Chapter Sixteen

A Week Later

"What's going on, Luka? Why are we here?" My mother gives me a soft, confused smile and I smile back at her before wrapping my arm around her shoulders and kissing her cheek. She was worse, she spent more time confused than somewhat lucid and she wasn't sleeping properly according to May.

"Just watching the garden, mum. The flowers are beautiful." I gestured to the numerous flower beds with my free hand and my mum sighed deeply, relaxing into my embrace.

"They're so beautiful. I don't remember your father building this." She looked happy but bewildered and I shushed her gently.

"It was a surprise for you. I think I ruined it." I gave her a sly wink and she swatted at my chest gently.

"Oh no, you couldn't have possibly ruined it. You always love to give me flowers." She let out a happy sigh and I watched her as she stared at the garden. "When your father shows it to me, I'll pretend to be surprised. It will be our little secret, my sweet pup." She smiled up at me and I leaned over, kissing her forehead gently. She looked so frail. The wrinkles around her eyes had gotten worse and the dark smudges under them had only grown deeper.

She looked old and fragile and it the ache it left in my chest was nearly debilitating but I pushed it away and rubbed at her arm. Time. I had been given time with her and I would be a fool not to take it. I just hated watching her waste away in front of me. I felt utterly useless because despite all of the power I had been given with the Alpha position, it would never be enough to save her. Not from her illness, not from fate or reality.

"Who are we?" She asked it softly and I squeezed her gently.

"We are us and we are happy. Aren't you happy, mum?" I glanced at her and she nodded quickly, a bewildered smile on her face.

"Very happy, Luka. Where is your father?" She look at me and I forced another smile on my face.

"Probably in the office." I swallowed hard as she nodded, a small frown on her face.

"He works too much. This pack means the world to him, Derek." She paused and stared at me hard. I felt my throat close up slightly at the name and the fact she was scrutinizing me so intently as if just seeing me for the first time. "I'm sorry, Luka. You just look a lot like your brother." That was it. I didn't look like Derek or Benjamin. They had looked like our father, I looked like our mother and my heat clenched in my chest. It was already starting.

"Why are we here?" She looked around and I rubbed at her arm. Ezekiel sat up and rested his head in her lap and she chuckled softly. "Strange thing to have a dog for a pet, Luka." She scratched at Ezekiel's scars and I nodded.

"Very strange, mum." I let out a small sigh as I leaned my head against hers. We had been sitting out in the garden for nearly two hours. I looked up with a small sigh. It was starting to cloud over and I didn't want her to catch a chill. "We should head into the house." I let my arm drop and she gave me a small smile.

"What was that, Luka?" She made a small humming sound in the back of her throat.

"I said we should go into the house." I watched as she looked around as if completely puzzled as I stood up. The clouds were moving in rather quickly and I could almost smell the rain in the air.

"Where are we?" She looked up at me and I smiled at her softly.

"We are home." I watched as she nodded at that before giving me a frail looking smile. She looked so small in her wheelchair, so worn.

"Okay. Where are your brothers?" She smiled up at me and I gestured to the house.

"They are probably inside. Do you want to come with me and see?" I grasped the handles of her wheelchair and she nodded, patting Ezekiel's head. I jerked my chin and he quickly moved out of the way.

"It's a strange thing having a dog as a pet, Luka." Her eyes were on Ezekiel and I nodded.

"Very strange, mum, but you know me. Bringing home strays." At my words' Ezekiel gave me a warning nip to the back of my leg. I pressed my foot to his chest and shoved in away with a faint chuckle. I carefully pushed my mum's wheelchair back into her room.

May was tidying it up and she smiled at us both as we came in. "Well, hello Lily. How are you doing?" She looked us over and my mum patted her head gently, smoothing down her hair as if trying to make herself look presentable. I gently pushed her hands away and did it myself.

"I'm fine, May, but where are we?" The confusion was growing more apparent in her voice and I sighed

"We are where we are." I crouched down at her side and she gave me a rather befuddled smile as she placed her hands in her lap.

"Where is that, Luka?" She titled her head and I cupped her cheek in my hand. This was more than hard for me. I hated how confused she was at the world, I hated how much she forgot. I hated that she was forgetting me but I forced myself through it because she was my mum and I had time.

"The pack house." I gave her a bright smile and she patted my cheek with a delicate hand. Her grey eyes were soft as she looked at me.

"That's nice. Perhaps we can see your brothers." She bent down and kissed my forehead gently and I closed my eyes at the contact.

"Are you feeling tired, Lily?" May moved closer to us and my mum jumped slightly as if startled. My wolf whined in my head, he hated seeing her like she was. He had known her since he had formed in the back of my mind, since the moment he had understood the world around him. She was his mother just as she was mine.

"A little bit." My mum nodded slowly and May stopped before crouching beside me and taking my mum's hands in hers. I stood up slowly. Ezekiel pressed the side of his head into my leg, letting me know he was there for me.

"Would you like to have a quick nap before dinner?" May gave her a bright smile and my mum nodded slowly.

"Yes, that would be nice." She linked her fingers together and I stepped back as May quickly moved her wheelchair towards her bed. I moved to the sliding door and closed it gently before pulling the heavy curtains closed. "Do you know where we are? Who we are? I don't understand." My mum sounded small and scared and May shushed her gently.

"It's okay. We are going to have a nap, everything will be okay." Her voice was soothing and I looked over my shoulder as she gently helped my mum into the bed. I winced at how small and fragile she looked. Bones wrapped in delicate, nearly translucent skin. My wolf let out a whimper. He wanted to comfort her, to lay with her and protect her but we didn't have the time for it. Not today. I silently promised him that he could be with her tomorrow. I needed to let him be with his mother like I was.

"What's happening, May? What's happening?" My mum's voice held a note of panic and May gently shushed her as she pulled the covers over her. I moved over to the small desk and pulled out my mum's file. I scanned the contents quickly. "What's happening?" There was a small whimper from her and my wolf howled a long mournful sound in the back of my mind before he curled up in a ball. I hated seen him like that but I knew there was nothing I could do to fix his grief.

"I don't know but everything is okay. Everything will be alright." May gently soothed her worries, murmuring words of comfort as she sat on the bed beside her. "It's okay." I set the file back. There was nothing in there that I had truly wanted to see. She was declining still, none of her pills were working and her body wasn't coping with the sporadic food that we were able to give her. She needed to eat more but we couldn't force her to eat and she only ate when she wanted and that was not very often.

I moved to the door and pushed it open slowly, trying to keep quiet. Ezekiel slipped out as soon as the crack was large enough and I followed him quickly before slowly closing the door with a faint click. I pressed my forehead to the wood with a heavy sigh. It was getting harder to see her like that. To watch her waste away in front of my eyes but I knew it was better to watch her disappear than to close my eyes and miss being with her completely.

Images of running through the forest ran through my mind and I reached out, Ezekiel pressed his head into my hand and I ran my hand through his fur before I pushed off of the door. A run would do me good but I knew I didn't have enough time at the moment to fulfill that. I let out another sigh and patted Kiel's head gently before I moved towards the stairs. I had to deal with the witch that would move my territory lines before I had to go over and sign some paperwork Pisică had completed for me.

To be honest, even if she wasn't my mate, I would have wanted her for the express purpose that the female was a master at paperwork. There wasn't a form or a report that she didn't know how to fill out and she had even sorted out my bills and had everything set up so I could simply sign a line and have it dealt with. It took a lot of strain off of me to not deal with all the paperwork an Alpha was required to fill out.

I headed up the stairs, Ezekiel brushed against me as we moved together. Michael was with Pisică. I knew they didn't particularly like being separated but for some reason they were fine with being separated between Pisică and I. I liked how they were already treating her like an Alpha Female. It gave e a bit of satisfaction that she would have eyes on her even when I wasn't there. I knew it was probably a horrible thing to be satisfied about but I wasn't about to pretend I didn't like it.

Ezekiel bumped against my leg. He had shown me why he had listened so well to her. He had submitted under her authority when she had flattened him in the foyer. He knew when he had been beat and despite the fact he could easily overpower her now, he didn't. For some reason he held back, unwilling to test the limits with her. If I hadn't known any better I would have thought he was afraid of her.

I reached the office and pushed the door open right as a witch teleported into the room. I wanted to gag at the overbearing scent of roses that filled the room. I never understood why the witches always left a scent of flowers after each type of magic. The witch's hair was streaked liberally with white. It took more than a lower level coven member to move a territory line.

"Stop giving me that look." Her voice was cold but even as she looked at me. I felt my eyes water as I walked into the room, the scent of roses clinging to me rather obnoxiously. I moved over to my desk and sat down. Ezekiel hid just outside of the door. He was whimpering, his sensitive nose was burning from the smell just as badly as mine was.

"I can't help how badly that stinks." I buried my nose into my sleeve and the witch crossed her arms over her chest. Her pale eyes were looking around the room intently, as if memorizing every inch of it. Every witch was the same. The longer they held their powers, the paler they became. Their eyes turned white as did their hair. It was a good indicator for power. The witch standing in my office was more than likely over a hundred and fifty years old.

"And I can't help how much your attitude irritates me." She locked her pale eyes onto my form and I resisted the urge to shudder under the power the gaze held. Witch's power was different than that of a shifter's. A shifter's power showed your their status, their abilities and how violent or savage they were. A witch's power showed you just how quickly she could burn you alive with a flick of her wrist. Thankfully Covens did not allow witches to use their power to kill. Curse and main? Yes. Kill? No.

"I apologize..." I let my voice trailed off and she sniffed lightly. Witches were finicky about their names.

"You may call me Gran." At the rather forced words I raised an eyebrow but said nothing. It was better not to say anything about a witch's name or the one they gave you. A witch's name held power, to have a witch's name meant you had her trust and the ability to destroy her completely. I wasn't sure how one could destroy a witch with her name but it was possible.

"You are able to move territory lines, is that correct?" I looked up at her as I grabbed my rolled up map of my territory.

"It's paltry magic. Barely worth my notice." She sniffed again and I ignored her before rolling out the map. I was shifting the line so the temple was on neutral territory. It had been bothering me that I had unwillingly denied shifters access to the temple. It had taken me a week to even get the paper work to submit a request to the Witch Coven in my area and another four days before they responded. Witches certainly had their own way of doing things and their own timelines.

"I need you to shift the line to here." I traced the line I had drawn onto the map. It went around the temple but was a small enough area that it didn't bother the graveyard or the rest of the territory. I would lose maybe a half a mile of territory in total but I didn't much care for that aspect.

"Hunters will ask questions." Her voice was low and taunting and I shrugged.

"Not absorbing territory. Losing some." I glanced up at her and she tilted her head at me, her pale eyes seemed to look right through me. I hated dealing with Elder witches. They were straight up creepy.

"Strange little puppy you are." She chortled slightly and I turned back to the map.

"So I have been told." I muttered the words and grabbed the edge of the desk. Witches were straight up fucked. The older they grew, the more morally ambiguous they got. After about a hundred and twenty years they started to go a little bit grey morally. Their moral compass no longer point due north but rather swirled around to whatever direction they wanted it to go.

"After I do that, do you wish for me to complete the bounty in your house?" That got my immediate attention and I couldn't stop the snarl that escape my throat or the claws that dug into the edge of my desk. "Oh, it seems I tickled the wrong dragon but it is a lucrative bounty though..." She trailed off, a small rather wicked smirk resting on her lips. She was baiting me but with witches you could never tell if they were telling the truth or not.

"You go near her and I will tear your heart out." I locked my gaze with her and she smiled, her pale pink lips stretching into a rather inhuman grin, showing her crooked and yellowed teeth. Witches grew virtually indestructible the paler they got and a white witch's heart always brought a lucrative amount of money. Funniest part was, most of them removed their hearts on their own. I, however, was more than happy to help this witch along in the process if she tested me too much.

"I don't need my heart, puppy." There was an edge of laughter to her voice and I didn't appreciate how she was refusing to back down. No one threatened my mate. I didn't care about her status in her Coven. I didn't care about the repercussions. If she threatened my cat again, I would tear open her rib cage and remove her heart. My wolf growled low in his throat, approving the thought.

"They say that a witch's heart has her name branded onto it. I wouldn't mind seeing if it was true." I stared at her and her eyes shifted from mine, a subtle bowing out of the competition. I curled my lip up. "You will not go near my mate."

"The bounty pays well." She shrugged but did not lock gazes with me. I had forced her back that much but she was persisting. My wolf wanted our arm buried deep into her chest instead of talking to her.

"So will your heart." A lot of magic could be siphoned from an elder witch's heart. It was useful in more obscure spells but also dangerous if used wrong. Only the Old Elder witches of the Covens were permitted to use them in spells.

"Touchy." She crossed her arms over her chest and I slowly rose to my full height, staring down at her. I did not care for her attitude.

"You will not be going near my mate. You will not think more on the bounty that has been placed on her. You will move these territory lines and return to your Coven before I find myself talking to them about your behaviour." It would be the last warning I gave her. If she continued I would do as I promised. My wolf vibrated with anticipation. He wanted her to continue. He wanted her blood splashed on the walls. He wanted to create another masterpiece.

"The Coven doesn't care-"

"The Coven will care about you starting a war with Fortis. If you wish to make it to Old Elder status you will shut your mouth and speak no more about the bounty on my mate's head." The Coven hated intruders and a witch that brought a pack to their doors would be stripped of power and rank and Gran knew it as well as I did. She narrowed her eyes before moving over and snatching the map from the desk. I watched her with narrowed eyes. She had given up but witches tended to poke and prod even when it was unwanted.

"This is beneath me." She scanned the map and slipped her satchel off her shoulder. "I don't even need to feel the lines to do this." I could almost feel her disgust for the task. I could imagine that the only reason she was even here was because she was one of the newest Elder witches. They always got the worst of the tasks. I wondered which of the other Elder witches died. A Coven only ever had sixteen Elders at a time. The low level witches were bound to Covens but they could rarely, if ever, make it to Elder status.

Well that was only if the books in the study were to be believed but I had no reason to doubt them but my own experience taught me that Covens were very strict. Low level witches weren't of any importance. They used their magic as they could but to be an Elder one needed to have a connection to what they called The Source. Witches didn't believe that The Source was a god but more of it was anything and everything. It was pure energy and that was where they tapped into for their magic. Apparently one had to be born with a solid connection to it in order to wield magic. More mundane were thrown out of Covens for lack of connection than were allowed in.

It was the strangest thing. Only mundanes had the connection required to wield magic. Some were recruited by Scenters, which were witches trained to feel out the connections and find the most powerful ones. Others were kidnapped or raised in the Covens. I was more than aware that several nunneries were actually Witch Covens in disguise. It was pretty much a big invisible middle finger to the Church after the witch burnings. Funny enough, when you burn enough people at the stake, real witches tended not to forget about it. They held a grudge but when they lived to be over three hundred years old, they had a lot of time to think about those they held grudges against.

I focused on Gran as she drew on the hardwood with chalk. It was a series of various symbols and a language I knew I would never be able to recognize. She muttered under her breath as she stared at the map before turning in a circle. She looked puzzled before she spun again. "Why the fuck is your pack house built on a ley line?" She stared at me and I shrugged. I had no clue what that was. "It's messing with the directions and now I have to cast a circle. Ley lines are a pain in my ass." She started angrily muttering as she pulled out four candles and grabbed a box of salt. I watched as she drew a rather impressively perfect circle in salt before setting the candles on four points. I watched with interest. I had never seen a witch work before.

She spun in a circle before pointing at the green candle. It lit and its flame spiralled upwards rather violently, it almost touched the ceiling. "Guides and Guardians of the North. The Element of Earth. I call thee to bless and protect this circle." She snapped her hand out to the yellow candle and it did the exact came thing. "Guides and Guardians of the East. The element of air. I call thee to bless and protect this circle." She snapped her hand out to the side, pointing at the blue candle. It burst into flame as well.

"Guides and Guardians of the West. The Element of water. I call thee to bless and protect this circle." She spun around and pointed at the red candle. To my surprise it didn't star on fire like the rest. I was almost thankful because it was growing a bit too hot in the office. "Don't be stubborn." She hissed it out and pointed at it again. This time it flared brightly. The flames reaching the ceiling. "Show off." She muttered it before pointing again. "Guides and Guardians of the South. The Element of fire. I call thee to bless and protect this circle." The flames grew in intensity and she threw her hands out.

"The circle is cast! So mote it be." The flames shot out to one another, before following the circle of salt. I raised an eyebrow.

"A pentagram?" I stared at the star formation and she shrugged.

"Can't go wrong with the classics, puppy dog." She turned back to her strange circle of symbols and spun around before her arm jerked out stiffly. She froze, her mouth opening and words from an ancient language I could barely grasp, falling out. Glowing lines appeared in the room. I stared at them with interest. Gran reached out and grabbed one, wrapping it around her hand and yanking on it hard. It didn't move and she grunted before pulling on it harder. Her pale face was going red with exertion and I watched as the line gave a fraction.

"When were these put down? The fucking Middle Ages?" She grunted and yanked again. The line shifted again and I watched as she pulled it continuously, never letting up pressure. I felt something tugging in my chest as she pulled on the glowing line. She let the one go and grabbed a different one. She repeated the process and I became aware that the tugging in my chest was because my territory lines were shifting. I tried to ignore how uncomfortable it made me feel to lose some of my territory.

I watched as she let the line go and grabbed a third one and yanked on it hard. It moved quickly and she muttered to herself before she snapped the line and then pushed it. Instead of curling up like a rope it was stiff and moved forward with her hand. She seemed to adjust it a bit before she let it go and raised her hand. She closed her eyes, speaking more of that ancient language before slamming her hand down. The entire house rattled as the lines slammed down into the floor and I watched as the books bounced on the bookshelf as the line hit the ground level. Everything vibrated from the force of the territory lines moving and I blinked in surprise at the sheer power that it had.

"I remove the circle and release the Guides and Guardians. So mote it be." Gran clapped her hand once and the fire spun around and around before it seemed to be sucked into the candles, leaving not even a scent that there had even been a candle burning. Gran said nothing else as she spun her hand around. The chalk symbols on the floor seemed to peel off and swirl in the air and they were joined by the salt and candles. They all swirled around and around before sliding into her bag. An eerie silence fell before she moved over and grabbed her satchel.

"I could... remove her grandfather from the equation. Make the Bounty disappear." She gave me a considering look and I levelled her with a flat look in return.

"Covens do not abide by murder." As much as I would have liked to have Sulo Lazera dealt with. I knew better than to ask a witch for help in that department.

"A witch works her magic from the heart and those that deliberately break that tool are worth less than pigs." She shifted the satchel to her shoulder and tilted her head. "My Coven would not punish me for killing him because he has broken the rules." A maniacal grin spread across her face, twisting it into something truly frightening. Despite the fact that they were technically mundanes, witches were supernatural creatures. Their magic twisted them into something different than what they had been born as.

"Your mate is no witch but no one breaks such a pure instrument of magic. Wolf or witch, it does not matter because our hearts beat the same." She tilted her head again and shook her head, her white streaked hair swaying around her face. "Say yes and he shall be dealt with. We shall give your mate his heart in exchange for the one he destroyed. Can't say what shape it will be in. Those who dabble in the darkness never have the basic purity required to produce magic but it would be sufficient." The grin never left her face and I shook my head.

"I don't care for her grandfather but I know better than to agree to that." That much was the truth. Death magic wasn't a contract I was willing to enter into. That unusually ended up with two graves instead of one and not the one you wanted to begin with.

"Smart puppy. I suggest you answer the phone on the fourth ring. Don't want to seem too eager." She flashed me one more yellow grin before she teleported, the pungent scent of roses filled the air and I hurried over to the window and opened it quickly. A nice breeze blew in, chasing away the scent right as my phone rang.

I glanced at it and narrowed my eyes. I had just about enough of creepy witches and their magic, regardless of how interesting it had been. I slowly made my way over to the desk and looked at the phone. It rang for a fourth time before I actually reached out and picked it up. "Alpha Sterling." I couldn't help the slight suspicion in my voice as I said it. Gran had a reason for telling me about the phone call and I couldn't help but be suspicious about it.

"Alpha Sterling, it is so nice to catch you." The voice was smooth and cultured and I was reminded instantly of the Old Ways. My eyes narrowed further. "I am Sulo Lazera, former Alpha of the Torvus pack." I gripped the phone tightly, my wolf snapping and snarling in my head. I had to grit my teeth and force myself to not slam the phone down into the cradle repeatedly. "It must come as a bit of a surprise that I am phoning but I have been informed by the Hunters that my granddaughter was found in your pack." He said it smoothly and I glared at the top of the desk. If there was a way to reach through the phone and rip open his ribcage and remove his heart, I would have done so.

"Granddaughter?" I forced myself not to growl at the male on the other end of the phone line but I managed, I was also surprised at just how even the words came out. There was no sign of my inner struggle, I appreciated that.

"Yes. Shey Abigail. She's about five foot five, dark brown hair, green eyes. Probably has a very sharp attitude. She ran away from home." He said it pleasantly but there was an edge to his voice but all I could hear was her name.

Shey Abigail.

It was as beautiful as she was and as I rolled it around in my mind it held a lightness, a pureness to it. It made me indescribably happy to know it. "Never seen her before in my life." I kept my voice clipped and there was a faint pause at the other end of the line. Sulo Lazera was lucky he wasn't standing in front of me because my wolf and I would have made a grand masterpiece with his corpse. Even grander than the dissenters, even more than the witch. He would be our magnus opus.

"Well the Hunters saw to inform me she was mated to someone in the pack." The edge had grown and I clenched my unoccupied hand into a fist, resisting the urge to clench my other hand and break the phone.

"Haven't had any new matings in a few weeks." I gritted my teeth and there was a low growl from the other end of the line.

"Stop playing games with me, whelp." He hissed the words out. "I know you mated to her and I want her back." I fought back a snarl at the words and sharp pain radiated from my hand as my claws dug into my palm.

"I have no idea what you are talking about, old male. Perhaps your memory is going." I forced the mocking into my tone to hide the murderous intent that I had towards him.

"Don't insult me, pup! I know she is mated to you and I want her back." There was little control in his voice as it boomed from him and I curled my lip up.

"My mate's name is Pisică. An orphan female with no family to speak of. I suggest you refrain from speaking of her." I kept my voice low but I couldn't hide the deadly edge it had.

"Do you think you scare me? Because let me-"

"You are beneath my notice, Lazera. You and your son. You are no longer and Alpha and your son is a mere second born fed a life of privilege." I couldn't help the derision that coated my tone. They were beneath my notice and Anto was a spoiled male who used the weight of his father's name to hold his position.

"And you are a third born!" There was a bit of a savage thrill that went through me as he snarled. I liked the thought I had made him lose his composure, that I had pressed his buttons as I had.

"That I am but that won't stop me from cracking your rib cage open and pulling out your insides so the vultures can feast." I was an Alpha protecting my mate. There would be nothing they could do to stop me from killing them both if they tried to take my little cat from me.

"Is that a threat?" He spat the words out and I bared my teeth in a pseudo grin, despite the fact he couldn't see me. It was like a reflex.

"It's a promise." The words were steady with the pure honesty they had and Sulo paused for a brief moment.

"I want her back! You will give her back to me." His voice was a bit higher pitched and I felt a bit of feral pride that I had rattled him. Never show a shifter weakness and he had showed me that I had unsettled him, that my promise had scared him.

"If you want her, Sulo, you need to come and get her and believe me if you step one foot onto my territory. The Council, your former pack and your pathetic son will not stop me from doing what I have promised." I said it slowly and carefully, I wanted him to hear and understand every word.

"You cannot threaten me!" He shouted it and I pulled the phone from my ear with a wince.

"You are no longer an Alpha. You are simply a shifter with the advantage of blood. I can threaten you all I wish and as I said before. That is not a threat. That is a promise." I ground the words out and he gave a sharp laugh.

"You aren't strong enoug-"

"Come and see just how strong I can be, Lazera. It seems you have forgotten. I am an Alpha and I will protect my future at all costs." For a brief moment, as the words left my mouth, I felt the power of the Alpha title wash over me. "You come near my mate, you come near my territory and I will kill you, Sulo Lazera. I will kill you, I will find your son and kill him and I will dismantle your former pack. Your entire legacy will cease to be." The power that ran through my voice was course and almost savage and I shuddered under the force of it.

"I think our discussion is done." His voice was tight and I ground my teeth together as he hung up the phone. I had the sudden urge to throw the phone across the room but I refrained. I slowly set the handset back in its cradle and I sat down heavily in my chair.

"It's stinks like witch in here. I guess that is where that fucking mini earthquake came from." Her voice cut through the air and I snapped up, my eyes finding her immediately. Her green eyes showed her disgust and her nose was wrinkled as if she smelled something disgusting.

Shey

The name begged to fall from my mouth but I didn't let it. I committed her features to my memory. Her eyes were wide and expressive, her nose had a slight bump in the bridge as if it had been broken. Her lips were full and her cheeks were high and almost regal. She fit her name. Shey Abigail.

"Stop looking at me like that!" She snapped it out, her eyebrows pulling low over her eyes as she scowled at me.

"Like I want to set you down on the desk and fuck you? No." I smirked as her mouth opened and closed and her cheeks slowly flushed to red.

"Don't be a fucking pig." She spat it out before moving over and slamming a stack of papers on the desk.

"You can't tell me you haven't thought about it." I stared at her intently. There were many times during the day I couldn't look at my desk without imagining her bent over it or on it.

"I don't think about you." She said it way to quickly and I watched as the tips of her ears turned red.

"Your grandfather phoned." I gestured to the offending item and she froze, her green eyes going slightly darker with with shock. "He wanted me to return you to him." I leaned back in my chair and watched as she looked around, her eyes darting back and forth rapidly. "I told him that if he tried to come near you I would tear his ribcage open and tear out his insides." I watched as her eyes flashed with a strange sort of emotion. "I also told him if he tried I would kill his son and destroy his pack." She frowned slightly, her full lips pursing a bit.

"Torvus is way-"

"He threatened my future and you don't believe that I would retaliate?" I narrowed my eyes. I didn't like her questioning my want to protect her. She didn't need to think that I would back away from a fight to save her because the odds may not have been in my favour. She would always be put first.

"I never said that. I'm just saying-"

"Well I am saying that if he comes near this territory I will destroy him, his son, and his legacy. I do not care how strong he is, how strong his pack is. No one will ever harm you. I promised you that." I felt that shudder of Alpha power rolling through the words and she stepped a half step backwards and her eyes widened slightly. She had not been expecting that but then again, neither had I. "I made you a promise, Pisică. I will keep it until my dying breath." My voice returned to its usual softness. I couldn't bring myself to say her name. I kind of liked the game. I wanted an excuse to call her my cat. If she figured out my name, I would give it up but for right now I would play the game.

"It will be your dying breath if you take on Torvus." She muttered it out and narrowed her eyes as me as she crossed her arms over her chest. I locked my gaze with her before I flicked my gaze down to the generous cleavage she was now showing. My eyebrow quirked at the same time as the corner of my mouth. "Stop staring at my tits!" Her voice pitched higher and I chuckled low in my throat.

"If you didn't want me to stare, you shouldn't have presented them to me so nicely." I looked back up at her and she wrinkled her nose at me but readjusted her arms on her chest.

"You are disgusting." The insult seemed almost half-hearted but I wasn't about to point it out. If she was softening up towards me it only worked to my advantage.

"Come here." I crooked my finger at her. I wanted to show her what I did with the territory lines.

"Oh hell no. I'm not falling for that." Her expression darkened with wariness and mistrust. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at her slight theatrics. One would think she believed if she got into my reach that I would immediately ravish her. My wolf perked up at the thought and I internally groaned as he started to bombard me with images of doing just that.

"Come here." I crooked my finger at her once more and she narrowed her eyes.

"Dickhead, I'm not going over there."

"Okay then. I won't show you." I shrugged. If she wanted to be stubborn and mulish she could but I wasn't going to pander to it. I honestly cherished her personality but I knew better than to push it. It would only end up with one or both of us furious.

"Reverse psychology isn't going to work." She sniffed lightly and I rolled my eyes at her, unable to hold back the urge any longer.

"I just wanted to show you something." I gave her an exasperated look.

"Something is not a good name for you penis, Dickhead." She spat it out and I felt an eyebrow rise as I stared at her.

"So now you are thinking about my cock? Naughty." I winked at her with a large grin and she gave me a rather disgusted look. The look didn't stop the flush that travelled up her neck at my words. I could only imagine the images the bond was throwing at her.

"Oh fuck you." Shey narrowed those green eyes and I felt my grin widen.

"I wish you would." I deliberately let my voice grow a bit raspy as I leaned against my desk. Her face instantly flared red and she glowered at me darkly, despite the blush that had reddened her cheeks and ears.

"This conversation is over." She clenched her jaw tightly and I tilted my head before shaking it slowly.

"Not really. What's this?" I gestured to the stack of papers and she remained in her spot, shaking her head.

"Not going over there."

"You don't have too. What is it?" I looked at her and she grimaced.

"Paperwork for mate requisitions. Cheques for bills. Tax stuff you need to sign off on for the mines. Scholarships and a few other miscellaneous items." She waved her hand flippantly and I pulled the stack closer to me as I flipped over the first page. I scanned the paper. It appeared as though the mate requisition forms were from the Fors pack. They had asked me every year and I knew the only reason they actually asked was because they wanted me to mate with Alpha Marti's daughter. She was not my type and I already had a mate so that was moot point. I flipped through them before putting them off to the side. "Aren't you going to sign them?" I waved her off.

"Only reason Fors wants any mate requisition is so that Alpha Marti can try and pawn his daughter off on me again." I looked through the next set of papers and scanned them. Bills mainly. After I matched the number amounts from the bills to the cheques I signed the cheques quickly before moving them off to the side to be sent in.

"What does she look like?" She was trying to hide it but that edge of territorial dominance was slipping into her tone. I appreciated that, it made the guilt lessen in my stomach lightly about keeping her against her will. Not like she had tried to escape again but still.

"She's a red head. Looks like her father." I wanted to shudder for the poor female. She was a sweetheart, she really was but she looked like her father and he wasn't the most attractive of men. I felt pity for her because her siblings were gorgeous and it wasn't that she wasn't pretty, it's just she wasn't pretty in the classic sense of the word.

"And?" She drug the word out, as if trying to prompt me. I stopped flipping through the various bills and cheques I had yet to sign.

"And what, my guriță? Do I like her? Do I think she is beautiful?" I looked at her and she tried her hardest to look completely bored but I could see how it affected her.

"Duh, Dickhead." She spat it out and looked at her nails. I could still see her glancing at me from the corner of her eyes.

"She looks like her father and all I can say to that is poor female." I turned back to the bills and start looking for the payment numbers. However, Shey's scent was slowly filling the room making it extremely hard for me to concentrate on anything but her jean clad legs and that rather tight t-shirt she was wearing.

She sucked in a heavy breathe, "Hey! Don't be rude!"

"You asked me." I shrugged as I signed several more cheques and finished with the bills. I grabbed the stack of them and set them on the corner of my desk.

"You didn't have to say it like that." She muttered it out before grabbing the bills and moving over to the filing cabinet. I found my gaze zeroing in on her ass. Her perfectly round, perky, jean clad ass that was doing things to my anatomy that would make it very hard for me to stand up. "So you don't like her because of her looks?" There was a patronizing tone in her voice and I let out a hissing sigh.

"She's a sweet female, young, and she deserves better than to be pawned off on some reclusive Alpha. The fact she came out of the shallow end of the genetic pool isn't relevant." It was the truth. I didn't care about looks but it was fact that she wasn't the prettiest girl in the area. It was fact that her father was trying to pawn her off. It was fact that I felt sorry for her. I knew she had sustained a few rejections and I empathized with her pain but never once did I want nothing to do with her because she wasn't classically pretty.

"Shallow end of the genetic pool? What the hell is wrong with you?" She sounded a bit upset and I looked up at her.

"Did you want me to say she was ugly?" I honestly didn't understand why she was so upset. I had tried to be delicate, dancing around actually saying it but it still seemed like Shey thought I was blatantly insulting the poor female.

"What? No!" She looked horrified at the suggestion and I gave her an even look.

"I thought that was a nicer way of putting it. Ainsley is not classically pretty and I feel sorry for her because her father is attempting to pawn her off on someone for an alliance. She doesn't deserve that." No one deserved to be sold off for an alliance. We weren't living in the eighteen hundreds needing to secure an alliance with the french.

"Then why don't you shack up with her?" There was an edge of snark to her voice and I wanted to grin. So territorial.

"Because I've shacked up with you." I honestly thought it had been obvious but then again with my dear little mate, she was always one to do things that you didn't expect and her pawning me off on someone else fit that list.

"But yo-"

"Are you seriously trying to pawn me off on someone else? Pisică, are you saying you want another female to put her hands all over me? I could call Julia-"

"Don't you fucking dare! Not a fucking mundie! Not her. Never her!" Her eyes flashed and she gave me a rather dangerous look as she clenched her hands into fists. As hard as I tried to stop it the grin that was fighting to escape crossed my face anyway.

"Then how about you come over here and put your hands all over-"

"Don't finish that sentence." She hissed it out, cutting me off and I rolled my eyes at her. She was such a spitfire. She didn't want anyone else touching me but she didn't particularly want to touch me either. It was like one step forward and two steps back with her. "I'm done with this conversation."

"You said that a few minutes ago. Am I becoming irresistible to you?" I winked at her and she scowled before turning and heading towards the door.

"Fuck off." She flipped me off as she opened the door to the office and I couldn't help but laugh. If she wanted to go one steps forward and two steps back I was more than ready to two step with her. Although I wasn't sure which one of us would be leading the dance.