Chapter 12: Trouble in Paradise

Rhys’s P.O.V:
A vicious growl tore through me as I watched Zyane about to do the unthinkable.
The growl distracted Zyane enough to snap his attention towards me, but all he did was growl at me in rage before turning back towards the cowering girl he had trapped under him by force.
Knowing that I was the closest one to him, I jumped up on top of one of the rocks and in one swift motion, landed right behind Zyane and sank my teeth into his shoulders to rip him off of the girl and throw Zyane away from her.
I turned towards Zyane as he recovered from his shock. I saw Mikalya take a protective stance in front of the girl, but she didn’t interfere. She knew that this fight was between me and my packmate and her interference could only cause trouble. But damn she had every right to pound Zyane to the ground for the little stunt he was about to pull off. The girl was clearly not feeling the mating bond and he had let his wolf take over.
‘You should leave with her.’ I told Mikalya through the Alpha’s mind link and for once, she agreed.
‘He’s not getting away with this,’ came her gritted out reply. ‘Get him to the pack house. He’ll be spending some quality time in the dungeons.’
And for once, I didn’t argue with her. She was right; Zyane deserved it and so much worse.
He jumped right up from his slumped positing against the rock I’d thrown him into, but before he could chase after the women, I stopped him in his path.
“She’s my mate!” He growled at me, his fangs lengthening and his fingers clawed.
‘She doesn’t even recognize the mating bond!’ I spoke to him through the pack link before transforming back to my human counterpart. “Are you out of your fucking mind? Mikalya is my mate too, but do you see me trying to force a mating bond on her?”
But Zyane wasn’t ready to listen to reason. His eyes glowed from the inside with the golden gleam of his wolf and he came at me with his teeth bared, claws ready to draw blood. My advantage was that he wasn’t concentrating properly and his wolf was unfamiliar with the terrains. If there was anything I’d learned about these lands from last night’s run with Mikalya, it was that these rock formations didn’t have any patterns. They were everywhere and they were of varying shapes and sized. And that was why Zyane tripped over one such rock and fell on the ground before he could even lay a finger on me.
I trapped him with his hands behind my back and dragged him with me all the way back to the pack house. It was easy this time to find directions because Mikalya had passes through the same course not long ago and her scent guided me back to the pack house. But when I reached there, I found two women in all black clothing already waiting for us at the doorstep. One of them handed me some fresh new clothes while the other grabbed hold of a growling Zyane and dragged him inside. I pulled on the clothes and quickly followed them inside.
This sure meant trouble in this snow covered paradise.

Mikalya’s P.O.V:
“What happened?” Belle asked in a concerned voice as I came into the kitchen to get some turmeric infused milk for Aya to help calm her down.
“Zyane is her potential mate.” I told her and a knowing look passed over her face. She instantly went over to the stove to heat up some milk.
“The men of the WildRain pack have always been impulsive, that much I can tell you from experience,” Belle shook her head as she poured the milk in a tall glass and added some turmeric with a dash of saffron. “But I didn’t think they would be this rash.”
“Rhys stopped him,” I let her know. “Aya is unharmed but she is scared.”
“Poor girl must be traumatized.” Belle said in a whisper and my hands curled into fists. “Now, now! Don’t go blaming yourself little girl, you are doing the best as you can. You should know that you can’t protect her from everything.”
“I know,” I uncurled my fists so I could take the glass from Belle. “I just wish I had been there for her.”
“Then be there for her now,” she patted my head in a motherly gesture. “Go take care of her.”
“I will.” I said as I left the kitchen and walked back to Aya’s room.
Just as Belle had said, Aya had been distressed about what had happened earlier. She had clung to me the entire time as we walked back to the pack house and it had been very difficult to leave her alone. But now she was finally in the shower, taking a warm bath and I had taken the opportunity to come and get her some milk. I walked in just in time as Aya came out of the bathroom.
“Here,” I gave her the glass of milk. “Drink this and get some sleep. It’s pretty late.”
Aya just nodded and taking the glass from me, drank all of her milk in one go. I sat on the bed next to her as she got under the covers and I pulled them tight around her.
“Will you stay with me?” Aya asked in a small voice.
“Of course, love.” I weaved my fingers through hers as she closed her eyes and fell into a restless sleep. I’ll deal with Rhys and Zyane tomorrow, but right now, Aya needed me and there was nothing more important to me in this world than her wellbeing.