BEAUTY & THE BRUTE

Two

"Are you finally leaving? What took you so long to make up your mind?"

"This is my home. I'm not going anywhere"

"Isn't it obvious that you're unwanted here?" Folding her hands over her stomach, Mikaela sneered "Then again, where could you go? The moment people find out you're a nutcase, they won't want anything to do with you. I bet your mate will take one look at you and decide to reject you"

"Would you like this nutcase to take care of you? I can help you die before I leave"

"Don't try to scare me. I am not afraid of you"

"This is the reason you won't live long. If you tell anyone about my leaving the pack, I will slit your throat while you're sleeping" she'd been trying to sneak out when she bumped into Mikaela. Or perhaps it wasn't a coincidence. For all she knew, this psychopath had been waiting for her there.

"You... Your threats don't work on me"

Beverly smirked. If they didn't work, why was she running away? That coward. All she did was run her mouth, telling people how they should kick her out of Blue Moon. Of course, no one listened but that didn't stop Mikaela from bad-mouthing her. If she was the type to care about what people said, she would have felt hurt at the betrayal. Rumor had it that when they were young, she had saved that ungrateful b***h from bullies. If that was the case, how could she not feel any gratitude towards her? The least she could do was mind her business. It wasn't as if Beverly had asked for any form of p*****t. But maybe she should have...

"Walk away boys. We're close to Blue Moon. You won't be able to... to..." she'd underestimated them. They had a knock out powder mixed a little wolfsbane.

"Yes we will. I'll take the legs"

That was the last thing she heard before losing consciousness. The next time she came to, there was ringing in her ears. As she tried to recollect memories of what had happened, she felt a hand sliding up her thigh.

"I'm glad you're awake. Doing this while you are unconscious isn't fun"

"Get away from me" she whispered, trying to push him away but found that she had no strength "Get your filthy hands off me"

"Oh baby, don't say that. I promise this is going to be hella fun"

"Can you hurry up? I'm waiting too, you know. What if someone comes looking for her?"

There were two of them? Were they ganging up on her? Beverly felt a rush of anger knock into her. They were only doing that because she was a woman. Because they thought she was weak. Would they even approach her if she was a man? Cowards. All they did was prey on the weak. The ringing intensified to the point where her head hurt and when she blinked, a man was standing over her. Without a doubt, she knew it had happened again. She'd lost time.

Why was it happening so often? Three years ago, she'd noticed something was terribly wrong with her. She would pass out and wake up in different places. Sometimes she was covered in blood, other times she was just as she'd been before she passed out. The funny thing was that, every time she came to, there were always clean clothes next to her. As if she knew she would get dirty and carried something to change into. The problem was that this time, she hadn't passed out at home but outside. And a stranger, who just happened to be her mate had found her. What explanation could she give him to shut him up? Her father should never find out about it. The best way to get out of anything? Feign ignorance.

"Who are you? Where am I?"

"What happened yesterday?"

Swinging her legs over the table, she got down and looked around. The house was plain. No way anyone lived in such a stark place. Was this like his hideout or something? Was he a criminal? If there was a bounty on his head, she would be the first to claim it. She'd consider it her p*****t from the goddess for giving her such an inappropriate mate. One look at him and she knew they weren't going to work out "I don't remember coming here. Did you kidnap me?"

"Why would I kidnap you when I don't even know you?"

"Because we're mates. I probably rejected you. Didn't I? Is that the reason you kidnapped me?"

"I found you standing over two dead bodies. You fainted and I brought you here"

"I see" she ran her hands through her hair, straightened her bloody clothes then added "I don't have all day. Keep it short" she'd never deluded herself into thinking she could ever be happy with her mate and she wasn't about to start now. The sooner he did it, the sooner she could leave. Although, it didn't escape her attention that her hands were clean. Despite there being blood on her clothes, she was clean.

"Keep what short?"

"Your rejection speech. Or should I go first?"

"Not before you tell me why you killed those men. Were they bothering you? Stalking you? Which pack are they from?"

"Are you sure there were only two this time?"

He looked taken aback by her question "What do you mean by this time? Does this happen often?"

"It's none of your business. If you're not going to reject me, then I'll leave"

"You're not going anywhere until you answer all my questions"

Beverly scoffed "Are you also trying to take advantage of me because I'm weak?"

"I'll take you home" he'd given up so easily? Oh well, it didn't matter. At least she wouldn't have to listen to his accusations.

"I will appreciate that" only those with a little conscience fell for the lie. All he'd done was ask questions. Because he thought he was a good guy, he didn't want her to think he was bullying her. When she'd referred to herself as weak, she had given him a hint of what had happened by adding the word 'also'. Only an i***t would keep pressing her for answers.

"Which pack?"

"Blue Moon"

A few seconds of silence then he said "You must be the nutcase, Beverly Anson. I've heard of you"

"Tell me where I am and I will find my way back" asshole. She silently added. He didn't have to call her a nutcase. She was starting to hate that word but she had to control herself. Because every time she hated something, anyone associated with it disappeared. Caleb had called her a monster. The next day, she found out he was barely alive. A week later, his entire family left the pack. Her aunt, Patty had suggested they send her away but instead, she was the one who had ended up leaving. Beverly still remembered the terrified look in her eyes when she left. As time went by, she realized the people around her were treating her like the Alpha. Anything she wanted, they gave it to her. No question asked. After years of living that way, she had no intention of ever leaving Blue Moon.

"Go east"

"Thank you" she left. Thinking that he would follow her to make sure she arrived safely and when he didn't, she cursed him all the way back. He was an ugly, uneducated bastard. How could he let his mate leave like that? Wasn't he supposed to fawn over her? Be afraid to let her go? Luckily, she didn't expect anything from him. Or she would be hurt. Like always, she agreed with the human proverb about men being dogs.

Since it was early in the morning, she used the secret passage. Glad that most of the pack members hadn't woken up yet. Not that they scared her. She just didn't like the way they looked at her. If they weren't kissing her ass, they were avoiding her like a plague. Bastards. As she was reaching for the door knob, it opened and she came face to face with her father.

"Did you leave pack grounds?"

"Yes"

"Where did you spend the night?"

"With my mate"

"You found him?"

"Yes"

"Good. Get some rest" He said stepping aside to let her in. There was no 'are you okay?' or 'why do you look like that'. If she didn't know for sure, she'd think he was blind. But the truth was he wasn't. He could see just fine. The mighty Alpha Anson only saw what he wanted to see.

Gail, her personal assistant was waiting for her. Just like her father, she didn't ask unnecessary questions "Would you like me to draw you a bath?"

"Make it bubble"

"I've already chosen your outfit for the day"

"Where is he headed to?"

"A meeting"

"I don't like the shoes and I'd prefer a dress" getting out of the dirty clothes, she stopped by the mirror to see if there were any changes on her body. The tattoo she didn't remember getting was still on her stomach. No new scars. Beverly unconsciously breathed a sigh of relief. She honestly didn't want her body to have any more tattoos or scars. The one on her upper arm was enough. All the doctors she'd visited had told her it looked like the kind of scar swords left behind. In this day and age,who used swords?

"Mikaela was here yesterday"

"Gail"

"Yes?"

"Would anyone miss that b***h if I kill her?"

"I will ask around"

"Forget it" she got in the bathtub, closed her eyes and relaxed. She'd started to drift off when someone whispered in her ear,

"Hello, Tuska"

She opened her eyes to find a man hovering over her. Not a man but just a head. The rest of his body (if he had any) wasn't visible. Slowly, Beverly let her eyelids close. He wasn't real. She was only dreaming. Her name was Beverly. Not Tuska.

She was Beverly Anson. That was the only thing she needed to remember.

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