Land of Wolves

Chapter 58

My lips still burn, the odd pulsating continuing throughout the night. It's distracting, and it makes it impossible to sleep.

Not that I'd have gotten good sleep, anyway. The light and lack of comfort make it hard, and being unable to tell the time has messed with my circadian rhythm.

There's a good possibility we're trying to sleep when it isn't even night. I assume a whole day had passed by the time we finally decided to lay down and rest, though.

How many days have we been here now? Three? Four?

I feel foolish for not keeping better track, and I debate trying to carve a tally mark into the cement wall before quietly acknowledging that my human nails aren't strong enough to do so. I'd only tear mine up, and I've got enough injuries as it is.

Considering I was given breakfast when I went to medical yesterday, I assume it was morning. Will they see me at the same time today?

I curl a hand around my head, my fingers resting against the base of Adam's throat. His arm is pressed over his eyes, blocking the light, but I can tell he's not sleeping. Not once have I worked up and caught him resting, and I'm beginning to fear for his health.

Wolves can tolerate significantly more than humans, but even they have limits.

He still needs to sleep, especially if he's to keep up his strength. I know he's not being fed, nor has he received any medical attention, and sleep is the one thing he can still control. He needs to take advantage of that, but there's no way for me to lecture him without alerting HPAW.

They'll find it odd if I'm trying to convince Adam to sleep, but I might have no other choice.

I need him in tip-top shape when we escape, and exhaustion will make him forgetful and careless. We can't have that, not when the stakes are this high.

He stopped trying to subtly sniff me late into yesterday evening, and I assume the scent of his mate has worn off. Bells and I had no prolonged interactions, so I'm not surprised it didn't stick around for long.

What's Adam thinking?

I'm sure he's panicked over the idea of his mate being here, within arms reach of both him and HPAW, but I see this as a positive. The mate bond is so much more intense than HPAW realizes, and I have a good feeling that we can convince Bells to help us escape.

She just needs to meet Adam and feel the bond for herself. She needs to get sucked in by it. Consumed by it.

I doubt Bells has undergone as extensive training as me, and I'm sure that will make her easier to flip. She's not prepared for the onslaught of emotions that comes with meeting your mate for the first time, and she won't be as equipped to ignore them as I did with Caleb.

She'll fall putty to Adam, and she can be our eyes and ears outside this cell.

I'm sure it won't be too hard to find time for me and Bells to be alone. Dan seems insistent on attending all of my medical appointments, but I'm confident he won't make a fuss if I tell him he has to stay out of the room while she bathes me.

She said she'd do it the next time I saw her, which I hope is today.

Dan's an asshole even on his best days, but he's not a pervert. He'll give us space on anything I need to be naked for an extended time for.

Maybe I can get Bells to figure out who HPAW's informant is. If she's as close with Dan as I assume her to be, I'm sure she can find a way to convince him to disclose that information.

Men are weak when they're horny, and we can use that to our benefit.

We need to know who it is, especially if that person is still within the pack lands.