"I don't care if it hurts, I wanna have control."
~ Radiohead, Creep
"I didn't want to do this, but I'm afraid you leave me with no choice."
Carlos took a device out of his pocket and slid it across the table. Sophie glanced down at it and gasped at what she saw. The screen was split into four squares with live footage of four different locations with four different people- four people she loved very dearly.
Her eyes snapped up to meet the general's, only to find him staring at her with an evil glint in his eyes a sinister smile on his lips. "First and second square on the top of the screen, Angela and Robert Johnson, age 60 and 62 years old. You'll find their address at the bottom of the screen. Your childhood home, correct?" He casually listed the information off.
He didn't let her respond and kept going. "Third square, Darcy Hopkins, your business partner and childhood best friend. You built your dog training businesses as co-owners from the ground up. Opened the shop almost a year ago, December 16th of last year. Lastly, your brother. Tommy Johnson, 30 years old, one of the top lawyers in NYC. Just like all the others, their home addresses are at the bottom of the screen."
Her eyes snapped up to meet his, fear written all over her face. General Hoppers leaned forward, hands folded on top of the table, just inches away from her. With a twisted grin, he sighed, "I'd hate if something were to happen to them."
Before she could blink, he flipped the table over and backed her up a against the wall, her picture frames that were hung on the wall went flying from the sheer force of her body slamming against it. The wind was knocked out of her and all she could do was wheeze out a cry. She tried to push him away, but the grip he had on her neck was strong. He easily used his own body to hold her to the wall.
"I wouldn't like hurting them." He told her, quietly. "But I'd hate losing my very important and expensive military equipment even more."
She sobbed, pathetically, and gripped his hand with all her might, quietly pleading with him. He squeezed her throat just enough for her to struggle, but enough for her to still get small breaths.
"Let me make this clear." He said, lowly, his face inches from hers. "We expect you to do everything the lycanthrope wants to ensure he stays alive, and I mean everything. You train him. You make sure in six months time, he's ready for combat again. When I give an order, he's on it before I even finish my sentence. When he walks out in the street, people don't even blink at him or look at him the wrong way. To them, he's just another person."
He pulled back just enough so his eyes could scan her body up and down. "While you're at it, make me another one of him too. A half mutt and half human wouldn't be too bad."
Startled, she frantically wheezed out, "get off me!"
He slammed his free hand down dangerously close to her head and with the other hand, he briefly cut off her oxygen. "Do not test me, Sophia!"
In a flash, he was ripped off of her and thrown backwards. From the sheer force of whatever grabbed him and sent him flying back, the general slammed into the wall with a sickening "thud," then hit the ground, flat on his face.
The massive lycan didn't waste any time charging towards the general at an inhuman speed. Before anyone could blink, he had the human's uniform fisted in his claws, ready to finish the job.
Not even thinking, Sophie desperately cried out, "stop!"
The lycanthrope froze, just mere moments from ending General Hoppers's life. After a few labored breaths, with a huff, he dropped the human back to the floor.
Like a predator stalking his prey, he change direction and prowled towards his mate. She trembled from where she was on the floor, keeping her head down and body curled up to protect herself. To her surprise, he didn't grab her. Instead, he took a protective stance in front of her.
A low growl rumbled in his chest- a warning. In that moment, she wasn't sure who to be more fearful of: the monster standing in front of her or the monster of a man getting up from the floor.
General Hoppers groaned as he lugged himself back up to his feet. "See what I mean, girl? You're safe with him." He snickered and wiped the blood that dripped from nose just from the impact of hitting the ground. "He's not finishing me off out of respect for me, or the fact this entire place is surrounded.... But because you told him not to."
From the floor, she shook uncontrollably. She didn't look up. She couldn't, really. Looking up would confirm what she was desperately trying to convince herself was a delusion in her mind. Nonetheless, the lycanthrope guarding her was very real, and very mad. Unfortunately for her, so were the humans in her house.
A wicked grin stretched across General Hoppers' lips, the blood from his broken nose dripping into his mouth, making his teeth stained red. "You don't get it how good you have it!" His horrifying laugh boomed through the house. "He'd do anything for you."
"What's it gonna be, kid?" He continued with a sneer, papers in his hand. "You gonna decide?" He asked and sauntered over to her. The lycan allowed it, but his eyes never left the general. "Or shall I decide for you?"
Hyperventilating at this point, she attempted to calm her breathing by taking slow, deep breaths. They were shaky, but she needed to do something to clear her mind. Weighing her options seemed impossible. Marry a dangerous and murderous lycanthrope? Or say no and risk something happening to her family and loved ones?
The papers were dropped to the floor in front of her. With trembling hands, she took the papers and skimmed over them. The first pile was a contract, a written agreement she wouldn't work, wouldn't tell people about the US Army's involvement in this, wouldn't tell people that the man living in her home was a lycan, and many, many other things she didn't have the time to read. The second paper was a marriage contract.
She wanted to scream, fight, say no, but... she was backed into a corner. Quite literally.
A pen was extended to her. She glared at the evil man and snatched the pen from his hands. Then? She sealed her fate.
He took the papers back from her and rolled them up to shove them in his pocket. "Pleasure doing business with you, kid. We'll be back soon."
He gestured for the lycanthrope to follow him, and though hesitant, he did as ordered. Not even a glance was given in Sophie's direction.
Just as they were about to be out the door, General Hoppers stopped and said, "oh, I nearly forgot." He reached into his jacket and pulled out a small book. He tossed it at where Sophie was, still on the ground. "Might help you to study a little."
While it felt like an eternity, it was only a few hours that they were gone. In those few hours, Sophie's fever returned. She could only assume her "mate's" fever returned as well.
She debated packing a bag and running, but to where? What would happen to her family? They had live footage of them, surely they could be hurt or worse before Sophie had the chance to warn them. That left one option: staying.
Defeated, she wiped the tears that managed to escape down her cheeks and plopped down on the couch. In less than 24 hours, her life had been changed forever. She was married, jobless, most likely under surveillance, and blackmailed into this new life.
Though she was in no mindset to read, she opened the little booklet that was left for her to "study," in hopes of getting some peace. In it was facts about lycanthrope: their diet, the exercise required, their ranks, their abilities, their history, how they shifted, and of course, there was a section about mates.
She skimmed through the pages and turned to that chapter. In it, it read the following...
What are mates?
Contrary to popular beliefs, there is no "moon goddess" that chooses for a pair of mates to be bonded together. How a lycanthrope finds a mate is purely institutional. There is no specific age this happens, but it is not until they fully mature physically after the age of 18. Usually, lycanthrope will pick up on that their mate is near by based on scent. Once their mate is in his line of vision, the instinct is confirmed.
To ensure their mate will not be taken by another unmated lycanthrope, with consent, they "mark" each other by biting in between the other's shoulder and neck. The mark lets others know they are taken and not to be messed with. From the mark alone, another lycanthrope can know information such as who the mark is from, what their rank is, and how long they've been mated.
Side effects to both mates include: infatuation, possessiveness, being overly protective, fevers and physical pain if separated, a constant need to be with one another, being soothed by their voice and presence, the ability to feel each others emotions, a strong pulling towards one another...
The list of side effects went on, which she looked past for now. Unfortunately the part she skimmed over was rather important.
She went on to read...
Lycanthrope mate for life. They do not cheat, they do not abuse, abandon, or cause any type of harm to their mate. Having a mate is one of the most highest honors as a lycanthrope. They treat their mates as such.
Sophie paused her reading. Who even wrote this? How does she know if it's true? She tossed the book aside, too tired and sick to continue.
Loud, obnoxious pounding came from her front door. Turns out, there was no point in them knocking. She couldn't even get off the couch before her house was flooded with men and women in army uniform.
Too sick and too scared to protest, she kept quiet and watched as they all scanned her house. Looking for threats or hidden camera, she assumed.
"There she is!" General Hoppers exclaimed and sauntered over to her.
She cringed at his loud annoying voice and took a step away from him. "General Hoppers." She greeted, shortly.
His eyes scanned her up and down. "Well you look... nice."
Clearly, she did not look presentable. Unfortunately for her, he now knew she got sick when separated from her "mate," just as he did.
She ignored his statement and asked, "this is it? You're just leaving him here?"
"Yes ma'am, this is it until April." He confirmed with a nod. "I trust you'll have a good Thanksgiving and Christmas, being newly weds and all."
Carlos came up being him and said, "all clear, sir." Then he turned to Sophie. "You look-"
"Beautiful, I know." She snapped and plopped down on her couch. She could tell the lycanthrope was close. She was feeling less and less feverish by the minute.
There was some rustling by the door to signal someone was here. Low and behold, there her "husband" was. Someone ordered him to step into the house and he did as told.
Then with a few shouts from all of them, mockingly telling her to have a "nice honeymoon," the lycanthrope was just... dropped off. She was left with a living, breathing, lethal weapon in her house, but no weapon to protect herself from him.
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