Chapter 12

ANNA

I lie there for what feels like hours. Out of nowhere, an amazing, mouth-watering smell fills my nose. My stomach immediately growls.

I stand and follow the delicious scent of food. I hear the cracking of fire and someone talking.

~Maybe they’re bandits or killers.~

I slow my pace and try not to make any noise. My stomach growls again. Silence falls. I freeze to the ground and wait for a few minutes till they start to talk again. I slowly make my way to a big tree.

I hide behind it and carefully peek around to see where the smell is coming from only to find that arrogant Roland standing by a fire cooking something that looks like chicken.

On the ground next to the fire sits a huge monster of a man. His skin is dark brown and he's bald, with a tattoo that runs down from the back of his head to his waist. He looks like the Hulk.

I accidentally step on a twig and Hulk guy whips his head around in my direction.

“Hello, Annabeth. Glad you could join us,” Roland says in his Russian accent, smiling at me.

“Don’t mind Lev, here. He is harmless.” He gestures for me to sit down.

I narrow my eyes, not sure if I can trust this man.

I take a good look at Lev. He looks scary. He has one gray eye and the other eye has a long scar over it. He is very muscular and has huge hands.

~I think he could crush my head with one hand.~

He’s not smiling. He just stares me down.

I move my gaze to Roland, who is staring into the flames, his face emotionless.

I’m trying to figure them out. Normally I’m a great judge of character, but with these two I’m not sure if they’re friends or foes.

I slowly make my way over, keeping a careful eye on both of them. I plant myself a safe distance away from the Hulk guy, who is still just watching my every move.

I look over to the fire and lick my bottom lip at whatever is cooking; it smells heavenly. My stomach growls again.

Roland looks in my direction and gives me an amused smile.

“Everything okay?” he asks.

I look the other way, ignoring his question.

~“Ona mozhet govorit?”~ Hulk guy asks, making his way to Roland’s side and pointing at me.

Roland grins at him. ~“Pover mne, ona mozhet govorit,”~ he replies.

I can hear the amusement in his voice, and I know they are talking about me.

Roland takes the food off the flames. The Hulk guy rips off a chunk, carefully handing it to me.

I look into his gray eye, slowly take the piece out of his huge hand, and nod my head to thank him.

Roland and Hulk guy devour their portions in seconds. I take a small bite out of mine and play with it in my mouth, trying to place the taste. It has a chicken-like taste but not quite, and the meat is chewy like bubble gum.

Roland looks at me. A frown forms on his forehead.

“Galliform,” he answers my unspoken question and comes over to me.

I glance at him. He just smirks and hands me his canteen. I take a huge gulp of water and flash him a sarcastic smile.

Hulk guy starts to laugh. He quickly stops when Roland gives him a death stare and then moves his gaze back to me.

I roll my eyes at this annoying brat.

~He probably gets everything he wants.~

He glares at me and I just smirk, unaffected by his death stare.

Hulk guy grabs his stomach and bursts out in laughter.

~“Ona stanet tvoyey smert'yu,”~ he says as he catches his breath.

Roland takes the canteen and takes a huge sip of water. When a small drop escapes his mouth, he catches it with his thumb.

~He even looks sexy drinking water.~

I don’t realize I am biting my bottom lip while I am staring at him until he smiles at me with that sexy smile.

I clear my throat and immediately grab my stick, push myself up from the ground, place the stick in position and turn back in the direction of the stream.

“No thank you?” he asks. I can hear the amusement in his voice.

~He is so annoying, arrogant, spoiled—but super sexy.~

~Ugh, how can I think like that?~

I slowly turn around with a very sarcastic smile and face them.

“Thanks.” I turn back on my heels and head to the big tree. Behind me, I hear them babbling something in Russian and laughing.

~Do they think I’m a clown or something? I’m so irritated.~

I slam my stick hard to the ground in frustration. It snaps and I fall to the ground face-first.

In a split second, Roland is at my side, holding his hand out to me.

I push myself up on my elbows and narrow my eyes at him.

“For fuck’s sake, Annabeth, just take my hand. I’m just trying to help you,” he snaps at me.

I grab his hand. The tingling sensation shoots through my whole body and he pulls me up so close to him our scents mix.

He places his hands on my waist to steady me and I grip his forearms. We get lost in each other’s eyes. I inhale a deep breath of his aroma. A wicked smile forms on his face.

I snap out of his hypnotizing stare, remove my hands from his arms, and move out of his grip.

He shoots one eyebrow up in confusion, scanning me. I turn away from him and I try to hop to the tree close by—but he wraps an arm around my waist and throws my arm around his shoulder.

He gently lowers me to sit on the ground with my back against the tree.

~I don’t know what to make of this.~

“Let me have a look,” he says in a soft, kind voice.

I give him a nod and keep a close eye on his every move.

He gently pulls off my shoe, holds my foot steady in his hand, and pulls up my jeans. Every touch is marvelous. He slowly runs his fingers over my ankle.

“Close your eyes,” he says.

I look at him, confused.

“Do you trust me?” he asks, sounding very serious.

I think it over and cautiously shut my eyes. I feel my skin heat up as he places his hands around my ankle. When I feel his soft lips against my skin, my eyes shoot open.

“All better,” he says, smiling at me.

I glare at him, then look at my foot. It looks better; the swelling is gone.

He stands and holds his hand out to me. I take it, and he pulls me to my feet.

~Wow, this guy has magic hands. My ankle is fully healed.~

“Thanks,” I say softly. I busy myself fixing my clothes and pulling on my shoe.

“You’re welcome, ~printsessa~,” he says, and flashes me a sexy smile.

~Okay, that I understood. “Princess,” huh?~

I turn and start walking toward the stream.

“Where are you going?” he asks in a very demanding voice.

“Home!” I shout over my shoulder.

“You can’t go alone. Just wait.” I hear him run off but I don’t stop.

Within minutes, he is in front of me, glaring at me.

“What is your problem?” I ask, very aggravated.

He stares me down but I don’t flinch. I just narrow my eyes at him.

“When I say wait, you obey!” he snaps at me.

“I’m not your fucking dog!” I shout at him.

~“Princess” didn’t last long. Who does he think he is?~

“Fuck! Annabeth, you are a pathetic human being. I can’t protect you, I’m—”

I cut him off mid-sentence.

“I don’t need your protection! Just leave me alone!” I shout angrily.

He runs his fingers through his hair in frustration and steps aside so I can pass him.

I start to run as fast as my legs can carry me. I hear him shouting something in Russian, but I just keep on running.

My chest is burning, and I can feel the tears in my eyes.

~How dare he call me pathetic?~

I’m so exhausted when I reach the stream. I fall on my knees and cup up some water, splashing it on my face as I try to steady my breathing. I cup up more water and take a big sip.

~I miss my life in NYC, my friends…my Damitry. He would never talk to me like that asshole, Roland.~

Tears start to flow gently down my cheeks. I lie back and rest my head in my hands, looking up at the sky.

After what feels like hours, I stand up and make my way downstream. I have a bad feeling in my core. I think I’m being followed.

~If it’s Roland following me, I swear I’m going to kick his ass. I’m really not in the mood for his tantrums.~

I start to walk quietly, looking around me to see if I can see someone, fully aware of my surroundings. I hear a twig snap, and I spin around on my heels.

A huge greenish monster comes out from behind a tree. He looks a lot like Shrek. Another one steps out beside him.

I turn around to make a run for it, but there are three more in front of me. I scream for help, but one runs up to me and knocks me out.

***

When I regain consciousness, I’m swinging from one of their shoulders. My head is pounding, I can’t focus, and I’m starting to feel sick.

“Let me go!” I shout, slapping its back. He makes a loud growling sound and throws me to the ground.

“Bastard!” I shriek as my ass hits a hard floor. He slams a metal gate shut and growls at me one more time before he turns around and walks away.

I run to the gate, wrapping my fingers around the bars, trying to push my head through it.

“~Hey!~ You can’t leave me here!!” I shout, but it is no use. He just keeps strolling away.

I slide down the bars.

“Please! I need to get home!” I start to beg. I feel the tears building in my eyes. I take a deep breath.

~Crying is not going to help. I need to save myself.~

I stand up, dust off the dirt, and take in my surroundings.

~Okay, I’m in a dungeon.~

It’s cold, dark, and it smells like rotten meat. The smell makes me gag. There’s a thin mattress in one corner and a bucket in the other. No blanket, no pillow, but there are bloodstains on the floor and wall.

I make my way to the mattress and see it has springs.

~Nice.~

I gently pull one coil spring out and start to straighten it. I hear the big metal door slam open. One of the uglies comes down the stairs with a bowl in his hand.

I tuck the spring back under the mattress and sprint to the cell gate.

The creature looks at me in disgust.

~Have you looked in the mirror lately, ugly?~ I just glare at him.

He drops the bowl and a piece of bread to the floor, turns, and walks away.

~I’m not going to eat that~. I go back to the mattress, pull out the spring, and finish working on it.

I go to the gate and start trying to pick the lock. It looks much easier on TV, but Ray and I picked many locks on her parents’ ranch. After a few attempts and a lot of quiet cursing, I hear a ~click.~

“Come on...” I turn the handle and the door opens.

“Jackpot!” I mutter, mentally patting myself on the shoulder.

I pick up the bowl, throw out the soup, grab my spring, and sneak up the stairs.

At the top is a big metal door. Cracking it open a little, I peek through and spot four fat and ugly creatures. Beyond them is another door that I hope leads to my freedom.

~Okay, I need a plan~.

I lift my arm and throw the bowl as hard as I can away from the main door. All four uglies look up in the direction of the noise, get up, and amble over.

I sprint for the door and slam it open, causing them to look over at me. I run through the doorway and find myself outside.

The four uglies are hot on my tail. They can really move, given their huge bodies.

My foot hooks on a root and I fall to the ground. I quickly scramble up to my feet.

~Shit, they’re catching up.~

I run as fast as my legs can carry me, heading to who knows where. I hear them screaming and growling as they chase me.

It’s dark out, so my vision is limited, but I look behind me in time to see one ugly trip over his foot. I let out a chuckle and look in front of me.

I slam on the brakes.

I’m on the edge of a cliff. I can’t see the bottom and I know it’s a long way down. I

take in a deep breath and slowly turn around. Three uglies slowly walk to me and smile at me; they know I’ve come to a dead end.

~Okay, it’s fight or die, and I’m not dying tonight.~

One of the uglies grabs for me but I duck. As I try to make my escape, another one grabs me. I start to kick and scream like a crazy person and manage to escape him as well.

I start to run away but fall to the ground. One ugly grabs me around my ankle, lifting me up in the air until I’m hanging upside down in his tight grip.

“Put me down!” I shout. My skin starts to burn and I have a metallic taste in my mouth. One ugly punches me on the jaw. One more punch lands in my gut.

Punch after punch, I feel the life draining from my body. As the blood flows down my face, they even start to kick me. They pull my head up by my hair and land a few more punches to my face.

~I’m like a piñata to them.~

I hear them laughing as they punch me. When they are done, the one holding me drops me to the ground. One of the uglies even spits on me like I’m a piece of dirt.

There is blood oozing out my mouth and nose. I struggle to breathe. I can’t move. I lie there on the ground, nearly lifeless. My heartbeat is faint and my eyes are swollen shut.

I feel tears running down my cheeks. Everything hurts.

They must be debating what to do with me. Finally, the first ugly lets out a loud roar, grabs me, and tosses me over his shoulder again.

I have no fight left in me, no way to protect myself. I let the darkness consume me.

~Maybe when I wake up I’ll be back in Damitry’s arms.~