by Flynn, Donna
“You’re wrong. I can do this I just need time,” Mercy cried out, trying to move past her to get away from her hateful words, but Amber was not going to let her go easily. She grabbed Mercy’s arm and spun her around, gripping it tightly so she couldn’t run away.
“Let me go, or I will tell Alec everything you said,” Mercy warned feebly.
“Go ahead, who is he going to believe, you who have been jealous of me since the moment I appeared, or me, a trusted friend who has done everything she could to befriend you.”
“You are crazy!” Mercy screamed. “Alec would believe me. He knows I would never lie to him.”
“Why don’t you do the right thing and let Alec go before you both get hurt? You have no idea what being pack is about, so how do you plan to be by his side helping run his when the time comes for him to step up as Alpha?”
Mercy shook her head trying to deny her words, but knew she was right. She had no clue about being pack, and she probably never would as long she kept hiding behind Alec and her brothers. Her next words, though, were the ones that hurt Mercy the worst, and made her take stock of how her hesitancy was really affecting Alec.
“Did you know Alec is thinking of stepping down as his father’s heir because of you?” Amber snapped, savoring the look of disbelief on Mercy’s face.
“I would never ask him to do that,” Mercy said, yanking her arm from the female’s grasp.
“Of course you wouldn’t, the great Mercy, so sweet and nice,” she sneered, grabbing Mercy by her wrist and yanking her closer. “Do you ever consider anyone but yourself? How many things will Alec have to give up because you are unworthy of him?”
Mercy tried to pull her wrist away, but Amber tightened her grip and twisted it with a grin, satisfied by Mercy’s yelp of pain that she was inflicting damage upon her.
“Why are you doing this?” Mercy pleaded, her wrist throbbing with unbearable pain.
“Why?” She chuckled. “Because, you idiot, I want Alec. I would be a good mate for an Alpha, and I chose him a long time ago before he ever knew you existed. I am perfect for him. I embrace what I am, and would be an asset to him. You on the other hand… well let’s just admit that you would be an embarrassment.” She let go of her wrist and pressed her lips together firmly. “Keep your mouth shut about our little chat if you know what is good for you,” she warned. “You need to get it straight, little wolf, I am bigger and stronger than you ever will be, and if you get in my way I will eliminate you.” She pulled her hand back prepared to slap her, but a loud growl filled the courtyard and both girls turned abruptly to look upon the large black wolf that stood a few feet away. The wolf stared at Amber menacingly, its large canines gnashing. Amber snarled back at the beast, shoving Mercy to the ground, ignoring the loud thud her head made as it slammed against the metal picnic table, knocking her out instantly.
The wolf howled angrily and advanced toward Amber angrily. She raised her hands in a show of surrender and kicked Mercy’s lifeless body, earning another howl and a growl that made the hair on the back of her neck stand up. “You can have her,” she said with one last look of contempt at the girl who lay unmoving on the ground before running away, leaving her for the wolf, hoping he would take care of Mercy for her.
The wolf whined softly, coming to Mercy’s side and studying her for a moment before it shifted back to its human form, but not before pulling on a pair of shorts he had kept in a pack on his ankle. Hurriedly he looked through her bag, he found a shirt and began to wipe the blood from the wound on the side of her face where her head had hit the picnic table. Bluish-black bruising had started on the flesh around the wound, making him wish he had pursued the female who had dared to hurt her, but he had been so concerned for Mercy that he had willed his wolf to stand down.
Seeing that her wrist was now mottled with bruises and swollen to twice its normal size, and clearly broken, he pressed snow around it to help with the swelling and the pain. The scent of another familiar male wolf became prominent, alerting him that he had to get away quickly, so he placed her head on her backpack, then shifted back to wolf form and took off through the bushes knowing the male Alpha that was coming her way would help her. He could do no other since he was in love with the girl himself.
Mercy came to as snowflakes began to mix with cold raindrops, soaking her face, hair, and clothing. Her head felt like someone had taken a sledgehammer to the side of it and she felt a throbbing in her wrist that she knew was not good. The last thing she remembered was the black wolf growling at them and Amber pushing her to the ground, then everything went black. She tried to get up, but felt dizzy and sick to her stomach, so she laid back down for a few minutes to try to get her bearings.
That was where Kirk discovered her as he walked through the courtyard in a hurry to get to class after a meeting with his guidance counselor. The courtyard was empty aside from Mercy, who was crying softly, her things scattered around her, cradling her wrist in her hand and looking pale and ill. He ran to her side, kneeling next to her. His eyes were immediately drawn to the swelling of her wrist and the fingerlike bruises that graced the skin there.
“Are you alright?” he asked, lifting the wet hair from her face where blood ran down at a steady pace, blanching when he saw a large gash on the side of her head where she had obviously hit the picnic table closest to her. “Mercy, what happened, did you fall?” He asked worriedly.
“No,” she ground out, clenching her teeth to keep from screaming in agony as he checked her wrist over.
“I’ll get Alec,” he said, reaching for the phone clipped to his belt.
The last person she wanted to see at that moment was Alec. Her present condition would be just another disappointment for him. It was bad enough she had let Amber break her wrist, but she refused to admit that to anyone, least of all Alec, who would grill her for answers he wouldn’t believe anyway. “No, please, don’t call him, I just want to go home,” she pleaded, tears dripping down her cheeks.
“Don’t cry, I will take you home right now,” he told her, enraged that Alec had not kept her safe. He gathered her things then lifted her in his arms and carried her to the parking lot, assuring her the entire time that everything was going to be all right. Once in his car he tucked her into the soft leather seat, pulled her seat belt in place then got in his own side and started the ignition.
“Do you want to talk about it?” He asked, as he pulled out of the parking lot.
“It’s hard to explain,” she said softly, lifting her knees to her chest and hugging them tight with the arm that hadn’t been injured. She had reached the bottom, she decided. Now she had to decide whether she was capable of lifting herself up or willing to just let go of everything she loved and wanted in her life.
“I am your friend, Mercy, you can tell me anything.” He placed his hand on hers and rubbed her frozen fingers to warm them, looking over the bruises on her wrist once more with disgust. “Where in the hell was Alec when this happened?” he growled.
“The pack spotted a wolf, he had to go. Amber was supposed to protect me,” she told him with a sob.
“She didn’t do a very good job,” he said squeezing her good hand.
Mercy sobbed again. “She hates me, she wants Alec, and I’m in her way.”
Kirk couldn’t believe Alec would be so stupid as to let another female come between them. Bond Mates were to be treasured and revered, but obviously, Alec must not have gotten the memo. “Have you told Alec this?”
“He doesn’t believe me,” she admitted, biting her bottom lip to keep from crying out as a sharp pain sliced down the side of her head.
“It doesn’t matter, she’s not the one he wants,” he said trying to reassure her despite being wary himself. When they had broken up so she could be with Alec, he had thought they would live happily ever after but now he was begging to wonder.
“But maybe she is the one he needs, because I’m not good at this, Kirk. I don’t know how to shift on my own, I don’t unde
rstand most of what you all talk about, and I’m not sure whether I can hack it as a werewolf.” Hearing herself finally admit her fears forced her to admit to herself that she either had to embrace the werewolf way of life and live with Alec as her mate or wallow in self-pity alone and miserable without him because she refused to drag him down with her.
“Listen to me, Mercy. I know you’re sad and scared, and your whole life has changed, but I have never met anyone I believe in more.” He reached out and took her good hand in his own. “Where is the spunky, determined girl I first met? You have let fear beat you down and keep you hidden from the world we live in. Stop worrying about impressing Alec, Amber, your brothers, or anyone else and work on impressing yourself.”
Those were the words she had wanted to hear from Alec all along, but hearing them even from her ex-boyfriend, gave her hope. “Do you honestly think I can handle this?” she asked.
“I chose you because I thought you would be the perfect mate for me, but I let you go because I know you are the mate destined for Alec.” He pulled into the driveway, turned off the engine, and turned to face her. “He loves you, Mercy. I know it, I can feel it when I am around you two, but if you want him then you have to fight. Even if it means completely pulling away from him and this mess with Amber, until you find yourself.”
“Thank you, Kirk, I know this is not easy for you.” She leaned over and kissed his cheek. “You’re truly one of the best guys I have ever met.”
“I didn’t do anything but tell you the truth. The rest is up to you,” he said before getting out of the car and coming to her side, lifting her into his arms to carry her into the house despite her protest it was unnecessary.
*****
Lucan had been sitting on the porch looking over some paperwork when Kirk’s car pulled into the driveway. He saw Mercy in the car and walked out to investigate but now jumped over the porch rail running to the car where Kirk was already lifting her out of the front seat. Her eyes were puffy from crying, her body shook uncontrollably, and her wrist lay over her lap swollen and bruised.
“What happened?” Lucan asked, directing him towards the house.
“Luc, stop I’m fine,” Mercy murmured laying her head against Kirk’s shoulder as dizziness overtook her.
“Let’s get her upstairs,” Lucan said leading the way up the stairs to her room.
“What happened?” Nina said coming quickly from the kitchen.
“I’m not sure,” Lucan told her.
She looked to Mercy, who trembled uncontrollably, and knew the first thing they had to do was get her warm. Werewolves were normally hot by nature, so the fact she was shivering so badly was a matter of concern. Once in her room Nina hustled Mercy to the bathroom and into a warm bath where she sat quietly, soaking away the chills that plagued her.
“What happened to her?” she asked her brother as she came from the bathroom.
“I’m not sure. When I found her, she was a mess, and all she wanted was to come home.” He ran his hand through his hair frustrated by the day’s events and Alec’s lack of concern for his mate. “Can you heal her?”
“There is no real damage for me to repair. I already set her wrist so the bones will heal correctly, and the cut on her head was already beginning to seal over, so aside from some bruising she will be fine by morning.”
Lucan paced the room frustrated that once again his sister was injured. “I don’t understand how this could happen. Alec has members of the pack all around the school. Where the hell was everyone when she was being hurt?”
“Amber was left to watch over her. Apparently, they had some words, but Mercy wouldn’t tell me anything else. She was alone on the ground in the commons when I found her,” Kirk explained.
“I was worried about this. Amber has always been possessive of Alec, but he has never seen it,” Lucan said looking troubled. “I had hoped once she saw him with Mercy she might understand she never had a chance with him, but it seems that was not the case.”
“Why is she here anyway?” Nina asked.
“Her father said she was having some trouble at home, he thought it might do her some good to come to a place where she could get a fresh start.”
“I’ll just bet she had trouble if this is how she acts at home,” Nina said disapprovingly. “Alec should be ashamed of himself for letting this spoiled brat come between his mate and himself.”
“Mercy is coming, why don’t we talk about this later,” Lucan said as the handle of the bathroom door turned.
They all watched Mercy exit the bathroom dressed in her warm flannel pajamas the dark ugly bruise on the side of her face mostly hidden by her unruly hair. She held her wrapped wrist against her stomach as she walked towards the bed her head hung low, too ashamed to look at them.
Nina rushed to her side, fussing over her as she helped her into bed, and then excused herself to make tea, dragging Lucan down the stairs with her, hoping Kirk might be able to get her to talk more about what happened.
“So are you ready to talk about what happened between Amber and you?” Kirk asked, pulling a chair next to the bed grimacing at the large mass of purple and black on her face that was revealed to him when she pushed her hair behind her ear.
“It’s not important now. I just wish that I could accept what I am so Alec could be proud of me, instead of always being disappointed.”
“No one expects you to know how to be pack immediately, it is something that is learned, and it takes time,” he said.
“Yes, but I don’t have the luxury of time. Amber wants Alec, she straight out told me that, and even though I hate everything she said to me today, she was right. I am a disgrace. I can never be with Alec or anyone else as long as I am pretending to be something I am not.” She began to cry, and he moved to the bed opening his arms, which she threw herself into gratefully. “I’m sorry I know this is not fair to you. Why you are even being so nice after we broke up, I don’t know.”
“We are friends, Mercy.” He lifted her face, so she was looking into his eyes. “You are a caring, sensitive person, and no matter what happens with you and Alec, I will be there for you.”
A loud clapping filled the room, and they both looked to the door surprised to see Alec leaning against the doorframe, staring at them with thinly veiled rage. “Good speech, Kirk. Since you know so much about what is going on here, maybe you can explain why Mercy looks like someone beat the hell out of her.” He flinched involuntarily as his eyes moved over her face assessing the damage. Amber had told him that she had run off after he left and that she couldn’t find her anywhere. She had met him on his way back to the school her eyes filled with tears as she explained Mercy’s hasty departure, apologizing profusely for not being able to control her. If not for Lucan’s call, he might still be searching the school for her, so he was not in the best of moods.
“If you had been watching over your mate none of this would have happened, so figure it all out for yourself,” Kirk snapped, ready to tear into him for not being there to protect Mercy.
“Don’t,” Mercy said pulling out of his arms. “This is not your fight.”
“I’ll give you two some time to talk.” Kirk said rising from her side. “I’ll be downstairs if you want me,” he told her before walking out, purposely slamming into Alec as he passed him. “Don’t be a jackass. She’s been through enough today.”
For a moment, they just looked at other in silence then Alec sighed and walked to Mercy’s side, his finger tracing the line of the bruise that now covered one side of her face.
“What happened? Amber said you took off and then she couldn’t find you.”
“I’m not sure, everything is a blur,” she lied, thinking how like Amber it was to make him believe it was her own fault that she had been hurt.
“And Kirk just couldn’t help but save you, right? I suppose he thinks you will be so thankful that you will fall in love with him and forget I exist?” he snarled, pulling his hand away.
Mercy gaspe
d in outrage. “What gives you the right to come in here and say something like that? Kirk has been nothing but kind to me today. You on the other hand, couldn’t even find the time to ask if I was alright this morning.” He looked startled she was speaking to him in such a manner, but she was too mad to care. Her conversation with Amber had cleared up many things for her, and although at first she had been miserable and beaten down, she knew now she had to start standing up for herself, even with Alec. “Did it ever occur to you that I might have been scared this morning about being around humans when I am so unsure about what I am? That maybe I needed your attention?” He tried to take her hand in his, but she refused to let him have it. “No, you were too concerned about Amber and her petty issues.”
“I was trying to be nice. Amber is new here and needed someone to help her, God knows you were not going to do it,” he argued in his own defense.
“I might have if she hadn’t made it clear she was after you from the moment we met,” she said seeing the doubt in his eyes.
“Amber and I have been friends since we were babies, she has no interest in me what so ever,” he argued, slamming his fist on the nightstand disrupting everything that had rested there.
“You really are clueless, aren’t you? Do you really believe she is so helpless that she can’t find her way through a small school building? Other people do it every day, and just for the record, I bet her car is just fine too. But I can see you don’t believe me so there is really no point in us talking any longer.” Her throat hurt from yelling and she felt like she was beating her head against the wall. Alec was blind where Amber was concerned and he wasn’t going to believe anything she told him so she didn’t bother to explain. She had decided while she was sulking in the bathtub that if Amber was successful in taking Alec from her, it was her own fault for being scared and insecure. If she couldn’t muster up the strength to overcome her fears than she didn’t deserve Alec anyway.
