by Quinn Loftis
Sally pushed her consciousness into Jen and sought out the fast fluttering heartbeat. She was amazed at the little life growing inside of her friend, how perfect every little part was. Sally honestly didn’t have a clue what a baby should look like at seven and half months, but Jen’s baby was fully developed. Sally noticed that her lungs looked small, but from what she could remember from health class, those were what took the longest to mature. As she watched the perfect little life moving in the safe little home, she felt honored to get to be a part of it. Her little hands were moving; one had even made it to her mouth. Her toes curled and her foot flexed. Amazing was the only word that Sally could think. Amazing, amazing, amazing, and she knew that if she could cry she would have tears streaming down her face. This perfect, amazing life was set to end the minute she took her first breath. She would have no first moments after that. No first smiles, or first noises, no first roll over or first crawl. Her life was over before it would even begin. How could that possibly be the payment for Jen’s life, to take something so innocent in place of someone else. She wondered if the Fates would consider a different sacrifice, a different life in place of the child’s. There had to be another way. As she pushed warmth and hope towards the child, letting her know just how loved she was, she vowed then and there that Jen and Dec’s baby would live. She would allow no other outcome. She was the healer of their pack, the one meant to protect and care for the wolves. As such, she could not allow a new life to be taken from them.
“Do you hear me little one,” she whispered into her mind, “you are loved, and no one will take you from us.”
Sally slipped her consciousness slowly from the child and then back out of Jen, pulling herself back into her own body. As her eyes opened she blinked several times to regain her bearings. Finally, when she felt like she had her wits about her, she looked down at Jen.
“I’m not sure how a baby should look at seven and half months, but from what I could tell she has all her parts, her lungs looked small, but other than that she is absolutely perfect.”
Jen’s eyes filled with tears as she pulled herself up and flung herself into Jacque’s arms. She wept for the news that her child was healthy. She wept for being trapped in a horrific place, away from any form of medical help, and she wept for the loss of her mate. It was just too much. And for once, she didn’t have anything smart to say; she didn’t have a joke or sarcastic comment; all she had was a broken heart and an empty place where her mate’s spirit should have been. She heard the sniffles behind her and knew that the others were crying right along with her. They felt her pain; they knew her fears and they would stand by her through it all. That realization only made her cry harder. She didn’t know how long she sat there holding onto her best friend, but she was so grateful that Jacque just let her get it out. And then finally she took some deep breaths and the tears subsided.
“Um, guys, not to interrupt this difficult moment, but we sort of have company.” The waver in Crinas’ voice and the fear that caused it had everyone turning to face her. The eyes of every one of them widened and multiple gasps rippled across them.
“Could someone explain why there is a massive white wolf staring at us from about twenty five feet away? Which I will add is not near far enough for me.” Lilly attempted to move in front of Jacque and the others as if she had a chance in hell of protecting them against a wolf that large.
“He’s not just a wolf,” Alina answered and her voice was filled with what sounded like shock, sadness, and guilt.
“He’s a were?” Jen asked as she wiped the last of the tears away.
Alina nodded as she continued to stare at the wolf. He lifted his nose into the air sniffing, and suddenly he froze. His head slowly lowered and his narrowed, glowing eyes landed on Alina. He took a slow step towards them as his lip lifted in a snarl.
“Alina, why is he staring you down like that? And a better question would be... why does he look like he’s about to rip your throat out?” Cynthia asked.
“I imagine that after what he’s been through, he might want to rip me apart and then some,” she answered calmly.
“So I take that to mean that you know who he is?” Jen asked.
“I do.”
“Okay,” Jen drew the word out as she continued to watch the wolf. “I also take it that by your first reaction of shock you weren’t expecting to see him.”
“I wasn’t.”
“Bloody hell, like pulling freaking teeth,” Jacque muttered.
“I thought he was dead,” Alina elaborated. “We all did. Would you agree Elle?” Alina did not disconnect the eye contact she had with the wolf, feeling that it was the only thing keeping him from attacking.
“We did not believe there could be anyway he survived,” Elle answered.
“Alright, are you going to tell us who he is anytime this year?” Jen’s impatience and earlier emotions were not helping her keep the sarcasm out of her voice.
“He should not be here; he should not have survived. If they had known, they would have done something. They never would have left him to this fate, they would have…,”
“Alina!” Cynthia interrupted the Alpha, attempting to keep her from getting any more out of control than she was in that moment. “Who is he?”
“He is…he was Vasile’s brother.”
Chapter 18
“I’ve seen a horsefly; I’ve seen a dragonfly; I’ve even seen housefly, but I ain’t never seen an elephant fly. For some reason I don’t think this possibility is so farfetched, not any more. In fact at this point an elephant flying would be the most uneventful sight in my day.” ~Lilly
“Bloody hell,” Jacque whispered as her breath caught in her chest.
Jen threw her arm up in the air letting out a loud huff, “Just when you think you’ve heard it all. Next you’re going to tell us you carried his love child and that’s why he ran off into a god forsaken forest so that Vasile wouldn’t rip the jewels off.”
Alina shook her head and said just as serious as ever. “No, no love child.”
“Good to know,” Cynthia added.
The wolf continued to stare Alina down and just when they had begun to think that he was going to become a permanent fixture to their view of the dark forest, he turned and ran off into the dark until the shadows swallowed him up.
As soon as he was gone Alina visibly wilted as she fell to her knees. Her face was pale and her breathing sporadic. She didn’t know how it was possible. She may not have been alive during the battle between the fae and Volcan but she had been told the history behind it. She had read the archives and Vasile had told her of his brother’s sacrifice. Vasile had been so very young then but he remembered the pack having a funeral for the ones who didn’t return. He remembered what it was like to lose a sibling and it had left a hole inside of him.
“So what does this mean?” Cynthia asked.
“I don’t know,” Alina admitted.
“Is this the rest of the dirty little secret that you didn’t want to talk about when you and Elle were telling us about how the dark forest came to be?” Sally asked.
“It isn’t my story to tell, but under the circumstances, it is necessary that I tell you what I know.” Alina rolled off her knees to her bottom and folded her legs. She paused briefly and closed her eyes as a stab of pain pierced her stomach. It was getting worse and she knew that soon there would be no bond left. When she finally felt she could speak without her voice shaking, she began.
The restlessness that was a constant hum in the Romanian mansion was beginning to be fire in Vasile’s blood and with the added pain of the loss of the mate bond, his control was slipping. He was at a loss as to what to do. He had no leads to follow, no past to learn from, and no scent to follow. For the first time in his long life, he was beginning to fear that he would never see his mate again. And should the bond be broken between them completely, he would never know if she was alive or not. There was a knock on his office door and he snarled before saying, �
�Enter.”
A very frazzled looking Costin stood in his door. The dark circles under his eyes confirmed that he had not been getting any more rest than anyone else. His clenched teeth and tight jaw were a dead giveaway that he was in pain.
“You need to come.” His breathing was heavy as if he had been running and a sheen of sweat had developed on his forehead.
“What’s going on?”
“It’s Decebel.”
Vasile growled but was running before Costin could get anymore words out. He motioned for Costin to show him where his Alpha was and easily kept pace with the younger wolf. As they rounded the corner he realized that Costin was taking him to Decebel’s room. Vasile came to a quick halt when he reached it and saw that it was hanging on the hinges by a thread and it swung precariously by them. Vasile looked at Costin, “You should go.” He didn’t have to tell Costin twice.
As he stepped into the room he took in the damage and imagined that it was what the room would look like if a tornado came in and stayed for a few hours. The curtains had been shredded and hung in sad looking strips in front of the window. Every now and then a breeze would hit and they would flutter, allowing glimpses of the night. The dresser had been knocked on its side and the drawers had come crashing out of it, clothes poured out onto the floor. Like the curtains, the bedspread and sheets had been torn and it was obvious that claws had been the method of choice. He could see through the smashed bathroom door and that the mirror on the wall was shattered and it made him think of Decebel’s soul. Was it shattered like the mirror? Vasile didn’t know the answer to that question yet.
He heard rustling in the closet. As he stepped into the doorway he was not surprised to see Decebel shredding clothes. He seemed to feel the need to rip and tear. Maybe it was a substitute for the flesh he, no doubt, wanted beneath his claws and fangs.
“Decebel stop.” Vasile was no longer his Alpha, but he was still more powerful and though he didn’t like to use it on his longtime friend, he would if it meant protecting him, even from himself. Decebel’s hands froze and his back stiffened at the command. He growled low and the rumble in his chest shook the clothes around him. “I am not your enemy,” Vasile spoke calmly but firmly. “Stop this madness and come talk to me.”
It was several minutes, growls, snarls, and choice cuss words later that Decebel at last followed Vasile into the room. Neither of them sat, nor did they acknowledge the destruction around them.
“Tell me what’s going on Decebel; trust me as you once did,” Vasile told his former Beta. He watched as Decebel began to pace the room restlessly. His face was laced with the obvious pain that he had been feeling for weeks, if not longer. His eyes flashed back and forth from wolf to human and his lack of control had finally reared its ugly head and game bursting out in a fit of rage he could no longer contain.
“I will never see my mate again,” Decebel said with a clenched jaw. “I will never hold her hand, I will never kiss her, I will never make love to her, I will never hear her boss me around ever again.” Anger mixed with intense pain filled his voice and Vasile ached deeply for him.
“We will get them back Decebel; you have to believe that. We will get them back and we will destroy the one who took them from us.”
Decebel was shaking his head as Vasile spoke. There may have been truth in his statement, but not for Decebel. It did not apply to him.
“I petitioned the Great Luna,” he finally bit out.
Vasile tensed as he took in this information. There could be only one reason Decebel would do such a thing.
“I take it Jen doesn’t know,” he asked calmly.
Decebel shook his head.
“Is this why you sent her away with such ease?”
Decebel snarled and turned to face Vasile. He fell down into a crouch, eyes glowing, canines extended, sharp as knives. “If you think that I did it with such ease then you do not know me at all. Putting her on that plane went against everything, every fiber of my being. There isn’t a second that goes by that I don’t think about her flying off in that plane and feeling my soul rip apart all over again. Every breath without her is like a knife ripping through my lungs. Every beat of my heart screams to have her back. My wolf has nearly taken control several times and I don’t know how much longer I can fight him. If she stayed with me, she would be safe at my side now instead of in the clutches of a mad man. That knowledge eats away at me like the decay of death.” Vasile remained standing across the room staring at Decebel, meeting his eyes but not allowing his own wolf to rise to the challenge that presented itself before him now. “Alina had told me, before the bond was lost, that Jen was experiencing severe pain. Pain that is greater than that of being separated from you should be. Why?” He waited patiently as he watched Decebel attempt to gather himself.
Decebel took several deep breaths and closed his eyes. Not the enemy, he told himself. He knew that Vasile was not the one who should be enduring his wrath, not when the circumstances were all of his own making. He was the one who made the decision to petition the Great Luna. He was the one who sought out Cynthia to block his mind from his mate. He was the one who pushed her across the globe so that their bond would die. So that he could die and she and their daughter could live. This was his fault and no one else’s.
“The Great Luna is destroying the bond between us so that when I die, Jennifer will live. The distance was supposed to make it happen more quickly. She said it would be painful, but I don’t think either of us realized how tight our bond was.”
Vasile let out a derisive snort. “You could have asked me; I would have gladly told you what a fool you were for even thinking of attempting to destroy your bond with your mate― your pregnant mate.” The last part was said slowly and firmly letting Decebel know just how stupid Vasile thought his actions were. And they were stupid.
“What would you do Vasile?” Decebel stood up from his crouch and ran his hands through his hair. He had not bothered to cut it since Jennifer had left and it was longer than it had been in a while. He knew she would like it and probably make some crack about being able to grab onto it. He nearly smiled at the thought. “If you didn’t have a clue how to save your child, what would you do? And now she has been taken. I won’t be there for the birth of my baby girl, and as soon as she is brought into this world I will be taken out. I won’t be able to tell my love goodbye. I won’t,” he had to stop to regain his composure before he broke down. “I won’t be there while she is in labor, scared and in pain. I should be there!” He pounded his chest as his words reverberated in the room. “Me, Vasile, her mate, I should be the one who tells her she is doing great. I should be the one who wipes the sweat from her skin and kisses her, even though she is cussing me. I should be there and because of my choices she will do it all alone.”
Vasile hated to kick him while he was down, but sometimes you need to hear the truth, even if it hurt. “I understand your reasoning, Decebel, probably even more than you do because I have a child. I know exactly what it means to love truly unconditionally with every fiber of your being. But when you took Jen as your mate, you took her as your partner, your equal. How would you feel if she made such a drastic decision without your knowledge? How betrayed would you feel?”
“I KNOW!” he yelled. “I know how I would feel, but the fact is, if I had told her, she would have tried to stop me.”
Vasile nodded. “And she would have been right to try. You belong to her. She expects you to make decisions with her not for her. I’m not saying it would be easy, but there might have been a compromise reached. It’s too late to know what could have been. What’s done is done. Now we just do everything in our power to get her back before she goes into labor.” Vasile walked over to one of the chairs that seemed to have taken the least amount of abuse and sat down. There was none of the grace he usually wore like a second skin. Exhaustion was written in every line on his face and in the slow movements in his limbs. “I know that you think you are doing the right thing, and m
aybe you are. Honestly Decebel I don’t know what the right thing is. All I know is that what you are doing is destroying the woman you love and once she gives birth to your child and she realizes that you are dead…that you sacrificed yourself without telling her, she might just kill herself so she can come kick your ass.”
Decebel sat down equally as gracelessly across from the Alpha. “I know she won’t take it well, but how much more painful will it be to hold our child that has no life? Vasile,” Decebel clenched his fists and pounded them into his thighs. “I didn’t know what else to do! I’m supposed to protect her. I’m supposed to bring her happiness. I’m supposed to keep out the dark things. And I’ve failed her, not just once, but many times.” He held Vasile’s gaze for several breaths and then dropped his head forward. For so long, he had been fighting the tears, fighting the pain, fighting the despair, and he was growing so tired. His wolf was growing stronger with every breath and he feared that once his wolf had control, he would destroy the world to get their mate back. “I don’t know what to do.” The words stumbled out through ragged breaths and he squeezed his eyes closed as he gave in to the utter truth of his declaration. As his bond with Jennifer weakened, he had been growing more and more agitated and the darkness gained more and more ground every day. He could no longer feel her at all, not even when he reached out as hard as he could. What was left of their bond was fragile, and he knew it could break and be gone at any moment.
“We’re going to fix this, Decebel. You aren’t alone and I wish that you would have come to me. We will always be pack no matter what. Do not let it happen again.” Vasile’s words pulsated with power as he reminded Decebel that he had claimed him like a son long ago and he would always belong to him.