Chapter 3: Missing Fragments

Liosha’s POV

Ouch!  

I can certainly see how he became the commander of the pack warriors; he has certainly mastered the art of sleep fighting! He kicks again, his foot connecting perfectly with my shin. I bite my lip to keep from wincing out loud. I roll out of bed; it is almost 5:30 anyway, so I should just get an early start today, and I’ll deal with Nappy Chan much later.  

I say my prayers and slide into the bathroom to freshen up. I’m not surprised when I walk back into the room and see him doing a couple of push-ups on the ground. He hears me enter and starts counting out loud,  

“501, 502, 503…” I roll my eyes and chuckle.  

“500 push-ups, huh?” a smile still lingering on my lips.  

“Oh, babe, I didn’t see you there,” he stops and feigns surprise.  

“Riiiight,” I reply sarcastically and chuckle a bit. “Go and take a shower; let’s go on patrol together.”  

“The Luna wants to take a stroll with lowly old me?” he jokes.  

“Shut up!” I’m laughing now as I push him into the bathroom.  

“Alright, alright! I’m going!” he says with a small laugh and walks into the bathroom.  

“Good. I’ll see you downstairs, babe.” I run down the stairs, make a quick cup of tea, and sip on it while I wait for him to come down.  

It has been two months now since the wedding. Carlos turns out to be quite the charmer. He has a nice personality, serious drive, and he’s amazing in bed, but I can’t help but feel incomplete with him. As werewolves, we are blessed by the moon goddess with heightened senses and abilities. While our sight, smell, and hearing are heightened, our strength, speed, reflexes, and especially emotions are ten times that of your average human, to say the least. That’s why we feel so empty when we don’t find our mates, because there’s a gap that no charming personality or handsome face can fill unless they’re destined to be yours.  

“Earth to Liosha!” A snap in front of my face brings me out of my thought spiral.  

“When did you get here?” I’m shocked I didn’t hear him come down.  

“Just now. You must have been deep in thought if you didn’t hear me come in. What’s on your mind?” he asks with actual concern.  

I stopped to think for a while, contemplating whether I should speak my mind or not. I finally look into his eyes, and it just slips out,  

“Are you happy? Here, with me?” He’s taken aback by my sudden question.  

“Of course, I am, bebita. What makes you think I’m not?” His voice is heavy with concern; he doesn’t move from his spot, though I can hear the slight jump in his heartbeat as he says that.  

“I don’t think you’re not, but I know you feel it too.”

“Feel what?”  

“Like something’s missing. That’s probably why you haven’t marked me yet, even after two months.”  

He laughs dryly.  

“Is that what this is about? Marking you?”  

“That’s just a small part of it, but yeah.”  

“So, you want me to mark you, is that it?” he says, his face going a bit dark as his eyes begin to glow bright gold. His fangs pop out, hair growing from the sides of his face; he’s partially transforming as he takes small steps towards me.  

“Stop it, Carlos,” I warn him as I switch my stance to a defensive one, my eyes glowing bright gold as well, ready to take him on if he attacks. He stops moving. We stare each other down for a while, and then he shifts back to his human form.  

“We should patrol together some other time, not today.” He turns and leaves the room without another word. That certainly wasn’t cynical, not cynical at all.  

“Hey, what happened to you?” Izzy says as she walks up to me.  

“Nothing, why do you ask?” I try to act fine.  

“For starters, you look like you’ve seen a ghost.” I sigh at this statement.  

“Honestly, I kind of wish I did.”  

“What happened?” Her face is covered with concern, and I narrate my encounter with Carlos just a few moments ago.  

“That bitch! He was gonna use force on you!” She’s upset now.  

“Scared the shit out of me. I mean, this is someone I share a bed with; how am I supposed to feel safe now after seeing his sinister tendencies?” We both sigh in sync. “I should probably talk to my dad about it. He always knows what to do.”  

“I agree; maybe he’ll sucker punch him for me.” I chuckle a bit at that.  

“Where is my dad, anyway?” I ask, looking around to see if I’d catch a glimpse of him.  

“Oh yeah, I saw him at the weapons storehouse with Beta Jon. They looked like they were about to go somewhere.”  

“What?! And you’re just telling me this now?” I quickly bolt off in the direction of the weapons storehouse.  

“It didn’t come up!” she shouts after me before bolting behind me.  

“Dad?!” I call out as I get to the storehouse. Izzy was right; he is clothed in his combat gear. He stops what he’s doing to look at me.  

“Hey, munchkin. How are you?” He smiles his usual wide smile, but something feels off today.  

“Are you going into battle?” I don’t waste time asking.  

“Yes, I am, but it’s nothing you should concern yourself with.”  

“What’s the situation? I’m sure I can help out somehow.”  

“You’re right about that. I’m going to need someone to manage the affairs of the pack while I’m gone. I don’t know how long this mission will take.”  

“What’s the mission, Dad?” 

“We found them, the alphas.” No way! He wants to fight the alphas? “They crossed into Santiago's borders last night; they’re probably going to try an attack on one of the humans soon, with the full moon only a week away.”  

“So, you’re going to try and stop them before they can attack?”  

“Exactly. Besides, I can’t have rogues roaming freely in this city. As far as I’m concerned, Santiago is Bloodline territory.” He’s no longer masking his intensity now.  

“Are you taking the pack warriors?”  

“I can’t afford to leave the pack house unprotected. I’ll be going alone with Jon.”