Talons

Chapter 82: The Runaway

Rhea’s POV

I sat on the property I inherited from Alpha Newt waiting for the moon to rise. Sylvia and I have been waiting for this moment since we were ten, and while she is not as thrilled as she once was, she is excited to stretch her legs. 

Heat engulfs my body as I feel my skin begin to stretch and pull, but instead of fighting it, I relax and before I know it, my wolf has emerged. She darts through the woods, stopping only to admire herself in a mirror we put up before our shift.

In my mind, I always saw her as white, but she is actually more silver, and her eyes are an ice blue in color that looks like they are glowing. She is gorgeous, and I wonder if the color of our fur is common. 

After staring at ourselves for what felt like hours, we shift and head back to the dorms. Despite being in a conflicting time zone, General calls me daily, and I don’t want to miss his call. Sometimes, he wakes me from sleep, and he insists that I video call him so he can ensure that I’m alone. Since he left before I was technically eighteen, he won't feel infidelity and it has made him paranoid.

He is now afraid of my relationship with Jamie, and I can’t help but to feel as though his insecurity is due to his own actions. He once called me with a woman lying in bed next to him, and while it doesn’t hurt, it makes me hate him even more. 

I’m so glad that my grades are in, and I can technically leave anytime I want. The only thing stopping me is the tail that General put on me, but I have a feeling the man will leave when I move back to pack territory, which is what I’m doing now.

The plan is to go ‘job hunting’ and never return. It wouldn’t be an odd occurrence, wolves are abducted and killed every day, the only issue is the implication it will have for my family, but with Alpha Dwightenhower on their side, General won't be able to do much in retaliation.

After helping me bring my things to my car, Brent and Brice invite me to a party. Since it is likely the last time I will see them, I agree and when I get there, the guys make it worth my while. They have made sure that the smile never leaves my face, and I really appreciate them for the pick-me-up.

While we are talking, Mike approaches with two drinks. He hands me one, saying that he wants to toast to the end of everything. Brent and Brice leave to give us time to say goodbye, and Mike tells me about the bad advice he got from Gavin.

I shake my head at how idiotic his plan was, and I take the time to tell Mike that all in all, he was there when I needed him, and that he should continue to be that man to someone else in the future.

Without even thinking, I down the drink, and Mike follows suit. Within minutes, Derrick approaches us wearing a sinister smile. I start to feel woozy, and Sylvia tells me that there was something in the drink.

He leans down to the side of my face and tells me that what he plans to do to me is just a small part of what my brother did to his cousin. I bunch up my face because I have no idea what he means, but then realization hits me. 

The teen who attacked me was sent to live with his aunt and cousin in another pack. I don’t have the details, but it's clear to me that Derrick is unhappy with the arrangement, and when he tells me the added burden taking care of someone wheelchair bound has added on his family, I realize that was why he suddenly started to hate me.

I go to say something to Mike, but my mouth doesn’t move. It's then that I notice he has already picked me up and is carrying me to a back room. My wolf and I are completely immobile, and while our eyes are open, we cannot speak.

“Mike bro. What are you doing?” I can hear Brent’s voice, but I can't turn to face him. “Think about this carefully. She clearly can’t say yes. I don’t want to fight one of my best friends, but this is crossing a line.”

“I’m just going to take her to sleep it off,” Mike says, and I hear Brice voice his own objection. 

“We should call Jamie then.” Mike pushes past the brothers and into a room that is not occupied. He gently lays me on the bed, and I hear him start arguing with them about what the right thing to do is. After a while, Mike crawls into the bed with me, scooping me into his arms as he places kisses on my face.

“I wouldn’t have gone through with it,” he says, and I feel my body being handed over to Brice. Derrick is standing in the doorway wearing a snarl, and Sylvia and I vow to make him regret whatever he planned to do to us.

Mike’s POV

I wasn’t going to r*pe B, I was going to make love to her, but after talking to Brent and Brice, I realized that what I was doing was no different. I had listened to Derrick and melded his advice with my father’s advice, and while my intention had been to take B’s virginity, I wouldn’t have been able to do it at a filthy frat party.

She deserves the best, in fact she deserved better than me, and after handing her over to Brice, who clearly cares about the girl more than I do, I find myself disgusted with my own behavior. I called coach Jim, who came to pick me up, thanking me for not violating B, who is engaged.

He reminds me that I have signed on as a second string for a professional team, and if any unflattering news about me comes out, it could ruin my contract. I hadn’t thought about that aspect of things, I just wanted to make B mine permanently. 

I hate the fact that she is getting married to someone else, and I believed that if I could tell the man that she cheated on him, he would leave her, but that too was taking a gamble. For all I know, he could have kept her and abused her.

I never saw B again after that party, and according to Jamie, she ran away from home. I blame myself for that, and because I feel as though I will never be able to make things up to the girl, I have decided to devote myself to making sure I live the rest of my life as a man she would have been proud of.

Rhea’s POV

The best part about modern technology is that I don’t have to physically show up to join a board meeting. My identity is still a secret within the company, and with my mold killer added into our product line up, we are making a large profit. Even farmers who are not organic use our stuff, and I’ve quickly become a millionaire.

It's been just over ten months since I’ve been ‘missing’ and from what I hear, General has moved onto someone else. I hope that means I was never his mate and like my mother said, his wolf was growing impatient, and he just wanted to lay claim to someone.

In anticipation for my return, Raven, Miracle and Julee have been staying at one of my Miami properties. They will be going back with me to ensure my return is not marred by the council. I have broken no laws, so theoretically they should not be able to touch me, but General has shown me how corrupt the council is.

They all knew what he was doing to me, and save for Alpha Dwightenhower, they ignored my torment, which has now been passed on to another. My mother sent word that the girl is more receptive to General than I was, so he doesn’t treat her as bad, but he is still unfaithful, which isn’t shocking, and while wrong, I just hope he marks the girl before we cross paths.

“Are you scared?” Jamie asks, and I turn to face her with a look of uncertainty. I met her in Florida because her move was preplanned, so it wasn’t suspicious. She was enrolled in a fast-track master’s program at a sister school, and has a few weeks left before graduation. 

Jamie really has been invaluable to my survival in Florida, and me to hers. I helped her study, and she helped me keep in shape by sniffing out werewolf fitness instructors and bringing them to our home for private lessons. 

No one is looking for me, but we did things that way to keep us safe. Now though, we feel comfortable venturing out, and we have already visited a few nearby restaurants without issue.

“I’m just anxious to get back to my family,” I admit.

“Are you still up for going to Brent’s party?” I nod. I miss him, and when he sees me, I know he will freak out.

After what happened with Mike and Derrick, Jamie grew to like the brothers just as much as I do. She is not Physically attracted to them, but she appreciates that they have gentlemanly qualities, something she says many men lack. Brent was signed to the same team as Mike, and the party he is throwing is to celebrate the first professional season he just played in. Brice still has another year of school, but he should be there too.

It's not a huge thing, just a few drinks by the pool from what I’m told, but Jamie wants to go because she wants ‘the experience,’ but I know that is code for she is sexually frustrated. She has really slowed down on her random flings since we moved, and part of it is because she wants to choose a mate soon.

The doorbell rings, and Jamie becomes excited, so I know it's Raven and when she throws the doors open, I'm crushed under a pile of women. They hit me with a ton of questions I wasn’t prepared for, and they only let me up when Jamie tells them about the party we are going to.

“We should celebrate your belated birthday,” Julee says, remembering that I turned nineteen with only Jamie which to her is unacceptable after how I turned eighteen.