by Hettie Ivers
I unleashed a piercing, shrill scream and ducked as an enormous, severed branch came flying straight at me without warning. But it never struck. And the crashing, smashing sounds of Raul’s amateur logging efforts abruptly halted, the forest falling silent.
I couldn’t say what it was I had expected Gabriel Salvatella to look like, as beyond being ascribed as possessing abilities that most closely mirrored Remy’s, as well as being depicted as generally evil and an overall weenie, he had never actually been physically described by anyone. And yet, his appearance still caught me off guard and threw me for a loop as I straightened to find that he’d materialized before me in his human form.
He stood inches taller than Raul, a restraining hand against the center of my brother’s heaving chest. His size and build instantly revealed his inherent supernatural werewolf predilection. His shaggy, chin-length hair was a dark shade of brown, but his complexion was lighter than that of the Reinoso brothers, more closely resembling Raul’s and my own. He looked more European than South American.
His posture marked him as cultured. Distinctly refined even in casual linen slacks and a clean white shirt. There was a certain air of sophistication about him that went beyond otherworldliness, making me feel absurdly self-conscious, compelling me to want to wipe my tear-smudged cheeks, smooth my hair, and straighten my sleep shorts.
And his face was … well … beautiful. Fuck. Why hadn’t I seen that one coming?
He possessed the kind of Jude Law or Rob Lowe pretty-boy features where you couldn’t decide whether to be attracted or simply jealous that such delicate bone structure wasn’t on your face instead. And his eyes were the most remarkable, jeweled shade of blue I’d ever seen. The sort of brilliant hue that screamed false.
He was staring at me with an odd measure of adoration that seemed misplaced. Undeserved. It made me feel … funny inside. Heady. Unsteady on my feet. And it dawned on me I was about to face a manner of predator I was wholly inexperienced with and woefully unqualified to navigate.
“Milena,” he exhaled with a sigh of reverence, and despite my confusion and rising trepidation, the sound of my name falling from his lips felt like a comforting physical caress. Which only disturbed me further. I unconsciously took a step back before I could squelch the impulse.
“It is a true pleasure to make your acquaintance at long last.”
He stepped closer, holding his hand out for me to shake.
I stared at it, battling the instinct to retreat another step.
“Milena!” Raul barked. My eyes snapped up to find him glaring at me. “Shake the man’s hand. Where are your manners?”
Gabriel dropped his hand. “Raul.” His smooth voice scolded without scolding. “You seem tense. Why don’t you go for a run while Milena and I talk?”
Raul nodded. “Good idea.”
“Raul?” I practically shrieked in protest as he pivoted and made to bolt off into the forest like an obedient lap dog.
He ignored me completely, only pausing in his exit when Gabriel’s voice halted him. “Raul, reassure your sister first.”
To my horror, Raul immediately turned and walked to my side, like some mindless animatron. I felt the blood drain from my face as Raul placed a hand on my shoulder and put forth his best big brother act.
“Milena, I’ll be right back. You’ll be completely safe with Gabriel while I’m gone.” He leaned in and pecked me on the top of the head, giving my shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “Stop panicking and mind your manners, all right?”
The entire performance felt so forced and false I thought I might be sick. I blinked back the fresh wave of tears that wanted to fall. He wasn’t even acting or talking like my brother anymore. And his actions weren’t in any way for my benefit. He was only doing it because Gabriel had told him to. Did he do absolutely everything Gabriel told him to at this point? Clearly the situation was already more dire than I’d ever imagined.
As Raul sprinted off into the tree line, my eyes returned to find Gabriel’s vivid azure gaze fixed upon me, considering me closely. Too closely. Those pretty-boy features were arranged into a mask of innocence—as if he hadn’t just orchestrated that entire interaction to demonstrate how profound his control over my brother was. To send a clear message as to who was in charge.
Every self-preservation compulsion within me urged me to flee for my life as Gabriel took another step forward. I automatically took a step back, uncaring of whether I looked like a total chicken as I employed every tool I knew of to try and wake myself up.
He continued his slow approach. I continued my retreat. Why wasn’t I waking up?
“You know, Milena, it was foretold the vessel would return a great gift that was stolen.” His velvety tone of voice had a lulling effect on my senses. I fought it.
He shook his head, taking another step closer. A gentle smile played upon his lips. “And yet I never envisioned it might arrive wrapped in such an exquisite, enchanting little package.”
I racked my brain for a clever retort or scathing setdown—preferably one about tiny packages—but came up short. So I simply continued backing up like a mute, terrified idiot. Fuck, this was going terribly. Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse, I backed right into a tree. I was certain he’d placed it there.
“Milena, you have no reason to fear me. Harming you is the furthest thing from my intention.” He was still approaching, his movements slow and fluid.
“Get … get out of my head then.” Finally, I’d found my voice! It wasn’t very steady or strong, but it was a start.
“I have no desire to invade your privacy and dissect your thoughts. I only want to talk to you. Your brother is quite worried about you. As am I.”
He was nearly upon me. I dropped my chin and squeezed my eyes shut in a final, desperate attempt to wake myself up. I just wanted to escape. I wasn’t ready for this!
“I understand you’d rather avoid hearing what I have to say. But I promise what I tell you is for your own good.”
My head shot up at his assertion. “How do you know what it is I want if you’re not eavesdropping in on my thoughts?”
He chuckled good-naturedly, stepping back and holding his hands up in silent entreaty. “Milena, I assure you I’m not digging around inside your head. And I’ve never been known to be the literal thought-reading type in the first place.” He tilted his head askance. “Always thought it rather creepy, actually. Too intrusive for my taste.”
I nodded. I was breathing too hard now to manage anything else.
“And don’t take this the wrong way”—he stepped forward again, all too soon stealing back the precious small space he’d barely afforded me—“but you’re not so hard to read that it would require such invasive measures, in my humble opinion.”
He leaned his hand against the tree above my head, the deceptively innocuous action bringing his body that much closer to mine. “I find your emotions to be rather open,” he assessed, his cerulean blue eyes regarding me with unguarded appreciation. “Your spirit divinely pure and inspiringly ingenuous, in fact.”
Nice. Had he essentially just deemed me a naïve simpleton and tried to paint it the color of a compliment? Yep, I was pretty sure he had. And yet he’d managed to look so earnest and thoughtful as he’d done it that it almost hurt my feelings that he should think me some kind of a dolt. Why did I care what he thought? He was the bad guy!
I looked away. I was starting to feel dizzy—my thoughts tripping over themselves in my head. Where was Raul? How could he just leave me alone like this with Alpha Gabriel fucking Salvatella?
And why did all werelocks have to be so obnoxiously good-looking, for fuck’s sake? Tears burned the back of my eyes, making me seethe with anger at myself for being exactly the naïve simpleton Gabriel had so quickly taken me for.
“I’ve upset you,” he astutely surmised. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.” I felt his breath on my forehead, indicating he’d leaned in even closer. He was good. He’d managed to soun
d sincerely apologetic.
“So you read my emotions instead of my thoughts?” I challenged, trying desperately to gain some ground while I silently prayed for Raul to return and rescue me. “And you think that makes you better somehow?” I lifted my eyes to his and forced myself to hold his steady gaze. “Less calculating and threatening? Well, if you can read my emotions, then you must know that you’re scaring me?”
He nodded slowly, his crystal blue eyes studying mine with rapt interest. Fuck, he was really quite close to me now.
“Yes. But you’re curious as well.”
I swallowed with difficulty. “What … what am I curious about?” I could’ve smacked myself on the forehead. Why, oh, why had I asked that?
A smile danced in his eyes. “Me.”
CHAPTER TEN
I shook my head. The smile spread to his full lips. He had nice lips. Why was I noticing his lips?
“No? Well, that is a disappointment,” Gabriel lamented in a playful tone. “I was hoping that you were perhaps curious to find that I am not the boogeyman you were expecting me to be.”
I shook my head again. “I’m not afraid of you.”
“But you just said that you were,” he pointed out, his voice a dulcet whisper that swirled and wound its way around my already suffocated brain cells. “Which is it, Milena?”
I squeezed my eyes shut again. I wanted to wake up. Damnit, why couldn’t I wake up? I was ill-equipped and unprepared to go head-to-head with the likes of Gabriel Salvatella. I just wanted to talk to my brother alone—to make him understand. To convince him he needed to come home. I just wanted my brother and my life back!
They were the absolute wrong thoughts to focus on, though, as they caused my dam of emotions to burst forth, along with the tears I’d not wanted to give Gabriel the satisfaction of seeing me shed. He looked genuinely concerned at the sight of my tears when I opened my eyes and looked up at him again, further confusing me.
“I don’t want Joaquin’s powers,” I blabbed, throwing all of my cards on the table. “I never asked for them. I just want my brother back. Please? Just give him back to me?”
I was pathetic at hostage situations. Heaven help America if I was ever a P.O.W. “Release him from whatever hold you have on him, and I’ll gladly give you Joaquin’s powers. Really, I swear it,” I added when he started to shake his head sadly at me. “I don’t even want them!”
“Oh, Milena,” he murmured, taking my face in his hands, “it doesn’t work like that.”
My heart sank as he reiterated almost exactly the same words Alcaeus had once said.
“But why not?” I bleated. “Your pack has been looking for his powers all this time. Why can’t I just give it back to you and end this curse? Surely there’s some magic you could use—some incantation or hocus pocus?” I had to get my brother back. I couldn’t bear what he was becoming.
“No,” he said, his eyes letting me know it was not a discussion to be entertained. And for the first time, I felt his Alpha pull reaching out to me, wrapping around me in a perplexingly comforting manner that slowed and ultimately banished my tears as he gradually drew me into a gentle embrace.
An embrace that was surprisingly not obtrusive or alarming in the way that I would’ve expected it to be. It was just … nice. Easy. Uncomplicated. It didn’t overstep or make demands. And he didn’t seem to be using it as an excuse to try to cop a feel or to seduce me either, leaving me more confounded than ever.
I replayed my mother’s words of warning inside my head. Wait—what were they again? I had to think for a moment. Oh, right: I was never to trust a Salvatella … no matter what. I pulled away from Gabriel. He made no attempt to stop me.
“I don’t—can’t play your mind … err … emotional games.”
“I can’t either,” he assured me. “And I’m not.”
I groaned. I was getting nowhere fast. “Just tell me what you want from me. Please, just lay out your terms? Because I’m far too divinely, ingenuously stupid to understand whatever angle you’re playing, okay?”
“I don’t want anything from you, Milena.” He sighed. “Listen to me, please?” He bent down onto one knee in front of me, taking my hands in his.
“I know you’ve heard nothing but nightmare-worthy stories about my family. And unfortunately, most of what you’ve been told is likely true. But I am not my ancestors. And I’ve done nothing but strive to forge a different pack—to reunite our broken family and heal the damage caused by over a century of backstabbing lunacy, unmitigated greed, and betrayal.” Once again, his penetrating eyes were so forthright, adding credence to his words. “It’s not a legacy I’m especially proud of, Milena, and I have no intention of allowing it to resume.”
“Then give me Raul back!”
“I’m not keeping him from you. Raul came to me for help. I’m only here now at his request.”
“But you didn’t help him before,” I charged. “You turned him away and ratted him out to boot!”
“I had to, Milena,” he defended. “I didn’t know he was Sofia’s great-nephew then. And my goal was to keep peace with the Reinoso family. I didn’t have the luxury of offering Raul asylum before because I couldn’t afford another betrayal. I couldn’t afford to break the fragile truce we’d established and give Alex a reason to go on another killing spree. You can’t imagine the atrocities, the ongoing injustices my family has been subjected to as a result of the Reinoso pack and Alex’s unprincipled, lawless reign.”
I shook my head. His eyes were so distracting, making my thoughts and emotions feel jumbled. “But you’re willing to break the truce now?”
“Yes. Because I owe it to Joaquin. And I owe it to Sofia as well to do whatever is necessary to make amends for my family’s collective crimes against her—your—family. And that includes offering whatever protection and assistance may be required to Morales descendants.”
“Stop it!” I shouted, not wanting to hear any more. I was swiftly losing my grip on what was real and what was false. “Stop acting like you’re trying to help me when you’re planning to use me like another Luiza pawn in your twisted Reinoso murder schemes.”
“Milena, I have no idea who Luiza is or what you’re panicking about. But I promise you, I have never been the type to use innocent little girls to handle my dirty work.” He managed to look insulted. “And I would never dream of using a cherished vessel who holds my uncle’s coveted blood power for such a purpose. I assure you, Joaquin would never approve.”
“Why would you care what your late uncle approves of?” I scoffed. “Your family murdered his mate—my great-aunt—and nearly her entire family, in cold blood. No one cared what Joaquin approved of then! Stop acting like you’re the good guy when you’re nothing but a Salvatella.”
He chuckled. “Believe me, I am no saint, Milena. But Salvatella needn’t forever be synonymous with ‘bad guy’ in your comprehension.” He tilted his head to the side, gazing up at me with a smile that was kind … and hopeful … from his very nonthreatening position kneeling before me.
“I do hope to change your negative perception through a more favorable experience with my family,” he acknowledged as his thumbs stroked lightly over my wrists. It was a small, barely perceptible gesture, yet I felt it in my stomach as well as my chest, calming me, easing my stress and fear, and making me feel warm. And safe.
“But besides that,” he continued, “I am not exactly an idiot. Do you think my uncle Joaquin would create a blood curse this powerful—a blood curse for the sole purpose of avenging his mate and her family—and allow for it to be broken through a Salvatella harming or stealing from Sofia’s progeny? I’m smart enough to know that taking your power won’t break the curse. Joaquin meant for Sofia’s descendants to have it. And you will keep it,” he decreed with a stern look. “I’m sorry, but in that you will not get a choice.”
I wanted to be upset—irritated with him at the very least for confusing me so much. But his Alpha pull was getting stronger. I could
sense it working within me, his very essence drowning me in feelings of safety, lulling my apprehension and reaching into the very sanctity of my heart, enticing it to trust him, to believe in him … to welcome him inside.
It was all through feelings. And they were so interconnected with my own that I was sure they were mine at first. But they had to be his influencing mine, right? Or … not? Fuck. I realized it was difficult to discern anymore where my emotions ended and his began. And part of that blending felt good—shockingly so. As if my feelings alone hadn’t been enough to fill me before, but with his I was whole. And if I only welcomed him in a little more … just acquiesced to his Alpha pull, I would never be afraid again … never feel alone anymore.
But since when wasn’t I whole before? Had I felt afraid and alone all this time with my solitary emotions and just not realized it because I’d not known the difference? Goddamnit, where was Raul? How could he possibly be gone for so long?
I heard a wolf howling, and I literally jumped as the sound cut through the bewildering thoughts and sensations enveloping me.
Alex!
Mine. I felt my inner wolf scratching her way to the surface now and realized that I hadn’t felt her presence much at all during my time with Gabriel. And she definitely wanted Alex. Badly. Now. But Alex was in Brazil. Was I imagining his howl?
“You don’t have to be afraid of him.” Gabriel’s voice drew me away from the distraction of my fuzzy thoughts and the frantic yipping of my she-wolf. “Together, Raul and I can protect you. With Raul’s power to bolster my own, I’ll be stronger than Alex. I won’t let him hurt you.”
I frowned. My wolf’s hackles went up. “I’m not afraid of Alex.”
“Yet you jump with fear when his wolf howls for you?”
“I was just startled. Surprised.” I narrowed my eyes at him. “I am not afraid of Alex. And I don’t need anyone to protect me from him, because he would never harm me.”