Chap 6

Four days. Elizabeth had been gone for four days. Today was the beginning of the fifth day and it was four days until the full-moon. Her father, Marlin, had made his home amongst the pack. Dashiell sat across from him now and watched the mustache twitch into a frown again. They were all sitting in Dash's office room. Evander was leaning against the desk next to him, his arms crossed over his chest and his face set into his own scowl. The two men were at odds with each other. Marlin insisted that they go to the police and Evander told him that they had their own detectives running a case.

It wasn't a lie. Evander De Godhere was doing his best to locate her. It was essential to the packs' natural need to survive. Flamed matches were rare and they were to be treated as the highest need. Dashiell just wished he had at least given her his name, then at least her soul would recognize his soul. And maybe there would be a different way to find her using their shared connection. The problem was their connection was one sided. He recognized her as his twin half, the flame that lights his soul. The piece of him he needed.

Even now his wolf, grumbled his displeasure. Dashiell understood why the beast was pissed at him. Dash wouldn't listen to his whining before and if he had maybe they could have changed the out come and Elizabeth would be safe now. His own arms that were crossed around his chest, tightened reflexively at his emotions. Evander must have sensed the change in his mood through the lines because he gaze shifted to Dashiell.

Dashiell visibly relaxed his shoulders under his Alpha's gaze as Evander's calming influence washed over him.

"Esplain to me how yur home detectives are gonna find my Beth." The mans words sounded a little slurred. Dashiell flared his nostrils. He smelled like vodka. The man was seated in a chair in front of Evander and Dashiell. With a raised eyebrow, Dashiell unfolded his arms and walked to stand next to Maverick who was holding a bowl of potato chips. Maverick and Evander looked almost identical. Both tall men. Both men had intense grey gazes, a family trait. And both men had long black hair. But both men carried themselves differently and their personalities were opposite of each other. Dashiell grabbed a couple chips from the bowl.

"Sir, I have explained to you how I have sent one of my men to look for her. He's a detective. He's very good at his job." Evander said with as gentle of a tone as he could with his baritone voice. His posture and arms didn't change from their commanding position, but he was still relaxed against the desk where Dashiell left him.

"He can't be too damn good at his job if Beth is still missing." Marlin's voice was convicting.

Dashiell winced for his friend. The father was being rough on the Alpha and wasn't laying off just because of the man's domineering aura.

"Crux Bishop is a very good detective. There are steps that we are taking in finding her that a normal police station wouldn't think of. And before you came into the office interrupting, we were going to discuss our next line of action. Crux will be here before much longer. If you would be kind enough to find yourself back to your room, we will go back to finishing our meeting." At this Evander's voice did hold a note of the Alpha's command even though the tone didn't affect Marlin the way it was the others in the room.

Dashiell could see Theodora bend her red curls slightly to the side in a submissive way behind Marlin. Her Alpha's command in his voice even if he didn't have an effect on the human male.

"Wanna make a bet that he takes a swing at Evander and Theodora zaps him?" Maverick's voice whispered to him between chewing on salty potato chips. Dashiell shifted his tired brown-eyes to Maverick's laughing grey-ones. At least Maverick had kept his usual carefree attitude.

"We can't let her zap him. He doesn't know we exist." Dashiell rolled his eyes at his sibling. Theodora strolled over and picked a few salty chips from the bowl her cousin was holding. She raised an eyebrow at the two of them.

"If bets are being made in my name then I want in on the money, honey." Theodora whispered a hand on her hip and an eyebrow still arched over her piercing grey-eyes. Then she popped the chips she'd stolen into her mouth and waited for a response.

"We can't zap anybody, Theodora. He doesn't know we exist." Dashiell reminded her. Marlin had been living here amongst the pack as a human. And he thought everyone around him was human as well. He had asked a few questions about why did the hotel house people that Dashiell wasn't related to and why they lived here instead of in homes of their own. Dash had simply explained that some of the people who lived in the hotel worked for him. Some of them needed homes and were like family or were friends of his parents. He explained a little about how he owned some real estate in the woods that also housed people in those homes, but Marlin was satisfied with the response Dashiell had given him and had made the hotel his home.

It made Dashiell really happy to see Elizabeth's father fit into this environment without any issues because he knew that her father's approval would make it easier for her to accept living here, too. They just had to rescue her first. Marlin huffed while putting his arms across his chest.

"And why can't I be apart of this meeting? It involves my Beth." Marlin questioned, holding his gaze with the Alpha's.

"This is the second time you've told me I don't exist and I'm standing right next to you. I'm going to start becoming offended." Maverick made a face that was a mix between wounded and playful, but kept his voice low.

"You know what I mean." Dashiell glared at him.

"You really have to stop worrying about them knowing what we are, the moon goddess wouldn't bless you with a mate that can't accept you." Theodora said rolling her eyes and reaching for the bowl of chips. Maverick moved them just slightly out of her reach with a grin.

"The moon goddess has matched people with people who reject them." Maverick mentioned the grin slipping from his face. Then he moved the bowl back into Theodora's reach.

"Dashiell's mate doesn't know they're fated flames. I don't think she will reject him once she finds out that he's the other half to her soul." Theodora's eyes took on a dreamy far away look as she placed chips into her mouth.

"-details will be given over to you when we have more to give. I'm sorry but I can't allow you to stay during this meeting." Evander had moved next to Marlin. The man's head was hung in defeat and Evander placed a hand on his shoulder.

"We will find your daughter. You have my word that she will be found and she will be safe here." Evander vowed to the sad older man.

"Randall, can you please help him back to his room?" Evander found Randall in the corner of the office, seated in a chair he'd pulled over there. The man's buzzed brown head jerked up at the mention of his name. He'd been sitting with his eyes closed. Randall had been unusual quiet the last few days. Ll

"Of course, Al- Evander." Randall stood, smoothed out his suit jacket, and walked over to the two men. He then led Marlin from the office.

Once the older man was gone from the room, Evander visibly relaxed.

"Crux really is on his way back, but he doesn't have any leads on Elizabeth. There was an attack on Ladouceur. Jason Beck, the one who plays at my poker table, called me this morning. There was an attack just before dark last night. A very powerful Alpha must have moved into the neighborhood and is challenging all the neighboring packs to gain more strength. Or there is a wolf pack that has teamed up with some very powerful playmates and is out to cause serious damage in our territory." Evander stood tall facing the three of them with a grim face.

"I'm not sure what Crux found out in the Ladouceur pack. I sent him early this morning. And outside of telling me he was on his way back, I haven't heard from him since. When he arrives, we will discuss what he found. Elizabeth's disappearance and attacks on the packs might not be connected at all. And I'm sorry to say that Dashiell, but we might have to accept that they're not related."

Dashiell felt a growl form in his chest. His wolf inside didn't like the words his Alpha had just spoken. The wolf insisted the attacks and her disappearance was connected. To the wolf, Evander wasn't trying hard enough and it agreed with Elizabeth's father. Dashiell felt the moment his eyes flashed their orange-amber color, because he felt his wolf nudge its way into the front of his mind. Teeth elongated and he felt the shift begin at his temples. Standing so close to his Alpha's power and a full-moon four days away didn't help keep his beast at bay with his changing mood.

"Evander, the two must be related. Elizabeth's disappearance so close to Dashiell being attacked and then another attack on a pack that is friends to us. It would be hard to believe that it's just bad luck." Theodora countered a hand to her hip.

"I don't disagree, Theo. But I don't know where to start with finding Dashiell's flame until we find out who it is attacking us. I believe there is an Alpha strong enough to change his people at a distance. And to be able to shift them with a full moon a week out... he would be have to be very old."

"I am going to say I disagree with you there. I didn't feel a wave of energy with an Alpha's imprint on it. I didn't smell another Alpha anywhere in the city on my runs. The patrollers know to alert us to uninvited weres or lycans, and definitely uninvited Alpha's. I did scent a smoke behind me. And then I shifted, too. If it was an Alpha's influence, he wouldn't have been able to shift me, not without a fight for my submission of course." Dashiell stepped forward to pace in front of them.

"Shmoke could be a poshin?" Maverick said with a mouthful of chips. He looked between each of them swallowed the rest of his chips and walked over to the desk to set the bowl down. The lanky man then pulled a handkerchief from his designer suit pocket to wipe his hands. When satisfied, returned the cloth to his pocket with a wink.

"I don't see a Were-Alpha being that powerful. What if we're dealing with a group of wolves paired off with a smart witch? I'd honestly like to talk with her-" Maverick paused with a squint of his eyes, "or maybe it's a boy witch, anyway, I would like to chat about how they managed to do something like that. In the right hands it's genius, in the wrong hands it could be-"

"Disastrous. The possibilities are endless. Packs could fight in broad daylight without their Alpha's influence and then there would be real havoc in the world. Humans would be injured. Our kind found out about. Families murdered because humankind isn't ready to understand." Evander interrupted. His deep voice almost a growl in his frustration.

"It could be a witch or a warlock." Theodora said with a wink at Maverick. "I've heard of a spell that ancient witches would use to control new werewolves... but I don't know anything about this kind of magic." Theodora scrunched her face. "Brewing isn't my best craft."

"No, you skipped that part of your lessons to look up advanced lightening spells." Maverick teased with a wink of his own.

"It's not a spell if it's a gift. And Mrs. Creighton said that it's a gift from my ancestors. I don't expect you to understand since you're not a warlock. You don't have any magic. Be jealous." Theodora finished with a smirk.

"Guys. Theo, please, no zapping today. Keep explaining to us what you do know." Evander interrupted their banter. Dashiell felt his self relax in their presence, even if his wolf was not relaxed on the inside.

"Not much. It's something I would need to look more into. But I know before when Lycans were the only ones, before werewolves were created, witches were enslaved by wolves just like the wolves were enslaved by the vampyre. And witches found ways to help their masters," Theodora scrunched her nose at the word, "by helping them control their beasts. Gotta remember in the way back the Lycans liked being more beast than man and there was lots of battling between packs, too."

"That would explain the smoke right before the wolves attacked. They were definitely werewolves not Lycans. And in my opinion they weren't rouges," Dashiell felt like he was explaining this over and over again. But this was the first time he felt as if they were getting somewhere.

"It would. But I don't know what it would be. Maybe Mrs. Creighton will know something. She's old enough that she ought to know." Theodora suggested.

"I'm going to tell her you said that. Dominique would just love to hear about how you think she's old." Maverick's grin was wide.

"Evander I'm going to zap him if he tells, Mrs. Creighton that." Theodora warned.

"Behave, children," Dashiell hastily said with a chuckle before Evander could yell.

"Theodora have you looked into that barrier protecting spell?" Dashiell changed the subject. He needed to focus on something else. It was something he had control over and it helped his mind stay grounded.

"It's a little more advanced than I thought. I can do it technically, but I don't know if I have enough power to pull off the spell entirely on my own. I need a little more juice. I think I can protect the lobby, but I can't protect the whole hotel. Not yet anyway." Theodora explained with a pinch to her face.

"Could you show us a small demonstration?" Evander asked stepping forward.

"What's wrong with my security systems? Do we need an update? I have been thinking about adding some new gadgets to our system." Maverick stroked his stumbled chin.

"Magical attacks mean magical ways of protection." Theodora nodded.

"There's nothing wrong with your security. I do need you to put a new one in at Elizabeth's building." Dashiell took his chance to mention. He'd already replaced the store window, but he hadn't gotten around to upgrading the building's security.

Just then the door burst open, a towering dark skinned man with tattoos up each arm and an eyebrow piercing came into the room. The expression on his face was fierce and through the pack line they all felt a rise of panic.

"There's been a murder."

********************************************

Elizabeth had slept shitty. She couldn't get comfortable. No surprise with the way her arms were strained behind her. If what the woman had said was correct, she would be going somewhere new today. And she still had not come up with a way to escape. There were so many odds against her. She still couldn't even see around her in this forever darkness. Whenever she had gotten to sleep, she had dreamt about her father crying at her grave, The-Ghost-of-Christmas-Future style.

She hadn't seen anyone since the woman had left yesterday. Elizabeth suspected this was because they were waiting until she had to be transported to wherever the hell they were taking her to next. It gave her anxiety just thinking about when that be happening and where she would be going and what would be happening to her once they got there. She squeezed her already shut eyes tight. It helped to keep them shut instead of blinking into the empty room.

Elizabeth thought that maybe she could try to pull free again. Maybe it would finally work this time. She did exactly that pulling and twisting downward with her left hand. The hand slipped down just a little but not enough to give her the freedom she craved so badly. Elizabeth's lips parted a small yelp tumbled from them. Almost. Almost. She took a deep breath in.

If she was patient and she timed it right she could run as fast as she could through the door when the guards came to take her away. Elizabeth was sure they would repeat the same process they had with her before when she needed to use the restroom. She just had to try to be more composed a little bit longer. Actually, Elizabeth had to use the restroom right now. She shifted back and forth, trying to curb the urgency she felt. When was the last time they'd come to let her use the bathroom? Minutes passed.

Elizabeth chewed her bottom lip. She really had to go. A few more minutes passed as she debated her options to either call out for someone to take her to the bathroom now or wait to ask when the goons came to take her away. She allowed the pressure to build.

And then when she couldn't take much more, she called out. "Hello!"

After being here for days, she'd started to be able to listen for footsteps outside the door. She'd noticed that sometimes she could hear faint voices from the other side of the door. She assumed it was when the goons shifted out to watch her. Elizabeth waited for the footsteps now. She was going to call out again when the door opened. Her eyes shut at the bright light, but she was able to see a man approaching her.

It took her about thirty seconds to figure out which one it was because he immediately started chatting. "Whatcha need, toots?"

Good, she could handle this guy. "I need to use the restroom, please." She added the please with a little more sugar to her voice so that she could easily get her way. It used to work wonders with her father when she was still a little girl.

"Well, since you said please. Let's make this quick. Boss is running behind." She felt his hands make quick work of the shackles and then she felt her hands being tied together like before. Next, Elizabeth felt him tie the blind fold around her eyes and then she was being tugged forward.

"I'll be fast." She said.

They walked out the door like they had done before and turned to her right. He was a lot easier to walk with, because even though he wanted to walk fast and sometimes pulled her forward too much, he did try to slow down and he didn't become angry with her. When they stopped and she heard the door open, Elizabeth was nudged into the room.

"I'm a holler away if you need anything." The fidgety man snickered as the door shut.

Elizabeth had been in here before and she knew she just had to walk straight forward and kick out with her toe to find the toilet. But this time she did something she hadn't tried to do before, she reach up with her tied hands and felt around her eyes. The blind fold didn't feel like anything other than simple cloth, so she with some difficulty tugged the fold down. Blinking at the single light source above her, Elizabeth squinted her eyes to look around her. And to her surprise, the room was clean. The walls were steel, the floor was a matching grey concrete slab, and in the corner was a metal toilet- the type one would see in a park bathroom.

With the fold off she easily walked forward to the toilet. She did have to go to the bathroom. It was easier without the blind fold on. When she was done she saw that there was a small metal sink closer to the door. Elizabeth looked around the room for other useful things in the room. She didn't see a window in here, so that was not an option for escape. The sink had a rectangle mirror that hung enough above that she could see only her chest up, unless she stepped a few steps back.

Elizabeth could see a woman that might have once resembled her a few days ago, but she wasn't sure she could recognize herself now. The blue eyes that looked back at her in the mirror were tired and dull. She had purple circles underneath them and her skin was a little whiter than it normally was even in the winter months. Her tongue flicked out to her lips and she reached up her tied hands to tuck her blonde hair behind her ear. The sight of her hands tied the way they were in front of her made her tremble. She saw her lips begin to quiver before she felt them. She bit down on her bottom lip hard.

No, she would not cry now. Not now, after getting this far. She didn't want to watch herself breakdown. That would be too much on her brain to handle. And Elizabeth knew that the pain that she suffered during this event in her life would not be easy to overcome. But she knew that it didn't matter how much it caused her to question everything she knew, she would be able to overcome this. Right now she had to get it together, because her life depended on it. This was easier said than done though, because her bottom had already begun to tremble and the tears came down.

This was fucked up. Elizabeth never would have expected her life to come to this and here she was tied in a bathroom being held captive by lunatics with an invisible boss. Again, the tall dark handsome man with beautiful brown eyes came to her mind. It would really really suck if he had those goons come kidnap her, because he had some sick fascination with blondes. It happened. Maybe it was like his thing to burst into places naked, flash some money, learn the women's name, and then have his people come kidnap them so he can do wicked things to her. Oops. Shit, no to them. The women he kidnapped. But wasn't she wondering-more like fantasizing- about how Dark Curls had kidnapped her?

It made the ties around her wrists seem way more appealing and Elizabeth snorted. Her train of thought had gone off the rails and now she knew that she was on the brink of insanity. In the mirror she looked like a half-crazy woman with tears rolling down her face and she was smiling. Her cheeks were flushed. She leaned in closer to the mirror until her breath fogged the surface. Elizabeth put her fingers outward as if to touch the glass, and then stopped. Quickly, she turned on the water. Then put her hands back up to the mirror.

Elizabeth edged her fingertips around the mirror. Even though she wasn't super short or anything she still had to lift up on her tiptoes because of the way her hands were tied. She was searching for the best way to pull the mirror off the wall and she wanted to do it without making a lot of noise.

"Hey! What is taking so long in there?" There was a bang on the door behind her and she jumped, spinning around. A sigh of relief came from her when she realized that he had not came through the door he had just banged on it. She took a moment to clear her throat and let her heart calm down.

"I-I'm just trying to wash my hands." She said as clearly as she could.

"No funny business. Hurry up." Was the only reply she had and that was all she needed.

Elizabeth made quick work of tracing her fingers along the edge of the mirror again. When she was satisfied that she had a good grip on the corner, Elizabeth pulled. The mirror pulled away but not off the wall. So Elizabeth lifted herself on her tip toes in a lifting and then pulling motion to tug the mirror off the wall. And it came loose. She wanted to squeal in delight but had to contain the happiness that was going through her. Or maybe it was adrenaline, who cared. Now, she had a weapon.

Her teeth bit down on her bottom lip again in her excitement. How to get him to come through that door so she could get away? Elizabeth walked over to stand next to the door, so that when he opened it she would be hidden behind it.

Taking a deep clearing breath before holding the mirror above her head. The mirror was heavy to hold with her hands being tied, but she was managing. All those years having to hold heavy books above her head to file them away in the high up places that even the ladder couldn't reach, finally paid off.

"Can you help me, please?" Her voice was barley above a whisper. She almost wondered if he had heard her when she heard the door knob turn. As the seconds ticked on for hours, Elizabeth steeled her nerves for this moment.

"What kind of-" Elizabeth swung down as hard as she could as soon as she saw the back of his brown buzz cut. The mirror made its contact with its target and the man screamed in his pain and anger. Elizabeth didn't let go of the broken mirror, the reflective glass was now broke and there were shards in places. She could see some blood, but she couldn't wait to see anymore she closed her eyes and swung the mirror around wide not caring where she hit as long as she hit her mark.

Finally, she dropped the mirror and opened her eyes. She had hit her mark alright. And it had hit in his face, there was a lot of blood. A part of Elizabeth wanted to see more, to take some contentment in this small revenge, but the practical part of her mind told her to run her ass off. And Elizabeth thought that running her ass off sounded great right about now. Without another glance back Elizabeth turned through the metal door and back into the hallway she had been through. Her heart was pounding in her chest, left, whispered something inside of her mind in the panic. And she ran fast in the direction it told her.

As she was running she noticed she was in a tunnel of some kind, the walls were lined with low lighting lamps that looked way too nice for the city to put under everyone. She focused on the sound of her pounding bare feet. The concrete floor beneath them made them sting as they slapped against the surface. She couldn't hear footsteps behind her and she was surprised. But she did hear something, in the distance, an animalistic bellow. Elizabeth had to find a way out and fast. She was sure her time of escape was running out, because the man she'd injured had back up that was way harder to take down.

She came around a curve in the tunnel and it opened up to a different room. This room was very similar in the steel wall decor in the bathroom, but it did have two beds that looked like they had been used. Her chest was heaving in her heavy breathing, but she didn't want to stop. She surveyed her surroundings trying to pinpoint her next move. There were two doors that she could see on either side of the room. She ran over to one of them and opened it wide. The door led to another room with beds inside of it, these beds looked unused though.

Ok, so she was in a tunnel that had lots of beds. And a dungeon with chains. This was some sort of crazy sex nightmare where she was kidnapped to endure torture. Elizabeth turned back to the first room with beds, her eyes searching again. She saw a red ladder next to the other door on the other side of the room. And she didn't think twice before running forward. The red ladder was metal and it was bolted to the wall. Elizabeth tilted her head up to see that the ladder led to a metal hatch in the ceiling.

She began the climb upwards towards the ceiling. Elizabeth was sure that freedom was just beyond that trap door. When she reached the top of the ladder, Elizabeth pulled the latch and it came easy, she pushed the door upward. It opened up to a dark hole. Great more darkness. Its fine, it had to be better than staying here in this dead end creepy room with the beds and the very angry bleeding man she left behind. Elizabeth heaved herself through the dark opening and into the dark space it led her into.

Before someone could come through the open door, Elizabeth kicked it shut and then she closed her eyes. It was dark in here, but she wasn't chained to a wall. And she could still go further. Right now Elizabeth wanted to pause and catch her breath. Her hands were still tied together and they were shaking in her lap. She was sitting up with her legs stretched out and her eyes closed. Honestly, she wanted to take a nap. Her body felt heavy and drained after running so fast. The adrenaline rush she had had before was wearing off and it made her feel drowsy.

Elizabeth knew that she couldn't stop her to rest any longer though, it would be only a matter of time before one or both of those goons found her here. So, with the last of the energy she had stored inside of her, Elizabeth got to her knees and opened her eyes. It was dark, but it wasn't without light. There was a sliver of light peeking above her, she crawled over to it. She then rose up and poked her finger tips through the hole that brought her light. Elizabeth then pushed upwards, with her tied hands, to make more light. And it worked the harder she pushed to more light she was given.

She stood all the way up and found herself in an alleyway. Elizabeth looked around her and noticed that she was standing in a trash bin. She could see the door she had come through was still closed and blended in with the trash bins metal surface. No one would ever know that this bin led to a secret tunnel that held women captive. Elizabeth didn't waste anymore time and threw her leg over the bin's side. She leaned forward on the bin and then threw her other leg over and landed on both of her feet on the ground.

Freedom. She was really free from that hell. Elizabeth had achieved the impossible. She would do her victory dance later, but right now she had to get somewhere she could rest. Somewhere that had a phone perhaps. Elizabeth pushed away from the bin and turned to face the alley. The sun was going down, she had got lucky that there was enough light still to peep through the bin's lid. It was that time of year that when the sun went down it went down in minutes. And she even now she could see the sky getting darker with each second she stood there.

Elizabeth shivered, the air out here in the open was far chillier than it was in the cell. The wind blew against her simple grey Cotten-T. Holding her arms close to her body to keep the little heat she did have, Elizabeth walked with her head down towards the end of the alley. She didn't recognize where she was, so the only thing she could do was walk forward. Her movements were no longer hurried and her heartbeat was even. Elizabeth took a deep breath in and it felt nice to feel her lungs be filled with the night air. And the night had fallen down on her.

At the end of the alleyway, Elizabeth looked up to the moon. It was almost completely full. Only a small sliver was missing to complete the full circle. Elizabeth looked around taking her gaze from the beautiful orb in the sky. She knew where she was. Elizabeth was further downtown about twenty minutes from her store. Crazy to think she'd been stashed so close to her own apartment and yet the two world felt so far apart. Even now standing here the memories from down there in the cell were in the forefront of her mind and were still very real. Yet standing out here under the moonlight, it felt unreal to be seeing it shine so bright.

Elizabeth didn't hear the footsteps that came up from behind her. She didn't have anywhere else to run to anyway. There were still some people mingling around the sidewalk. A couple sat on a bench in the distance. Elizabeth was focused on the things surrounding her instead of trying to strain her ears to listen behind her. So when a hand touched her arm, she twirled around so fast with a scream ready to be released. She was scared it was the men who had kept her captive were finally catching up on her to take her back. And this time there were people close enough to maybe try to help her.

"Ma'am, do you need help?" This man's voice had a slight country twang to it that made her feel warm. He was tall with naturally dark hair that fell across his forehead and his face looked genuinely concerned for her. Elizabeth knew that she looked terrible, but she wasn't sure if this was a person she should trust.

"No, I'm fine." She said with as much authority as she could. He raised his hands in front of him in a way that had both palms facing her, as if she were a dangerous animal needing to be feared.

"I'm sorry ma'am. I find that hard to believe. You're not wearing shoes or a jacket and it's getting very cold this time of year. Plus, there's-" His eyes dropped to her still tied hands. But he didn't step forward towards her, instead he kept his hands visible to her and flicked his eyes back up to hers then back to her tied hands.

"If I'm not mistaken, that usually means something isn't right." The man's voice was low, as if he didn't want to scare her off with his words. His eyes flicked back down to her tied hands and his brows were furrowed in concern. She could tell this guy was not trying to harm her and that he was trying his best to make her feel safe.

"I won't hurt you. If you'll let me I'll take you somewhere safe. Maybe we can talk about what happened to you. Then we will see about getting authorities involved after you're warm and fed." He didn't step closer to her but he did extend his hand to her.

Elizabeth felt unsure. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she was holding her tied hands close to her heart. It made it easier in case she had to turn and run. This man could be another goon that she hadn't seen before. The thought of going with him willingly and then ending up back where she had just escaped from, made her take a hesitant step back.

"How do I know you're telling the truth?" She said.

"You won't. You'll have to have faith. I won't hurt you. I just want to help you. If I had a daughter that was on the streets at this time of night without shoes on, I would want someone to try to help her." The man responded to her without moving forward or changing the position of his hands. He had kept them held up and palms facing her.

Elizabeth took a deep shaking break and swallowed hard. "Ok."