The Aftermath

Lilac

Zion’s demon form towered at over eight feet tall and was built of pure muscle. He dwarfed all the other wolves, except for Kyril’s lycan, which now stood ready to do battle.

“Our business remains unfinished, little Luna.”

Zion’s voice was now a gurgly deep bass that sounded more animal than human.

Turning back to Kyril, he let out a hellish laugh that echoed off the trees in nightmarish delight.

A growling noise came from the demon’s stomach, and in one mighty belch, wild green flames spewed from his mouth.

Kyril threw up his arm to try and shield his face, but the fire charred his fur and sent his soldiers diving to the ground.

Sapphire had pulled Lilac behind a tree, but she had still felt the intense blast of heat blow by her face.

The foliage around Lilac sizzled and smoked in the aftermath of Zion’s flame burst. The stench of burnt hair hung in the air.

“He’s gone!” shouted one of the soldiers.

“Alpha, what are your orders?” cried another, eager for action.

Lilac turned toward her mate, waiting to hear his response.

KYRIL

More howls echoed through the trees as reinforcements descended upon them.

Soon he would have two hundred wolves and lycans at his disposal. But he knew that every second he waited, the further Zion was from capture.

Kyril was no fool. He knew that if Zion had wished it, he could have burned him alive.

The demon’s stunt with the fire was to mask his scent.

Raising his nose into the air, Kyril could barely smell anything over the smoldering fur and foliage. Still, what choice did he have except to pursue him?

“Fan out and hunt him down,” he ordered. “The rest of the guard will be close behind. I want him brought back alive!”

Once Zion was captured, perhaps he could get answers to the questions that were burning inside his mind:

Where had Zion been all these years, and what had left him so disfigured?

Most importantly, how was he going to protect his mate?

~My mate! Where is Lilac?!~

Kyril whipped his head around, frantically scanning for his little flower. He had no idea if she was hurt or what Zion had done to her before he arrived.

“Lilac!” he shouted, terror gripping his heart.

“I’m over here, Kyril,” she called, running out from behind her tree and jumping up into his arms, kissing him passionately.

When she pulled back, she noticed the sticky, blistered skin where he had been burned.

“You’re hurt! We need to get you to a healer.”

“I’ll be fine,” he grumbled. “What about you? Your hair is matted with blood.”

Lilac touched her fingers to the back of her head and winced in pain. “I hit my head against a tree. It must have left a cut.”

“Alpha!” shouted Jon, bounding through the brush. “I’ve come with the rest of the men. Where is the rogue? Did you kill him?”

“It was a demon. He fled into the forest,” Kyril replied. “I’ve sent the others ahead. Follow with the rest of the men.”

“As you wish, Alpha.”

“Jon,” Kyril said, grabbing him by the shoulder. “Be careful. He’s a deorc demon.”

Jon nodded in understanding.

Deorcs were the most dangerous order of demon. In addition to breathing fire, their claws and teeth administered a nearly lethal poison that could leave its victims paralyzed.

“Now I wish it was just a vampire,” Jon replied, surveying the scorched flora. “Did he say why he’s burning down the forest?”

“He’s after her,” Kyril replied, motioning to Lilac.

A confused look spread across Jon’s face. “Alpha, I don’t understand.”

“We’ll speak later.”

“As you wish,” Jon replied, bowing his head in submission then tearing off into the forest.

Kyril returned his attention to his mate. Her safety was the only thing on his mind.

He had promised that he would never let anything happen to her, and he thanked Selene that she had shown him mercy that evening.

Considering the circumstances, he was lucky he’d stopped Zion before he had the chance to truly harm his mate.

“Let’s get you home,” he said, holding her tightly against his chest.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and nodded.

“Who is he?” she whimpered as they began to trek out of the woods.

Kyril continued in silence, contemplating his response. He was afraid of what she might think if he told her the truth.

“That’s for another day,” he answered.

Lilac

Lilac felt she had the right to know, but she trusted he would tell her when the time was right. As the adrenaline wore off, her body began to feel the full impact of the injuries she had sustained from being so roughly handled.

Exhaustion set in, and sleep pulled at her eyelids.

She tried to fight it, but could not deny the needs of her body. The motion of Kyril’s gait rocked her softly as she drifted off with her head resting on his shoulder.

***

Lilac sat alone in her room, reading.

The setting was familiar but somehow off. It felt smaller, almost claustrophobic. But this was the bed she grew up sleeping in.

~That’s it. I’m in my old room.~

She set her book down and hopped off her bed, inspecting the rest of her belongings.

~How did I get here? Wait, if I’m home that means...my family!~

Lilac ran to her bedroom door and tried to turn the handle, but the door wouldn’t budge. Her door had never had a lock, so she had no idea what would cause it to stick.

“Mother, Father, Ales!” she shouted while pounding on the door. “Why won’t my door open?”

She waited for a response, but none came.

“Kyril? Is anyone else here?”

In response, the door to her closet creaked open.

“Hello?”

She turned around and pushed her back against the wall.

“Ales, if this is a joke, it’s not funny.”

Curiosity getting the best of her, she slowly walked toward her closet.

Reaching out her hand, she was about to pull the door open when a foul, red hand shot out from the darkness and grabbed her wrist.

The room suddenly became drowned in shadow, and out of the closet emerged Zion, his merciless, red eyes beaming at her.

She shrieked in terror and began to call for her family, her mate, anyone who could help her.

Breaking free of his grasp, she ran to her bedroom door and yanked on it with all her strength, but she fell to the ground as Zion grabbed her.

“Get away! I’ve done nothing to you! Why do you want to harm me?”

“Your mate holds all the answers,” he replied, bending down and putting his hand around Lilac’s neck. “This will only take a moment.”

As his grip began to tighten, Lilac felt her body shake and Kyril’s voice drifting in and out in the background.

“Lilac! Lilac, wake up!” he implored.

~But I am up~, she thought.

“Lilac, wake up!”

She awoke to the feeling of someone holding her tightly, so tight it was almost unbearable.

Her eyes fluttered open to see her mate kneeling over her, his hands clasped firmly to her shoulders.

“You started screaming in your sleep. What were you dreaming about?”

It took her a moment to put everything together. “I...I was having a nightmare.”

“Clearly,” he said, rolling over next to her. “What happened?”

“I was back in my parents’ house, and he came for me...Zion.”

Kyril’s eyes grew concerned. “He’s gone now. I’m going to make sure that he never touches you again.”

He lifted his bandaged hand and traced her cheek with his fingertips.

Her eyes wandered to the brown curls that messily framed his face. Placing a hand on top of his head, she ran her fingers through his locks, softly combing it back until she could see his entire face.

“I know,” she replied. “I just can’t get him out of my head.”

“Maybe we can change that,” he replied, sliding his hand down to her bum. “You know your touch... it does things to me, little flower.”

She cocked her head slightly to one side, giving him a puzzled look.

“Things?” she curiously asked.

“I can show you if you’d like.” A devious smile stretched across his face.

Lilac’s eyes widened as she shook her head, not wanting to know what scandalous things he could be referring to.

Instead, she mustered up the courage to ask him what she had been dying to know.

Crawling closer to him, she laid her head on his chest and adjusted herself comfortably. “Mate, I need to ask you something,” she began.

“Ask anything you desire,” he replied, rubbing small circles on her lower back.

“Who is Zion, and why did he try to hurt me tonight?”

Kyril ceased drawing circles, tensing at the question.

He wrapped his large arms securely around her. He carefully maneuvered Lilac off his chest and onto the bed before sitting up.

She searched his face for answers.

“Kyril? Please, tell me,” she said with a pout.

With a hesitant nod, he spoke. “Zion was once my brother…”