Bölüm 5 : A Forced Union

= DIXIE =

"I'm not marrying you!" I practically screeched, totally shocked by the craziness of it all. Here I was, back in Grandma's cozy cottage, only this time, the living room wasn't filled with the familiar scent of freshly baked cookies. No, it was filled with tension so thick I could practically chew on it. 

Trix, looking like a thundercloud in a designer two-piece, glared at me. His right-hand woman, Alvera, stood next to him all serious, not showing any emotion. And there was Jackson, my childhood buddy, who stood beside me with tight fists and eyes full of anger and worry for me

Trix shot up from his seat, towering over me with those infuriatingly intense eyes. "Then we're all gonna die, stupid!" he retorted.

"I'd rather die than marry you!" I fired back as my hands trembled with anger. 

Marry Trix? The guy who had made my life a living hell, and recently I found out he's some werewolf alpha? Totally bonkers!

How the hell did he even find out I was staying there? 

"There's no arguing this, Dixie," Trix said in a low, threatening voice. "It's going to happen."

Jackson stepped in front of me, blocking my view of the infuriating werewolf. "Leave her alone, Slater! She doesn't want to go with you!" 

Trix scoffed, throwing Jackson a look that could curdle milk.  Before I knew it, Jackson was flying through the air, landing with a pained grunt on the floor.  My jaw dropped. This whole situation was surreal, and Trix's casual display of violence just added another layer of WTF to the already overflowing cake.

Just then, the kitchen door swung open. It was Grandma. Oh, now she comes. Her eyes widened in shock as she took in the scene – Jackson sprawled on the floor, Alvera looking like she wanted to tackle someone to the ground, and Trix… well, Trix looked like he was about to rip someone's head off.  

But then, something even more unexpected happened.  Grandma's shocked expression morphed into one of recognition as her gaze landed on Trix.  "Trix Slater?" she gasped.

The tension in the room was so thick I thought I might suffocate.  Everyone stared at Grandma, waiting for her next move.  She slowly shuffled towards Trix, her eyes filled with a mix of emotions I couldn't decipher. 

"My word," she murmured, reaching out to touch his arm.  "You've grown so much.  I wouldn't have recognized you at first."

Trix looked frozen, and his usual confidence was swapped for a hint of... uncertainty?

This was getting weirder by the second.  Who was grandma to Trix?  And why was she acting like she knew him?

Taking a deep breath, Trix nodded curtly. "Yes,  it's me.  Mrs. Delraeu." 

Grandma gave a sad smile.  "It's Evelyn now, Trix.  It's been a long time."

Grandma was the one who forced us all to sit back down, the air heavy with silent questions. I got an ice pack for Jackson as I tried so freaking hard to not look at Trix. Surprisingly, it was Trix who spoke first. He explained the situation – the rogues, the missing Tear, the mark on my hand.  He looked at me, his jaw clenched and explained how marrying him would protect me from the Nardoo pack. 

Marrying me would ensure her safety and help retrieve the Moon's Tears to awaken the Bamboo Alpha, who'll eradicate the Nardoos. If she weren't prancing around where it didn't concern her and minding her business, she wouldn't have gotten bitten by the snake who bore the rune’s ink and then gotten the rune imprinted in her palm.” He said with clenched teeth, staring daggers at me.  

“We have no choice. The Nardoos threaten both our packs, and she, with that cursed rune on her palm, is their key to the Moon's Tears. If they get her, we're all done for." he added.

Grandma listened closely, looking back and forth between Trix and me. Then she turned to me, her voice sounding a bit sad. "Dixie," she started, "there's something you need to know, something I should have told you a long time ago."

My heart hammered in my chest.  What was she talking about?  

Grandma held onto my shoulder softly and the look in her eyes already gave away what she was about to say to me. I didn’t want to hear that what that idiot was telling me was the truth.

“Grandma…” I said in a broken tone.

“My child, there are many things that have been kept from you since birth, and most of the reason why can be said to be my fault. I am terribly sorry this is how you have to gradually learn all those things and I'll try my best to explain much to you, for your own good. Please, listen child…”

“Grandma, what are you saying? Please don't tell me what I'm thinking…”

“Trix’s lineage is linked to werewolf royalty. So, all his forefathers and ancestors were all werewolf kings and queens, Alphas and Lunas. He's now the reigning king and Alpha of the Slater Pack. This pack has existed even longer than your parent's pack-”

“Wait, what? What do you mean by “my parent's pack”? Were my parents…werewolves?” I asked with a narrowed gaze.

My mind reeled. Werewolves were real?  And I was… part of one?  It was too much to take in.  The idea of marrying Trix, a guy who'd tormented me for years, suddenly seemed like the least of my problems.

“My child, I can't explain all these things to you now-”

“Then when Grandma?! If not now, then when?! That douchebag is claiming I must marry him and yadi yada just cus I accidentally walked in on one of his “official” meetings that was in the open, and now you're telling me my parents had a pack, but you think it's not a good idea for me to know the whole truth now. Really?!”

She held my shoulders firmly, with a strength I never thought an old woman like herself could exhibit with her wrinkly and weak joints, “Listen, Dixie. There are many things much more complicated going on right now, things that revolve around you and that may decide what happens to the rest of us. I promise..the day will come that you'll come yourself to ask me to explain it all to you but it's not today.”

She held my palm and pointed at the rune, “This. This has changed your life forever and you can't begin to imagine how important you have now become in the scheme of things. I always prayed for you to keep out of harm's way but you always like to dive headfirst into it. You can't run away from destiny and that's why your stubbornness and inquisitiveness has led you to bear this mark and meet Trix as who he really is.”

“But Grandma, I-”

“Shush and listen. You must go with Trix and do as he says. He understands how crucial this is for his people and everyone in general. I'm sure you'll understand too. His pack is in danger and since you now carry the key to their salvation, many of their adversaries will be after your life, hence, you need to always be close to Trix! He will protect you-”

“Bullshit!” I said and stood up.

“Dixie,” Grandma exclaimed at my choice of words.

“Who will protect me and from what? That bastard is the one I need protection from. He's the one who's made my life a living hell since I mistakenly bumped into him in the subway 10 years ago. I don't know what the hell you're talking about Grandma. I sincerely don't know. I…I…I can't believe you're trying to convince me to…to…when I've told you and I always tell you how that idiot treats me.” I broke down into ugly tears.

Grandma's eyes dropped and she sighed. She walked towards me again and pulled me into a hug that soothed the wild tempest in me. 

“It's for your own good, my child. You'll soon understand but…know we're doing it for your own good.”

I snapped and withdrew from her hold, “My own good?! Marrying me off to my sworn enemy is for my good?! Really?!”

I didn’t care anymore. I was so hurt, betrayed even, by my own grandma trying to sell me on this atrocious idea of a forced union and the whole pack nonsense.

"No way," I whispered, my voice barely above a croak. "I'm not marrying him." 

Trix growled, his frustration reaching a boiling point.  "You don't have a choice, Dixie! It's this, or you die!"

He re-explained the Nardoos, the threat they posed to both our packs, the whole shebang.  But my mind was stuck on one thing – I wasn't going to be some pawn in their werewolf game. 

"This is insane!" I shouted, tears welling up in my eyes. "I didn't ask for any of this!"

Just as I was about to storm out, Trix grabbed my arm, his grip like a vice.  "You can't run from this, Dixie," he growled. "And besides…" 

He hesitated for a moment, his eyes blazing with an emotion I couldn't define.  "We're mates."

Mates?  What in the world did that even mean?  Before I could ask, Grandma intervened, putting a gentle hand on Trix’

"Trix, calm down," Grandma said, her voice steady but with a surprising hint of authority. "Let me finish talking to Dixie." She squeezed my hand, which helped calm me down in all the confusion.

Trix glared at me for a moment longer before releasing my arm with a muttered curse.  He stalked over to the window, his anger barely under control. Alvera quietly followed him, leaving just Grandma and me. Jackson was told by Grandma to stay in her room because of the nature of what was being discussed.

Her eyes, usually so warm and inviting, now seemed troubled and hard to read. "Dixie," she said softly, "I know this is a lot to take in, but trust me, please trust me, marrying Trix is the only way to keep you safe."

Safe?  Safe from what?  From werewolves?  From myself?  My head throbbed with a million questions, each one more overwhelming than the last.

"But why me?" I croaked.  "Why does it have to be him?"  The thought of being tied to Trix, the guy who'd made most of my life a living nightmare, sent a fresh wave of anger coursing through me.

Grandma sighed deeply, and it looked like it shook her whole body. "Because, Dixie," she said so quietly it was almost a whisper, "you're not just any girl. You're a halfling, just like your mom was."

I caught my breath. My mom? The woman who died when I was just a baby, a woman surrounded by secrets. Was this what Grandma had been keeping hidden all this time?

"And Trix…" she continued, her voice trembling slightly, "He's your mate."

"Mate?" The word hung in the air, full of meaning. But before I could even ask what he meant, a rough growl tore through the silence from the window. There stood Trix, his face twisted in anger.

"Enough talk," he snarled, his eyes flashing dangerously.  "We're wasting time.  She comes with me, now."

He grabbed my arm again, gripping it even tighter this time. Panic surged through me, a raw fear gripping my throat. I wasn't going to go with him willingly, not after everything he'd done.

"No!" I screamed, kicking out at him with all my might.  "I'm not going anywhere with you!"

Trix easily swatted my leg aside, his strength far exceeding mine.  Just as I was about to give up, a new voice cut through the tension.  It was Jackson, standing in the doorway, his face pale but his eyes burning.

"Leave her alone, Slater!" he shouted. "Or you'll have to go through me first!"

Trix let out a humorless bark of a laugh.  "Oh, please," he sneered. "You're nothing but a flea in the fur of a wolf."

“I always knew you were a douchebag but not an animalistic one.” Jackson spited and Trix’s smirk immediately turned to a frown.

He lunged at Jackson, his claws extended.  Alvera moved with lightning speed, grabbing Trix's arm just as he was about to sink his claws into my friend’s face.  

"Enough, Alpha!" she hissed, her voice surprisingly forceful.  "We don't need to kill him."

Trix snarled, his eyes blazing with fury.  But for some reason, he listened to Alvera.  He yanked his arm free and turned back to me, his chest heaving with barely controlled rage.

"You will come with me, Dixie," he growled.  There was no question in his tone, only a steely command.

Tears started to fill my eyes, I was scared but also determined. It was crazy, marrying some werewolf alpha, my fucking bully, just because of some stupid mark? But before I could even complain, his grip tightened around my wrist and he was dragging me towards the door.

"Grandma!" I cried out desperately for help.

Grandma hurried over to us, looking really worried. "Trix, please," she begged, her voice shaking a bit, "let her stay the night. There's so much I need to explain."

Trix paused and looked back and forth between Grandma and me. I thought he might agree for a second. But then he tensed up and firmly shook his head.

"We can't afford to waste time," he said sternly. "We have to make it to the pack house before it gets dark."

I caught a glimpse of something in his eyes that seemed like regret, but it disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. He turned and dragged me over to where Alvera was waiting by a shiny black SUV.

"Let's go," he commanded, his voice leaving no room for argument.

Grandma gave me a helpless look, her lips pressed into a thin line.  There were tears in her eyes, a silent apology I didn't understand.  As I looked back at her one last time, a million questions swirled in my head, unanswered and terrifying.

Trix shoved me none too gently into the backseat of the SUV.  Alvera slid behind the wheel, looking pretty serious. As we drove away from Grandma's cottage, kicking up dust behind us, I felt a wave of fear.

I looked over at Trix. His jaw was tight, and he stared straight ahead. The car was so quiet, except for the engine's steady hum. I couldn't stand the silence any longer.

"Where are you taking me?" I whispered so quietly I could barely hear myself.

He didn't answer right away, and the tension in the car was so thick, you could almost touch it. Finally, he said in a flat voice, "To the pack house." 

“And oh,” Then, after a pause, he gave a mean little smile and added, "our wedding's tomorrow."