Three

               Reed dropped his hand before his wolf took over and finished the boy off. It hadn't been five minutes since he met her but the idiot was already possessive of her. Sometimes he envied humans for having complete control of their thoughts and feelings. His kind could be influenced by their other half, resulting in a struggle between man and beast. The one with the strongest will usually won. There were few cases where the man lost and had to be controlled by the wolf. Those wolves were known as feral wolves. He believed he'd conquered his wolf and that all the decision making was up to him. He decided when to relinquish control and when to take it back. When to eat, when to sleep, when to shift, what to feel, he had everything in check. Yet the moment they laid eyes on her, his wolf was ready forcefully come out. 

It was no secret werewolves were protective of their mates but they had already decided they wanted nothing to do with the bond. Hadn't they? And of all the places to meet her, why there? Why then? He glanced at Adrian who couldn't stop smiling. Reed didn't want to know what she was planning in that rotten head of hers. Not when he hadn't gotten back at her for the snake she'd planted in his room earlier.

"Well, well, what do you know Clarisse, it looks like your wish is going to come true" she said smugly 

"I have a lot of wishes. Which one are we talking about?" 

Clarisse. Her name was Clarisse. 

"Earlier you said you wanted to be friends" 

"So you've changed your mind? Good. You're wise Adrian. I don't just befriend anyone. Although I don't know about your background yet, I think your beauty will make up for your other shortcomings" 

He scoffed. So far he'd noted that she was arrogant and even though the humans around her were scared of him, most of the females despised her. It was written all over their faces. Reed wondered if it was because she had offended them or because they were jealous of her. She was beautiful. All the males couldn't keep their eyes off her. Eyes he had a mind to gouge out by the way. His wolf was prowling in his head, urging him to mark her so they would all know she belonged to them. He sighed. As if he'd be that stupid to mark a stranger. Knowing they were mates didn't mean they would be compatible. As a matter of fact, he hated her arrogance and the way she carried herself. It was as if she thought she was better than everyone else. There was no way they were going to get along, let alone live together for the rest of their lives. 

"Get in the car. Both of you" 

"Where are we going? I have my own car. I can follow you" 

"I don't like repeating myself" Reed snapped annoyed that she was questioning him. It dawned on him that she wasn't scared or frightened at all. Humans couldn't handle alpha vibes so he'd released enough to scare but not harm them. But it was as if she wasn't affected. Why? If something was off about her he would have noticed. Maybe being his mate had something to do with it? There was no other explanation. 

"Why should I listen to you mister? I don't even know your name or who you are" 

"What's going on Clarisse?" A woman asked coming out of the house. She looked at Adrian then added "I thought you told us to forget about you. Why are you hanging around Clarisse?" 

"Fate has a way of turning us into fools" 

"What is she talking about? You should have listened to me and skipped this damn party" 

Angry that no one was listening to him, Reed released more alpha vibes. Everyone bent over in pain except Adrian, Elliot who was standing behind him quietly and Clarisse. She was a human. Was she really unaffected because she was his mate or was there more to it? Before he could come up with an answer, an eerie breeze blew past him. Rooting him in place. He tried to turn around to see what was happening but found that he couldn't move. 

"Reed, what's going on?" Adrian asked

"No idea" it was as if time had stopped. No, it was more like frozen because the humans were still bent over but not moving. Only he and Adrian could talk "Elliot" no answer. 

"Why are you guys acting like that?" Clarisse asked. Again, she was fine. Unlike them, she could move freely. Strange. Or maybe not. Reed watched as two women materialized beside her. One with white hair but dressed in black clothes while the other with black hair but dressed in white. Witches. He should have known "Who are..." She started but one of them tapped her head and out of nowhere, she asked "How long has it been since we last saw each other?" 

"A while darling. How are you?" The one with black hair asked 

"Good. Any leads?" 

"No. How did you meet these two?" He assumed they were referring to him and Adrian. Something else he noted? They were lying to Clarisse. Whatever she was looking for, they knew where to find it but didn't want to tell her. Why? Most importantly, how had she, a human, become friends with witches? They weren't trustworthy people and with the king hunting them down, it was all the more reason to be wary of them. What did they want from her? 

"I almost killed Adrian with my car. As for him, I don't know who he is" 

"Stay away from strangers. Remember?" White hair voiced, looking at him. He didn't like the look in her eyes. Not being able to move put him at a disadvantage. They could cast another spell on him and he wouldn't be able to resist them. Damn witches. He really didn't like them. 

"I know but they just showed up and I think they're Interesting. Can I keep them?" 

"Keep? Clarisse, we're not objects. Also could you ask your friends to let up on the spell? If I wanted to hurt you I could have done it when you ran me over" Adrian huffed. 

"If I'm not wrong, you two are the Alpha twins" Black hair said stepping forward. She looked from him to Adrian then back "I'm never wrong" 

"Twins? You guys are twins?" 

The witches nodded at each other then one approached him. White hair moved towards Adrian. Reed knew without a doubt that they were about to cast another spell on them. Which meant Clarisse wasn't as simple as she looked. Seconds before they started, he told his wolf to only remember one word. It was all they would need to uncover his mate's mysterious background. He was curious to know how she'd met the witches and what their relationship was. Who was she? 

"What are you going to do? You won't get away with hurting me or Reed. You both know who he is. Right? The Alpha king will hunt you..." 

"Relax, sweetheart. I won't hurt you" 

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Reed glared at Adrian "This is the last time you put those filthy things in my room. The next time you do it I swear I will hunt down your mate" 

"Thank you. I will be more than happy to leave with him or her. It's better than living with a bastard like you" 

"I could always kill them. See how you like being stuck with me for the rest of your life" 

He spun around and went inside the house. Women were unreasonable. He'd already told her there was nothing he could do to save Megan. No matter what happened, Megan would have eventually died. He had orders to kill Corey. Whatever the outcome, he couldn't stop her from dying. She knew that yet continued to blame him for her death. Both of them knew the King's orders couldn't be disobeyed. If she felt bad about Megan's death then he felt worse. But what could he do? It would happen sooner or later. Corey had brought it upon himself. Most people chose to die along with their mates because they couldn't handle being separated. Even if Megan hadn't died, she would have eventually turned feral. If that was the case, wasn't dying better?  

"Oh, you're back early. Did you find Adrian then? Where did she run off to this time?" Vallin asked 

"What are you talking about? Isn't she outside?" 

"I'm pretty sure I saw her leave earlier. Did she come back on her own? That's a first" 

Reed walked past him shaking his head. He needed a shower, food and some sleep. Scratch the last one. It was too early to sleep. Food and shower would do just fine. Instead of heading upstairs to his room, he branched off to the kitchen. The females took turns cooking so there was always something to eat. He wondered what day it was and who's turn it was. Lyndra made the best steak. He was in the mood for... His steps faltered and he suddenly came to a stop. Raising his hand, he looked at his watch. Almost midnight. How was that possible? The last thing he remembered was leaving his room to go in search of Adrian. It was a little over six in the evening. 

A few things registered then. First, he'd already showered and changed because he wasn't wearing the bloody clothes. Second, he wasn't hungry but could use a drink. Third, he had no idea what he'd done for the past five hours. Vallin's question rang in his head. Quickly, he tried recalling what had happened. After he left his room, Adrian must have been long gone by then. What would he normally do? Give her time to calm down. Which meant he must have showered, had his dinner then went out looking for her. Obviously he found her but he didn't remember how or where he had. Spinning around, he left the kitchen in a rush only to bump into Adrian in the hallway. 

"You're also missing time. Aren't you?" 

"Yes. I can't remember what I did or where I was. What happened?" 

She shrugged "I don't know" 

"Tell me this is the first time it's happening" 

"It is" 

He nodded feeling relieved. If it was the first time then it might be nothing. Perhaps they bumped into witches who wiped their memories. They were known for doing that in order to protect themselves. But why would they wipe so much? All they had to do was make them forget they ever met. Reed found it weird that they'd take away five hours worth of memories. Could something have happened in that time frame? Without another word, both of them headed outside to where they'd parked. Adrian went around and together, they started looking for clues. Anything that could help them find out where they'd been. There was nothing. The car was clean. 

"Anything?" He asked Adrian who shook her head. Standing back, he folded his arms across the chest and willed himself to remember. It could be nothing. Losing time didn't necessarily mean something had happened yet his instincts told him otherwise. Five hours was too much time. A lot could have happened during that time. Because it was late, he decided to look into the matter the next day. Reed was sure that after some rest, he could figure out what had happened. 

It turned out that he didn't have to figure out anything. Early next morning, the king summoned him. 

"I'll get to the point. There was another assassination last night. This time they brought witches with them" 

"What time?"

"Around nine" 

He nodded. What were the chances that the King's assassination attempt had something to do with his lost memories? 

"I want you to find the two witches. Don't kill them. I'd like to know their motives" 

"Yes, your majesty" 

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