Moon Bound Episode Three

Erik

I glanced at Jaylyn. He was stirring but not fast enough. The fabric of the air bag was still pushing against my chest and I ripped it to get the damn thing to go down.
When I looked up again, the vampire wasn’t in front of the car, he was pulling on the passenger door to get it open. I unbuckled my belt and pulled a knife from the glove box. Before I could react, the door came off the hinges and the vampire was in my face.
“So, you’re the new Alpha for that pathetic pack,” he growled.
I didn’t answer him, but shoved the knife into his neck. He stepped back, clearly taken off guard, but not enough to retreat. The vampire pulled it out and threw it to the side.
“You think a little knife would stop me?” He chuckled. “You’re not a very good alpha are you?”
“What do you want?” I snapped. Maybe I could get a little information out of him before I killed him. If he was on his own, he would be easier to kill.
“You think I’m going to tell you my master plan?” He raised a blond eyebrow. “You wolves are all the same. Slow and stupid.”
“And vampires are the worst of everything. Even demons at least have some kind of loyalty,” I said and pulled myself out of the car, glancing back to see if Jaylyn was moving yet. I turned back to the vampire and continued my insults. If he was focused one me, then he wouldn’t be looking at my little brother.
“You think we’re weak when alone, but it just makes it easier to rip you apart,” I said with a smile. “No judgmental stares.”
“Even if you kill me, there’s more and they are all coming for you and your precious little town.” He stepped closer. “There’s something there the boss wants and she gets everything she wants.” He lunged at me and I slammed back into the car, my entire body screaming as soon as it hit the cold metal.
I planted my foot against what was left of the car and shoved him, hard. He flew back just as Jaylyn stepped behind him with a silver knife he had stashed somewhere. The vampire dissolved into ash as soon as it pushed through his back and Jaylyn glanced at me.
“That sucked,” he said with a slight laugh.
“Are you good?”
“Yeah, just a little dazed,” he said and I gave him a nod.
“We need to get home. This one was just a distraction. We’ll have to shift or we won’t make it,” I said, pulling off my shirt.
He nodded and I let go. The change wasn’t some easy task. It was every bone breaking and reforming. Every inch of skin on fire and cooling to ice. Becoming the wolf was reserved for war and when we had no other choice and to save the rest of my pack, I deemed it as close enough to war.
My newly formed wolf paws hit the gravel of the side of the road and the little rocks dug in, but I shook it off. I glanced at Jaylyn who was in his own grey wolf form, slightly smaller than mine, but large enough to make any common person a little nervous.
And then I ran.

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Ivy

I hurried to the window and peered into the night. I couldn’t see anything, but the feeling was overwhelming. It was like all the energy was sucked out of the room, and I was left with nothing but ice.
“We have to worn my mom,” I said, heading for the door to my room.
Sam grabbed me and shook her head. “They probably already know.”
“They don’t,” I countered. “It’s not here yet, but it will be.”
“Ivy,” she started, and I pulled my arm away.
“I have to tell my mother, even if it means the Larics figure it out. As much as I hate saying it, we need them.” The words made my chest tight. All my body wanted to do was fight the idea. They were bullies and forced packs into doing what they wanted, but maybe we needed that right now. Maybe we needed it to survive.
“Okay, let’s go then,” she said, grabbing her bag, but shoving the books under the bed. My mother didn’t need to know I was messing around with magick. At least not yet.
I flew down the stairs and hurried out of the house. The meeting was in the main hall not far from home, but a lot could happen in those few minutes.
Sam was right behind me as I hurried, checking back every so often to make sure she was still there and safe. It wasn’t like she couldn’t shift to get out of there if she had to, but we had rules for that sort of thing, and she’d face some serious consequences if she did, even to survive.
“Ivy, I don’t think this is a good idea,” she said, almost running to catch up to me.
“We’re almost there, Sam, just keep up,” I countered. I pushed through the pain in my leg from yesterday when I’d hit the ground in the vampire attack. That feeling was getting stronger. Whatever was coming would be here any minute.
I hurried up the street and into the same building I’d first seen Erik, but the doors to the inner meeting area were locked. I peeked into the little window built into the door to see my mom and the alpha of the Larics having a heated discussion. As much as I hated it, I knew it was about me. She was still fighting for me even now.
I took a breath and knocked on the door. The sound of their muffled voices stopped, and footsteps closed in. My mother pulled the door open and shook her head at me.
“What are you doing?” She said, stepping out and closing the door behind her.
“Something’s coming,” I blurted out before I could stop myself.
“What are you talking about?” She shook her head in confusion.
“Mom. I don’t know how to explain it, but something bad is coming, and it will be here any minute.”
She glanced back into the room and then at me. “Vampires?”
“I’m not sure. This is the first time it’s ever happened to me,” I said. “I… just know something is going to happen.”
“This is a witch thing, isn’t it?” She kept her eyes on me.
“I don’t know, Mom, but I’m worried about everyone in this town. We have to let them know something is coming,” I insisted, and she nodded.
“I’ll send the alarm,” she said. “Go home.”
Before I could answer, I heard screaming from outside. My whole body froze, and my mother met my eyes before rushing outside.
I was too late and what happened next was worse than I ever thought possible.

Erik

I always ran faster as a wolf, but the primal part of me was in much more control in this form. My head swung back to see if Jaylyn was keeping up. His lighter wolf as in step behind me, even as I picked up my pace. We were so close to the others now I could finally feel them. I wasn’t expecting to feel the fear so strong right at first, but there it was.
We were too late.
I pushed harder and finally broke through the brush and trees to the edge of town. It was way too quiet, but the others seemed to be huddled in their homes for the most part. The exception being my father and a couple of others in the main hall.
My feet pounded against the asphalt until I was standing behind a line of about ten vampires holding one of our own.
Sam was trying her best not to show fear, but the bond between wolves was strong even for someone I barely knew. She was scared and never took her eyes off Ivy.
Fuck. Ivy. She was standing not five feet from the damn things with her mother and my own father right behind her. My options were limited in wolf form, but I would attack the vampires and get their eyes off Ivy and the others.
I glanced at Jaylyn, who seemed to understand what I was thinking based solely on my emotions. No doubt screaming at him through the wolf bond as well.
He growled and leaped for one of the vamps on the end. I followed suit, but took one closer to the big one holding Sam by the throat. The other vampires spun to see what was going on, and Ivy took the opportunity to stab the one holding Sam with a knife she was carrying. I smiled to myself. She wasn’t the sweet, innocent wolf she claimed to be.
The vampire let Sam free and stepped back, but once he righted himself, he charged forward. This time going for Ivy.
“That was a mistake, bitch,” he roared.
She sidestepped him and pushed him hard onto the steps of the hall. Her mother and the alpha charged the other two vampires that were still standing and gave them a good fight.
I ripped the throat out of the one I tackled and headed for the big one, while he was still trying to stand. He managed to get up before I got there and swung at me, hitting me in the neck and top half of my body and sending me flying. I hit the ground just as he fixed his eyes on Ivy. I felt the crack in my leg, but ignored it.
Ivy stumbled back, but I noticed something when she hit the ground: a silver magick around her wrist. Something wolves didn’t have. She wasn’t a wolf, not fully. She was something else.
I charged at the vampire just before it was going to grab her and bit down hard on its neck. The vamp wailed, and its blood poured from its body until it was dust under my paw pads. I glanced back at Ivy and cocked my head, still trying to figure out what I had seen.
She watched me for a moment, like she were trying to figure me out too. She wasn’t just some wolf who was trying to get the right position; she was something entirely different. Something bold and interesting, and maybe even a little dangerous.
I walked towards her and sniffed her, searching for that little bit of magick I’d just seen, but it was gone.
I stepped back and walked past her into the meeting hall, giving my dad a look and hoping he wasn’t going to be too pissed. I did what I had to in order to get here before anything happened to them.
My body ached and cracked as bones shifted and broke to form a human version of myself. I groaned at the pain and stayed on the meeting hall floor for a little longer than I should have, but everything hurt. All the way down to my bones.
“Erik,” my father said, tossing some clothes on the floor in front of me. “Get dressed, and then you can tell me what the hell you were thinking.”

Ivy

“They’re just going to keep coming,” Erik said, glancing from his dad to my mother. “We went to the Crimson Moon pack. They’ve been dealing with them for years.”
He was still trying to look as recovered as possible from his shift, but I knew better. Anytime you went full wolf, it took days to get back to normal.
“Why us?” I stepped closer to my mother, but Erik’s eyes stayed on me.
“They’re looking for something,” he said and shook his head. “I don’t know what.”
“Why here?” I asked, and my mother shook her head. “What am I missing?”
“The only way we’ll know is to catch one and find out,” Erik said.
“Set a trap,” the alpha said with a nod.
“With who?” I said.
“The soon to be alpha,” Erik answered.
I met his eyes and shook my head. No matter what kind of crap we had between us, there was no way I would let him just offer himself up. “No, there has to be another way.”
He smirked, and a small chuckle left his lips. “You do care.”
I blinked at him. “Of course I care,” I snapped.
“Maybe we should let them have a moment,” my mother said, turning to step out. Erik’s father and brother followed, and I sighed.
“Just because I don’t want to be tied to a pack, or an alpha doesn’t mean I want you to do something stupid like use yourself as bait,” I said.
He stepped closer and cocked his head. Eriks eyes drifted over me, and he raised a hand to my hair, stopping short. “I know you think I’m just some horrible Laric who you’ve heard just takes what he wants and kills everything in his path.”
I crossed my arms and stared at him.
“But I’m more than that, and I want more than that for my pack.” He took a step back and sighed. “For you.”
I felt that same pull deep in my stomach, the one that originally made me want to heave, but this time it was a pull and something stronger. “Why?”
He closed the gap between us and pulled me into his arms. “Because you’re the mate, I thought I’d never find. You’re the one who holds my soul between your fingers. If you choose to close your hand and end me, I’d let you and rejoice in my own end.” He leaned in. “No matter how much I want to fight it, I’m in love with you. My wolf calls your name and sees exactly who you are.”
“You barely know me,” I whispered.
He leaned, letting his lips brush mine. “Then let me know you. All of you.”
“You know I can’t,” I said; even the sound of my voice saying know was saying yes. Everything I’d heard about his pack or even thought was being challenged in that one moment. He’d saved me twice, and he wanted to give me everything, but I still couldn’t let him in. Not knowing what I was and how they’d react. He’d change his mind. He’d cast me out. Just like everyone else.
“You can. Ivy. I can protect you,” he said, and I wanted to let him. That feeling in my gut, that warmth expanded through me, fighting for me to let him in, to let him have me.
“I can’t.” I broke free of his hold and stepped back. “I just can’t.”
He kept his dark blue eyes fixed on me but nodded. “If that’s what you want, but my father still thinks we’re going to go through with the mating.”
“I know,” I answered.
“You’ll have to stay with me,” he said. “Even if you don’t want to be with me. To keep us both safe.”
“What about the bait thing?”
“I’m still doing that. We have to find out what they’re up to,” he said. “We don’t have a choice.” He smirked and shrugged. “Don’t worry about me, Ivy. I’m stronger than you think.”

Erik

Letting Jaylyn take Ivy back to our home was probably the smartest thing I’d done all day. Even if she didn’t want me right now, she still needed protecting. For whatever reason, she’d been right there where the vampires attacked twice. Either she had the worst luck or there was something else going on.
“So, you convinced her to let you do this,” my father said, walking up beside me.
“It isn’t about her or me. It’s about the packs.”
“If you do this and can show them, we can protect them from the vampires, we can have any pack we want,” he said with a smile. “Don’t fuck it up.”
“Why are you this way?” I knew it was bold considering he could strip me of everything, but did it matter if power was the only reason for doing things?
“I protect my own no matter what. That means being the monster no one else wants to be,” he said simply. “You’ll understand when you become the alpha.”
“I won’t be like you.” I looked out into the darkness of the town, but felt his eyes shift to me.
“You will,” he said simply and turned away from me, walking back into the hall.

***

The minute I opened the door to my room and saw her lying on my bed, I sighed. At least she was safe, but Jaylyn could have put her in the guest room for the night. I turned and walked back into the living area. Jaylyn was sitting on the long couch with a book in his hand.
“Don’t you ever sleep?” I asked, and he snickered.
“Not lately,” he answered, lowering the book. “I didn’t know whether you wanted Ivy in your room or not.” He smirked.
I narrowed my eyes. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’re up to something.”
“Never,” he said. “I just thought since you were going to be mated and all, you might as well share a room.”
“Hurrying it along, are you?”
He shrugged. “The sooner you’re settled here, the sooner I can go back to my world.”
“You realize father is going to have you mated right after me, right?” I cocked my head.
“Maybe,” he said, pulling the book back up so he could read it again and ignore me, no doubt. “That run was the best thing I’ve felt in a while.” He didn’t look at me. “It was like I could feel everything.”
“That’s part of the reason the rules are the way they are,” I said. The truth was, if we stayed in wolf form too long, we’d want to stay that way and may never come back to our human forms, and the wolf population was already so slim, it wouldn’t be good for our kind. Plus, the more we shifted, the closer we came to our own wolves. It was a delicate process we’d learned over the centuries.
“I know, pack rules, blah blah,” he said and sighed. “But just once I’d like to do my own thing.”
“You sound like Ivy,” I said with a smile and took a seat on the couch next to him.
“Is that why you won’t mate her?”
I didn’t answer right away. “It’s complicated.”
“Then why bring her here?”
“Protection,” I said, and it was true, but the other thing was I couldn’t let her go. Even if I was telling her I would and doing all the right things. I hoped she’d follow the feeling I knew was taking over her. The bond struggling to be free between us. I couldn’t lie; I was fighting it myself. Everything in me wanted to pin her down and take her.
“I doubt that’s all,” Jaylyn said, watching me.
“It is until she decides it isn’t,” I answered, and God did I hope she decided soon.

Ivy

I sat up and glanced around. Sleeping in a different place was more than weird. It felt wrong in so many ways, and the fact my mother didn’t even raise an eyebrow. Did she actually think I would go through with this mate thing?
I rubbed my arm and took in the plan room. It was like he didn’t even bother to make it his own. The walls were bare with only one plain old painting on the far wall and a mirror on the wall closest to the bed. There was an old wooden dresser at the foot of the bed against the wall and a window off to the right of it. The simple sheer curtain blew every time the wind decided to pick up. The cool fall air was nice against my skin, but I wasn’t going to sit here all day.
As if on cue, the door opened and Erik stood in the doorway. I raised an eyebrow. “No knocking?”
“You were dressed from last night,” he said with a shrug. “We do need to go to your house and grab some clothes, though.”
“Let me guess, you plan to go with me,” I said with a sigh. “Not like I’m not a grown adult or anything.”
“You are, but you’ve been attacked twice by vampires. You might just be a walking target,” he said with a smirk, and I rolled my eyes.
“It’s daytime. I doubt there’s going to be a vampire unless he’s sun-proof,” I smarted off.
“Maybe there is one. You don’t know,” he said. “Humor me.”
“Fine,” I said, standing. He looked a little too pleased with himself when I followed him out of the house. “I still don’t know why I can’t just stay at my own place.”
“I just want to keep a better eye on you,” he said.
“I don’t need you to,” I lied. The truth was every second I was near him, I was struggling to keep myself together. Even if I didn’t want to admit it, he was connected to me, and the thought of never having that feeling again was starting to wear on me a little.
“I need to,” he said. “There’s more to you than what you say.”
My head snapped toward him. “What?” I shook my head. “I’m nobody, just like I said when you first asked for my name.”
He stopped and spun on me. “Then why did I see magick when I was in my wolf form?”
I stared at him, speechless. No one had ever mentioned seeing magick when they were in wolf form. Even the ones I trusted.
“What are you talking about?” I dropped my eyes and turned away from him.
He grabbed my arm and pulled me back to face him. “The magick was wrapping around your hand, like you could control it.” He cocked his head. “What are you?”
“I’m a wolf,” I said simply. “Like you. Nothing more.”
“I don’t believe that,” he said. “Where’s your father?”
“I never knew him,” I answered truthfully. “It’s silly to think I have magick.”
“But I saw it,” he said. “I know what I saw.”
“It was something else.” I pushed and walked away towards my house.
He caught up in just a few seconds. “If you have magick, you might be what they want.”
“Is that why you want to keep me close, to see?”
He shrugged. “Maybe. Since you won’t tell me the truth.” He sighed. “I have heard from some of the others that you were not born from a mating.”
“I wasn’t,” I said. “But I don’t have any magick. If I did, I would have used it to save my friend instead of that stupid knife.”
“I guess we’ll see.”
I sighed at his words. This man was going to be the death of me.