The Girl He Marked by Laila Callaway novel Chapter 4

India's POV.

I look over to see he has left the cupboard and is running across the field.

'Smart move, Jacob. Tie him up,' the leader orders and then turns back to me.

'And take this one, too. She's a stubborn little bitch.'

He smirks and I flinch as someone ties my hands tightly behind my back.

That's the second time in two days I've been called a bitch. I'm not happy about it.

I kick and yell as I'm dragged towards a black van and thrown in the back. Seconds later, Jake lands next to me with a grunt. I look at the teachers staring back in horror as the van doors close.

The engine rumbles to life and we drive away.

The road is bumpy and the two of us roll about, unable to stabilize ourselves because our hands are tied.

'Are you okay' I ask Jake in a hushed whisper, he nods silently.

We don't say anything else as we are driven to our destination.

I'd estimate about an hour later, the van finally judders to a stop and the back doors are swung open. An intimidating woman and creepy—looking guy drag us out by our ankles. I kick and try to dislodge myself from their grip until we are out of the van. That's when I see what us is around.

Nothing but endless forest, and in front of us, the most nondescript, run—down building.

It seems pointless to try and escape, so I remain still as they put us on our feet and guide us by our forearms inside. Within the building, it is less run—down, the walls are exposed brick, and the floor is concrete.

We are led down a corridor and a set of metal stairs, to a row of holding cells. I'm pushed inside one. I turn to see the gate close, and Jake is thrown into the cell opposite me.

We're left alone.

I lean back against the wall and try to rub my rope ties against the jagged brick. Within a few minutes, I've broken through the rope, and I stretch my wrists out. I get to my feet and walk over to the gate. Placing my hands on the bars, I try to look down the corridor, but the angle is too tight.

Jake watches me silently, but then starts to work through his ties too.

'Are you alright, Jake' I ask, knowing it's a stupid question, but I want to know he's not hurt.

He bristles slightly, obviously not used to me being caring.

'Yeah, I'm fine,' he snaps and walks over to the bars on his gate.

'How are we going to get out of here' I wonder aloud, looking around.

'Dad will come for us,' Jake says with confidence and I force a smile.

I'm not sure how his dad is going to know we're here, but I don't want to scare him.

We both jump as the sound of a door opening travels down the corridor, a few moments later, a soldier appears with a vicious sneer on his face. He has black, cropped hair. Every visible part of him, except his face, is covered in tattoos.

'Lunch,' he announces and pushes a tray through a gap in the bars to Jake, and then another one to me.

Surprisingly, the food looks alright. A glass of water and a sandwich. I don't even consider there might be poison in it and eagerly eat my lunch. Jake does the same and we both sit down, facing each other in our opposite cells.

It's silent for a while, and I try to think of something to say. I need to distract him from this awful situation.

'Why do you hate my classes so much' I ask Jake and he stares at me for a moment before shrugging.

'Dunno, they're boring,' he comments, and I snort.

'They are not boring! I try really hard to make them interesting,' I tell him, and he rolls his eyes.

Teenagers.

'Science is boring, I don't need it to be an Alpha,' he defends, and I raise an eyebrow at him.

'Actually, you might. You need to have chemistry and physics skills to use weapons like bombs and explosives, it is always good to learn stuff you might not need,' I try to explain, 'you should learn things because you want to expand your knowledge, not because you think you need it.

'It might not seem like it, but school is very important for a future Alpha, you need to learn social skills, how to lead, how to set a good example, how to study, even,' I continue, and he looks skeptically at me.

Before he can reply, the soldier returns for the trays. He unlocks Jake's gate and instead of picking up the tray, he grabs Jake by his hair and lifts him off the ground.

'Hey!' I shout, leaping to my feet. Jake's feet dangle above the ground, he kicks and tries to pry himself from the soldier's grip.

'So, you're the little Alpha I can't see what all the fuss is about,' the man jeers and Jake grunts.

'Let him go! Don't hurt him!' I yell and the guard glances over his shoulder at me. He drops Jake to the ground, who scurries away from the soldier.

The soldier kicks the tray into the corridor, shuts Jake's gate and unlocks mine. I swallow hard as he steps towards me.

'Listen here, whore, I give the orders around here. You don't get to tell me what to do,' he growls and soon he's right in front of me.

I stand my ground and look him in the eyes.

'I don't want you to hurt him, that's all. He's thirteen,' I say, and he smirks.

'Alright then, I won't touch him. I can't say the same for you,' he replies, and pain erupts in my cheek. It takes me a dazed moment to realize he's slapped me, and I'm lying on the ground from the blow.

The soldier takes my tray and leaves.

'Are you alright, Miss' Jake's voice calls out and I wince as I sit up.

'Yeah, I'm fine, don't worry,' I tell him and lean back against the wall. 'And Jake You can call me India.'

⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆✥⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆

The day passes slowly, Jake and I chat, as there is nothing else to do. I try to take his mind off of our situation by asking him questions or getting him to play silly games with me.

The guards bring us dinner, another sandwich, and then take us to the toilet. It's a simple one at the end of the corridor with nothing I could use as a weapon.

Once they return us to our cells, they switch the lights off. We both have a basic cot—bed in the room, with no blanket. Luckily, it is not that cold down here and we both fall asleep at some point.

The next morning is the same, but this time breakfast is two buttered slices of toast each, with a glass of water.

'What are you thinking about' I ask Jake, spotting the pensive look on his face.

He looks over at me through the bars.

'I was thinking about what my dad is doing right now. I bet he's on his way here. We have really good trackers in our pack.'

I force a smile. 'I hope so.'

I know that his mother isn't in the picture. The Alpha rules the pack alone. It's a personal question to ask and I decide to approach it sensitively.

'Do you have any other family Grandparents' I ask casually.

Jakes nods. 'Yeah, my grandparents. They're my dad's parents.'

'Anyone else'

He raises one eyebrow at me, obviously catching on to my questioning.

'My mum's dead,' he says bluntly. 'She left me with my dad and died years later.'

Now that shocks me.

I thought maybe she had died when he was younger, I was not expecting him to say that his mother abandoned him.

'Oh, Jake,' I respond softly. 'I'm so sorry.'

He shrugs. 'I don't remember her, so it's fine.'

Suddenly, I'm seeing Jake in a whole new light. No wonder he works so hard to impress his dad, he's all he has.

⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆✥⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆