11. Lumi
Chapter 11
Lumi
R un. Find Emeric.
The words blaze through me, forcing my legs to sprint through the woods and my eyes to brighten in the dark, darting around to look for Emeric through the trees and thick brush. My body obeys his command automatically—I don’t have a choice.
But even if I did have a choice, I would choose running. I’m not sure I trust Emeric. Last time I trusted him he locked me in a cave, I ended up as an offering, and am now running for my life. A tiny part of me hopes I don’t find Emeric.
I run as fast as my legs will take me despite branches carving into my bare skin with every step. Even running at full speed, having a head start, and Ambrose trying to hold them off, I hear male shifters behind me.
The curse—every male here can smell you. You’ve become obsessively desirable to them.…
I glance up at the moon—fuck the full moon, not allowing me to shift.
The sound of crunching leaves under running paws pounds in my ears. As they push their bodies to their limits, their deep panting grows louder, as do their howling and whining.
I don’t dare glance behind me. If I do, the fear will overtake me. I can’t think about what they will do if they catch me. Their own sexual desires combined with their wolf instincts to make me their mate will overpower any common sense.
I run faster, as if my human legs are capable of outrunning their wolf ones. But maybe Ambrose’s alpha command was strong enough to make me run faster. He is the most powerful alpha—maybe he sent some of that power my way.
Closer and closer, I hear their heavy paws shrink the gap at my heels until I can feel the ground shaking under my own feet. A howl pierces through the cool air, and its nearness makes me jump.
I have seconds left before I’m caught.
Closing my eyes, I let myself succumb to my emotions as I catch my breath, leaning against a large tree trunk. The only chance I have to save myself now is to shift. My fear is at the front of my mind, but so is my shame, my sadness, my excitement, and my hot, wicked desire for an alpha I just met, my mate—Ambrose.
I let thoughts of him flood my mind—his thick black hair with glowing gold specks that I want to run my hands through, his lips that I have yet to kiss, his muscles that I need to feel contracting over me, and his cock that I refuse to die without feeling inside me.
My eyes pop open a second later. The emotions weren’t enough. I can’t shift, and I might never be able to. And if I can’t shift, then I can’t be marked as Ambrose’s mate. I can’t break the curse. But more importantly, I’ll never be a bonded wolf. I’ll continue to be an outcast or worse.
I’ve failed.
I fall to the ground as a wolf shifter lands on top of me—his weight crushing my frail, naked body. The ground, leaves, and twigs dig into the flesh of my stomach, breasts, and arms. But all I can think about is the fur pressing against me, the sharp teeth snapping at my back, and the wet nose nestling against my neck just under my ear.
He wants me. I can feel his desire, even without a bond or a word between us.
“No, please, no,” I whisper, a tear rolling down my cheek. I don’t know the rules of the mating bond. I don’t know how to break the curse. But I do know that Ambrose was hesitant to accept me as his when he found out I couldn’t shift. If another claimed me, my true mate might never accept me.
Sharp canines scrape over the skin of my shoulder.
“No, I’m not your mate!” I cry out. You can’t change your mate. You can’t change who you are destined to be with. No amount of lust, love, or desire can do that.
I won’t survive if he sinks his teeth into my skin. Without the curse taking me, a wolf’s bite can easily be lethal to humans when they go for the jugular. And he will—his instincts will take over. He’s a predator; I’m prey.
I won’t go without a fight. I try to wiggle out from underneath his heavy body, but I can’t move. My heart races to uncontrollable speeds.
“No!” I yell again, like my own command must be obeyed as Ambrose’s or any other alpha’s.
I feel the tip of his canine press against my shoulder.
Then, a growl comes from the forest behind us, and suddenly, the weight is gone.
I crawl up, looking behind me to find two wolves fighting. One is dark brown, and the other a sandy blonde with golden yellow eyes tinged with blue.
Emeric saved me.
I’d know that sandy blonde coloring anywhere. Despite him obviously belonging to the Moonlight pack, giving him the golden glow, the tinge of blue in his eyes still remains.
He glances at me for only a split second, and I know what he’s telling me.
Run.
The command Ambrose gave me weighs in my body. I’m supposed to run but also find Emeric, not run from Emeric.
I turn, fighting hard against Ambrose’s command, willing the command to accept that I am following the command at the heart of it. I’m saving myself. I’m running.
Suddenly, my feet are flying again.
I hear the battle behind me. But I don’t focus on the howls, the barking, the clashing of teeth and claws.
I sprint. I’m so focused on moving one foot in front of the other that I don’t notice the hard body I slam into.
Hands grip my shoulders, easily keeping me from running away. But when I take a deep breath this man doesn’t smell of the earth or the woods—he doesn’t smell like a wolf shifter at all.
Could he be human?
Please, gods, let him be human.
A cold chill races through me as I stare at where he’s touching me on my shoulders. Slowly raising my head, I know what will be staring down at me.
Sharp teeth, pale, cool skin, and speed unmatched by any.
I take a deep breath as my eyes meet his—a vampire.
Vampires are our greatest enemies. They can kill humans with a single venomous bite. They’re faster, more agile, and have more endurance than our own. They’re immortal, and most concerning of all—they have mind control.
If he tastes a drop of my blood, he’ll tap into my mind, and I’ll be his willing slave. I’ll do whatever he wishes, including digging a dagger into my own heart if he so desires.
“You have no reason to fear me, Lumi. It will barely hurt. I just need one drop.”
Shivers race down my spine. I try to slow my heartbeat, hoping my blood won’t be as enticing to him. And then I kick hard between his legs, hitting the steel rock of his body and almost breaking my foot as I do.
He chuckles, his grip tightening on my shoulder.
And then suddenly, he’s on the ground.
“Rowena,” the whispered cry comes out of me as she tackles him to the ground.
She goes for his throat in a vicious attack I didn’t think her beautiful golden feminine body was capable of.
I hesitate for a split second, but there is nothing I can do for her. I can’t help her. I can’t even save myself.
All I can do is run and hope she’s strong enough to outmatch a vampire.
Run, run, run.
I run as the moon dips lower, moonlight fading away and giving rise to the sun just over the horizon.
I’m exhausted from running all night. My legs haven’t stopped for a moment since I saw the vampire. The sounds of my pursuers quieted hours ago, leaving only the soft breezes of the forest at night and now at dawn.
Still, I can’t stop. I’m not safe. And Ambrose’s command demands I keep going.
But I won’t find Emeric in this direction. Will he find me? Is he coming to get me?
I have no clue; my brain is mush. I just keep going and going.
“I had so much faith in you,” a woman’s voice stops me cold.
I snap my head around. “Isolde.”
She’s leaning against a tree, still in her white cloak with thick, luscious blond curls hanging down to nearly her waist. She looks young, early twenties, and yet there is a wisdom in her eyes that tells me she’s lived far beyond twenty years.
I don’t know much about witches. I don’t think they’re immortal like vampires, but maybe they live extended lives like wolf shifters do. I don’t know.
But I know I don’t trust Isolde.
“I can’t decide if I should kill you or pump you full of magic until you finally have the power to shift into a wolf.”
My eyebrows jump up. “You have the power to help me shift?”
She nods as if it’s obvious. She has the power to do pretty much whatever she fucking wants. “It would be painful—far more painful than if you figured it out for yourself. And you would lose control over your wolf—I would have that power.” She pauses. “Forever.”
My heart breaks. “No,” I whisper.
Her eyes shift into dark orbs, and I feel her power flowing through her. “I don’t have a choice. You are Ambrose’s mate. You are the key to breaking the curse—for all of us. I have to kill you and hope the gods give Ambrose another mate—one who isn’t as flawed as you. Or I force you to shift so Ambrose can mark you, break the curse, and then most likely kill you.”
My gaze shoots daggers in her direction. “So either way, I die.”
She shrugs. “Your sacrifice will save us all. I’m sure the gods will honor you in the afterlife.”
I growl and feel a shift inside me—an awakening that wasn’t there before.
Is she goading me into shifting? Or is her magic already working on me?
A howl pierces through the air, hitting me hard in the chest and forcing me to stop everything and wait.
Isolde, despite not being a shifter, stops and listens as well. A frown befalls her perfect face.
Ambrose and Emeric emerge from the forest in their wolf forms. A second later, both men are standing naked on two human legs. Emeric’s eyes drag over me in concern, as if he’s looking for any injuries. But Ambrose holds all his attention on Isolde and speaks to her.
“Leave. The sun has risen. We will have to wait until another full moon to complete the marking ceremony. You have no more use here, Isolde.”
She smiles in a flirtatious way at my man. “Of course. I’ll return on the next full moon.”
With a flash, she vanishes.
My eyes bulge.
“How?” my mouth gapes.
Emeric chuckles at my response. “I take it this was your first encounter with a witch?”
I nod, my mouth still gaping.
Ambrose’s head whips in my direction. His expression is emotionless as he drags his eyes over my naked body. Heat spreads through him, fueled by an unfulfilled desire for me.
My own desire mirrors his.
I want him, need him.
And yet, I can’t help but see the disappointment in his eyes. I survived the night. I ran. I followed his command. The weak human without the ability to shift, who needed the help of Emeric, Rowena, and him in order to keep myself alive. I’m useless to him. He won’t show me his feelings. He won’t act on them, not until I prove myself worthy. He won’t touch me until I shift and he sees the power within me.
“Come,” Ambrose says. It’s a command I can feel, even though he didn’t need to give it for me to come with him. He did command me anyway, which means he doesn’t trust me.
My mind doesn’t trust him either, but my bones say he’s my mate. I have no choice but to trust him completely and hope he’s not the death of me.