Captured

Chapter 5

The man was ridiculously tall, towering over me like some sort of God. The rest of the men retreated out of his way, lowering their heads in respect and I couldn't tear my eyes away.

He resonated power and authority, simply from his stature and my eyes widened at the sight. His sharp green eyes captured mine and held them for a long moment before they travelled to the rest of my team.

"Who are they?" He asked, a slight edge to his voice. Shock flooded his features and I smirked, feeling victorious.

Like the rest of the men, his hair was long and dark with a beard to match. However, I imagined behind his mass of facial hair would be a sharp jawline to match his sculpted cheek bones. His features contorted into a frown when nobody provided him with an answer and his eyes landed on Calla.

"Who are you!" He bellowed and I scowled as she shrank away.

"Mens intelligence really has withered in the face of this disease. They can't even identify women anymore," I said, my voice laced with pity and disappointment as I shook my head.

Instantly, his cold gaze snapped to me and I felt a shiver run up my spine, although I met his glare head on. "What did you say?" He asked slowly.

Again, I shook my head. "Their hearing has deteriorated too, what has the world come to."

A small, menacing smile flickered across his face, one that promised pain and suffering. "What is your name?"

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Now why would I tell you that?"

His eyebrows twitched higher up his forehead but his face remained still. "Because I asked."

I rolled my eyes. "And what... because you're a man I should obey and do as you ask?"

For a moment, he looked utterly stunned. "Yes, that is exactly why," he stated as though the idea of me not obeying was preposterous.

"Why don't you ask the last person who expected me to behave how that ended... or maybe you can't, where is your team leader?" I asked, turning to scan the crowd of seething men behind me and then grinning.

He followed my gaze and scanned every man with fury written across his face. Finally, his eyes landed on the man still forcing Calla to the floor. "Where is he?"

He lowered his eyes slowly, avoiding his boss's harsh glare. "She killed him," he admitted through gritted teeth.

This time, the mans reaction was clear. His eyes bugged out of their sockets and his thick eyebrows vanished into his hairline. "She what! There is no way... she is-," he stuttered, watching me closely.

"A woman?" I asked and he nodded, still spluttering. "Yes thank you for noticing." I smirked up at him.

His intense stare locked on me, fury bubbling from him until finally, his composure snapped back. "Take them down to the cells," he ordered, turning slowly to face me. "Not that one, she can come with me."

I scoffed. "I'm honoured," I grumbled as I was dragged through the thick crowd, having what felt like a hundred eyes on me.

The leader strode confidently through the mass of people, not needing to slow his pace at all as everyone dove out of his way. We travelled deep into the glass building which was much bigger than I originally imagined until we reached a set of thick, oak doors.

"Leave," the leader commanded, absolutely no room for disagreement in his tone.

Behind me, the two men that had accompanied us dropped my arms, allowing me to move freely, before they scurried away. I watched with narrowed eyes and then turned back to the leader. "Why did you let me go?"

His sharp green eyes searched mine for something for a moment before a malicious smile crossed his face. "You're hardly a threat to me, girl," he growled.

I rose an eyebrow. "So the fact that I killed one of your men and gave another a pretty bad nose bleed doesn't make me a threat?"

The handle to the door made a clicking sound as he twisted it open before grabbing my arm and all but tossing me inside. The sheer force sent me hurtling forwards and I struggled to stay standing. I whipped my head around to scowl at him as he pressed the door closed and turned the key. "Not to me."

I narrowed my eyes at his response, watching closely as he moved towards the large slab of wood in the centre of the room and dropped into the chair pulled up to it.

"Sit," he ordered me, gesturing towards a seat on the other side of the poorly crafted desk.

I looked to the chair and scoffed. "I'm not a dog!" I snapped, folding my arms across my chest and glaring down at him in defiance.

"Sit-!" His eyes darkened as they pierced into my own, a warning crossing his face. "-or I will make you sit."

I swallowed down the lump that lodged in my dried up throat and met his strong gaze head on. "And how do you intend to do that?"

A small smirk flickered on his lips as his hand reached out for the large revolver beside him. "A bullet to each leg would have you dropping into the chair," he explained and I stared into the barrel, considering it for a moment before realising I needed my legs in tact to escape.

With severe reluctance, I fell into the seat with a scowl and he nodded, dropping the revolver. "Good," he said.

"Why aren't I locked away in a cell like the rest of my friends?" I asked, gritting my teeth to keep from bursting into a fit of rage at the smug look on his face.

"Because its clear you are their leader," he answered, his intense gaze still locked on me.

"It is?" I rose a questioning eyebrow and he nodded.

"They looked to you to answer my questions," he explained, shifting to rest his weight on his forearms which were pressed against the desk top. "And that is exactly what you are going to do."

I raised an eyebrow. "I'd rather not," I answered, leaning backwards in my chair while his sharp eyes pierced into mine.

"It's not optional." He turned away and grabbed a mobile phone from the desk. I watched in confusion, never having seen one being used before as he tapped the screen and then put it to his ear. "I need you to monitor dinner preparations. I'm busy."

He put the device back down and redirected his attention onto me. "That's a mobile phone?" I asked, frowning at the slim square piece of plastic. He nodded in response while I inspected the device. "I have never seen one like that."

"We stole them from the richer areas," he answered before shaking his head. "Enough about the phone, tell me how you managed to escape the disease."

"How did you?" I countered, raising an eyebrow at him. "I thought all men were killed by the disease."

"We're resourceful," he answered bluntly. "Now tell me."

I shrugged and leant backwards. "We left," I stated in an equally as blunt manner.

His eyes narrowed. "And went where?" He growled.

"Somewhere safe."

He slammed his hands down onto the desk and leant forward. "Tell me exactly where you've been hiding, now."

I leant forward so my gaze was level with his. "Sorry, I'm just a girl, I was never taught to read a map so I have no idea." I smiled sweetly and shrugged my shoulders.

A smirk appeared on his lips and he rose from his seat abruptly. I watched with a frown as he crossed the room and grabbed a painting from the wall. Behind it was a small red button that he pressed, causing the wall to slide aside and reveal a large cell.

He turned slowly back to face me as the realisation sunk in. "I'll get my answers eventually," he promised.