0134
Mallory
"She's not angry." Eric tells me as he walks me home. "You have to remember that she hasn't been a Lycan for long. A lot of things are still new for her."
"I know. They lied to her, convincing her that she is a Wolf." They kept reminding me of that every chance they got. But she also needed to know that her past didn't define her.
"It's more than that. Imagine what it's been like to be lied to her entire life. To be thrown into something she knew nothing about. To have had everything taken from her. From where I'm standing, she's handling it pretty damn well."
I smirk. "Klaus said something like that."
"We are not wrong. Compared to what she was like, she's a different person now."
""You think she's frustrated?"
He nods with a sad smile.
"Frustrated with herself, because trust me, you would know if she was angry. Everything is a learning curve. Not everyone settles into something so easily. I know she is capable of doing what you are asking her too. I was there when she ordered hundreds of Lycans, bitten and pureblood to bring her their own leader."
"Okay, but we are running out of time."
"You don't know that. Blair showed up once and then didn't show up again for months."
"Right." I frown, but my gut instinct was telling me we didn't have months. "How come you were in the house?"
"I was speaking to Dane."
"And?"
"He has asked me to be a second Beta."
"Alongside Damien?"
"Yes. And I have agreed. I need to get back some normality."
We stop outside my house and the light catches his eyes. He had beautiful eyes that were different colours depending on how the sun caught them. Right now they were almost an aquamarine, but if he turned his head a little more, they looked more honey coloured. Strange yet fascinating.
"Not tonight. I need to work."
"Right." I try to keep the disappointment out of my tone. I knew he could feel it. But he doesn't say anything and that frustrates me.
He kisses my forehead and turns away, telling me he would see me in the morning.
We had slept together the day he marked me and then again when I was in heat. That took place when Neah believed I was avoiding her. When the reality was, I was in bed with Eric having the best orgasms ever. It had to be something to do with the mate bond connecting us to make it feel so damn good.
Since then, nothing but a few kisses and I feel like my insides are clawing at me to pin him down.
Time together was limited because he still didn't seem to know how he felt about our situation. One minute he wanted me nearby, the next he was telling me to leave.
Now, there were just two reasons for me to stay here. At least that is double the amount from when I last checked.
Following my usual routine, I make a cup of tea and take it outside, settling on the stones that make up my small porch. Only tonight I wasn't watching people.
Klaus had lent me an old laptop and I was determined to find something to do with other Lycans.
I didn't know exactly what I was looking for. Maybe strange sightings, strange animal related deaths. I might as well put my mind to some use if I wasn't going to get laid tonight.
The grounds of the pack get quieter and quieter until darkness completely sets in.
I had already refilled my cup three times and still, I had found nothing.
I should have expected it really.
We kept our location hidden when we were protecting the Rogues and Klaus had mentioned something about Lycans going into hiding according to this Aldous Kitson.
Plus humans were naive to what happened around them. Those stories of wars were just myths to them, unless someone brought you in, like Cassandra.
Just when I'm ready to give up, I find a story from around twenty years ago about a teenager saving a woman from a monstrous beast.
'It was huge. Maybe seven feet tall. But it looked part wolf and part man.' The description was vague but it was more than enough for us.
From the few sentences underneath it said the woman survived after spending six weeks in the hospital recovering from her traumatic injuries.
"That's it!" I snap in frustration at the lack of info. Nothing about claw marks or peeled skin
I scroll down the page only to find comments about conspiracy theories or suggesting that the man and woman were high on drugs. But I know you don't forget seeing something like that.
I needed to show Klaus. He was good at finding stuff like this.
Pulling the cord from the laptop, I hurry over to his house, grateful when I see a light is still on.
"You can find people right?" I blurt when he opens the door.
"Depends on how much information you have."
I barge past him and drop the laptop on his table a little heavier than I wanted too and curse myself because it wasn't my property.
"I've been looking for signs of Lycans."
He smirks and moves to his new laptop at the other end of the table. He spins it around to face me. It's on the exact same page as I was looking at. Only he had a map next to him with circles drawn all over it. "Do you know why I'm drawn to this one?" He points at the screen
I shake my head
"It's an unusual first name for a human. But a common one among wolves."
I hadn't even noticed the name. 'Abraxas Adler.' He was right, I never came across that name as a human, and there were six in this pack alone.
"You think he's a Wolf?"
He nods his head at me. "Maybe he can give us more information."
I think if I leave the pack without telling Damien, he will lose his shit all over again, especially with Blair lurking out there.
My eyes move back to the image on the screen. He's smiling but it doesn't meet his hazel eyes. What if Klaus is on to something and we pass this up? "Do you think he is in a pack?" I quiz
"No. There are no packs located where this article comes from. It's human territory which means if he is a Wolf, he was likely kicked out of his pack." "Kicked out as a teen?"
"Or abandoned." Klaus mutters
"And that's if he is still there, the article is twenty years old. There's no guarantee we will find him."
He hands me a blue post-it note. "He's there. Up for a road trip?"
"I'm already in trouble for the Blair incident." I protest. He nods and takes the post-it back. "You're going by yourself?"
"Someone needs to get some more news, even if it's a dead end."
He moves around putting snacks and bottles of water into a duffle bag. But no clothes.
"How long will you be gone?"
"It's a two hour drive. I will be back before sunrise." He hauls the bag over his shoulder and grabs his laptop and map. "No need to cover for me."
I follow Klaus out front to a running car, only to see Eric sat in the driver's seat. Eric's eyes lock with me. "Get in."
"You knew." I mutter, climbing into the back.
"Is that why you blew me off again?" I rip the belt around me, jabbing the buckle into its lock with a little too much force.
"Dane is going to be so pissed that we are doing this!" "Already cleared." He mutters back, staring at me in the rearview mirror.
Klaus gets in the passenger seat and quickly updates the satnav with the details.
The journey was boring. I hated being the one that is not driving. I hated that they were having a conversation with each other that didn't include me.
"Mal," Eric mutters as he looks straight ahead. If anyone else called me that, I would rip their throat out, but it had become his thing and I like the way it sounds in his voice. "You might have to shift."