Chapter 16
Dakota Claymore
“You want to go on a run?” Effie asked curiously as I dropped the food from the Student Union on the counter and began to put it away.
I dropped almost all of it in the freezer before grabbing her hand and leading her back towards the elevator.
I could hear Julian and Tore talking about something quietly in the other room—probably a surprise for Effie—and Ryder was on a call in the living room.
This was the perfect time to go on a run, and more than anything, a perfect time to run off the aggression I could feel building under my skin.
I was extremely close to enacting violence up on Hastain.
More than close. I was hanging right on the edge of losing my shit, and I was really hoping this would help me feel a bit more rational.
Effie made a surprised sound as the elevator closed and I backed her up against the wall, keeping her pinned between the metal surface and myself, her scent wrapping around me and making me feel far more grounded.
The idea of Effie in danger infuriated me.
The idea of anyone wishing her harm maddened me.
The idea of Effie in anything but perfect condition had me seeing red.
I kept those emotions under lock though, feeling how happy her wolf was at the concept of going on a run. She let out a soft, happy hum against my chest as I pulled back, schooling my emotions into something other than rage.
“I can feel your wolf.” I pressed my forehead to hers as she let out a happy sound at that concept, which of course had me feeling ten times better.
Effie’s happiness was all a man like me could ask for at the end of the day.
Not my own happiness or success, just my mate’s. She was all that really mattered.
“I can feel yours as well,” she murmured. “Ever since getting this mark, I have been able to feel all of yours far more. My wolf really likes yours.”
A rumble escaped my throat as I nearly cursed, knowing that was exactly the type of shit that encouraged him. The last thing we needed was for me to attack Effie in wolf form before I’d even gotten the chance to explore every inch of her in this form.
I tightened my control on my wolf as I pressed my lips to her forehead gently. “My wolf loves every inch of you, Effie. Human and wolf.”
Believe me, I would know. I was getting images of shit he wanted to do that didn’t even make sense. Especially the ones where she was human… I had a feeling that he didn’t realize how mating went with humans, which considering my past, actually made a lot of fucking sense.
At least I had a decent grip on my wolf. Most of us did, although nights like this could be a bit different, which was why I was hoping this run would help Effie as well.
“I need you to promise me something,” I said lightly, stopping her as we exited the elevator in the foyer of the dorm building. I cupped her jaw as her gaze studied my face and she nodded, seriousness filling her features.
“With Caedmon shifting soon, probably in the next hour or so…I have no idea how that is going to affect your wolf or you, especially because of the mark on your arm. I am hoping there is nothing to worry about, but if you start feeling weird at any time, I need you to promise me you will tell me.”
“Weird?”
“With lycans, when they shift, their mates can go into a weird state,” I explained, not including that it closely resembles heat.
“You haven’t fully mated yet and you have more than one mate, so it shouldn’t be a problem, but I figured this run would help burn off some excess energy just in case you are a bit more reactive than normal…
Especially if your wolf senses his shift. ”
“Okay.” She shifted nervously. “I promise.”
Moments later, we were walking through the thick forest air, and there was soft snow falling in the evening light.
It was peaceful, but there was an odd energy to the air, one that had me almost wanting to turn back.
It wasn’t malicious, but it was almost like I knew something bad was going to happen tonight, and it left me on edge.
“Why here?” Effie asked curiously as reached the edge of the creek that ran through the forested back end of campus. I grinned and tugged off my coat, hanging it on the tree before stepping back.
“It's a great trek of land, running back and forth along the stream, and you never actually leave campus or go down the beach,” I explained.
Her eyes warmed. “It’s safer than the beach.”
I nodded, hoping she understood I was showing her somewhere she could go for a walk that didn’t include being by the ice caps.
The minute Effie stepped back, I shifted, my wolf surging forward as I easily let him take over, the snow underneath our paws feeling fucking fantastic.
A small bark had us looking up to find Effie sitting in front of us, her little black nose tipped up and pink eyes watching with interest.
My wolf let out a low rumble but I instantly shut that shit down, instead leaning down and tapping her nose with my own.
Letting out a bark of excitement, she was off and sprinting down the edge of the stream.
I felt exhilarated following after her and was caught up watching the way she seemed to glide through the air, her purple and blue fur the only color in the snowy landscape.
I let out a worried rumble when she jumped the stream and jumped back, doing it again and again, until we finally reached a clearing after nearly a half an hour.
Her energy was seemingly endless as she bounced around, rolling in the snow.
I sat down, lowering myself to the ground as much as possible as she rolled to her stomach before hopping up and walking towards me.
I huffed as she began to use her nose to pile snow on top of my snout, amusement radiating through our bond.
My wolf and I were far too enamored to stop her, seeing just how happy and free she seemed while expressing this side of herself.
I couldn’t imagine not being able to shift like this, to escape into this form where everything was far simpler.
When she was finally done, she hit the pile with her paw and happily bopped my nose with her own.
I almost got up, but when she curled up next to me, her head tucked under my neck, I stayed exactly where I was, goddamn thrilled that I’d taken her out here.
I’d known she needed a distraction and some relaxation after all the insanity of the past several days.
Plus, if I knew Caedmon, his wolf would be wanting him to shift the minute the moon rose into the sky…
Which would be very soon, the sky darkening to almost a purple blue.
We laid there, curled up, for about fifteen minutes before I tried to connect to her mentally, not knowing if it was possible but willing to give it a chance.
“Want to go back?”
Effie let out a small rumble before nuzzling my neck. I had a feeling that was a no.
I hadn’t realized she’d fallen asleep until our connection lit up with a dream she fell into, right at the top of her consciousness.
My wolf stretched its legs from where we landed in snow, looking around the small yard we were in. The metal fence was waist high and rusted to hell, the street it faced crowded with people going in and out of what appeared to be pubs.
I could instantly tell they were fenrir wolves, and when I looked up to the worn-down apartment, it was pretty easy to guess that this was where Effie had grown up, from what she could remember.
When the back door of the apartment opened, I saw a slight figure step out from the screen door. Instantly I felt anger build, because not only was it Effie, but it was a far thinner and more beat-up version of my mate, her hair tangled and eyes wide with fear.
I looked up where I could hear people screaming upstairs as she slid down against the wall, her thin fingers covering the tears streaming down her face.
I had no idea how old she was, maybe a year or two younger than she was now, but her eyes held a sadness that made her seem far older than that.
This was the pain that Effie managed to hide from us, these memories, and they absolutely gutted me.
After a moment, she stood and eyed the street before deciding to shift, her form bathed in light.
I felt a defensive rumble leave my throat, noticing that there were people watching her from the street.
It wasn’t surprising, but somehow it still made me furious when she tried to play in the yard, walking around with the crunch of leaves under foot, for a few minutes of undisturbed peace…
Only to have people start yelling at her.
The first degrading words caused her to pause before going back to still play around with the leaves, half ignoring them.
When the first glass bottle was thrown, I lost my shit.
It landed straight against her side, the glass—
I yanked us hard out of the dream, my form shifting as I pinned Effie to the ground, her groan making me know my power had forced her shift as well. I felt my chest let out a growl as Effie looked up at me with confused and tormented eyes.
“How often was it like that?” I demanded softly.
Her eyes welled with tears. “I don’t… I mean, it was always like that. It was just worth it compared to being upstairs. Gerald and Theresa used to fight, and then they would go into their bedroom, and I never wanted to be there during that.”
“Fuck,” I muttered. “I’m so sorry, little wolf. You shouldn’t have had to deal with any of that bullshit. Fucking any of it.”
“I know,” she whispered. “I’m realizing that… It just took a bit to get there.”
Distress passed over her face.
“What?” I asked.
“I just worry I am taking too long to catch up. Gerald and all his buddies used to talk about how if a girl doesn’t put out right away, she’s useless…
” Her brow crinkled as her tears intensified.
“I hate feeling confused like this. I don’t want to push you guys away, but I also know that we are taking things slow, and I just—”
I kissed her hard, and after she finally relaxed, I pulled back slightly. “Effie, I need you to listen to me.”
She sniffed and nodded seriously.
“None of us are in a rush,” I promised softly.
“All of us understand where you are coming from, and you have a right more than anyone to be cautious. Do not create a problem in your head, little wolf. Absolutely none of us are complaining. I swear to the Goddess, Effie, if you only kissed me for the rest of our lives, I would still be thrilled. Do not let anyone tell you differently. Whether we sleep together next week or four years from now, I am going to be by your side.”
“And the others?” she asked.
I didn’t want to speak for the others, but I knew the truth.
“Tore is completely committed to you. Julian and his wolf are obsessive over you. Ryder is an ass but slowly getting his shit together… And Caedmon is finally starting to believe that he has the capability to love you. Every single one of us is behind you. You are the center of all of this, Effie. You set the pace and make the decisions. You have to realize that you have all the power here, every single drop of it.”
Effie’s eyes filled with an overwhelming amount of emotion as she nodded, her fingers cupping my jaw as she kissed me gently.
“Something you should enjoy since it will be nothing like that once you are marked by our pack,” Weylin’s voice interrupted.
In a flash I was on my feet with her behind me, Effie making a concerned noise.
I breathed out a small sigh of relief when I noticed that it was just him, and I knew I could handle Weylin.
“I thought you learned your lesson,” I stated easily, my eyes tracking how relaxed he looked, the concept of him being at ease while outnumbered making me somewhat uncomfortable. There was something here I wasn’t seeing, but I could only keep my gaze on him while Effie was plastered to my back.
“All I learned was that we had to take more direct action.” Weylin grinned.
Effie let out a cry as she was suddenly yanked from behind me, causing me to snap my head around to find her in the hands of Reamann.
A growl ripped from my throat as I lunged forward and shifted in mid-air.
Something hard and blunt hit the back of my skull and caused me to lose focus for just a second, and that was enough for another hit to come to my ribs, the crunching noise making me know it was going to be bad.
Still, I tried to move forward, the pain in my ribs and back of my head making me trip over my own feet as another came to my spine. Effie’s scream was the last thing I heard as everything turned black around me.
A howl ripped from my throat as I tried my best to call the others. To warn them.
Our mate was in trouble.