Emily's Captive (A Lilly Town Shifter Novel Book 2) by Bobbie Palmer

amazed. They
had actually had a conversation. A real one, with
no grunting involved. She wanted to have another
one with him and soon. Maybe she was going to have
to come back soon and visit.
***
    Paul stood at the dining room table with the
map spread out in front of him. He was trying to
think of the most likely places Stacy would be
kept. It was hard because things in the
organization changed so much. For all he knew,
half of these compounds had been abandoned and
replaced with new ones. It wasn’t likely,
considering Zeke’s injury, but it was still
possible.
“How’s it going?” Emily asked as she walked
in.
“Weren’t you supposed to not be here while I
did this?” he asked.
    “I just thought I’d bring you some coffee. You
seem to like it a lot,” she said with a smile. He
knew she was a little upset about Carrie. He
couldn’t figure out why, but he wasn’t going to
question it.
“I do like coffee. If I could, I’d drink it
all the time,” he replied.
“Well, it’s a good thing I’m a caffeine addict
then, because there’s always some in the kitchen.”
    He watched Emily walk over to his list and
study it. He wasn’t sure why. It wasn’t like they
could go immediately. They had to figure out a
plan and get a team in. Then they could go in on
their horses and save the day. “Thanks,” he said,
and took a sip. “Perfect.”
    “Okay. Well, I’ll let you get back to work.
Let me know if you need anything,” she said with a
kind smile and left. She must be up to something.
That woman never gave a sweet smile. She was
probably buttering him up so he’d finish faster.
For all he knew, she’d put some extra stuff in the
coffee to make sure he worked faster.
***
    Richard watched as the girl sat on her cot, her
body facing away from Zeke. However, he could tell
she’d started listening to the old man ramble on.
He had no idea why, but maybe she was just bored.
It had to stop, though. He didn’t want Zeke
getting attached. If he couldn’t break her, she
would die. He was starting to regret showing her
to Zeke.
***
    Stacy sat on her cot and listened to Zeke. She
was starting to like listening to him talk. In all
the unknown and craziness, he was comforting.
    “I’ve never had a relationship. I don’t know
why, but it never happened. I guess I was too busy
or didn’t find anyone I wanted to be with. Well, I
shouldn’t say that; there was a girl when I was
young. I was madly in love with her, but was too
afraid to talk to her. I think she’s married now,
has kids, and even grandkids. After her, I just
didn’t see the point. I wasn’t exactly the best
choice out there.”
    Stacy wondered if he really was that bad of a
guy or whether he was just reacting to the attack
on him. He had a reason to hate shifters. He was
being a little extreme about it, but he wasn’t just
killing for the sake of killing. He thought he was
protecting people.
    “After her, I just never met anyone. I didn’t
want to. I just concentrated on my work. I didn’t
want to have anyone who could be used against me.
That’s what happens when you love someone, they are
used against you. That’s why I didn’t want anyone
that special to me.”
    She wasn’t ready to talk to him, but she
wondered if she could convince him shifters weren’t
all bad. Maybe soon she’d get the courage to talk
to him. She just hoped this wasn’t all a ploy to
get information from her. She’d wait just a little
longer to see what happened.
    “I had a friend once. He betrayed me. I
trusted him and he switched sides. He was my
second-in-command and he decided he didn’t trust me
anymore, so he sided with the shifters. The ones
who kill people.”
    She wanted to tell him that he was wrong, but
she wouldn’t talk to him. She wouldn’t allow
herself to get caught up in that. Instead, she
just stayed where she was, facing the wall and
trying her best to ignore him. She