Insight

Onyx came out of the door a few minutes later. She smiled at the Luna before getting called into the yard. Leigh needed her to settle a debate of some kind with Scott. As she bounced away, Eve heard light footsteps approaching. She knew who it was before she saw them.

“Callie. Hard to sneak around when you walk like a mammoth.” The Luna stated aloud.

Callie had dark brown hair, which she’d cut short into a pixie style. The tips of her strands had been dyed deep red, like blood. Her olive green eyes and soft, curvy figure made her look approachable. Though, Eve knew that wasn’t at all true.

“Who said I was sneaking around?” She scoffed.

“Me. I also said you suck at it.” Eve retorted with a small smile.

“Like you can do better. You are round enough to have your own gravitational pull.” Callie laughed at her own joke.

“You’re as hilarious as I am skinny.” She sighed. “What do you want?”

“Besides your death?” She asked happily.

Eve heaved herself to her feet. She glared at Callie, waiting to see the real reason the woman had come to bother her.

“You’re a weight around the neck of our Alpha. It’s disgusting.” Callie eventually stated.

“Your Alpha or your boyfriend? On second thought, I don’t care. You want Bastian, you can have him.” Eve gestured to the yard.

“You say that, but he’s with you every night. Don’t you feel guilty? Your mate probably won’t even want you back.” She grinned sharply.

Eve’s chest felt tight. She didn’t want Bastian to be obsessed with her. If Callie could take his mind off her, Eve would have appreciated it. She didn’t want to be away from Flint. She didn’t even want to be pregnant with twins. Yet, this was the situation she found herself in.

Eve took a step toward Callie, a growl escaped her throat. The power inside her was swelling, making her fingers shake. She clenched her hands into fists. Callie stepped toward her too, coming very close to her.

“And here I was thinking pregnant bitches didn’t go into heat.” She purred quietly.

Eve’s temper soared. She wanted to hit her, but she knew she was too weak to do any real damage. The power that came rushing out of her chest pushed Callie back a step. Eve moved toward her, causing her to back up again. Callie was fighting the urge to fall to her knees.

Kill her! Kill her! End her! Now! Kill! Death! The Luna's inner beast began snarling in her mind.

In an attempt to stop the onslaught of power flooding her senses, Callie lunged at Eve. She knocked into the Luna’s shoulder with a closed fist. Eve stumbled back and nearly fell. However, a pair of arms caught her at the last moment. She looked up to see Bastian wearing an unreadable expression.

“Are you okay, Evie?” He whispered in a calm tone.

“Yeah...” She nodded, confused about where he had come from.

“Good.” Bastian smiled at her and gently sat her back on the porch swing.

Shadow members had begun to gather, watching the scene unfold. Onyx climbed the steps and walked passed her brother, joining Eve on the swing. She looked the Luna over, before turning her eyes back to the others.

Bastian’s face was hard and cold like stone. He narrowed his eyes at Callie while slowly approaching her. Callie crossed her arms over her chest and averted her gaze to the ground. She was pursing her lips in annoyance.

“What the fuck are you doing?” He asked in a rumbling voice.

“Something you should have done.” She raised her glared eyes to his chest. “Putting her in her place.”

Bastian’s eyes narrowed dangerously for a moment, before he suddenly started laughing. It was a deep, bitter, grinding sound that made Eve grimace. He didn’t sound like himself. He sounded like his wolf.

“And you think you get to dictate what her place is?” His smile was tight and sharp before it fell away.

“But Bas-”

“Who am I?!” Bastian interrupted her, stepping closer to her.

Callie’s eyes widened as she looked up at him. She was surprised. She hadn’t expected him to act this way. Especially not toward her.

“Alpha.” She stated in a thin voice.

His hardened expression never gave way. It didn’t ease or falter. Bastian moved so quickly that Eve barely saw the moment he hit Callie. His fist collided with her face, knocking her back over the railing. She fell with a yelp and Bastian lept over the railing without hesitation. He landed on her with a loud thud, causing her to cry out.

Onyx stood abruptly, covering her open mouth with her palm. She knew Bastian could be violent and explosive. She just hardly ever got the chance to see him act this way. Eve stood and wrapped her arm around the teenager’s shoulders.

“Go inside.” Eve whispered.

A blow landed. Onyx flinched at the sound of it.

“Onyx. Go.” The Luna nudged her toward the door.

The young woman ran into the cabin and closed the door behind her. Eve walked down the steps, circling until she could see Callie and Bastian.

“She’s pregnant.” He gripped her throat tightly, growling at her. “I warned you not to touch her. Didn’t I?”

Callie held his wrist. Eve could see the swollen side of her face and the blood running down her skin. A memory arose, overtaking her mind.

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

“What now?” Eve asked as Bastian closed the passenger door behind her.

“Now, I have to hurt you.” He looked at her, his eyes seemed already guilty.

“Or maybe we don’t do that...?” She took another step away from him. The prospect of running away crept into her mind yet again.

“Don’t make me chase you.” He said, his expression serious. “I don’t take any pleasure in this already. I don’t want to get angry.”

“So, I’m just supposed to stand here and wait for-” At that moment, while she spoke, Eve felt a massive blow hit the side of her head.

Her vision flashed with random colors. The pain reverberated through her head, shocking her system as she crumpled to the ground. She struggled to remain awake while darkness threatened to overtake her mind. Eve was too afraid that if she lost consciousness, she would miss the following events. Bastian squatted in front of her, moving her hair from her face.

“I’m sorry about that. I really am...” He whispered to her. His tone sounded kind, before he reached down to press his fingers to her eye and check bone. “No broken bones. You’ll heal in a few day. Still, I am sorry.”

.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

Bastian had hit Eve the first time he took her. She remembered it vividly. This was when she'd nick-named him punchy. A name he'd convinced her to stop calling him, given how much he hated it. Eve knew exactly how hard his hits were. She knew how much it hurt.

Do nothing! Let him kill her! The wolf in her mind stated loudly.

She hesitated to approach. The scene in front of her gave her pause. If it had been Flint, Eve could have walked up to him without fear. But this was Bastian. He was as erratic as he was unstable. Still, against her wolf's urging, she slowly stepped toward the altercation.

"Who am I?" He growled.

"Alpha." She coughed the word.

"And you are nothing. Before you go putting people in their places, remember your own!" He snarled.

Eve timidly placed her hand on his shoulder. Bastian jerked his eyes up to her, fury was alive within them.

"She can't breathe." The Luna whispered. "Let her go, Bas."

He looked down at the woman he was crouched on top of. She was coughing and her face was turning red. Bastian looked back at Eve, as if trying to discern her reason for getting involved. He was still angry and contemplating his actions.

"Please, Bas. I've already sent Onyx inside. She's upset." Eve spoke slowly and quietly.

Bastian sighed and looked back at Callie. He released his grip on her, dropping her head hard onto the ground. He stood and placed his boot on her chest.

"You're alive because Evie wants you to be. Touch her again, and even she won't be able to stop me. I'll kill you." He stated in a firm tone.

Bastian walked away without so much as a lingering glance at Callie. He walked toward the house, pausing on the porch to silently wait for Eve.

"Don't think I'll thank you." Callie grunted, glaring at her.

"I didn't expect you to." Eve scoffed, turning away.