Cat's Choice (25 page)

***

Stephanie Prose looked down at her watch as she climbed gingerly into the cab to take her to the S&M clubhouse she belonged to. It was a little after noon, it had taken all her efforts to convince Roarke that she was still okay with the levels, he’d taken their sessions. It was her day off, and he’d kept her nearly all night. She’d gone home and taken a long hot shower and tried to sleep —she couldn’t. So she got up and changed into soft clothes. She couldn’t put on underwear as she wouldn’t be able to stand the rubbing of a thong between her ass cheeks.

All she wanted was rest, but she knew she needed to see a doctor, and she knew she needed to get out of town . Mistress Marlene’s husband was a Sub and a doctor; m ore than once he’d taken care of other subs for small injuries or if a situation got out of control at the club . Legally, she could press charges. She hadn’t consented to be fucked by those other men. Roarke’s friend, Diavolo, had even changed his mind and given her Roarke’s third punishment, though he had cleaned her off some first.

He had been huge, so she was grateful he’d fucked her pussy instead of her ass. It was almost as if he could control the amount of blood swelling his dick as he pounded into her. And then he started biting her. It felt like he was flaying her alive, the pain was intense. She couldn’t hold back the screams and fainted in truth. In the end, the fact that she took it so calmly and gave Roarke the reaction he wanted is what convinced him to let her leave.

Her memories stopped as they pulled up in front of the club. She paid off the cab-driver and eased her way out. It hurt to bend too much at the hips. The padding on that upright had been minimal , and the handcuffs used to tie her down weren’t padded either, so she had restraint bruising on her wrists and ankles too; though, the bruises on her hips and thighs were the worst.

She rang the bell, and Sam came to the door almost immediately. “Hey Steph, it’s really early; Marlene is still sleeping. I was just about to fix her something to eat.”

“Oh Sam,” and she started to cry a little. “I’m so glad you’re here. I’m hurt; I think I’m hurt bad.” Then she really broke down as he led her inside and closed and locked the door.

“Marlene! We have an emergency. I need your help!” he shouted going into doctor mode. Within a few minutes, Marlene came running down the stairs in red silk robe.

“Sam? What’s going on?”

“Stephanie’s here, she says she’s hurt bad. I’ll need you to be nurse, okay?” Sam asked.

“Sure thing, oh Stephanie, come on with me, and we’ll get you taken care of. Then we’ll talk. If there’s a Dom that’s gotten out of control, then you’ll have to tell me about it. Sam and I will spread the word. Thank God he’s on vacation, or he’d be at his office,” said Marlene.

“I’m sorry for ruining your vacation,” Stephanie whimpered to Sam.

“Don’t worry about that, let’s get you fixed up.” They had reached the room he used for quick exams . He had started his practice at home and left one room set up when he moved.

The exam lasted almost an hour, and she told them the details of what had been done to her physically. Marlene and Sam both were getting pretty steamed. “Multiple partners without your permission! No condoms and no lube! You tell me who this guy is, he’ll be blackballed in more than just Cleveland when I’m through,” muttered Marlene as Sam did his best to treat her.

“All your bruises will heal up in a couple of weeks. Those puncture wounds on your back may take a little longer. The thing that concerns me the most is your rectum. If you begin having incontinence issues, you’ll need to have further testing and possible surgery,” said Sam. Then he turned to his wife, “This guy deserves everything you can throw at him , honey.”

“I see that you’ve showered. Don’t you want to see him prosecuted? You were raped , sweetie; this wasn’t consensual,” asked Marlene. As a lawyer, she would jump on that.

“No, Marlene; while he went over the line and deserves that, this guy is truly dangerous. I’m planning on leaving town for a while,” said Stephanie.

Marlene tried to talk her into going to the cops for about twenty minutes, but when she saw how adamant Stephanie was; she let up.

“Then let’s figure this out. I’ll spread the word to the community and get volunteers to pack up your stuff and put it in storage. Do you have enough cash to get by for a couple of months? You shouldn’t be working until you’re healed.

“I tell you what; let me work up a quick power of attorney. How much money do you have in your account?” When Stephanie named a sum, she said, “Okay, I can cover that with what’s in the office safe. You sign the power of attorney, and I’ll take care of your stuff while you’re gone.

“Now don’t cry, we’ll see that you’re okay. The S&M community will help.” And she bustled from the room to get started as Sam came back in with a loose, soft dress for her to put on.

“Sam, the battery on my cell’s dead, and anyway, it has GPS on it, so I’m not going to take it with me. Do you have a cell phone I can borrow?” she asked.

“Sorry, hon, I don’t. You have a rest on the couch, and I’ll run down to the convenience store and get you one of those pay as you go phones,” he said.

“Sam, don’t let Marlene go off on one of her crusades. These guys are dangerous. I think they killed Stacy and Tara. Spread the word quietly and stay away. If anyone comes here asking questions, if they don’t know the magic word, send them away. You act dumb, okay? Please?” said Stephanie. “They’re planning something in Colorado; I’m going to warn them, maybe go there. I don’t want to tell you anymore. The less you know the better.”

Then she lay down on the couch. About an hour later, she was using her new cell phone to contact the police department in Milliken , Colorado. She wanted to call them before she hopped a bus out of town.

“Sherriff’s department, what is the nature of your emergency?”

“I heard two men planning a murder in your town. I don’t know who is going to be killed. They said they would blame it on the Amsetti’s or Ambroshti’s, I’m sorry I don’t remember the name,” said Stephanie.

“I’m going to put you through to the chief. It’s important that you hold on, okay?” said the dispatcher.

“Okay, I won’t hang up,” said Stephanie. A few moments later, Lev Adler came on the line, and she repeated what she said to the dispatcher. He asked to elaborate a little, the more she said the more worried he became.

“Stephanie, this is very serious, and you may be in danger. I know the people being threatened, and they are wealthy. They have private security that will work with me, and I’m sure that they’d be willing to provide protection for you in exchange for this information. Would you like me to set that up?” Lev asked.

“Yes, but I’m scared to stay here in Cleveland. I was planning on hopping a bus out of town.”

“Are you someplace safe now? I might be able to get someone there in a few hours. Can you think of a magic word? I’ll tell it to my guy so you know they are safe and there to protect you.”

“I can’t think; I don’t know; I’m sorry I’m just so scared.”

“That’s all right, honey; we’re going to take good care of you. I’m going to send two people; one will be a man, and one will be a woman. That way, you’ll be more comfortable. For our word, how about the phrase ‘I love bears.’ Can you remember that?” When he was assured that she remembered, he asked if she would like a female officer to stay on the line and keep her company until her guards arrived. She said that wouldn’t be necessary, she was with friends. Just before they hung up, he thanked her again and promised to call back in a few minutes with descriptions of the people coming to get her.

After hanging up the phone, he immediately called the compound and asked to speak with Quin, and to ask Dalton to be called to Quin’s office. He held on the line until they were there and had him on speaker. He went over the woman’s story with them.

He concluded with, “Quin, I think this Stephanie has a lot of information from the sounds of it. However, she doesn’t know about shifters or the magical community. As fragile as she is now, I don’t think bringing her to the compound is a good idea.”

Then Jaden added, “I agree; we should have her taken to Denver. They obviously have us under observation here in Milliken.”

“Dalton, I want you to transport yourself and Cloe to Cleveland, rent a car and drive to Denver as fast as you can. Norma l drive time is around 20 hours. Once she falls asleep, you can go faster and fix it so the highway patrol doesn’t see you. Cloe is the only female Enforcer, and if she’s in bad shape, Cloe can help her too.

“Once you get to Denver, turn her over to Sarah and Judy. They’ve been shifters for less than a year and will take good care of her. If it turns out she needs surgery, they can take care of that at the Pack house too. Then you and Cloe transport back here, so any watchers don’t know you’re gone,” said Quin.

After he’d given them the address, he reminded them, “Don’t forget the secret pass phrase, so she knows you’re the good guys. It’s ‘I love bears; ‘ you should be able to remember that , Dalton,” said Lev. “Once you have her safe, and you’re out of town, Cloe can get all the details, everything she can remember , and get them to us as soon as possible.”

“Um, guys,” said Dalton, “I hate to put a damper on this plan. But Bama’s due any day, and no one really knows when Trinity’s going to go into labor. Are we sure taking Cloe out of town for 24 hours is a good idea?”

“Damn, that’s right, Cloe won’t want to leave the women,” said Quin.

“Stephanie has been seen by a doctor, so it’s not necessary that she have one with her for the trip. She needs protection more and a female shoulder to cry on,” said Lev.

“I think the best thing would be to send Judy or Sarah, even as humans, they could handle themselves in a fight. Remember how they fought Braden’s wolves during the attack on the B&B? Now that they’ve changed, they’re very fierce about protecting every member of the Pack ,” said Jaden.

“Dalton, can you make that many transports?” asked Quin.

“No problem, my powers have increased since my mating. Give Jean-Paul and Sarah a call in Denver and figure out who’s coming with me. I’m guessing whichever comes with me, Sarah or Judy, their mate will want to come along too,” said Dalton.

“Okay, I’ll call Stephanie back and let her know to expect you around one thirty,” said Lev and then he hung up.

***

Quin looked at the clock and then turned to Dalton. “It’s eleven here so that means it’s about one p.m. there in Cleveland. Go to Denver now. It’s faster than calling. Explain when you get there. I want that woman safe as soon as possible and away from Roarke’s influence. She could know a lot about his set up and be an invaluable asset to us.”

Dalton immediately popped out of the room, and Jaden turned to Quin. “Roarke may occasionally have the Denver Pack house under observation too. That may not be the best place to take her.”

“Do you have a better suggestion?” Jaden didn’t. They were trying to come up with an idea when Cami came into the room.