by Hana Blue
“Early as usual I see.” He playfully commented, now standing in front of me. “I swear you always showed up early hoping to catch a peak before I could get to my clothes.”
I stood up, dusting off the back of my thighs before shoving my hands into my back pockets, shrugging. “Nothing I haven’t seen before, not like you’d deny me if I just asked to see it.”
He roared out with laughter and combed his hair back, smiling at me mischievously. “I suppose I wouldn’t. Come on, let’s take a walk, like old times.”
I nodded in agreement, descending the stairs with one enormous step. Daniel turned towards the narrow street in front of us and shoved his hands deep into his front pockets. We walked, and he kept his pace slow so he could remain next to me. Being the gentleman that he always was.
“So, what’s going on with little Reena?” he asked, looking over to me. His bright red hair glowing under the streetlights, the scruff on his face shadowing it, leaving his hazel eyes looking dark and brooding.
“What?” I stammered, realizing that I didn’t really hear the question he asked over my inconsiderable amount of admiring.
He chuckled. “Reena. You said she’s the reason you guys came back here. What’s up with that?” His deep voice chorused again.
“Well, she finally knows about our beast form now, and I was hoping Alpha Micheal could help her with it like he did with me.”
He pursed his lips as he nodded. “So you finally had the guts to tell her? Or did she experience it firsthand?”
“More like witnessed it.” I scoffed.
He turned to me, wide eyed. “She saw you?” He asked with surprise and I nodded, letting a coy smile spread.
“No shit?” He muttered, looking ahead again. “I thought you didn’t use your beast form. You always said that you hated it.”
“I do.” I replied, looking down to the ground. Watching my feet as I walked. “I was put in a position where I couldn’t control it. Fight or flight kind of kicked in, and the fight won out, I guess… the beast won out. I didn’t think she was still around, so I just rolled with it, tried to use it as a scare tactic, which worked mostly, but I didn’t intend it to scare her too.”
“I bet you wish you would have listened to me and just told her.” He retorted. I shrugged.
We turned down another street, walking silently now. The sounds of the night being the only thing around us. I looked over to him and watched as he looked out into the night sky, looking like he had a million thoughts running through his mind. His brow furrowed and his jaw tense. I opened my mouth to speak, and like he just knew I was going to, he spoke himself.
“I’ve missed you, you never call anymore.”
I looked down. “Sorry.”
His face softened a little. “You need not be sorry.”
“I still am.” I replied softly.
We continued down the road until we reached the path along the river where we sat on a bench. He sat down right next to me, leaving no space in between, letting his knee press against mine. He clasped his hands behind his head and leaned back into the wood strips that made up the back of the bench.
“Well Scar, why don’t you tell me what’s being going on in the world of the rogue wolf.” He looked over to me, flashing that smile that never ceased to make my heart melt. I grinned meekly and looked away for a moment. Unsure of what to say. I couldn’t exactly tell him all that had been going on, nor did I want to. I wasn’t ready to taint the evening with him by spilling the horror story that had now become my life in the past few months.
I felt his hand on my thigh. He gave it a reassuring squeeze before rubbing his thumb methodically against the fabric of my jeans. “You don’t have to tell me, obviously some shit has been going down with you, and if you don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine.”
I pushed my hair behind my shoulder and looked down at his hand. “Thank you.”
I exhaled and looked back to him, pushing all thoughts of Dominic from my mind. I just wanted to be in this moment. I wanted just one chance, even if it was my last chance to go back to the good old days. I leaned over to Daniel and placed my hand on the side of his face, taking in the man’s face that sat next to me. The man that part of me would always love more than anything in this world.
He closed his eyes for a moment, his long lashes brushing the tops of his pale cheeks. Without even thinking, almost out of instinct, I leaned into him, gently pressing my lips to his. His eyes shot open, surprised by my advance. He looked at me confused for a moment, then smiled, cupping the back of my neck in his hand, pulling me into him, kissing me back. It wasn’t unsure like mine had been. It was powerful, desperate, like he had waited a millennium to do it again. Which wasn’t far from the truth?
Before I knew it, our kiss had become passionate and hungry, our hands frantically tracing over the familiar places of each other’s bodies. Every touch leaving us breathless. I quickly climbed into his lab, straddling him, pushing him back into the bench. My fingers found themselves tangled into the long amber locks, pulling at them lightly. He groaned into my mouth, grabbing at my hips, pulling me even closer. I broke from the kiss, sighing, lost in the moment of his touch, accompanied by the memories of every other time.
His lips pressed on my throat gently. He left a slow line of kisses down it like he was savoring every last one. Releasing my hips, he tugged at the collar of my shirt, kissing his way down to my collarbone. He continued to tug and pull at my neckline as he made his way over to the other side of my neck, nipping at my flesh. I sighed, my eyes fluttering closed. No sooner did they shut, I felt him grab my waist and throw me back to the other side of the bench. I clutched my chest, looking at him with shock.
“What the hell?” I asked breathlessly as he stood, gritting his jaw.
He turned it back to me, grabbing at his hair. He dropped into a squatting position like the weight of the world was dropped directly upon his shoulders, forcing him to the ground, crushing him until he couldn’t stand any longer. He growled out in frustration and shook his head violently.
“I’m a dead man,” He muttered under his breath.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, standing up.
Before I could even take a step closer to him, he rose turning to face me, his eyes dark and menacing. “I’m a goddamn dead man. You’re fucking marked. YOU. HAVE. A MATE.” He yelled at me, clenching his fists at his side, the tone of his voice causing me to tumble backwards onto the bench. His nose flared in anger as he shot daggers into me with his hateful stare. “I should have known, I should have just assumed. Of course you’ve been mated. How could I be so fucking stupid? Now, he’s going to feel all of that and come hunt me down.”
“No, no, no. Daniel listen.” I pleaded to him, lifting my hands up in front of me like a shield.
“Where the hell is he? Is he at the pack house? Damnit Aine! What the fuck do you think you’re doing? Do you want me to be ripped to shreds? Do you hate me that much now!?”
“NO!” I screamed at him. Standing up, placing my chest against his, squaring my shoulders in an attempt to seem larger than I was. “My mate doesn’t give a damn who you are. My “Mate” is a fucking psycho who wants me dead. My mate is nothing but an Alpha brute who marked me in a drunken rage in an alley after a fight! Now I suggest that you calm the hell down and refrain from speaking when you don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Daniel’s continuance dropped, as did his gaze. Taken aback by the alarming spat of information, I just spilled forth to him. “Alpha, huh? So you’re the luna of some pack now?” I swallowed hard, audibly choking on my fear yet again. “You’re a damn Luna.” He laughed, but without humor, tilting his head to the side shaking it.
“Daniel, please listen.”
“Which Alpha?”
“Dan, please.”
He grits his teeth and meets my gaze again. “His name!” He barked out at me.
For the first time in all the years I had known him, I was
now seeing him mad. It was frightening. Seeing someone that you cared for more than your own self fuming with rage, rage that was directed at you.
“All I know is his name is Dominic, he’s the alpha of the pack in Sitka.”
“Echo.” Daniel whispered coldly.
“Excuse me?” I choked out.
“Echo. Dominic Echo. I should have guessed another one of you hunters would be your mate. I’m just a half-breed, it could have never been me, so I guess fate decided your mate needed to be a beast like you.”
Daniel turned away taking off down the path. I called out to him, but he didn’t look back. Disappearing into the darkness of the path. Leaving me alone in the darkness with nothing but the phrase “I guess fate decided your mate needed to be a beast like you.”
My mouth felt dry as I stood there, stunned and unsure, my eyes on the verge of tears.
“A beast like you.”
Ten
Malicious Intent
Dominic~
“You’re doing the right thing baby.” Evangeline purred as she took a sip of her tea, her bright white eyes glowing at me.
It didn’t matter how many times she tried to convince me it was, I wasn’t convinced. Black magic wasn’t something I particularly approved of, and as far as I had ever known growing up, she didn’t either. But I guess the situation at hand filled her with a fresh perspective. Crossing over into the blood born’s territory in search of some woman who defied all things righteous didn’t sound like a promising aspect.
I knew that something needed to be done though. This bond needed to be broken, and if this was the only way, I needed to swallow my pride and face the outcome. Not just for myself, but for the entire pack. The blood born were dangerous, and I had just given one an open window into our midst, and that needed to be rectified.
“Why don’t you take a couple of the pack with you, maybe Ciri and her mate. They could provide some comfort and support.” My mother spoke again, setting down her cup. She smiled at me sweetly, still desperately trying to show me that everything would be ok if I did this.
I rolled my eyes with a shrug. “Yeah, I’ll take them. Since I don’t see you offering to go.”
Her eyes narrowed at me, taking on a malicious look. She shook her head in disappointment, hopping down from the stool she was sitting on. She puffed out her chest with an aggravated breath, rolling her neck as though it was pinched. “It’s not my responsibility Dominic, it is yours. I’m not the one who marked a beast, that was all you. Now you will fix it. You say you can’t kill her, so obviously the bond is stronger than I thought. I don’t want to hurt you by killing her myself.”
She cocked her head to the side as she spoke, her soft brown hair curled and bouncing off of her shoulder as she spoke. Providing a very innocent look to her very bitter words. A splendid way to pull the wool over anyone’s eyes who truly didn’t know how vicious this woman really could be.
Finally, she smiled at me, in what would only appear to be in a loving motherly way, and exited the kitchen. Holding my face in my hands, I leaned forward onto the counter, propping myself up on my elbows. Grumbling into my palms, I felt a sick feeling wash over me. I pulled my face up and looked around in confusion, trying to identify the feeling that was filling me.
A strange mixture of of anger, lust, and possessive rage. The feeling swirled in the pit of my stomach, faint at first but gradually building. I slammed my fists into the counter, growling out in frustration, trying to push back the swarming murderous feeling.
“Dom? Are you alright?”
I turned to see Ciri standing in the doorway. I frantically waved my arm at her for her to get away, but she remained still. I shook my head and gripped the edge of the marble countertop, parts of it cracking from the pressure.
Ciri cautiously approached me, resting her small hand on the back of my shoulder. “Come on, breathe. Deep breaths.” She mimicked how she wanted me to breathe and I followed suit, the feeling remaining, but more manageable.
“What is happening, Dominic?” She muttered with concern, rubbing her hand in circles on my shoulder blade, trying to help sooth my discomfort.
“I don’t know, I just got this sick feeling. It was this weird urge to kill, or protect, or fuck. I don’t know.”
I shook my head, squeezing my eyes shut.
She giggled a little, nodding her head with a knowing smile. Her shoulders lifting softly as she continued to giggle. “Your mate is getting it on. Jealousy. What you were feeling was jealousy brought on by the bond. Makes me wonder though, what made the bond that strong?”
She asked coyly; she knew the answer already, but still gave me the prime opportunity to claim she was wrong.
She eyed me suspiciously, waiting for me to make an excuse or try to blow off the question. A wry smile forming on her lips. She lifted her eyebrows a little, patiently waiting for me to jump on the opportunity to lie that she had given me, but both of us knew I couldn’t.
“Ok, fuck!” I grumbled. “I marked her. I saw her the night I took off and shit got out of hand, now I have these weird feelings, like I’m feeling emotions that aren’t my own.”
“You are.” She shrugged. “I don’t know why you can feel hers without having her mark, and I won’t pretend to either. But in most cases, at least with what I know, when mated to each other, you can feel each other’s pain and emotions. And if that is the case with the pure breeds, she is feeling or experiencing an emotion that causes your wolf conscious to be jealous and angry. My guess. She’s getting in on with someone.”
Throwing my head to face her, rage building back up into my mind again. A wave of fierce anger that I couldn’t block out. “SHE. IS. MINE!” I growled out, having not realized what I said until it came out.
Ciri shook her head regretfully. “You can’t do that, Dominic. You can’t be saying that.”
“Why the fuck not? She is MY mate, she bares MY mark. SHE. IS. MINE.” The words ripped from my throat like knives. No forethought, just pure emotion and rage spewing forth.
“Tomorrow morning, you plan to remove that mark, you plan to take away the bond that makes her your mate. If I remember correctly, you want this woman dead and have tried to kill her. You can’t force claims like that upon her. I’m sorry that you are struggling with her emotions that you can feel, but you have to ignore them. You can’t claim her and not want her at the same time. It doesn’t work that way, Dom.”
Ciri’s words came out calm and collected, showing absolutely no fear or reservation as she continued to try to settle me.
“I want her. That’s why I can’t kill her.” I muttered, turning away. I slammed my fists onto the counter again in frustration. “I fucking want her, but I can’t. I can’t want her.” I said sorrowfully, looking down at my clenched fists. Watching the skin around my knuckles slowly turn white.
“I understand, but I want you to know, there are no mistakes in the universe. All things happen for a reason. They mated you to her for a reason. I can’t tell you what to do, but I can help guide. You don’t know this woman, and being as she is the only blood born you have ever known, you don’t know their kind either. You pass judgements on to her that don’t belong, they aren’t deserved. Could you live with yourself knowing you were willing to give away a bond you will ever experience again to someone who was created perfectly for you? Just think about it. Ok?” She patted my arm and left the room. Leaving me alone with my own thoughts.
“Damnit,” I groaned, pinching the bridge of my nose.
Both my mother’s and Ciri’s words rolled over my thoughts. How could the woman that gave birth to me push me to rid myself of something that is supposed to be a gift, while the most loving woman I have ever known speaks wisdom trying to get me to change my mind? Who is right? If I break the bond between us, I would be free to protect us, but on the other hand, she had shown no threat to us at all, until the point where she was threatened.
In fact, in all the years I had been Alpha of this pack
, not a single blood born ever showed threat to us. If she existed, along with the other woman, they are obviously still around. They didn’t die out or go extinct. Then wouldn’t they still hunt us? Threaten my territory and my pack? I sighed, leaning my head back, looking up at the ceiling. I closed my eyes. The rage finally gone, but a feeling of great grief replacing it. If Ciri was right, then she was hurting.
I stopped for a moment, focusing on the feeling building in my gut. Mentally separating it from my own feelings. It was a feeling of great grief, and I found an urge to take it away from her build. My consciousness aching to take the feeling that I now shared with her away. Realizing in this moment, that her pain hurt me. Her grief upset me.
“I want her.” I whispered into the sky. Letting the words become real. Because they were. They were very real. Keeping my eyes closed, I let my mind wander off. Leading me right back into the forest. Turning around to find the origin of the most glorious sound I had ever heard in my life. With a sigh, I relived it.
The tall woman appearing behind me, long hair whipping around behind her, looking at me like she expected something. A beautiful angel hidden behind a dark exterior that appeared to be haunted. Her eyes pleading with me to speak, to see her, but my own fear and anger clouded me to see it. She was waiting for me to claim her, like she claimed me as she left. I wanted her then. Deep down, this whole time, I wanted her. All of her. I wanted to see those eyes smile, to know what she had endured to cause the marks that marred her beautiful skin. Even as I watched her become a monster, I wanted her. Even if that damned me, I wanted her. But when I had the chance, an actual chance to have her, I attacked her, brutally attacked her.
What happened in the alley was out of my control, but I couldn’t deny what I felt as it went on. I don’t know if I could give up the chance to feel it again. Hell, I didn’t even know her name, but damnit did I want to. But I realize, I almost made sure that I never could. How could she ever look past me wanting her dead? How could she ever look past everything I’ve done, marking her, attacking her? I don’t think I could if I were in her shoes, so I doubt she could.