Chapter 12
Aurora’s POV
My back went ram rod straight, every muscle I had tensed. I didn’t know who this was. I didn’t even know where I was. Panic set in and I tried to send an SOS message to Alex through our mate bond but got only silence in return.
“Don’t be alarmed, I won’t hurt you little one.” The voice said again. I stayed poised hoping I was enough to fend him off if this came down to a fight, and prayed for Alex to find me quickly.
“Who are you?” I snapped trying and sound fierce. “I am nobody.” He stated with a sorrowful edge to his voice that didn’t make sense. “How do you know my name?” I snapped again. “You look so much like your mother.” Everything ounce of anger disappeared, making way for stunned silence.
He was tall and broad, a wolf of pure muscle and power. I would have no chance against him in a fight. His coat was a warm brown with a lighter sandy coloured underbelly, he had a long scar that ran over his left eye blinding it white but the other a soft honey colour.
His appearance was intimidating and his size frightening, but there were no malice in him. Well none that I could see or sense. “Why do you say your nobody when clearly you are an alpha?”
“I am indeed an Alpha wolf, but with no pack to lead, I am a nobody.” He said this so matter of fact that it left no question in my mind that he was a rogue, like myself. “How do you know my mother?” I asked suspiciously, eyeing him through narrowed eyes. He chuckled once. “It feels like a millennia ago when I last looked upon your mothers beauty. You have her aura and no doubt her pure heart.”
“When your mother was taken from me, your father slaughtered my pack killing almost everyone. He vowed that he would finish the rest off, if I tried to get her back. As a newly appointed alpha I had a duty to my remaining pack members to protect them and that is what I did.” He inhaled deeply and continued.
“A few years later the guilt and sorrow my heart still held nearly wiped out the remaining members. I dutifully stepped down and handed the reigns to my sister the only remaining Calisto member at the time. I never desired to take a mate after Milla, that I wouldn’t be able to provide an heir. Instead I devoted all my time to gaining as much information as I could about the forbidden magic your father is using and about the ritual he intended to perform with you.”
This was a lot to take in but I needed more, to complete the whole picture. “What did you find out?” I asked. “According to the prophecy your mother was only meant to have you, but you are a twin, one side of a whole. From what I can gather, that means that the power he wants he won’t get from just you alone. You and your brother both have a gift.”
“A gift? What gift? I can’t do anything. I’m useless, a pathetic girl that’s only good for being killed.” I rambled in a fit of frustration. ”You little one, were supposed to possess the power of both the moon and sun, but now you only hold one half of the puzzle, your brother has the other. One of you holds the power of the blazing sun and the other the eternal ice of the moon.” His cryptic answers were doing nothing to help me process and understand what he was saying.
“Have you ever noticed the glow of the moon?” I looked back up to meet his eyes. What? Thinking about his question halted my spiralling mind and sent it in a different direction. “Yes.” I answered softly. “The moon can only glow because of the suns light. They too are a pair. Just like you and your brother.”
“It is said that the moon shows it’s magnitude of power with how bright the sun glows, but don’t be deceived with how delicate it looks and forget how destructive it can be. In nature the most beautiful can be the most deadly.”
“Enough about the moon.” I snapped in frustration. “I just want to know if my father can still do this ritual on my next birthday?”
“Your father has tried many ways to try and recreate the magic that created you and failed. He even gave your mother to his brother, as he was no longer able to plant his seed within your mother’s womb, the dark magic hollowing out his body and morphing it into something dark. She had another little girl. You may have felt a familial connection to her when you met.” He didn’t let my outburst stop his story. My dumbfounded expression caused him to continue.
“Yes, you have already met. Her name is Crystal.” My jaw hit the ground. “Crystal? Is my half-sister?” The fact was too unreal, to impossible to believe. Does she even know? What will her and her father do? That other man in the office that day was my uncle? I had met family I didn’t even know existed. My thought were interrupted as he continued on.
“She was unworthy, being tainted by her own ruthless heart and cruel soul. Your father, having been unsuccessful wanted to make me a deal. He offered Milla back to me in hopes I would accept, but in exchange I would have to give him every child we may have together.” Sadness and despair was swimming in his large wolf eyes.
“I refused and he killed her right in front of me. He knew that would stain my soul more than anything else would. I have lived with that guilt ever since. And I offer my most sincere apologies to you that I couldn’t save her or prevent you from having an unpleasant childhood.” His voice dropping further into despair.
“You don’t have to apologies for something you couldn’t control alpha Calisto. My father cheated in every way possible to succeed in his own greedy ambition. I need to understand who I’m meant to be and what I can do to be able to stop him, but I cannot do it alone. Help me learn the power of this gift and train me. We need to be able to stop him, he won’t stop until he gets what he wants.” He let me finish, consideration clear on his face but nothing that indicated that he would help me. But I hoped that he knew he didn’t need to apologise to me for anything and I held no grudge against him.
“Thank you for allowing me the time to explain. However, I do not think it wise for you to go up against your father. We have no way of knowing what kind of things he is now capable of. Nor your brother for that matter. He has been raised by him and with his unknown abilities he too will have power we cannot begin to understand.” I gasped. “All the more reason for me to learn, I need to be in this just as much as everyone else. I can protect-”
“You should go back to your mate and remain hidden. Once your birthday is over we can discuss the possibility of your training and how best to deal with the threat of your father.” His voice was no longer one of sadness but possessed the timber of a true alpha. Each word lashing at me with conviction. I didn’t understand how any alphas words could affect me as I have no pack, or is that the reason why, but I knew one thing I didn’t like it.
“Fine, if you promise to help me when the time comes, then I will do as you ask.” I tried to sound as if his words held no weight against me but we both know they did. “I give you my word. I will help you. If you should ever need me, then come here and I will do my best for you.”
Alexander’s POV
I remained unmoving from the shower steading my control, she has been through a traumatic experience and I was so lost to the intoxicating desire I pushed her into almost completing the mating process. I didn’t want to force this, I wanted it to be perfect. An intimate moment between us not rushed.
“What the fuck have you done?” A booming pissed off voice shouted inside the small bathroom. I snapped my head up to the direction of a furious Shay. “What?” I was caught off guard by her anger in my lost moment I had no idea what was going on. “Shay calm down – Oh shit. Shay get out of here while he’s… like that.” Cole’s voice started out commanding and switched to awkwardness in seconds. I still didn’t have a clue what was going on. Why were they up here in Aurora’s bedroom. “You might wanna…” He trailed off before leaving the small bathroom. I looked down following his pointing and was met by a visual of my very erect member.
Quickly switching off the water and wrapping myself in a towel I exited the bathroom. Shay pushed hard at my chest her anger still prominent on her features. “What did you do?” She screamed again as Cole pulled her away from me from around her waist, she struggled against his hold wanting to get to me again. “Why are you shouting at me?” I looked around the attic room and saw no Aurora. “Where’s Aurora?” Now my voice was the one climbing in octaves.
“We don’t know she ran out of here without a word, shifting as she jump out the back door. Her transformation as she jumped was awesome, you should have seen it.” Cole explained in his normal jovial way but I stopped listening after the words ‘ran out,’ my blood ran cold in my vein and my body began to vibrant with not just anger but swarms of guilt, loss, and anguish.
I was in motion seconds after running the length of the house and not stopping. I switched forms as I sped out the door and in the forest within 2 minutes. Following her trail, just like that day I met her and played hide and seek with her. Accept this time it wasn’t driving me into a frenzy, it was taken over so completely with the need to find her, know she is safe, that I was on the verge of panic.
I called out to her constantly through our mind link and get nothing in return. She were too far away, she definitely put the head start to good use. I could sense she were going towards the Mercury pack territory, she wouldn’t have known this but I panicked even more and picked up my pace, they wouldn’t hesitate to hurt her.
I stopped at their boarder thinking over the consequences if I were to go in there and see if they had taken her. “I don’t think she entered their territory.” Cole said through our connection. It was followed by several other affirming acknowledgements, I too had to agree but the niggling feeling were still in the back of my mind.
I looked round at the amassed wolves all ready and awaiting my command. There were six in total enough to split into teams to search faster. “Three team. We continue on, abide by territory lines and don’t engage. If you must explain, ‘you’re going to town for clothes for the summer ball’ nothing more. I will search the mountains, Cole take Shay and search the eastern lakes. Embry, Jax and Kit go west, stay hidden from the town’s people and contact me if you see her.”
The three wolves instantly left following my orders. I kept trying to reach her but each failure was a knife to the heart. “We will find her.” Cole assured. “She must think I rejected her.” Cole narrowed his eyes. “Why would she think that?” He asked, brows knitting together more. “I pull away as we were…” The image of her wrapped around me flashed through my mind with another wave of remorse. “Not what I wanted to see but I can now understand her reaction just like you can.” He sighed. “I know. She is still hurt that is the only reason I pulled back. I didn’t want to.” He laughed. “I know you didn’t want to.” He laughed again. The predicament he found me in, in the bathroom was a testament to that. “Shut up. We have to find her.” No more words were said just action ensued.
While at the top of the mountain I could sense she had been through here, running down the slope I stopped at a snagged tuft of her white coat. Looking back up the mountain slope I could see where she slide and lost her footing before she would have caught herself here on this broken limbed tree. I called out to her again but still nothing.
I were getting increasingly frustrated with myself, if we had finished the claiming prosses I wouldn’t be having so much trouble reaching her. The mated range is infinite, as it stands now we have barely any range. I reprimanded myself over and over again as I continued to run. I didn’t stop tracking her, following the small clues she has left behind for me to find her. The river was the hardest to follow her through as I were lost for a while, but having reached the bank I soon picked up the faint sweet smell of honey in the air.
The air in my lungs were growing heavy as I pushed on, she were so close. My skin tingled with anticipation of seeing her again, heart pounding in my ears. I could touch her in seconds but even that was too long away.
Reaching the brow of the hill, my eyes finally laid on her wolf form and all the waiting was worthwhile. She had her back to me sat on her haunches just staring at a brilliant sunset. The sun was large as it began its descent in the sky. Beautiful colours of oranges, yellows and reds lit up the horizon, but all paled in comparison to her. She glowed magnificently in the moonlight, a memorising creature of the night. But this, this was a superior sight to behold. The white tips of her coat shone as if on fire themselves, flares of divine affinity. I was in awe and bowed to her magnificence.
“Never let her go. Keep her safe. Her time of ascension is near.” A strong male voice echoed in my head but I didn’t know where from. I whipped my head back and forth in search. To my far right in the distance I saw the strong, authoritative posture of a brown wolf. I nodded in acknowledgment to his words, but said nothing and watched as he ran from sight. His words were of a foreign topic but even without his words I vowed to never let her go again and I would always keep her safe.
I walked forward and sat beside her as she continued to watch the sun set behind the landscape of woods, vast fields, and distant towns. Her posture never changed but came closer as she rested her head on my shoulder and I leaned my head atop hers. “I’m sorry if I upset you earlier.” I began my deepest apology but she stopped me. “I’m sorry too. I overreacted and ran.” I nuzzled my head over hers getting closer to her.
“I love you.” Were the only words that seemed to be left to say. A hum of contentment and joy rang clear in my head, causing my heart to swell. She lifted her eyes to look into mine, happiness sparked in the pale blue of her irises. “I love you too.” I licked her muzzle and she crinkled her nose wiping the wetness from her with her front paw.
I laughed before springing at her and landed several more sloppy licks while she were pinned under me from the flat of her back. Intensity once again surrounded us and I bumped my nose to hers. Both of us using our longing to shift back to human form, her hand now rested on my cheek, cupping it in tenderness. Slowly she brought my face down to hers in a fire igniting kiss, the passion drove all my instincts to their wits end. Arousal thick in the air, I shifted slightly fully over her and positioned myself between her thighs. Slowly sinking inside her it felt as if my insides had ignited into the flames that surrounded her earlier.
She breathily gasped, I could feel her adjusting to me, slowly withdrawing I repeated the process of sinking into her heat. Her soft moans spurring me on and I slightly quickening my pace. Her nails dug into the skin of my shoulder, another wave of fire erupted.
I held myself back wanting her to become comfortable, and savouring this significance step we have just taken with each other into becoming true mates, bonded for eternity. I kissed her pouting lips before moving down her jaw and neck. A louder gasped moan escaped her as I kissed the mark I left on her delicate skin. Her back instantly ached, pushing her body even more into me and tightened her walls around my shaft, causing a raucous moaned curse to pass my lips as I squeezed my eyes closed in pleasure while still holding back.
Her pert breasts pushed into my chest, peaked nipples begging for attention. Sucking one into my mouth I teased it with my teeth, my name leaving her in a moan dwindled the last of my control. It was the first time my birth name has been called at such an intimate moment. I was glad it was her that had the honours.
I took hold of her hip driving myself deeper, taking her faster, harder, unable to continue with the slow pace I had originally set. We were in complete sync. Heart beats aligned as one, bodies and minds. The waves of pleasure, and increasing heat, elevated my body into a state I’ve never felt before while with a woman.
The power connecting us as mates is strong, I feel her not only physically but mentally and emotionally. I feel her pleasure as if it were my own, it amplifying everything that I am already feeling within this intense moment. Her continued and growing needy moans, wanting to find a release was building my own, pushing us both higher and over the edge.
Coming down from that kind of heady high was just as strong as feeling my orgasm mixed with hers. I rested my head on her shoulder, panting hard to catch my breath as piercing teeth sunk into my neck. Causing a second wave of pleasure to ignite and spread through my veins.
She licked my blood from her lips, looking up to me through hooded lids, as we stared into the depths of each other’s souls. “More.” She said as she flipped us over and sank herself back down over me once more.