Fable of Happiness (Fable 1)

I’d already made a lasso and quick draw knot out of the rope that no longer wrapped around my wrists but was ready to capture another.

The moment he’s tied up, I’ll attach the rest of the leash to a tree branch.

Steal the backpack.

Say goodbye if you must.

Triple, triple check your knots are undoable for at least a day.

And then...leave.

Eventually, he would use a rock or something sharp to saw at the rope or break the branch he was tied to. He was strong and seemed to know how to harness nature to benefit him.

Unlike when I’d hit him with the shovel, he’d be fine. He’d just rage, have a nap, get angry again, realize I was too far gone to bother following, and return to his valley.

Alone.

And this messy piece of my life will be forgotten.

I nodded, warming to my crusade.

He would never know where I’d gone, and I would never tell anyone where he lived. I would honor his secrets. We would forget this past week ever happened.

Up ahead, he slowed.

His bare footsteps became lighter as if he’d learned to sneak up on the mansion instead of announce his arrival. The foliage looked familiar as we approached the drop-off where I’d stopped for a drink and lost my water bottle over the edge.

Aha!

My backpack with all my gear, other food, recording equipment, and first-aid kit rested where I’d left it by a tree. How convenient that I’d left it up here instead of taking it down into the valley with me.

Okay, new plan.

He can keep the backpack with the chocolate and water—just in case it takes him longer than a day to get free. I’ll take my usual rucksack full of everything I need.

I’d make sure to fill up my spare water bottle from some puddles along the way and use one of my purifying tablets to ensure it was drinkable.

Courage made me step forward with purpose.

This will work.

He didn’t know it yet, but this was goodbye.

Drawing to a stop, he shook his head as if a concussion still plagued him. Glancing at my abandoned backpack by the tree marking the first rung of the natural ladder we’d have to climb down, he worked out the kinks in his neck and went to turn around.

To look at me.

I couldn’t let him.

I honestly didn’t know if I’d have the courage to go through with this if those unfathomable eyes of his captured mine.

Do it!

Do it now!

Dashing forward, I erased the small distance between us and collided with his back before he could fully twist to see me.

Adrenaline whipped down my limbs, turning me shaky as I snatched his left wrist and shoved it into my rope lasso.

His other one!

Get his other one!

“What the—” He spun on his heels, raising his arm as he did, tipping me off balance.

I swung with him, determined not to let him go.

Our eyes locked.

Fire to fire.

Our hearts kicked.

Soul to soul.

Betrayal blackened his face as he noticed the rope that once bound me now prepared to bind him.

His mouth opened to speak again. His gaze burning into me, making me char with guilt, making me feel things he had no right to make me feel.

Don’t you dare stop, Gem!

Crashing into him again, I reached for his other arm.

I tripped as he stumbled backward, moving toward the drop off, backing away from me as if he forgot he could overpower me in a second. Undiluted fear shone in his stare before being drowned out by fierce cruelty.

“Think you can switch roles with me?” he snarled, his arm still too high for me to grab. “You’ll pay for this.” His chest pressed against mine. His thigh wedged between my legs as I jumped like a five-year-old trying to get candy from his fingers.

This was ridiculous.

My plan was crumbling before it’d even begun.

His other hand, with the rope dangling uselessly around his wrist, latched around my bicep, digging his nails into my skin. “Christ, I’m going to have fun reminding you of your place.” His cock hardened, tenting his slacks. Long hair danced around his wild face.

And that cursed electricity hissed into being, pebbling my nipples, making my body crave his.

No!

Gritting my teeth, I tried one last time.

Striking his hand off me, I gave it everything I had.

“I’m not going back down there!” Leaping upward, I managed to grab his forearm, clinging with all my strength, desperate to drag his arm down so I could wrap them tight together.

The only problem was.

He was too strong.

Too tall.

Too much.

It was demoralizing.

So, I let go.

He grinned, thinking he’d won. “You are going back down there. Or are you forgetting you’re mine now?”

Try again.

My thighs bunched, ready to jump and tackle for a third time. “I’m mine. Not yours.”

“Oh, don’t worry.” He smirked. “We’ll have plenty of time to discuss who owns who when we get home.”