At this precise moment, Ion had no doubt that she would do just that. She was so furious, the air shimmered around her and had she been a shifter she would be in wolf form already. But she wasn’t, so none of this made any sense and he could only stand and stare at her. It was Lucas who stopped her from leaving. He sat her down on a chair, his voice low and urgent and Marnie went very still as she listened. He couldn’t stand here and watch her expressive face change. She would hate him for sure once Lucas had filled her in on his sordid past––and he had no doubt that the vamp would tell her everything, down to the last sickening detail. He had been threatening to do so for days, unless Ion claimed as her his mate and as he couldn’t do that. Fuck, he had to run.
With one last look at Marnie, he shrugged his clothes and shifted, jumping out through the open window and into the forest.
****
Lucas watched Marnie through hooded eyes. All the fight had left her, when Ion shifted so suddenly and her expressive eyes shimmered with unshed tears, as she crossed her arms and legs and raised her chin defiantly.
“You better tell me the truth, Lucas. I want to know it all, or I’m walking out of here right now.”
“You wouldn’t get very far, chere. The pack is on maximum alert. No one is getting in or out and even if you managed it somehow, the police would pick you up in an instant. They have ransacked your bedsit, alerted all your neighbours and the university. They even hauled Ellie in for questioning.”
At the mention of her friend, Marnie shot out her chair, her expression terrified.
“No, not Ellie. Is she okay? I mean, she doesn’t know anything and she doesn’t deserve this. None of them does. Oh, God. Lucas, what am I going to do?”
She sagged against him, when he pulled her into his body and he gently lowered her back on the chair. Damn, she was crying. Too many shocks in one day and he was about to add to them, but if Ion and Marnie stood any chance, then she needed to understand his past.
“The only thing you can do, chere. Stay here and let us do what we have to do to keep you safe.”
Tearstained eyes settled on his, but there was steel and determination behind those tears, as she straightened her spine and shook her head.
“I can’t let you do that, Lucas. There must be another way. I will have to give myself up and just claim amnesia.”
She didn’t even flinch at his barely concealed snarl, just looked up at him steadily and his admiration for her increased tenfold. And that stubborn wolf thought she wasn’t strong enough to be his mate, if the situation wasn’t so serious, it would be laughable.
“And we can’t let you leave. Ion would never stand for it.”
“Ion doesn’t get a say in this. As I said earlier, I’m not his mate, he’s not my alpha and one night of sex doesn’t give you any rights over me either, Lucas.”
“Not even one night of fabulous sex, chere? You wound me.” The words meant to tease and sure enough they brought a faint smile to Marnie’s pale features, as she shook her head at him.
“Don’t push your luck, vamp! There is far too much wood in this room for you to be so smug!”
“Now, now, chere. I thought violence was never the answer?”
“I can always make an exception for the likes of you…”
The words were accompanied by another smile and Lucas was glad to see that some colour had returned to her cheeks, as she wagged her index finger at him. The mournful howl drifting in through the window had her sitting back down again with a thump. The howl belonged to Ion’s wolf and by the way she shuddered and raised her nose she recognised this fact too.
No matter what happened, he had to get these two together.
“Ion would never forgive himself if he failed to protect you, Marnie. He has lost too many people lately.”
“I’m not his to protect, damn it.” Marnie spat the words at him.
“That’s not the way his wolf sees it. If you weren’t human, you’d be mated by now and this whole conversation would be pointless, but as you are…”
Marnie’s frustrated growl echoed round the quiet room.
“Has it ever occurred to you arrogant males that I may not want to be mated to him, or anyone else for that matter?”
His answering chuckle and softly uttered, “Liar,” had her rolling her eyes at him and sticking her tongue out, which increased that chuckle to a full belly laugh.
“I fail to see what’s so funny, Lucas.”
“Chere, you can pout and act annoyed all you want, but we’re bonded by blood and I sense your emotions. You’re as much in love with him as he is with you.” He put his hand up to stop her from interrupting. “Yes he is, but he will not act on that for fear of losing you and out of his duty for his pack. Though the way they act around you, I reckon they would welcome you in with open arms, human or not.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Of course you don’t chere, but let me explain. Humans have put this pack in danger time and time again.”
Her eyes widened at that statement. “Louisa’s mum?”
“Not only her, but yes she was foolish enough to talk to the wrong people. It wasn’t done in a malicious way at all. You’ve seen how talkative Louisa is…well, her mum is even more so, or at least she was. She paid the ultimate price: she lost her mate. He died protecting her, when the hunters came.”
“Did…did anyone else die? The pack? Oh, God. Lucas, please tell me they were all right?”
The hand grabbing his shook and Lucas wished Ion was here to witness how much this little human cared about the pack already. There was no doubt in his mind. She would never endanger any of them.
“Yes, they were fine. All managed to get away in time, thanks to Louisa’s father. He sounded the warning and his death saved them all.”
He watched as she processed this information.
“And the hunters, did the pack…” He watched silently as she struggled to pull herself together. “Did…did they kill them?”
“Naturally, chere. “
“Did Ion?”
“Oui, he did. He was a teenager back then and he joined the hunt, as was expected of him. They couldn’t be allowed to live, to bring more hunters. It would have been disastrous for the pack. As it stands, it started a bitter turf war with the neighbouring pack. They blamed Ion’s father for the hunters, as they too feared discovery. They never liked the fact that he allowed his wolves to mate with humans. It dilutes the bloodline. Let alone, his alliance with vampires and the fact that his son’s best mate was a blood sucker.”
“I always wondered about that, you know; the two of you. I may not know much, but it seems odd to me.”
Lucas smiled at the expression on her face.
“It’s simple, really. Years ago Ion’s dad saved my life. I’d gotten in a stupid bar brawl with some shifters. They weren’t playing fair. Channing stopped them and together we beat the living shit out of the bastards. Nothing like a brawl to make lifelong friends.”
He chuckled in amusement, when she rolled her eyes and muttered something about ‘stupid male bonding crap’ under her breath.
“So, when Ion came along, you took him under your wing or something?”
“Something like that, chere. Channing was killed in that war and Ion became alpha. I had grown fond of this pack of wolves by then, so we stayed in touch. Under Ion’s guidance the two packs merged, to make up numbers as much as anything, as so many lives were lost. He founded the club and things were good for a while.”
“A while?”
Lucas shifted uncomfortably under her steady gaze.
“What makes me think you’re not telling me the full story? Surely one human’s mistake does not explain Ion’s hang-up?”
“You’re very observant, mon chere. “
He hesitated, suddenly unsure as to whether he was doing the right thing, but he’d made a promise and she had to know. If she truly was the one, then it would be up to her to fulfil the prophecy and he couldn’t s
tand against destiny.
They had been wrong with Zoe, but with every fibre of his 3,000-year-old being, he knew that this time it was different.
Marnie went very pale as he filled her in on all the gory details.
Chapter Sixteen
The last rays of the setting sun filtered through the dense foliage and Marnie instinctively raised her head to sniff the air. Curled up on the forest floor, the dampness had seeped into her bones and her muscles screamed their protest, as she straightened up. Fresh tears fell on her mud-streaked hands and she resolutely wiped them away. She’d made her decision and she had to find Ion and let him know. She owed him that much and she would never get away without his permission. The pack’s territory was locked down tight. Jenkins had stood firm, his stance almost threatening, when she announced her intention to leave with Lucas.
They’d been surrounded by wolves in an instant. For the first time ever, Marnie felt a frisson of fear at the pack’s intentions.
“Jenkins, I am leaving. You cannot stop me.”
“No, Miss Marnie, you’re not!”
Jenkins merely smiled at her frustrated growl and the circle of wolves tightened further, making her step back against an unmoving Lucas.
“I told you, chere. You can’t leave and on this I’m in full agreement with the daft wolf.”
The menacing growls around them deepened and Lucas threw his hands up in the air.
“Take it easy, furballs. I’m on your side.”
He pulled Marnie into a tight embrace. His whispered, “Take care, chere. I still think you’re wrong,” did little to chase away the goose bumps breaking out on her skin. She closed her eyes to stop the tears. She was not going to cry in front of the pack, she was not! The blur of air raised the ends of her fringe and she took a deep breath, knowing that Lucas was gone. Damn the vampire. How was she going to get out of here now?
As if reading her thoughts, Jenkins spoke. His slightly warmer tones made her open her eyes.
“Take it up with the boss, Miss Marnie. He’s in the forest.”
Marnie shook her hair out of her face and took a deep breath of the clean air around her, remembering how the circle had parted to let her through. The low howls of the pack followed her all the way to the edge of the forest, and it was only when she was safely hidden by the trees that she had given in to the overwhelming instinct to just run. She ran faster than she could ever recall being able to, faster and faster, deeper into the forest, oblivious to the branches slapping her face, tearing her clothes. She had to run, to keep going, find a safe place; to find something that she couldn’t quite grasp. When her screaming lungs forced her to stop, her legs gave way and she collapsed onto the forest floor, finally allowing the tears to fall. Tears of frustration and pain at the injustice of it all, the knowledge of what she had to do, Lucas’ brutally honest words ringing in her ears.
Why her? Why now? What had she ever done to deserve any of this? She was no one’s destiny, no matter how much the mere thought of leaving Ion threatened to tear her soul in two. She should have been appalled at the things Lucas shared with her, but her treacherous heart just bled for the wolf and all he’d lost. Somewhere along the way she had fallen in love with him. Marnie, who didn’t even believe in love, not after she witnessed first-hand what so called love had done to her mother.
She couldn’t remember her father at all. He’d left them when she had been just a baby and her mother had refused to talk about him, unless she berated Marnie about how much she was like him. And she had watched her, her eyes wary, almost frightened, every time Marnie lost her temper. When she’d hit puberty, the gulf between them just increased further, until that fateful night when Marnie ran away. Her mother had tracked her down and dragged her back by her hair, literally. The beating she’d suffered, at the hands of Mum’s latest boyfriend, had been the worst yet.
There had been so many over the years, as her mum sought to fill the void left behind by Marnie’s father. Some had been kind; others, not so much. And every last one had been Mum’s big love, her true mate––the one who would change their lives. Marnie resolutely blinked the tears away. Why was she maudlin about this now? All that talk of destiny Lucas had filled her head with, that’s why. In the end her mother had been killed, saving Marnie from being run over by the gang of youths she’d got involved with just to piss her off. She had to live with the guilt over that day, and it was never far away. Her mother’s last words to her had been damning. “I always knew your blood would be the death of me.”
So she’d left, determined to prove everyone wrong, convinced she didn’t need any man in her life. She’d been doing just fine, forging ahead with the means to bring every last scumbag to justice. The good-for nothing-men who’d always surrounded her mother; the wife beaters and the drug dealers. She was going to get them all within the realms of the law. Never again was she going to be responsible for another person’s death. Whatever dark nature she’d supposedly inherited from her father, she was going to beat it. Violence was never the answer.
Yet now, having learned everything she had, the instinctive, awakening part of her burned with fury at the cruelty of the humans who threatened the pack, threatened the man she loved. Right now she wasn’t sure she could resist the murderous urges within her. Hell would freeze over before she put the pack in jeopardy. What did her personal happiness mean, when so many lives were at stake? Human, shifter and vampire alike? No matter what anyone said, this was her fault. Had she not tried to walk home, none of this would have happened. It was up to her to put it right. She had to make Ion see sense. There was only one thing she could do, but she had to find him first.
Tears overwhelmed her anew at the futility of the task. She was just a little human; she couldn’t track him. This forest was huge and she had no idea where she was. What had she been thinking? The tall ferns looked menacing all of a sudden, every Grimm fairytale she’d ever read invaded her subconscious mind and clutching her knees to her chest, she simply let the tears flow.
Struggling to sit up now, a new chill went up her spine. She must have fallen asleep. Oh God, how was she ever going to find her way out of here?
****
The mother wolf watched him warily as he approached the den, the freshly caught rabbit between his teeth. Ion crouched low, mindful not to spook the young wolf. She was getting used to him. Her mate had been caught in a hunter’s trap three weeks ago and by the time Ion had tracked her down, she had been half-starved and was giving birth. The litter of four pups was doing well, from what he could tell from a distance. She still didn’t trust him enough to let him come much closer, but she was grateful for the food at least. Ion dropped the rabbit and backtracked to a spot far away enough for the mother to feel safe to snatch up the animal. He flopped on his belly and rested his head on his paws. Life was so much simpler as a wolf. Still fraught with dangers, but infinitely simpler. Hunt, mate, defend your territory, look after your young.
An image of Marnie holding little Leah swam in front of his eyes and Ion whined low in his throat. There was no point in torturing himself with visions of what could never be. He rose to his paws, ready to stretch and run some more, when the breeze changed direction. It couldn’t be, he was imagining things. He took off at a run anyway, following the scent of his little human, until the sight of her stopped him abruptly. She was crouched low in the slight clearing ahead, her beautiful hair tangled, her clothes torn, ugly scratches on her skin, where she must have caught it on the dense foliage this deeply in the forest. The tearstains on her mud-streaked face caused his wolf to whine and her eyes grew wide when she jerked her head towards the sound.
What the fuck was she doing here?
“Ion, is that you?”
She sounded like a scared little rabbit, but the eyes watching his approach were full of trust, as she put one tentative hand out towards him. It was all the invitation he needed and with one leap he crossed the distance between them. She closed her eyes when he licked her
hand and his wolf growled at the fresh tears, before he licked them off her face. She held perfectly still, whilst he did his best to clean her up. His gut clenched with the rush of raw emotion and fierce protectiveness, when she wrapped her arms round his neck and buried her face in his fur. He could sense her desperation in the strangle hold she had on him, her body shaking with silent tears. And she was so very cold, her skin clammy, her hands buried in his fur like icicles. He wrapped himself around her, wolf and man both needing the contact as much as she did. He had no idea what made her run this deep into the forest. He would have expected her to run away from him, not to him, but since when had she ever done anything he’d expected of her? His wolf rejoiced at the way she snuggled into his fur with a small sigh and they sat like that for a long time, neither one of them willing to break the moment.
The howl of the she wolf broke the spell and Ion shifted, putting one hand over Marnie’s mouth as the mother came into view, followed by her offspring. They were downwind from her, so she hadn’t spotted them. Ion knew that they must be on their way to the spring and he couldn’t help the proud smile, seeing the little ones totter after their mother. Marnie shook his hand off the minute they were out of sight and her beautiful eyes were full of suspicion.
“Is she the reason you’ve been spending so much time in the woods? Are they yours, Ion?”
She scooted away from him a bit more, her small teeth biting into her bottom lip. Her knees drew up to her chest in a defensive gesture and Ion’s wolf whined, whilst the man had to suppress a smile at the look she threw him. His little human was jealous and his smile deepened. After everything Lucas must have told her, she was jealous of a full wolf. He shook his head at her next words.
“Is that a yes or a no, Ion?”
“Why do you want to know, little one?”
Heat rose in her cheeks and she didn’t look at him as she mumbled, “Never mind, I’m making a fool out of myself. It’s none of my business anyway.”
Oh yeah, she was definitely jealous. Silly little human. One taste of her and he’d been lost to any other female. Surely she knew that? He wrapped a strand of her hair round his fingers and tugged, forcing her to look at him.
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