Hello all. I hope you enjoy this next chapter. As always all feedback is welcome. :)
***
Ayden nervously paced in his study. It was passed seven o'clock and Jade wasn't home yet. Normally she was home around six and she always called if she was going to be late. He was worried, something didn't feel right, so he rang her mobile for the seventh time and it went straight to voicemail. He called work and there was no answer, obviously everyone had left for the night.
Something was nagging at Ayden causing a strange tugging sensation at his stomach. This was something he'd never experienced before. At first he put it down to his worry over Jade's lateness but it was persistent. Over his long life he'd learned to listen to his intuition as it had served him well in the past. Without pausing to over-think he grabbed his keys and headed out to her workplace.
The building was closed and security was tight. He didn't want to ask the guards preferring to keep this quiet for now. He made his way to the parking structure he knew Jade parked in. He followed the whispers of her scent straight to her parked car. Glancing in he noticed her bag and keys sitting on the seat.
Icy cold tentacles of fear gripped him. What happened? Where was she? What would make her leave all her things and go? There were several scents around the car other than Jade's. Ayden wasn't familiar with any of them. He followed them but they ended a few meters away. Thinking rapidly Ayden worked out that she must have gotten into another car. But did she go willingly or was she forced? With Marcus in town anything was possible.
Ayden embraced the fury that had slammed into him. There would be hell to pay for anyone that dared touch his Jade. And if they hurt her? Well Ayden was sure he could easily make all their nightmares come true. Making sure there was no-one around he quickly headed to the parking garage's main office. He needed to see those security tapes and figure out who had Jade.
***
'It's dark.' Thought Jade. She winced as she slowly lifted her head. The throbbing pain at the base of her skull protested loudly at her movement. Incrementally she opened her eyes. 'Oh not dark, I just had my eyes closed.' She mentally corrected as her vision came into focus. Her thoughts were fractured and slow. Nothing made sense. 'Breathe' she reminded herself.
After several deep breaths and clearer vision Jade realized she was in a room. A bedroom, judging by the large bed occupying the middle of the room. She tried to get up but couldn't. Without moving her head too much she looked down and around. 'Ok I'm tied to a chair.' She figured out. Her thoughts coming together a little better than earlier but still too slow for her liking.
Jade took an inventory of herself and the room. It looked like an ordinary room in and ordinary house except that there were no personal touches. No photographs, no books on the bedside table. It almost looked like a show-home. She tried to pull and wriggle out of her bindings but to no avail. Her wrists and ankles burned from the effort.
Time passed, how much Jade didn't know. All manner of thoughts were whirling around in her head. Why was she there? Who grabbed her outside her car? What did they want with her? What if they just left her here? As she pondered the implications of this last thought she heard the door open.
"So you're awake finally. Sorry about the knock on the head. Those boys were a little too enthusiastic in getting you here." Said a deep voice. Jade tried to move her head to see who was speaking but the pain was too much. Fortunately for her he moved around to stand in front of her.
Jade was face to face with the second most beautiful man she'd ever seen. He was fairer than Ayden but still had that appealing, insanely handsome look about him. It dawned on her immediately who he was. Marcus. Her mind spun with potential responses, she decided to go with silence. She sat quietly as Marcus looked her over apparently amused by her predicament. He was looking at her so long that she started to squirm under his scrutiny.
"Who are you and what do you want with me?" she asked defiantly.
"Mmm feisty little pet aren't you?" Marcus chuckled. "I can see what Ayden sees in you."
Jade tried to hold the intensity of his gaze but failed as she let her eyes fall to the floor. The door opened again and a woman entered. Jade gasped, she didn't think she'd ever seen a more beautiful creature. She walked over and draped herself on Marcus. The disgust on her face surprised Jade. "Marcus, can't we just kill her and be done with it? I'm so bored." She drawled.
"All in good time sweetheart. We'll wait for Ayden to get here, he will eventually. Then I can make sure he experiences the most exquisite of tortures as I kill his little pet in front of him before I kill him." Marcus said as he smiled contentedly.
Jade was beside herself. He was using her to get to Ayden. She couldn't allow this to happen. "But you are mistaken. He won't come after me. I am nothing to him. Just an arrangement for feeding." She attempted to explain.
Even as the words left her mouth Jade wondered as to their truth. She hoped, dreamed, wished that she meant something to him. But in the end she wasn't sure. What she did know was that she couldn't allow this creature to harm Ayden. Jade felt the emotion rise up in her and mentally clamped down on it with force. She had to be strong, for Ayden.
Marcus disentangled himself from Julia and approached Jade slowly. He bent over until his face was millimetres from hers. "Oh I think it is you who are mistaken. You must be important since he has marked you as his." He said quietly.
Jade frantically tried to look herself over. She couldn't see any discernable marks on her person. Looking up confused, she said "You lie."
