Chapter 15
FIFTEEN
PYRO
“Growing up, I was excited to carry the dragon mark,” Carina says, holding my hand and walking with me back to the clubhouse.
“I loved it so much that I would go around telling everyone that I was going to marry a dragon. I would show the world, and as I got older, I learned it wasn’t something I should talk about.
That I shouldn’t share that with the world. ”
“What happened?” The question is rough-sounding even to my own ears, but I want to know. I want to know everything there is to know about my mate.
I didn’t like the fact the dragon had showed up here and challenged me to win my mate. I knew it was a possibility it could happen if one ever found out that my mate carried a mark. What I hadn’t understood was how the damn dragon found her.
“It started off with simply bullying. Girls would call me a freak. Guys would tease me for it. I’d be laughed at and whispered about loud enough that I could hear what they were saying.
Some guys would spread rumors about me.” She sighs and shakes her head.
“I handled it for as long as I could. It got worse over time. Bad enough to the point I couldn’t look at myself in the mirror. I still struggle with that sometimes.”
Carina shouldn’t have to struggle with looking in the mirror. She’s beautiful and perfect in my eyes.
“One day, these girls cornered me in the bathroom at school. They took great pleasure in shearing my hair while holding me down on the bathroom floor.”
My dragon roars in my head at the thought of anyone putting their hands on our mate.
“When they were done, they laughed and took pictures of me before letting two of the guys in the girls’ bathroom.”
“They hurt you,” I state, not having to hear it to know the truth.
Carina stops and looks up at me, tears pricking her eyes. “No one knows this. Not my grandparents or brother,” she whispers.
“What you tell me, Sweets, stays between us. No one will know unless you make it their business.”
I won’t ever fuck with her trust in me with this.
Nodding, she casts her gaze away. “I used to write everything down.”
I remember her telling me about the journals.
“That day was the last day I was here.” Her words are barely audible.
“I ran away after that. I couldn’t take it anymore.
I felt so dirty. Unworthy of who I wanted to be.
I had planned to save my virginity for my dragon.
I was going to be pure. But after that day .
. .” She shakes her head again. “I wasn’t pure.
I didn’t keep my word to myself. They raped me. ”
Unable to stop myself, I jerk Carina to me, wrapping my arms tightly around her.
“They took great pleasure in calling me a whore. Laughing. The girls . . . they stood by and watched. One of them filmed it, saying it was going to be great to share it with the rest of the school.”
I want to kill them all. I swear, if I find those who hurt my woman, I will take great pleasure in tearing them apart limb by limb.
I’ll claw their intestines from their stomachs, drag them through the streets of town, spreading the blood all over the place.
They’ll learn never to touch what’s mine again.
“You’re not a whore, Carina. You’re not what those fuckers said about you.”
“I know,” she murmurs, breath hitching. “It took a long time to heal, but I did. I started traveling and swore never to come back here.”
“Now, you’re home.” I point out.
“I am,” Carina agrees softly. “I’m done running away.”
“Good, because there’s one thing I’ve learned about my mate.”
“What’s that?”
“She’s not a quitter. She doesn’t let anyone walk over her. She’s not weak, and she sure as hell isn’t one of those who put up with someone’s bullshit.”
“Not anymore.”
I dip my head down and press a kiss to Carina’s lips gently. After taking her moments ago, I want her all over again. I can’t get enough of her. I don’t think there will come a time when I grow tired of having my woman’s body.
The very fact that she opened up about her past and what she went through draws me to her all the more.
I want to do everything possible to make her feel safe and whole.
I know when she’s with me, she feels safe.
She’s told me that, but there’s a difference in feeling physically safe and emotionally safe.
Carina just proved to me that she feels it both now, and damn if it doesn’t make me feel good.
We walk together back to the clubhouse with my arm wrapped around Carina’s shoulders, keeping her tucked to my side. I don’t want her far from me. Now or ever.
I still have to talk to her about this challenge, but I need her to tell me about the calls.
“Tell me about the calls.” We are approaching the clubhouse, nearly there.
Carina sighs but doesn’t procrastinate. “I started getting creepy breathing calls a while ago. No words were ever said. They would stop and then start up again. The day of the accident, though, I’d had enough.
I was upset about the fight with my brother and screamed at the caller, wanting to know why they wouldn’t stop calling me.
That’s when he spoke. It’s how I knew that the dragon was him.
He called me dearest. That’s what he said on that one call that he spoke on.
It was only moments later I wrecked my car. ”
It’s hard to keep myself from showing my reaction, but I manage to do it all the same. This asshole terrorized my mate with calls, scaring her, something she kept to herself, not telling anyone.
“From now on, Carina, you aren’t to keep shit like this to yourself. You’re not alone. Not ever again. You tell me. Got me?”
Carina tilts her head back to give me her eyes. “Long as you do the same.”
“I can do that. But telling you now, Sweets, there’s gonna be times I can’t tell you what’s going on because it’s got to do with club business. When I say that, it means you can’t know what’s going on. Club business is just that.”
For a moment, she stares up at me before nodding. “I can understand when it comes to that, so long as you don’t lie to me, telling me it’s club business when it’s not and simply just your business.”
Smirking down at her, I can’t help but kiss her all over again. When it comes to Carina, the need to kiss her, touch her, fuck her, is always there.
“Not gonna lie to you about what’s club business, Sweets,” I murmur against her lips. “We need to get our shit packed to go and get the fuck on the road. I also gotta talk to my brothers.
“I can get bags packed while you guys talk,” she offers.
I give her a grin and nod. “You do that, and I’ll talk to the brothers.”
I kiss her once more, and we walk into the front doors of the clubhouse to find everyone gearing up, ready to go. Letting Carina go, I move to Heat and Brimstone while keeping an eye on her as she heads for the back of the clubhouse.
“Everything good there?” Heat asks, cocking a brow.
I let out a heavy breath. “Yeah, we had a talk about shit. Evidently, this dragon I’ve got to go against has been calling her for a while, freaking her out.”
“The fuck,” Inferno snarls, joining us. “What do you mean he’s been calling her?”
I glance at Carina’s brother and shake my head.
“Look, I get you want to know that part of shit, but I can’t tell you.
Carina finally fuckin’ opened up to me about what she’s been hiding, and I’m not about to ruin that trust. What I will say, though, is that he’s going to be the one to die tomorrow during that challenge.
I’m not going to let that dragon anywhere near my mate. ”
“What are we going to do about your mother? You know she could have you bound for the challenge, hinder you of your strength.” Brimstone has a point, she could, but I’m not going to let it stop me.
“I’ll deal with her when the time comes. Right now, we have to get one on the road and get there.”
“We’re gonna do recon to see about finding Kinley when we get there,” Brimstone says, checking his weapon.
“We’ll find her,” I tell him, clasping a hand on my VP’s shoulder. “Let’s hope she’s still in Shiverborn, but if she’s not, we won’t stop until she’s found.”
“Damn right,” Fire grumbles, joining us. “Evelin would have all our balls if we didn’t.”
“We’re gonna leave in thirty,” Heat announces. “The sooner we get there, the sooner we can get shit started. We have too much at stake right now to lose focus. This challenge for Pyro and finding Kinley are top priorities.”
“I’ll deal with the challenge and my mother.
Inferno and Clay can help you guys with finding Kinley.
After I have my mother dealt with, I’ll help in tracing Kinley.
” An idea pops in my head, and I know exactly what I need to do to find Kinley if she’s still in Shiverborn.
It’s not going to be easy, but to bring someone who belongs to the club back, I’ll do it.
“Strike that. We get to Shiverborn, Heat and Brimstone, you guys come with me, and we’ll go deal with my mother. I know exactly how to find Kinley.”
“What are you going to do?” Heat asks cocking a brow. My brothers standing around us silent, waiting for an answer.
“Let me just see if it will work first. Then we’ll go from there. Just trust me on this for the time being. I won’t let you down.” I hold Heat’s gaze, wanting him to believe that I’ve got this.
“Fine, for now we’ll hold, but we’re going to be there. No way in fuck are we letting you alone with that witch,” Heat grunts, letting out a heavy breath. “Let’s get the fuck ready.”
I nod and head in search of my woman. I’m ready to get her, and the one thing I have in my room that could help us with not just finding information, but also in appeasing my mother enough to not interfere in the challenge tomorrow at noon.