The Heart of The Pack

chapter 16

Amara pov

His wolf breaks through the tree line and stops at the sight of us, he shifts and quickly puts on some pants that were in his jaws. His scent wafts to me, he smells like pine needles and sawdust. Selene’s arms loosens on me gaining my attention “go my love, I will see you again soon.” She walks back over the river and the light blinds me for a third time. I’m suddenly aware I am left alone with my supposed true mate, I turn and take in his appearance for the first time. His scruffy hair and slight beared are brown and his eyes are a dark forest green. His height potentially six feet not as tall as Alexander, nor is he as muscley, but he definitely works out. He takes a few steps towards me, but I step back, he senses my uneasiness and stops.

“It is late, walk with me to my pack?” he gestures back the way he came and I nod. We walk beside each other and I can feel his worry as I’m sure he feels my emotions. “my name is mason, I’m the alpha here at forest green pack.”

I keep quiet for a moment, ‘should we tell him everything?” I ask Arabella.

‘It is late and we are tired, perhaps sleep on it. Today has been long and overwhelming. The story of our mates is too long for a late night.’ She answers, Mason stops and looks at me oddly.

“sorry I was talking to my wolf Arabella, my name is Amara. I am the Alpha’s daughter at moonlight pack and I’m sorry about my demeanour, it has been a very, very long and confusing day.” I say gaining a crooked smile from him.

“Amara, hmm that’s a nice name. I like your eyes by the way, I’ve never seen mismatched eyes before.” He smiles again.

“oh thanks, I like your name too.” I say, we walk out of the forest and I’m greeted with a two storey log cabin.

“this is my house, the packhouse is about five hundred meters down the road on the left. Come on let’s get you settled,” he leads me inside and to a spare room. He doesn’t bother to show me around probably due to the late hour. Leaving me alone I curl up in bed and cry, everything here feels so foreign. I bury my head in the shirt I’m wearing, realising it has a lingering smell of Ashley and Alexander. I miss them so much, I hope time flies quickly.

I wake up in the morning feeling alone, I can’t help but crave Alexander and Ashley’s presence. We have been sharing a bed for the last few days and now I just feel lonely. I dread the upcoming conversation with mason, I decided late last night that he deserves to know the decision I’m facing. It does effect his future after all, I might not be here much longer and he should know that. As 10am roles around, there’s a knock on my door and I can feel it’s him. Getting up I open it slightly, he stares at me for a moment.

“You’ve been crying, what’s wrong?” he leans down looking in my eyes. Wow that’s a lot of deep eye contact, I turn my head avoiding his penetrative gaze. I hear him sigh and he holds a bag out to me, “I had some clothes gathered for you, I know you didn’t bring anything. Maybe another day you could go shopping, but for now I hope this will do. Come down for breakfast when you’re ready?” I nod and take the bag, he walks off and I know I’ve upset him. It’s just so hard to explain what’s wrong with me and I know it will hurt him.

I shower and let a few tears slip, promising myself they will be the last ones until I’m alone again tonight. I dress in a summer dress, I found in the bag it’s black and flowy with large white and pink flowers all over it. I walk down stairs, and I’m faced with a delicious smell, following my nose I find myself in a large kitchen, with a centre island covered in food. Mason sits on one side of it eating and reading some papers. I watch an older woman potter around, placing more food on the table.

“good morning Amara,” she says turning to me giggling at my shocked face. “Mason told me your name, and that he found you. I’m his mother you can call me Luna, until you take over the title of course. Come sit,” she gestures to a chair.

“its lovely to meet you Luna, and wow this is a lot of food.” She smiles at me and looks to mason, I get an odd feeling from them.

“it’s ok Amara, I can teach you how to make all this for mason every morning.” She walks out with that comment in the air. Well I suddenly miss taking turns cooking with Ashley and Alexander, we did it for each other because we could not because we had too. Mason doesn’t speak until he is completely done, I feel weird here.

“I’m going to the office, I have lots to do today and I won’t be back till lunch. Mum will be over to cook with you, if you get bored between now and then, find something to clean I guess.” He says standing in the door, wow ok.... this isn’t going well so far.

“perhaps we can talk later?” I ask, he looks at me and nods. He leaves and I guess all I can do is clean up breakfast. I look around and there isn’t even a TV, the inside of this place is wood stacked longs with wood slat floors. Rugs everywhere and a lounge, there’s no heaters of fireplaces and the whole place feels cold. I open the front door hoping to go for a quick walk before lunch and I find masons mother on the porch with bags. “Oh hello there,” looking at me curiously she tilts her head, “I was going to go for a walk, get to know the place.” I say, a little worried about the look she is giving me.

“I thought mason explained, you’re supposed to stay here and clean?” what!!!!!!!

“he said if I got bored to clean, he never said I couldn’t leave. Why wouldn’t I be allowed to leave, that’s preposterous, does he expect me to wait here on him everyday.” She looks sad for a moment and we head inside. She unpacks the bags on the counter, quiet and I can see her mind turning.

“look, I said the same thing when I got here, but that’s how this pack works. The men here are very protective of us and do not want us around other men, especially when we are unmated. Mason will get upset if he knows you tried to leave, so please do not try it again.” I can see she’s trying to warn me, but I’ve had enough I want to go home.

“I’m not going to put up with this, I won’t let him keep me here as a hostage. Good thing I’ll be leaving soon, why did I ever agree with the moon goddess, to give him a chance.” I yell frustrated, although thinking now I shouldn’t have said that in her company, I was to angry.

“what do you mean leaving, your mates you can’t leave him. Look just forget about all of this, I’ll teach you everything you need to know. Just come on let’s forget this nonsense, before we both get in trouble.” I’m starting to think she’s just as trapped here as I am. We make lunch and she shows me a hidden cookbook she wrote for Mason’s future mate a long time ago. It has all his favourite recipes, maybe if I tell Mason about leaving he will change his ways. She teaches me his schedule, when he will be here and what is expected of me each day, this pack is so archaic. I go to bed locking my door and don’t come out till the following morning, because I’m just so angry with how they expect me to act and behave. I didn't eat much yesterday, so as much as I don’t want to give in, to masons demands. I need food, so I head down stairs to make breakfast. Although luckily for me I find, Mason left hours ago, so I enjoy a quiet morning to myself.

Mason walks in later as lunch is ready, only because I got hungry again. I feel the bond working as he eyes me up and down, but I also feel disgust towards him. He sits to eat and I know what he expects, he expects me to sit and eat with him, while listening to him rant about his morning. I don’t want to, so I walk upstairs to my room and sit on the bed, 20 minutes later I hear the door slam. I go down to eat lunch and clean up then wait on the couch knowing I’m about to piss him off. Hours tick by as I wait for him to return, I think of Alexander and Ashley, tears falling again as I miss them.

He walks in and enters the kitchen ignoring my presence, I hear him stop and stomp back to the lounge. I sit up knowing there’s still tears in my eyes, “I know my mother told you what I expect.”

“I don’t care what you expect, it is not my job to baby you. This isn’t how a bond works, and no way will I let you hold me hostage here.”

“And what the hell do you know if the bond the moment you got here you have avoided your duty as my mate.”

“avoided my duty?! I have sat here all day waiting on your royal ass cleaning and cooking but I decided no more. And I know more about a mate bond then you think, when the moon goddess comes back for me. I’m leaving and I’m never coming back!” I go to walk away but he slams me against the wall face first, I feel dizzy and my knees go week. But he doesn’t stop there, he forces his mark on me and I scream, it burns and hurts so much. A mark is supposed to be pleasurable and loving. But this hurt and I can feel Arabella howling in my mind and blackness clouds my vision.