behind me and I spun. The heavy length of chain rushed at my face so fast I didn’t have time to react. It smashed against my head, and a bright white light of pain exploded in my skull moments before darkness swallowed me whole.
* * *
“Do what you want. I’m not taking a woman while she’s knocked out. Where’s the fun in that?” a muffled voice poked through the dark haze of my brain, pulling me from a state of nothingness.
“The way she tossed you around, Pete, it might be best to take her that way. Wonder why she’s dressed like a man,” another voice said.
“Who cares why? All that matters is what’s underneath her clothes.”
“She could be someone important,” a third voice entered the conversation. “Might be a bad idea to mess with her if we can make a buck off of her.”
“Ransom?” the first voice, Pete, asked.
Silence fell and I assumed the men were all contemplating the situation. It appeared that perhaps money meant more to them than the possibility of rape. Good for me, I supposed. Though at present, my situation could be considered anything but good. I couldn’t discern my surroundings, though I knew they’d moved me from Colman Dock. And though I couldn’t see the sky, the fact that I was confined to corporeality was proof enough that I hadn’t been unconscious for long.
My captors weren’t taking any chances with me. Heavy chain had been wound around my body several times, anchoring me to a post as big around as a large tree. My confidence that I could easily escape faltered. Though certain I could break even a thick rope, I didn’t think I could break through this much chain. I smelled the briny tang of the inlet and heard the gentle lap of water somewhere below me . . . no longer at Colman Dock, but we had to be close to the waterfront still.
Azriel had to be awake by now. I tried to push my worry to the back of my mind. Would he think I’d left him? God, I had to get back to him. I couldn’t let him think that he meant so little to me that I would simply sneak away while he slept.
“She’s not worth anything to us unless we figure out who she is.” The men began their plotting again, as they talked about me as if I were nothing but a fine piece of merchandise.
I refused to sit and wait to hear my fate decided by these imbeciles. They’d been out looking for sport, and when I’d ruined their good time, I became the consolation prize. I’d played the victim once, and it was not a role I planned to reprise. “I’m no one you want to tangle with. That’s all you need to know about who I am.”
All four of them turned to gawk. It’s not like they’d gagged me, so I wasn’t quite sure why they looked so shocked to hear me speak. “Guess we shouldn’t be surprised to see you up and talkin’.” I recognized the voice as belonging to Pete, the one who actually had a problem with raping an unconscious woman. If I had to guess, I’d say he was the “honorable” one in the group. “The way Sam here smacked you with that chain . . .
She didn’t need to be told twice. As quick as a rabbit she scuttled out of sight, her shoes echoing into silence as she fled. I didn’t have time to congratulate myself on a job well done, however, because I’d failed to consider my next move, once I’d managed to rescue the girl. My strength was indeed impressive, but I hadn’t managed to incapacitate any of the men. And now that I’d stripped them of their fun, they focused their combined energy on a new target.
I cursed my foolishness that I hadn’t paid better attention to my surroundings. They came at me from all sides, two in front and two behind. The two men behind me were angrier, considering I’d roughed them up a bit. I reached for the shadows, desperate to join their company. A ray of early morning sunlight filtered in through the roof and my heart stuttered in my chest. Too late. Something swooshed behind me and I spun. The heavy length of chain rushed at my face so fast I didn’t have time to react. It smashed against my head, and a bright white light of pain exploded in my skull moments before darkness swallowed me whole.
* * *
“Do what you want. I’m not taking a woman while she’s knocked out. Where’s the fun in that?” a muffled voice poked through the dark haze of my brain, pulling me from a state of nothingness.
“The way she tossed you around, Pete, it might be best to take her that way. Wonder why she’s dressed like a man,” another voice said.
“Who cares why? All that matters is what’s underneath her clothes.”
“She could be someone important,” a third voice entered the conversation. “Might be a bad idea to mess with her if we can make a buck off of her.”
“Ransom?” the first voice, Pete, asked.
Silence fell and I assumed the men were all contemplating the situation. It appeared that perhaps money meant more to them than the possibility of rape. Good for me, I supposed. Though at present, my situation could be considered anything but good. I couldn’t discern my surroundings, though I knew they’d moved me from Colman Dock. And though I couldn’t see the sky, the fact that I was confined to corporeality was proof enough that I hadn’t been unconscious for long.
My captors weren’t taking any chances with me. Heavy chain had been wound around my body several times, anchoring me to a post as big around as a large tree. My confidence that I could easily escape faltered. Though certain I could break even a thick rope, I didn’t think I could break through this much chain. I smelled the briny tang of the inlet and heard the gentle lap of water somewhere below me . . . no longer at Colman Dock, but we had to be close to the waterfront still.
Azriel had to be awake by now. I tried to push my worry to the back of my mind. Would he think I’d left him? God, I had to get back to him. I couldn’t let him think that he meant so little to me that I would simply sneak away while he slept.
“She’s not worth anything to us unless we figure out who she is.” The men began their plotting again, as they talked about me as if I were nothing but a fine piece of merchandise.
I refused to sit and wait to hear my fate decided by these imbeciles. They’d been out looking for sport, and when I’d ruined their good time, I became the consolation prize. I’d played the victim once, and it was not a role I planned to reprise. “I’m no one you want to tangle with. That’s all you need to know about who I am.”
All four of them turned to gawk. It’s not like they’d gagged me, so I wasn’t quite sure why they looked so shocked to hear me speak. “Guess we shouldn’t be surprised to see you up and talkin’.” I recognized the voice as belonging to Pete, the one who actually had a problem with raping an unconscious woman. If I had to guess, I’d say he was the “honorable” one in the group. “The way Sam here smacked you with that chain . . .
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