12: Midnight Harrows Den

The ride is suffocating, literally. The wolves suck up all the fresh air and their body heat fills the SUV turning it into a sauna. Amelia refuses to look at any of them and she clings to my side as if I could protect her.

I silently wish I kept one of the werewolf repellants I gave Avery for myself. It wouldn’t help the situation and would definitely only make it worse, but it would give me a false sense of strength that I could use right now.

When the paved roads turn to dirt, we’re close. I’ve never been to the packs home turf. Caleb never brought me, either he wasn’t allowed or he didn’t want to. Maybe a little of both. He’s told me about it though. Apparently, enough to tell me we’re close.

And we are. It seems like not even five minutes later we come to a stop in the woods. The wolves quickly file out, but Amelia refuses to leave. One of the animal chimes, “welcome home...well...at least one you.”

I pry myself out of her death grip and exit the car. She stares at all of us loitering just outside, wide doe eyes. She comes to her senses realizing if she doesn’t get out they’ll make her. As soon as she leaves the car though, she grabs a hold of my arm again. Our feet find a matching pace as we follow the wolves deep into the den.

Eyes, so many inhuman eyes, follow us as we march down the beaten path. From what Caleb did tell me I never perceived this place to be what it is. It’s almost like a summer camp, living off the grid type of setup. Cabins, large and small are scattered throughout the clearing and some just beyond the thickening treeline. The rushing sound of water is off in the distance.

The three wolves lead us straight to one of the biggest cabins in the clearing. Marcus. The second we enter I see Caleb with a younger, skinnier, prettier girl on his arm. She’s obviously the girl Marcus is forcing down his throat, but not his destined mate otherwise Caleb wouldn’t be eyeballing me, silently scolding me for whatever it is that I got myself into. If she were his mate, he wouldn’t even acknowledge me, I would be nothing to him.

I try to keep the rolling of my eyes or the glare from reaching my face. They knew I was coming. This was all set up to prove a point. Caleb is with a wolf, Caleb is suppose to be with a wolf. See it, learn it.

Marcus sits in the center of a plush couch, he quickly rises to his feet when we come to stand before him. Regrettably, the flash of his naked flesh burns it way into my brian. Ugh. The repulsion sends a shiver down my spine.

“Hazel. So nice to see you again.” He lies.

“You as well Marcus. It’s been too long.” I lie. Our lies are an exchange of words to please the other people that surround us.

A joyous and favorable alpha and an understanding and pushover witch.

“I see you stumbled across one of our own.” His voice, for the first time, is gentle. Man, he’s really putting on the show.

“Apparently.” I say unamused.

Caleb lets out a grunt of displeasure. Marcus shoots him a glance, a smug smile on his face before he laughs. The sound causes me to cringe. It’s a sound that doesn’t sound well from a big bad wolf, humorous laughter. “You always told me how feisty this one was.” Marcus says still laughing at something only he finds funny. “No wonder you have a thing,” he says ‘thing’ in a loathsome tone, “for this one.”

For a witch. He wants to say, ‘no wonder you have a thing for this witch’. But he doesn’t because he doesn’t want to be perceived as hateful in front of Amelia, who still clings to my arm. As far as I know, Marcus probably thinks that I got my witchy claws into her and that’s why he’s putting on the charm. To make me seem like the lying fool. To make it seem that werewolves aren’t that bad.

But Amelia is frightened beyond anyone’s control because the man that shed his human skin for fur, chased her down and clawed her to the ground only to straddle his naked body atop her was now standing before her. Who wouldn’t be freaked out by that.

But Amelia isn’t Marcus’s mate, otherwise, she’d be in heaven right now. No her supposed wolf isn’t present just yet.

“I welcome you to your new home and family. My name is Marcus, your Alpha.” His greeting is met with silence. “And your name is?”

More silence. I give her a nudge. “Amelia.” She stutters out.

“What a beautiful name.” His hand shoots into the air, “Jordan,” he shouts and a young wolf scampers up. “Why don’t you take Amelia for a stroll through the compound, introduce her to everyone that’s here.” An unsaid meaning to his statement, hopefully her mate is here to keep her in control, because she won’t be leaving.

“I want Hazel to come with me.” Amelia’s voice the loudest I’ve heard from her. It’s shaky and pitchy, but firm and demanding. It causes Jordan to come to a halt and look from me to Marcus.

“That’s unnecessary. You’re safe here.” Marcus’s eyes have a coldness to them as looks to me. “Hazel needs to go back from wherever it was she was at.”

“Mystic Moon.” You would think that he would remember the name. It has the word moon in it.

“I’ll take her back.” Caleb quickly offers.

“No, I’m capable of taking her back. I brought her, I can get rid of her.” Leader of the wolf pack that barged into Mystic Moon steps up. His words poorly chosen. I can feel Amelia tense up at my side.

And we all can see the rage boiling underneath Caleb’s skin as he take s a step forward, the girl at his side quickly forgotten. “I already offered.”

Marcus just exhales in boredom, clearly unamused that a witch is getting everyone into a tissy. “Caleb, did you forget that you and Gloria are having dinner with myself and Maybelle tonight. Dominic is capable of bringing her back.”

“I’ll be back before then.” Is all Caleb says still eyeballing Dominic.

“I can go with her, Amelia, and walk around with her.” The girl that had been hanging on Caleb, Gloria steps forward. Her voice is angelic and sweet. She looks right at Amelia, “If that’s okay?” She asks her.

I can tell her sweet charm is working, because Amelia’s doe eyes look from me to Gloria and back to me. I give her a nod of my acceptance, because I have to leave. I’m not welcome here and her bringing a witch with her on a walk about will only put a target on her back.

Amelia leaves with only two glances back as Gloria and Jordan, on either side of her, walk her out. The second the door shuts Marcus’s facade drops. His stone cold eyes stare at me, a sharp exhale of breath as if he’s already tired of me.

“I should thank you for bringing her.”

“She came to us, like the other one did.” I’m not sure if that’s the Maybelle he spoke of or not.

Alpha’s have a tendency to take on more mates. They say it’s for the benefit of the pack, but it’s not. They just enjoy having more than one woman at their beck and call.

Caleb rushes me and harshly grabs my arm at my snotty reply.

“And they’re so very stupid for doing so.” He stalks back to the couch, plops down on the cushion. “Don’t worry, once they’re here, in the midst of the pack, they understand that this is where they should be.”

Or they make them understand, is what he wants to say. I immediately start to feel worried for Amelia, but Caleb’s gruff voice cuts the thoughts short.

“Marcus.” He bows his head before turning away nearly dragging me behind him.

I try my best to keep up, but his grip is starting to burn and my feet start to stumble more and more. I slap his arm and wiggle out of his grasp. “Would. You. Let. Me go.” Thankfully, we’re at his car and not too many wolves are watching us. I’m sure they know all about how Caleb has a thing for a witch. I’m sure Marcus made a subject out of him.

Caleb doesn’t say anything as he whips the door open and tosses me inside. The brutal gesture gets a few smiles from the loitering bodies. He still doesn’t say anything until we're back on paved roads.

“What the hell were you thinking?”

“What? I didn’t ask for this. I went to work, Gretchen told me I had an appointment, she was my appointment, then they showed up. It’s not my fault the girl was scared.” This is Caleb. Always blaming me. The pack is always right and Hazel is always wrong.

“What did I tell you about getting into trouble. Let them have the girl. Who cares.” Caleb lectures me.

I care, but I don’t say that, instead I go the petty route. “You could’ve just let Dominic, whoever he is, bring me back. Then you and Gloria could’ve had more time to get ready for your dinner plans. Is that why you’re so angry, because I barged in on your newfound romance?”

The squeal of tires pierces my eardrums and I struggle against the whiplash from him slamming on his breaks. I try my hardest to remain strong against his glare. “You are so stupid.” He hisses at me.

“What? No.” I shake my head unable to comprehend what the hell is happening, but all I can say is, “No.” And I open the car door and run out into the street.

We’re still on country roads, thankfully, no traffic is around to run me over as I stalk down the middle of the street. I hear the engine roar and I wait for him to speed past me, but he doesn’t. Instead I hear the crunch of gravel and a car door open. Great.

My short legs have nothing on his long ones or his werewolf speed, before I know it he has me in his grasp and he heaves me over his shoulder carrying me back to the car. I shout for him to let me down, but he ignores me as he grumbles in reply.

“You can be so stupid.” He repeats again. “Do you really think that I think so little of you? I loved you and I’m the asshole. You’re the one that pushed me away and now you have a piss fit when you see me another girl that Marcus demands I be with.”

We reach the car, my arms tired from fighting and my brain dizzy as all the blood rushes to my head. When he finally flips me over onto my feet I sway from side to side with dizziness. With all my might I punch him the chest, but it hurts me more than it hurts him. “I hate you.”

And then the expected happens. Our fight turns into something else. His hands roughly grab my face as his lips crash into mine. Our hands grope each other in desperate need. He heaves me up off the ground, wrapping my legs around his waist and pins me against the car.

It takes a few minutes for me to realize we can’t do this on the side of the street. We aren’t animals...well at least I’m not. “Marcus is right.” I say between our pressed lips.

Caleb’s mouth breaks away from mine, disappointment on his face. He knows Marcus is right too, but for some reason we’re both stupid enought to go against what is right. We both get back in the car, the drive back to the city seems shorter than the ride to the den.

Caleb parks out front of Mystic Moon. With the door wide open, I pause. “Have fun on your dinner date.” I say before fully hopping out of the car. I slam the door shut before he can protest.

He doesn’t fight with me and for the first time, he does the smart thing and leaves. I stand outside Mystic Moon, the sun fully set now, the cool air giving me a chill. My eyes look up from the dirty sidewalk to stare across the street. My heart plummeting into the depths of my acid filled stomach.

Maybe Caleb should be Gloria, because I have issues of my own. Gabriel slowly crosses the street heading straight for me with a cocky smile on his face. “What have you been to, little witch?”