I could hear Moira faring about as well as I had. Unlike me, however, she didn’t bother to pretend to be cowed. The girl just didn’t have it in her, which only made me love her more. She wasn’t going to stop fighting, and neither was I. There was no way we were dying here tonight. I wouldn’t allow it.
Moira continued to curse the entire way from the car right until they were shoving us down onto icy concrete and wrapping a heavy chain around our stomachs, tying us to some kind of pole. Then they ripped off our hoods. I blinked rapidly, my eyes trying to adjust to the sudden light.
The space was barren, nothing but a hole in the ground in the corner that smelled of shit and piss. A concrete box. A cell. The door slammed shut, and the click of the lock engaging echoed in the room. At the top of the heavy metal door, a small panel slid open, revealing a pair of glittering green eyes.
“This can go easy for you, or we can draw it out and make it hurt. You decide. But either way, we’re going to get what we want from you.”
That cockney bastard would die first, I decided. “Oh, it’s going to hurt all right. For you, that is.”
The window closed with an ominous clank, and the sound of his gravely chuckle as he walked away had my gut churning.
“We have to get out of here. Right now.” My voice shook, betraying the bravado I’d put on to try and intimidate our captors.
Moira rattled her chains. “I’m all ears, but unless you have a plan to deal with these, we’re fucked.”
“What if...” I squirmed, trying to find her hands with mine. It took a second, but I managed to wriggle my fingers between one of her wrists and the cuff clamped around it.
“Ouch!”
“Sorry, I just need a little room.” The silver on my fingertips sizzled, itching and burning all at the same time. I knew it was worse for vampires, but shifters avoided the precious metal for the same reason.
“Where the hell do you expect me to go? These don’t exactly have any give. They aren’t a damn pair of leggings.”
“Moira,” I snapped, pain turning to impatience. “Just work with me here.”
She huffed, but I could feel the roll of her shoulders as she attempted to slide her arm up and provide me with a better angle.
“Okay, try to keep quiet and move your wrist free as I spread this cuff.”
I took a deep breath, steeling myself for the pain I knew was coming. I let my wolf come roaring to the surface, picturing the fight with Callie, the attack at the club, the bastards who’d taken us. With every ounce of strength I could muster, I pried apart the cuff, pushing through the agonizing burn until Moira’s hand slid free.
“Holy shit, girl. Do you have vampire strength now, or is that a wolf thing?”
Breaths coming in gasps, I said, “I have no fucking clue.”
“Well, whatever it is, do you think you can do it again?”
“I sure hope so. We need you to be able to magic us out of this shithole.”
“I’m all over it just as soon as you get me free.”
This time, it was a little easier to maneuver our bodies so I could wedge my fingers between Moira’s hand and the second cuff. Even though the rage was still roaring through me, the pain caused my arms and fingers to shake as blisters appeared from the repeated exposure to the silver, making it hard for me to get a good grasp on the metal.
“Come on, Sunday. You can do this.”
I closed my eyes, sucking in air through my nose and forcing myself to fight past the pain. This was nothing. If those fuckers got their hands on us, it would be so much worse. Once I felt settled, I adjusted my grip and yanked at the metal, a low scream building in my throat and growing in volume even as I tried to swallow it. Tears dripped from the corners of my eyes, but a flood of relief washed over me when the metal hit the ground with a soft clink.
“You’re a fucking savage, Sunday Fallon. Now, stay still while I do my part, okay?” Metallic clinking echoed as Moira dealt with the chain around our bellies. I couldn’t see what she was doing, only that it worked when the chain fell to the ground.
“No problem,” I mumbled, my heart thundering in my chest and spots dancing in my eyes. It’d taken a lot out of me, but I couldn’t relax. Not yet. Not until we were both free of this place.
I couldn’t see what Moira was doing, but her hands wrapped over the cuffs at my wrists, the metal rapidly cooling until it frosted over and became brittle as it froze.
“Moira—”
“Just give it one more second,” she urged.
There was a crack, the sound of metal breaking, and then my cuffs fell to the ground on top of hers.