Chapter 13 Two Minds
1867 Words
Chapter 13
Two minds
*** ***
Joseph
“Woah, did Louise do that?” Shaking my head, I righted myself, pushed the pot plant back, and faced her door. Did that happen? Woah! f**k! No way! I stared forward blankly, trying to comprehend what had happened. Did a tiny, sickly Omega shove me halfway across her front yard? Woah, I think she did!
The Alpha part of me wanted to chase after her, demanding that the disrespectful Omega submit to me! The mate-lustful half of me wanted to chase after her… To kiss her again… To mark her... To take her to my room and claim her. She infuriates me so much! But I kind of like it… But the smell – the sickness! “Arh!”
Zodiac snarled in my mind. Some of these thoughts were his, and some were mine. And suddenly, he disapproved of them all. “Stupid wolf! Why can’t you help with this?”
Her sour caramel vinegar scent reached my nose again. I recoiled from the door. Zodiac’s hackles stood on end. My heart dropped. “If this fucken Jekyll and Hyde thing continues, Zodiac, I’ll seek out a witch and have you removed!”
“You need me!” Zodiac flashed his fangs in a weak attempt to argue back. Then he huffed, turned away and laid down.
“I don’t know how much more of this I can take!” Rubbing my forehead, I backed away from Louise’s front door. I glanced up at the window to her bedroom. I knew it was her room. The scent was strongest from there. When I didn’t see her, I turned around and headed back to the packhouse.
I had left after dinner with Maddison early last night. Even mild happiness in her presence was fading with each day. She was smart, pretty, and came from a long line of Betas. But the connection wasn’t there. Even Zodiac’s wag had lost its lustre. Each time I kissed her cheek, a pang of guilt sank into my stomach. I thought about Louise’s cute scowl and her funny sarcasm. Is Kingston – the hopeless romantic, right? Am I going to regret it? Am I already regretting it?
“Joseph!” Josie-Anne called as she met me at the packhouse front door. Her smile was wide—a knowing smile that was beyond her young years.
Since she had returned from her stay with the elders, Josie-Anne had been different. There had been something special about her from birth–something magical. That was the reason why she was sent away. This magic had grown since, moulded, and shaped by the most experienced elders. Now, it seemed my little sister knew things, sensed things no one should.
“You saw Louise!” It was a statement, not a question. “That’s good…”
“Yes, Snowflake, I did see her…” I reached down and scooped my little sister into my arms. “What does–”
“It matter…?” She interrupted as she slid onto my back and wrapped her arms around my neck. “Because it does…”
“Why?” I opened the door and carried her inside, avoiding the wave of Omegas as they carried plates and cutlery to the marquee.
At the staircase, she leaned against my shoulder. “It matters because she’s sick…” She lowered her voice so only I could hear. “She has cancer…”
“What?” I tensed. I had told no one but Kingston about Louise’s sickness. As my future Beta, he was trusted to keep the secret. By now, I think my parents suspected something was off about her, but not how severe it was. “How did–”
“I know?” she continued. “I just do…” She peered over my shoulder so I could see her small face out of the corner of my eye. “Why do you keep following her? You were at the hospital today… hiding from her, and you kissed her…”
“How did you know that?” I knelt, letting her off my back, and then faced her. My face was burning now. “No one…”
“Will know, Jojo,” she winked at me. “I like her…” she patted my cheek. “But you don’t have long…”
“Long? Long for what?” I frowned at her. “Snowflake, you’re making no sense…”
“Josie-Anne… your dress arrived an hour ago!” Mum called from the second-floor landing. She peered down at us, her dark hair pulled back in curlers and clips. She waved at us. “It’s time to get dressed…”
“I have to go,” Josie-Anne said as she skipped up the steps. She paused halfway and turned to face me, lowering her voice. “Don’t waste time, JoJo… trust me.”
I shrugged my hands. “I don’t–”
“Understand?” She chuckled. “You will…”
“Hurry up, young lady!” Mum called again. “And Joseph…”
“Yeah, Mum.” I glanced up at her to be met with her piercing blue eyes.
“Your suit is in your room…”
“Thanks,” I replied as I stood again.
“Don’t take too long…” She waved down at me and then vanished from sight.
“I don’t understand any of what Josie-Anne is saying…” Shaking my head, I jogged up the stairs to my bedroom. “Why can’t you be of some use, Zodiac?”
Spreading his claws, he dug them painfully into my mind. I winced as pain radiated from behind my eyes.
“Quit your tantrum, Zodiac!” I shook his claws free, then fell backwards onto my bed, sinking into the soft king-sized mattress I hoped to share with my mate. “Why the f**k does it have to be her? I’m an Alpha, for f***s sake! I need an Alpha mate… who can carry on the Black legacy!” “Not an Omega and a sick one at that!”
Zodiac made an odd noise—a mixture between a whine and a snarl. I closed my eyes and focused on the wolf in my mind. The huge silver beast was different from his usual fiery self. He was sullen. We met gazes for a moment before he forced my eyes open again. “Help me out, will you… You great, useless, hairy beast!”
Nothing. He had blocked me out again. Our relationship had been strained from the moment Louise had walked into our lives. Even when he had awoken, we had a formidable and strained bond. But each time we saw her, it got worse. It was the scent of sickness and the knowledge that cancer could kill her. Death! Was that what Josie-Anne had meant?
I sat bolt upright. “We don’t have long to figure this out!”
“Hmmm… rowl… ruff… whine… snarl… growl…” Zodiac was arguing with himself in my mind.
“What the f**k… Stupid mutt!” I cursed aloud. “This is your fault! Humans don’t imprint… It’s a wolf thing… So, it’s all your fault!”
No reply.
“I wasn’t joking when I said I would bring in a witch!”
Still no reply.
There was a knock at my door.
“Who is it?’ I snapped as I clambered off my bed. “What do you want?”
“It’s me, bro… No need to bite!”
“Kingston,” I threw open the door to see him dressed in his suit, with his blonde hair styled in its usual preppy-boy flow. I propped my shoulder against the door frame. “I see you’re ready…”
“I see you’re not…” He gestured at my clothes. “Going for the ‘I don’t care’ look? I don’t know if the Luna will approve, but it works. The rugged, unruly heir of the Mist Clan… Some girls might think it works….”
“It works for me…” I stood aside, allowing him through. “Come in…”
I crossed the room as he stepped inside, closing the door behind him.
“I don’t think Maddison will think much of it. She’s a bit more… fancy,” he commented, still smirking at me. “Did you get into another tussle or something?”
“Not exactly,” I sighed as I sat back on my bed and stared at my future Beta. He dropped on the two-seater couch across from me, resting his elbows against his knees.
“Well, what happened?” He asked, tapping his fingers together impishly. “A little birdy tells me you followed a certain little lady today… Possibly the future Luna?”
“Seriously!” I rubbed my forehead. “I can’t trust that sister of mine… And no!” I glowered at him. “I told you, I can’t, in my right mind, accept her as my Luna.”
“You can trust your sister,” Kingston defended, rubbing a finger across his chin. “She’s got some kind of magic up in here,” he pointed to his temple.
“She’s a rare kind of Snowflake,” I agreed with a sigh. “But it wasn’t her place to say...”
“You can’t mess with fate…” Kingston stood again, gesturing at my suit. “Say all you want, but if this girl is your mate… you can’t fight it… and why would you even try?”
“I told–”
He held up his hand to protest. “I’m not here to argue with you, Joseph.” He headed for the door, paused, and peered over his shoulder. “If you admit to yourself and your wolf that this girl is your mate, then whatever the obstacle between you two is, you will be able to overcome it.”
I stared at him, unsure what to say. Zodiac retreated.
“It’s a shame,” my Beta sighed softly, “she petty adorable…”
“You stay the hell away from her!” I roared as I launched at him, pinning him against the door.
Zodiac broke through my restraints, gnashing his teeth at Kingston. “Stay away!”
Kingston laughed, his blue eyes sparkling. “I knew it...” he eyed me suspiciously, making Zodiac retreat. “You both care about her… You can feel the pull!”
“s**t, I don’t know…” I dropped Kingston on his feet, then began to pace, running my hands through my hair. “Zodiac has been making everything difficult!”
At his name, the bipolar beast clawed at my brain, sending another headache behind my eyes. Once it passed, I faced my Beta. “I better get ready.”
Kingston opened the door, then gestured to my suit again. “I’ll see you out there, bro…” he winked at me. “And don’t worry, I will keep my hands off your mate…”
“She’s not my mate!”
“Believe what you want.” Grinning, he left the room, closing the door behind him.
- Writer
