Unlocking Her Chastity (Polar Bear, Alaska)

“What's your name?” I ask him.

“I'm Thomas,” he says. “Thomas O’Toppin of Winter Fallhaven.” He smiles. And it’s just then that I realize what's happening. What he's doing. He's reenacting a scene from one of my books.

My character Bellissima was kidnapped just like this.

She was forced into a chastity belt and she was held captive for so long.

And in that story she escaped. What does this man Thomas think is going to happen here? I'm as badass as Bellissima.

I wrote her, after all. I don't say this though.

“You knew I was coming to Polar Bear?” I ask Thomas. “From my posts on the reader forum?”

“Yes, Bellissima. My pet. I knew. And I know you like soup and I know you like chastity belts. You wrote about them in your books. So I thought I would make a nice little cozy cabin for my pet. For you.” He is leaning over the kitchen table. His breath is rancid. His eyes are bloodshot. He is more than unwell. He is dangerous.

I've got to go now. “Do you think you could get me some water?” I ask him.

He turns around then to get me a glass of water from the sink.

And I use the opportunity to look for a weapon. There's a curtain rod over the window and there's a fleur de lis at the end of it, a medieval weapon if I ever saw one.

I yank it off the wall with my hands still bound together.

He's bigger than me, but heavier and less fit.

I've got on some bad-ass boots, and I've trained for combat. How else would I know how to write such great fight scenes?

Thomas turns around, realizing that I'm doing something beyond eating my soup.

His eyebrows raise. “What are you doing? You're supposed to sit and eat like Bellis—”

“Like hell I am!” I jab him to the floor, poking that rod straight through his shoulder.

He screams – yells, really.

As he stumbles backwards into the refrigerator, I use the heel of my boot to kick him hard in the crotch.

I hope it ruins his cock forever.

I don't wait. I don't look for keys because I know wherever he's put them is somewhere I won't find before he can catch up to me.

So, I do what any sensible heroine would do. I grab my coat, and I bolt out of that cabin.

Then I run and I run and I run.

5

JACOB

The whole drive back up to my cabin I'm feeling unsettled.

I don't know Juniper at all. And I'm not trying to be some man who thinks he knows more about women than he actually does.

I've been alone for a long time. I have a lot to learn as far as women go, but there was something about Juniper's ease when she said she wanted to meet me for dinner that had me thinking there was something there.

I can't imagine she would have stood me up – and not without letting me know she wasn't going to be at dinner. At least leave a note!

By the time I park my truck in front of my cabin, I’m defeated. Christmas decorations be damned, I’ve nearly lost my holiday spirit.

But something just doesn’t sit right. I know I just met her – but I have more faith in her than this. Juniper wouldn’t have stood me up.

I sit there for a moment longer and pull out my cell phone, placing a call back at the Icicle Inn. “Hey,” I say to the clerk at the front desk, “I was just in, I'm calling again about Juniper Jones. I just was wondering if she got in yet? If she's there safely? I'm trying to not worry too much. Just, she's from out of town. And this is Alaska. She was planning on doing some exploring, and I’m just worried.”

“No, Jacob, we haven't seen her. It's kind of strange, actually. She just checked in last night and she's been gone most of the day. Thanks for letting me know. I'm going to make a note of it here. I'm leaving in a few minutes from my shift, but I'll let the next person know to keep a lookout. I'll have them call you if we hear anything.”

“Thanks,” I say. I hang up and still feel unsettled. I decide to give Luke Morrissey down at the police station a call. I have his direct line and he picks up. We've gone hunting a few times, and I'm glad I have his personal number.

“Hey Jacob,” he says. “Everything okay?”

“I know it's kind of random for me to be calling,” I tell him. “It's just, it's about a girl.”

He chuckles. “Honestly? I'm surprised. I've never heard you talk about a woman before.”

I tell him about Juniper, about meeting her this morning, about our plans for dinner, how she didn't show.

“That is strange.” Luke says it's unusual for someone to be gone that long considering it's getting dark. “Thanks for the heads up. I'm going to call the other patrolmen and let them know that someone might be stranded somewhere, and I’ll call the inn to find out if she has a car.”