Filed to story: Owned by the Alphas Novel
She nibbled the end of my thumb, then nodded.
“Follow me,” I said quietly. She nodded and followed.
I moved through the mansion and down the stairs. Then I led her down the cobblestone paths, through the torch-lit city to the front gates.
I led her out of them, and the link twinged with her anxiety.
I turned and grabbed her hand, holding it, leading her around the city walls to the path that led to Tabby’s.
“Where are we going, Kai?” she asked quietly, holding my hand tightly.
I smirked and nodded to the path. “Tabby’s.”
Her eyebrows shot up.
“That’s neutral territory. Vampires could be there.”
I narrowed my eyes on the dark forest ahead of us.
“Then they’ll scatter quickly if they know what’s good for them.” I grinned, a little part of me hoping they would be there so I could rip them apart. Doing that at Tabby’s swamp seemed fitting.
“Kai–“
“I won’t let you get hurt, Little Luna,” I promised. “But I need to do this; I promised Tabby.”
She hesitated, then nodded and got that determined look on her face that had made me fall for her so damn fast.
A hidden strength that everyone but me had underestimated.
She followed, her hand still in mine as we walked through the forest.
It was quiet, with no other scents.
We crossed the border into neutral territory and I paused, making sure we were still alone.
We were, but the scent of Tabby hit me. Lavender and thyme crushing me, pain aching in my chest. I rubbed the patch where my heart used to be, wincing as it throbbed again.
Lorelai moved closer and held my hand tighter.
I led her forward through the marshes, my eyes scanning the water.
I was looking for something in particular, and when I saw the water ripple, I grinned.
Found her.
“Ruby, girl,” I called.
Her eyes peered out of the water, glowing.
“Ruby? We’re looking for the alligator?” Lorelai asked, her brow raised, probably questioning my sanity.
Smart girl.
Not even I knew whether that was intact anymore.
“I promised I’d take care of her. I couldn’t protect Tabby, but I can make sure I keep my promise to her.”
Lorelai nodded, accepting that easier than I thought she would. Brax would have some choice words to say about it, and Derik would probably just roll his eyes. I’d still do what I wanted anyway. That’s how we worked. Lorelai accepted us every time.
I crouched down, balancing on the pads of my feet, as I held my fingers down for her. Ruby swam over, slow and timid.
“It’s okay, girl. I know Tabby’s gone, but I’m going to take care of you, okay?” I offered. The alligator kept swimming over. It flicked water at me with her nose, and I grinned, giving her a pat.
Her eyes glowered and flicked to Lorelai, who was standing back, not as sure about Ruby as I was.
“She’s okay, girl. She was Tabby’s friend too, remember?” I said soothingly.
She spit more water at me, and my grin widened. She nipped at my hand, and I played with her, only stopping when Lorelai got too nervous and Ruby’s teeth almost caught me. I didn’t mind; an alligator bite was nothing compared to what I had been through.
“I’ll take care of Ruby, Nikolai,” another deep voice said in the dark. My head snapped up as I stood in front of Lorelai.
But I recognized the voice, and so did Ruby. She swam quickly over, flicking water up at Cain, who was leaning against a tree on the other side of the part of the swamp we were on.
He was smoking some of the weed that his pack had found years ago. It was a numbing agent, and all the wolves had stopped doing it for the most part. Cain still had a stash. The end of his rolled weed lit up in the shadows, and he shoved his overhanging messy hair from his face.
It wasn’t a mohawk now; the strands were drooping, a resounding statement to how he felt inside. Not that I could feel it. He had shut us all out.
“I promised her, Cain.”
He shrugged. “I promised her I wouldn’t let those witches get to her, but it looks like we’re both liars,” he said, flicking Ruby some of the meat he had in a bucket. I frowned at it as Lorelai’s pain for Cain resounded in me. She hated seeing him like this as much as I did. He was our brother; his pain was ours.
Even if he didn’t want that.
“What are you feeding her?” I sniffed the air, hissing when the scent moved pungently through my senses.
“Vampire. It’s a delicacy,” Cain snickered, chucking more pieces into the swamp.
Ruby snapped her teeth through the water happily, oblivious to the tension.
“You missed Angus and Valentina’s funeral,” I mentioned. I didn’t have an issue with it; everyone knew what he was going through, but I did want to gauge how far he had gone into the darkness.
“Another day, another death. Funeral after funeral. The next one I attend will be the witches’,” Cain said before flicking out his rolled weed.
Really far gone then. Great. We couldn’t afford that right now.
“We should have tea,” Lorelai interrupted, not waiting for an answer and heading toward the raised cabin with the porch lamp on, as usual. I looked at Cain, making sure he followed before heading in. I was watching my mate’s back no matter who was at it.
Cain narrowed his eyes on Lorelai, then headed inside. I followed.
I went inside the warm cabin, the fire lit. The table already had a steaming pot of tea waiting, and Beenie was there. My sister was a pain in the ass, but she was my family, and I cared about her.
Cared enough to be pissed that she looked like shit. “Are you okay?” I whispered to her, leaning down to hug her. She shook her head but didn’t explain.
I growled, and she patted my back.
“I don’t handle death well, big brother. This, you know,” she mumbled, then pulled away and grabbed her tea. I frowned at her again and sat down next to Lorelai.
Cain sat down too, and I looked over them both.
Their link was fucking them both up. Mating needed to be nurtured, loved; they looked like they were mistreating the mating link.
“Is he hurting you?” I demanded, nodding to Cain but looking at Beenie.
She shook her head as Cain growled. That was a good sign and exactly what I was hoping for.
I sipped my tea. It tasted just like Tabby used to make it. I tried not to show the kick in the balls that was.
“No. He’s not hurting me, Nikolai. He’s in pain, I’m in pain. It makes for a shitty time, but we’re still mated. He would never betray that.”
“Even if the witches made it happen?” I raised a brow at Cain.
He snarled, standing quickly in a challenge I had to rise to. I slammed my cup down and leaned over the table, my entire alpha bulk dominating the space. I didn’t bother making him kneel; his eyes showed the respect he had. He wasn’t going to fight me.
Lucky for him.
“They had nothing to do with my mating with Beenie. And whether they did or not, they’re going to die anyway,” he vowed.
He was motivated; I’d give him that.
I sat back down, and Lorelai’s hand went to my thigh. I grabbed her small hand in mine, kissed it, and then placed it back on me.
“Good, now that I’m sure you don’t need killing and my sister is safe, we can talk about what the hell you saw that made you look like you’re at death’s door?” I demanded, eyeing Beenie and Cain.
They both winced.
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?