Chapter 32

Chapter 32
Staring so closely at the one causing all my problems wasn’t what I’d expected.
I couldn’t see him as the creature they’d painted. He controlled the underworld, the dark beings, had attacked me, but looking at him standing there in front of me, so calm as he studied me, he didn’t seem to fit the profile.
“I’m not yours. I don’t belong to anyone.” I spoke through gritted teeth, wanting to squash any wrong ideas he might have. I’d called him here for a reason, and that was it.
“I understand. You’ve been exposed to this human love thing your whole life and don’t grasp the grandeur of belonging.” He spoke with flourish, taking slow steps around me, circling like I was his prey, and I didn’t like it one bit.
“Human love?” I echoed his words. “And you, Koschei, what are you?”
“I’m many things. It would take time to explain it all to you, and I know you want to know the whole truth they’re not telling you, but we don’t have that time. It won’t be long before that wolf is back, trying to keep me away from you.” He stepped closer and stopped in front of me. “But I can start by saying my name isn’t Koschei. That’s one of the names storytellers around the world gave me. My name is Nikolai.”
“How do you know Quanah will be back soon…”
“Let’s just say it’s no secret how much he hovers over you, and if the bond you share is as strong as it seems, he felt the moment you used your powers to destroy the house.”
He was right. It was a miracle Quanah wasn’t already here. But whether he returned or not was the least of my concerns right now.
“That doesn’t matter. I need answers before anything else. What brought you here? Why do you want me alive if you kill witches to feed on their power? And why does my son have to die, but they can’t hurt me?”
I spat out my main questions, though they were far from all of them. But before he could respond, a blur rushed past me, and with force and speed, hands grabbed me, pulling me away from Nikolai.
“What the hell were you thinking? Are you really a spoiled child with no sense of consequences?” A furious Quanah stood in front of me, his sweaty face telling me how far he’d probably already gone.
I didn’t know werewolves could be that fast, but his furrowed brow silenced my thoughts. He was truly enraged.
“What’s the problem? Afraid I’ll do what you thought and let him take me away?”
Quanah didn’t answer, just bared his teeth more and narrowed his eyes at me.
“I’d love that, but it’s a shame this is just a specter and your beloved only has unanswered questions.” I looked at him, even more curious. He seemed so real, made of flesh and bone. “Since you didn’t want to take her to the vampire, she found her own sources.”
Vampires? Was that true? I shouldn’t be surprised by anything in this supernatural world anymore, but I still was.
I wasn’t sure what shocked me more—that vampires actually existed or that Quanah was going to one for answers.
“Stay away from her. Bridget doesn’t need anything from you!” The Alpha’s voice snapped me back to the present.
“That’s where you’re wrong. She needs me more than she needs you!” The two locked into a battle of glares, and I was sure if either could kill with a look, they’d both be dead on the ground. “Since she was born, I’ve been by her side, protecting, guarding, ensuring nothing bad reached her…”
“Since I was born?” My question came out almost as a whisper.
How? Why? Those were the questions swirling in my head now.
How could he have been by my side my whole life without me noticing?
The only man who’d always been in my life was Will, but…
Will had disappeared. According to Agnes, he poisoned me and tried to take me out of the city.
“And you were waiting for the moment she’d be in danger so you could save her and finally be the hero in someone’s story?” Quanah challenged him.