~2~

The red numbers on the alarm clock read 3:52 with the little dot indicating that the time was in a.m. I peered at the number for a long moment in the dark, my mouth dry enough to have been a towel. It was not unusual for me to wake up at random times. When Granny had been sick, her care had been around the clock and literally any minute I could have been needed.

This was different.

I rolled from my side to my stomach, listening to the bed groan under my shifting weight. I was stiff and sore even though I couldn't recall why, and a thought hit me like a gallon of ice water.

It was dark.

I tensed but moved slowly, my eyes adjusted to the darkness as I took in the hotel room. I had not turned off the light, and when I did turn off the light I always left the bathroom light on. It was black as pitch, bare outlines and shadows visible thanks to the moonlight the filtered through the threadbare curtains.

I moved my hand slowly under my pillow, reaching for the knife I kept there for safety. I found its rope bound handle easily, and felt a little better. It was one of those big survival knives with the jagged edges. Maybe too big to be of much use, but we were about to find out. At least I had a weapon.

Still on my belly, I considered my next move. It was likely that if someone were here that they had already left. It was quiet and I couldn't hear anything out of the ordinary.

So I sat up, slowly, as though nothing were wrong. I kept the knife pressed against my thigh as I swung my feet off the bed. My bed protested the action, and it certainly wasn't helping me keep any element of surprise. On my feet, I surveyed the darkness again.

"If someone is in here," I drawled slowly. "I suggest you see yourself out."

Silence met me.

I gave an involuntary clench of my teeth as I turned towards my door, my eyes landing on the chain lock which was still very much in place. I stalked over to check the bottom lock too, and felt a little foolish. I flicked the light switch up and down a few times, finding the light was out or the power one.

Now I really felt foolish. Still, I couldn't help the sigh of relief as I went back to the bed and sank down on it, feeling my fears go running. I pulled the sheath for the knife out from under the pillow and put the blade back where it belonged. I clipped the button and pushed it away before running my hand through my hair.

I was like a scared rabbit out here. I'd never been this alone before, always had someone to call, and always had someone looking out for me too.

Not alone.

The voice sliced through my conscience, invading me. I jumped ten feet and spun around, looking for whoever had spoken. Nothing. Not even a flutter of movement, though I was standing with my heart racing a million miles an hour.

What the hell kind of shit was this? I thought angrily, waiting for the voice to answer me again. It had been a man's voice, smooth and quiet. Familiar, but I couldn't place it just then. I didn't have a cell phone to call anyone, though to be honest…I wasn't sure who I could call.

I'd up and left town without a word after Granny's funeral. It had been sixteen weeks ago, and I didn't have what anyone could consider close friends. I had my family, but that was gone now. Family now was a bunch of distant relatives, most I'd never heard of and many who had shown up at the funeral to see if Granny's will had left them anything. It hadn't. So none of them had stuck around beyond that.

I clenched my jaw again as I waited, on edge, for something to happen. I scooted three feet back from the edge of the bed as the thought of something reaching out from under it to grab my ankles sent a chill down my spine.

I wasn't ready for the arm that wrapped around my torso to pull me off my feet as the other hand clamped down on my mouth. I didn't even have time to process that movement before I was spun around, looking into an oddly familiar pair of walnut brown colored eyes, the fancy polished kind. That voice came over me again, this time in a movement of lips.

"Sleep." He said.

The darkness claimed me.

Do not go gentle.

I don't know how long I was out, but it did not seem like a long time. It's kind of like when you take an unexpected nap and one minute you're awake then the next you're waking up again. You don't know how much time has passed. It could be three minutes or three hours for all you know.

I had a hell of a headache though.

There was something soft under me, and my back told me it was probably a bed. I lifted my head, finding the simple action to be a struggle as I opened my eyes. It was dark in this room, but in the shadows I could see that this was not my hotel room. My stomach clenched. I'd been…kidnapped?

"Something like that, I suppose." A quiet voice answered, causing me to jump as I turned to look at the man standing ominously in the corner. He moved his hand, flicking on the light which made me squint at the brightness.

"Something like what?" I asked, the question out of my mouth before I could consider it.

He smiled though the expression did not touch his eyes. It took me a moment, but I recognized him.

"Kidnapped, if that's the way you want to think about it." He said, without his eyes leaving me.

"Wait, you're that guy from the street." I said, frowning. "The one I ran into."

He nodded at me, and proceeded to move across the room. It sent me into action as I rolled to the side, away from him. I dropped to the floor on my feet, feeling light headed. My head was spinning with questions. Where was I? How had he gotten into my double locked hotel room? Why had he taken me?

"All in due time." He said, regarding me with indifference.

"What?" I said again, utterly confused.

"You have questions." He said, standing on the bed opposite from me. "Which I will answer in due time, but first…I must eat again."

I must have given him a look because the smile returned.

"You're crazy." I told him seriously, to which he gave me a short laugh.

"It's something much worse than that, I assure you."

The words gave me a chill, all of my hair standing on end. He seemed to notice my fear, which wasn't hard…it was practically screaming at him. Which I wasn't. Why wasn't I screaming?

Come to me.

His voice in my head. It had been his voice in my head. I resisted the pull of…of whatever the hell he was doing, but it wrapped around me like a warm blanket and tugged me forward. I dug my heels into the carpet, looking at him with all the desperation of a wild animal. He looked…interested.

Come.

He said again, in my head. I couldn't resist the second calling, coming around the edge of the bed to stand in front of him.

"Unusual." He murmured, mostly to himself I could tell. He reached up to brush my hair away from shoulder, so it would hang down my back. "I'm going to bite you, Savannah." He said, catching me totally off guard. Bite? What the hell was this some kind of kinky twilight bullshit?

He laughed out loud then, startling me again.

"Stefan?" A voice from outside the door came, a quiet knock. The man I'd run into, presumably Stefan, looked at me for a moment longer before answering.

"Come in, Warren, though…you may not like what you see." He answered, his tone of voice never wavering. The door opened and a much large man entered the room. He had on a cowboy hat, another Southener.

"Help." I said, though I doubted he would help me. My voice was tenured with fear, even though it didn't rise above normal volume despite my efforts. I was too calm.

The cowboy's eyes flickered to me briefly, and I thought for a moment that I saw something in him that might bring him to my rescue. His mouth pressed into a firm line as he looked away, as did my last chance for help.

"That makes four. Is it enough?" He asked, not addressing me at all.

"Yes, for now." Stefan replied.

A/N: Poor Warren. I imagine he doesn't like being in this kind of a situation…

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DISCLAIMER: I do not in any way claim to be Patricia Briggs. All of the characters mentioned from Mercyverse belong strictly to her. Mine to me, yours to you.