Chapter 47: Cheat

ANDERS'S P.O.V

I watched Storm drift off to sleep again, her head pillow edge on my chest, her breaths coming out in short bursts. I reached up, pushing her hair away from her face, my eyes taking every inch of her.

I...

I think I am addicted.

I think I stupidly let go and now... now I really do want her.

I closed my eyes, my chest heaving hard. It did not feel this way with Crystal. It has never felt this way.

I slowly moved, adjusting her head to rest on a pillow, and gently tucked her in. I got out of bed, my eyes resting on her sleeping frame. She was perfection even in sleep, and I turned away, my jaws slightly clenched.

I bathed in silence, willing my mind to go anywhere but to the woman in my bed. The woman who is increasingly taking up space in my head.

"Weak," came a small whisper from within.

I broke into a laugh. "You sound defeated, too."

"I will never be defeated. You are a coward. And I will not allow you to ruin me. I will take over. I will ruin her first."

I closed my eyes, feeling dizziness and a sting of something else, like the feeling of being pinched under my skin, spread slowly across my body.

"Why her? Why do you hate her?"

There was silence for a long beat that I almost thought he, it, whatever it was, was gone. Whatever it was inside of me. A friend, a foe, an anomaly that I know deep within me.

"Because she will kill us, Anders."

I watched the water around me, my eyes tracing the reflection of the lights.

I got out of the shower and dressed up, then walked out of the bedroom without looking back. I found myself making my way towards the study, like I have done for the past eight years when I feel myself weakening. The door closed behind me, and I leaned back on it for a minute.

The desk sat there like an accusation, and I walked past it, pushing the second button. The door opened, and I walked into the dungeon.

The door slowly gave way, and Florence looked up, then broke into a weak, humourless laugh. "The outside world must not be going well for you. Seeing how you are visiting again."

I shrugged, then sat on the bed, my hands resting back on the mattress.

"You left your stench on me yesterday."

She laughed, spitting out more of the blood that had left me reeking. "You were the one who left me to rot here. A woman gotta take a bath."

"Do you? The man you seduced is dead. I don't think you have another man exactly queuing up for you. You were never the prettiest woman."

She turned to me. "I gave birth to Marcus."

"Exactly. Another quintessence of hideousness, but that is not why I am here. I want to talk."

She raised a weak brow. "You want to talk to me? After keeping me suspended between life and death for eight years?! You fed me twice last year, and I almost ate my own skin."

"Guess who doesn't get to eat at all. My mother. You drove her to suicide for ambition. Don't you think this is me being merciful?"

She closed her eyes. I leaned back, letting out a sigh.

"I might feed you if you give me the answers I want. Maybe with a bit of beef."

She turned, her eyes wide with anticipation.

I gave a small laugh. "Look at you, Florence. Going crazy for beef cause you have no other option. Remmeber when you slapped my mother? She would have loved to see you like this."

"Please, Anders. Please, I..."

"Don't say my name. You fucking stink. I have a few questions."

"I... I will answer."

I nodded. "You don't have an option. I... I am very attracted to a woman. Not like a man is attracted to women. She makes me itch in places I presumed dead. I... I want to crawl into her skin and die there. I want to live in her hands, I want her to ruin me. What does that mean for me?"

She raised her brows, her chest heaving. "Did... did you find another mate?"

I gave a small laugh. "You think I will tell you that?"

"I am practically useless, I don't even have a wolf anymore."

"I know," I said, a sigh leaving my lips. "But I got here because I underestimate no one. Answer my question. What does this mean for me?"

She swallowed. "I... you might be mated again."

"I am not mated."

"Then are you in love?"

"Can everybody just stop with the fucking love?" I stood up, my chest heaving. "I can't love her. I don't want to love her."

"But you want her to ruin you. You are submitting. Why won't you love her? Is it because of the dark wolf? Lillian's little curse? You think I don't know? You are keeping me here because you can't physically kill me or the dark wolf will take over. You are only as weak as..."

I covered the distance. My hand wrapping around her neck. "That's not what I wanted to hear."

Tears filled her eyes fast, and she swallowed. "Fine. What do you want to hear?"

I let her go, then took a step back. "Your sister is trying to merge my wolf with this woman in a burning ritual, in order to try to kill me again. Like you tried to do with Chrystal."

Her eyes glinted with happiness before she schooled it, and it only made me smile. "Is that so? Are you going to let it happen?"

I nodded slowly. "I am going to let it happen, Florence. Remmeber what you just said? That I can't kill you because of the curse?"

"Y.... yes?"

"I intend to maneouver around it. At the burning ritual. I will cheat, like I always do."

Her face, already pale and bloodless, lost colour even more.

"How..."

I smiled, walking towards the door. I felt a little better, now that my entire mind didn't revolve around Storm. Now that I could remind myself that this is the man I am, not the man who fabricated stupid childhood stories to make Storm laugh.

"At the burning ritual, as Candace tries to take me, I will take her first. And when I do, I will bring her body back here. Consider it a reunion."

"Anders!" She shrieked, her voice cracking, her body shaking with angry, helpless tears.

"Oh. No food for you. You didn't answer me well enough."

She screamed again, and I walked away, closing the door behind me.