1 Year Later…
“HA!” I laughed as a dodged the blow and maneuvered away from the arms that sought to grab me. I dropped to the ground to continue to avoid the blows landing a few of my own in the meantime.
“Good, Mari. Don’t let me land a blow…” Mike yelled. “Move. Keep Moving…” He coached.
I got back to my feet and, as instructed, kept moving.
“That’s it. Focus.”
I continued to dodge each move Mike made and I could feel him breaking down, growing more tired with each swing at me.
I lunged at him suddenly, his eyes widening in shock before he could defend himself. He turned to run as if to escape, and I jumped onto his back, wrapping my arms around his neck putting the most minuscule amount of pressure on his windpipe.
Seconds later, he tapped my arm and I jumped off his back beaming up at him.
“That is some serious improvement, kid.” Mike nodded appreciatively.
“Thanks.” I smiled, finally having gotten the upper hand. I doubted that surprise attack would work on him a second time, however. More training was necessary.
As if reading my mind, he looked down at me and rolled his eyes. “Don’t go getting cocky now, Mari. You still need to work on your attacks and on building up your strength. Your endurance can use some work also. We’ll have to start longer cardio sessions and long-distance runs. ”
“I know. Can’t I just have this little win for now?” I sighed and smiled at Elizabeth, Mike’s Mate as she brought food and drinks out of their cottage.
In the year or so that I had been living with Elizabeth and Mike, I only spoke to my parents about once a week. I eventually chose to stop calling my mother because no matter how many times I told her I didn’t care or didn’t want to know, she couldn’t help but feed me information about Damien and his mate. She thought they were adorable together and she often felt the need to tell me that I really should just get over it and come home. I’d feel better once I met my own mate. I’d scoff and shrug it off and tell her I wasn’t ever coming back to that place, so she should stop asking.
Even my brother, Mitch, unless he was calling for my mother rarely called. He had apparently begun taking over his duties as Beta, my dad having retired right around the time that I left. So he quite literally was spending the majority of his time with the person I had despised more than anything on the face of the planet. There really wasn’t much that I wanted to hear about his time with Damien, unless it was, “...Hey Mari. Punched Damien in the face today.” …and I knew that would never happen…so it put a bit of a snag in our relationship.
Living with Mike and Elizabeth had been amazing. They lived a very simple, quiet life, but I had grown to love it. She taught me about herbs and plants and how to forage in the forest for plants that were safe to consume. She introduced me to Mike, her mate. He was a really big warrior at one point in the pack he was from, but no one knew why he left or disappeared. We had never discussed it and I got the sense that he didn’t like to talk about it much.
He had taken one glance at me and agreed to train me, saying that I needed to be able to defend myself. He taught me to use what I had in my favor. Which, at 5’2 and 110 lbs, wasn’t a lot. He taught me to use my stature to my advantage. I’m small and fast, which are about the only things working *in* my favor in a fight.
“Marina,” Elizabeth said, never calling me by my nickname, “Your brother is on the phone for you, inside.” She handed me a sandwich on my way to the front door.
“...’lo?” I said into the phone, around a mouthful of a turkey sandwich. Wondering why he would be calling me in the first place.
“Mari? I have bad news.” He said, his voice sounding gruffer than I remembered from the last phone call.
“What’s up?” I frowned, he still seemed so serious. I perched on the edge of the sofa, listening to a long pause coming from the other end of the phone.
I heard him sigh and take a deep breath. He seemed really reluctant to tell me whatever it was that he had called for.
“Mom and Dad are dead Mari….” He replied.
“W-What? H-How?” I stuttered.
He sighed again, “Just come home Mari, please…. I can’t talk about this over the phone right now... We need you…
I sighed. The last thing that I wanted to do was go home. The thought of running into Damien and his mate gave me heartburn and put a sour taste in the back of my mouth. My turkey sandwich suddenly seemed to have turned to sawdust in my mouth.
I ran to the kitchen sink and promptly threw up.
Liz and Mike had come inside before the end of the call and rushed over to the sink. Where I was now standing, wiping my face with a paper towel.
“That must have been one hell of a phone call…”
“Yeah…” I mumbled. “...I...Uhm…he said that my mom and dad are dead...He said he couldn’t talk about it on the phone. He said they need me…” I frowned at her, both she and I knowing what I needed to do.
“Well,” she said, after a moment, looking over to Mike who was nodding. “I guess we had better start packing then.”
“We?” I asked. “You’re coming too?”
“Of course. I’m not sending you back there without some backup.”
The next morning the three of us packed our things into their SUV and started the long trek back to where I had come from. We hopped into the car and we were off.
The anticipation bubbled in my stomach. So much had changed in the time I had spent away. For starters, I was no longer weak and I definitely wasn’t a pushover. If I didn't want to do something, I wasn't going to do it. Simple as that. So much time away had taught me to value myself and I’d never let anyone walk all over me again.
Elizabeth looked over at me, her eyes meeting my own, “Are you ready for this?”
I gave her a shaky laugh. “No. Not at all.”
Mike looked at me through the rearview mirror while driving giving me a comforting smile. He looked over at Elizabeth smiling at her and taking her hand in his own. The bond that they shared was what every werewolf wanted in their lives. They had a partner, a friend, a lover… the other half of their soul, in another person. It was what I thought I would have with Damien.
The trip took less time than I’d imagined it would. Though it was long enough that Natalia was practically begging to be able to run the last bit. She’d been on high alert since learning that we were going back.
Around five hours and a few minutes later we pulled onto a side road, escorted by some of the wolves that were guarding the perimeter line. These wolves were massive and I didn’t recognize a single one of them that was running patrol, which I thought was odd.
They emerged out of the woods, 4 of them, all huge, all in nothing but sweatpants. Trying to keep my gaze on their faces, I confirmed, I did not know a single one of these people. Odd, having grown up in the pack my entire life. Odder still, they did not seem to recognize me either.
“What is your business here?” One of them asked. He was clearly in charge. His build was bigger than the other 3, and he had a huge scar down his rib cage.
“We’re here to visit my family. My brother is the Beta.” I replied, looking at each of them again. They all seemed confused at my words.
The one with the scar spoke up again, “Beta Thane?”
“Who? Uhm, uh, No. Beta Mitch.” Since when did Damien have a Beta named Thane? I don’t even think there is a person in the entire pack named Thane…
Suddenly, a look of understanding crossed the scarred one’s face. “Go on through,” he said to us. He and the other men headed back towards the woods, presumably to shift back into their wolf forms and continue the patrol.
“That was weird,” I said to Mike as he pulled away, starting the winding path that would lead us to the center of town, and eventually to my old house. As we drove nearer to the center of town, I noticed more wolves that I didn’t recognize and more human faces that I know I had never seen before.
I vaguely remembered Damien mentioning something about another pack that needed help, so maybe they had finally joined forces. All of that was forgotten when we pulled into my driveway.
What awaited me outside of the car, looked nothing short of a warzone…Where my parent’s house used to stand, were embers and ash. Wooden beams that once held the frame of the house up now were charred to almost nothing. The earth was scorched as if the house had been left to burn down.
My eyes went wide, taking in the scene before me, my brain going a million miles a minute.
Where was Mitch? What had happened here while I was gone? Clearly, this house was uninhabitable. So where was I going to stay? I contemplated the hotel in town, but it really wasn’t somewhere I would recommend, let alone stay there myself. The packhouse was certainly not an option. Not as long as Damien and his mate were there. I was over it, but that didn’t mean I wanted to see them every minute.
Two cars pulled up into the driveway, one of them I recognized as Mitch’s car. The other was a large black Range Rover, the windows tinted dark enough so you couldn’t see inside. The car parked next to Mitch’s, but no one climbed out of the car. Mitch and his passenger got out and made their way over to where I was standing, surrounded by the rumble of our former family home. Mitch shrugged his shoulders with a defeated sigh and looked from me to the SUV and back. He gave the people inside a nod and moved back toward his car.
“Mitch…” I started but was cut off by the doors of the SUV opening. Climbing out of the car was one of the largest men I had ever seen in my entire life. His face was expressionless but he gave off an aura of power.
He spoke first, nodding toward me. “You are Marina?”
I nodded. “ …and you are?”
“Beta Thane. The Alpha wants to see you. You need to get in the car.” He said, motioning towards the SUV.
I laughed. “I’m sure he does. But I am not interested in seeing him, ever again. I’m not going anywhere until someone tells me what the hell happened here. What happened to my parents? To our house?”
“...Mari…please don’t make this worse…” I heard Mitch practically beg from his car. “Please just go with them. See The Alpha. Answer his questions.”
Beta Thane, I think he had said his name was, made a move to assist me towards the car, but I wasn’t interested. In a well-practiced move, I dodged his grab and twisted his arm behind his back.
“Don’t.Fucking.Touch.Me.” I growled out at him.
At that moment the passenger door opened on the SUV and what climbed out can only be described as the most gorgeous man on the planet. He was also quite obviously the person in charge. His aura was palpable, everyone baring their necks to him. I lifted my head up to his face, into his eyes. His eyes were the color of liquid metal, and at the moment, they were looking directly at me, expectantly.
“Would you kindly release my Beta? He’s generally good company and I’d hate to have to find another.”
“Tell him to keep his hands to himself then, and I’ll happily let him go….Wait. Your Beta?... You’re the Alpha? That’s… you’re a liar! Where is Damien? He’s the Alpha.” I looked over at Mitch who was sitting on the hood of his car with his arms crossed.
“That’s what I’d like to know, Marina. Where is Damien?” His voice was steely and his eyes went cold when he spoke Damien’s name.
“Me? How the hell would I know? I just got here.” I rolled my eyes starting to wonder whether or not this dude was altogether upstairs when he snapped at me.
“Awfully convenient don’t you think so? You disappeared without a word, I’m told. Haven’t been seen by anyone in the pack in over a year, not even to visit your own family. And now, all of a sudden, here you are.”
“Are you serious?”
“Extremely so. Get in the car. I have more questions and I’d like to ask them in my office.”
When I made no indication of moving, he barked out a command at me, using his aura to make me comply. “Get. In.The. Car. Marina. Now.”
I felt my knees buckle under the weight of his command, my ability to disobey dwindling by the second, and without much choice in the matter I found myself climbing into the backseat of the black Range Rover.
She had to be the most maddening creature alive. She hadn’t said a word since I had forced her to get into the SUV with us. I hated using the Alpha command on her, but she left me with little to no choice. The entire drive from the rubble of her old home to the packhouse she had simply stared straight ahead out the front windshield and hadn’t made a sound.Even now, as I questioned her, she had refused to answer a single one. The only reaction I got was when she rolled her eyes at me when I asked her about Damien. It didn’t help that she was painstakingly gorgeous. She looked and smelled as if the Moon Goddess had made her from my dreams. Matias, my wolf was going insane being near her. I sighed… “Marina. There are things we need to…” “NEED?” she interrupted. Clearly, I had struck a nerve. “...Please tell me what it is YOU need, Mr. New Alpha. And while you’re at it, why don’t you start with why you’re here, and how you managed to murder my parents on your way in?!” She screamed
I was laying on the bed staring up at the ceiling for what seemed like hours when I remembered that they had brought my bags in here earlier while I was in the Alpha’s office. I rolled off the bed and half crawled, half lunged over to where my bags had been set on the floor. From this position, I could almost reach my bag without having to use too much energy. That’s when I heard the chuckling from behind me. I peered over my shoulder and was mortified to find the Alpha staring at my very shapely bottom half, very pushed into the air. My face flushed instantly, seeing myself in the mirror across the room. “Lovely…Can I help you Alpha?”... I started to climb back out of my now very awkward position. “..hm. Maybe not. But he could definitely help us…” Natalia“Natalia. Stop.I have enough trouble controlling my body around him without you adding in to the mix…” I rolled my eyes at her. “Me? No. I’m good right here.” He said as he lounged against the door frame. “I came to bring you
BANG!I awoke to the sound of banging. Startled from sleep, I jumped from my bed, just in time for my door to slam open. “Shit!. You are going to have us both in the dungeons if you don’t get up out of that bed.” A deep voice commanded from the doorway.“Wha...Huh??” was the first thing to leave my mouth and it took me a full minute to remember where I was at. For a solid minute, I had imagined everything from yesterday was a dream.“Marina! You’re LATE for training!” the voice replied with an exasperated sigh. “WHAT?! Why didn’t someone wake me up before now?”Already off to a bad start…” Thane groaned. "Alpha Gray is going to be pissed. He hates when people are late."“Ugh. So not helping.. Well, go on so I can get dressed!” I huffed, Shit, I thought. Just what I needed, to make another bad impression, let alone on the first day that I was being allowed to do somehing. I rushed to my suitcases and pulled out the first items that looked like work-out clothing and threw it on. I
After training, I watched as she stalked off towards the locker room with the rest of the pack members. I had to hand it to her, she was skilled as a fighter. She was able to use her weaknesses to her advantage, which not many could do. It was as if the longer she fought an opponent the more she could anticipate their movements. And she was fast. I was still faster, being an Alpha, but I had no doubt that there were several warriors in my own pack that she could hold her own against. I’d have to test that theory to be sure, but I had a pretty good idea about the level of ability in my pack. She was also singularly, the most frustrating woman I had ever met in my entire life. She never just listened to what she was told to do. She was infuriating, but there was something about her that just called to me. My wolf went insane whenever she was near, often coming up with excuses to go see her or for me to go check in on her, I had yet to see her wolf, but I guessed that she would be as
Chapter 7: Marina POVThe bark of the tree was jagged and rough in places and I knew that I would likely have scratches from where it was chafing against my back. I wish I knew why he felt the need to torment me further, as if I was not mortified enough at being caught. I was so embarrassed that for the first time ever, I couldn’t meet his eyes. He tipped my head up, forcing my eyes to his. “Do not hide yourself from me…ever.” He growled at me. I glared at him, angry at being forced to do something I didn’t want to. He leaned in close enough for me to be able to smell his breath. “What were you doing, Marina?” He asked. I looked at him, bewildered that he would make me say to his face. I stuttered trying to form a response, but it was hard to think when his torso was pushing against my breasts and forcing me back into the tree. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I countered. Trying, without much success to move away from him, each time he’d grab for me and yank me back
Chapter 8: Marina POV I managed to make it back to the packhouse with little issue, though it was a rather long and uncomfortable hike. Everything was wet, thanks to my bra and underwear being wet, which meant everything had chaffed on the walk back home. None of which did anything to help my mood. If anything it made me angrier and more frustrated. I was tired, I had missed dinner, and I was annoyed. The question was whether I was more annoyed with myself or with Alpha Gray…I hadn’t quite decided as I stomped through the kitchen and up the stairs to my prison cell of a bedroom. I slammed the bedroom door behind me, kicked my shoes off just inside the door, and flopped down onto the bed with an exhausted sigh. After lying there for a few minutes, I remembered that everything I was wearing was pretty much soaked. I rolled off the bed and wandered over to my suitcase, which now contained none of my clothing. I sighed, frustrated, and headed over to the dresser. I randomly
Chapter 9: Gray’s POVThe attack had been short and uncoordinated, so my warriors had defeated them without much of an issue. No lives were lost on from our pack, so all in all I’d consider it a win… Except, I couldn’t figure out WHY they attacked. Rogue wolves didn’t ever function as more than a group of two or three together at a time, less than that if they weren’t related in some way. But they attacked in a way that reminded me of our own attack style and from a border that is our weakest. Honestly, except for when I first took the territory from the previous alpha, I hadn’t been out to the southern border. Everything had been quiet. Warriors patrolled it the same as the rest of the borders. The swimming hole though offered a free and clear view of the line that the border patrol stuck to, however. Which made it an advantage to anyone seeking to attack from that side. My wolf Matias surveyed the minimal damage in front of me. I shifted back and took the gym shorts being handed
Chapter 10: MarinaI woke up in a room that looked nothing like the one I was staying in, in a bed that was far too large to be mine. I automatically reached for the sound that was buzzing off to my left before I realized that it wasn’t MY alarm going off. Just as my fingers hit the button to turn the sound off the door to the bathroom swung open and Gray stepped out, with his towel slung low on his hips. Water was still dripping off of his well-defined chest. He gave me a sly grin as he walked past the bed… “Close your mouth,.”, he commented as he strode past. I rolled my eyes at his back but closed my mouth. I hadn’t even realized that I had opened it. Great. He just watched me very obviously ogle him. I sighed. This was not how today was going to go. I had things to figure out, to talk about. Unfortunately, most of those things had to come from Gray. No avoiding him today. “I slept in your bed…so where did you sleep…?” I asked him. He looked at me over his shoulder, dropping
Chapter 11: Marina POVI wandered down the road from the packhouse that led into the little town. It did not escape my notice that there were definitely wolves following me on the edge of the trees…Damn that man. I couldn’t go anywhere I wanted… no locks, no keys.. Bullshit. “Maybe he just wants to make sure you’re safe…” Natalia countered. “Bull. He just wants to control me.” I ground out, growing more irritated. “Well, you’re certainly not making it easy on him, that’s for sure.” She said. “Never.” I snickered. I turned my head towards the direction of the treeline, speaking just a little louder, so all of the wolves that were seemingly now my personal guards could hear. “You can go tell your alpha that this is my home, and I will go where I want when I want, and if he doesn’t like it, he can come to tell me that himself!’ I turned and kept walking down the road, though, it seemed as though some of the wolves had stopped following. In fact, by the time I got to the center of
Chapter 10: MarinaI woke up in a room that looked nothing like the one I was staying in, in a bed that was far too large to be mine. I automatically reached for the sound that was buzzing off to my left before I realized that it wasn’t MY alarm going off. Just as my fingers hit the button to turn the sound off the door to the bathroom swung open and Gray stepped out, with his towel slung low on his hips. Water was still dripping off of his well-defined chest. He gave me a sly grin as he walked past the bed… “Close your mouth,.”, he commented as he strode past. I rolled my eyes at his back but closed my mouth. I hadn’t even realized that I had opened it. Great. He just watched me very obviously ogle him. I sighed. This was not how today was going to go. I had things to figure out, to talk about. Unfortunately, most of those things had to come from Gray. No avoiding him today. “I slept in your bed…so where did you sleep…?” I asked him. He looked at me over his shoulder, dropping
Chapter 9: Gray’s POVThe attack had been short and uncoordinated, so my warriors had defeated them without much of an issue. No lives were lost on from our pack, so all in all I’d consider it a win… Except, I couldn’t figure out WHY they attacked. Rogue wolves didn’t ever function as more than a group of two or three together at a time, less than that if they weren’t related in some way. But they attacked in a way that reminded me of our own attack style and from a border that is our weakest. Honestly, except for when I first took the territory from the previous alpha, I hadn’t been out to the southern border. Everything had been quiet. Warriors patrolled it the same as the rest of the borders. The swimming hole though offered a free and clear view of the line that the border patrol stuck to, however. Which made it an advantage to anyone seeking to attack from that side. My wolf Matias surveyed the minimal damage in front of me. I shifted back and took the gym shorts being handed
Chapter 8: Marina POV I managed to make it back to the packhouse with little issue, though it was a rather long and uncomfortable hike. Everything was wet, thanks to my bra and underwear being wet, which meant everything had chaffed on the walk back home. None of which did anything to help my mood. If anything it made me angrier and more frustrated. I was tired, I had missed dinner, and I was annoyed. The question was whether I was more annoyed with myself or with Alpha Gray…I hadn’t quite decided as I stomped through the kitchen and up the stairs to my prison cell of a bedroom. I slammed the bedroom door behind me, kicked my shoes off just inside the door, and flopped down onto the bed with an exhausted sigh. After lying there for a few minutes, I remembered that everything I was wearing was pretty much soaked. I rolled off the bed and wandered over to my suitcase, which now contained none of my clothing. I sighed, frustrated, and headed over to the dresser. I randomly
Chapter 7: Marina POVThe bark of the tree was jagged and rough in places and I knew that I would likely have scratches from where it was chafing against my back. I wish I knew why he felt the need to torment me further, as if I was not mortified enough at being caught. I was so embarrassed that for the first time ever, I couldn’t meet his eyes. He tipped my head up, forcing my eyes to his. “Do not hide yourself from me…ever.” He growled at me. I glared at him, angry at being forced to do something I didn’t want to. He leaned in close enough for me to be able to smell his breath. “What were you doing, Marina?” He asked. I looked at him, bewildered that he would make me say to his face. I stuttered trying to form a response, but it was hard to think when his torso was pushing against my breasts and forcing me back into the tree. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I countered. Trying, without much success to move away from him, each time he’d grab for me and yank me back
After training, I watched as she stalked off towards the locker room with the rest of the pack members. I had to hand it to her, she was skilled as a fighter. She was able to use her weaknesses to her advantage, which not many could do. It was as if the longer she fought an opponent the more she could anticipate their movements. And she was fast. I was still faster, being an Alpha, but I had no doubt that there were several warriors in my own pack that she could hold her own against. I’d have to test that theory to be sure, but I had a pretty good idea about the level of ability in my pack. She was also singularly, the most frustrating woman I had ever met in my entire life. She never just listened to what she was told to do. She was infuriating, but there was something about her that just called to me. My wolf went insane whenever she was near, often coming up with excuses to go see her or for me to go check in on her, I had yet to see her wolf, but I guessed that she would be as
BANG!I awoke to the sound of banging. Startled from sleep, I jumped from my bed, just in time for my door to slam open. “Shit!. You are going to have us both in the dungeons if you don’t get up out of that bed.” A deep voice commanded from the doorway.“Wha...Huh??” was the first thing to leave my mouth and it took me a full minute to remember where I was at. For a solid minute, I had imagined everything from yesterday was a dream.“Marina! You’re LATE for training!” the voice replied with an exasperated sigh. “WHAT?! Why didn’t someone wake me up before now?”Already off to a bad start…” Thane groaned. "Alpha Gray is going to be pissed. He hates when people are late."“Ugh. So not helping.. Well, go on so I can get dressed!” I huffed, Shit, I thought. Just what I needed, to make another bad impression, let alone on the first day that I was being allowed to do somehing. I rushed to my suitcases and pulled out the first items that looked like work-out clothing and threw it on. I
I was laying on the bed staring up at the ceiling for what seemed like hours when I remembered that they had brought my bags in here earlier while I was in the Alpha’s office. I rolled off the bed and half crawled, half lunged over to where my bags had been set on the floor. From this position, I could almost reach my bag without having to use too much energy. That’s when I heard the chuckling from behind me. I peered over my shoulder and was mortified to find the Alpha staring at my very shapely bottom half, very pushed into the air. My face flushed instantly, seeing myself in the mirror across the room. “Lovely…Can I help you Alpha?”... I started to climb back out of my now very awkward position. “..hm. Maybe not. But he could definitely help us…” Natalia“Natalia. Stop.I have enough trouble controlling my body around him without you adding in to the mix…” I rolled my eyes at her. “Me? No. I’m good right here.” He said as he lounged against the door frame. “I came to bring you
She had to be the most maddening creature alive. She hadn’t said a word since I had forced her to get into the SUV with us. I hated using the Alpha command on her, but she left me with little to no choice. The entire drive from the rubble of her old home to the packhouse she had simply stared straight ahead out the front windshield and hadn’t made a sound.Even now, as I questioned her, she had refused to answer a single one. The only reaction I got was when she rolled her eyes at me when I asked her about Damien. It didn’t help that she was painstakingly gorgeous. She looked and smelled as if the Moon Goddess had made her from my dreams. Matias, my wolf was going insane being near her. I sighed… “Marina. There are things we need to…” “NEED?” she interrupted. Clearly, I had struck a nerve. “...Please tell me what it is YOU need, Mr. New Alpha. And while you’re at it, why don’t you start with why you’re here, and how you managed to murder my parents on your way in?!” She screamed