Emily's Story (9 page)

“We need to talk.” Brandt grabbed her clothes and walked inside.

Emily followed cautiously dreading her punishment but refusing to show fear.

“Change.” An order. Waiting with impatience, he realized she did not obey immediately. The same happened when he told her to stop tearing Zeb’s throat out. He wasn’t used to having his authority challenged unless death was the consequence. He knew an alpha command was difficult for another wolf to disobey. She packed a shit load of alpha power. He wondered if she was feeling the same tingling beneath her skin that he experienced after his first challenge to the death. Her body was adjusting and she would be on unsteady ground until it settled.

She shifted and he placed his hand out but did not vocalize his desire that she take it. Leaving it there, he allowed her to make the decision. Her fingers tentatively sought his. He pulled her toward him and held her for a moment, torturing himself before helping her put on a shirt and pants. Sitting on the couch, he pulled her onto his lap feeling the adrenaline pumping through her body. He wrapped his arms securely around her and nuzzled her neck with his nose. Inhaling her scent he felt her body tense.

“Please I need to hold you while I explain a few things.” He waited and finally she relaxed. “Your body, your scent, and the power of your wolf are changing. The same thing happened to me after I killed my pack’s alpha. It was like dynamite exploding in my bloodstream, but over the next few months, it settled in and became a part of me. I know you don’t understand but your wolf is dominant and your subconscious is fighting with your fear of the unknown. Your wolf does not like to be told what to do.” He gave a low gentle growl. “My wolf does not like to be disobeyed. I’m stronger and alpha of the pack you now belong to. We have a lot to learn about each other and our wolves must adjust.”

She was listening intently and not objecting. It was a good sign. Due to her change, the braid no longer held her hair and he ran his fingers through the soft strands. “Zeb challenged me. Pack law dictates that there can be no interference. You will stay here and I will have another wolf stay with you.” His hand continued to travel through the silky texture of her hair but her body stiffened at his words.

Sudden fear emanated from her. When Brandt charged Zeb, she had immediately shifted to her wolf form but her clothing tangled her arms and legs. The rage she felt had no control and she only wanted to administer death. Brandt’s voice in her head, soothed her anger, and allowed her to release the man and not kill him. The attack gave her a sense of power. Now, she listened to Brandt’s explanation and fear consumed her. The thought of him leaving caused panic. For the first time her voice was shaky but commanding. “I will not stay without you.”

The pain in her voice gave him pause. She was such a contradiction of bravery, terror, sadness, anger, and uncontrolled alpha but he had no choice but to control her. “I will not be disobeyed in this and I will return within a few hours. You will have food, freedom to move around the cabin, and company. I will not leave you alone. Dominique, the she-wolf I’ll call, will help calm you. She is not dominant like us. Just the scent of anger will scare her but her need for protection gentles us too. She’s defenseless and could die very easily. I will need your word that you will not harm her.”

“No.”

“Explain no?”

“Do not leave.”

“You cannot come to the challenge. There can be no interference. Being alpha means I fight my own battles within the pack.” His tone left no room for argument and he felt her body shudder in defeat. Her anger left on a long outward breath but desolation replaced it.

Tipping her chin up, he looked into eyes brimming with tears. His patience was at an end and his lips slowly descended. Her texture and taste caused his control to slip even more and his breathing to accelerate. His whispered words, into her mind urged, “Open your mouth.” She didn’t hesitate. Twisting his body, he lay back on the couch, and brought her fully on top of him. The kiss deepened and a painful erection formed between his thighs.
Stop
.
Take her
.
No
. His mind and body were at war. Growling with frustration, he pulled his mouth away and sat up while keeping her on his lap against his pain filled heat.

Blue eyes gazed into his with uncertainty.

He tried to keep the sexual frustration from his voice but didn’t succeed. “I don’t even know where to start. I’m not sure if you understand the birds and the bees.” At her puzzled look he searched for another way to explain through his own embarrassment. “Do you know how babies are made?” Her body stiffened and she looked for a way to escape. He tightened his hold remaining still and calm.

Anguish tinted her words, “The devil gave Carolynn a baby. His seed created me and I am one of his demons.” She looked down and then twisted slightly, trying to extricate herself from arms made of iron.

His muscles flexed minutely and gave her no opportunity to push off. His words contained anger even though he tried for control. “The man who attacked your mother was not the devil. He was a werewolf. He wanted to get her pregnant, but what he did to her body should only happen with the mutual consent of the two people involved. I’m sure he frightened and hurt her deeply but she didn’t understand what we are. There are no demons. You are beastkind, a werewolf.”

She didn’t allow his words time to sink in, “I killed her.” She revealed her biggest secret, the one which would make him hate her.

Her mind traveled back to the blood and unrecognized body on the floor of her cell. The body of her mother and the only person she knew during her life. She killed her mother and she had no doubt God sent this demon to punish her for her sin.

Loosening his hold, he ran slow meticulous fingers over her trembling back. Pulling her hair slightly at the base of her neck, he drew her mouth to his. Soft at first, then demanding, his teeth nipped gently on her lower lip, kissing the side of her mouth and then stroking inside again.

Control; he fought his need to take her on the couch and sink his body into hers, the body of his mate.

Control damn it
.

He disengaged his mouth from her soft lips and looked at her with violent intensity. He used his words to satisfy her wolf, “I killed your father. I tore him to pieces and relished his blood. Your mother was not the only woman he took by force. Two of the females he attacked gave birth. Those children grew up with the pack. You have a sister and a brother. If we had discovered you when young, I would have taken you from that woman. I wish my fangs were the ones that sank into her flesh and killed her. It’s a memory I would enjoy having.”

Her eyes changed and the stunning blue became a deeper pool of darkening sky. Their depth pulled him in. Bringing her hands up to his neck she drew him to her seeking mouth. With tentative lips, she mimicked what he had done to hers moments before.

His groan rumbled against her lips.

Time stopped, but the madness had to stop too. His growl was longer this time and she gave one of her own. He forcefully separated their mouths and then their bodies. He sat her to the side and stood. “Our alphas call to each other but not yet. Not now.” He managed to calm his breathing and continued. “I want you to meet Dominique. She will be with you during the challenge. I can speak to my pack together or one at a time. I don’t want to frighten you by opening the link so you need to know what I’m doing.”

He waited and saw the question on her face. Only thirty minutes passed since Zeb left but the entire pack would have heard of the challenge by now. He opened his link with Dominique but kept his connection with Emily. “I need a favor. Can you sit with Emily during the challenge?”

It wasn’t Dominique who answered, it was Cheri. “Do you think this wise? I will not have Dominique harmed. Your mate is too strong, uncontrolled, and dangerous.”

Emily looked confused by the censure in Cheri’s voice.

He tried to keep the frustration from his thoughts. “You can both come to dinner tonight and we will talk. I think it best that my father not be here, but only because I don’t want her overwhelmed and was hoping for Dom to come alone. I understand your worry and think she can handle the two of you.”

“Seven o’clock.” The connection ended.

He looked at the uncertainty on Emily’s face. “We will make dinner together. Dom will eat what we do but Cheri usually just drinks wine. I know you will like Dominique and you need to be around other females before having contact with our males. We are rougher and can be aggressive. They are not accustomed to a dominant female and you need to gain additional control of your alpha’s temper so you don’t accidently hurt someone. Dominique is completely submissive and you will notice shortly after meeting her that your instincts to protect will be stronger than your instinct to attack.” He stopped not knowing if she followed everything he said.

“Can I eat now?”

He laughed, grabbed her hands, and drew her to her feet. “I’ll make sandwiches to hold us over.”

“Can you make the brown food like last night?”

He realized she was talking about the brownies. “I have a better idea, let’s bake a cake. We can do it together.”

A barrier was crossed. Thoughts of killing him were no longer forefront in her mind. She continued to battle her wolf for control but it would come. So would the sexual release their bodies craved.

Patience
. When that didn’t work he would take cold showers. His wolf needed to wait.

They ate lunch first. Brandt put enough steaks out for three people and then added an extra for Emily. He would stuff her at each meal to fatten her up. He showed her the back of the cake box so she could read the directions.

The scent of anxiety began to roll off her body in waves. “I don’t read. Carolynn read to me but said I didn’t deserve to touch the book.”

Placing the box on the counter, he took her hand. “What did she read to you?”

“God’s book.”

He could barely hear her voice but the scent of her distress didn’t diminish. “Reading lessons will be added to your daily activities. I know my dad keeps some of my favorite childhood books here at the cabin and I’ll gladly read them to you. Come with me.” His voice had changed from that of a commanding alpha to the tone of a playful boy.

He led her to his father’s office. He knew the book he wanted was there along with his father’s books on philosophy. First though, he reached for the large leather volume, turned to her, and put the book into her hands. “This is my father’s copy of the bible. It’s a book that needs to be touched, but after today if you never want to see another, I’ll make sure there are none in our home.”

Her fingers gently ran across the leather in reverence. She thought of the many times Carolynn sat outside the bars and read from the book of God. Most of her words held anger but Emily never wanted the words to end. When her mother spoke Emily was not alone. She gazed up with longing. “Please, I want the book. One day I will understand.”

Brandt smiled and replied with humor, “If you ever make sense of it, let me know. You can then argue with my father on the merits of Christianity. He believes in the Goddess and loves nothing better than a good philosophical debate.” He turned and picked up another book. It had a picture of a wolf with a snowy mountain background. “This is Jack London’s Call of the Wild and it’s the one we’ll read first. Let’s finish the cake and then get ready for our evening company.”

Chapter 11

Brandt tried to keep Emily busy. They took fifteen minutes and straightened up the cabin for guests. Clothing was another problem, knowing she had nothing appropriate for company he stayed in sweats so she would feel comfortable. He brushed her hair and because of the earlier braid, it flowed down her back in gentle ripples. It was pure silk and the color of white gold.

His voice was gruff when he spoke. “Dominique will keep her eyes down. She gets nervous easily and your scent will worry her. The power that makes you alpha is growing; I can feel it and smell it. If you stay calm she will too but any agitation will cause upset. This will happen with most wolves you encounter. Learning to control your internal emotions is what keeps those around you settled. They look to me for security and soon, they will look to you for the same.”

Emily’s eyes conveyed a slight understanding and he felt she would be okay. The power that made her alpha oozed from her pores and made it instinct to protect those weaker.

He unlocked and opened the door when Cheri let him know they were approaching. The vampire entered first.

Striking green eyes looked to Brandt and then his mate. Lifting her hand to Emily’s, Cheri spoke mildly, “I know we met yesterday but it wasn’t official. Welcome to my clan.” Taking a long steady breath in, she smiled. “Your blood has chosen the strongest among my wolves.”

Brandt also inhaled. The mingled mate scent was there and would only grow stronger. When their physical bodies claimed each other, every beastkind and vampire they encountered would know they were life mates.

Amazingly, Emily’s voice broke into his thoughts, “You honor us my queen.” She didn’t lower her eyes and stared straight into the smiling eyes of violence and death that forever remained just below the surface of Cheri’s gaze.

Earlier Brandt explained the proper greetings to her but found it surprising that she managed so well. It was against an alpha’s instinct to break eye contact and the vampire understood.

Cheri turned slightly, “This is Dominique. She’s my friend and has been my companion for many years. She will not fight you. She will roll over and bare her throat. I will kill anyone who harms her.”

Emily looked toward the she-wolf giving off a strong odor of uncertainty. Instantly Emily’s demeanor changed. She took the other woman’s hand gently in her own. “It’s okay, we can be friends. I have much to learn.”

Dom looked up with a quick glance and brief smile but then cast her eyes down again. It was a start.