Matefinder

by Leia Stone

  I nodded.

  “It means, My Beloved.”

  My heart picked up and I glanced at Kai. As if he sensed me watching, he looked up from chopping veggies and held my gaze. I blew him an air kiss and he smiled then motioned his head to my room. I rolled my eyes. Such a guy!

  Dinner was amazing; the food had so much flavor. I think I impressed his family by eating the Indian food with my hands and talking about my time in Delhi.

  “I miss India, mostly for its shopping.”

  Diya smiled nodding with approval. “Ahhh… so you like to shop? My kind of girl.”

  Jai put his hand out stopping Diya from talking further.

  “Can we please just take one second to talk about how amazing it was when Aurora ripped that vamps head off to save mom?” Jai stated.

  I froze. Kai’s mom kicked Jai under the table. Jai looked at me. “What? Was that her first kill?”

  I sat there frozen. Flashes of my father lying on the kitchen floor, blood dripping out of his stomach.

  “My first kill as a werewolf, yes.”

  Kai met my eyes and seemed sad.

  “Oh,” Jai said.

  Kai spoke gruffly. “She has been a werewolf for a week. You think she’s racked up a bunch of kills?”

  “Sorry, bro.” Jai looked at his plate. I felt bad for him. He was just trying to be nice.

  “I was kind of a badass, wasn’t I?” I asked the table.

  Jai smiled and Diya nodded. “You were.” Jai exclaimed.

  “What are you going to do about the Portland Alpha sending three vampires to capture your mate?” his mother asked casually. There was no hint of submissiveness in her voice. This woman could be deadly if she wanted to be.

  Kai lightly dabbed his mouth with a cloth. “I’m going to kill him.” Kai stared right at me as I involuntarily spat water out of my mouth.

  Kill or Be Killed

  “What!” I shouted and stood.

  Kai stood and his nostrils flared. We locked eyes. Challenge.

  “No! You almost died when you fought him last.” I held his gaze.

  “No?” He shouted, staring back. I could feel the hair rising on my arms. Sweat broke out on my upper lip.

  “How long do you think she can hold his gaze?” Jai asked as his mother swatted his head and shushed him.

  “Aurora, you are MINE. If someone thinks they can take you from me, there is only one response they deserve. Death.”

  My breath was ragged now and even Kai looked strained. What was I doing?

  I broke his gaze and stared at my feet. “I don’t want you hurt like that. Not ever again.” I sounded defeated, like a little girl.

  Everyone at the table was deadly silent. I collapsed back into my chair dreading the thought of ever seeing him hurt like that again. Kai walked over and picked me up, carrying me to my room. He struggled to open the door as I laid my head on his chest. Tears fell down my cheek. When we got inside, he dropped me on the bed. He curled up next me and kissed my forehead.

  “Believe it or not, I am a good fighter. I have been around so long because I have survived many, many fights. Fights of dominance, fights for territory, fights for Alpha status and whatever else. I can and will fight for my mate. If he sent vampires once, he will do it again. He is known for running a dirty pack. I have heard recent rumors that his unmated women are treated like sex toys and his men fight to the death over dominance. They all live in poverty and steal from humans. I would be doing the world a favor.”

  I sighed. He was right.

  “So you’re just going to barge in there and kill him? Won’t they smell you coming?” I ask.

  “They will smell me coming. If I were to barge in there in a rage, I would be torn apart by his pack. I’m going to request a meeting and then I’m going to challenge him for Alpha status of his pack. It’s the only way to insure a clean fight. It’s a fight to the death and no one can intervene.”

  “So, if you are tearing their Alpha apart, no one can jump in?” I queried.

  “Correct. Pack law will make sure. My pack would report it and a werewolf from the council would come dispose of the person who intervened.”

  Dispose of? Geez.

  “What if he is about to kill you? You expect me to stand there and watch you die?”

  I twirled my hair around my finger in a nervous gesture. He grabbed my hand and brought it to his lips. “I’m not going to die. I have too much to live for now.”

  I left the room and said goodnight to his family. They all acted like we hadn’t just gotten in a big dominance fight. Maybe it was common in werewolf culture. I went to the bathroom to get ready for bed. I was coming out of the bathroom when I noticed Kai in my bed.

  “What are you doing in here?” I whispered.

  He pouted. “Come on, we’re mates. My mother doesn’t care.”

  I put my hand out. “We are mates but we are not yet mated. So no. You need to leave. I don’t want them thinking bad of me.”

  Kai looked hurt but brushed it off. “I forgot, I’m just your boyfriend,” he said before shutting the door.

  I sighed. Great. I lay down and tried to sleep but it was hard. I tossed and turned thinking of the vampires, of being hunted, of my argument with Kai. I thought of Sylvia saying I had witch powers that she could activate. Finally I turned to look at the clock, 1 am. God, I really needed sleep. I chewed on my bottom lip, making a decision. I opened my door slowly and peeked out. All clear. I crept down the hall to Kai’s room. The second I turned the handle, he sat up quickly and stared at the door. His hair was ruffled and he looked adorable. He smiled. “What took you so long?”

  I grinned, shut the door, and climbed into bed with him. The second his arms closed around me, my mind shut off and I slept.

  The next morning was a mandatory weekly pack barbeque. Even the wolves that lived on the edge of our territory drove in for the event. I took time to get to know each wolf. Sammy was fifteen and our youngest wolf; he was best friends with Akash. Besides Emma, Anna, and I, there was only one other female and she was unmated. Her name was Oksana and she was Ukrainian. She lived on the edge of our territory with her boyfriend Dominic who was also in our pack but they weren’t mates.

  Diya and Trent were really getting along well. You could see the romance budding between them and she looked genuinely happy. Trent looked head over heels in love with her already. He looked at her a certain way; his look said he adored her. It reminded me of the way Kai looked at me.

  After we had eaten, Kai cleared his throat. “As you all know we had some vampires trespass on our territory and try to take one of our pack members. This deed cannot go unpunished!” He roared the last sentence letting some of his Alpha power leak through. The pack roared their approval.

  “We know the Portland pack is behind this and so I have decided to challenge Dane for Alpha status of his pack and take over his territory.”

  You could hear a pin drop. No one said anything but the more submissive wolves looked scared and the dominant wolves looked proud.

  “I know merging our pack with new members will be hard at first. If you are currently fourth in the pack, you might be eighth after we merge. I have never been a wolf seeking out a big pack or a large territory. Dane runs a dirty pack as you all have heard. When I kill him and take over, some of his pack mates won’t want to stay under my command. Some will be relieved. I will run this new pack the same way I always have. Minimal fights, respect, and you will all still be family to me.”

  I could see the packs facial expressions change. They trusted Kai. They would do anything for him.

  “Aurora is special,” Kai finished. “A bigger pack and more territory also means we can better protect her against future enemies. The three vampires who came for her will not be the last. She has a beautiful gift that has already seen three of our pack members mated. Soon we will have small pups running around this mountain. There will be weddings. This pack will grow, but not because we are after numbers, beca
use we want to grow as a family.”

  Everyone clapped, and I felt tears in my eyes. It had been weird not to see any children around. It would be nice to see families grow.

  The next morning Kai and I were silent over breakfast with his family. He had called Dane and requested a pack to pack meeting about the territory violation with the vampires.

  “Do you think he knows what you are planning?” I finally asked out loud.

  “Yes, he will be ready to fight,” Kai answered.

  I swallowed hard. Kai’s mother put a hand over mine. “Do you know why my son didn’t stay in Delhi under my husband’s authority?”

  “A little bit,” I confessed.

  Kai cut her a look but she dismissed it. “Kai is more dominant than my husband. He could have fought him and taken charge of the entire New Delhi pack. He would have won, his father knows that. He will win this fight tomorrow and any other after that.”

  I admired her confidence in Kai, but I was tempted to ask her if she knew about Dane’s silver teeth. I thought better of it. If support was what he needed, I could do that.

  “I know,” I told her and looked at Kai with a forced smile. I just hoped she was right.

  It took six cars but we all drove out to the Portland pack’s meeting place. Emma and Devon stayed back to keep a presence in our territory.

  As we pulled up to meet the Portland pack in the large open park area, I started feeling nervous. What if Kai was gravely injured like the last time? What if someone in our pack tried to fight him injured for Alpha status. Kai parked the car and leaned across the seat to grab my face. His mother, sister, and two brothers were in the back of the SUV, watching.

  “I love you and I will be fine.” He gave me a passionate but chaste kiss and exited the car. I took a deep breath and got out of the car as well. We all walked in human form to the group of people standing in the meadow. I caught a whiff of cigar and after shave. Foreign Wolf. Dane’s pack was quite large. Twice the size of ours. The women were skinny and looked broken. They clung the men in fear and it made me sick. Dane stepped forward. “To what do we owe the pleasure of being able to gaze upon your delicious new female werewolf?” He licked his silver teeth and gave me a stare that made my blood run cold. I stared back tilting my chin up. If Kai didn’t kill this guy maybe I would!

  Kai clenched his jaw but otherwise didn’t show that the comment bothered him. “I challenge you, Dane Hurst, for Alpha status to your pack and all of your territory. You sent three vampires after my mate, and you run a dirty pack. If I don’t get rid of you, then the council will, eventually.”

  Dane began unbuttoning his shirt as if he expected this. “Challenge accepted.”

  His second in command handed him a blue glass bottle and he began to chug the contents. “Silver water,” Dane told us all.

  Bastard. I put my game face on and walked over to Kai who was undressing. The two packs made a wide circle.

  “Kick his ass. He looked at me like I was a piece of meat, and his females look half-starved and scared,” I told Kai.

  Kai grinned. “Gladly.” He shifted lightning fast and threw himself onto Dane’s half shifted back. Dane was curled in a ball protecting his jugular with his hands until he could fully shift. Kai wasted no time chewing the back of his neck, ripping chunks of flesh. Oh God, this was hard to watch, but I couldn’t look away. I backed out of the circle and found myself between Diya and Kai’s mother. Dane had fully shifted and now threw Kai off of his back with a brutal force. Kai landed hard. I heard the cracking of bones and the breath leave his lungs. I put my hand over my mouth. Kai’s mom pulled my hand down from my face and held it tight. She leaned in and whispered. “I’ve seen my husband through many fights. They are only as strong as we let them be. If you cry out or he risks a glance at you and you are anything but strong and fierce, he may make a mistake that could cost him his life.”

  At her words, I held my head high and masked my fear. Sure enough, Kai got up and risked a half a second glance my way before charging Dane. He kept going for the throat and tearing chunks away. Each time Dane tried to bite him, Kai would quickly dash the other way. He was freaky fast, but I could tell the silver was getting to him. I was pretty sure that when Kai bit Dane and got his blood into his mouth, the liquid silver was getting into Kai’s system. You could see that Kai’s pace slowed and his movements were less coordinated.

  Then, Kai made a mistake. He didn’t get away quick enough and Dane clamped his jaws around Kai’s left shoulder and closed down. He didn’t let go. Kai tried to shake him off but couldn’t.

  Next to Diya I heard Max swear. “He is going to try to weaken him with silver poisoning. If only he had your immunity, Aurora.”

  Kai’s mother whipped her head towards me. “You have silver immunity?”

  I nodded. “Yes, but I don’t know why.”

  “Who cares why? Quickly, open your mate bond,” she instructed me.

  “My what?” I couldn’t take my eyes off Kai. I made up my mind. If he looked like he was going to die, I was going to intervene. Damn the council. Let them come after me. I didn’t want to live in a world where he didn’t exist.

  Kai’s mother grabbed the side of my face and stared at me with glowing yellow eyes. “Open your mind to Kai NOW! Mates can share powers! It would be stronger if you had gone through the mating ceremony, but even without that your bond will give him enough to strengthen him. He can win this fight!”

  My heart leaped at her words. I immediately was reminded of the glowing ball in the woods that I buried. I ran to the spot in my mind that I had buried it and saw a faint glow under the dirt. I dug it up and threw the ball into the air. It burst into a million twinkling stars and covered my body like a fine mist. Like Magic. Kai’s mother whispered in my ear as my eyes stayed closed.

  “Give him your silver immunity. Imagine it as a liquid leaving your body and joining his.”

  I did as she asked. I had always been good at visualization. I thought of a stream of liquid leaving my heart. I envisioned it as magic liquid that held the power to give the user immunity to silver. Then I opened my eyes and drenched Kai with the imaginary liquid. The moment I did this Kai’s eyes snapped open and he threw Dane off of him with a burst of strength. Kai’s wounds were closing before my eyes. He spared no second in lunging for Dane’s half torn out throat and clamping his jaws over his neck. Then Kai pulled his body into a standing position with Dane still dangling from his mouth and used his claws to grasp Dane’s shoulders. He dug his claws in and ripped Dane’s head from his body.

  Our pack began to cheer. I sighed in relief. Dane’s second in command shifted into wolf form and ran away with a few other wolves. They weren’t going to stick around I guess. Everyone else stood still and stared at Kai as he shifted and changed into clothes.

  Most of Dane’s pack lowered their heads in respect. The ones who didn’t were dominant males or submissive females who looked too terrified to do anything. Kai was still catching his breath, so I stepped forward.

  “Kai has rightfully won this pack and these lands. But he won’t make you his wolves by force. We’re more than pack. We’re family. If anyone else wants to leave, then go. Find another pack to run with. We run a clean pack. No dominance fights. We treasure and protect our females. We help them find their mates. We have homes and enough food for everyone. WE are a family. If you want to be a part of our family, then step forward.”

  I glanced at Kai who had pride in his eyes.

  “A worthy mate and second in command,” I heard Kai’s mother whisper to Diya.

  Kai’s shoulder wound wasn’t healing as fast; you could see bluish iridescent fluid leaking from the wound. Silver. He looked exhausted.

  Dane’s entire pack stepped forward and got on one knee, all but two people. One was a hard looking man with dominance in his eyes and scars on his face. The other was a woman who looked like a survivor. She looked like she had been through hell and back and didn’t want to take anymore shit
from abusive males. She looked like me the night I killed my father to save my mother’s life.

  The scar-faced man stepped forward. “How can I assure a high position in the pack without a fight? I’m third in this pack.”

  Kai acknowledged him with a nod. “If fighting for dominance is the only way to calm brother wolf then you will have to find another pack. If you are okay with letting brother wolf out and staring into my most dominant wolves eyes, then we can establish your place in the pack without hurting my family members. If that doesn’t settle brother wolf then I will grant you leave to find another pack.”

  The guy raised his eyebrows. “That works for me.” Something else crossed his face but it was too quick for me to read.

  Lastly, the woman stepped forward. “My name is Isabelle and Dane attacked me on my way home from work. He took my money, ripped my flesh apart, and left me for dead. I have a husband and two small children. I survived the change much to his delight. I have wished every day since then, that I hadn’t. I don’t know where my family is now. It’s been two years. Every time I tried to run away Dane beat me and eventually held me captive in his basement, rarely letting me out. I know I can’t go back to being human, but I won’t go back to being a slave. I want to see my family.”

  She held her chin raised and her jaw was set, but I could see her lip quiver. Her wrists, I could see now, were bound with thin silver chains. I felt sick.

  Kai began to speak when I stepped forward and quieted him with my eyes. I walked slowly and lowered my gaze so I didn’t spook her. I could feel her dominance, yet she was fragile.

  “Kai is a good Alpha and a kind man. I got into a car accident and almost died but he saved me. I survived the change too and when I told him I didn’t want to fake my death, that I wanted to continue to see my family, he allowed it. My mom just came to a pack barbeque last weekend.”

  Tears were streaming down the woman’s face. I knew she needed more; she didn’t trust anyone. She needed proof. “If you join our pack tonight, then first thing tomorrow morning we will take you to find your family or you can leave. Be a lone wolf.”