Chapter Nine: Part Two

I ran through the forest, pushing my body to the limits. My breath came in ragged gasps but I forced myself to continue because I had not been told to stop. My mother called it training. I called it torture and if she would have heard me say it I would have been slapped upside the head.

What is an Alpha's main concern? My mother's voice was sharp in my head and I struggled to breathe as I thought of the answer. I was forced the think as I ran, it was how she trained. I needed to learn to make plans, decisions, and formulate thoughts even as my body wanted to give up. It would make me stronger.

The pack, The family, the future. I sent it back and leapt over a fallen log. My legs burned but I could feel my wolf lending me her strength. My legs grew stronger and I surged forward. I laughed as I fell back into her strength. We were a team, stronger together than we ever were apart.

Wrong. Do another lap. Her voice was sharp and I wanted to groan but I refrained. An Alpha's main concern is always family and the future because without either there is no pack. You never put the pack ahead of your family. It breeds weakness. If the Alpha family is not strong, the pack is not strong. Your family is the blueprint for how the pack runs. If you have a fractured family. You have a fractured pack. The words were said carefully and delivered with an edge of bitterness. I winced before thinking of a quick way to pull her mind away from Torvus.

An Alpha's faults are Pride, Greed, Gluttony, Vanity, Wrath, Lust, and Sloth. Every shifter experiences the faults but the power that comes with the Alpha position increases these faults until the point they can consume. An Alpha must always keep his mind on the main concerns to temper the faults or the Alpha will fall and the pack will fail. I bolted around the marker tree and headed back in the direction I had come from.

Very good, Shey. I didn't ask for it but you said that flawlessly. You've been studying. Pride laced her voice and I beamed widely, even as I panted. My run was starting to wear on my wolf as well. Her strength was limited while we were in human form. It wouldn't be long before I would collapse from the strain of the maintained speed.

Your second in command suggests you take over a settlement to the east of your territory but it's dangerously close to an enemy territory. He has made a plan where you can take the settlement without the other territory knowing. It seems to be in order. How do you respond? Her voice was back to being hard and sharp and I thought for a fraction of a second.

I shook my had slightly, I didn't have enough information. Size of the enemy territory? Every bit of information mattered when making decisions of a pack. I needed to pay attention to everything that was said and was told to me.

Smaller than yours but runs more male warriors while your territory is more families. You run female warriors to balance that but despite their training they are more inclined to stay with their children. She delivered it quickly and I dodged to the side, avoiding a tree before I narrowed my eyes. With the enemy territory having more male warriors and mine using both male and female, I had a numbers advantage.

Allies of enemy territory? Knowledge of the enemy was just as important as the knowledge of my own territory. I would know the insides of my own territory and if I had an enemy territory then their allies would be my potential enemies.

Only one but it's much larger than yours with more warrior. Enemy territory Alpha Female is the daughter of the ally territory's Alpha. Family always made for a more complicated situation if things got out of hand. The Alpha of the ally territory would do anything to protect his daughter if he saw there was a threat. The reaction would be instantaneous and probably not in my favour.

Allies of mine? If the enemy had a single ally and my allies were more numerous it would give me the advantage.

Several smaller territories you have helped defend in the past. You have trained both their males and females who to fight. They come out a bit higher in numbers than the enemy's ally. It made for a more interesting scenario as everything seemed evenly matched but the small settlement was the main issue of the entire plan.

What use does the settlement have? It would need to be worth it to take the settlement. There was no point in starting a war if there was nothing to gain.

A very small iron mine and a significant addition of land to your territory. At that I frowned. I weaved between trees, my body almost on auto-pilot as I let my mind formulate a plan. My wolf immediately focused on my hearing, letting me pull back a bit further to figure out the problem given to me.

I would tell my Beta no. It was the only answer. My wolf alerted me to a sound to my right and I dove right as my mother hurled herself at my running form. I rolled on the ground before I sprung up. I crouched ready to attack her but she simply stared at me.

"Why?" The question was cold and I straightened, still wary after her sudden attack.

"The settlement adds a small iron mine and significant territory but as it's close to the enemy territory they would most likely view it as an attack-"

"Your Beta has planned for it." She snapped it out and I shook my head. No one could plan for human nature. It wasn't possible and I wasn't stupid enough to believe they wouldn't find out about it.

"They would know I took the territory regardless of what he has planned for." I stopped, thinking hard for a moment. "Did I inherit the Beta?" The corner of her mouth twitched and she nodded.

"It was your father's Beta's son. Your father's Beta came from the mundane settlement close to the enemy territory." She crossed her arms over her chest, her face even and blank as she looked at me. My mind whirled with the information and I looked at her carefully, a plan finally forming in my mind.

"A move to take the settlement would spark a territory war between me and the Enemy territory. As the Enemy Alpha is mated to his ally Alpha's daughter. That male would have involved his pack to secure his daughter's safety." I paused and pressed a hand to my pounding heart and I frowned again. "Despite the help of my allies I would most likely lose because my female warriors would prefer to stay with their families to ensure their safety. It cuts my warrior force in half leaving me at a disadvantage. My pack, my territory would be gone." I took in a deep breath and smiled.

"So I tell my Beta no and then set him to trial because shifters don't live in mundane settlements. His father came from the Enemy territory and he's most likely trying to play on Alpha's Greed to get me to take the settlement so the Enemy could take my territory. He's a generational implant from the Enemy pack and instead of forcing an Alpha's Greed, he will be met with an Alpha's Wrath." I finished it proudly and my mother suddenly smiled at me.

She clapped loudly and pride fairly radiated off of her. "Well done, Shey. That was impressive." She walked over and hugged me tightly. "Why else wouldn't you take the territory?" The answer was an easy one.

"Because I wouldn't risk my family or my pack for greed." I looked up at her and she smiled before kissing my forehead gently. I let the love of the action flow over me.

"That's right. Nothing comes before family." She let me go and pointed to the trees, her expression once again hard. "Two more laps." She looked at me and I groaned aloud. She raised an eyebrow before slapping me sharply upside the head. "An Alpha doesn't complain. Get running." At that I started once more. Training was never over with my mother. I dodged around the first set of trees when the ground sucked me down to my waist. I held back a scream as dark mist rolled over the ground towards me. I frantically tried to escape the clutching grasps of the ground but I couldn't.

The dark mist formed into a dark silhouette of a female. I froze. I knew that shadow and that mist. I knew the power that radiated off of every single inch of it. "Why do you insist upon fighting fate, Shey Abigail Lazera?" Mene's voice was cold and echoed in the forest around me. She stood in front of me, her tall form hovered over my trapped one and I looked up. She had no face and no features, I could see nothing but the black veil that covered her but I could feel her frowning at me. "I give you a gift. A chance and you insist upon throwing it away. You demand I fix the problem. I cannot fix you, Shey. I cannot fix what had been done." The words were hissed and I flinched under each of them.

"Your grandfather has created this problem of yours, has trapped you now, and he will be cast to my brothers for his crimes. Discarding his family like refuse. Torturing his daughter, his granddaughter. I am ashamed he was ever blessed with my gifts. The Old Ways hold him tightly and they will be his downfall." She paced in front of me, her anger practically slapping me in the face with it's intensity. She froze before she crouched down in front of me. "Do you know why your mother killed your father?" I nodded and a heavy shadow formed from underneath her veil and it shifted and swirled until my mother looked at me from the darkness of it.

"He rejected me knowing I was pregnant with you. He did not care about the life he helped create and when I was certain you would survive, Mene granted me the strength to track him down and kill him." Her face flashed with fury. "He did not deserve to live after he nearly destroyed the one thing in my world that I loved to the ends of the earth." Her green eyes locked with mine, her voice soft and a comfort for me. "I killed your father for you. I killed my mate for you because I loved you the instant I felt your life growing within me. The mother's love for her child surpasses everything." Sorrow carved deep lines into her face.

"You were my future, Shey, and a shifter must protect their future. I protected you from the vile poison of your father and I tried to keep you from the poison I carried within myself." She sighed. "You were untainted for years until your grandfather started with his cruelty. Your dreams were twisted, broken, and hardened. You dream of nothing but memories and the goddess now. There is nothing about hope or the future here." She gestured to the dismal forest and I lowered my gaze.

"I have no future." It was painful to say but it was the truth.

"You are the future, Shey. You carry it within you, whether or not you believe in it. My father twisted your heart and your mind but the innocent little female who believed in love is still within you." She reached out and touched my chest. The shadowed hand was so icy it sucked the breath from my chest. Mene's power sucking the life from me as she touched my skin. She jerked her hand back and looked forlorn as I gasped in air. That had been highly unpleasant. "I cannot touch my baby but that;s because I am no longer your mother, Shey. Mene is the only mother you have. Accept her gift and be happy."

"I am happy." The words sounded weak even to my own ears.

"You believe you were born of rejection, that it is the only thing you will have in your life but, Shey, the only feeling I had when I gave birth to you was love." Her beautiful face disappeared as the shadows receded back underneath the veil and I wanted to call her back. I missed her and with her gone there was a hole in my chest that could never be filled.

"I am your mother, Shey, and you will cease your foolishness." Mene's voice was stern and I looked up at her.

"I don't deserve love." I said it firmly and Mene straightened to her full height.

"You deserve what ever punishment I met out for you sins, Shey. If it is the Alpha you call Dickhead, then you shall accept it." For a brief moment I could hear amusement in her cold voice. I stared at her as she tilted her head. I hadn't thought she was capable of amusement. "Your cycle will end if you do not. I will not accept a half soul, so stop being stubborn and make it work. I gave you this, you must accept it for I will not accept half of you." She waved her hand and the ground opened up.

I fell endlessly through darkness, my scream caught in my throat as icy fingers reached for me from the blackness that surrounded me. Their sharpness yanking me towards the unknown and I opened my mouth to scream. A sharp beam of moonlight cut through the darkness, illuminating me and my fall. As if Mene was warning her brothers that I wasn't something to be claimed. The icy fingers went from yanking to almost soft, guiding me to stay within the moonbeam as I fell. I twisted in the air and I looked down as saw a room growing closer and closer. The moonbeam landed on a bed and I felt my eyes widen as I saw myself sleeping sprawled over the covers. I braced myself as I slammed into my back and everything disappeared instantly.

I inhaled sharply, clutching at my suddenly painful chest as I curled into the fetal position. I coughed loudly, barely able to breathe. The entire process of my spirit falling back into my body had not be nice or welcome. I opened my eyes and damn near screamed when I saw shadows surrounding my bed. They were watching me as carefully as I watching them until I blinked and they slid back to hide back in their realm.

I shuddered violently as I sat up. I hadn't exactly wanted to have a run in with Mene's brothers, especially after the dream I had. Mene hadn't been happy with my demand, that much was clear from the pain that still lingered from my sudden reentry to my body. I rubbed at my sternum and looked at the window. I glanced between the window and my backpack. I needed to get the fuck out. I needed to breathe, to run until everything faded away.

I needed to escape.

I jumped off the bed and grabbed my backpack before throwing it over my shoulders. I darted to the window and looked out of it quickly. I caught sight of the downspout for the gutters and easily grabbed it. I slipped out of the window and scurried down it. I landed on the ground with a faint sound and looked around carefully. I felt with my senses but came back empty and I bolted. The feeling of running lifted my spirits and the breeze helped clear away the dream from my mind.

Apparently talking corpses wasn't enough to get her message across but she had explained it a bit better. A punishment for my sins. I looked around as I ran through the trees. I didn't know where I was going but I knew my prison had become much harder to escape. Mene didn't want for me to leave and even though I was an Alpha, there was no way I would be disobeying the goddess. I ran for a few more minutes, letting my breathing come in ragged pants and the rhythmic pounding of my backpack helped me relax.

I just needed to hit the edge of the territory. There would be time before anyone could come after me, before they discovered I was gone. I became aware of something running along beside me. It wasn't making any sounds but I knew it was there. I shifted direction and the feeling went away before it appeared on my other side. I frowned and pushed myself further, trying to outpace whatever was chasing me.

I thought I heard a sound to my other side so I stopped running, freezing in my tracks. I looked around and my heart beat frantically in my chest. I took a half step backwards, looking around for whatever it was that had been chasing me. I heard a rustle in the bushes to the left and shifted instantly to face that direction but a twig snapping behind me had me whirling around. A litany of curses ran through my head so fast it almost sounded like a little tune.

A low growl raised the hair on my entire body as I slowly turned around. A black, scarred wolf with a large scar down the left side of its face growled at me menacingly. Its large teeth were bared and it hackles were raised down its back. My heart lurched into my throat and I took a half step backwards when it lunged at me. My heart lurched into my throat an as my heart landed in my stomach and I jumped backwards, landing hard on the ground. I gave a small rather humiliating scream of fear before I scrambled across the ground and bolted into the trees. I could hear the wolf behind me and forced myself to run faster. The wolf had no scent and my fear spiked higher when I realized what that meant.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!" It was a wild and it was chasing me and I was running like a prey animal. I dodged around trees and scrambled for footing on the suddenly slick ground. Adrenaline raced through my blood stream almost as quickly as I darted through the woods. The wolf jumped at me from the right and I dove just like my mother had taught me. As soon as I rolled, I go to my feet and bolted in the direction he had lunged from.

I wasn't sure if the action surprised him but he let out a bark instead of a growl. I dashed through the underbrush and ran as hard as I was able My legs burned and my wolf was trying her hardest to lend her power but we both knew it was useless. It was wonderful that despite our separation we were still falling into the same patterns and routines. I shook the thought away and moved my legs faster, I didn't need to be distracted as I ran for my life.

Stealth seemed to be gone from the wild as he crashed though the underbrush behind me, barking rapidly. I ignored him and dashed around a tree. I couldn't see anything and suddenly the ground was gone from under my feet. I was flying for the second time of the night and my mood instantly went from scared to pissed. If I landed in water I was going to murder someone.

The icy water swallowed me and I shoved off of the bottom. This part of the river was a quite a bit deeper than the other part but both were fucking bitterly cold. I reached the surface, gulping in air hungrily and started shivering as the cold set in. I was standing on my tippy toes and the water was almost over my chin. The water logged clothes were heavy and I tried to move towards the bank but the current tugged me further down the river. I frantically tread water, panic filling me as my head bobbed closer and closer to sinking under completely.

I wasn't sure how long I was in the water for but it felt like an eternity. It was getting harder and harder to move my frozen limbs and stay float I honestly felt like I was going to drown. A large splash came from upstream and within a few moments I had a large arm wrap around my waist and I was lifted partially out of the water. I could barely move my frozen limbs as the person who grabbed me shifted me so I was on his back. He put my arms around his neck and held my wrist in one hand as he moved us to the edge of the river.

"Hold on." At the familiar gravelly and growled voice I smiled, despite the harsh chattering of my teeth.

"Church Wild." I tried to tighten my arms around him as he let my wrist go and climbed up the edge of the gorge. He stood up and walked towards the trees. "When I find that other wild. I'm going to kill him." I barely managed to get the words out through my chattering teeth and a low growl of displeasure went through his chest and I felt like he was agreeing with me.

"Keil stupid." He barked it out and reached up to grab my wrists as I started sliding off his back, unable to hold onto him. He tugged me further up on his back before reaching around and grabbing an uncooperative leg and wrapping it around his waist before grabbing the other one and doing the same thing. I leaned against his shoulder, my cheek pressing to his warm skin tightly. Despite the swim he went for he was very warm. I clung to him like he was a hot water bottle.

"You're naked, aren't you?" The thought popped into my head and he grunted. I took that as a yes and I gave a faint nod. "Good to know. I won't look at your junk." It was an offhanded comment but he paused slightly.

"Mate not like." He continued walking as if the pause hadn't been there.

"Word gets around fast." I grimaced at the thought everyone now knew my status as the Alpha's mate and rolled my eyes.

"No. Mate not like. You should look." He chuckled and I made a face of slightly weirded out confusion. "He mad you see mine before his." At that he laughed loudly and it made the corners of my mouth twitch upwards.

"He could banish you for that type of talk." I shrugged slightly. I had seen Alphas do worse for far less. I wasn't sure how Dickhead would react to a situation were I was gawking at another male's junk.

"I'm Beta. No banish." At that shock flooded my entire body. A wild was the Beta? That was straight fucking weird. Wilds were never around packs so having one as a fucking Beta just proved Dickhead was fucking insane.

"Dickhead made you a Beta?" Disbelief coated my voice thickly and he stiffened.

"Dickhead?" He was quirking his eyebrow, I could tell and the from the amusement in the word, his mouth was most likely twitching upwards.

"Yah." At that he roared with laughter. It boomed in the dark around us and I couldn't help but chuckle along with him. It took him a few moments before the laughter died down.

"Name Michael." He shifted his grip on my legs and I tightened my grip around his neck. His heat was seeping into me and it was helping with the shivering my body was going through once again.

"Shey." I said it quietly. He nodded, his ragged hair tickling my nose slightly. "Don't tell Dickhead." It was an afterthought but he nodded again.

"Okay, Shey. Take you home. You cold. Shivering." He quickened his pace and I couldn't disagree with him. I found myself liking the wild, he has a sense of humor and he had pulled me out of a freezing cold river. Not to mention he wanted to piss off his Alpha by showing me his junk. He was my type of person.

My teeth chattered in my head and it made for a funny rattling sound in my skull. I pressed my face into his shoulder, trying to warm up. "How long was I in the water?" I could feel my body start to warm up and my nerves were searing with heat. It was uncomfortable.

"Five." He grunted and I took that as to mean minutes. I wrinkled my nose. Just how fucking cold had that water been? I said nothing back and we moved in silence. I gripped him as tightly as my burning arms would allow. Familiar tremors were wracking my frame and I rolled my eyes. I was supposed to be stronger than a bit of freezing water but alas I was only human. Well more human than most shifters and I narrowed my eyes. I wanted my wolf back. The heat she helped run through my body would have made the freezing water bearable but no, I could barely reach her.

He stopped and let go of my legs before crouching down. I took that to mean he wanted me off of his back and I let go of his neck, sliding to the ground. I hit the ground with a faint groan as my legs bucked underneath me. He looked over his shoulder and I waved him off as I attempted to stand. "I'm good, Mike. I'm good. Just need to get my legs to work is all." I grunted and ended up on my hand and knees and I crawled a few feet to a tree. He started laughing and I flipped him off over my shoulder as I used the tree to get to standing.

My legs felt like rubber and I blew some hair away from my face as I managed to finally stand under my own power. I smirked to myself and pressed my hands to my hips with pride. Freezing water and wobbly legs weren't going to best me. "So why were you two chasing me?" I swallowed and looked at him.

He frowned slightly. "Not allowed to leave. Need stay." With that he shifted, leaving a rather heavy feeling in my chest. I shifted on my feet until a large wolf nudged my hip, urging me to leave the tree. I didn't know what to say to him as I swallowed again. The little bit of levity I had with him seemed to disappear underneath the confession that they had been tracking me to keep me on the territory. Dickhead had been telling the truth when he said I wasn't going to leave.

I shivered and rubbed at my arms. Michael tugged on my backpack with his teeth and I resisted the urge to slap at him. I didn't like anyone touching my shit. He did it again and I scowled at him. He looked at me his tongue hanging out of his mouth. His demeanour was instantly playful and I almost forgot that he had been a terrifying hulk of a male in the church. He looked at my backpack pointedly and I hesitantly slid it off and held it out.

He was surprisingly gently as he took the straps between his large jaws and started his walk into the forest. I followed him, rubbing at my arms. The t-shit and flannel pants had lost some of the water but they still clung to me unpleasantly. The cool breeze I had enjoyed a few hours earlier now seemed especially cruel as it caused goosebumps to cover every square inch of skin I had. I honestly hoped that the walk wouldn't be much longer because I felt like a popsicle.

The trees broke to the clearing in front of the house and I felt my breath hitch in my chest as the sight of it. It was foreboding in the night and all I could think of was walls closing in on me and doors being locked to keep me inside. Michael let out a huffing sound from between his clenched jaws and I glowered at him. "Yah, really easy to look at me like that when you get to leave if you want." I narrowed my eyes at him as I clenched my teeth together so hard thye ached. I didn't wan my chin to tremble, I had enough of crying.

The wolf huffed at me before sitting down as if waiting for me to make my way to wards him. I glanced towards the trees in longing and a low growl rumbled his chest, making my mood that much worse. "Just shut it, okay." I muttered curses at him under my breath as slowly continued my walk towards him and the dark house that looked like something out of a horror movie. I swallowed against the lump in my throat at the thought of being trapped inside of it.

"First thing I'm doing after I kill your little scar-eyed friend is giving you a bath and a poodle cut, you mangy, irritating beast." I wasn't joking as I glowered at him. I would have escaped, been free if it wasn't for him. He didn't look the least bit intimidated and I honestly didn't blame him. I was much smaller than him and lacked my wolf's strength. "I will put sleeping pills in your food and when you are out cold I'm going to drag you into the bathroom and give you a poodle cut. I swear to Mene, Mike." He tilted his head at me as he dropped my backpack. The grin he gave me didn't go unnoticed and I despite how I felt, I fought back a smile.

"You're sleeping in my bed, you big lug head. I will need a space heater." Or something to ground me in reality in case Mene decided for another late night visit. Plus I didn't want to be alone and he was safe enough, even if he was supposed to keep me inside the territory lines. I finally managed to reach him right as he picked up my backpack in his mouth once more and stood up. He brushed against my legs, nearly sending me to the ground in the process. "Oi! Watch it, doofus. Rubber legs over here." I gestured to myself after I finished flailing like an idiot to stay upright.

He ignored me as he made his way back to the house. A door opened and a square of light showing the interior of the house brightened some of the dark lawn. A silhouette of the one and only Dickhead was illuminated as he leaned against the door jamb. There was a silence over the dark area and Dickhead chuckled rather coldly. "So, have fun attempting to escape?" There was an almost an amused bitter edge to his voice and I refused to look at him.

"I don't want to talk about it." I patted Mike's head and gestured to the door. He moved silently towards the door and into the interior of the house before I took several shaking steps towards Dickhead. If I was stuck in the house I was at least grateful I would utilize the shower again. That was the only upside I could see from the fucked up situation I found myself in.

"Maybe you should." He shifted on his feet and I crossed my arms over my chest, refusing to even meet his gaze.

"Yes let's talk about how you have take me hostage and are unlawfully detaining me. That seems like a grand fucking plan, doesn't it?" I couldn't hep how bitter the words were as they came out. A thick silence fell and a heavy tension rose between us but I wasn't about to say anything else.

"Fair enough." Like that he dropped his arms and stood up straight. "Come inside. Ezekiel said you went for a swim."

At that I felt my irritation levels spike. "A swim? Oh yah, just a harmless swim in freezing waters after I was chased through the fucking woods! Thanks for that by the way." I shuffled towards the door, a dark look on my face, twisting it up. My mother always referred to that specific look as my cranky old female face. I pushed the thought of her away. Guilt still ate at me no matter what the dream had told me.

"I know. That wasn't supposed to happen. You are more resourceful than I thought. Pulled one over on Ezekiel. Not many can claim that." He sounded impressed but all my thoughts were on vengeance.

"Don't give a fuck. I'm still going to kill him." I said it firmly and evenly. I didn't care if he was an eight foot tall bigfoot. I would cease his breathing for the impromptu swim and for halting my escape and for terrifying me.

"A little water never killed anyone." Dickhead shook his head and I stared at him in disbelief.

"Water kills people all the time you-you-you ignoramus!" I shouted it at him, waving my arms around at his stupidity. "Ever heard of drowning? Which is what nearly happened to me!" I pointed at him and he ignored me as he stepped inside of the house, gesturing for me to do so as well. I muttered darkly under my breath as I trudged forward. I glared at him as I moved passed him into the house. I rubbed at my arms but the trembling wasn't disappearing.

A blanket covered me and I jumped in surprise. I looked around and Dickhead stepped forward before adjusting the fabric closer to my frame. I watched him warily but he was watching his hands intently. To my relief he kept his hands from brushing against me. The bond didn't like it but I certainly did.

"You might need a bath to get rid of the chills." He muttered it under his breath before he looked up at me, his head still slightly bowed. His grey eyes were like a punch to the stomach, they flashed with worry and concern and I sneered slightly, looking away. I didn't want anyone to look at me like that, it confused things and fed the bond. The damn thing needed to starve to death.

"I'll have a bath when I am good and ready to have a bath." I set my jaw and he raised an eyebrow before standing straight. I hated that I had to slightly crane my neck to look at his face. A clicking of nails on tiles had me perking up. Mike must have been back. I looked around and my gaze landed on the familiar green eyes of the wild that took me on the merry chase through the forest. "You!" I hissed the word out and pointed at the unrepentant looking wild. I advanced on him and he sat down, his tongue hanging out.

"Don't." Dickhead's voice held a warning but all I could think of was the smug bastard needed a long nap. I launched at him, the blanket falling off my shoulders as I moved quickly. "Seriously?" He moved for me but I already knocked the wild to the tile. "Yes, let the little practically human female attack the wild." He grabbed me around the waist before I could pin the wild and yanked me off of him. "Enough." It was sharp and I struggled out of his grip, wishing I could snarl or growl or something but there were no sounds I could make to express the feeling in my chest.

I shook him off before pointing at the wild lying on the floor. "Not over." He looked unrepentant as he rolled onto his back and wiggled slightly. I found my mouth twitching as he grinned, his tongue hanging out. I couldn't help it as I giggled and soon after full blown laughter came out until my eyes teared up and I started crying. I sat on the floor and buried my head into my hands and cried again, unable to stop myself. The realization I got to talk to my mother slamming home in my chest and the grief of losing her and being so scared in the forest just made me crumble inwards. I cried for the loss of control over my life and Mene demanding I stay and make due with what I had been given but being stuck with someone who didn't care how I felt being trapped.

I couldn't stop and I was vaguely aware of the blanket being put around my shoulders once more as I tried to rein the emotions back in, knowing I was doing nothing but giving myself a sore throat and a headache as well as showing Dickhead a very huge amount of vulnerability and weakness. I couldn't do that in this situation. I had to be a mountain, unmoving and solid. I couldn't be a puddle of tears in a marble foyer.

"It's okay. It's okay." Dickhead's voice was low and I shook my head as I wiped at my eyes with the heels of my hands.

"It's not. Nothing's okay." It was the truth because where I stood, nothing would be okay for a very long time. I didn't know how to fix what was wrong in my life and I didn't know if I even wanted too.

"I know I can be a bit of an ass but I rarely make people cry because of it." He was teasing me, I could hear it in his face and I scowled slightly as I wiped at my eyes again, letting out a shuddering breath.

"Look in the mirror, it's your face. I saw it and wept for your poor parents." I glanced at him as he clutched his chest with an oof.

"Ouch. That one hurt." He rocked back on his heels before our eyes met and a rather heart-clenching grin crossed his face. It was slightly crooked and far too sexy and I smiled back. I felt my eyes widen. We were having a moment. There was no way in hell I was going to have a moment with him. I looked away, pressing my lips together as I gave another shuddering exhale. I needed to be more careful. "Come on, guriță." He held out his hand and I stared at it like it was a snake ready to bite me. He didn't give me a chance to move before he reached down and snatched my hand in his. His palm was warm and worn with callouses and the touch ignited a fire in me. He pulled me to my feet and I yanked my hand back.

I shied away from him, he needed to stop feeding the bond. "Don't t-"

"Touch you. I know." He shrugged before he gave me that crooked smile again. "I don't like listening, my little cat." He narrowed his eyes slightly and the smile went from heart-clenching to almost predatory. I didn't like that look. I clutched the blanket tighter around myself as if it were a shield against him.

"Come with me." He gestured for me to come closer and I narrowed my eyes at him. Like I would fall for that old trick. He rolled his eyes and gestured for me to follow before he headed down the hallway. I frowned, wondering if I should trust him or not. "I'm not planning anything, pisică." The words carried through the hall and I hesitantly followed him.

I didn't trust him. It was the truth, you couldn't possibly trust someone you met a few hours earlier. I mean technically mates were supposed to but I was abnormal. I was the goddess's little oddity. I felt my mouth twitch. I was who I was and that wasn't about to change. I was bitter and cynical but I had my reasons. They were good reasons and most people would have agreed with me.

He pushed open a door and gestured for me to enter. I warily looked into it and relaxed when I saw it was a kitchen. I lifted my head and tried to ignore how his eyes burned into my back as I walked into the rather state of the art kitchen. "This is Gamgam's domain. I like to keep things up to date for her." There was a very clear fondness in his voice as he walked towards me. I stiffened but he bypassed me and headed to a small table. I relaxed and followed him carefully. "She's in bed currently. Which is probably a good thing. The female is over a hundred years old. Doesn't look a day over seventy though." He seemed to be rambling and I just grunted in acknowledgement.

He waved his hand at the table before he wandered away. I sat at the table, holding the blanket around me, shivering and sniffling slightly. "She's from the mountains. Was best friends with my grandmother. Spirited female, wouldn't mess with her. She runs the kitchen with a wooden spoon. Trusty thing has been with her for years." He was doing something with his back to me and I watched him with a critical eye. His rambling didn't seem to come from nerves but more of a need to just talk to someone. "She taught me how to cook. I could probably run the kitchen just as well as she could but I am an Alpha." The last word was said with a surprising amount of bitterness. I narrowed my eyes at him. The bastard better not have had a tragic story that forced him into the position because that meant common ground and I didn't want to have any common ground with him.

He turned around and carried a pan to the table before setting it down and placing a fork in front of me. I stared at it before looking at the pan in confusion. He sat across from me and lifted his own fork. There was a delicious smell coming from the pan. I could make out cream cheese and a hint of chocolate. I narrowed my eyes at the pan.

"Cake." I said it and blinked before I looked at him.

He smiled at me before nodding. "Mark said you requested cake. Chocolate with cream cheese icing. Besides I figure it's a good apology for my face making you cry" He leaned over and took a forkful from the pan I watched him as he ate it. A cake. A fucking cake.

"You got me cake." I said it slowly, a statement because I was utterly confused. A fucking cake.

"No. I made you a cake." He took another bite and it hit me. That sly mother fucker. I narrowed my eyes and wanted to reject it but it was a fucking cake. I didn't get cake often or at all, certainly not homemade cake. I grabbed my fork and quickly took a bite. I couldn't help how my eyes closed as the rich taste spread over my tongue. This was so far from processed box cake that I knew I could never go back to the cardboard imitations again. He had ruined cake for me by showing me this heavenly richness. "Mark suggested going to town and getting you one but I decided it was easier to make one."

"Good choice." I wanted to hoard the cake on my side of the table as he took another forkful. I let him eat it. I couldn't be greedy plus I knew that if I ate too much my stomach would hurt and I would probably throw it up later because of all the sugar.

"Do you like it?" He sounded a bit hopeful and I took another bite. It was a bit large and I nodded at him as I tried to chew through the huge bite in my mouth. He chuckled and I blushed and lifted my other hand to hide my face. I was still cold and trembling but the cake and the gesture it represented warmed me from the inside. The bond was feeding hungrily and I couldn't push it away because the cake was too delicious. He got up and moved away and I scrubbed at my face as I swallowed the chocolatey goodness. I took another bite, smaller than the last and sighed happily.

I shoved my wet hair from my face and leaned my elbows on the table, chewing in pleasure, my eyes closing. This didn't mean anything. It couldn't mean anything but I would give it to him because he had used my craving against me. I wanted to chuckle when i remembered why I wanted the cake. For the thirtieth rejection but now it seemed like I was eating it in celebration of the mating bond. That soured me a bit but I fought it off with another bite of cake. Whoever the Gamgam was, she had taught him right with the baking.

"Here." At his voice my eyes snapped open. He set a tall glass of milk in front of me before settling back in his chair with one of his own. "I like to eat my cake with a bit of milk." His words brought back how my mum used to make cake for me. She would cut me a piece and place it in a bowl before pouring milk over it. Cake cereal she called it. The thought hurt and I nodded at him as I pushed it away. I grabbed the glass and took a large drink, letting out another sigh.

If he made me cake every day, he would probably win me over. The thought made me want to laugh and I took another large bite of cake. I savoured the taste. But to be honest, with cake this good, was there a true loser? I looked at him from between narrowed eyes. He looked relaxed as we ate the cake in silence.

Fucking cake.

What the fuck was I supposed to do with that?