IN FULL COLOUR - Dark Fantasy

Axel

When the joke of a meeting had finally ended, I kept leaning against the wall by the entrance and waited for the wolves to exit. They moved past me as if I were a figure carved into the rocky walls of the building itself.

John was one of the last people to exit and as he brushed by, I grabbed him by the shoulder of his shirt and yanked him towards me. His brows shot up at the sudden hostile motion, but I leaned in and growled into his ear, low and almost inaudible, “this was the very important meeting that couldn’t wait?”

The Beta quickly pulled a mask of confidence over his features and straightened up his posture, “why don’t you mind your own business?”

“The warriors in my training program are my business,” I replied, venom dripping from my tongue.

“Don’t you forget your place, guest,” he seethed back and jerked himself free from my grip, “I will not have you pulling the strings in my pack.”

“YOUR pack?” I asked, cocking a brow at him.

The confidence faltered from his face as he briefly glanced back into the room. A moment later, he stormed out, disappearing around the first corner of a building. When I turned, I found her staring at me with a strange expression. The victorious grin I had on, fell apart instantly and I found myself awkwardly scratching the back of my neck.

“Axel, do you have a minute?” Alpha Blake asked as he strolled out and gestured for me to walk with him.

I did not look at Gabrielle again as I nodded and fell into step with the Alpha, moving back towards the main building.

“I know all of this might seem strange to you,” he began while I pulled my mouth into a tight line, forcing myself to remain quiet, “but there is truth in what Enola said. The fae beings are very real and in time, you would be able to see that for yourself.”

I remained quiet. If I said anything now, I would probably regret it for the rest of my stay.

“You should talk to Gabby, she is the best person to speak to about this.”

“I-uh, Sir,” I began.

“Axel, just give her a chance. You could trust her; she is not like other wolves.”

I knew as her father he would say anything to make me think the world of his precious angel.

“She-she sees things that we cannot see,” he continued, considering his words very carefully.

I’ve had enough of this.

“Alpha, with all due respect,” I tried again, this time more determined to state my opinion.

But the clever Alpha wouldn’t have any of it, “dinner, tonight at 19h00. Same place as yesterday,” he interjected and turned to leave. It was apparent that he was finished with the conversation and did not care what I had to say.

I still kept moving alongside him though, so he waved me off and strode away. Only after that, did my legs stop moving and I watched as he entered a building to our left, leaving me standing there very unsatisfied with how our conversation had ended and even more confused than before.

~

That evening I made sure to arrive at our arranged dinner not a second before I had to, 19h00 exactly.

As I unenthusiastically approached the private dining room, I heard two sets of distinct voices coming from inside. The one I recognized immediately. It was sweet, melodic and caressed my eardrums with its sensual edge. For a second, I closed my eyes and took a deep calming breath letting the lustful sound of it soothe my insides. She had an effect on me, or should I say on my body, that I didn’t like. I hated the feeling of not being in control, of being utterly helpless.

“Don’t do that,” I heard her saying to the other person in the room, who seemed to chuckle at her request. From the deep sound of the voice, I could tell that it was male.

So, I pulled my shoulders back, pressed my freshly splinted hand to my stomach and entered.

Like our previous dinner, she sat at the far end of the table, completely avoiding my gaze.

My eyes scanned over her and the rest of the room as I approached the table and took a seat at the other end. Except for her, the room was completely empty, yet I was sure I had heard someone else.

She did not look up, did not even acknowledge my presence.

Who had she been talking to? Those damn imaginary fairies they keep talking about? As the thought entered my mind, a loud huff came from under the table, and I leaned down to peer underneath.

At the far end of the table, snuggled around her feet lay the grey and white large wolf I had seen with her earlier today, during breakfast. The way he was curled around her legs, almost in a protective manner did not sit well with me. Who the hell did he think he was?

Surely, he knew she had a mate, an Alpha mate for that matter. My blood warmed and I had to clench my fist to reel my anger back in. If there was something I couldn’t stand, it was disrespect towards higher ranking wolves. Probably a sentiment I had inherited from the Scott bloodline.

“Mr Scott?”

It was her.

I lifted my head and sat back casually in my chair, draping my right arm over the wooden back. Instantly pulling an Alpha mask of steel onto my face, I rid my features of any emotion and gazed at her with a bored, uncaring expression. I needed to show her that she wasn’t getting to me. That none of them mattered.

She did not cower away from my stare and spoke with her chin held high, shoulders back, “what just happened?” She asked, “what made you change your mood so suddenly?”

Before I could help myself, a frown had already formed on my forehead. This woman knew nothing about me. Knew nothing about my current state and hadn’t even looked up when I entered, yet now she claimed that my mood had changed.

“What do you mean?”

She studied me openly as she said, “just now, your mood shifted. Why?”

I couldn’t decide what to reply, so instead, I just kept quiet and stared right back at her, confident and bold. An unspoken battle between us.

When the she-wolves entered shortly after, bringing in our food, she finally looked away, breaking our intense moment. I kept my eyes fixed on her, though, watching her every move. Usually, females were quite easy for me to sum up, to read, but this one was different. I couldn’t seem to place her. She did not fit into any of my pre-constructed moulds.

The she-wolves left almost as quickly as they had appeared, and an awkward silence enveloped the room.

Gabrielle was the first to start picking at her food, probably more in an attempt to avoid conversing with me, than being urged on by hunger.

I was relieved to find that our dinner for the evening was a hearty homemade stew, with no cutting required and meat in plenty. The aroma filled the room, and it did not take much more than that to make my mouth water.

While I picked up a spoon and subtly glanced over the table to where she sat, my mind wandered back to the peasant wolf curled up around MY mate’s feet. The dark emotions within me surged again and I had to actively push the thoughts to the back of my mind to refrain myself from marching down there and throwing the mutt out. I had even imagined how I would pick him up by the scruff of his neck and fling him out with such force, he would be sliding along the shiny rocky floor outside.

My splinted hand felt uncomfortably heavy as it lay useless in my lap while I took the first bite. The soft, tender meat melted on my tongue and for the first time since I had come here, something good stirred within me. Good, even if it was just the feeling of satisfaction in enjoying an insignificant delicious meal.

We ate in silence for a long time before she finally managed to gather up enough courage to speak again.

“Did you hurt your hand today? During training?” She asked and I found her looking at me from across the table with tenderness.

“No.”

I kept on eating.

“Do you need a doctor?” She tried again.

“No.”

Her face contorted in annoyance, and I heard the deep, manly chuckle from earlier rumble in the distance. It came from her side of the room, although there was no one there. No one, except for the man-slave wolf that lay by her feet.

My fingers constricted around the spoon in my hand and I peered up at her without fully lifting my face.

“Could you kindly ask your PET to leave?” I growled, emphasizing each word.

A small smile tugged at her lips, and she glanced down at the wolf, “he doesn’t really take orders from me.”

So, it was a HE and she wasn’t the one who ordered him. He must have been under her father’s command, but ordered to do what? Keep her safe? Keep her company? Satisfy her in ways no one else was allowed to?

“There, it happened again,” she suddenly blurted, jerking me out of my thoughts, “your energy, it changed.”

“My what?” I bit out, anger already simmering inside.

I didn’t miss the slight sharp intake of breath, “I mean, your mood,” she quickly corrected, “your mood changed again.”