Held For Ransom

Chapter 22

I gulp and take a step forward. "Uncle Ryland," I reply, trying to hold in all emotion.

He tries to take another step towards me and engulf me in a hug, but the guards automatically snap to action and seize him by the arms, holding him back.

"Let me go!" He roars, furiously. "You b*stards kidnapped my niece, and you're gonna pay!"

At that, Cole steps forward, anger clear as day in his eyes, and growls, "That's not why you're here though, is it?"

Ryland's eyes snap to Cole's, and if it's even possible, his eyes turn darker than they were before. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. How else would you explain trying to kill our third-in-command, then shifting and attacking all of us? Hannah was never your objective for coming here," Cole replies, with a hard edge in his tone. His hands are shaking, telling me he's working hard to control his anger and not shift.

Ryland tries to lunge again, but this time trying to attack Cole, not hug me. The guards, again, pull him back, this time much rougher. One uses the butt of a gun and shoves it into his temple. "We won't kill you until we get information, but we have no problem with shooting other places," the guard threatens in a menacing tone.

I resist the urge to scream in protest, knowing it'll only make matters worse. As long as Ryland tells the truth, he won't be hurt. Right?

"Bring him to the interrogation room," Cole orders. Then he pulls me away, in the opposite direction of which we were facing.

The guards follow us, with Ryland in tow. Jared and Hannah are walking ahead of us, and Isaac is even further ahead of them.

We enter a friendlier looking room, near the entrance to the dungeons. It's completely concrete, with a single metal door. The door has a single, small window near the top that I'd have to almost jump to see through. There's a metal table surrounded by six chairs, all of them bolted to the concrete floor.

The guards roughly sit Ryland in the chair on the end of the table, and the rest of us sit ourselves in the remaining five chairs.

"So, we'll start real simple, shall we? Who are you working for?" Cole starts, leaning forward, as if to intimidate Ryland.

"I'm not working for anyone. I came looking for Hannah, and clues led here. Now that I found her, I'd like to take her home so everyone knows she's safe. If you let us go unharmed, I'll tell no one who took her and held her hostage," Ryland negotiates, trying to seem confident. I can see through his facade, though, by the way his eyes dart around the room, and underneath the table his foot is bouncing nervously. He's lying.

"That's not true..is it? You're lying, aren't you?" I ask softly, interrupting whatever Cole was about to say.

"Hannah, sweetie, of course it is. Why would I ever lie about something like this?" Ryland asks, feigning a look of hurt.

I shake my head in disgust and sincere hurt, "I don't know. I honestly have no freaking clue, Ryland! Why would you lie about something like this? You obviously are, though! Don't forget that I've known you my whole life, therefore I know when the h*ll you're lying to me!"

His expression turns into one of shock and surprise, before he quickly masks it again and smiles gently. It's another fake smile though, and it disgusts me to the ends of my comprehension. I take a deep breath, making my, no doubt rash, but final decision. "Don't. Just stop. Tell them the truth, or I'll order them to kill you. I've enough of you and your lies, and you thinking you can actually lie to my face after all these years that I thought you actually cared about me. Now to think you've come to hurt people I care about, and me. It disgusts me, and it hurts, a lot actually."