Rourk (Keegan's Chronicles Series Book 4) (12 page)

“Oh, it makes a world of difference. Men like your Rourk do not like the idea of anyone else touching what is rightfully theirs.”

The d’jinn reached down and cut her legs free. Keegan slammed her knee into his face. Blood splattered across the stones. He was momentarily stunned, but then an evil grin passed over his face. It was as if he enjoyed the pain.

“You will pay for that,” he snarled.

Keegan struggled to get to her feet, and he grabbed a fistful of her hair and savagely yanked her upright. He tossed her to the ground as if she weighed nothing. Her bare back scrapped on the concrete floor. Her head slammed against the cement. The shear pain made her scream in agony. Her head spun, and her vision blurred.

In a flash, he was on top of her. His huge body practically swallowed hers. Roughly, he pushed her legs apart and settled between them. Keegan whimpered. His large hands raked her body. Maybe enraging him hadn’t been the best idea.

He undid his belt.
Evil. Pure evil.

This can’t be happening.

“Please don’t. My baby. I’m pregnant.” Keegan managed to choke out through her sobs.

The d’jinn recoiled as if she had told him she had some horrible disease.

“You are with child?” he whispered dangerously.

She nodded her head, hot tears covering her face.

The d’jinn pulled her forward. The next thing she knew, she was flying through the air and slamming against the wall—again. The impact knocked the wind from her lungs. Sliding down the wall, she landed with a thump. Keegan blinked her eyes, trying to clear her vision.

In an instant the d’jinn stood over her. Rage flared in his eyes.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw he had dropped the knife to the floor. If only she could reach it. Dear spirits, give her the strength she so desperately needed.

He leaned down, his cold eyes glaring. Using all of her energy, Keegan rammed the heel of her palm square into his nose. With a sickening crunch, she heard the bones snap beneath her hands. It should have killed him, or at least disabled him, but he just smiled at her through the blood. What the hell?

She skittered away towards the corner. Her freedom didn’t last long; he was on her before she had time to think.

The d’jinn slammed her against the wall, holding her by her throat. Her feet hung several inches above the ground. She couldn’t breathe, and thrashed sideways, kicking, but it just made it worse. She clawed at his hand, trying to escape. He was going to kill her. She was going to die and would never know her baby.

The wild, savage look in his eyes shook her to the core. She didn’t even see the fist coming. A heavy fist slammed into her stomach. Keegan looked down at her belly, she couldn’t get her breath. The d’jinn slammed his fist into her face. Blood filled her mouth. Hatred filled her body.

Something inside her snapped. A rage filled her like none she had known before. The familiar coldness washed over, and she knew she had accessed the dark magick within her. The d’jinn froze in place. His hand still wrapped tightly around her throat.

Somehow she managed to pry herself free— his fingers actually broke off and fell to the floor with a clatter.

Every part of her body screamed with pain. She scrambled on her hands to grab the knife. She didn’t know how long he would be frozen and she wasn’t going to stick around to find out. Using the chair, she pulled herself up to her knees. Her legs trembled, and she stumbled twice before she was able to stand. Every bone in her body felt bruised.

She didn’t have time to worry about pain. She stumbled to the door, getting used to being on her feet again. She couldn’t seem to make her legs move fast enough. It felt as if she was walking in slow motion through marshmallows, but with each step, her feet regained more feeling until she was finally able to run.

CHAPTER 18   

Keegan ran down the dark, narrow, twisting stone corridor. She had no idea where she was going. Her bare feet thumped against the stone floor. Torches hung on the wall making the shadows dance eerily.

She rounded a corner to the left, and a large wooden door loomed ahead. Not wasting the chance, she crashed into it and nearly squealed when the heavy door opened. Bursting into the afternoon light, Keegan was disoriented for a moment. The sun had actually broken free from the clouds, causing her to squint. Hopefully, that was a good omen.

She had no idea which way to go, so she ran forward. In the distance, she could see trees. Trees meant shelter.

She ran. She had never run so fast in her life. Her hair streamed behind her. She covered her bare chest for a while, but it slowed her down. She let her hands drop, still grasping the knife, and dug in. Now was not the time for modesty.

Rocks and branches crunched under her bare feet. Cold air stung her face.

Lungs bursting, she sprinted for the trees. She ran harder, leaving behind the evil that had plagued her. Her muscles ached but she pushed harder. Ignore the pain. Several times, she stumbled on rocks, but she got back to her feet and pushed on.

Once she reached the tree line, Keegan stole a quick glance back over her shoulder. She could see the stone cottage off in the distance. She hadn’t been followed. Hope filled her chest. She’d done it. She’d escaped from the monster. But she couldn’t slow down. She knew the d’jinn would not give up, and if he caught her again, he would kill her. That much she was sure of. She still couldn’t believe he had hit her in the stomach. She couldn’t think about that now. She had to find her way out and get to her mother. If any damage  had been done, her mom could fix it.

At the edge of the woods, Keegan stopped to catch her breath, gulping for air. She had to keep moving. Keegan heard animals skittering through the woods, and that spurred her on. She ran hard through the thick underbrush. Branches tore at her pants, cut her feet, slashed her arms, and smacked her face.

She had no idea where she was.

Why couldn’t she use her gift? If she could just disappear… Why had she been able to access the dark magick, but not use her power from the light? It made no sense. Somehow the d’jinn must have been able to block her gift. The dark magick in her had always seemed to have a mind of its own. She had never been more grateful for the ability to tap into the dark magick with her anger.

She was dizzy, cold, and faint with hunger. The muscles in her legs quivered with fatigue. Tears streamed down her face. Her hair was plastered against her face from sweat, and was a knotted mess from the twigs.

Focus. If she wanted to live through this, she had to get her bearings. She needed to survive for Rourk and their baby. Keegan swayed and slumped against a tree. She rubbed her belly. “It’s going to be okay.”

Determined to save her baby, she pressed forward, even though every fiber of her body wanted to stop and curl up in a ball and cry.

Of course, the only way to go was up. Keegan climbed as fast as she could, grabbing ahold of rocks and branches to pull herself up. Her breathing came in gasps as she continued up the slope, which was starting to feel like a mountain. She fought for every step through the thick underbrush.

Thorns and branches tore at her flesh. Blood covered her arms and chest. The tall trees cast long shadows in the impending darkness.

She had no idea how much time had passed. It seemed like an eternity, but was probably more like a few hours. The sun had fully set, and she was alone in the woods. Well, her and anyone or anything else that was roaming the woods. A chill ran down her spine.

The adrenaline from the escape had worn off. She ached everywhere. She didn’t know if she should try to sleep or continue on. She had stopped a while back to use the bathroom, but she should probably keep moving. Continue where? Where the hell was she? If she fell asleep, she might get attacked by a wild animal. Hell, she might get attacked if she didn’t sleep.

If only she could see a light. Anything. But this was Washington State and there were no shortage of forests. Who knew how long it would take for her to break from the trees. Panic started to set in. Her stomach cramped.

“It’s okay little one.” Keegan talked to her belly. “Momma’s going to get us out of this nightmare.”

Taking one step at a time, she continued to climb. Her hands were raw, and she was glad she couldn’t see her feet. They had to be a mess.

A fat drop of rain splattered on her face, soon followed by a steady downfall. “Are you kidding me!” Keegan screamed.

Before long, rain water was running down her neck and back, and she was freezing.

Don’t think. Just keep moving.
It was just rain, she wasn’t going to melt.

A wolf howled in the distance and a shiver ran through her.

Keegan tried to conjure up Rourk’s image in her mind’s eye, and still nothing. How had the d’jinn blocked her gift? She wished she knew more about the creatures. If only she had her damn iPhone. Wiki usually had a sliver of mythology correct.

Slogging up a hill, Keegan nearly wept. Up ahead was a shelter of sorts, probably set up for hikers trekking across the mountain. Maybe someone would be there with a phone, or clothes. And even if not, at least she could get shelter from the rain. She was drenched and freezing. Apparently, Seattle had not gotten the memo that it was spring.

Keegan stumbled through the brush in the dark, making her way towards the shelter. She stopped and listened, hoping to hear voices, but all she heard was rain pelting the trees and her heart pounding in her ears. Taking a deep breath, she crept forward.

The shelter was abandoned. It was too much to hope for that there would be a sleeping bag left behind. At least there was a cover and a seat. She would do anything to have Anna’s power to light fire. She was cold, miserable, and soaking wet.

Her legs buckled, and she crumbled onto the wooden plank. She was grateful it was too dark to see any spider webs, or other animals that might have made the shelter their home. She curled up on her side. How long had it been since she had slept?

Keegan glanced up at the star-filled night, and ached with longing for her chosen.

She barely finished the thought before she went limp and fell into a fitful sleep.

Keegan stirred with a groan. Her whole body and heart ached, and she winced in pain. The memory of yesterday came crashing down on her.

Opening one eye, she wondered what had woken her. A creak caused her eyes to snap opened. Her head was still throbbing. What was that noise? It was still dark, but it looked like the sun was starting to rise. Thankfully, the rain had stopped.

Something scurried up her arm, and Keegan let out a yelp, smacking the bug off her.

Frantically, she tried to compose herself. Her scream had alerted whatever was out there of her presence.

It was too quiet, Keegan realized. No crickets, frogs, or birds making their morning music. It was just dead quiet, and it filled her with dread. Maybe the creaking was from the wind.

As her eyes adjusted to the dark, Keegan saw what had made the noise.

The wolf raised its head, his eyes glinting through the mist.

Her heart hammered in her chest. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. Another bug crawled across her toes. Keegan glanced down; it was a large brown centipede. Using her other foot, she flicked it off.

The wolf’s ears perked up. A low growl came from his fanged mouth. His powerful muscles flexed.

Keegan froze. Hesitantly, she uncoiled herself. She must not panic. Where was the knife? It must have fallen from her hand while she slept.

There was no one there to save her. She had to save herself.

A mental image of the wolf tearing her apart did not help.

Keegan struggled to control her panicked breathing. She pushed herself farther into the corner. She wrapped her arms tightly around her naked chest and pulled her legs closer to her body, hiding her face. Maybe if she didn’t meet its eyes, it would go away.

The wolf padded into the shelter. Keegan held her breath.

She held a trembling hand out towards the creature. It took a tentative step forward. Keegan reached over and gently stroked its  coarse fur. When she thought it was safe, she lifted her head.

They stared at each other for a long time, and then his eyes began to glow before her own eyes.

Her mind raced.
This can’t be happening, she thought.
She couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

D’jinn.

Keegan could scarcely believe her eyes when the wolf actually grinned at her, showing his long, sharp teeth. Teeth that could easily tear her to pieces. The hairs on her neck stood on end, and she thought she might faint from fright. She pressed herself further against the wall, willing herself to disappear. Of course, nothing happened. Tears streamed down her face, and her chin quivered.

Then it did something she would have never expected. It turned and walked away. When it was out of eyesight, Keegan jumped to her feet, but when she tried to leave the shelter, she couldn't. It was as if an invisible shield was holding her in. After nearly thirty minutes of trying to leave the shelter she sank to the ground and pulled her knees up, wrapping her arms around them.

What she saw as she opened her eyes was worse than anything she had seen yet. No. No. No. No. She moaned, and then she screamed. Blood. With her head tucked between her legs, she realized her pants were soaked with blood.

“Not my baby,” she wailed, rocking back and forth. “Please, not my baby!”

CHAPTER 19   

Rourk and Thaddeus strode into Rourk’s house. Even through his tension, Rourk could feel the powerful energy of magick crackle in the air as soon as he stepped through the door.

Anna.

He almost didn’t notice Tommy standing out of the way in the kitchen. Rourk met Tommy’s eyes and nodded once.

“Anything?” Thaddeus asked.

Anna looked up from her circle and glared at Thaddeus before she bent her head back down. Eyes closed, she chanted something only she could understand.

Rourk’s patience was wearing thin, but at this point Anna was their only hope. He had tried on his own to reach Keegan over and over again, with no luck. It scared the hell out of him. If they could at least be in contact…