Burdened Beasts

chapter four: mates

Sebastian

It’s been another half hour, maybe forty-five minutes of utter silence in the dark back of the black sedan. The ride has been bumpy, as if the driver is avoiding the highway at all costs, taking the shitty sideroads. I’m guessing that’s because they’re worried that whatever half-visible attackers were at the office before might be trying to track us now, still unseen. But that’s only a guess.

From what I’ve worked through so far, I don’t think whatever killed Laura and went after Twist has anything to do with whoever has got Sherl and I now. Judging from the fact that the huge guy blocked Sherl and Twist when s**t went south. That, and the fact that he was shooting at the threat, not at us. They got us out of there pretty quick. Of course, that doesn’t answer who these people are, or what they wanted from me in the first place, or why they’ve taken us now. Or where we’re going.

Obviously, it’s got something to do with Sam. His voice through the phone had sent ice through me, though I wouldn’t have let any of these people know that. How different he sounded, so much like myself and so apart from the little boy he was the last time I heard him. That voice, calling me a name I haven’t heard in years.

I’d almost asked her about it. Almost.

She’s been silent, too. Either taking my lead, or just over my antics. Right now she’s as far as she can get from me in the small space. One leg is stretched in front of her, one bent at the knee and set under her other thigh. Her lids are closed over those dark, dark eyes. I thought maybe they’d show me their color with more light to see by. But they were still as black as night out under that hot sun.

Those eyes rove under her closed lids, and I worry for a minute that she’ll open them and catch me staring. But after a second, she goes still again. She’s got a little nose. Everything about her is little. Well, almost everything. There’s this smattering of freckles over her left cheekbone, but not the right. Her hair is short and wild, pale, like mist on the water. I’m still staring.

It doesn’t help that she’s incredibly f*****g hot. Like, far and away the hottest woman I have ever seen in my life. Hotter than any woman I’ve even imagined, and believe me, I have imagined plenty. Maybe it’s just because I can still feel the ghost of her little hands on me. Up over my chest and deep in my hair. She’d taken fistfuls of it, pulled too hard to move me how she wanted. I’d liked it. I’d really, really f*****g liked it.

She’d been like a little cat asleep on my chest. So light, so small. I’m her prisoner, and somehow I’d still wanted to protect her. I’d had one crazy, half-drunk moment where I actually thought she was going to kiss me. I’d panicked, forgotten that she was holding me down, pinning me in place. Then I realized, with a hot wave of shame, that she wasn’t coming on to me. She was just making sure I wasn’t injured in the shoot-out. Making sure her prize wasn’t spoiled before she could claim her reward.

I’m still staring.

“Where are you taking us?” I ask.

Fuck, I didn’t want to talk to her. I hate that I weirdly want to talk to her. Her long lashes lift, and the deep dark of her big eyes hits me like a punch. Even Avery whines. She c***s her pretty head, and I hate how it makes her look sweet instead of evil. I hate how it made me pissed to see Big Guy’s hand laid on her shoulder. I hate that I’m having a hard time hating her at all.

“Oklahoma City,” she answers. “Until it’s safe to take you back to the pack.”

“You’re underestimating just how badly I don’t want to go back to the pack,” I snort.

“You’re underestimating just how important it is that you do,” she says back.

I roll my eyes. That’s some hivemind bullshit, but there’s no reason to point that out to her now. Mindlessly following along, never questioning the reason or morality of anything. That’s how they were able to put me in the position I’m in now at all. Still, they must have decided they need something from me. I’m expected to follow blindly and give it, just like they taught me, even though I’ve already given everything I ever had. Avery whines again, but this time it’s because I’m close to losing my cool.

“Can’t imagine I’ll be of any use to them,” I say. “Unless they’re having IT issues. Let me guess, Wi-Fi is down in the packhouse. Has Sam tried unplugging it and plugging it back in again?”

She ignores me. Which really pisses me off.

“Seriously, I’m asking you a question. What the hell does he want with me?”

“Do you want the bullshit answer or do you want the truth?” she asks. “Fair warning: the truth isn’t pleasant.”

“Hate to break it to you, but neither is the bullshit.”

She closes her eyes again, absolutely done with me. I see red.

“Listen,” I hiss. “Do you even know what they did to me? Do you have any idea?”

“Yes,” she says calmly, eyes still closed. “Your father banished you.”

“No, that’s easy,” I say, voice rising, louder and louder. “That’s too f*****g easy. You’re not getting out of it, none of them are, least of all Sam. My father put me out on the street. With nothing. No family, no home, not even a coat.”

“You had a wolf,” she dares to remind me.

“A wolf he took one look at and dismissed. A wolf he made sure every single member of that pack knew wasn’t fit to lead them. Sam watched.”

“He was a little boy.”

“What are you, in love with him?” I demand.

“What?!”

“You heard me. You f*****g him or something?”

Her eyes flash, somehow darker than they were. A growl rumbles up her little throat, and I remember how she had pressed her face into my neck. How it had made my whole body come awake. She has better control of hers. She takes a deep breath, another. She seems to be counting to calm herself. Ten long seconds pass. Then she answers, through her teeth.

“No,” she says. “He’s my family.”

“Yeah, well, look how far that got me.”

She shakes her head, but I can’t stop now that I’ve started.

“What about huge guy?” I demand.

“Huge guy?” she asks. “You mean Diego?”

“Yeah, you f*****g him?”

“Jesus, no, what is wrong with you?” she snaps.

“Haven’t you heard?” I laugh.

The car rumbles to a standstill. It’s the first time since our little break before that it has stopped moving at all. It could be for any number of reasons. Refuel, red light, entering onto the highway. I don’t pause to guess, I just move. Lunging, I hit the handle of the door with my fingertips before she’s on me. She slams my face into the window with a crack that is either the glass or my nose. Her hands grab my hair, her legs circling my torso, flipping me onto my back. She’s on my chest in an instant, forearm against my throat.

“Stop trying to run from me,” she spits.

“You fight like a girl.”

She backhands me, so hard I see stars. My teeth catch the inside of my cheek, forcing a single rivulet of blood to trickle down the middle of my lower lip. She watches me with hooded eyes. Slowly, my tongue draws down to lick it off. A purr rumbles in her throat. I buck without warning, sure that I can flip her off while she’s distracted. She’s a quarter of my size, after all. But she hangs on, slide’s down off my chest so she’s straddling me again. She grinds against me, and the most embarrassing sound I’ve ever made in my entire life leaves me.

“Don’t make me hurt you again before I get you back to Sam,” she warns.

“Can’t imagine he’d care.”

“You don’t know him,” she answers, climbing off me, going back to her side of the car.

“No,” I agree, oddly bereft without her little weight along the length of me. “Sounds like he’s more of a brother to you than he ever was to me.”

We lapse back into silence.

* * *

When the car finally stops again, I don’t try to run. There’s obviously no point. Besides, it’s not like I’m going anywhere without Sherl. She must have the same idea, because when we both climb out of our respective cars, she gives me a defeated look. She’s wearing a beanie over her bright hair, and Diego tosses me a package of wet wipes.

“Clean yourself up,” he says.

Checking my reflection in the shiny black metal of the car door, I notice the dried blood on my chin. Huh, I guess that cracking sound was my nose, after all. While I scrub at it, one of the drivers disappears into a dingy motel next door. When he emerges, he talks with the huge guy for a minute before climbing back behind the wheel. Both sedans disappear.

Big Guy and Tiny Chick lead Sherl and I through a side door into the motel. The carpet is a mass of twisting colors, like the eighties lost its lunch. We pass a room that emits moans from behind the closed door, and Sherl raises her eyebrows at me. I smother a grin. She points between Diego and the girl, raises her eyebrows again. As if I don’t understand her silent question, she makes a circle with one hand and pokes the pointer finger of her other hand through it. I snort, shake my head.

“Would you like to share with the class?” Diego asks, and Sherl giggles.

“We’re just kinda worried you guys brought us here to f**k us,” I say, which makes Sherl dissolve into a fit of full on laughter.

“I call dibs on the chick,” Sherl snickers.

“No dice,” I say. “Diego doesn’t look like he’d cuddle me after.”

“Yeah, you want someone who will be gentle for your first time,” Sherl laughs.

I shove her into the wall.

“Get inside,” Diego says, opening a door for us.

Inside is your typical outdated motel room, frequented by truckers and travelers and anyone else who might need a bed for a few hours. There are two full beds, a dingy bathroom, and an AC unit near the window that sounds like it has been working at max capacity for about twenty-five years. Same, AC. Same. There’s a door to an adjoining room.

“Here’s the deal,” the chick says, drawing the curtains firmly across the window. “We lay low here until my team figures out who’s responsible for attacking your office -”

“Until they find Twist,” Sherl corrects.

“You think he’s alive?” Diego asks her.

“I know he is,” she answers.

It’s the same answer she gave me earlier, when we snuck a quick and hushed conversation at the pit stop. She’s sure Twist is alive, was already trying to wrack her brain for ideas on where he might go to hide, on how we might reach him. I’d asked her right away if she thought this attack had anything to do with whatever it was they were keeping from me before. The fleeing fae. She didn’t know. Twist had only told her it wasn’t safe for me to know more.

The tiny woman goes on as if she’d never been interrupted.

“No one leaves,” she growls. “I don’t want to see either of you so much as step one foot into the hallway in search of an ice machine. If you test me, I will tie you up.”

“Hot,” Sherl purrs.

“Anything you need, we will get you,” Diego adds. “You aren’t prisoners, we’re on your side here. It’s our job to keep you safe.”

“Except that you kidnapped us and will tie us up if we try to leave,” I clarify.

“Hey, I trusted you until you made a break for it,” he says, looking meaningfully at Sherl.

“What?” she asks, innocently. “I was looking for a Whataburger. Y’all made me miss lunch.”

I snort.

“You two,” the chick goes on, pointing at Sherl and Diego. “You’ll be in here,” she says, pulling open the door to the adjoining room. “You and I,” she nods at me, “in here.”

“Speaking of which,” Diego adds. “You may want to drop your code names now, since that’s what those attackers back there probably know you by. Just in case anyone were to overhear us, you’ll want to take every precaution.” He pauses, c***s his head. “What does Sherl even stand for, anyway? Shirly?”

“Temple,” she says with a wink.

“Sherlock,” I correct.

“Sebastian,” the woman says, and I shiver.

The room goes quiet.

“No,” I clear my throat. “No one ever called me that but my father. Base is fine.”

“Like he got that super?” Sherl asks.

“I’m Diego, and this is Vile,” big guy says, gesturing at her.

“Vile and Base,” Sherl snickers. “You can call me Tally.”

“Tally?” Deigo asks.

“Ho,” she says with another wink.

“Great,” Diego drawls sarcastically. “You may want to consider changing your appearances up, as well. Dye over that pink,” he nods at Sherl, then turns to me. “You might wanna cut those curls.”

“If you touch his hair, I will f**k your corpse,” Sherl snarls.

“Jesus,” Diego breathes.

“Alright, why don’t you guys decide what you want us to order for you, and give us a second,” Vile says, ushering Sherl and I into the bathroom, of all places.

With a shove, she slams the door, leaving Sherl and I bewildered next to the cracked tub. We do the obvious thing and press our ears to the door and listen. We struggle against each other for space. Sherl elbows me hard in the ribs, and I try not to growl at her. Grabbing the drinking glass from beside the sink, I press it against the door and try that. Weirdly, it seems to work.

“What are they saying??” Sherl demands in a whisper.

“Shut the f**k up.”

“He told her to shut the f**k up or she’s telling him to shut the f**k up??”

“I’m telling you to shut the f**k up!”

Finally, I get a good angle, and can hear them whispering in the room beyond.

“ – awkward as hell for me to try and explain it! Thanks for that, by the way,” Diego is saying.

“Well, I’m so sorry the guy punted my phone into oblivion so I couldn’t call the good doctor myself!” she hisses.

“That was excellent,” Diego admits. “But Navarro won’t say anything to Sam, because of HIPPO or whatever.”

“Oh Jesus,” she groans.

“They’re talking about some doctor,” I tell Sherl.

“I know, dude, I can hear them,” she says. “You look hilarious with that cup, though.”

“Yeah, but did he have anything useful to say?” Vile is asking.

“Yeah,” Diego answers. “He thinks you should f**k him.”

“What?!” Vile demands. “Who?!”

“Base,” Deigo answers.

Sherl chokes.

“He did not say that!” Vile snaps.

“Yeah, he pretty much did,” Diego says. “He thinks that strengthening the bond will help him reconnect with his wolf.”

“What the hell is going on?!” Sherl says, pressing hard against the door with me to listen better.

“I can’t strengthen something he doesn’t even know exists!” Vile snaps.

“I don’t know,” Diego says. “You’re his mate, you’ll figure it out.”

Sherl gasps right as the door gives out under the weight of us. I go sprawling onto the carpet, but I don’t get to my feet. I just stare at them. Deigo catches Sherl around the middle as she launches herself at Vile. Vile is pale, even paler than usual, watching Sherl with her huge eyes. She doesn’t glance my way.

“How dare you?!” Sherl screams. “You’re the same people who threw him out on his ass and now you want him back when it suits you?!”

“This isn’t happening,” I breathe.

“Well, you can’t have him!” Sherl shrieks, as Deigo fights to pull her into their adjoining room. “f**k your pack and f**k your bond!”

“This can’t happen,” I sputter. “I – I – I rebuke you.”

“That’s for exorcisms, man,” Diego tells me. “Not rejections.”

“Reject!” I say, grabbing the word with both hands. “I reject you!”

“That’s not how it works either,” Deigo says.

He finally gets Sherl’s legs through the door, shutting them away from us with a slam. Sherl doesn’t stop, though, and I hear her fists and feet against the frame. After a minute, she goes quiet, and I hope it isn’t because Diego hit her in the back of the head with a lamp or something. I can’t worry about it right now. I’m still on the floor, and she still won’t look at me. She’s sitting on the far bed, head in her hands.

Without a word, I get up. The only place I have left to go is back into the little bathroom. I close the door again, set it on its cracked frame. Laying my palms flat on the counter, I look into the mirror. My t-shirt has drops of blood dried on the collar. I’m pale, so pale my green eyes glow like neon. My red hair hangs over my forehead, a mass of curls going this way and that.

It hurts, I think, out of nowhere, low like a keening cry.

Mate can make it not feel so hard, Avery says in my mind. Mate is strong, Sebastian. Mate can help carry the weight.

Cocking my arm back, I punch the mirror as hard as I can.