BURST AND SPURT

AURORA

This wolf who had the rogue woman’s head in his hands remained motionless—and so did the rogues—for what felt like thousands of hours. I didn’t want to believe that he was who I thought he was—someone I had met not so long ago—but my heart was racing and Evolet was stuttering… stuttering words I didn’t want to hear because I didn’t like what they spelled out.

My heart stopped when he growled and tossed the head away. I could see his hundreds of shifted Sigmas behind him, ready to attack on a single letter of his command. The rogues began to growl themselves, pouring saliva from their mouths.

Slowly, they left my side and placed their attention on the new wolf, creeping up to him at the slowest pace that wouldn’t cause an instant Alpha. The Alpha raised a hand and his Sigmas took not more than a step back. That rogues didn’t like they liked the gesture very much because they growled louder.

His hoodie fell back and before I could catch a glimpse of his face, they attacked him and the Sigmas obeyed his orders.

I got my naked self on my feet as soon as the fight started and thought of running into the trees, far away, but for a reason, I didn’t understand, my legs were rooted to the ground and my mind declined processing that thought.

Six rogues moved in to attack but a single blow of his lighting-fast hands gave everywhere it hit on them bone-crushing fractures and rogues flew all over the place like ragged dummies. One was able to catch his leg as he fought his way through the rogue assails. But he freed a fighting hand and grabbed the rogue’s back, sinking his claws into his flesh.

The effect made the rogue let go, howling in pain, and I wondered how awful it must have been for those mighty claws to enter its skin. He picked the rogue up and threw him at an incoming one that was about to attack him from behind.

The impact sent the rogue rolling away and he caught the heads of two rogues that were charging at him and then smashed them against each other, causing them to burst and spurt blood.

Feeling the need to fight, I harvested water and poured it around myself, forming a white jelly dress that covered my nakedness. I hardened it to make it look and feel like it’d been starched. The dress was simple but all I needed were clothes, not a ball gown.

I created spears of ice and stabbed them into any rogue that was willing to meet its end today. Most weren’t willing but… I ended them anyway and trust me, it’s harder than it looks because rogues are made of strong stuff. I felt the Alpha’s eyes on me as I jumped on the back of a wolf, stabbing its neck until it dropped and landed on the floor.

I saw him smash the head of a rogue with bear fingers until its head became a mixture of flesh, blood, bones, and brain. In less than a minute, I kicked the last rogue and knifed a spear into its stomach, killing him off.

Gasping, I turned to see the Alpha that had done this and the first thing my eyes caught was how incredibly attractive he was. I sucked my lips in because I was afraid I would drool. His ears were pierced in some kind of gold and so were his lips and nose. I wouldn’t be surprised if his tongue was too.

I noticed a thin scar running down his neck from right to left and had no idea why that turned me on. His midnight black hair screamed danger and his tiger-orange eyes were like ambers. If his face was as delicious as this, I wondered what was hidden beneath all that leather.

I didn’t realize that he was walking up to me until he grabbed my hand. A surge ran through me from the contact and my nipples hardened.

“You shouldn’t be here,” he looked incredibly better up close and his eyes were on my dolphin mark.

Then it hit me… Fuck, it couldn’t be. I didn’t want to believe it.

“It was you,” I said with confused eyes, trying to free myself from his grip.

The Sigmas had surrounded us but that was the least of my problems. I couldn’t even free myself from his grip. He stretched his hand for my mark, feeling it through his thick leather gloves.

“Foolish pup, thought you could run away?”

“What?” At this point, I didn’t understand anything anymore and when I tried to answer them myself, more questions would crop up. “Did the Alpha and Luna of Moonstone send you here?”

His cinnamon-ginger scent was erotic. If he was a snack, I’d chew him up but he’d be too big, tough, and spicy to handle. “Alphas don’t serve Alphas.”

His voice resonated power and my mind scrolled through the list of possible Alphas he could be but I never listened when this topic was being taught so my list wasn’t very extensive.

“So you are an Alpha?” 

His eyes grew dangerously dark. “They didn’t tell you.” His words were more of a statement than a question.

“Tell me what?”

He tossed me behind him as he moved forward but my stamina didn’t fail and I remained on my feet. Still confused by what was happening, I tried to walk up to him and put up a challenge but I felt one of the Sigmas behind me. Before I could react and strike a punch in his face, he stuck an injection into my hand.

I hissed and heard the Alpha say ‘I’ll be carrying her myself. She won’t cause any more trouble from here’. But before my eyelids and consciousness failed me, Evolet managed to tell me that one hard word that she had been trying so hard to say.

And I wish I didn’t hear it. That word was ‘Mate’.

~~~

Rogues… everywhere… attacking… death… dark man… walking… ocean… falling… drowning… death…

“Holy fuck!”

I opened my eyes and sat up, feeling like I had just come out from the depths of an ocean. My body was shivering but there was no sign of water except the sweat I had soaked myself in.

My hands were quivering so I held them together, hoping to control the incessant shaking. Before doing anything else, I dried the sweat myself and got on my feet.

But wait a fucking minute. What am I doing on a grey bed?

My eyes widened as I looked around me, trying to figure out where I was. The walls of the king-sized bedroom were grey and the curtains were drawn, making everywhere dim. The floor was carpeted in a warm cozy cream color… the closets and doors were cream as well. The room was so calm that I wanted to drop back into bed and sleep but… where the fuck was I?

I felt a tinge in my left arm and saw a little dent from a cut. My memories came flooding back and I remembered being injected there… with some kind of sleeping shot. They must have brought me to this place.

I’ve got to get out.

‘This should never have happened! If you just listened to me, Arie…’

‘Ev, please stop. Just stop. Scolding isn’t going to get out of this. Why don’t you help me out instead of screaming your fucking head off?’

She was quiet for a second before speaking. ‘Fine, but you’ve got to start listening to me from now on.’

I rolled my eyes. ‘Whatever.’

I rushed up to one of the curtains and threw it down to see nothing but thick bars of metal. I went up to the second and third but it was the same infuriating thing. Irritated, I went to the door and tried to get it open but I wasn’t surprised when it didn’t budge.

“Who the fuck does he think he is? Locking me in here!”

‘A-arie, did you er… remember what-what I said?’

I wish I didn’t. I felt the heat of the bond from the first time we met. Speaking of the first time we met, what the fuck was what? A terrible first impression. He just barged in and forcefully marked me. I had no idea he was my mate and I was so scared that I would be lonely forever.

But now that I think of it, I’d be better off alone if that prick was the one the moon goddess tied me with.

I dropped onto the bed, thinking about it. Thinking about everything I had done. Mom and dad don’t know where I am. They’ll be worried sick about me and if they knew I was in the hands of this dangerous Alpha—who was unfortunately my mate—that would make them madder.

Yesterday, I prayed they wouldn’t find me but now, more than anything, I wanted them to. My dad is the number one Alpha in the wolf territories. Moonstone is the greatest pack so far. He’d set his pack on fire if he ever knew he kept me captive.

But first, I need to find a way to get out of here. For the first time that I’d been in this dim lifeless room, I noticed a drawer that was a few meters from the right side of the bed, resting on the wall.

Cautiously, I walked up to the grey drawer and the first thing I noticed was this black thing… sitting peacefully on it. When I was close enough, I realized that it was a thick black ring with a black gem on it and some weird symbols rhythmically inscribed around it.

I picked up the ring and was immediately burnt on touch. It was so freaking hot.

‘What is it, Arie?’

I watched my burnt hand heal and turned back to the ring. I knew what the ring was and the Alpha family it belonged to. Everything made sense now. The dark aura, his unreal super strength that was crazy even to werewolves, his maddening gorgeousness and… and… every other fucking thing.

I was glad I listened in class for this one. The ring belongs to the Storm family and the present heir of the Silverclaw pack is Alpha Adrian… Adrian Storm.

This feeling of comprehension hit me like an arrow. It couldn’t be. It just couldn’t.

I’m Adrian Storm’s mate! The fucking Adrian Storm.

‘Oh goddess, why do you like playing tricks on my family?! Why?! Why me?!’

I gasped in astonishment when I heard a click, saw the doorknob shake, and looked up at the person who had now entered the room.