He nods to his wolves, the adults that had not been involved, and they go to gather their children. I feel bad seeing their faces, but they have to realize an alpha is only as strong as the control he has on his pack. The alpha let them run free without control for far too long.
Once they leave with a promise to see me in three days, I go towards Al. Heather follows a hand under my elbow ready to drag me from danger as Al snaps at where the wolves disappeared.
"Al. It’s okay. I am safe."
His eyes look to mine but there is no human in them. I hold out my hand to Heather.
"Knife."
"You cannot be serious…"
"Knife!"
She hands it over looking none-to-pleased about it. I slice my hand and he calms smelling my blood licking his lips. He is hungry and bleeding a lot. I put my hand out and his tongue snakes out licking it.
"Amber he will get stronger and break away from us!"
I smile at mom.
"I know. Don't worry. I have him."
His saliva gets into my wound and my knees buckle as I moan. Heather holds me up and I manage to keep my hand close enough for Al to keep licking the blood. As it heals his tooth snags the skin ripping it open again. It hurts, but never for long enough as the saliva once again has me panting for more.
Once Al stops tugging against them, they let go trusting me. I am glad they do, but I am a bit worried. I hope I know what I am doing. Heather drops me and Al grabs me leaving my hand healed and bites into my neck. The saliva goes so much deeper with a bite than a lick.
I recognize the symptoms of arousal. I am wet. I can’t feel any pain right now. Instead I am like butter. Just melting into Al while drinks me up. He puts me gently on the ground once his eyes and fangs change back. Once he is himself again, he looks terrified. My blood loss scares him. I rub my hand on his cheek and he closes his eyes inhaling my scent for a moment.
"Amber…too much blood loss…. I…if you want. It could…"
I nod knowing his point and let him feed me his blood. He is right he has gone too far. I have lost too much blood. He is going to bond us again, on purpose this time. I will have to tell the council. It is an emergency so they might not kill us. Fiona has sway with her father. Maybe it will be okay.
I drink his blood and fall asleep feeling safe and spent.
Chapter 16
When I wake it says five on the clock on my wall. I sit up and winced. Damn IV's. We have to be spending a fortune on these things. It seems like I need them way too much. I mean seriously.
Al slams the door open, a tray of food in one hand and a look of fury on his face. Okay so we are bonded so intensely he will sense something like a twinge from an IV…. oh goody.
"Hey you look pissed for someone that kicked alpha ass on a full moon."
He instantly calms and comes over handing me a tray.
"Dad has been making that seem like a picnic to mother and me."
I flinch feeling the full-on guilt. I hadn't thought about how leaving them with that would feel.
"Don't feel bad. You almost died; I think us taking the brunt of his anger is the least we can do."
"Are you an emotional sensor now?"
He blushes and I feel his guilt and amusement. Oh hell, I am too.
"So, we like totally bonded."
"Yup."
"And you can only drink from me now."
"That is correct."
"So, I am like your pet now?"
I hate that word and he rolls his eyes and climbs over lying next to me on the side without IVs.
"Not even close. You are my keeper and I am your protector. No matter how deep in the rage I am you will always be able to reach me. And no matter how far you are I will always know when you need me so I can be there."
I feel his acceptance. Well Al was always the, it happened, you can't change it so accept it and move on type. I am the emotional freak out, dig deep, find inner strength, and come out on top one.
"This sensing everything…"
"It will calm once I feed from you regularly. Both our bodies are changing so it's in overdrive now."
"How do I change? Aren't you only bonded to me ‘til I die?"
He blanches a bit and looks nervous. Al is almost never nervous…. I have seen it once when he bit me the first time. I use my new vampire telepathy to dig deeper before he gives me a glare and somehow closes up his mind a bit. I am learning that!
"Just tell me Al." I lay back down and shift closer. He is warm. Vampires are not even remotely as cold as legends say. If so, I would be the vampire and him the human. If anything, I think they are fairly warm because their blood heals and replenishes itself as long as once in a while, they get fresh intake.
He moves his arm and I reposition so I am lying on it. I am not sure if it is the bite or just the fact that we all escaped death together, but I feel even more safe and comfortable than normal around him. He seems more relaxed as well.
"Does the bond make us more relaxed?"
"It makes us comfortable in one another's presence at all times. In fact, when separated we both will feel a bit jittery. We are going to have to work on it not drawing the other to us. It will go both ways now."
Well good thing I know before going back to school. That could have been awkward.
"Mother is trying to get us a shared room. A wing for couples or supernaturals and their bonded."
"That basically shouts what we are for miles doesn’t it?"
He shifts nervously.
"Okay everything I say makes you nervous. Fill me in before my heart stops!"
That is a full-on flinch. Oh great, my heart makes him worried.
"Am I dying or something? Did your blood not heal me? My brain is basically gone and your saliva made me so comfortable I don’t feel it. Great."
"It's nothing so dramatic. We already saw the council. Heather stayed with you and gave her account via mirror interview. The council wants to talk with you, to make sure it was consensual, but as long as you tell the truth, we will not be punished. We made the point with the extenuating circumstance…they personally sent a message to the local alpha saying we are to be given whatever we ask for or they will be excommunicated from their place in the council and it will be open season. Even other werewolves will hunt them.
"You and your project have left an impact. All the clans are buckling down on their vamps so no one can find fault with their behavior. The alphas are making stricter rules and enforcing them. Humans found the scene and no one is happy about it.
"The council did agree that my rage was understandable as was your wish to save me once we saved you and then me having to give you blood to keep you alive. Once they have your vow it was willingly, we are in the clear."
"So, no worries then."
"Well…we were informed of one thing we didn’t know…. Mom and I never knew… we had never planned on making pets so to speak so we had no idea…"
"Spit it out before I die of worry Al."
"When royals make a pet it's…different than other vampires. Because they rule and are examples and have very few, they can trust their pets are different as well."
"How?"
"You will live as long as I do, not vice versa. Because royals only keep those, they trust with them long term…"
I shoot up like a bullet. "Waahhaa…aaa?!"
"Our reaction was sadly not much better. Father laughed at us in front of the council and made some remark about how mother didn't have to worry about losing you to time now."
Well no shit…I am…not a vampire, but I will have the life span of one.
"So even if your project takes a hundred years to come into fruition…"
"I will be there to see it." Damn. That is hefty. Crap on toast. Intensity one thousand. Okay calm, process, deal, move on…. how does Al do this?
I just lay back down hoping for the comfort I got the first time. Being connected to him does help, but I am sure my heart is still tap dancing to s
omething akin to salsa music.
"Are you going to be okay?"
I nod and shrug feeling a bit overwhelmed. "It’s a lot to take in. How long was I asleep to miss all this?"
"You slept the rest of the night and today while we were gone. The alpha offered to leave a wolf to guard you with Heather since mom and I were loath to leave, but Heather shot that down so fast he didn’t dare insist. She is feisty when angered. Mom likes her and dad is annoyed."
Mom liked Heather before, but I am guessing it is a loveish kind of like now. If Heather is not careful Al will get a new sister.
"So, we see the alpha tomorrow?"
"Next day at the latest."
"Tomorrow."
He pulls me closer so my head lays on his chest and rubs my back.
"If you are ready."
I have three days, but the wolves count nights because they are dicks. I am going tomorrow no matter what. If I have to crawl. This needs to be finished.
"I'm sorry you are stuck with me for life now Al. I mean you are totally missing out on food variety. Do the different types taste different?"
He chuckles and hugs me a bit tighter.
"Don’t be. I was assuming I was stuck with you for life once we adopted you anyway. It's just that now your life is longer than before."
Well he is taking it well. Then again, he has had some time to process. Only time will tell for me if this I really bad or not a terrible as I think being a pet will be.
"Get some sleep Amber. You need rest."
It is almost like my body agrees and I just drift off as soon as he finishes telling me to.
"You are nervous. We should do this via video chat."
I sigh and grab Al's hand. "It's not done that way. You know that."
"It’s the modern world…"
"Al."
He stops talking and Heather chuckles. He made me sleep excessively with his 'suggestions,' but in a wonderful twist of fully bonding he is more apt to listen to mine as well. We don’t try to use it and the vampire king said once we settle into the bond, we will have better control over it so we don’t keep 'suggesting' things we don’t mean to.
Like don’t suggest someone jump off a balcony because they keep 'suggesting' you sleep more. Yeah Al jumped and Heather came into the house to visit with me to find my parents laughing their butts off downstairs. I sarcastically wished them into silence, but no such luck.
"I'm ready."
Al rings the doorbell for me and the door opens instantly. A human. I can sense it through Al. He is not worried about the doorman. Good thing I know that or the world might end!
Sensing my sarcasm and guessing why makes him chuckle under his breath and bump elbows with me. The impressions he gets from me so far are mostly sarcasm or denial. He is being a good sport. I am trying not to focus on this because I have something more important to do. I have to order the death of one or more werewolves. The pack will need to find a new alpha likely. If multiples die because of an attack on a human that is a good sign he can’t control the pack. It would normally go to the future alpha, but he is the one dying for sure today.
I feel bad, but not enough to leave Adam out there to torment another human. I know how it feels. I can't stop the slight shiver of fear that goes through thinking of all the times I have been through the fear of being a victim. Al reacts by growling under his breath. I calm myself, remember I am not alone anymore. I won’t be even should I wish it.
Despite how much I am in denial about things changing I am actually okay with it…mostly. It is weird to readjust my thinking, but mostly I am okay. I trust Al and he trusts me. We will make this work somehow.
We are escorted outback. We have to go through the house of animal heads for that? Really? We couldn’t just walk around to the back? Seeing the vampire talons and teeth from previous wars is something we have to see? Is it to scare us? If anything, I can tell, even without my connection, that not just Al, but his parents are pissed at the rudeness of that gesture.
"I would say welcome, but I am not feeling very welcoming."
I can’t blame the alpha. His whole world is being ripped apart. He is going to have to order his son's death today. He is probably losing his position. He doesn’t know it, but I am demanding testing of every wolf in that damn attack.
"I understand."
They are all gathered and every wolf from the attack is in human form cuffed in silver so they are weakened and can’t fight back.
"What are the charges?"
"Kidnapping, assault, and attempted murder of a human, three vampires, and a witch ordered by one rabid wolf and his followers."
The gasps just prove how very little the alpha tells his people. They didn't know about Adam.
"What do you demand of us to make things right?"
I sigh and look at Adam who stares back at me murder in his eyes.
"I demand the death of the wolf in charge of the attack and testing for all the others that survived to make sure none of the others are rabid."
"Do you wish to do the honors?"
I open my mouth to agree when Heather steps forward.
"I will test them to determine how many must die. They cannot hide rabies from witch blood."
He bites his inner cheek, but only nods his agreement as Heather stands in front of the wolves and cuts her hand. The rabid ones react trying to fight the silver to get to her. The others are still there in place heads bowed in guilt. They are taken back into the crowd. Their fate will be up to me and my clan. The others they are forced to put to death by their own laws.
"Five die tonight. Five of you are here. How appropriate."
Does he think I enjoy this? Does he think I want to be responsible for the death of someone my own age? I pull out a silver stake and step forward towards Adam before Al plants me in front of the wolf next to Adam. He is taking the little alpha for himself. I don’t argue, but the alpha wants to.
"We are bonded now. It is his duty to keep me from harm and Adam has always been the one with the grudge against me for being human. Al cannot let me in front of him. It would go against the bond."
The alpha snorts and the other wolves look at him in distaste. No matter the culture, bonds are serious. Doesn’t matter if it is blood bond, pack bond, clan bond, or marriage bond. A bond is serious business no one mocks it. Yet he did. He has given in too much to the modern world. He has lost what makes the werewolves a beautiful and loyal breed.
Al snaps Adam's neck so hard it won’t go back to its original position. Mom and dad do the same. Heather shoots a silver magic arrow into the head of hers. They all slump forward. I look down at mine. He is still trying to get to Heather and her blood. He struggles against the bonds but to no avail. He looks so young. He is not even an adult yet. He has to be sixteen…maybe younger. I start to cry and he looks over at me hunger and mayhem in his eyes.
"I'm sorry."
I slam the silver down through the neck so it will spread fast and kill him. I am not sure if he bleeds out first or if he dies of the poison, but he slumps down and stops breathing. I drop next to him and brush his hair back closing his eyes. I slump over him and cry. No one stops me and no one says anything. I don’t get along with all wolves, but I have never truly hated any but Adam. I hate that they have been infected by his madness.
Al tries to make me realize they are no longer suffering, but it doesn’t help. I can’t stop the anger at the lost lives. The blow this will deal to parents that trusted the alpha and his son to care for their children. All this over my being human. It has to stop. They want to be modern, but have lost their humanity in pursuit of an easier life.
Al pulls me up and wraps me up safely in his arms despite the blood I am wearing. It doesn’t bother him anymore. He can only drink mine so he is immune to the call of others.
"Are you satisfied?"
I glare at the alpha about to say no because five kids died and it shouldn’t have happened. But I don’t get it out before Fiona speaks up
.
"No. I want to call in my grievance. This comes from my father the king and he addresses it to the entire pack."
The silence is so intense I can’t even hear my own heartbeat.
Chapter 17
"Excuse me?"
Mom is not backing down. She turns away from the alpha and towards the pack which looks confused.
"When something this big happens, it calls into question the ability of the alpha to control his pack. My father refuses an alliance with a pack so unstable. He wants two things. The alpha to step down and leave the pack and the promise that anyone that chose to participate in this attack rather than tell the alpha so it never happened will never be allowed to be in a place of power. Not just alpha, but no beta either. If they refuse to give the blood oath here and now with the witch present, he will demand their deaths. You have ten minutes to talk amongst yourselves before I call my father with your refusal to make a decision."
She goes and sits down on an empty chair and dad and Heather follow. Al is just as shocked as I am so we stand there like fish out of water gaping, covered in blood. Well isn’t this day the best thing ever?
Al comes to first and part drags me, still fish out of water here, to the chairs and sits down pulling me down with him. It is obvious I am not sitting on my own without a light breeze knocking me over. Why did I bring the family? Damn them for rescuing me. I mean this likely is a good thing for the pack. A new start, but damn they just killed five kids and now mom wants them to rearrange their pack hierarchy. I partly wish I let it go, but I know deep down I can’t. I couldn’t let Adam live. Even if his death led to this.
I slump against Al tired. I am tired of it being so hard. Tired of being attacked for being born human. Tired of having my emotions played like a game of tug of war.
Al senses my discomfort and holds me tighter trying to protect me from a world I am in whether I want to be or not at this point. But he can’t protect me from my worst critic. Myself.
"We agree. We will bring them forward to make the blood promise to the witch. Our alpha will step down and leave the pack or die."
Rooming With the Supernatural Page 11