Bentley
“Now, I know you boys don’t know me from Adam, but you need to listen to what I’m about to say. We don’t have much time before she gets back,” a woman named Maria said as we stood in the small cabin’s living room.
I could tell from the others that the last thing they wanted to do was listen to this crazy old bat tell us anything, let alone something about Viv.
“Let’s back up to the part where you just let our mate wander the woods alone with only the protection of a fucking dog collar?” Darius demanded getting up in her face.
Christian grabbed his arm and pulled him back a set. “Dude, I get where your head is at, but trust me when I say you do not want to fuck with Maria. If she says that there’s something you need to hear, I would open up your ears.”
What surprised me further was Orion coming up behind the woman and taking a tentative sniff of her. I mean, I knew we could sense things differently with our wolf side, but it was not something I was really used to using.
“Don’t you know it’s rude to sniff someone when you haven’t even exchanged names yet?” Maria commented not bothering to look behind her. “One as old as yourself should have better manners.”
In true Orion fashion he just grinned and leaned to the side so he could see her face. “Hello old hag, I didn’t think your kind existed anymore.”
“Ha, takes one to know one,” Maria winked.
She just fucking winked at Orion like some saucy teenager. What the hell is going on here?
“Now, before we get utterly derailed with the many issues we have ahead of us, you need to listen up. Your mate, Vivianna, has gone through some extremely horrible experiences.” She held up a hand to stop Darius from talking.
“Ah, Ah. I will not tell you anything other than the fact that she has lost herself and hidden deep within her wolf. We are going to need to work together to help her find the willingness to return to her human form. Her wolf is doing a wonderful job taking care of her, but this is not how we are meant to exist.”
“You tell us all of this for what reason?” Tristan questioned, scowling at her.
Maria raised a brow at him followed by a laugh. “Goodness, she did find the rarest of the rare didn’t she? A Dire wolf, can’t say I’ve seen your kind in centuries. As to your question, I share this with you because I know that what was done to your mate has severed your mate bond.”
That statement was the trigger that set everyone off. Snarling filled the air as some lunged at her, but a blast of power hit us sending us sprawling to the floor.
“I know you are not the complete imbeciles that you are acting like right now, so I will forgive the lapse of sanity that just occurred. At no point did I say that I was the one who did this to you, but I am a person who can help. Science might be able to do things that should never be allowed to happen, but this is the day and age we live in. Why do you think it is that you can’t find her, feel her, or even hear each other in your heads like you once could?
” Maria pressed as we sat there stunned into understanding what she was saying.
“Good, you’re getting it now. When Viv does return, I will be the only one who can speak to her as a wolf unless she’s learned to tap into her powers further.
This is what we need to have happen, along with bringing out her human side, if we are going to establish your ties again. ”
Koit got to his feet and plopped on the couch tracking Maria with a weary eye. “How can you possibly know all this? Who are you?”
“Let’s just say that I’m Vivianna’s fairy godmother and I plan on doing whatever it takes to get her well again. The world needs her, even though this world has failed her time and time again. As they say in the romance books... we need to give her a reason to stay with us.”
“What reason is that?” I asked, feeling more certain that this woman needed to be in a mental institution.
Maria didn’t answer me right away, but walked over and offered a hand to help me up.
Unsure of the right move, I hesitated before grasping her hand, but instead of helping me to my feet I felt my world start to tilt.
Flashes of memory appeared, things I hadn’t thought of in forever and some I had hoped to never have to remember again.
“Hmm, now I see why she picked you. Not many people can share similar pain, but you both have had life kick you in the teeth when you were already down. There is something that only you can provide for her, that none of these other men can, so stop trying to dismiss her choice. As for the reason... It’s love, my boy.
Love has the power to heal, forgive, and overcome the things we never think someone understands.
It connects people and strengthens them to battle through the muck of this world and you boys are in up to your eyeballs.
If you really love that woman the way she loves each and every one of you, then we might just survive this war,” Maria announced as she yanked me to my feet as if I weighed nothing.
“Was there anything more, Maria?” Christian asked from where he was leaning against the wall smiling at us all.
“Don’t you think the fate of the world is enough?” Maria tossed back as she walked out of the room and upstairs. “Make yourself at home. I doubt she’ll be gone too much longer.”
There was a momentary lull, before Rik shot to his feet and had his hand around Christian’s throat. “Do you know what the fuck she’s talking about? There is no way that mate bonds can be broken once they are established— it has to be a lie.”
“Rik, buddy... I get that this isn’t what you wanted to hear, but there have been rumors that it was another project Faulk was working on.
They needed a way to make sure that they would have that bond with Viv for their plan to rule the world to work.
Think man. This is not just an attack on you.
If they can strip mate bonds, then there is nothing stopping them from fucking with the rest of us.
What would you do to protect Viv from having that happen to her?
I bet it would be just about anything, which is what they are counting on,” Christian reasoned, all the while acting like there wasn’t a man twice his bulk pinning him to a wall.
Rik shoved away from the wall and headed towards the back of the house. “I need some air, I’ve been trapped in small places for too long, it’s messing with my head.”
Tav looked at Koit, who nodded and followed after him.
It amazed me how those four men could be so connected that with only a look they understood each other.
I don’t know that I’ve ever had that kind of bond with another person.
Viv has been the closest, seeing as we could relate on the medical side of things and she was never put off by my snarky attitude.
While Rik and Koit left the room, the rest of us just settled in to wait, no one speaking or even looking at each other.
We knew the chances of what she’d gone through would be bad, but hearing it from another person who we didn’t know just seemed to hit harder.
It was as if by not being there we’d failed her and left her to deal with all this alone, to my wolf it was the worst feeling in the world.
Mates stuck together for life and no matter of science could change that fact.
Even if it meant I spent the rest of my life researching how to reverse what happened to her.
“Guys she’s back.” Koit yelled from the back yard.
This had all of us on our feet and rushing through the door.
Darius and Tristan tried to fit through the door at the same time, but Darius shoved him off and bolted into the backyard.
I found Rik flat on his back with Viv in all her majestic golden glory laying on his chest. Koit had her head in his hands and was speaking to her in a soft whisper that caused the saddest whine to come from her, wrenching at my heart.
As the others swarmed around her, I stood back a moment letting them run their hands over her fur, kiss the top of her head, and hug her to their chests.
I noticed Rik brushing tears from his eyes as he sat back up, now that Viv wasn’t pinning him down.
Then, something odd happened when she got to Orion.
He reached out to her, but she darted away and stood in front of him, anytime he tried to move toward her she backed away.
Finally, he stood still and watched her with a critical eye, confusion evident on his creased brow.
Once he was standing still and made no move to touch her, she dropped to her belly and crawled up to him ears flat on her head in the pose of utter submission.
When she got to his feet, she let out another cry and exposed her belly and neck to Orion, causing us all to freeze and Christian to turn his back on the sight.
This was something that no alpha in their right mind would ever display, which meant something was extremely wrong.
Slowly, Orion knelt beside her and wrapped his hand around her throat.
“Viv my dearest, why are you handing your life over to me? I would never ask for this, no matter what’s happened since you’ve been taken.
You my heart, should bow and grovel to no one— ever.
Please, please get up, I can’t see you like this. ”
Orion was able to shift her more to her side before pulling her up onto his lap, cradling her, resting his head against hers and whispering into her ear.
Darius was on his feet, and yet again tried to attack Maria when she appeared out of nowhere next to Christian. “What is wrong with our mate.? You have to tell us what you know so that we might avenge what’s been done to her.”
Maria easily dodged all of his attempts to grab her as if she wasn’t as old as she looked. In a matter of moments, Darius was sprawled out on the ground face in the dirt with Viv standing on his back with a warning growl.
“Goodness, so this is the relationship you two have, who knew an alpha would like to be topped by his mate,” Maria giggled as she covered her smile with a hand. “Let him up, cachorro I am in no danger from this hot head.”
“Maria please tell me you didn’t nickname the first alpha female in over two hundred years puppy?.” Christian groaned, rubbing his hands over his face. “You know she is the one person who might be able to beat your ancient ass.”
“Oh, she most certainly could, but she would have to be whole for that to happen, and we have a bit of work to do. Besides, she is a puppy compared to me,” Maria explained with a shrug of her shoulders. “Come I’ll put on a pot of coffee, you all look like you could use it.”
Viv trotted alongside her, guarding the woman from us as if she really was the oversized dog she was dressed up to be at the moment.
“What the fuck just happened?” Orion asked, looking at us as if we would have the answers.
Koit heaved a heavy sigh and his typical easy going manner slipped for a moment. “It would seem that whatever has happened to her in the past six months was worse than we imagined.”
“The only way we are going to find out is if we play nice with Maria, and it looks like Viv won’t tolerate us being mean to her, no matter how crazy or irritating she is,” Tristan added as we all headed back into the house.
In the back of my brain, I knew that just like the rest of us Viv was not going to get out of this experience without changing like we all had. I just hope that the person she changed into still wanted me as her mate.