Chapter 184: Trapped

"Jane! Fuck, where are you?!" Magnus’s frantic voice exploded through the speaker, cracking into a low, ferocious growl that made the receiver vibrate. "Jake called! Why didn’t you pick up, and why the hell aren’t you on your way home with Matthias?!"

"Magnus... I need to go to the hospital," my voice quavered.

"Jake said you inhaled smoke. Alan can treat that at the estate! We have everything there!" the man barked, sharp and commanding. "Turn back right now. I’ve already dispatched armed guards to escort you! I’m heading your way to get you myself."

"Magnus... I’m pregnant... I know I am. I feel it. I need an ultrasound, to be checked... I’m in so much pain, Magnus..."

An agonizing, dead silence fell over the line. Then, a sickening smash echoed through the speaker, sounding as if he had hurled a heavy table directly into a wall.

"Which hospital are you heading to?" he rasped, his breath coming in heavy, ragged gasps alongside the crunch of shattered glass.

"City General... Magnus, I love you. Forgive me."

I murmured the words, freezing against Adam’s rigid shoulder. I didn’t know why I said it right then, but a deep, primal instinct told me I had to. That I was meant to say it.

"Fuck! Brake! BRAKE!" the guard in the passenger seat suddenly shrieked, panic ripping through his throat.

I jerked forward, snapping my eyes toward the windshield. Straight ahead, at blistering speed, our car was hurtling directly into the cavernous, pitch-black maw of a massive shipping container, its heavy steel ramp lowered to the pavement.

The man in the passenger seat lunged across the console, grabbing the driver and screaming frantically for him to throw the vehicle into reverse. But before he could, the massive steel doors slammed shut with a deafening, metallic crash, severing us from the outside world. Daylight vanished. Every trace of ambient street noise died instantly. We were trapped.

In sheer terror, I fumbled for my phone in my lap. The signal bars collapsed to zero. No service.

"What the fuck did you do, you bastard?! I told you to—"

A sharp, deafening pop echoed through the pitch-black cabin. A flash of muzzle fire lit up the dark for a fraction of a second, and a spray of droplets splashed across my face. Warm. Wet. Coated in the iron stench of raw blood.

"Fuck, finally shut the hell up," the driver muttered, his voice unnaturally calm in the ringing silence that followed. "Welcome aboard, Luna Jane."

"W-who are you?" I asked, my voice trembling as I strained my eyes against the suffocating dark.

It was useless. Not a single ray of light penetrated the enclosure; not a sliver of space offered relief. The darkness was absolute—so thick I couldn’t even see my own hands, let alone the men surrounding us.

The air inside grew heavy, suffocating with the acrid stench of cordite, fuel, and fresh blood. Beside me, Adam’s fingers dug into my shoulders with an iron, trembling grip. His ragged, shallow breathing betrayed the mounting panic he was fighting to suppress.

"How rude of you not to remember me," a deep voice drawled quietly from the front, followed by the soft click of an opening door. "We spent almost a full year in the same university cohort. You really ought to have recognized my voice by now, Jane. I’m hurt. Truly."

"Jane, listen to me," Adam’s hot whisper burned against my ear, his voice barely audible over the hum of the idling engine. "Stay calm. Do you hear me? Focus on one thing—getting through this. Don’t provoke them. If things escalate, let me handle the talking. Just agree with whatever I say. We need to stabilize your condition and buy time until Magnus tracks us down."

"Okay," I breathed out, trying to force the tremors from my body.

The moment the word left my lips, a harsh, fluorescent strip overhead flickered to life with a sharp click, blinding us in a wave of glaring white light. The car doors were yanked open from both sides. Heavy, ruthless hands clamped around my arm, dragging me roughly out of the backseat. Adam was hauled out right behind me.

The cargo container offered little room to maneuver, and it was already occupied. Blinking through the sting of the light, I looked up at the giant holding me fast by the elbow. He was a massive Gamma warrior built like a brick wall, his dense muscle outlined by a tight black tactical shirt and cargo pants loaded with gear. A combat knife with a serrated blade hung at his waist.

His square, scarred face was devoid of emotion. Cold grey eyes stared straight through me, regarding me as nothing more than livestock. As I looked closer, a chill ran down my spine—a clear plastic insert was fitted above his upper lip, extending deep into his nostrils. A scent-blocker. It was designed to neutralize pheromones, rendering him completely immune to my scent or any command an Alpha might project.

Another silent warrior held Adam, pinning his arms behind his back in a brutal lock as the doctor struggled against the restraint.

At the far end of the container, stacked against the corrugated steel walls, stood several reinforced military crates. And sprawled casually across one of them, a chilling smirk playing on his lips, sat the lunatic from the coffee shop.

Max.

Every nerve in my body coiled tight at the mere sight of him. He stared at me with an unblinking, predatory fixity, his dark gaze practically devouring every inch of my body as if savoring the anticipation of a feast.

"You’ve changed a lot, Luna," he drawled, taking a deep, theatrical breath of the stale air. A sharp, wolfish grin cut across his face as he rumbled, "You smell even sweeter now. Ripe––like a summer fruit."

"Can you believe it? She didn’t even recognize my voice," the driver scoffed, stepping closer. "Our elevated Luna Jane is far too important for the likes of us, it seems."