Huntress or Mate?

Chapter 11- A new path

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Enya

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I slide down the window, slowing down after glancing at the GPS again. It says I have arrived at the place but I don’t see the car. I start audibly crying, my heart beating like it’s going to stop as tears continue blurring my vision. Kol said this is where he left the car that I’m supposed to use from this point forward. He punched in the address on the GPS himself, so it’s not like I made a mistake, but I don’t see anything. I step on the gas again, slowly increasing the speed as I continue looking around, scared I’m going to see headlights shining behind me anytime now.

After still not seeing anything, I turn off the engine and open the door, contemplating ditching the car and requesting a ride. I have money that Kol gave me and I know the address to where I’m going, but that wasn’t part of the plan and I don’t know how long it would take the ride to get here. I don’t want to stray from our original plan, but I don’t know what to do.

After a long moment of being conflicted, I decide to go down a little further. So I close the door and drive around the corner, and just then I see it. He said it would be a black VW Golf and this is a black Golf GTI, which means this is it.

I’m incredibly grateful for my wolf's eyes, cause without them I would have easily missed the car. This place is eerily dark. I turn off the engine and step out of Kol’s car before bolting to the black one. I open the driver’s door to find a bouquet on the driver’s seat, and I pick it up whilst quickly sliding into the seat before locking the doors. My hands are trembling badly as I look around, checking out my surroundings before looking down at the flowers that I have now placed on the passenger seat to find a note attached to them. I pick them up and remove the note but I break down all over again the moment I see what’s written on it. The note reads, “I’m okay" and I know it’s supposed to make me feel better, but it doesn’t. How can I when I had to leave him like that? When I had to do that to him. What if Isla and Nikos don’t get there on time? What will I do if I killed my mate? He put his life on the line for me, and I’d die if I lost him too.

I try to sober up and put the flowers that I’m now hugging to my chest on the passenger’s seat again, so I can go before I get caught and all of this is for nothing.

I turn on the engine and punch in the new address since I depend on the GPS to get to where I’m going and step on the gas. I take deep breaths, trying to calm myself before letting out a desperate plea.

“Please, let him be okay.”

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After what feels like forever, I arrive at the apartment building, park the car, and run inside. I punch in the code and head for the elevator, glad everyone seems to still be asleep, otherwise I’d cause a stare. I press the floor of the apartment and after a couple of minutes, the elevator stops for me and I get out. I’m inside, I made it but I just can’t stop trembling as I punch in the code at the door. Thank the Gods Kol changed it to my birthday, otherwise, I don’t think I would remember it. I’m a mess. I close the door and check if it automatically locked before heading straight for the door that I think is the bathroom. I rush to the sink and scrub down my hands, breaking down as I watch Kol's blood make its way down the drainage.

After I don't know how long, I notice it's no longer Kol's blood running down the sink but mine, causing me to stop. My hands are throbbing but the pain pales in comparison to the one in my heart. I drag myself out of the bathroom and head straight for the bed, feeling dizzy as sobs continue to wreck my body. Haven't I suffered enough? Why couldn't Kol and I be free to love each other? Why did it have to be like this?

I fall on the bed and curl myself into a ball before letting it all out; the lump in my throat getting bigger as the memory of what I did to my mate plays in my mind, haunting me.

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Isla

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“I need to be alone,” Kol softly says, pulling away from the hug and I let him. He turns around and heads back inside and I look at Nikos to find him looking at me, and I know he’s thinking what I’m thinking. What the hell happened here?

“We should try and get some sleep too. We’ll talk about this in the morning,” Nikos says, and I nod. We head to my room and I dial one of my contacts and ask him to track Kol’s car after apologizing for waking him up so early. He works for a car tracking service and is on our payroll for when we need his assistance. After placing my phone down, I take off the bloody clothes and decide to get a shower since I have some of Kol’s blood on me.

I step inside the shower, the water immediately sensing me as I enter, and I just stand there and let it run down my body as images of how we found Kol, flash in my mind. If Nikos and I didn’t get here when we did, he could have died. The more I think about it, the angrier I’m getting, and not just at that girl but at Kol too. What was he doing? Why was her collar off? How did she overpower him? He put all of us at risk. I warned him about this but he didn’t listen and now that girl is out there. She knows where we live. I need answers.

I step out of the shower, not even bothering to wrap a towel around myself as I exit the bathroom, and Nikos looks up at me with a raised brow as I grab my robe and throw it on.

“Where are you going?” he asks, probably hearing my heartbeat. “I’m going to speak to Kol,” I reply heading to the door but he jumps in front of me.

“I thought we agreed to let him rest and speak to him in the morning?”

“That was before I had time to think about it. I warned Kolten about this Andronikos! This… this is exactly what I feared when I didn’t want him to keep that girl in the house! So, no! He doesn’t get to rest before I get my answers. Now move!” I command and he steps out of my way. I exit the room and march down to Kol’s room.

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Kolten

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“I love you,” I tell Enya, who's on the other side of the line and she tells me, she loves me too. I went straight for my phone and called her after throwing up from the adrenalin of what we had just pulled off and she broke down on the phone. I had to allow her to calm down first before we were able to converse. My heart kept breaking with every sob as I listened to her crying on the other side and I wanted to be there and hold her so bad but I couldn’t. I must stay away from her until I can be sure that Nikos and Isla bought my story. Especially Isla. She’s not so easily fooled. I’m surprised she wasn’t pissed at me. I expected her to freak out.

It’s almost 4 am but I tell Enya to try and get some sleep. I’m really proud of my girl. She did well. I open my mouth to speak again but there’s a loud banging on the door, causing me to bid her goodbye for now and end the call before quickly chucking my phone inside the bedside table drawer. What now?

“I’m coming!” I growl as the person continues to bang on the door, even though they won’t hear me, since the rooms are soundproof. I rip it open to find Isla fuming and she pushes past me.

“What the hell happened here exactly, Kol? How were you bested by her? Why was her collar off?” she bombards me with questions and I mentally sigh, exhausted. I should have known it was too good to be true.

“We were f*****g and she passed out. I knew the collar was making her weak, so I took it off so she could wake up. I was going to put it back on but she had an idea and I agreed to it, thinking she was enjoying it,” I tell her the story that Enya and I came up with. I knew she was going to have lots of questions so we thought of some answers. We decided that I was going to tell her that we were doing role-play. She and I used to do that, so I knew it will be easier for her to believe it, even though she’d be bitter. She’s dangerous when she’s bitter, but she’s deadly when she’s suspicious.

The day I told Enya everything, I also told her about Isla and me. I don’t want to keep anything from her, but I didn’t tell her about the role-playing. She didn't need to know that. Plus, if situations were reversed I wouldn't want to know. I’d lose it if she gave me explicit details of her s****l encounters with some other dude. Calm down, I mentally tell my wolf who’s already losing his s**t just by the mere thought of it. But I’m snapped out of it by Isla’s voice, who’s still in my face.

“Wha-What the f**k?!”

“I know but as I said, I thought she was enjoying it, Isla! I made a mistake!”

“You made a mistake?! You made a f*****g mistake?!”

“Yes! What do you want me to say?!” I growl, not able to look her in the eye as she starts to shake, looking like she’s going to burst with anger, no doubt fueled by jealousy. She understands exactly how everything went down.

“I want you to look me in the eye and just tell me the truth, Kolten! It wasn’t just s*x between you and that girl, was it? That girl out there is your mate, isn’t she?” she demands, looking me in the eye, not even blinking. “Just be honest with me, Kol. You owe me that much after saving your life, twice. Tell me the truth... because I do not believe you would be that stupid. I do not believe you would risk everything you've bled to protect just to get kinky with some skank you found in the gutter! Like some i***t!” she seethes, eyes still locked with mine and I swallow hard, my wolf letting out a low growl at her calling our mate a skank. But I must control myself. The lives of the people I love depend on it.

“She is not my mate-” I affirm the lie and she looks at me silently for a moment before she speaks, her voice low.

“Are you sure about that Kolten Evans? Are you sure that’s what you want to say to me right now because this is far from over? I’m going to send people after that girl. I’m going to find her and if you are lying to me. If she turns out to be your mate, I won’t be able to help you. It will be too late,” she warns, stepping up to me, our faces only inches from each other.

“Yes, I'm sure. Look… I’m sorry, okay? I messed up. I should have been more careful. I don’t know what came over me. I guess I was lonely. Seeing you and Nikos, I guess it makes me feel... alone, sometimes,” I place my hand on her shoulder, trying to put out the fire, and it works. Her eyes immediately soften and she takes my hand, causing me to silently let out a breath, relieved. I have to get her to let go of this.

“You are not alone, Kol. You will never be alone. I will always be here for you,” she says and pulls me into a hug and just then, the door to the room pushes open and Nikos walks in, thank the Gods, causing her to release me from the hug and sit on the bed, running a hand through her hair.

“How much does she know? What are we dealing with?” she asks, her tone now back to normal and I sit next to her, Nikos also doing the same.

“She doesn’t know anything. She’s never even seen your faces. I made sure to keep her in my room the whole time. As far as she’s concerned, we are just regular people sharing a house,” I assure her and she opens her mouth to speak but a call comes through on my cellphone, causing her to stop and look at the bedside table drawer, where the sound is coming from.

“Are you not going to get it?” she asks, looking at me and I reluctantly reach for the drawer, scared it might be Enya but knowing it will only add to her suspicion if I don’t pick it up. Please, let it not be her. I mentally plead as I take it out and I almost jump, relieved, seeing an unknown number. I pick up and it’s Claud, telling me he’s tracked my car and is having it brought back. He tells me the keys were left in the ignition and everything is still intact. I thank him, the phone now on speaker so Isla and Nikos can hear. After ending the call, I turn to them, remembering I haven't thanked them yet.

“Thank you guys, for showing up when you did; for saving my life.”

“Don’t mention it, man,” Nikos says, placing a hand on my shoulder, and Isla does the same, telling me I’m welcome before adding that I scared the s**t out of them with a chuckle.

Isla is overbearing. At times she annoys me, makes me angry, and at others, she painfully frustrates me, like now. But I know she cares for me. She and I have come a long way together and she’s been my support throughout everything that I’ve been through. Back when we had just started our training at the camps, it was very hard. Some of the things we were required to do were soul-shattering and I sometimes wanted to give up, but she’d hold my hand and help me up again. She’d remind me why I was doing it. We were both fourteen but she was so much stronger than I was. So, if I strip away the jealousy, a great friend remains. I can’t hate her just because I can’t live up to the oath I made. It’s not her fault. She’s just doing her job and trying to keep me from making a mistake that can cost me everything. She knows what my family means to me; that’s why a part of me feels bad for lying to her. But I have now chosen a new path and I won’t let her or anyone get in my way. So, I have to do whatever it takes to get her to back off. I reach for their hands and take them in mine before looking them in the face.

“Let me fix this. Let me hunt her myself and hand her over to Deegan,” I plead, trying to buy myself some time. If they leave it up to me, that will buy me the time I need to get her and my family out of here. Enya and I have a plan but we are going to need some time.

“-You screwed up, Kol. But we are soldiers, remember? We don’t leave anyone behind. We are going to hunt this girl down, all of us together and we are going to make her pay for what she did to you,” she says, pulling the sleeve of her robe and wiping some of the dry blood on my face, and my heart hits rock bottom. “I’m going to have this room sorted in the morning or when the sun comes up since it is morning already. You should use the guest room for now,” she adds before continuing to speak, but I don’t hear her. All I’m thinking about is how I’m going to stop them from hunting down Enya.

“We’ll speak later, okay?” she snaps me back to reality when she pulls me into a hug and I whisper an okay back at her. They leave and I hear Isla’s door opening and closing after a moment. I get up and head to my closet. I grab my joggers and a plain black t-shirt before sliding my phone into my pocket and heading to the guestroom. Isla is right. I can’t sleep in this bed. I throw the stuff on the bed after entering the guest room and I head straight for the shower. After taking the much-needed shower I climb on the bed, wishing I could speak to Enya again. I lie on my back, my hands behind my head, feeling no sign of sleep. I wonder if she’s sleeping or if she’s awake, wishing I were there like I do right now; or if she’s still crying, traumatized by the memory of what I made her do.

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Flashback

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Third person POV

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“No, I can’t do this,” Enya freaked out, getting off the bed, causing Kol, whose one hand was already cuffed to the bed, to lie on his side, tears gleaming in his eyes as he gazed upon his mate's terrified ones. He knew what he was asking for was too much but he didn't see any other way, at least not any that almost guaranteed her safety. He had to get her out of there and he had to do it before it was too late.

“Come here,” he softly said, reaching out with the right hand he hadn’t cuffed yet. He had already cuffed his left hand and secured the collar around his neck to try and make it a little easier for her, but she was still freaking out. He had been trying to get her to cuff the one remaining hand for the past thirty minutes, and he was starting to panic. They were wasting time, time they didn’t have as Isla and Nikos were on their way. Kol was tracking Nikos’s car cause they had to wait until they left the airport to execute their plan, to guarantee that Nikos and Isla would find him still alive.

“No,” Enya refused, hugging herself and shaking her head, causing Kol to uncuff his left hand and get off the bed. “We have to find another way,” she added as he walked up to her and he pulled her into a hug. “I don’t want to hurt you. I can’t.”

“I know, my love. But we have no other choice. There is no time to come up with another plan,” he said, now pulling back from the hug and cupping her face.

“How do you know? We didn’t even try-”

“-I did. It’s all I’ve done for the past three months, and this is the only one that stands a chance-”

“-So, you knew this is what I was going to have to do and you didn’t tell me?”

“Yes, and I’m sorry I kept it from you, but I didn’t want to scare you. Telling you in advance wasn’t going to prepare you, Enya. You would have spent the past three months, stressed and I didn’t want that for you. I love you, Enya and I promised you that I would protect you. I can't do that when I'm dead, and I have no intention of breaking my promise,” he softly said the last part, caressing her cheeks as she hiccupped, tears flowing from her eyes. He leaned down and captured her lips in a kiss that had her letting out a sob or moan as she kissed him back like her life depended on it. They both wished they could go on forever, but they knew they were running out of time, so they broke the kiss with heavy hearts.

“Now, please trust me, okay?” he pleaded and she nodded as he wiped her tears. He took her hand and led her back to the bed where he climbed and cuffed his left hand before extending the other pair of cuffs to her. She took them and cuffed his right hand as previously instructed; the tears he had just dried a second ago, were now soaking her cheeks again, breaking his heart.

Kol had already explained what he needed Enya to do but she wasn't listening, so he explained again before laying his head down on the pillow.

“Do it,” he ordered, looking her in the eye, and she transformed her hand, raised it in the air but couldn't bring herself to strike. She started audibly crying again and was about to say she can't do it when Kol cut her off.

“Do it, Enya! Do it!” he growled and she flinched before closing her eyes, letting her mind travel back to the night her family was killed. She needed to be in that headspace, she needed to be that girl, fighting beside her mother. Both claws surfaced and she let out a scream, and when she opened her eyes again. Her hand was buried deep inside her mate's chest and she was about to rip out his heart.

“Oh, my God, Kol!” she cried out, terrified as blood spewed out of his mouth.

“I love you," he croaked, his eyes drooping close as she slowly retracted her hand. Her mind was screaming at her to grab the car keys as they had planned and run, reminding her she had already wasted too much time. But her heart was throbbing, bleeding. It was telling her to damn it all and uncuff him, but she knew she had to listen to her head. So, she grabbed the car keys and ran out of the door without looking back, knowing if she did, she'd listen to her heart. And all would have been for nothing.

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End of flashback

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