Wolves by Ash Faith (freda ebook reader .txt) 📕

“Oh,” he said eyeing my towel, “Didn’t realise you were in your towel, sorry” he moved his focus onto Callin. “Or that you had a dog?” the look of surprise on his face was priceless.

“Yeah, new addition. Anyway, if you wouldn’t mind?” I pointed to the crate. Jack immediately got to work, lifting the crate with ease as his biceps and neck muscles tensed and flexed as he walked it inside, placing it in my lounge-room.

“Nice place, how’d you happen to have this in your territory?” He asked, as I shut my door, feeling the glowing lock under my fingertips.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.” I said, sitting down on my couch and motioning Jack to do the same.

“What I don’t believe,” he said, eyeing off Callin, who sat at my feet casually eyeing Jack off as well, “is that you have a dog” he repeated his words from earlier.

“What’s so wrong with that? He’s a gift, I’m supposed to take care of him”

“But, Lana, you don’t understand,” He said, warily sitting at the lounge opposite me. “Dogs normally go either ballistic or plain terrified by wolves, let alone Alpha’s” he waved his hand to make sure the dog was real. “This one isn’t even phased by you, let alone me.”

“I don’t know about that, you seemed to put Callin into a bit of an aggressive state than what I saw just before. But he certainly isn’t going ballistic,” I looked into Callin’s eyes, they still had that cold-look to them, but they changed back to the loving, loyal eyes from before as we made eye-contact. “and definitely not terrified of you.” I added.

“Anyway, I didn’t come to talk to you about dogs for an hour.” He sighed, “Have you seen anything or anybody weird. Someone acting odd, introducing themselves to you, claiming to be sent by anybody special?” he asked, confusion flashing his face, and even a small amount of fear as he kept tabs on Callin.

“Not really, but there was-“

“JAACKAAAL, HOW DARE YOU LIE TO ME!” A woman’s aggravated shriek came from outside my broken window, her body crawling through it easily. She stood, arms crossed, staring at Jack with the most hatred I’d seen in a while. Callin stood at my feet, his large body basically blocking Jack’s view of me as he began to growl, hackles at the back of his neck raised.

“A dog? Hah, like that’ll phase me! Jackal you cannot lie to me like that, we’re supposed to be friend! You did not go to the grocery store, instead you went into another Alpha’s territory and are sitting her with a woman in her towel!” She continued to screech, and it began to get really annoying, but her screeching turned to screaming of terror, as I realised Callin had moved from my feet, instead leaping at the bird-looking woman with short silver hair with his teeth bared and a murderous glare.

“Callin! No! Get back here!” I yelled at the dog, pointing a finger at the ground next to me as he turned his head from the girl he had pinned on the ground. Grudgingly, he trotted back to me, that loving look he gave me washing calm over me. “I’m so sorry about that, you said you were a friend of Jackal’s?” I said, lending a hand to the woman on the ground.

“I am Rowena, of-“

“I’ve heard it too many times, Rowena, stop introducing yourself the same god damned way and be normal.” Jack snapped, that’s a first, I’ve never heard Jack use that kind of tone before. This chick had to be extremely annoying to piss off Jack, the guy had so much patience.

“Fine, Alpha Jackal, how do you want me to introduce myself? I’m only doing what is ordered of me it’s not a sin!”

“Okay, look, stop yelling in my house. I don’t really care who you are Rowena, just shut your trap and go busy yourself with something, I’m supposed to be having a conversation here.” I said, shutting her down for calling me ‘a woman in a towel’ like Jackal had snuck out of her grip to get with me. She bowed, walking casually back to the window and jumping out. I need to get that fixed.

“What the hell was that?” I asked Jack, as I sat back down, Callin deciding to jump up onto the couch along with me instead of at my feet this time. He was warm, I snuggled slightly up to him, as he put his large head on my thigh. Jack still watched his every movement, more so now since he pulled that little lightning fast stunt on Rowena.

“That’s what I was talking about, a strange acting person, introducing themselves like this is 1700’s and saying they’re some kind of guide for your ‘success’ and your friend.”

“I can’t say I haven’t had that specifically, but there was this kid that kept kind of appearing, trying to introduce herself, but I cut her off – considering the fact that I hate kids – and walked off. By the end of the day this place appeared on my map and the kid was there acting all proud saying she helped built it. That’s what I meant by you wouldn’t believe me.” I explained,

“That’s interesting, the most my guide, Rowena, has done is annoy me past the point of gentlemen-like replies to her annoying shrieks.” He 

sighed,

“I don’t think the kid was any ‘guide’ of mine. Though she pulled some creepy moves, like having a tantrum when I didn’t believe her, saying I had no idea what I’d done by telling her to go away and disappearing. And I don’t mean like leaving casually, I mean literal thin-air magician trick kind of disappearing.” I said, earning a peak through the window by Rowena, who was clearly listening in.

“Wait, you told her to go? Oh no… poor Remy.” She said, shaking her head. Her little appearance earning a growl for Callin. “Eep!” She squealed, popping down from my window again, in fear of Callin tearing her to pieces. I put a hand on Callin’s back, stopping his growling in its tracks.

“What do you mean ‘poor’? The brat was creeping me out?! Of course I told her to go.” I said, trying to reason my actions, even though I thought they didn’t need reasoning.

“I mean ‘poor’” Rowena said from the darkness of the outside, “Because you really don’t know what you’d done telling her to leave, failing this mission,” I heard her gulp, “Failing the mission is dealt with by a sentence of death or eternal imprisonment.”

“What? Why would a kid sign up to such a thing?” I said, horrified at the thought

“She wasn’t really a kid, Remy was a fae that had lived just as long as the Prince of Vampires himself, hundreds of years.” She replied,

“Wait, Kade was the one who set you guys this ‘mission’?” I asked, horrified at the thought of Kade chopping the head off of the kid all because I told her to go away.

“That’s a name only his beloved is allowed to call him. I’ll let you slide with a warning, but I promise you my Prince would have no such sympathy for a wolf such as yourself”

“So you’re a vampire.” I said, pretending I hadn’t saved their little bitch of a Prince’s life, and his ‘beloved’s’ multiple times.

“you couldn’t tell?” she said, surprised,

“No, I just didn’t want to.” I said calmly, I heard an aggravated mini groan come from the girl as she whooped herself back in the room from my window. “Could you shut that, I don’t need any more people coming through there.” I said, she immediately closed it after stepping both her feet on the dark grey carpet.

“Anymore?” Jack asked, freezing me up as I planned my lie.

“My brothers broke through it, blundering idiots” I laughed cautiously, tensing Callin up. I guess the dog can tell my lies as well.

“Right,” he said, believing my lie, probably imagining up the large body of Franky ripping it open.

“Anything else you wanted to discuss other than the fact that you now have her at your every move?” I asked Jack, avoiding the annoyed mini grunt Rowena made.

“Actually I did have something in mind, when the battle finished and I pushed you into your chosen moonlight, the Alpha, Ace, began yelling at me. The selection was normal, I had no idea what he was going off on me about, he seemed seriously worried about the Immortal Court getting notified of you. And about you in general. You acted weird when I was going to ask you days ago.” He said, but not asking the question he knew I already realised he wanted to ask. What happened between you two, what are you to each other. Something flashed in his eyes, a small glint, he pushed it away but I saw it before he did. Jealousy. Oh my god. Jackal was jealous of Ace, and he didn’t even know that the dent on the wall next to him was from me and Ace…

“It’s complicated, but I’ll try” I sighed, “basically, the dude turned up one day when I was about to be traded for K- uh, someone’s benefit, couldn’t really remember why. He promised to get me out of the trade, to not let anything happen to me, but instead I was left waiting, as the trade finished and the people who held me captive then drugged me. Basically, He’d betrayed my trust, and a few other minor things he kept from me fuelled the anger I had. Why he was worried, I don’t really know, maybe he wanted me to be used for the thing I did to you in the alleyway. Like I said, don’t really know.” I said, lying as confidently as I could. I know it was wrong to lie, but I didn’t need Jack to hate me right now because of his jealousy, or his little secretary to know anything.

“I’m sorry that people did that to you.” He said, his eyes sorry for something he didn’t even do, he grabbed my hand, avoiding eye contact with Callin.

“Don’t be, it wasn’t your fault” I said, “Plus, those captors were nothing, I’ve felt real cruelty, torture, they were infants in the act compared to what I’ve felt.” I smiled weakly, trying to make him feel better, to get him to change the subject.

“If I can’t be sorry for you, then let me promise you, that as long as your alliance and friendship stays with me. That will never happen again.” His eyes bore into mine.

“This would be a seriously touching moment,” I said humorously, “If I wasn’t in nothing but a towel, but thank you either way.” I got up, Callin following my movements, “I’ll just go get dressed real quick, and we can continue this conversation- “

Ding. Dong.

“Ugh, again, seriously?!” I whispered angrily to myself,

“Don’t worry about it, I’ll get it for you, you go ahead and get some clothes on.” Jack said, jumping up from his seat, leaving an imprint of his back muscles on the couch.

“Thanks so much,” I said, as I continued my way to my bedroom.