16

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Ruby

Axel woke me up while it was still dark outside and ordered me to take a bath. He gave me new clothes, told me to brush my hair, and then gave me toasted bread and an apple before dragging me outside.

The cold air nipped at my exposed arms and face as we walked briskly to a black SUV. My eyes danced from left to right but it was useless to try to see anything. It was too dark for me to make out anything other than the house we had just left.

He opened the door for me, which had been surprising. I had expected him to throw me into the backseat blindfolded and handcuffed with the way he's been treating me, yanking and throwing me around as if I'm a bag of potatoes. After two and a half hours after driving what seemed like endlessly, I realized where he was taking me.

The sun had finally come up, and the world around me was finally visible. We were heading back to the Blackmoon Pack. I could tell that's where we were going the second we drove past the Witches Brew Tavern Xavier had taken me to what seemed like so long ago. More and more things began to look familiar to me, and I felt like decades had passed since I'd seen this place.

I sighed and unclenched my hands. I glanced over at Axel, who had one hand on the steering wheel and the other on the door, a deep crease between his brows. Moving my mouth from side to side and I wondered if I should speak to him, but I didn't want him to pull over and throw me into the trunk.

Fuck it.

"Why are you doing this?" I asked, and I stared at his jaw as it visibly clenched.

"Have you forgotten what I said? I told you–no talking."

I made a face, my mouth turning downward. "You told me not to speak to anyone. I didn't realize that meant you as well."

"It did," he responded sharply, and I looked back at the road.

I started to hum when I got to the point where I felt like I would lose my mind if I had to suffer one more moment of awkward silence. In my peripheral vision, I saw him glance over at me. If looks could kill, I'd be a dead woman by now, so I folded my lips inwards and fell silent once more.

I was smiling on the inside, however. He deserved to be annoyed, the smug prick. I spent the first part of the ride in a panic, thinking he was taking me to the Council. Now that I knew he was taking me back to Xavier, I felt a burst of energy, of hope.

I turned to look out the window as a thought occurred to me. Natalie had said the Council was going after Xavier. Had they arrived yet? Had she gotten to him in time? Was that why Axel was taking me back? Was the Council at Xavier's house and waiting for us?

I swallowed and closed my eyes. Of course, he hadn't had a change of heart. He wasn't returning me. He was turning me in. I opened my eyes and glanced over at him again, a loose strand of curly hair brushing against the side of his face.

"Why are you doing this, Axel? Why do you hate me so much?" His grip on the steering wheel tightened, but I didn't look away. I kept staring at him to show him I wanted an answer. "Well?"

"Humans are all the same. They are all selfish and greedy, and they can't be trusted. You have done something to me, Ruby. You exist." His words hit a nerve, and I narrowed my eyes at him. "You're my mate, and that's a problem. That's THE problem."

I looked away as I shook my head. I couldn't believe this man was so ignorant and biased. "You see, the thing about what you just said is," I turned to him as he glanced my way, "if I had met you before Xavier, I would have said all werewolves were cruel, cold monsters. But you and Xavier are the perfect examples to show that not all werewolves are the same. You don't get to speak generally about humans being bad. The same way I can't about werewolves." I looked away. "All the things you just listed about humans are qualities you've shown me so far. You're selfish, greedy, and you can't be trusted."

I placed my elbow on the edge of the door by the window and sighed as my skin pressed onto the cool glass. The car was filled with silence once more, and this time I intended to stay quiet. I hadn't asked to be this man's mate, and I didn't want to be his mate. He abducted me, kept me locked away in a dungeon, starved me, and dragged me through the woods. All because I have wronged him by simply existing.

I didn't want to believe that everything he just said was what he truly believed. He could not possibly be that ignorant. Maybe he was trying to convince himself of all that?

"My pack is my priority," he suddenly said. "Protecting them is the singular purpose I have. Therefore, I can't strengthen my bloodline by being with you, a human." He spat the last word out like it was akin to being an incurable disease.

Since I'm sure strengthening a bloodline means having kids, I can assure you of one thing, buddy, I will have zero impact. There's no way I'm opening these legs for you.

That's what I wanted to say, but I kept quiet instead. For the first time, he was speaking to me as if he was talking to another person. He wasn't giving me orders or talking down to me, and I couldn't help looking at him.

His expression was still one that screamed 'talk to me and get punched,' but his voice didn't hold as much exasperation. However, I didn't respond. I couldn't fault him for looking out for his pack's interests, but I was certain there were other ways for us to handle this situation without resorting to abduction and involving the Council.

"Who was the man that came into my cell?" I asked after a while.

He looked over at me, a confused look on his face as he shook his head. "What man? I was the only one that visited you in your cell."

Had I been hallucinating or dreaming? No, someone else had visited me.

"There was someone else. I know that was real."

The car slowed at a stoplight, and his hand fell away from the steering wheel. "I remember you asking who else would be coming to see you and I found it odd. No one else was allowed inside the cell, Ruby. Whoever was there wasn't from my pack."

The light changed to green, and he drove off as the side of my mouth curved with a smile. "Maybe now you'll understand how it feels to

have people sneak onto your land."

"The land the Blackmoon Pack is on is my land!"

I rolled my eyes. That was none of my business. I had bigger things to think about, like if I'm about to be killed thanks to him. The closer we got to the pack, the worse my anxiety grew. Not knowing what was about to happen with my own life wasn't a comfortable feeling. I had no idea what was going to happen in the next hour, and I knew if I asked Axel, he wouldn't tell me.

"What did the man look like?" He suddenly asked, and I frowned.

That's what he's still thinking about?

"I don't know, Axel. He remained in the shadows. I didn't see his

face."

He didn't say anything else, and we drove in silence for the rest of

the journey. I tried to hide my excitement as Axel drove up the long path to the house. My mind took me back to the first time I had gone out with Xavier, and a bittersweet feeling had my eyes stinging with tears. In the beginning, I had wanted to get away from this place, from Xavier, and now this was the only place I wanted to be.

Axel parked the car in front of the house. I hurriedly got out and began making my way to the door. He remained at my heel, however, not allowing me to get too far away from him. The front door was thrown open the moment I reached out to grab the handle, and Natalie grabbed my arm and pulled me into a huge hug.

She cupped my cheeks and bent my head from side to side as if inspecting me, and I allowed her to. I was too stunned at how different she looked to do anything else anyways. Her eyes drifted to Axel standing close behind me, and I smiled as she narrowed her eyes at him.

I was sure Axel wasn't bothered by the hatred dripping off her, but I was happy to finally be with someone other than him and his nasty mood. Her hands fell away from my cheeks as she took my hand and began leading us inside and into the living room.

My heart felt heavy as my eyes wandered around a house that I hadn't been sure I'd ever see again. I was happy and scared all at once, and the mixture of feelings had me feeling sick. Those feelings vanished though, when we entered the living room, and my eyes found Xavier.

He was standing by Mathieu's side and, while I knew there were two other people present that I didn't know, I couldn't tear my eyes away from

Xavier. It felt like I hadn't seen him in years, and my fingers began to twitch with my need to feel his warm skin. My heart was beating so fast, it felt like it would beat its way out of my chest. I didn't care that everyone in the room could hear it.

You're okay.

"Xavier…" I whispered as I stepped forward, but Axel grabbed my elbow almost painfully and yanked me back to him.

"What did I tell you?" He whispered in my ear. "Speak to no one."

Xavier's growl rolled through the room like a clap of thunder. He moved forward and was halfway across the room in a flash, his eyes obsidian. Axel shoved me behind him as he widened his stance for Xavier's attack, his nails changing into claws.

The man I didn't know appeared between the two of them in the blink of an eye. Xavier stopped, his chest rising and falling rapidly, his eyes still on Axel.

"Now, now, now," the man said as he looked from Axel to Xavier, "there won't be any fighting. It is interesting, however, how two alphas-to- be are willing to rip each other apart for this," he looked at me with obvious disdain, "girl."

I made a face, not liking the way he had just said that, and he walked over to me. He looked me up and down, his nostrils flaring. I watched in confusion as he glanced over at the woman I didn't know.

She, too, was looking at me, her dark eyes piercing into my green

ones.

Who are these people? Are they from the Council?

I narrowed my eyes at the man as he stepped back, the light from the

bulb above us causing his bald head to glisten. Of course, they are from the Council. They must be.

I looked at Mathieu who was silently staring daggers at Xavier. "Xavier," he called and Xavier stood up straight, his eyes returning to their normal color.

"Axel has her in his possession, so he has the right to do what he wishes. She is his mate as well, is she not?"

"That's bullshit and you know it!" Xavier yelled.

"Xavier!" Mathieu said again, this time louder, as he got to his feet. "That's enough."

Xavier's jaws clenched as he bowed his head. "With all due respect, Father, Axel can't be making rules off the top of his head if this is something that has never happened before."

Mathieu approached his son and placed his hand on his shoulder. "This is new territory, so it's best to let the Council do what they think is necessary. She is his mate as well, Xavier." Xavier made a sound, and Mathieu squeezed his shoulder. I felt so useless, a lamb amongst wolves, and feared what would happen if I opened my mouth again. "He is. We all want this over and done with."

The bald man waved his hand, beckoning to the woman with white hair. She went to him obediently. Are they mates, I wonder?

"Indeed, we all want this over with. I've seen enough for today, Mathieu. My flight was long, and tomorrow is going to be an even longer day–for all of us. Thank you for giving me a tour of the grounds, but I think I'm going to get some rest before dinner."

He turned and left the room, and I didn't miss the way he glanced at me from the side. I didn't like this man. Each time he looked at me, I got a terrible feeling like snakes were crawling all over me. I looked toward Natalie, who had remained by my side throughout the whole ordeal, but she merely held my hand and squeezed it before turning away.

I moved to reach out to her, and Axel cleared his throat, causing my hand to freeze mid-air. I looked at him and forced as much distaste into my eyes and expression as possible. I was out of that cell and room he had kept me in, but somehow, he still had chains on me. My eyes found Xavier once more, and a feeling of warmth came over me as I looked into his eyes, the longing I could see there.

I hadn't realized just how much I had missed him until this very moment.

"Let's go," Axel said through clenched teeth, but I remained still. "Now."

Xavier's eyes shot down to my arm as Axel held onto me, and it felt like a knife was twisting in my chest as he then looked away. His demeanor changed instantly, and I could almost see a wall appear between us. I yanked my hand away from Axel, but Xavier was already walking out of the room.

A deafening silence filled the room as my heart fell and shattered. I looked behind me at Mathieu, a plea in my eyes, but he only shook his

head.

"I'm sorry, child, but this will all be over soon."