Rory turned to Tristan and Tara. “I’m stepping outside for while then. Please call me when you’ve finished with him. ”
“Yes, sir,” she said quietly, eyes downcast.
Rory went to the door, but couldn’t resist one parting shot before he stepped out into the corridor. “That’s how well behaved pets act, brat. See if you can learn something from her while she’s here. ”
Tristan gave him an equally disapproving look and unclipped Tara’s leash.
“Don’t pick up any bad habits, Pet. ”
“No, sir. ”
The two masters went out and closed the door firmly behind them.
As he closed the door, Nicky yelled after them. “Assholes!”
“Nicky, please!” Tara cast a frightened glance at the closed door. “What if they’d heard you?”
He sighed and turned his back to hold out his cuffed hands to her. “Unlock me, Tara. The key is in the bedside table. I saw it in there earlier when Marco took out some lubricant. ”
Her eyes grew wide, and she shook her head nervously. “But I’m not supposed to. ”
“Tara, listen to me. Rory’s gone for at least an hour. We can put them back on before either of them returns if you’re scared. Come on. ”
Hesitating only another few seconds, she went over to the table, retrieved the key, and unlocked his wrist restraints.
“Thanks, babe. I hate those things. Now what have you come to do to me?”
Tara smiled. “I just really came for a visit. I heard at the ceremony last night that you were still having some trouble adjusting. I was a little worried. ”
“So you lied to Tristan and Rory? I love it!”
Tara blushed and dropped her gaze. “I’m being very wicked. If my master finds out…”
Nicky smiled and took her hand. “Who’s going to tell him? Certainly not me. ” He got out of bed and strode over to lock the door and winked at her. “We’ll just say we have no idea how that got locked. ”
He walked over to the window and looked out at the mountain range. He hadn’t been allowed out yet. All he could tell about the area they were in was that they were very high on a mountain side, judging from the spectacular view from the window, and the compound was surrounded by dark and verdant forest. “It’s beautiful here. I’d like to go outside and look around, but I’m still on house arrest, I guess. Marco ordered me to stay inside while the rogue pack is out there. ”
“Yes, Tristan told me the same thing. ”
“Who are they, Tara? Do you know?”
“I’ve heard rumors, you know, nothing really substantial. Some of the mistresses, the female wolves who come to my shop were talking about it yesterday. They said some of them used to be in our pack, but ran away when they couldn’t follow orders. ”
“What kind of orders?”
Tara blushed again, and lowered her voice. “Well, they didn’t know I could hear them, I guess. They said it was about the pets. A few of the adopted pets couldn’t settle in well, and their masters and mistresses took them and ran, so they wouldn’t be so unhappy. ”
“What?”
“Yes, and they keep coming around because it’s really hard for them to stay completely away from the pack and the ancestral land. They feel it belongs to them too. ”
“But I thought all pets had to be controlled or go feral?” A cold doubt took root in Nicky’s chest. “So it’s not just me who has a hard time settling down with this submission thing. There are others too. ”
“Well, a few of the male pets in particular find it difficult. ”
“So they just collar and leash us and tell us to shut the hell up. ”
“Well, they can’t very well let pets go wild, like the rogues want. They may seem okay on the outside, but if their tempers get the best of them they might hurt someone, and this way, at least, they don’t have to put them down for killing some human. Pets who are uncontrolled are unpredictable, you see. Dangerous. ”