Chapter 3: Shackle

IT WAS the first time that there had been a mark on a human. Suddenly, I felt like my head was going to explode. Does this mean that this despicable human was my mate?

Oh, God. My breathing hitched. Out of billions of people in the world, why him? What kind of nasty trick was this?

“Darling, the priest was asking you a question. You can stare at my face all you want after the wedding. But right now, kindly give him an answer, all right? We’ve made the priest wait long enough already. Have mercy. If we make him wait more than this, he might pass out before he could give us his blessing.”

Luther uttered those words tenderly. It was meant to be a joke but nobody laughed since the threat in his eyes was impossible not to notice. The guests were beginning to mumble and my pack was now worried, too. I took a deep breath and pulled myself together as I glanced back at the priest who repeated the question.

Not long after and I found myself saying, “I do.”

Luther smiled victoriously as he put the ring on my finger. I stared at it for a while. Because of the mark, all of a sudden, that gold tiny thing felt like a shackle to me that for a second, I found it hard to breathe. But no, I should not let the mark affect me. And the pack must not know about it.

It was only a mark which Luther didn’t even know about. It didn’t matter if he had the mark. I will never accept him or any human as my mate. I will be the first wolf to ever break the bond for my pack, for our fallen brethren, and for the wolves’ future generation.

This time, the Alpha’s words resonated in my head when it was my turn to put the shackle on Luther.

“Spy on him, Xandra. Watch his every move. I have this feeling that the Governor’s son is the key to all of this. Make him fall for you so much until he spills all of his family’s nasty secrets. We have to know what kind of bullets they are using exclusively for the wolves. If it turns out that there is another supernatural at work here, then when the right time comes, all the packs will fight with us and together, we will hunt down that person and make him pay along with the humans. We will send them all to the afterlife where they will meet our brethren whom they slaughtered without mercy.”

Those words were all I needed to remember to get through this nightmare. Humans had never hesitated to use wicked measures to achieve their goal. And this marriage was the wolves’ way of returning the favor. In the beginning, the wolves were the ones who helped in their war against vampires. And when they won, they plotted to kill the wolves and pushed them away from their homes which started the three decades of battle between the humans and the wolves.

“With the blessings of God, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Luther, you may now kiss your bride.”

That announcement from the priest had brought me back to the present. He had a gloomy expression which could break records. I bet he was the only priest in the world right now who was not particularly happy to wed two people. Since he was also from this town, he knew about the wolves, but today must have been his first time interacting with one. It was his lucky day, he got to see not just a wolf, but an entire pack who were now scowling at him which made him shudder.

Nevertheless, the groom just ignored him. The audience, on the other hand, clapped their hands although I could hear many of them gritting their teeth.

And when Luther lifted my veil, my heart raced. Never in my life did I ever think that one day, I would be kissing a human. Much more, be married to one.

Luther’s breathing became heavy as his gazed dropped to my lips. The raw desire in his eyes was evident when his fingers grazed the side of my mouth. The Luna was right. Humans were naturally weak to temptation but wolves were not supposed to be like that unless they were in heat.

So, why does my body feel feverish whenever he touches me?

“We all have things that keep us alive. Others are alive because of wealth. Some because of love. Do you want to know what mine is?” he whispered.

“Let me guess. Greed?”

A faint smile curved his lips. “Wrong. It’s you, darling. You keep me alive… for many reasons.”

And then he suddenly grabbed my waist and claimed my lips. Because I was surprised, my lips parted and he used it to his advantage to drive his tongue deep in my mouth.

My eyes widened.

(Luther)

“I JUST saw your mother. Comfort her, will you? Her eyes are now swollen from crying too much over what happened to her good son. Little did she know, ‘good’ would be the last word others will use to describe you. Heck, if devil has a name, it will be Luther Sinclair!” Kenji, my best friend, exclaimed after handing me a wine glass.

I chuckled. “What can I say? You know me so well, buddy,” I said before I glanced at my parents’ table.

True to Kenji’s words, Ma was giving off the end of the world vibe around her while Pa was the same as usual. He was busy making phone calls in one corner of the reception hall. He was probably done computing the benefits he’d gain from this alliance with the wolves and now, he was making his move.

Pa looked so composed now. His eyes were even glowing as if he had won the lottery. Who would have known that just three months ago, he had almost lost his mind because of the wolves who were now his in-laws? I shook my head when I remembered the last conversation that I had with him.

“This is madness! We don’t even know who the werewolves are anymore!” Pa said as he paced back and forth in his office. “We are surrounded by those monsters! And we can’t identify who they are among the crowd. They had infiltrated our society, that’s for sure. Your Uncle Rio said that there was a witness who had seen footages of businessmen gathering and shifting into wolves. But somebody had lost the footage before he could get a hold of it and the witness was now missing. I believe that the wolves had something to do with this! You know what to do, son. In two to three months, I will be expecting the complete list of the wolves who had infiltrated the corporate and the political sector in our country. As for your other mission, I could count on you on that as well, right?”

I nodded. “I got this, Pa. Leave everything to me.”

When I said that, only then did Pa calm down. He sighed and smiled at me as he patted my back.

“Thank you, son. Giving birth to you was the only thing your mother did right in her life. I’m glad you inherited my wits and genes.”

“Seriously, bro, I need your level of confidence in my life. You just took on the deadliest role in the world for being married to a wolf and yet, you don’t even look bothered even when you know you could die in a week if she wouldn’t give you the cure. You are really something. In the end, everything went according to your plan,” Kenji added as he sat beside me.

“There is nothing to worry about. Alexandra would give me the cure.”

Kenji frowned. “And how are you so sure about that?”

“Because just like me, she has a mission to fulfill. She needs me that’s why even if she’s itching to slit my throat, she can’t kill me yet.”

After I finished the wine, I turned to my wife who was currently dancing with her father. All eyes, especially the men, were staring at her untamed beauty as if they had been enthralled. Her reddish-brown curly hair framed the most seductive face I had ever seen in my life. Her smooth sun-kissed skin suited her perfectly. I could still remember how good her skin felt like under my touch and how incredibly sweet her lips tasted. And I would have kissed her more if only she didn’t bite my lip.

I smiled at the memory of Alexandra’s flushed cheeks after the kiss. She was rough and wild. And Kenji was right. She was a threat to my life, a sexy threat, in fact. And yet, I can’t wait to have a taste of those lips again and more… tonight in our bedroom.

When the men’s eyes drifted down to her soft curves which her dress had failed to hide, I stood up and passed my glass to the waiter before I walked towards her. It was time to mark my territory. The men immediately looked away. Thankfully, the dance was over. Alexandra’s eyes had never left mine as the crowd pretended to cheer for us. I wrapped my arm around her tiny waist as she put her arms around my neck.

I softly bit her earlobe and said, “Smile, darling. Or else, the innocent ones who will get to see our pictures from the newspapers tomorrow might get the wrong idea that you hate me.”

She sneered. “This is a free country. They can think whatever they want. But for the record, I don’t hate you, Luther. Although if we are in a war and you happened to be on my team, I’d throw you to the enemies and sacrifice you.”