Chapter 11
VESSA
Sleep is nowhere within my grasp when I return to the house, following an excruciatingly awkward dinner with Cora and the Sentinel.
Instead, I stare at the ceiling for hours; intrusive thoughts shove and nip at me like wolves circling prey.
The minute the Alpha learns who you really are, you’ll no longer be safe here.
Jabir summons me at first light. Beneath the main floor of Lupine Manor, I follow the Beta down a dark-lit industrial staircase that was left out of my previous tour.
While the upper levels of this house were built like a ski lodge, they were not designed by the same person who constructed the subterranean level.
Massive pipes run along the ceiling, granite walls stark and sterile.
I imagine this corridor could serve as a hideout in the event of a bombing or an invasion.
Jabir knocks twice on the first office door before showing me in. The Alpha of the Bleeding Sun towers over his desk, shuffling a pile of folders. An apex predator, ruggedly put together in a simple button-down and slacks. He looks up, immediately registering my fatigue.
Axe approaches with a warm mug filled with coffee and pulls out the chair for me to sit opposite of his desk. "Sit."
I accept the cup and sink into the inviting leather-cushioned seat.
Behind his desk, I spy a framed red and white tapestry hung on the wall which displays an image of a howling wolf.
Below the frame hangs an Agathoran flag, a photo of a younger Axe in his dashing uniform, along with another shot of him standing tallest among his platoonmates.
Rolling up his sleeves, Axe continues to go on about his daily morning routine, but my head is pounding too hard to stay engaged. Rubbing my temple does little to alleviate the discomfort.
"Are you still with me? You don't look well.”
The bags under my eyes feel droopier than they have in days. Forcing myself to blink, I prop myself up on wobbly elbows. "I’m not a morning person.”
He doesn’t press further on the subject. “Right then. About yesterday . . .”
“Should I be praising you for butchering that Alpha? Because I will do no such thing."
Axe blinks, taken aback. "No. But just so you know, that Alpha was nothing but a thorn in my side."
"What is this about then?”
Something has him wound painfully tight. “I want you to look me in the eyes and tell me that you don’t believe I’m a monster.”
I purse my lips. Images of yesterday's brawl resurface. His claws and black muzzle slick with gore. A terrifying threat to any adversary. And yet, in my company, the wolf has been nothing but gentle, his fury tempered.
Settling on my answer, I relax my posture. “I barely know you. But from what I’ve seen, you are not a monster.”
"What I sensed during the challenge yesterday indicated otherwise."
“I wasn’t afraid of you.”
“No?”
“Should I be?”
"Most of my people believe that I was put on this earth to kill, and that spilling blood is what I do best."
“Ripping out spines. So I’ve heard.”
His jaw flinches. I take a sip from my coffee, resisting the urge to smirk. But as I swallow, a tremor courses through me, imagining what strength one would truly need to punch through sternum, flesh, and vertebrae. How sharp those reaping talons are. How monstrous, indeed.
The flash of cobalt in his eyes is so quick I almost miss it. “I said that it’s what I do best, not what I’m most proud of. I don’t make it my aim to inspire fear in my subjects. Fear doesn’t equate to loyalty. So, naturally, when I smell terror on you and realize it’s directed at me—”
My eyes widen. “Excuse me?”
"Lycans have scent receptors fifty times sharper than any other species. Human emotions have distinct scent signatures. Take how tense you are, for example. When you lied to me the other night, your pheromones went sour. When you’re frightened, the scent resonates with a smoky quality.
That’s how I was able to locate you during Lupercalia.
If you’re aroused, it dips sweet enough to give me a fucking toothache. ”
My toes curl tight enough to cramp. Maurleen never gave me the indication that mates could be this intuitive. How am I supposed to keep lying about my identity if he can smell it?
I need to figure out what his augment is. Before it can be used further against me.
“Is there any part of my personality that you don’t find woefully off-putting?”
He huffs, lips on the cusp of a smile. “On the contrary, I’d say you’re the most intriguing human I’ve ever met, Vessa Lemaire.”
A chirping notification lights up his phone screen. But he doesn't bother to break our mutual gaze. Still as death, he assesses me. Scenting, listening to the rise and fall of my chest.
Rolling my eyes, I expel a sigh. "Are you through intimidating me, Alpha Commander? Or will that be all?”
Dropping the predatory glare, Axe runs a hand through his wavy mane. The soft light of the office paints his hair burnished gold. “I don’t enforce that title among my own, unless necessary. With you, it’s Axe. Just Axe.”
The Beta reappears in the doorway, adjusting his headset. “Lorray’s standing by for you. He’s on line two.”
“Tell him he’s supervising patrol tonight. And Monday.”
Jabir chuckles. “Cora won’t like that one bit.”
“She’ll live.”
“What’d he do? Mouth off again?”
Axe cocks his brow incredulously. “What do you think?”
Jabir offers his arm to me. As the two of us duck out of the doorway, Axe stands. His jaw is stiff. Eyes weary.
“One more thing, Vessa. Don’t stray far from your room tonight. It’s a full moon.”
Axe
Qinnu finds me in the kitchen as the sun starts to sink below the horizon.
“It’s time,” he drawls, slipping on a pair of leather gloves.
From his drawstring bag, he removes a pair of shackles made of pure silver.
Qinnu leads me into the narrow hall, which has been cleared along with the rest of the main level.
By sunset, most mated pairs have retreated to the privacy of their own homes.
Those who remain without a partner slip into the wilderness, where they can fully surrender to the moon’s influence.
“You’re an asshole, you know that?” he gripes, turning the second latch of the steel door.
“I need you out there. Steer the other males as far away as you can,” I say, beginning my descent. A lightbulb flickers overhead. “Don’t act like you haven’t gotten laid every night this week.”
Qinnu grunts, amber gleaming in his eyes. He doesn’t deny it. If he wasn’t so transparent wearing his mate’s stench, it’s also plain to see in the way he puffs his chest.
By the time we reach the bottom, sweat beads on my forehead. Under my skin, the wolf squirms. At the end of the hallway are two bunkers flanked opposite of each other. Qinnu steps through the door on the right. In the supply closet, he kicks off the rug, revealing a familiar hidden door.
He barks at me to turn around. “You’re not going any further without the cuffs.”
Breathing heavily, I do as he says, peeling off my shirt.
My palms are clammy as I undo my belt, letting my trousers hit the floor.
Qinnu jerks me backwards, clamping the thick shackles on my wrists.
I flinch, feeling the reprimanding sizzle from the restraints.
Silver can’t stop the inevitable, but it’s pretty damn effective at deescalating the shift.
There’s no need for this! my wolf protests.
Qinnu pulls back the latch, snickering. “Oh, you think he’s pissed now? Just wait until nightfall.”
I duck my head and bend forward as we begin the final descent. The stairwell to the holding cell is pitch black. I blink rapidly, eyes switching into primal mode, where canine instincts guide me through darkness.
He eventually hits the light switch and nudges me towards the first of three interrogation cells. My wolf hisses at the creaking titanium hinge as the door swings open. These walls are intended to hold enemies. To contain evil. In the direst circumstances, to contain ourselves.
Without warning, icy water is flung upon me, dropping me to my knees.
“Fuck!” I cough. Was that for Cora?
I find Qinnu glaring at me. “We need to bring your temperature down,” he says before thrusting another bucket upon me.
I swear against the impact, feeling the chill to my very core.
There, a presence stirs, rumbling like a furnace.
Ribcage expanding and contracting. My wolf, rebelling.
Usually, we are free to roam the forests around us, where Shay is always waiting and willing.
But I’m long past her now. There’s only one woman he’s dialed into tonight.
The one who smells of forbidden fruit. The one whose door I guard while she sleeps.
Qinnu steps into the cell. “Stay down. I’m going to shackle your ankles.”
My hands tremble behind my back as he secures the restraints chained to the wall. His gaze lingers for a moment on the scar tissue below the knee. As I feel the savage kiss of the silver against my skin, for a moment, I recall the engulfing flames that once licked and feasted on my young limbs.
He strikes me across the cheek. Hard. “Stay in the moment, Axe. You’re safe. She’s safe. Everything’s under control.”
I blink, coming to my senses and remembering those very same words I spoke to him, when the tables were turned many months ago. When Qinnu was the poor bastard held back by these metal chains to keep him from unintentionally hurting the woman his wolf screamed for.
Tonight, the wolf cannot be trusted.
Mate. Where is she? the beast whines. My blood is pumping with anticipation. The urge to shift pulsates stronger now, like seconds ticking towards an explosion.
“More. Ice.” I grunt. Qinnu dumps another bucket of frigid water over my head, delivering a series of punches to my ribs before I can recover. I double over with a snarl. My fingers are twitching. Snapping.
She’s in the house. I smell her. We must protect her. We must claim her before another comes along and—