Was gentle with you

Was gentle with you

'Keep running because if I catch you, I'll bite you.' His laughter rang in my ear and filled me with fear and horror as I ran through the woods on my paws.

I had unleashed the monster, and now there was no turning back. He was chasing me, he found the thrill in it and I didn’t. The cold gripped me from everywhere. The woods were completely dark, there was no source of light or life, just him and me. Fear instilled inside me as I tried desperately to find a path out of the woods and into the town I had escaped from.

I didn’t even know where it was, to begin with. Nothing was familiar.

The woods closed in around me, dark, looming trees and crisp, cold air. The darkness was suffocating but I had to find my way back, back into Lucien’s house where he could trap me forever.

I already knew he wasn’t going to let this go so easily.

Forcing me to run across the woods, in the cold night while he chased me and threatened to bite me was only the beginning of his anger. It was only the tip of the iceberg.

I stabbed him, left him for dead, and now he was punishing me.

Nice.

Suddenly, I skidded to a stop at unfamiliar scents of wolves. It triggered the instinct in me to look. My ears pricked at the sound of rustling leaves and my head turned to find a pair of dark gleaming eyes, bright and animalistic. Another pair joined and it wasn’t just two, it was many more.

They approached me, slowly, cautiously. Baring their fangs, their intent clear; they considered me a threat, a rogue, or another wolf invading their territory.

I stepped back while letting out a low growl, a warning of my own. But they didn’t care. Their eyes narrowed, their growls growing louder than mine as they prepared to attack. The one wolf in the back shifted, I heard the cracking of his bones before he walked between the rest.

“Shift.” He said, his voice demanding and I couldn’t help it.

I was female, not yet marked. It signaled males to only pursue. My shift back into human form was painfully abrupt. The cold night air stung my bare skin and my breaths raced at the sudden exposure.

I was vulnerable, naked, and cornered. But before any of the wolves could get a glimpse of me, there was something over my body. A hand, a cloth covering my arms, and then the rest of my body. Another body protecting mine.

I didn’t recognize it until I took in his scent.

It was absurd that it was him.

Lucien.

“She’s my mate.” He said to the other wolves.

“We didn’t know, Alpha.” The man who had shifted responded.

“Now you do. Run along and stop bothering me.” He flicked his hand in the air and the wolves slunk back into the woods, leaving us alone.

I stood there, shivering in the cold, clutching his coat around while relief and terror rushed through my veins. I was safe, for now. But the night wasn’t over, and Lucien was still very, very angry.

“Why did you shift in front of them?” He asked me, his tone low, almost a growl. His eyes bore into mine, demanding an explanation for my reckless move. “Do you not know that only I can see you bare?”

“I-I panicked,” I stammered, the truth slipping past my lips before I could stop it. “And I didn’t know what to do.”

A scoff escaped him. “Always acting on impulse.”

“I wouldn’t be if you hadn’t left me alone knowing your dogs are all around these woods.”

“I didn’t leave you alone,” He grabbed my arm while his hard gaze softened. “I was right behind you, watching you.”

I stared at him in disbelief. There was no way he could have been right behind me. Why wouldn’t he have caught me then? A scowl fell on my face before I began to follow his lead as he started walking. In those few seconds, I realized he hadn’t shifted. Especially since his clothes were intact.

“You didn’t shift,” I said, breaking the silence. It wasn’t a question. It was a fact. His clothes were not ripped as they should’ve been had he shifted.

“I don’t have to,” He glanced at me. “I’ve enough strength in this form to chase anyone if I want to. I don’t have to shift.”

It made sense. The first night I came here, he was already there, at his house while I had taken hours to reach with his pack of wolves. It was surprising but I had to remind myself that he was a half-vampire, someone who was probably stronger than a normal wolf and a normal vampire.

I bit my tongue while following him through the dark woods. They went on forever and ever. My legs trembled from the cold while I buried my hands into the pockets of the coat.

When I saw his tall, imposing house in the distance, I stopped in my tracks. As soon as he sensed me, he stopped and turned around. The sight of the house forced my heart to race with fear. It was dark and damned.

“I’m sorry,” I stuttered. “For killing you. I wouldn’t have if I hadn’t had a reason and I knew you wouldn’t die and that eventually, Estella would come and give you some blood.”

He stepped forward, closer to me. His hand slipped underneath my chin and trailed up to my jaw before his thumb brushed over my lips. There was barely any distance left between us. The silence was dooming. I didn’t know what he was thinking, whether his mind was accepting my apology or dissecting it.

His head lowered, closer to my face, and my heart pounded. His scent filled my senses and I found it hard to breathe when he was so close.

“I was being so gentle with you, Aurora,” he murmured, his voice silky but threatening. His thumb skimmed over my lower lip, tenderly. “So carefully not to hurt you, so fucking cautious. But after what you did tonight, it appears you want to relish in misery and pain.”

“I don’t.” I shook my head.

“You want to.” His figure loomed over me, taking my breath away while his fingers dragged over my skin.

“Lucien—” I began, but he cut me off by placing his thumb over my lips.

He gazed into my eyes a few seconds longer before turning around. His hand slid over mine, fingers tangling before he took me inside the house. I feared what was coming. I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

Just as we stepped into the house, Estella came rushing out. Her face filled up with terror as she glanced at Lucien and then at me.

“What happened?” She asked him, noticing the blood as if she hadn’t been the one who healed him up.

My brows furrowed. Didn’t she know?

Lucien’s hand tightened around mine. “Nothing to worry about. Just a little run-in with a rogue. It’s not an issue.”

“But you’re bleeding.”

“I was,” He cut me a swift, side-long look as if he was trying to tell me something. “But I’ve healed. Right, Aurora?”

I swallowed hard and nodded, “Yes.”

“You should go back to sleep, Estella. It’s too early to be awake at this time. There’s nothing to worry about here, nothing at all.” Lucien continued with no emotion in his voice. One moment there was and the other moment there wasn’t. He hid it all so well.

So well that I pondered if there was something more, something he hadn’t told me.

Estella waited a few seconds in the hallway, still worrying. If it wasn’t her who healed him, who had? Who removed the wood from his chest? There was no one else in the house except for the three of us. She was completely surprised by the blood on Lucien’s chest.

My gaze snapped to him, wide and horrified.

He removed it himself.