Chapter 2 - Elias #2
Huffing, she folded her arms as she planted her feet.
The way she held herself now, her shoulders back with a straight spine, spoke of confidence as she glared up at me.
Despite myself, I had to admire her gall.
I wasn’t used to people standing their ground against me, or looking at me with such undisguised hatred.
My wolf stirred with interest as he regarded her.
“Are you going to tell me what you’re doing here?” she asked.
“I’m the pack alpha now,” I said. I paced around the tiny living room, taking stock of the broken and old furniture, her shabby clothes, and the cramped space. She was living in poverty.
Some other scent I couldn’t place lingered through the space.
A male? For whatever reason, the thought of another man in this house, with Emma, sent an irrational spasm of jealousy through my wolf.
This was our mate, no one else’s. If there were a male here, I was going to make it my business to find out who.
I made my way toward the back hall. Before I could get there, she stepped in front of the hall door, blocking me as she glared up at me.
“Good for you,” she said as she folded her arms. “I don’t see how that has anything to do with me.
I left the pack.” She shook her head, arms flopping to her side again after brushing a strand of hair from her face, as if she didn’t know how to hold herself.
“How the hell did you even find me? I don’t talk to anyone from the pack. ”
“It took a bit of work,” I said. “You didn’t make it easy.”
“It’s almost as if I didn’t want anyone from my past tracking me down,” she said dryly. “Sort of like I wanted to live in peace.”
This wasn’t what I had expected at all. I glanced over at Sam, who leaned against the wall, amusement dancing on his face. When he caught me glancing at him, he shrugged.
“Unfortunately, that isn’t going to be possible any longer,” I said, dragging my attention back to Emma.
Uncertainty flickered across her face as she fidgeted, now glancing between the two of us, weight shifting from foot to foot.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked.
“I’m here to take you back to Silver Falls,” I answered.
She gave a half-laugh of disbelief, as if she thought I was joking. When I remained silent, her own expression turned stern, and she folded her arms.
“You have got to be kidding,” she snarled. “I’m not going back.”
“You don’t have a choice,” I growled, taking several steps toward her. Her scent, a pleasant blackberry smell, was driving me wild. The last time I had smelled it was when she had been in my bed. It had lingered there for days after. Smelling it again sent my wolf into a frenzy.
“Are you serious? God, this is insane. You know, that sort of mentality is half the reason I left the pack in the first place. What the hell makes you think you have any right to tell me what I can and can’t do?
” She scoffed, shaking her head. “‘I don’t have a choice?’ Of course I do. And I’m choosing to stay here.”
“Afraid that’s not an option,” I said.
“And why not?”
“You’re my luna,” I said.
Whatever she had been expecting, it wasn’t that. She took several steps back, reeling backward as if she’d been slapped. Her mouth dropped open as she stared up at me.
“What?” she finally managed to ask. Her eyes darted over to Sam, as if expecting him to burst into laughter at any moment and prove her theory that this was a huge prank.
“I spoke to the Oracle two days ago,” I said. “She told me you’re my mate, and we need to go through with the ceremony.”
Her jaw worked, but no sound came out. “What?” she finally managed to choke out.
“You’re my mate,” I repeated.
She gave another half-laugh, taking several steps back as her arms slipped around her stomach, her composure slipping for the first time since we had walked in.
“You’re joking,” she said. “This is a not-funny, elaborate joke.”
“Pack whatever you need for a few days,” I said, ignoring the comment.
“We can have men come by and pick up whatever else you want us to bring later.” Based on the dilapidated state of some of her furniture, I would normally recommend burning most of it, but I’d suggest that at a later date, when she wasn’t in so much shock.
She gave a bitter laugh as she glared at me with more vitriol and disgust than I would have thought possible.
“You have to be crazy if you think that I’m going with you,” she snarled. “After everything you—”
“You don’t have a choice,” I growled, coming to stand in front of her.
“Is that so?” She folded her arms as she stared up at me. “Well, in case it escaped your notice, I’m not part of your pack any longer. You’re not my alpha. I don’t have to listen to a word you say. So thanks, but no. I’m not playing along with whatever bullshit this is.”
Part of me couldn’t help but be surprised. This was the type of thing most females dreamed of happening to them. I would have thought she’d be grateful. But besides the obvious anger she had no issue showing, she seemed almost afraid, or, at the very least, reluctant to return to Silver Falls.
“You’re coming,” I snarled. “You’re my luna whether you like it or not, and you’re coming with me one way or the other.”
Her head tilted upward as she folded her arms and glowered up at me, planting her feet even as her eyes flashed wolf, a danger sign that she was fuming.
“I’m. Not. Going.”
I closed my eyes in frustration, trying and failing to bite back the growl reverberating in my throat. I glanced over at Sam, who shrugged, even as his eyes glinted with amusement, and an annoying smirk played on his lips.
With a sigh, I turned back to Emma. “Is that your final word on the matter?”
Surprise flickered in her gaze this time, as if she hadn’t expected to win that easily. Her arms fell to her side, but she jutted out her chin, keeping her gaze locked on me.
“Yes,” she said. “That’s my final word on the matter. I’m staying here. So, unless you want to drag me out of here, you might as well leave.”
“I have no intention of dragging you anywhere,” I growled.
Before she could respond, I cleared the final gap between us and picked her up, hauling her over my shoulder. I lifted her without much effort, and she shrieked in my ear in surprise.
“Let me go!” she screamed.
“I wouldn’t have to do this if you weren’t being so stubborn,” I snarled as I carried her out of the house and to the car. I ignored her kicks as she drove her feet into my stomach. I didn’t let her down until we stood in front of the car.
“Are you going to get in the car on your own now?” I growled, folding my arms.
Her jaw worked as she glared up at me. “Fine. At least let me get my daughter,” she snapped.
The words took me by surprise. Daughter? I turned to look behind me at the house, the door still open. Emma had a daughter?
The thought that someone else had a child with my mate made my wolf snarl with rage, his claws flexing.
But she was already marching past me back to the house. I followed after her, matching her stride and making sure she couldn’t slam the door in my face. Emma weaved through the tiny living room toward the back. She creaked the door open, first ajar, then all the way.
“Mommy?” a girl’s voice asked. “What’s wrong? I heard screaming.”
“Nothing’s wrong,” Emma said. “It’s just…” She trailed off, clearly not certain how to continue.
I pushed past her and came to stand in the room.
A tiny girl with auburn hair raised her head and blinked sleepily up at me with blue eyes. Her eyes squinted in curiosity as she regarded me, her head tilted.
“Who are you?” she asked.
“I’m Elias,” I said. “I’m friends with your mom.”
“Friends” was more than a little disingenuous, but I wasn’t about to go into the details of our past or the future that the Oracle had foretold.
“I need you and your mom to come with me,” I continued.
Her eyes narrowed as she studied me. There was something familiar about that stare. She must have gotten it from her mother.
“I like it here,” she said.
“It’s all right, Grace,” Emma’s voice said. She leaned against the doorway, her lips a thin line. Sam stood behind her. She took a deep breath, her forefinger tapping against the side of her other arm. “It looks like you and I are going to be moving.”
Grace’s brow furrowed as she looked back at me. “Do we have to?” she asked her mother.
“Doesn’t seem like we have much choice,” Emma answered, her voice tight as she bit back anger. With a glare at me, she strode into the room, her scent lingering in the air behind her as she bent to bundle her daughter up in her arms.
“I hope you’ll at least let us pack first,” she snarled at me.
I let out an irritated growl. She didn’t have to be this stubborn about it. She was acting as though I was dragging her to prison, not to be the luna of a pack. Most females of packs dreamed of this sort of chance. I would have thought she’d be grateful at the very least.
She raised her eyebrow as she stared back at me, not intimidated in the slightest. She glared at me with so much hatred, I could nearly taste it.
A woman who absolutely despised me was supposed to be my luna. Great.
“Just get what you need,” I growled.