Chapter 16: So Close

I am jolted awake as I feel my body shift back to my human form.

‘Bree what’s happening?!’

‘I can sense him! He’s near!’ And with that, she disappears deep into my subconscious. SHIT! 

I scramble to my feet off the cot, grab the thin blanket, and wrap it around me. With Callen near, I can’t risk my scent getting out in the woods. 

Just as I come to my senses, I hear noise around the shack and start to freak out. The door to the shack flings open and Charley runs in and shuts the door.

“They’re coming for your Celeste! Shh!” Charley whispers as he moves to a giant old and dingy rug I barely noticed covering the ground. I watch him as he pulls the rug up and lifts a door with a latch.

He motions for me to come over to him and points to the dark hole in the ground. He wants me to climb into this dark hole in the ground that I didn’t even know existed. I’m so panicked I don’t even hesitate and start climbing the creaky wooden stairs down into the cellar-type hole. It’s dark, dusty and I don’t even want to begin to think about what is down here with me as he closes the trap door and recovers it with the rug. I cover my mouth to keep from anything possibly hearing my breathing as my heart pounds in my chest. 

“ANY LUCK IN THE SHACK?!” I hear Callen shout at Charley.

“Sorry Alpha, it’s empty! That was our last place in the territory to look. Most rogues and runaways find this place and hide here, but it doesn’t look like anyone has been in here in a long time.” I hear Charley say as Callen walks into the shack and stomps around above me.

Tears start to trail down my face as I pray to the moon goddess that he can’t smell my fear or my scent in any way, especially with as much of Dante’s scent on me as I hope I have all over me still. Callen’s scent has to be nearly gone from me even though it’s only been three weeks or so since he last took me. I know Alpha Stanley’s contribution to my scent certainly helped mask his scent mark in the beginning, and now with Dante’s scent all over me, I just can’t see how his scent lingers on me anywhere anymore. Oh PLEASE Moon Goddess, PLEASE don’t let him find me here!

“C`mon, let's keep moving. She must be around here somewhere! She can’t hide forever.” Callen growls as he leaves the shack, slamming the rickety door on his way out. 

I uncover my mouth and openly exhale while wiping the tears and whatever else is streaking down my face at that point. 

Now, what to do until Charley comes back. I’m too scared to climb out of this cellar now, but it’s so damn dark in here! I feel around and with a stroke of luck, I think I have found a candle by the stairs! If there is a candle down here, that means, there have to be matches or something to light the candle with down here! I keep shuffling around blindly and as luck would have it, I find a small box near the candle that feels like a box of matches.

“Please, oh please…” I whisper as I pull open the box, pick up a stick, and attempt to strike it against the box. Nothing happens with that one so I toss it. I keep trying until eventually one lights and I celebrate to myself for a quick minute until I get the candle lit and use it to light the cellar. 

When the candle is lit and I pick it up to take inventory of what is around me in this cellar, I immediately get a wave of nausea. I see a chair in the corner and move to it to try and brace myself until the nausea passes. The stench in here hits my nostrils and I can’t push the nausea down anymore and I throw up stomach acid. I haven’t eaten in two days and the last water I had was a sip from the sink of Dante’s bathroom as I was splashing water on my face yesterday morning. 

I have to get out of here and get some water and food or I won’t be alive much longer. I wipe my mouth, find my purse clutch, and remember my phone! Maybe it still has some battery to shine light in here. I pick it up and turn the light on and between that light and the candle, the place is illuminated. I quickly notice a can of some preserved food on a shelf towards the back of the cellar. I don’t care what it is, I grab it, immediately pop the jar’s lid, and begin eating it. 

Beets. Gross. I hate beets but right now, they taste like the most exquisite thing I’ve ever had! Could the Moon Goddess be generous and leave a bottle of water down here somewhere? I looked around some more but got no such luck. I look at the clock on my phone - it’s ten in the morning. I hope Charley comes back soon. 

I watch videos on my cell phone from the life I knew before and flip through my photo album. I laugh and cry at the same time several times at some of the memories I flip across. Suddenly, so much time seems to have passed. Where did my life go? What have I done? How am I going to get myself out of this? What is going to happen to my friends and family…my pack? 

I already destroyed my sim card, so there’s no turning back and calling him and surrendering at this point. I’m terrified of what he will do to me. Callen will probably leave me within an inch of my life every night for a month for making him scour this pack for me. The longer I wait to surrender, the worse it will be. 

‘Bree? Is he far enough away that you can come out?’ No response. He’s still too close. At least it isn’t as cold in here as it is up there. It’s the south, and it’s Texas no less. But, I guess no matter where you are naked, you’re going to feel cold and want to cover yourself in some way. 

My phone’s battery is super low on battery, so I guess it’s time for me to power it off. I curl up on the chair, since Bree isn’t going to shift anytime soon, and try to nap until Charley comes. 

I jump as I hear stomping coming from above me. Someone is in the shack and is moving the floor rug. I can’t smell anything in here but dirt and something rancid that makes me want to gag every time I attempt to smell anything down here. I have no idea if it’s Charley, but I pray silently to myself that it is him. 

“Celeste!” I hear him whisper as he pokes his head and one arm down into the cellar.

“Celeste! C`mon! We don’t have much time!” He reaches out for me and I jump up and grab his hand as I attempt to climb the stairs back up and into the shack.

“Here, put these on,” He hands me some men's clothes that are obviously way too big for me. I’m sure they’re from his closet and I’m grateful for the coverage. I quickly put the oversized shirt and basketball shorts on. 

“I don’t have the feet of a mouse like you, so I grabbed some flip-flops from the dollar store on the way. Here.” He hands me cheap plastic flip-flops and I gratefully slip them on. 

Charley could be killed for helping me like this. As it is, Joan had to tell Callen I ran away to this pack, but apparently she kept her cousins out of it, thank the goddess for that! 

“Do they know I’m hiding at your place?” I have to ask to be sure.

“No. Joan didn’t tell them. She said he knew you were here from tracking your phone, he just wanted her to confirm it. She told him you just told her you were going to leave for college early and she didn’t think you meant so soon.”

I nod, “Thank you. I know this could get you and your brother killed. Once we get back to your place, I’ll get my things and leave you guys so you don’t get caught. I would never forgive myself if anything happens to you two!”

“Shut up. You won’t be going anywhere. Who else is going to keep an eye on you and make sure that ass-wipe doesn’t find you?” He smiles as he opens the backseat of his SUV motioning for me to climb inside.

“I’m starving!” I say once we are driving. 

“I figured as much. Here.” He tosses a fast food bag filled with cheeseburgers back to me and I don’t waste any time practically inhaling all four burgers. 

“Oh…my…goodness, I love you!” I moan as I lick my fingers and lips as I finish them, “Thank you SO MUCH!”

“Stop thanking me. I know you’d help anyone in the same situation. I’ve kept in touch with your mom too. She sent me some money to keep you hidden if you need to go deep underground…so-to-speak.” I nod as I suck down the drink and bottled water he passes me. 

“I read my mom’s text before I realized Callen was tracking me with my phone and crushed the sim card. I thought my parents didn’t care what happened to me after what Callen did to me in my bedroom and they did nothing to stop him.” I explain to Charley. I can’t believe it was so easy to tell him that.

“What did he do to you in your room?”

I look out the window as I watch the town pass me by and zone out thinking back to that day. I instantly get sick to my stomach.

“It’s okay if you don’t want to tell me. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry at a bad memory. I can’t imagine what you’re going through.” He quickly interjects to try and make me feel comfortable about not telling him.

I just nod, “To be honest, I can’t really bring myself to talk about it because not even I can make sense of what happened. All I know is I have to get away from him.”

“Well…you’re not his Luna if you won’t even go to him, that’s for sure!” Charley laughed to himself.

“What do you mean? I never was his Luna. He hasn’t marked me. I’ll kill myself before letting him mark me!”

“That’s my point! He keeps parading around the pack declaring you are his Luna and we all need to keep searching until you turn up so he can drag you back to his pack. If you really were his Luna, he would be able to find you a lot easier using the mate bond. Not to mention, Luna’s don't run away from their Alpha!” Charley laughed openly at Callen’s idiocy. 

“He’s just acting like a possessive, dominant, spoiled brat Alpha!” I roll my eyes hearing how Callen is treating everyone in this pack.  

“Yep! So what’s this other situation you seem to have gotten yourself in? Why is my alpha in search of a woman that mysteriously disappeared from his bed this morning and I happened to find my roommate-in-hiding trying to dig out right before he lost his shit? Hm? Care to explain?”

I roll my eyes and groan, “Yeeeeaaahhhh…about that,” I rub my face and sigh, “He bought out the club the night before just so I would go home with him,” I start to explain before Charley jumps in, “WHAT? And you left with him?!”

“Chill! I wouldn’t have left with him if my damn wolf hadn’t started pumping a shit ton of hormones into my body to make me so damn horny that I lost control of my body.” I groan out.

“Why did your wolf do that to you? Has it been that long since you last got laid?” Charley laughed.

I groan, hiding my face in my lap in the back seat trying not to look at Charley in the rear-view mirror. 

“Celeste…what are you not telling me?”

I don’t want to admit to him what I’m hiding and I’m scared that he will tell his alpha where I am if I admit it to him.

“Can…can you just be okay with that much right now?” I look up at him with desperate eyes.

“Will you promise to tell me when you feel more comfortable?”

I smile, that’s fair enough, “PROMISE! Thank you!”

He smiles up at me in the mirror as we pull into the driveway to the house.

Once inside, I bolt immediately to the bathroom. On my way, I shout, “Can you call Tisha and tell her my phone broke and I’ve been sick in bed the last two days and that’s why I missed my last two shifts?”

“Sure thing princess!” Frank says.

“Thank you!” I shout as I turn the shower on and begin rinsing all the filth off my body.

Once clean and refreshed, I get dressed and dolled up again. Charley comes and leans against the door frame watching me put my makeup on, “So, you go through all that drama and you are going right back to work? As if nothing happened?” He looks shocked.

“Do I look like I have a choice, Charley? I need the money! Dante shut the club down that night but I didn’t get my cut. I have to go back so I can get paid and keep my job!”

“You have a death wish or something…what if Callen goes to the club?” Frank questions from the couch as he continues watching the Sunday night football game.

“Callen won’t go near a strip club while he’s looking for his ‘mate’!” I use air quotes when I say mate as I roll my eyes.

“If you say so princess,” Charley smirks and goes to sit and watch the football game.

When I finished getting ready I asked, “What did Tisha say when you told her I have been sick?” 

“Huh? Oh, she said you have a shift tonight and wanted you to call and let her know if you are going to make it for your shift,” Frank explained not taking his eyes off the TV.

“Here sweetie, take my phone. Call Frank’s phone if you run into trouble and we’ll come get you. Take my car too. We will park your car in the garage to hide it. Callen has every law enforcement agency between here and your pack looking for your car,” Charley says as he hands me his phone and keys. 

“I promise I will make this all up to you guys!” I smile, grateful for everything they’re doing for me.

They both throw a hand in the air as if swatting a fly to let me know they don’t care as they keep their eyes on the TV. 

“Just be safe Celeste! Joan will cut my nuts off if anything happens to you!” Charley roars as I head out the door.

I laugh at that, “Let’s not have your balls getting chopped off anytime soon now!”

“Yeah! I happen to be VERY attached to the right one!” I hear him chuckle as the door shuts behind me.