Instant Enemies. by Emily Zimmerman. (affordable ebook reader .txt) 📕

I felt…human.

“Hello, dear mother. I do apologize for taking your wolf away, I assure you, though, she is safe.” The leader of the coven said.

It was as if I was possessed. “My son, Paul, please, do not do this. I will be devastated if you destroy my pack. I live in this body; therefore I feel what it feels. My daughter feels pain, and sorrow. Please, I beg of you, do not hurt my family.” I spoke in a voice that wasn’t my own, and it shocked me.

Paul looked down at me and sadly shook his head, clicking his tongue softly. “I cannot stop, my dear, sweet mother. I have to avenge my poor daughter, and with you away from the pack, I can do it safely.” He told me.

I regained control of my body, and it seemed that The Wolven Goddess had given up trying to negotiate. “Please.” I felt a tear slip down my cheek. “Don’t hurt them.”

He leaned down and, with a long, sharp nail, ran his finger down my cheek. “Sometimes I wonder why she chose you. You are weak. You think you cannot live without your precious pack. But you are wrong.” He growled in my face, making me flinch.

“You don’t understand. He’s my mate, he dies…I’ll die.” I told him, my voice hoarse.

Paul shrugged at my words. “Then our mother will find another to take host of.” He said, and his tone was casual as if he were speaking of the weather.

The Wolven Goddess took hold of me again. “There will be no other chosen one for thousands of years!” she snarled from my lips.

He immediately took his hand away from my cheek. “Then I will spare the mate’s life. Could you please spare his name?”

“Damian.” I spat, gaining control once again.

Paul clenched his fists. “Fine…I will spare Damian.” He told me, almost having to force the words.

I didn’t feel assured. I felt hatred. Damian would not let his pack die. That wasn’t who he was. Damian was protective of his pack, and would do anything to keep them safe.

Even if that meant sacrificing himself.

I pulled at the ropes that bound me. “Please, think about what you are doing. You are killing off an entire pack, just for the sake of one female.” I pleaded.

He smiled and stood up. “Exactly.”
Part Thirteen: Mine.

I tried to make myself comfortable, but all in all, I was failing miserably. With my arms bound behind me, and the rough stone pillar against by back, my body was aching with the attempt to stay sitting up. My neck hurt from when I dozed off with my head hanging low, and my back ached agonizingly because it’d been slumped so long. If I were still a wolf, I would have been able to sit here for days without before even feeling a twinge of pain…it had been three days and I felt like my body was deteriorating into nothing.

I felt tears brim in my eyes as I realized I probably would never see Damian again. No matter if they spared him, he would give up his life for his pack. I cried quietly for the man I would ultimately lose, despair taking over. I should have never let him into my life. I was a bad luck charm. Anyone I let into my life left me, why did I think he would be any different?

I felt more human than I’d ever felt in my life. I loved Damian, more than I loved anyone else. I couldn’t stand the thought of losing him.

I was pulled from my thoughts of despair when I heard someone approach. I looked up to see a young vampire, probably just born into the supernatural world. “Hello.” He said timidly.

“Hi.” I whispered.

“Paul, my leader says you are our long lost mother. I can see now that he was right…” he hesitated.

“What is it?” I asked him.

He looked around and leaned down on one knee, whispering so no one could hear. “I cannot help but judge his reason for keeping you here. He tries to justify it, but already, new females have been sent to join our coven. He has no reason for revenge, but he insists. So I’m setting you free.” He reached into a small pouch that was tied around his waist and pulled out a jar. In the jar was a bright light. “I need you to close your eyes. This will be a little painful because I do not have the ability to render you unconscious just yet.” He told me with an apologetic look.

“What is it?” I asked.

“Your inner wolf. I took her from our leader’s courters.” He told me.

“Wait…before you do this…why? We are natural enemies. Shouldn’t you be trying to kill me?” I asked him.

“Even natural enemies can help each other when in need.” He told me with a shrug.

He looked around with apprehensive eyes once more before putting his hand on my forehead and leaning my head back against the pillar. I heard the jar open, and all of the sudden, I had to hold back a yelp as pain burned through my chest. But as quickly as the pain appeared, it was gone.

‘Cat, what happened? All I remember is the vampire staring down at us.’ Lorry said in alarm.

‘They took you out of me.’ I told her, sighing in relief as my wolf senses came back to me.

The boy untied my hands and helped me up. Immediately, my sore muscles began to heal. “Thank you. What is your name?” I asked him.

He bowed his head. “My name is Rae.”

“I can’t thank you enough. Be safe, Rae.” I told him softly.

“I will, thank you, mother.”

I ran from the cave entrance and smiled at the exhilaration of inhuman speed. I followed the familiar scent of wolf until I reached the pack house. Just as I reached the back door, it opened and I slammed into a sturdy chest, sending us both tumbling to the floor.

I looked up and realized I’d slammed into Damian. “Oops.” I said, my cheeks flushing in embarrassment.

I got up and pulled Damian up with me, realizing that my hands were muddy; I quickly walked over to the kitchen sink and washed them off. Just as I was turning the water off, I was turned around and Damian’s eyes were boring into mine. “Where have you been?” he growled.

“I’ve been…places. Now I really need a shower, because I probably stink.” I changed the subject quickly.

He caught my arm as I moved from his grasp. “What places? Do you know how worried I’ve been? I have the whole pack out there looking for you! Your parents thought you were dead, and your brother is going insane!” he yelled at me.

I ripped my arm from his grasp, my control finally slipping. “I just need to take a shower alright?” I yelled back.

“No! You are going to tell me what happened!” his voice turned Alpha, and I whimpered involuntarily.

“Fine. You want to know what happened? I was kidnapped, tied up, My inner wolf was taken from me, and I was told I’d lose everything that mattered to me. Got it? Good, I’m going to take a shower now.”

I turned on my heel and left Damian standing there, shocked into silence. I stormed up the stairs, grumbling to myself. I was very mad at Damian now that I knew he was alright. It made me smile a bit through my anger to realize just how ridiculous Damian and I were. We fought over the simplest remarks. I turned the shower on to boiling hot and jumped in, letting the water heat my skin until it turned red.

As I washed myself, I felt my entire world slip away, the heat of the water washed all of my stress away, leaving nothing but a calm, collective feeling. My thoughts drifted to Damian, and instead of the hostile feelings I expected to feel, all I felt was love, compassion, and understanding. I was suddenly able to put myself in Damian’s shoes. I was able to see that he wasn’t angry at me, but he was worried out of his mind. I felt like I could see from his point of view with this new, clearer mind. He loved me so much, that the thought of him losing me was just as bad as the thought of me losing him.

So as I stepped from the shower, I felt guilt encroach upon the calm feeling I had. I’d snapped at him, and all because I was afraid.

I sighed, wrapping a towel around myself and stepping into the guest room that I’d picked to shower in. Damian sat on the other side of the guest bed, staring out the window with his back to me. “Damian…I’m sorry.” I told him softly.

He slowly shook his head, still not turning. “It’s not your fault. I was too harsh.” He told me.

“No, I don’t mean that. I mean, of course I’m sorry about that, but that’s not the only thing. I know the reason why we fight. And it isn’t because we want to.” I sighed. “Have you ever noticed that you never start the fights? It’s always me, challenging you, trying to find reasons to…to stay away from you. It’s a survival instinct…actually,” I stated thoughtfully, “It’s more like a protective instinct. Because I always seem to do it to people I get close to-“ I realized I was babbling and cut myself off, Damian still hadn’t looked at me, but he was listening, I could tell by the way his back was tense, he was waiting for something…but what?

“My point is that I push you away, and I don’t even realize what I’m doing until…” I trailed off.

He finally turned to look at me as I sank down on the bed beside him, running a hand through my wet hair. His eyes met mine and he waited silently for me to continue. “Until it’s too late. I push you away because I’m trying to keep you from harm’s way. But seeing as you’re my mate and are obviously not going to back down…I guess I was wrong in doing so.” I sighed.

He sat in silence for a little longer before a slight smile graced his lips. “So you’re basically apologizing for pushing me away?” he asked me, his tone holding a bit of curiosity mixed with confusion.

“Yes. My entire body tells me to be with you…but my mind tells me that it’s too dangerous. I guess I should just shut my mind off and listen to my heart, huh?” I muttered, pulling my eyes from his and looking at my hands