The Bad Boy Calls Me Kitten

Chapter Twenty-Two

 I just wrote 3 chapters in a day, I'm so proud of myself. God bless you, beautiful humans.

Door after door, it was all the same. I had gone through at least twenty in the past minute. They were as empty as clear water. Everything was a copy. The hard cots. The chains on the walls that Sebastian had mentioned. The thick metal doors that creaked with movement and wouldn't even let a breath escape. The dirty floors, the mold-covered walls, the discolored bricks...

I slipped my head into another door. Empty. Sebastian had started searching on another part of the floor. His words were true. There were hundreds of doors to look through, and any one of them could have been holding Scar. So far, my luck and hope had been going down. 

My shirt clung to my back with sweat. My legs screamed with every step I took. It began to take so much energy for me to even continue. I don't know why I did. Time was running out, Scar was probably dead, and Sebastian was nowhere to be seen. Tears clogged my eyes as I peeked into another room. Empty as well.

Something squeaked. I almost fell over with the surprise. There was a loud bang, much like a door closing. Assuming it was just Sebastian, I gripped the metal doorknob of another room when the voices spoke up. It was the same ones Sebastian and I had heard in the tunnels, the men speaking Russian. My heart leaped to my throat in surprise. The voices drifted near the hallway where I stood. Panic rose in my stomach.

It took me one, idiotic moment to realize there were at least 10 hiding places close to where I stood. 

The rooms.

Duh.

I swung the door open and slipped inside. The door locked shut behind me. If they were here, then they must have figured out the power was cut. I could only hope that Sebastian hadn't been caught yet. The room was dark, thankfully. It would make it easier to hide, since running in total darkness was hard. The voices carried towards the room I was in. My luck that they had to walk down the hallway I was in. 

The voices passed, timorously slow. I held my breath, afraid that even the slightest noise would attract attention. Even after the footsteps disappeared into the darkness, I didn't move. I had to force myself to grab the cold doorknob. Just as I was about to leave, there was a soft cough from behind me.

There was someone in the room.

I froze. It was like every cell in my body suddenly decided not to do their cellular function anymore. The only thing I could hear was my own heartbeat, frantic and scared. My legs shook with fear. This was a prisoner facility. That meant I was in a room with a prisoner.

I fumbled in the darkness, looking for the smooth, cold handle that would open the door. Unfortunately, the panic swelling up in my chest was the only thing I could focus on. I choked back tears of frustration. My fingers hit everything but the metal knob.

"Kitten?"

Wait a minute.

I knew that voice.

I knew that voice.

And there was only one person in the universe who calls me kitten.

It was too good to be true. My knees shook with hope. I gripped the wall for support. "Scar?" My voice cracked on his name, not even sounding like my own. I swallowed loudly and waited for a response. A flicker of hope flashed through me. Hopefully, I hadn't imagined that voice.

"Kitten?" the voice muttered again. It was definitely Scar. Something wet dripped onto my hand. I wiped my tears away. Scar's voice was thick with sleep, but he sounded angry as everything became clear to him.

"Where are you?" I felt my way around, accidentally rattling the chains. There came a sound like boots stamping on hard ground.

I bit back a yelp as my fingers gripped onto something squishy. Mold.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Scar hissed. His footsteps echoed around the room as he stumbled his way towards me. My fingers brushed across his chest. Suddenly, an arm wrapped around my waist and I found myself being pulled into something warm and hard and it smelled like peppermint.

"No no no no." I felt his lips at my ear. Scar sounded furious but he kept me in his arms nonetheless. "How could you, kitten? Why? Why would you do something so reckless and stupid? I can't let you get hurt anymore because of me! Please, Genevieve, just go. Get out-"

"No." I hissed. Scar let me go and moved back. I instantly missed the warm touch of his embrace but kept my mouth shut. "Don't leave me behind, Scar. I'm done with being treated like a little child. I told you, I can take care of myself-"

"And I told you to-"

"God, will you just stop-"

"No." he growled, suddenly close to my face that I could feel the heat radiate off him. Scar grabbed my wrist with one hand, squeezing so hard that I felt it might break yet I said nothing. ''No. You have done enough for me, Genevieve. I'm not letting you stay, I'm not going to watch you fucking die because you were worried about me. How dare you put yourself into such a vulnerable position like that?"

"You can't-"

"I wasn't done talking." he hissed. Maybe it was because we couldn't see each other, but something in his tone made me keep my mouth shut. I had never heard such venom in his words as I did now.

"Why are you doing this?" he spat. "Why would you risk your life for me? You should have left Chicago, Genevieve! You have done enough, okay? You made me feel what it was like to be alive again. Before I met you, I was empty. I couldn't feel anything because I had learned to keep my emotions out. But then I met you. Maybe it was because of your dumb facts about wolves or something, but I actually know what it's like to be happy again. I don't care if I die. For me, my life is complete. But I can't live with myself if I get you killed. Fuck, I'm just going to say it. I love you."