“Kass, my beautiful mate, I’m not offended. Nothing you could ever say or do would offend me. Especially when you’re talking about marking me.”
“So me marking you isn’t a bad thing?” she asked hopefully.
“Women don’t usually mark their mates but if they do choose to there isn’t a wolf alive who’d turn them down and that’s doubly true in our case. You don’t know how happy it would make me to bear your mark.”
She breathed a heavy sigh of relief. “Do I have to bite you too?”
Wyatt shook his head, the messy strands of his hair flying around his face. “My skin is too tough and your teeth aren’t going to be able to cut through my skin.”
“Then how –”
“I’ll help you,” he interrupted. Pulling away from her body was hard but he managed, sitting up and quickly dragging her on to his lap. “All you need to do is draw your initial on to my body. We’ll use my claws to do it.” Sensing the protest gathering speed in her mind, Wyatt rushed to reassure her. “This isn’t going to hurt Kass. This isn’t like those other times. I’m doing this because I want to bear your mark. I want everyone to know who my mate is. My mind is clear right now. Don’t take this away from me Kass.”
He begged her with his mind, swamping her with his emotions until she was as determined as he to mark him.
“Where should I put it?”
He kissed her palm then laid it flat over his chest. “I want it right here, over my heart. It belongs to you now, I want the world to know it.”
Nodding in agreement she took his clawed hand and began. As Wyatt repeated his words of claiming he felt a sense of peace settle over his shoulders. Now that Kass had accepted his claim all was right with the world. The fact that she was marking him in return, giving him a talisman to hold on to while they were apart, made him the happiest wolf alive. She was flinching as she etched her mark onto his flesh but she ploughed on and Wyatt’s heart swelled with pride. She was doing this for them despite how much she hated the thought of him being in pain.
“Thank you Kass. You have no idea how much this means to me.”
The mark complete she pulled back to look at her work. “Yes I do Wyatt. I do.” The sense of connection, of homecoming, she felt inside her body was tremendous. She couldn’t even begin to fathom why she hadn’t done this sooner. Throwing her arms around his neck she pulled him in for a long, searching kiss.
She’d spent her whole life running and now she wanted nothing more than to stand still because she’d realised something important while marking Wyatt. Ethan might have been chasing her but even if he hadn’t existed she’d still have run. She would have spent forever running towards this man. Wyatt was her soul mate, the missing half of her and she couldn’t live without him. Not now. Not ever.
Mates, she sighed, once again happy to bask in the aftermath of a phenomenal connection.
Mates, he agreed.
And tomorrow I’ll show Anna and everyone else that we belong together.
Let’s not worry about that anymore. Let’s enjoy the time we have left.
He kissed her and all thoughts of what the future might bring vanished. Now was all that mattered.
Chapter Sixteen
From the moment that Kass opened her eyes her every move was filled with purpose. She was a woman on a mission, one that she fully intended to complete. She’d leapt from her bed and dressed with purpose. Completely ignoring anything that covered her neck in the slightest, she chose a low cut shirt that her meant her mark was easy to see. She stroked it for strength feeling as though Wyatt was right beside her as soon as she touched it. Wyatt’s mind was still very much cut off from hers but the sense of connection she felt from the mark was unmistakable.
“I can’t let Anna get the upper hand. We have surprise on our side. I can’t let that go to waste.” Brimming with confidence she marched to the door.
Balling her hands into fists she pounded hard against the door. “Let me out!” she screamed. “I know you’re out there. Let me go right now. Let me out! You have no right to keep me here.” Her hands burned, pain making the flesh throb and burn but she refused to stop. Her mission demanded more of her. Using both hands she beat a steady tattoo against the wood until the door slowly opened.
The guard edged in, making sure that the door wasn’t open wide enough that she could try and dash past him. He eyed her with wary brown eyes. Her cheeks were flushed and she was filled with righteous indignation. She looked like she could fly off the handle at any minute. It wasn’t a good combination especially when he’d been given strict orders to protect her. If she lunged for him he’d be hard pressed to restrain her without hurting her. “Stop hitting the door,” he ordered. “You’re only going to hurt yourself and when your mate finds you he isn’t going to be pleased that you’re hurt. Humans have no idea how important mates are. If you knew what your mate was going through without you then you’d take better care of yourself.”
Eyes flashing with anger, Kass took a step forward and forced the guard to take notice. “I know exactly what my mate thinks about us being separated. He doesn’t like it and neither do I. I’m not staying here for another minute. You are going to take me to Wyatt and you’re going to do it now.”
The guard sighed heavily and rubbed his brow in frustration. “Wyatt Sutherland isn’t your mate. He’s a tragic case but you can’t confuse sympathy with being mated.”
“If we aren’t mates then why do I have this mark?” She tilted her head to the side making sure that he had the best possible view of Wyatt’s fangs in her throat. “My mate gave me this mark when he claimed me and I marked him too. We’re mates and I’m sick and tired of you people trying to get me to give him up. Whatever you think you know about him isn’t true.”
His eyes widened. “You’ve been marked.”
Rolling her eyes she cast him a droll look. “I know that. I was there when it happened.”
“I don’t understand. His mate died. Lady Anna said it was impossible for you to be his mate. She you were someone else’s mate.”
“She was wrong. I’m mated and happily too. I don’t know everything about wolf laws but I don’t think you can keep me here anymore. I haven’t done anything wrong and I’m not a threat if I’m mated to someone in the clans. You need to release me.”
Confusion was written all over his face and Kass had to bite her lip to stop herself from smiling. He knew she was right. Wyatt had been very clear when he’d told her what to say last night and it seemed he’d been right. Her guard was clearly torn between following his instincts by letting her go to her mate and doing his duty by keeping her locked up. Instinct would win; it was only a matter of time.
“I can’t let you go. It’s not something I have the power to do.”
“Then get me Anna so she can let me go herself or I swear I’ll find a way to get a message to King Tobias. You’re committing mate abuse by not letting me go and last time I checked that was a crime…and a big one too.”
He backed away from her, closing the door quickly being him. He’d be back and soon, she knew he would. Still, knowing that the guard would return didn’t make waiting any easier. Pacing in front of the door, she tapped her arm with her fingers wishing that she could feel Wyatt’s mind against hers. Some more support would be nice.
Voices floated through the door and stopped Kass in her tracks. Her body tensed as Anna’s voice grew louder. It wasn’t hard to remember how her hands had felt around her throat and the idea of standing up to her sent a frisson of fear shooting down her spine. A finger traced over hr mark and she felt strength run through her. I’m not alone. Wyatt’s with me and I’m doing this for us.
The door swung open revealing the guard, Anna and a man she’d never seen before. Surprised, Kass fought to keep her real feelings from her face. Faking confidence she marched over to Anna and the guard. “You need to let me go.” Her voice was clear and she locked eyes with her nemesis willing her to do as she’d asked.
“I have a mate and if you want proof then just look at this.” Tilting her head to the side Kass made sure that her mark was visible to everyone. “I’m mated to Wyatt and I don’t know why you’re so intent on keeping up apart.”
An annoyed growl filled the air. “Anna,” Michael began slowly. It was obvious from his face and the strain in his voice that he was trying to stop himself from getting angry. It wasn’t working. “You told me that they weren’t mates.”
“This isn’t possible, his mate is dead. We all know that.”
“Actually, I’m right here. I told you yesterday that I’m alive and well. You didn’t listen.”
“Shut up!” Anna snapped. She turned to Michael and put a reassuring hand on his chest. “There must be some sort of mistake. Wyatt’s mate was Emily and she died.”
“The claiming wouldn’t have worked if they weren’t real mates.”
Desperation made her clutch at straws. “She must have made the mark herself. Otherwise why didn’t she show it to us yesterday?”
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed,” Kass began, “but I’m not a contortionist. There’s no way I could have given myself this mark. And I didn’t tell you yesterday because I was scared for my life. You threatened me remember?” She pulled her shirt down even further until the bruises were fully displayed. “Besides, I think you were too busy choking the life out of me to listen to what I had to say. It was after you’d gone that I realised what I needed to do to get away from you. Now I have the courage to do it because I need to get back to my mate. He needs me.”
Kass’ accusation hung heavy in the air making the atmosphere tense. Michael sniffed, scenting the air about him and his scowl deepened. “Anna, she’s telling the truth. Did you really hurt someone else’s mate?” He sounded appalled by the very idea.
“I didn’t know she was his mate. I thought I was doing the right thing. She was a threat to the clans, to us, I couldn’t let her go.”
“But you were wrong love.” His voice gentled. Even though what she’d done was wrong he couldn’t stay mad at his mate. He loved her despite her faults. He sighed, cupping her cheek before turning to the guard who had brought him here in the first place. “Jackson, escort my mate back to our rooms please.”
“What? Michael, I need to sort this out.”
He turned to face her hoping that what he had to say would get through to her. “Anna, mate, you know our laws. Hurting someone else’s mate is a crime. I have to find a way to solve this without you getting hurt. I’m not going to be able to do that with you here.”
“I can fix this Michael. I know I can.”
All emotion left his face and a man who had; only seconds earlier, looked friendly suddenly seemed like a dangerous menace. “ Anna I love you too much to let you get hurt. If I have to pick you up and carry you back to our rooms to protect you then so help me God I will. You are going back to our rooms. Whether you walk there or get carried there is up to you but you will get there, one way or another.”
A tense moment passed with Anna clearly evaluating how likely it was that her mate would go through with his threat. She turned abruptly on her heel and stormed out of the room sensing that Michael wouldn’t be moved on the issue.
“Follow her Jackson. Make sure she gets back to our rooms.”
“Of course Lord Michael.”
“Make sure that she stays safe. If anything happens to her I’ll be taking it out of your hide…in triplicate.”
Jackson paled, not looking forward to his job but unwilling to turn the task down. He dashed out of the room intent on closing the distance Anna had put between them.
“Wow,” Kass exclaimed. “You wolves are so alike it’s scary. You sounded just like Wyatt.”
“Mates are precious,” he said by way of response. “We can live for hundreds of years but we’ll only ever have one mate, one chance at happiness. We’re not like humans, there’s no moving on for us. If we lose our mates that’s it. That’s why we need to guard them closely.”
“I guess that’s why you have such harsh laws when it comes to hurting other people’s mates.” Her voice left no doubt about what she meant.
Michael let out a weary sigh and collapsed into a nearby chair. Now they came to the crux of the matter. This wasn’t going to be pleasant. “You have to understand,” he began, “Wyatt’s mate has long been lost to us. We all thought she was dead. It was an easy mistake for her to make.”
“First,” Kass snapped, anger blazing from her eyes. “I don’t have to understand anything. My willingness to be compassionate or understanding died when your mate grabbed me by the throat, squeezed hard enough that I couldn’t breathe and slammed me into a wall. And secondly, we told her that we were mates. I told her and so did Wyatt. She clearly had her own agenda and nothing we could say was going to change her mind. You had my mate locked up!”
“That was an unfortunate mistake. My mate was, quite reasonably, convinced that she was doing what was necessary to protect you and this clan. You can expect her to be punished for that.”
“There you do again, assuming what I do and don’t want when you know nothing about me. Well seeing as you know my mind then put yourself in my shoes. You’re separated from your mate and told you will find a new one all whilst your true mate is being tortured for saying that you belong together.” His eyes said it all. The longer she spoke, the less human they became until his pupils were completely consumed by the feral amber of the wolf. “So you can see where I’m coming from?”
“Don’t talk about my mate like that.”
“You know that I’m right. She might be your mate but she was in the wrong. You know it and I know it. If you didn’t think she was wrong you’d have left with her.”
“Sit down and we’ll talk about this.”
“Yeah.” She sat across form him and smiled, confidence pouring from her every pore. “Let’s. Your mate locked mine away and restrained him because she thought he’d hurt me. I only think it’s fair that the same happens to her.”
“I can’t restrain my mate. I won’t.”
“But it’s only fair. You said it yourself. Mate abuse is a serious crime, it only makes sense that the punishment is serious too.”
Resignation settled over him. “I’ll take her place. If you want her to be punished then I’ll be restrained instead of her. My mate will not be going through that.”
“If she doesn’t get punished then how will she learn? I should go to your King and have him deal with this.”
“We’ll settle this between us today. Tell me what you want and it’s yours. I’ll give you anything you want except for having my mate restrained.”
It was hard to stay angry with Michael. He hadn’t done her any harm and his willingness to take her place in restraints reminded her so much of Wyatt that she was starting to feel sorry for him. “All I want is my mate back. You let him out of the restraints Anna put him in and we’ll call it quits.”
“And the punishment?” His voice was filled with nervous anticipation. He’d take any punishment she required of his mate but that didn’t mean he had to like it. “What do you want of us to pay for what was done to your mate?
“Me? Nothing.” She patted his hand reassuringly. “If anyone is going to understand what you’re going through it’s me. My mate has problems, sometimes he can’t control himself and I can see that your mate has issues just like him. Personally I feel worse for you than I do for me. Wyatt is getting better, Anna seems like a lost cause. If I were you I’d get her some serious help.”
“All you want is Wyatt’s release? That’s it?”
She stood up and walked to the open door. “
That’s all that really matters.”
Stunned, Michael waited for several long moments before he sprung into action. If Kass wanted to be this generous he wasn’t going to turn her down. “Follow me,” he ordered.
Tension filled his every muscle as he led her down to the dungeon. Her offer was a kind one but he fully expected it to be withdrawn when she saw the state her mate was in. Restraints weren’t a pretty sight especially not for a human who wasn’t used to violence. He walked faster. The sooner she saw her mate, the sooner she would issue a punishment and as soon as he knew what would happen to him he could put protections in place for Anna and relax. He wasn’t going to fight her whatever it cost him. His mate was worth any pain that he was going to endure.
The cell that Wyatt was being kept in was a dark, dank place. The minute Michael led Kass in she wanted to leave. The place felt more like a dungeon than a prison cell. It made her nervous but she kept walking, following Michael’s brisk pace. The quicker she got to her mate, the quicker she could leave.
Wyatt’s cell was at the end of the hall and the instant Kass laid eyes on him she began to reconsider what she’d agreed with Michael. His body was a broken mass of blood and blisters. Cuts and bruises covered his beautiful body. The silver chains at his wrists and ankles had created welts and oozing blisters but that wasn’t what angered her the most. Around his handsome face was a muzzle going from his nose all the way down to his chin before wrapping around the back of his head.
Her hand flew to her mouth in shock. “Wyatt,” she gasped. “What did you do to him?” She turned to Michael accusation blazing from her star filled eyes. “Answer me, what have you done to my mate?”
“He bit through an arm trying to escape. We couldn’t let him do that again.”
“So you decided the best thing to do would be to treat him like an animal?” Breathing hard she began to see red. The desire to be covered in Anna’s blood was strong. It should have felt strange. The blood lust coursing through her veins wasn’t an emotion she’d normally feel but at the moment it felt fully justified. She wanted to go out there and inflict damage on the one who’d hurt her mate. She wanted vengeance. If Wyatt felt even a fraction of the possessiveness she now did all of his previously mad seeming actions were justified. “Let him out,” she ordered.
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