Missed

Levi

I missed her.

It had only been six hours and twenty-four minutes, but it felt like it had been days since I’d seen my Mistress. Amia was everything and without her, life was boring as fuck. I’d already held the sheets to my chest, inhaling her scent as I came in my fist. As much as I wanted to mope at home and roll around in the sheets she’d slept in and came all over, I didn’t have the luxury. I ordered the servants not to wash the sheets when I could bring myself to leave. My mind was plagued with thoughts of her. I’d never been as selfish as I had the last two weeks, and it was hard to reel it in.

The faster I moved, the faster I could get shit done, the sooner I could see her. Being the Vampire King had always been annoying, but everything I’d been through to keep her safe hadn’t been as hard when compared to having to be apart from her after tasting her. I grunted. The shit pile of things I needed to get done before I could see her again grew by the minute and seemed never-ending.

My anger flared, and for a second, I forgot where I was and what I was doing. I squeezed a little too hard around the pathetic excuse of a wolf’s neck and putrid flesh gave way moments before blood flew everywhere. Oops. I shook my head and let go. The body crumbled as it fell to the ground. Dead man number twelve’s head landed at a weird angle, and a shiver ran up my spine and I cringed. Gross.

Rogues practically lost half of themselves when they lost their pack. After a few weeks, they lost their mind and were so hungry they’d eat anything and everything in their path. Those who were stronger and able to hold onto their wits were known to be more dangerous, but this quote on quote pack was full of brainless idiots. I’d seen nothing so far that would tell me otherwise.

I had to keep her safe.

After distancing myself from Amia, I soon changed. I’d become so much stronger than I had before. I knew I’d made the right decision. With the rogue attacks getting too close to where she lived, I made it my life’s mission to keep her safe. When I realized what the fuck face had been doing to her, my failure wouldn’t let me stay away. I couldn’t rest until I knew she broke things off with him. Only in my wildest dreams had I imagined us being together, but she’d been so much more than I ever could have wished for.

My world tilted on its axis and all I could think of was the pull I felt to go to her. Amia was with him and wouldn’t be in danger. Even with her gone, old habits die hard—hence the dead men. Jealousy filled me at the thoughts of them alone together. Not because I didn’t want to share her with him, but because I wanted that time with her. I’d spent days with her, but it wasn’t enough.

I should have been working on removing my men from the war. Inhaling, I filled my lungs with as much air as possible and held it as I stared up at the moon. I should feel better knowing she was somewhere, possibly staring at it right now. I didn’t. I wondered how their numbers kept growing. Rogues weren’t meant to move in packs, yet this was the second one I’d come across this week. Whereas before it was once every few months, but that turned into once a month. The frequency was suspicious.

Protecting this pathetic pack was not in my job description, yet here I was doing fuck face’s job. If not for Dylan’s father’s alliance with Andrius’ pack, I would have taken them out and taken over. If I had managed to stick to my original plan and stayed away from her, I could have done this. That and I didn’t want to complicate things for my alpha. Blood rushed to my tip. Asshole.

A medium-sized man stepped into view. His paling skin was almost green. I expelled all the air from my lungs as he ran toward me. Tilting my head to the left in absolute fucking annoyance, I watched as he shifted into his wolf. If you could call him that. My lip curled as I took in his decaying form. His matted fur was a lifeless gray and the patches in his coat showed signs of disease.

I turned my nose and held my breath, this time so I didn’t smell him. Fuck. I didn’t want to touch this one. He was slow and I could continue dodging him, but I’d eventually have to make contact. As he grew closer, he lowered his head and gave me a full view of the bones protruding out of his back. He was foaming at the mouth; it dripped from his canines and I made a mental note not to let his jaws get anywhere near me.

When the mutt was a few feet away, I lifted my leg and kicked. The satisfying sound of his snout crunching under the weight of my boot was glorious. He whined moments before his body repelled backward. He snarled, then came at me again, but I easily dodged him. Bringing my leg up, I brought it down on his head this time. Forcing him to the ground, I pinned him there.

Then I leaned down, bringing my arm back before I slammed my fist into his skull. Over and over again. Bones crunched, flesh cracked, and the disgusting smell of his blood filled the cool night air. They’d gotten close, too fucking close. My fist froze inches before it would have smashed his brain to mush as I realized how close they’d gotten to her home. Why hadn’t I seen that? The attacks… I ran through the list of where they’d taken place and pinned them on a mental map. They were closing in.. edging toward her home.