Chapter 76: 14

Aster slowly came to. She looked around to see she was somewhere in the woods. From the scent on the breeze, she was close to home, within at least fifty miles. Her heart skipped a beat when she realized she was tied up in a yellow rope found at any hardware store. She looked around to see the man Tyler warned her about sitting against a tree trunk a few feet from her.

He smiled when she looked at him. “Welcome back. I’m glad you are awake. This would have been no fun without you experiencing every single moment.”

Aster groaned as she rolled her head, trying to stretch her neck. “What kind of pansy-ass coward blindsides a woman. Were you afraid I’d kick your ass?” She mocked him.

“Aren’t you the funny one? I’ve been watching you. Every move you and your cop boyfriend make. I’ve stood outside your window at night while he fucks you.” He sneered, trying to intimidate and terrorize her.

“Did you enjoy the show? Perhaps I should charge you admission.” She hissed.

“Shut up.” He snapped, drawing a handgun from behind him. Waving the weapon in her face to scare her.

Aster laughed. “Aww, an I pressing your buttons? Yeah, I tend to do that.”

“I hold your life in my hands. So, you had best shut the fuck up.”

“No, no, you don’t.” She said smugly.

“I’m the one with the gun.” He reminded her.

Aster shrugged. “So use it. I’m telling you it isn’t going to make any difference. I’m still going to kill you.”

“How are you going to do that? You’re tied up, and I am the one with the gun.”

Aster thought for a moment. “Well, I’ll start by spilling your guts. Then I’ll tear your throat out. After that, I will rip your limbs off.” She smiled sweetly at him.

He chuckled. “I see what you are doing. Trying to act tough, thinking it might throw me off my game long enough for your boyfriend to find you. Well, he ain’t coming. He can’t protect you.”

Aster laughed. “That’s your mistake.”

“What?”

“I don’t need protecting.”

Dennis swung hard, striking Aster in the face with the pistol in his hand. She was blinded by pain and slumped over her face, turned downward, spitting blood. “Keep trying me bitch, and I’ll make you suffer more than you can imagine.” He warned.

“Funny, I was about to say the same thing.”

“That’s it,” He growled, lifting the pistol to strike her again, “not even God can save you now.”

Aster’s eyes lit up, and her fangs descended. She flexed her muscles as her body began to change, breaking the ropes like a thread. She turned to him as her features became monstrous.

“Holy mother of Christ.” Dennis gasped as he began to retreat backwards.

“Like I said. I don’t need protection.” Her clothing tore to shreds as Aster dropped to all fours and let the change consume her. Once in her wolf form, Dennis turned his gun on her and opened fire. He emptied his whole clip into her, but it didn’t even slow her down.

Aster lunged at him. She swiped her claws across his belly, slicing so deep his internals became external. Next, her jaw clamped down on Dennis’ neck with the force of a bear trap. She shook her head and tore his throat out as she had promised. As he bled out, Aster bit down on each limb and shook violently until they tore from their sockets.

Satisfied he was good and dead, Aster stepped away. She looked up and saw Tyler and Darrell a few hundred yards away. They had come looking for her. They had arrived just in time to see her ripping Dennis into pieces. The look on Tyler’s face was horrified, and he looked like he may become violently ill any second. Aster changed back to her human form. Naked, she took a few steps toward Darrell and Tyler. She was in great pain, having been shot so many times. She managed to get ten feet before she dropped to her knees.

Tyler and Darrell were by her side in a flash. “She’s been shot,” Darrell said.

“We have to get her to a hospital,” Tyler said.

“No, you take her home. I’ll go get some of the others. Someone will come by and help dig the bullets out. Once the bullets are out of the body, she can regenerate. She will be fine. The others are going to help me dispose of the body. As far as the outside world knows, this never happened.” Darrell declared. Tyler nodded, but Darrell grabbed him before he could pick Aster up. “Say it… this never happened. This is a defining moment, Tyler. You are either one of us or one of them. Part of the pack, or an outsider. You can’t have it both ways. Protect the pack, or die like any other threat to our existence.”

Tyler looked down at Aster, who was watching him. “I’m part of the pack.” He declared. Darrel turned into a wolf and took off running to fetch aid. Aster put her arms around Tayler as he swept her into his arms and carried her bridal style all the way back to Darrell’s truck left on one of the closer back roads.

Aster flinched in pain as he placed her in the passenger seat. He then grabbed a tarp from the bed of the truck and draped it over her nudity. He climbed into the driver’s seat. Darrell had left the keys in the ignition. Aster leaned her head against the window as Tyler drove her home.

He was quiet the whole drive. When they reached her house, Tyler got out first. He walked around to the passenger side and opened her door. Aster draped her arms around his neck as Tyler lifted her into his arms and carried her bleeding into the house. He took her to the bedroom and laid her down.

Taking the tarp and tossing it on the floor, he covered her with a blanket for comfort.

With Aster settled, Tyler went back out and closed the truck door, then went inside and closed the house door. He gathered some rags and water then returned to Aster, where he proceeded to clean her up. He was having a difficult time bringing himself to look her in the eye. What he had seen had been so unexpected it had shaken him right to the core. He felt guilty. Dennis would not have gone after Aster if not for his grudge with Tyler. It was his fault she had been forced to kill. It was his fault she had been hurt. He should have tried harder to reach her.

As he tried to wash the blood from her body, they did not speak. It wasn’t long before there was a knock at the door. Tyler answered to find Aurora and Lewis. Lewis was carrying a large kit with him.

Tyler assumed it made sense. Being a butcher, Lewis had a keen grasp of anatomy, which probably made him the closest thing to a qualified surgeon that the pack had.

Tyler stood back with his arms folded across his chest and his back against the wall. At this point, all he could do was stay out of the way. Aurora had come to assist Lewis in his task of removing the bullets.

Aster laid flat on the bed, her blanket down around her waist. One by one, Lewis carefully dug each of the twelve bullets out of her body. It was bloody, and Aster was clearly in pain. It took well over three hours to safely remove all of the bullets. Aster breathed a sigh of relief once Lewis dropped the last one into the bowl Aurora had been holding.

“All good.” Lewis smiled. “By morning, you will be one hundred percent.”

“A hundred percent?” Tyler snarled, “she had twelve bullet holes in her.”

“She’s fine,” Lewis assured him. “She’s Lycan, not human. We’re not weak like you.” Lewis scoffed as he packed his things up.

“What is that supposed to mean?” Tyler challenged Lewis.

“It doesn’t mean anything,” Aster said, sitting up as she pulled the blanket up around her. “Thank you two for your help, but I think I need to rest.” She said.

“I’ll check in on you tomorrow,” Aurora promised. They left, and Tyler was finally alone with Aster once more.

They sat in silence for a moment. Consumed with guilt, Tyler made to leave the room. “I’ll let you rest.”

“Tyler,” She called to stop him. Aster sat on the edge of the bed with her feet on the floor and the blanket wrapped around her. “Please stay.” He couldn’t bear to look at her. “Why won’t you look at me?” He couldn’t answer her. “I never meant for you to see what I did. I get it has probably thrown you off.”

“Yeah, that was hard to watch.” He confessed.

“I had no choice. He was going to kill me.”

“I know. You did what you had to do.”

“You feel differently about me now, don’t you?”

Tyler looked Aster in the eyes. Oh, he had made her feel as though her actions had turned him off of her. He had never wanted her to feel like he had anything but love for her. Tyler came to the bed and sat next to Aster. “I’m sorry. I didn’t want you to feel like that. I love you, but I feel a tremendous amount of guilt for having got you into a situation where you were forced to defend yourself.”

“It happens.”

“It shouldn’t have. You got hurt because of me. I feel horrible.”

Aster smiled. She laid her hand aside his face and turned him to her. Her lips found his in a loving kiss.

“It was not your fault he was a madman. You can’t control others.”

Tyler nuzzled Aster’s neck. “Can you ever forgive me for not protecting you better?”

Aster chuckled. “I told you, I need protecting.”

Tyler smiled as he laid his forehead against hers. “Yeah, I believe you now.” He kissed her cheek. “I’ll make dinner. You rest.”

***

The next morning Aster woke to the smell of pancakes. She rolled out of bed and walked into the washroom. Aster stood in front of the mirror, running her hands over her now flawless skin. The wounds were completely healed and had left no scars. Rapid healing was one of the perks of being a Lycan. It was what made them so difficult to kill, but it didn’t mean it didn’t hurt like hell when they were wounded.

Aster took a quick shower and then dressed. As she reached the kitchen, she found Tyler. He looked shocked to her up and moving around already. “You should be in bed.” He scolded her.

“I’m fine.”

“You were shot twelve times.”

“I’m fine.” She said, lifting her shirt so he could see she had healed. Surprised, Tyler walked over and ran his hand over her body like he couldn’t believe his eyes. “See.”

Tyler stepped back, utterly amazed. “That’s incredible. I guess we are eating at the table then.” He said. He returned to the stack of pancakes. Prepping two plates, he placed them on the table when the doorbell rang.

Aster yelled for them to come in. She could smell Darrell from here. Moments later, Darrell came into the kitchen. He smiled when he saw Aster up and moving around. “You look like you are feeling better.”

“I am.”

“Would you like some pancakes?” Tyler offered.

“Yes, I would,” Darrell said, pulling up a chair. Tyler prepped the third plate and placed it in front of Darrell.

“So, is it cleaned up?” Aster asked.

“Sure is. Stanton, Charlotte, and Kenneth helped me dispose of the body. He is now in tiny pieces scattered throughout the mountains. He’s basically mulch.” Darrell assured her.

“Did you put him through a woodchipper?” Tyler asked.

“No, we just used our jaws and our claws. It’s easier to blame it on animals that way. It took all night, but we got it done.”

“Have you slept yet?” Aster asked.

“Two hours. I thought I would check in on you before I headed into work today.”

“I’ll get changed,” Tyler said.

“No need, you take the day off. Stay with Aster. I can make it through a day without you.”

“Are you sure?” Tyler asked.

“No problem.”

***

Aster sat cuddled on the couch with Tyler. It was late. They had been watching a movie, but Tyler was dozing off. His head on the back of the couch with his arm around Aster. Her head lay on his shoulder as she thought about how her life was going. She felt like her life had been out of her control since the day she was born. She lived in Hell as a child and limbo as an adult. Never letting anyone get close enough to hurt her. She had been shut off from everyone. It was exhausting staying this guarded. She didn’t want to do it anymore.

Tilting her head upward, Aster watched Tyler. He was such a good man, and she cared very much for him. Maybe her father was right. Maybe she shouldn’t be so closed off. She should accept how she felt about him. Take a risk on loving him and building a life with Tyler. If she remained guarded, she would be safe, but she would be in limbo forever. If she took a chance on Tyler, she could end up broken-

hearted, or she might end up happier than she had ever been. There was only one way to find out.

She had to take a chance.

Aster reached up and caressed Tyler’s face. She kissed his neck, bringing a smile to his face. She knew he liked it when she did this. Her hand slid down his neck, over his chest and between his legs.

She gripped him firmly through his jeans and then popped the button and unzipped him. Aster’s hand slipped inside his pants, gently easing him out so she could stroke him to life.

Aster leaned over and took Tyler in her mouth, making him moan. She sucked as she slid him in and out. She felt his hand grip her long blond hair sweeping it up into a ponytail, so it was out of her way, and he could watch her service him. The closer she brought him to satisfaction, the louder he got.

Denying him his release, Aster got up and stood in front of Tyler. He watched as she removed her clothes slowly until she was naked. She climbed into his lap and sunk down on his arousal. Aster rode him hard. Tyler’s hands were in her hair as his mouth ate at hers passionately.

Aster threw her head back, moaning. Tyler’s mouth moved to her breasts, sucking each nipple into rock-hard little peaks. He wrapped his arms around her waists and slid them off the couch. He laid her down on the floor and took over. Aster locked her legs around his waist and gave herself over to the pleasure. Tyler’s hand pinned Aster’s above her head as his lips worshipped her.

Aster ran her hands down Tyler’s back and pulled his top-up. Tyler moved just right to allow her to remove it. Flesh to flesh was better in so many ways. Tyler kicked off his jeans and took her with urgent need.

It was amazing the way he made her feel. Like she was losing control. It was not long before Tyler brought Aster to completion twice. Lost to the desire, she dragged her nails down his back as she thrust her hips upward to match the back he set. Moments later, Tyler reached climax. They lay on the floor o the floor together basking in the aftermath, cuddled in each other’s arms.

Aster looked up at Tyler. He was clearly tired, more so now then than he had been earlier. Aster gazed lovingly at him. She loved him. She realized. “Ask again.” She spoke softly.

“Ask what?” Tyler yawned.

“As me to marry you.”

Slowly Tyler’s eyes opened, and he looked down at her. “Really?” She nodded. Tayler grazed his fingers over her jawline. “Will you marry me?”

“Yes.” She smiled.

Tyler chuckled, “About time.”