I woke up the next morning to an empty bed but it was warm which meant that Darius had just gotten out of it. I pulled on lounge pants and one of Darius' shirts then made my way downstairs. It proved to be the right choice because, in the living room, I met Ian, Jared and Amy. They were having a discussion that paused the moment I walked in. I tried not to allow that to affect me as Darius gestured for me to walk over to him.
I ignored everyone's stares as I made my way to him and as soon as I was within reach, he pulled me into his lap and nuzzled his face into my neck. My cheeks heated especially when I caught Ian's eye and he wagged his brows. I had never known Darius to be open with affection in front of people unless there was something wrong so I braced myself to hear the bad news.
"We got a summon from the hunters." It was Darius who spoke and I turned to him in confusion.
Ian handed me the letter which was already rumpled and I could have bet that Darius rumpled it after he read it the first time. My eyes skimmed through the letter and the more I read, the more ridiculous it sounded. The hunters were summoning Darius to a hearing so he could stand trial for murdering my family. It was phrased as an invitation but we both knew it wasn't.
"Do they hold this kind of power?" I asked when I was done reading and Jared scoffed.
"Of course not, the hunters are a group of assholes who think that calling them a fancy name gives them authority. They mostly consist of humans who are either scared or jealous of the werewolves. The only people who have the right to summon an Alpha for a trial are the werewolf council and no offense, Leindra, but they don't give a shit about your parent's death."
"None taken," I placed the letter on the table and turned to Darius. "What happens now? I take it you're not honoring their invitation."
"It depends, if it were a smaller pack, the hunters would try to take them out. They wouldn't risk that here firstly because of the humans and second because they cannot win. What I don't understand is why they are interested in your parents after so many years. Why now? What did they find that was so important that they needed to investigate?"
"I think a more accurate question is who convinced them that they needed to investigate?" Ian corrected and I suddenly understood what they meant.
They thought Brandon was behind this
"I don't know," I began, unsure, but Ian cut me off.
"How did you meet him?"
"We met in a bar where I worked, I spilled a drink on him and he offered to buy me one to replace it. It was a very uneventful meeting. He didn't know anything about me when we first met. He didn't even know that Lunarius existed."
"What do you know about him?" Amy asked and I opened my mouth to speak but I realized that I was falling blank.
I didn't know anything about Brandon because he never spoke about himself. I was ashamed to admit that I knew nothing about the man I had loved and broke my heart. All I knew was his name and last name. I didn't know if his family was dead or if he even had a family. I realized just how pathetic that was and shook my head in disbelief. "You could dig in and find out," Jared began making everyone turn to him. "He clearly has a soft spot for you. It would make sense if you won his trust and found out what he was hiding."
"No," Darius' tone was clear. When Jared opened his mouth to protest, Darius shot him a glare that could have buried someone six feet under. "I will not have my mate around him, especially after what happened the last time."
"I hate to agree with Jared but he has a point," Amy began sheepishly. "Brandon clearly has some kind of feelings for her and he is doing this all for her. If he thought that he had her then maybe it would be easy for her to find out what all of this is about and what proof they have against you."
I found it a bit annoying that they were talking about me as if I was not there. Darius was not listening to any of it but I could see that the other three were sold on the idea. They kept trying to convince him but it was like talking to a brick wall. He was not budging and I doubted he would. I weighed both sides of the argument and although I hated to say it, Jared had a point. I was the only person who would be able to get close enough to Brandon but there was a flaw in that argument.
"Even if I agree," I cut through their argument making everyone turn to me. "Brandon isn't going to trust me because I took Darius' side yesterday. He won't believe I had a miraculous change of heart. He is smarter than that."
"He will if he believes that Darius is abusing you and he's your knight in shining armor. Men love a damsel in distress."
"No!" Darius cut through our discussion. "I refuse to permit this. I don't want you anywhere near that bastard."
I turned to Darius and softly stroked his cheek. "You can't lock me up forever. I am involved in this whether you like it or not. Won't you prefer knowing and being able to discern how I am involved? This way, the ball is in your court."
"I don't like this idea."
"It is the only one we have," I turned to Amy. "The bruises have to look real because Brandon is a skeptical person. He would want to confirm if I'm lying or not."
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"I could punch you in the face," she offered and Darius shot her a death glare that made her shrink. 'No punches in the face got it. I could just rough you up a bit to make it believable. What do you think?"
"I'm down," I glanced over at Darius. "Are you okay with it?"
"Of course, I am not okay with it," he whisper-yelled. "But I learned the hard way that I
cannot stop you. You will do this whether I agree or not so go ahead."
I climbed out of his lap and followed Amy. She waited until we were a good distance
away from the living room before she spoke. "I could have sworn that Darius was going to kill us for even suggesting that. Thank the goddess you were in his lap or we would have been dead."
"He wouldn't have."
"You underestimate what that man feels for you. I am surprised he didn't mark you on the spot to make a point."
"Mark me?" I asked with scrunched brows. "What is that?"
"I forget sometimes that you're not a wolf," she pulled us into a quiet and empty room. "Marking is when the male bites the female. It isn't as barbaric as it sounds. It is a sign to show other wolves that she is taken. It hurts for a split second but people say that the mark is an erogenous spot. I have heard of females climaxing just by having their mark touched."
I flushed pink at the information. "Why hasn't he marked me yet?" "Marking is a huge commitment. It is unheard of for wolves to separate after a mark. It is a bond greater than anything you can imagine. My guess is he wants to make sure that you're all in first."
"What if he just wants to make sure that it is what he wants?"
"Believe me, you're what he wants," she placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Now, brace yourself because I have to hit hard."
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I wanted to ask what she meant when she pulled her hand back and punched me hard
in the gut.
A lot of people thought hitting like a girl was an insult. They clearly had never been hit by Amy before. For someone so mall, she packed a punch and it didn't matter how many times I tried to brace myself, I could never prepare myself for impact. By the time she was done, I was sore all over and I felt nauseous.
"Are you okay?" she asked and I nodded. "I am so sorry but we had to make it as believable as possible."
"it is fine," I managed out because it was hard to talk while walking and we were currently on our way to show Darius and the others.
As soon as we got to the living room, Darius rushed over to my side. He lifted my shirt and for a split second, I saw his eyes flash black as he saw the bruises on my ribs. He turned to face Amy who had the sense to hide behind Ian.
"Did you break her ribs?" he forced out and I saw Amy shake her head. Darius turned back to me and there was visible hurt on his face. "You don't have to do this. It isn't too late to tap out."
"I didn't get punched by Amy just to tap out," I mumbled. "I'll take my old car because
it will be more convincing that way. I'll be back in a few hours at most. Try not to worry too much."
Darius looked like he wanted to say something but at the last moment, he thought against it and kissed me deeply. When he pulled back, it was like he had to forcibly remove himself from the premises. I knew I was putting him in a tight position but it was necessary.
I retrieved my keys and made my way out of the house. I didn't realize how much of a chore it would be to get out of the house and into my car. My sides were burning and my head was spinning but I was determined to see it through. I had to breathe through my nose during the entire drive and when I got to Brandon's house, I sat in the car wondering if I was making the right choice.
I saw Brandon peeking through the window and I realized it was now or never. I got out of the car and made my way to his door.
"What do you want? I thought you made your stance clear yesterday. Does Darius know that you're here?" he called out before I even knocked and I lowered my voice to
sound as broken as possible.
"I need your help."