by E. M. Moore
He gave me a look that might’ve actually scared me if I hadn’t known he couldn’t hurt me and continued walking out the door as if I never said anything.
“Wow,” Millie said, breaking the awkward silence that had fallen in the room. “I thought mates were supposed to love each other.”
“Haha. Love? Yeah not gonna happen for me. I think fate got it wrong this time. I don’t want mates if this is how it’s going to be,” I replied back. Thinking over the past night and everything that had happened gave me a headache. I just needed some sleep.
Millie frowned. “You look like you’re about to fall over. Why don’t you lay down on the couch and get some rest? I’ll wake you in the morning.” She stood and made her way to the closet, then pulled out a throw blanket from the top shelf.
“Thanks Millie,” I grumbled. Taking the blanket from her, I laid down on the fluffy couch. I reached for both daggers before I got completely comfortable and put them under the pillow just in case. You could never be too careful.
After pulling the blanket up to my shoulders, she kissed my forehead and left the room. The air felt heavy after she left. My feelings were just so conflicted right now. I really didn’t know how to fix anything. First, finding out that my parents really did want me, but were being hunted. They gave me up to protect me. Then, it was finding out Riah, who was my kind’s mortal enemy, was my mate.
I could already tell that even though I didn’t want anything to do with him, I wouldn’t be able to just leave him. It had nothing to do with the new infinity mark on my arm, though that was a constant reminder. It was more like a feeling inside. A deep seated truth that sprang up when I looked at him. My need to protect him was just like his was for me. And all that did was piss me off more.
Just as I started to doze, the door slid open. My body tensed, and I slowly moved my hands up to grab the daggers. Riah may not feel the need to hurt me anymore, but that didn’t mean I trusted him completely.
“Morphling, I know you’re awake,” Riah said casually. “I heard your heartbeat quicken when I opened the door.”
I raised my head and shot him with a pointed look. All I wanted to do was sleep and at least pretend none of this had happened. That was too much to ask apparently.
“What do you want? I’m tired and running really low on patience, so make it quick,” I told him, hoping he’d say whatever he came here to say and get the hell out.
I sat up, trying to make out his features in the darkness. Uneasiness crawled over me as he just stood over me, watching. I recognized those eyes from full moon nights, but they were different now, almost curious.
“Tell me your name,” he demanded abruptly. I could hear the hints of a growl as if he hadn’t wanted to ask. At least I wasn’t the only one who wasn’t happy about this.
“Anika, now get the fuck out,” I snarled. I’d already been tired of his shit, but I seriously couldn’t handle him right now. I needed sleep if I was going to put up with his insults.
I laid back down and turned over, giving him my back. I hoped he would get the point that I didn’t want him here. Instead, he plopped himself down into a chair in the corner. I held in a groan, avoiding his presence as best I could.
After a few moments, the air in the room shifted.
His deep, even breaths regulated my own nerves. As much as I hated to admit it, it felt good having him here. Relaxing almost. Damn mate bonding thing.
I might feel this way on the inside, but I’d never show it. His kind killed my family and were the reason I had lived my entire life as an outcast.
I would fight this bond with everything I had in me.
I awoke with a jerk. The events of last night flooded my brain as my eyes zeroed in on Riah across the room. He had to have shifted at some point after I had fallen asleep because in the chair lay the grey wolf who’d attacked me last night.
His fur looked soft, tempting, but I didn’t dare touch him. My fascination probably had something to do with the fact that he was asleep and not talking. As soon as he woke up, I would have to slip back into being a smartass and hating his very existence. However, it was hard to hate something so fluffy and adorable when it was sleeping.
The smell of bacon wafted into the room, urging me off the couch. It was time to eat then get the hell out of this place. I had been going back and forth on whether or not I wanted to find others like me. After everything that had happened last night though, I knew I had to.
Riah might not want to hurt me anymore, but he was only one wolf. What happened next time when they sent others? I needed more people at my back, and to do that, I had to go find more Morphlings.
Millie was humming a tune I didn’t recognize when I got into the kitchen. She’d always had such a lovely voice. She used to sing me to sleep when I was a kid. It had always relaxed me, which was probably why she did it now. She was always so intuitive when it came to me.
“Good morning. You went all out for breakfast this morning, didn’t you?” I asked with a laugh. She’d only done it because of Riah. The only breakfast we got when I was younger was luke warm oatmeal. Just the thought of that made me shudder.
Her shoulders stiffened. “I just wanted to make sure you had a good breakfast before you left.”
“It smells good,” a deep, husky voice said behind me.
Here we go. The beast was awake.
Millie smiled and nodded at him as I sat at the end of the table. I planned to ignore him so maybe he would leave me alone while I figured out the best way to travel to Blue Ridge Mountains.
Lost in thought, Millie sat down a plate of scrambled eggs, bacon, and hashbrowns in front of me. My mouth instantly watered as I started to scarf it down. I hadn’t eaten since last night. Coupled with the adrenaline and shock from everything, it must’ve made me ravenous.
“So, what’s the plan?” Riah asked, startling me from my thoughts.
I took a deep breath before answering. “I’m going to find my people, but I highly doubt they’re going to want a wolf in their midst.” I didn’t want to start off the day being an ass or anything, but it was the truth. Hell, I didn’t even want him up in my business and I was mated to him for fucks sakes.
“I’ll be going where you go,” he said confidently. “The Morphlings will just have to get over it.”
I groaned inwardly. The cockiness in his voice made me want to lay him out. “Then we’re going to finish eating, get my box, then head toward Serpent’s Hollow.”
I didn’t want to even tell him that much, but I highly doubted I could lose him. At least, I wouldn't have to take the journey alone.
Chapter Five
We were already miles away from Millie’s, but I could still feel her hands around me when we’d said goodbye. I swallowed and stared at the dash of the truck. Millie’s old truck. When Riah said we’d needed wheels, she didn’t hesitate. Just plucked the set of keys off the hook behind her locked cabinet and threw them at him.
I was kind of hoping she’d poke his eye out, but no such luck. He gracefully snagged them out of the air and slipped them into his pocket. I’d glared at her afterwards and she’d just shrugged. “I know how you drive, Anika. Trust me, you’ll be safer if the wolf drives.”
“The wolf has a name.”
Millie and I both ignored him. “But how do you know he drives better than me?”
“A toddler could drive better than you.”
My eyes narrowed even further. “Not like you should talk. You taught me.”
I squeezed my hands together in front of me as the memory struck me, and then bit the inside of my lip. Seeing Millie again had messed with my mind. We were both far too good at goodbyes, but I had to admit, this one would probably haunt me. She wasn’t family, but she was the closest to one I’d ever known.
“So, where exactly is this place?” Riah asked.
I carefully lifted my head toward him. “All I know is that it’s in the Blue Ridge Mountains.”
“And what are you su
pposed to find there?”
I clenched my jaw. Why was it that when you didn’t have all the answers, you really hated it when people pointed it out? “I’m not sure,” I said, struggling to get the words out through my set jaw.
He finally looked over at me and lifted his eyebrow. “I’m sorry. I just thought it would be nice if one of us knew where we were going.”
“I think it would be nice if the person I was mated to also didn’t want to kill me.” I fake smiled and then immediately set my jaw again. “Or didn’t ask so many damn questions.”
He turned his eyes toward the road again, the muscles in his jaw feathering. “Well, unfortunately, the need to kill you has passed.”
He shifted in his seat and I stared over at him. He gave me a quick look and then turned back. Did he want me to thank him? Forget that.
He shook his head as if I was being unreasonable. “Well, we can travel in the day time, but at night, we’ll have to hunker down. My kind are good trackers.”
“Couldn’t catch me,” I reminded him with a smile.
“Actually, I did. And I’m not the only one. There are more searching and don’t think they’re going to stop pursuing you just because of this,” he said, casually looking over at me.
My gut twisted. More than one? I didn’t know why I hadn’t thought of that. I cleared my throat. “So, what do we do?”
“We make sure we’re hunkered down as soon as it turns nighttime. It’s not that we can’t track during the day, but we’re just better at night. It’s part of our nature.”
“And you’re sure your kind will follow?”
He glanced at me and then let out a sinister laugh. “Of course. It’s what we do. The others will come now that I’m out of the picture.”
“Do they know you’re with me?”
Riah shook his head. “No, but they know something happened. I’m not in tune with the pack anymore. They gave me lead because I was the best hunter left. They followed behind, but the second best hunter is just as lethal as I am. Make no mistake about it, he’ll come.”
That sounded like a problem--a big problem. I rubbed my forehead and took a deep breath. “They’ll try to take my skin?”
“They won’t touch you,” Riah gritted out.
Somehow, his words didn’t give me all the warm and fuzzies. It was as if the words ripped through him. He didn't believe in what he said nor did he care, but the emotions were primal and instinctive. It would force him to protect me from his own pack and kind.
Minutes went by and neither one of us spoke. I was thinking about his threat, and the subsequent promise that nothing would happen to me. Riah didn’t have to protect me even though I sensed he would with his life. It wasn’t like I was some damsel in distress. I’d taken care of myself pretty well, and was still doing it. Of course, the two silver daggers from my mother’s box would help too.
Riah stretched his fingers and then gripped the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. “So, what do you know about your kind?”
“I know your kind killed them.”
“Besides that,” he snapped.
“Not much. It’s not like there were many around to teach me the ropes.”
“There are more of you than you might think,” Riah said. “They’re just adept at hiding, which is what you should’ve been doing when I found you.”
“I was literally three steps away from my hiding spot when you attacked me...from behind. Remember that?”
“It should never have been that close. It was stupid of you to wait so long to find shelter.”
I practically bit my tongue off to hold in a retort.
Technically, he was right. I’d been admonishing myself when he’d shown up. So what could I say other than that he didn’t have to be such an asshole about it. I’d fucked up. But, in the end, I guessed it worked out. Except for the whole mate thing. Though, that part had saved my life.
I swallowed and leaned back. “I don’t know much of anything,” I confided in him. “All I know is that when I was little, I morphed for the first time. Millie was freaked out but somehow not at the same level I was. I mean, I thought I was a freak.”
His gaze narrowed. “You are.”
The look of disgust on his face curdled my stomach. “You’re a fucking wolf,” I said. “Shut up.” He shrugged and I took that as a cue to keep going. “As you can imagine, I couldn’t have many friends. We can’t really control our morphs when we’re young, so I pretty much stayed to myself.”
“The basement.”
I peeked over at him. “How did you know that?”
“Millie told me.”
Wonderful. “Yes, the basement. The other kids just thought I was really freaking weird. None of them stayed all that long to really care anyway. They all got adopted out. I was the only one who stayed through the years. It took me a while to realize that adoption was never going to happen for me, and that it was actually never anyone’s intention for me to find a family. I was just supposed to stay there. If you think about it,” I mused, “it was the perfect plan.”
Riah shifted in his seat again. “Millie, though, she seems to care about you.”
I shrugged. It was hard to explain, but it just wasn’t the same. I wanted someone like me. “So, um, what do you know about this mate thing?”
Riah gripped the steering wheel tight. His muscles locked in place and he breathed heavily out his nose.
“Just in general,” I said quickly. “About my kind, maybe?”
He relaxed minutely. “I know that your women mate with multiple men. The female Morphlings were always in high demand.”
Thanks to you, I wanted to say. But if both of us were going to survive this trip, I had to keep some thoughts to myself. Bringing up the fact that his kind killed mine over and over again probably wouldn’t help much.
“I guess that makes sense…”
“The more mates a woman had, the better chance at reproducing.”
“Prolonging our kind.” I was silent for a few seconds, and then a thought struck me. “I bet I’ll be really popular when we meet my people.”
The car swerved roughly and a growl ripped through the space between us. I grabbed the door handle and squeezed until the truck started driving straight down the highway again.
My chest hammered and my heart was in my throat. What the fuck was that reaction? I glared over at him, but he looked as if nothing happened. I guessed there could’ve been an animal in the road, but it felt like more than that. He didn’t like it when I talked about other mates.
“What about your kind?” I asked. “How do you guys do the whole mate thing?”
“We mate for life...with one person.” One hand dropped off the steering wheel and he stared out the driver’s side for a few moments. When he turned back, disappointment riddled his features.
My stomach hollowed out. Of course he was disappointed. No one had ever wanted me. Now he was forced to.
I turned away and stared out the window, bringing my fingers to the glass. The trees sped by. Occasionally, there was a lone bird in the sky along with the quick blips of road signs. Though he was my mate, I’d never felt more alone.
I wasn’t the person he’d imagined to mate with. The big badass hunter he made himself out to be, he probably thought he was going to get some sexy wolf without family issues. Instead he got me. Someone who couldn’t even keep her own skin, not to mention even know who she was.
Fate was a cruel bitch.
“You should probably get some sleep,” Riah said. “I know you were up a lot last night.”
“Yeah,” I said, my voice catching.
I laid my head against the glass and closed my eyes, willing sleep to come. It was a game I liked to play when I was little. Dreams were the only way I could get a reprieve from my real life. Nothing had changed in that respect.
Maybe when we stopped for the night, I’d ditch Fido and take off on my own. Then again, I’d stupidly told him exactly where I was going.
I gasped.
Shit. I’d just given a wolf the location to find other Morphlings. How could I have been so stupid?
The air in the cab grew heavy. I could feel Riah’s eyes on me just like I had before in the dark. “Is something wrong?”
I swallowed and stayed still, pretending I was already asleep.
Yes, there was definitely something wrong.
Chapter Six
I must have finally dozed off, because I woke up to being thrown forward in the seat. Luckily I had my seatbelt on or I would have been out the damn window. Startled, I took in my surroundings only to see a diner in front of the vehicle and Riah with an evil smirk on his face.
“What the fuck, mutt? You could have sent me through the fucking window.” Yelling at him, I moved to unbuckle the seat belt. Mate or not, I was about to throttle his ass.
Riah laughed a full belly laugh that completely stopped my train of thought. His whole face was lit up, and his clear blue eyes, that were normally so intense, were sparkling. Even his muscles flexed with every laugh, and I felt a twitch all the way in my core. This was not good.
I was so stunned at how beautiful he was in that moment I didn’t even care that he would know I was staring. All the anger I had just felt evaporated the moment my eyes landed on him. I had to force myself to look away from him, which was way harder than I cared to admit. I opened the door and slammed it on his laughter.
I assumed we were stopping here to have lunch. I made my way inside and headed straight to the bathroom to not only relieve my bladder, but to calm myself down.
I did not want to have these feelings for him. He was such an asshole no matter how attractive he was. For fucks sakes, he tried to kill me just yesterday.
You have got to get it together Anika, I thought to myself hoping it would give me the resolve I needed to keep my heart hardened towards him.
Finishing in the bathroom, I headed out into the diner. The place was a dive. It looked like it was straight out of the eighties. There was even a record player over in the side of the room that looked like it had a layer of dust over it. Why would we stop here of all places?