Brandt opened the bedroom door. The look on his face completely dissolved her anger. He appeared lost. “Our guest is here.”
Emily stood and walked toward him but he stepped back avoiding her touch when she walked past. Dread consumed her when she looked across the room. A human woman dressed in a professional looking skirt and jacket stood waiting. She appeared to be in her fifties though age didn’t detract from her beauty and her striking green eyes made her more so. She smiled and laugh lines appeared at the corners of her mouth.
“Emily, this is Doctor Laura Stevens. She needs to speak with you. I’ll be in Dmitri’s suite.” Businesslike, abrupt, and cold, he left the room.
The two women looked at each other both showing their perplexity without speaking for a moment.
Laura’s voice was steady, “Do you mind if we sit down. I’m fairly certain you have no idea why I’m here and that is unfair to both of us.”
Emily walked to the couch and directed the doctor to a comfortable chair. They both took a seat. “I haven’t been told what is going on Doctor Stevens, and Brandt has refused to answer my questions. I would really like an explanation.” Emily was proud of her control when what she wanted to do was scream.
“Please, call me Laura. I need you to hear me out and let me finish before you hunt down your mate.” She smiled slightly but didn’t wait for a response. “I’m a geneticist. I have spent years researching a solution that will allow beastkind to successfully mate and produce children.” She looked directly at Emily and continued. “We, my team and I, have discovered that the dominant genes of beastkind kill each other. When mating takes place with a human, the dominant gene accepts the lesser gene and can procreate. We tried artificial insemination, AI for short, with human sperm and beastkind eggs and reversed the process using beastkind sperm and human eggs. We’ve had no success unless the male and female procreate the old-fashioned way with sexual intercourse. We managed to isolate a hormone that both male and female beastkind create when they have sex thinking this might be the key to allowing AI to work. It didn’t. We have managed to discover the reason why beastkind cannot mate but we have failed at finding the solution.”
Emily’s subconscious prickled and her lungs began to feel constricted. “Why are you giving me a science lesson on the procreation of beastkind?”
“I am here to discuss enabling you to have a child.”
“But you just told me it’s impossible to have one with my mate.”
“I know but I’m still here to discuss the possibility of your having a child.”
“With a human?”
“Yes.”
“No!” Horror was evident in the one agonizing word.
Laura’s voice softened, “Emily, I have done this for many years. My mother married a wolf when I was a baby and Nicolas’ pack raised me. It’s important for the clans to have children. More than one hundred wolves, including the young, died recently; my entire clan wiped out. You are a rare alpha female. I have met only one other. It has been my life’s work to find answers to this problem and make it easier for mated pairs to have offspring. Though I haven’t given up, failure has consumed my research.” Her professionalism gave way to momentary despair but then she continued, “Brandt will love this child. It’s not what you might think. He will embrace the offspring as completely his, it’s in his DNA. Getting past the sexual encounter happens quickly and is soon forgotten by both parents.”
“You’re telling me you are here to arrange for a man to have sex with me, impregnate me, and then I go back to my life with my mate like nothing happened.” The horrifying torment in her voice was tangible.
“Brandt asked me to make the arrangements with you but he should have discussed everything and given you time to adjust.”
“He didn’t discuss it with me because he knows I will kill him.” Holding herself in tight control, she stood, turned her back on the doctor, entered her bedroom, and softly closed the door behind her.
Chapter 28
More than an hour passed before Brandt entered their bedroom. Emily was sitting nude against the headboard. Expecting tears he was wary at the undeniable rage shimmering through the room. He stopped, not approaching, giving her time to control herself.
Her ice blue eyes moved inch by inch up his body coming to rest on his eyes. “Get out.” Her alpha power detonated with her words.
Brandt made his first mistake. He took a step in her direction.
More than one hundred pounds of growling white she-wolf exploded off the bed with one goal; his jugular.
Completely clothed Brandt couldn’t take the time to shift. He could only act. Grabbing his angry mate, he tried to be gentle and used her forward momentum to propel her to the side.
That was his second mistake.
Emily’s teeth sank into his thigh. Pain exploded and instead of releasing him she increased the agony by shaking her head furiously. Brandt’s fist slammed against the side of her jaw forcing her teeth to loosen.
This time he didn’t mess around and grabbing fur and skin he threw her more than eight feet across the room where the side of the bed stopped her flight. While she was scrambling to her feet, he divested himself of his pants. His wolf burst from his skin, ripping his shirt.
Emily charged.
He didn’t worry about his injured thigh. She was going for his throat, her powerful jaws seeking arterial blood. His body twisted as he poured alpha power into his internal words, “Emily stop, fucking stop.” His dominant growl vibrated through the room.
Rage, hot alpha she-wolf rage was his answer.
Her jaw snapped deeply into his shoulder.
His teeth found her snout giving it a fierce bite.
She released her hold.
His leg and shoulder wounds bled freely, soaking his fur in sticky red. She was bleeding slightly from her nose. Seriously injury was becoming an option. If he knew anything, he knew she was trying to kill him.
The bedroom door slammed back on its hinges and Samson burst through. He stood in shock taking in the scene before him.
“Get the fuck out and make sure everyone stays away,” Brandt shouted the order into Samson’s mind.
Sam quickly grabbed the door and closed it behind him.
Emily used Brandt’s momentary lack of concentration to attack. She hit him in the side with everything she had, using her wolf’s body, her snapping teeth going for his neck.
Brandt changed to his human form and slammed his fist upside her head. The force would have killed a normal animal or human.
She hit the floor hard and stayed down.
Brandt slowly gained control of his breathing not taking his eyes off Emily. He didn’t approach. Cautiously he sank to the floor from where he stood. He waited, watching her sides heave. Her wolf was crying. His head went between his knees no longer able to look at her.
White bloody fur became human skin and sobs echoed through the room. The sound was heartbreaking. Her arms pulled in tight and her legs came up. Her naked body formed a tight ball, her grief an uncontrolled wave.
He didn’t look. He couldn’t. It took everything he had to finally speak, “When I woke after being shot, I almost killed Sam. If Dmitri had not been there, I would have. The cats had you and they killed Maggie. I held her when she was a child; I changed her diaper and read her Dr. Seuss. She died saving you and I gladly forfeit her life. Samson saved me, only me.” Brandt was silent for a moment, “I am nothing without you. I would not survive. Samson made the wrong decision,” his breaths harsh while he gathered his thoughts. “It took twenty-four hours to find your location. I could feel nothing, no connection. Dmitri’s people discovered where you were. Then your scream sounded in my head. You were terrified, but at least I knew you were alive. Then I felt your pain. No sound, only pain. We were within a few miles when I went to my knees feeling the bullets enter your body. Each was agony, I wanted to die. I couldn’t go on without you.” His eyes found hers, they were black pools. One lone tea
r trailed down his cheek. “I prayed. I prayed to God and the goddess. I begged.” His devastation was absolute, haunting. He relived every second of the nightmare. “The one thing, the only thing I knew I could never give you was a child. It was all I had to bargain with. I made a deal with the gods. If you lived we would have a child. It’s my debt for your life. The thought of another man putting his hands on you is torture. It’s tormenting me every minute of every day and night. But, the thought of losing you is worse. I will not let you go.” His head went down, alpha eyes lowering.
Emily looked at her mate, the man who gave her life, the man who loved her more than life. He was beautiful, powerful, unforgiving, and incredibly stupid. Her throat released a low growl, her body rumbled with the need to strangle him for making such a senseless bargain. But, she loved him more at that moment than anything she previously felt.
The muscles of his back and arms remained tense, frozen in place like chiseled granite. He did not look up. Her body unfolded and she moved to his side.
On her knees, she placed her arms around the broad shoulders that held her, loved her, and cherished her. Inhaling deeply she gathered his scent; blood, sweat, sorrow, wolf and man. Her arms tightened. She took everything her alpha had and poured the power into her mate with her words. “I love you.”
His body moved, his arms coming around her, his head sinking into her soft breasts. “I cannot take a chance that the gods will punish me by taking you. I promised them a child. Our child.”
Moments passed.
Her voice loving though concise, “But I didn’t. You have fulfilled your promise. I made no bargain and another man will never touch me. You are my mate.”
He locked his eyes to hers, his tense facial muscles relaxed. “Emily, you need a child. Everything inside you craves a baby. I’ve seen you with Kinsee and the twins. They fill a place in your heart that Carolynn took from you. You will be an incredible mother and I will be a father who will love our child and thank the gods every day for sparing you and giving us a baby. I can give this to you. I never thought I could but I was wrong. Your life and your happiness are more important to me than anything else in this world. We have time. You can wait but we will have a baby.”
Stupid, stupid, man. Tears slowly fell down Emily’s cheeks again. She knew it would never happen. His eyes held hope and made promises she couldn’t accept. Her body shifted and blood streaked white fur replaced the woman. Using her rough tongue, she began cleaning the blood from her mate’s skin. She could not face him but she needed to be close. She let her wolf take over.
Brandt understood. He lay still while she cleaned his wounds and her scent healed his memories. At last he placed his arms around her neck, his tanned naked skin dark against her white fur. He rose and picking her up, lay down on the bed using his fingers to soothe and stroke the silk of her fur. Eventually they both fell into an exhausted sleep.
A soft knock at the door woke him. His arms continued to hold his mate’s wolf form. Brandt watched the door open a crack and Samson stuck his head slightly inside. He then stood back out of sight not closing the door, just waiting.
Carefully Brandt released her and got up gathering his pants from the floor. The injury on his thigh was painful and the pants made it worse. He left the room quietly closing the door behind him. He followed Sam to Dmitri’s suite then sat down while looking closely at the vampire. It was obvious he should still be sleeping.
His churlish words let Brandt know his displeasure. “You and your mate had a disagreement?”
“Hmmm, if you mean the fact she tried to kill me, I guess we did. I’m assuming for some reason Samson thought it necessary to wake you.” His irritated gaze sliced to the wolf in question and then returned to Dmitri. “It was a private domestic situation between me and my she-wolf.”
Dmitri let his angst go with a laugh. “He woke me because he thought you might have need of medical attention that only a vampire can provide. The bite on your shoulder is fairly deep and you were favoring your left leg when you walked in. I am at your service.”
Brandt gave a slight grimace. “I think these wounds need to heal on their own. Neither is life threatening, and my mate might be more forgiving if I show a bit of pain.”
This time Dmitri’s laughter resonated through the room. “Then I will leave for my bed while you and Sam clear the air. I don’t think my bears would tolerate a wolf in our clan and I’m tired of Samson’s moping. Do something about it.” With that the vampire walked out.
Samson didn’t look at Brandt while he spoke. “I should have gone for Emily and died in place of Maggie. My body should be awaiting a funeral pyre. But, in the split second that a decision was required, I didn’t hesitate. I protected my alpha. I don’t know if I could ever do differently.”
Brandt held on to his temper and let his wolf soothe him before he spoke. “She is your alpha too. If you had gone for her and I died, she would have killed you, make no mistake. If she died because of your choice I would kill you. Maggie did her job and so did you. Both of us need to move on.” This time he let his calming essence reach Samson.
Samson continued to look down.
“Emily is not happy with me and I need you to make nice. She needs a friend and I’m afraid her anger is not yet over. Home is calling and our wild needs to run, we’re leaving.” Brandt got up and rested his hand on Samson’s shoulder for a moment. He gave one last clench of his hand and left.
When he walked into the suite, Mandy and Caleb glared daggers at him while they ran their hands through Emily’s fur. She hadn’t changed to her human form. Before the doctor arrived, he had informed them of the reason she was coming and gave them no opportunity to talk him out of it. He could smell their anger but ignored it. His only concern was for his mate. He tried linking with her mind but she shut him out.
“We are leaving for home within the hour, be ready.” Brandt went to his room and began gathering his and Emily’s clothing. The plane was on standby. He had given instructions at the last moment because he knew they had more than one traitor within the clans and was not taking any chances. Emily remained in the other room with her siblings. Her sadness was like a thick haze filling the entire suite. Brandt spoke with the bears so they could relay his last instructions to Dmitri. He wanted Dmitri safe and with no way of knowing the number of vampires they were dealing with he worried. If the shit hit the fan his friend along with his bear clan had a home with the northern pack.
When he was notified the vehicle waited, Brandt went to collect his unhappy group.
Samson stood outside the door to the suite. His eyes remained downcast. “She’s not communicating with anyone.”
“I’m sending Mandy and Caleb out here.” Brandt turned and entered his suite.
The young wolves weren’t happy but they trudged out of the room casting worried looks at Emily.
The door closed quietly behind them leaving Brandt alone with his mate. He sighed having no idea what else he could do or say he just knew they needed to be home. “We’re leaving. I know I hurt you but we have more immediate problems right now.” Maybe if he pissed her off she would respond.
Emily walked past him and nudged the door with her nose unable to get it open.
“Fine.” He snapped grabbing their bags and turning the knob with his human hands.
Two bears walked with them through the lobby and out to the waiting vehicle. People stared at the large white dog with no leash or collar. Emily ignored them and kept her head up while walking through the luxurious foyer between her brother and sister.
The bears went back into the hotel when the SUV pulled away. The ride to the airport and the flight home were silent except for necessary instructions to the chauffeur and pilot. Security was high when they stepped off the plane. Emily remained silent. When their vehicle pulled up in front of the main house and the SUV’s door opened she jumped from the vehicle and ran.
Thomas came out front to greet them and gave Brandt an inquiring lo
ok. Mandy and Caleb walked away without a farewell. Brandt continued past his father without saying a word and entered the chateau. He went straight to the liquor and filled a large glass to the brim with Scotch.
Thomas arched an eyebrow. “Is there something I need to know?”
“Emily is not happy with me and is refusing to communicate or change form. I brought Doctor Stevens to our hotel to speak with her and I don’t wish to discuss it.” His tone was final. “Funerals?”
“All is prepared and tonight will work if that is your wish.”
“It will do.”
Chapter 29
Emily ran. She ran away from her mate and tried to outrun her confusion. The trees flew past. Her paws sank into the familiar black earth and pine needles while she ran. Time passed. Subconsciously she veered her direction finding herself at Patricia’s house; winded and lonely.
Wolfred walked outside with Kinsee by his side.
Emily’s wolf smiled.
The child’s cry of joy and then the feel of the little girl's small arms wrapping around her neck, finally opened a warm place in Emily’s heart.
“Patricia is taking a nap. The cats killed her brother Leeland and she’s taking it hard. She’s chosen to remain in wolf form so the baby arrives earlier, but she’s struggling.” Exhaustion plagued his eyes. Before he continued Kinsee began speaking.
“Can I play with Emily? Please, I want to run.”
Telepathically Emily spoke, “She can come with me and we won’t go far, but I’ll keep her occupied for an hour or two.” She needed something to take her mind off the problems weighing her down and Kinsee offered a needed diversion.
“Give me your dress and off with you. Don’t cause any trouble.” His voice was lovingly gruff.
Fang Chronicles: Emily's Story Page 20