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Chapter 113
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The Hybrid Mate Chapter 114
As Bella listened, her eyes widened. “That's why you never made him alpha. I could never understand why you didn't choose Victor, even when I was with Darian.”“They both have their strong suits,” he admitted. “If they were two halves of the same person, I dare say they'd make the strongest alpha any pack has seen. Up until now, Victor has demonstrated every quality needed in a pack leader. Self-sacrifice, wisdom, bravery, strength. Every quality but one.” He paused, watching her. “Any idea what that might be?”She shook her head. She couldn't imagine that Victor was lacking in any way, but she didn't want to show her bias by admitting it.“A backbone,” he said with a snort. “You can't represent the interests of your pack as an alpha if you don't even have the stomach to stand up and take what you want. Darian might be a bit lacking in sophistication, but that boy has a spine made of steel.” “So now that Victor and I are together, you're going to make him the alp
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 115
“I appreciate that, Ulric. I would have appreciated it more when I was a human,” Bella admitted. “But thank you for being honest with me.”He looked deflated, but he smiled. “Ignorance isn't an excuse for absence. I don't expect a warm reception now that you know who you are to me, but I would like the chance to start a new relationship. I would very much like the chance to get to know you.”“Even if I'm an emotionless vampire now?” Bella half-teased.“The only thing you need to be in order for me to want a relationship with you is my daughter, Bella.” His eyes were glassy with the slightest hint of moisture.Bella smiled a little and reached over to put her hand on his. “I'd like that, too.”For the first time since she had known him, Ulric looked visibly relieved. It was hard to imagine fear coming from the man who had slain a lion. “Wonderful,” he said, giving her hand a squeeze.“Maybe we could start this new relationship by not forcing me to marry whoever takes over t
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 116
“Thank you,” Bella breathed. If he thought there was even a chance she would be mated to Darian again, he was crazy, but she knew that arguing wasn't going to help matters.“Let's go see if they're both still alive or if they've solved my dilemma for me.”His face was stony and unreadable as usual, but Bella was beginning to be able to tell when he was being sarcastic. “Not funny,” she grumbled, quickening her steps a little just in case.When they got closer to the study, the sounds of fighting were over. That could either be a good thing or a terrible thing, but she knew Victor wasn't dead. She knew she would feel it somehow, just as she had felt he was alive back in Austin.Ulric opened the door, and Bella darted inside, looking for signs of bloodshed. There was plenty of blood on the floor and some on the coffee table where it looked like someone's head had been bashed in, but not enough blood for a murder scene. She would know. To her relief, Darian and Vi
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 117
As soon as Victor was settled in the infirmary, Bella collected a handful of supplies from Clara and headed out to find Darian. Victor clearly wasn't happy about it, but he didn't try to stop her. He was far more lenient with where she went since his return, and now she knew why. Darian had always been able to track her through the mark. Now Victor could. She ran all the way upstairs and knocked on Darian's door. There was no answer the third time she tried knocking, and she was beginning to think he'd gone off somewhere when she heard an exasperated, “Whad'you want?” from the other side. “It's Bella,” Bella called through the door. “I gathered that. No one else is as annoyingly persistent as you are.” He was mad at her. Good. Mad was better than devastated. “I know you're not going to see Clara, so she sent me up with some supplies.” “She picked a bad messenger,” he muttered. His voice was closer, though, and a few seconds later, the do
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 118
Victor was already knee-deep in his workday when Bella found him, so she made herself scarce. It was a relief that he was no longer insistent someone had to be watching her at all times. She also knew that if she was around him for more than five minutes, she was doomed to spill Darian's secret. She still wasn't sure if she should tell anyone, but there was enough time before nightfall to decide. In the interim, Bella chose to keep herself as busy as possible. Finding the laundry room in the basement was easy enough. Brendan had come through and delivered the hamper, but it sat in a sea of laundry that hadn't been touched in weeks. Taking care of the mundane chore proved to be a nice distraction and for the first time, she felt like she was doing something useful in the Lodge. While the clothes were going, she decided to explore the rest of that corner of the basement. There was a supply closet just off the laundry room, filled with everything from excess pantry g
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 119
Bella's hands shook as she stepped back from the chair. She stood there for long enough to lose sight of the passage of time until Victor rushed into the room. “Bella! What's wrong?” he demanded, snatching the stake out of her hand first, as if he thought she might use it on herself. She showed him the letter, and his eyes widened as he began to read. “This is bullshit,” he snarled, slamming it down on the table. “How the hell did he get in here?!” “He walked in, Victor! He's not a vampire, he's undetectable to the others,” she reminded him. “Not for long,” he muttered. “This entire place is getting locked down. No one else gets in or out, not Prentice, not anyone.” “Have you seen Darian?” Bella asked suddenly. “What? No, not since this morning.” “I have to warn him,” she said, running out of the room. Victor's footsteps were right behind her. “Wait, warn him about what?” “Prentice is threatening the pack, and everyone els
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 110
“Like I was saying.” Bella looked intently at Ulric. “These people are in danger because of me. I have to do something.” “I agree,” he said, tapping his fingers together as he always did when thinking deeply. “We'll bring them here. I'll send someone out tonight to get them.” “Let me go,” she said, standing. “This is my fault, no one else should have to be put in danger.” He gave her a look. “You know damn well neither Victor nor I are going to let you step foot out of the Lodge.” “You read the letter, Prentice doesn't want to kill me,” she insisted. “Not yet.” “She has a point,” said Hunter. “She's reckless, but she has a point.” Ulric gave them both a withering stare. “I'll go get them myself, starting with Maverick.” “I'll go,” said Brendan, stepping into the study. “Does anyone knock?” Ulric groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. “You could at least try to pretend you weren't eavesdropping.” “I've never been a
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Bella's face grew warm, but the taste of human blood was too good to dwell on her embarrassment or the fact that Hunter and Victor were watching her. The chilled temperature kept it from tasting stale and while it was certainly nothing compared to blood fresh from the vein, it didn't conjure up the unsettling urge to rip someone's throat out, either. The bag was drained in less than a minute, and Bella only realized she had stopped breathing when she started panting once she was done. Embarrassment set in once the thirst was under control, and she discreetly tried to wipe a droplet of blood off the corner of her mouth. “I guess that answers that question,” said Victor. “What question?” “Whether you could survive off of bagged blood, at least temporarily,” he replied. “She could potentially survive off of no blood,” said Hunter, falling into one of the chairs. “The problem is, she'd snap and kill a bunch of people before w
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The Hybrid Mate Chapter 158
Bella froze when she realized what she was doing and tossed the pieces in the empty bread basket to hide the evidence. “Sorry,” she murmured, blushing. “You uh, get my blood boiling.”“I can tell,” he said, blinking. He looked down at his hands. “I'm sorry. I had no idea I was that intolerable.”“But you're not,” Bella said earnestly. “You make me angrier than anyone else, but you also make me laugh more than anyone else. You push me, sometimes to the brink of sanity, but she's a better person when she's with him. He's all of those annoying things, but he's also sweet and funny and protective and so compassionate toward the other members of the pack. He's a natural-born leader, and a good one. Whenever she sees the way he is with the other wolves, the way he cares for them and puts their needs above his own without even thinking, she falls a little more in love with him.” He stared at her in shock. “You love me? And you're admitting that freely?”Bella laughed, embarrassed. T
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 157
Bella reached across the table and rested her hand on his forearm. “You make it sound like I'm the one who's out of your league and not the other way around.” His eyebrows knit into a perplexed frown. He finally relaxed as if he'd given up trying to figure out whatever it was that was bothering him. “You are. Even aside from the fact that you're probably one of the mythological creatures our entire religion is based on, I don't deserve you. Neither does he, but I'm a big enough man to admit that Vic is a hell of a lot closer to being worthy of you than I am.” “Don't be so sure about that,” Bella said with a wry smile. “You both have your positive qualities.” “And negative ones, I'm sure.” Bella smiled wider.“Well, let's have it. Give me the side-by-side analysis,” he said, sitting back and folding his hands studiously on the table in front of him since he had already finished his meal.She laughed, but stopped abruptly when she realized he wasn't kidding. “You're
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 156
Bella reached across the table and rested her hand on his forearm. “You make it sound like I'm the one who's out of your league and not the other way around.” His eyebrows knit into a perplexed frown. He finally relaxed as if he'd given up trying to figure out whatever it was that was bothering him. “You are. Even aside from the fact that you're probably one of the mythological creatures our entire religion is based on, I don't deserve you. Neither does he, but I'm a big enough man to admit that Vic is a hell of a lot closer to being worthy of you than I am.” “Don't be so sure about that,” Bella said with a wry smile. “You both have your positive qualities.” “And negative ones, I'm sure.” Bella smiled wider.“Well, let's have it. Give me the side-by-side analysis,” he said, sitting back and folding his hands studiously on the table in front of him since he had already finished his meal.She laughed, but stopped abruptly when she realized he wasn't kidding. “You're
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 155
“Not sweet, innocent Clara,” Bella said doubtfully. “Oh, I've caught Jason coming out of her apartment once or twice.” “Jason and Clara?” Bella blanched. “But he's so... He chuckled at her reaction. “I know. Doubt he's her type, but the moon makes everyone go crazy, especially unmated fleurs. The rest of us try to stick to our subs, but what happens on a full moon stays on a full moon.”“Until now,” Bella reminded him. “You just told me.”“Hey, you didn't hear it from me.”Bella grinned mischievously. “Nope. I'm thinking now I own you.”“I don't go that way, kiddo. Not even for you,” he scoffed. “Now, if you ever decide you want a new master...”“My contract with Victor isn't exclusive. And don't try to change the subject.”“Sheesh. Okay, fine. It's probably already pretty obvious, but Brendan and Clarence don't just take care of Foster's emotional needs. They share him as a sub, but there's no relationship there otherwise. I'm pretty sure even that's tapered off since
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 154
"Are all the others out?" Bella asked, noting that the lot was almost empty. "Most of them," he said. "Clara and your dad are still around, as usual. Vic has been holed up in his office all day. Hunter and Clarence are still frolicking in the woods somewhere. Brendan was heading out with Maverick last I heard and uh, I think I saw Sarah with Jason." Anger started to boil inside Bella, but it couldn't take hold for some reason. "Oh, whatever," she muttered. "As long as she's leaving Dad alone." He glanced at her as he turned onto the road that led past campus. "That's a surprisingly zen attitude you got there." "I'm trying out a new approach to life," Bella said, admiring the heavily forested path. He shrugged. "Hey, I'm not complaining as long as you're okay.""I'm okay," Bella said. For the first time in a long time, she meant it.No one said a word for the rest of the ride. Darian took them into the city, or at least what passed for one in their little section o
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 153
A knock at the door jolted Bella awake from the most delightful nap. Despite the dull throbbing in her head, she woke feeling more refreshed and alive than she had in recent memory. “Be right there,” she called, yawning as she sat up. Her head spun a bit once she got to her feet, but it wasn't bad enough to make her stagger.On her way to the door, she noticed something strange about her room. All her stuff was there, but it looked like half of the room had been cleared out. Before the thought could trouble her too much, she remembered that Victor had probably just come for the remainder of his old things. She did have his old room, after all. Strange that he wouldn't have mentioned it, though.She shrugged it off and pulled the door open to find Darian waiting on the other side. At least, she thought it was Darian. The man before her had lightly slicked back hair, a stark contrast from his usual tousled brown locks. He wasn't wearing a suit or anything, but for Darian, a gray b
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 152
When Bella turned around, he was walking toward her calmly. She pressed herself against the door and struggled to slow her fluttering pulse as she looked around the room for escape. The window was too far to reach, and even if she did somehow manage to escape, she would only be prolonging the inevitable. Once Victor set his mind on something, no matter how horrible that something was, he got it. It briefly occurred to her that maybe that was why he was doing this. Maybe he thought his will had been strong enough to conquer her own and that removing all traces of it was the only way she would truly be free to choose. “I'm sorry, pup. I didn't want this to be a traumatic experience,” he murmured. “I was planning on waiting until tomorrow night, but it's just as well that I don't have time to talk myself out of this.” “Please don't do this,” she begged for what seemed like the hundredth time. “I don't want to forget you.” “You won't forget me,” he said softly. “J
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 151
“Of course,” Bella said, startled that he felt like he had to ask. “Well, I know you didn't like him so I just thought...” He trailed off, losing his enthusiasm for a moment. “Thank you. It would mean a lot to have you there. Victor is coming, and he said your dad would probably want to come, too.” He glanced toward the stairs. “I'll let you go; I have to find Brendan.” “He's probably still out with the others celebrating, but I know he was planning on seeing if you wanted to go out later,” Bella said carefully. “Oh, darn. I wanted to invite him, but I'll just have to wait until later. Bye, Bella!” he waved, already halfway down the hall. “Bye, Mav.” Bella waved back, mystified. Barely recovered from the macabre interaction, she knocked on Victor's office door and waited for permission before she entered. “Aren't you supposed to be with him?” was his immediate response. “Hi to you, too,” Bella muttered, walking over to his desk.He gave her an apologetic sm
The Hybrid Mate Chapter 150
“I'm fine,” Bella lied, brushing past her. She grabbed Bella's arm before she could head up the stairs. “You're a terrible liar,” she said, sounding a bit disappointed. “You get that from your father, obviously. Tell me what's wrong, maybe I can help.” “I went out to watch the others shift,” Bella said, leaning on the railing. “Now there's an all-American pastime,” she said, casting a lustful glance in the direction of the forest. “Honey, trust me, if your boy toys are upset about you sneaking a little peek at the competition, they probably don't have the equipment for the job in the first place.” “That's not it!” Bella snapped. “And they both have plenty of equipment for the—they're both well equipped, okay?” Bella stammered. “That's not what this is about.” “No?” She blinked. “Then what?” “I left the Lodge by myself. Months ago, Victor put a mental block up that would keep me from leaving the Lodge without permission,” Bella said. “It was our trade
