18

Ruby

I had pretended to be sleeping when Axel called me. He could probably tell I wasn't sleeping, and so he only called me twice before giving up and leaving the room. I plopped over onto my back the moment the door closed and sighed with relief. I was finally alone.

Immediately after eating dinner (proper food might I add, and not just scraps like Axel had been feeding me), I had climbed into bed. Axel had given me the bed to myself while he slept on the couch in the room. Maybe there s a working heart inside his chest after all.

I had expected him to tell me to sleep on the floor.

No matter how comfortable the bed was, the hours ticked by, and I still couldn't drift off to sleep. I was too anxious and too scared of what was going to happen when the sun rose again.

Olcan, that's the name of the bald man I had met when I had arrived. He definitely gave me the creeps, and not just because of his strange eyes. It was the way he looked at me. I felt like he had been trying to see inside me, and I didn't like it. The Enchanted with him, however, she might actually be able to see inside my mind, the way Natalie had tried. Would she be able to break through whatever wall was there? Natalie hadn't been able to, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't curious to know what was there. What had I placed under such a secure lock and key that not even I could remember?

Xavier's face flashed in my mind, and I called out to the image as it slipped away. His face reappeared, and I sank further into the bed. A heavy sadness rested in my heart. It had felt like the air had been sucked out of my chest when I had seen him. He had looked tired and weary until Axel had held onto me and pulled me back. Then he had changed into an animal, ready to rip anyone who stood between us to shreds.

He would do that for me, and a smile curved the corner of my lips. I wished I could get out of bed and go find him right now, but with Olcan and his Enchanted around, I didn't want to do anything to give them more reason to dislike me.

I got out of bed to get a glass of water from the bathroom, my feet pattering on the cold tile. I stared at myself in the mirror, dark circles under my eyes, and my sadness grew worse. Why had Xavier looked away like that earlier? He looked as if he had just given up and left me to Axel. I felt like a piece of meat being thrown around for everyone to take a bite.

In a few hours, Olcan would be taking his bite. I splashed water onto my face to try and wash away the horrible images being created in my mind. No, Xavier won't let that man kill me. I have to believe that.

I made my way back into the room to lay across the bed towards the open window. Resting my chin in the palm of my hand, I tried to remember the voice of the man that had visited me before Axel. If he wasn't one of Axel's men, who was he?

His dislike for me had been clear, but I suppose I can only add him to the growing list of people that want me gone. According to him, wolves never thought they could be mated to humans. Now I felt like agreeing. Look at the stress that has been dished out to me for something that neither I nor the wolves have any control over. Yet still, I'm being treated as if this is all on me. You'd think I had stolen something from them, spilled their secrets, or had committed murder.

I was sick of the back and forth. One minute I felt like this life might not be so bad, and then right as I became comfortable enough to give this all a chance, the rug was pulled right out from under me yet again.

I pressed my face into the sheet and screamed as loud as I could. I didn't care if anyone could hear. I liked Xavier so much, but being with him, or the thought of being with him, was only causing heartache. I knew without a doubt if anything was to happen to him, Natalie, Mathieu, or the pack in general because of me, I'd never recover. If I had to choose between Xavier's pack and Axel's, Xavier deserved to be left alone, and he should be applauded for saving a life, especially since that life belonged to his mate. That's not how this world works, however.

No good deed goes unpunished. That saying isn't just for humans. It works that way for werewolves as well.

I sighed and turned onto my side; my knees pulled up to my chest.

Whatever happens, happens. I just hope no one dies, including myself.

Two knocks came at the door, and my heart skipped two beats simultaneously with the knocks. I fisted my blouse at my chest as a sick feeling began to spread through my body. I climbed off the bed and made my way to the door, praying that beyond it stood Xavier. I flipped the switch to turn the lights on before ruffling my hair and pinching my cheeks for some color I knew I was lacking. However, when I swung the door open, my shoulders immediately dropped with disappointment.

"Well, you don't have to look that disappointed," Natalie said as she entered the room, her white hair blowing behind her like a curtain.

I closed the door and returned to bed. "I'm not."

"Oh, you and I both know who you wanted it to be standing outside the door. Don't front, Ruby." She sat on the edge of the bed. "I didn't think you'd be awake."

"I can't sleep. Not when I know tomorrow Olcan might order someone to kill me."

"That won't happen."

I plopped down onto the bed and covered my face with my hands. "Still, I don't think anything good is going to come from that trial tomorrow. Well, today, when the sun is up. What time is it anyway?"

Natalie didn't respond and I peeked at her through my fingers. "It's two in the morning," she finally replied. She then got up off the bed, and I propped myself up on my elbows. "What did Axel do to you?"

I made a face. "I was in a dungeon for days before he dragged me to the basement of his house, where he finally had the decency to feed me scraps of food and give me some water. Something weird happened while I was in the dungeon, though. I was alone most of the time, except for a man that visited at one point. I couldn't see his face and didn't recognize his voice, but he knew about me and my mate-bond to Axel and Xavier. When I questioned Axel about it, he said no one else was allowed to see me at that time. I'm not sure what to make of that. "

Her eyes narrowed, and she looked away. "No one else knows about this. Well, no one else should, unless someone's lips got a little loose."

"Do you think it's the Council?"

She shook her head and walked away, her fingers combing her hair backward. "No. Since Olcan came himself, this is serious to him. He

doesn't want this getting out just yet."

"Yeah, so no one will know when I'm killed. A girl that no one knows can't be missed." Nathalie walked back over to the bed and sat down. She sighed heavily as she stared at me, and I frowned. Why did she suddenly look so gloomy? "What's wrong?"

"Axel and Xavier got into it just now. They had to be parted by

Olcan.

That can't be good.

"Why were they fighting?"

She pinned me with a stare. "Do you really have to ask that?"

I smiled a little because I knew I didn't. I, however, found it hard to

believe that Axel was fighting over me. Surely he was pissed about something else.

"Xavier might get angry over me, but Axel is upset about other things. I don't see how he and I are mated. I know I feel the bond differently from you guys, but it's like he feels nothing."

"Or he tries not to," she added, and I shook my head.

"Well, he has a future in acting. I can't imagine Xavier ever leaving me in a dungeon. With the way you have all said this mate thing works, I was surprised Axel could do something like that to me. Shouldn't I be feeling more?"

The side of her mouth arched upwards as she hunched her shoulders, "No one knows what you should or shouldn't be feeling. What do you feel when you're around them?"

I bit down on my lip, and a shy smile made its way onto my lips as I thought of Xavier. "I don't feel this instant overload of love, or whatever, but I feel warm and comfortable around Xavier. I know he'll do anything to protect me, he'll do anything to keep me safe." My smile fell away, and I covered my face. "Despite what Axel has done, and I do want to cut his dick off, I…I feel…protected around him. That's so fucked up considering what he's done, so maybe that's not the right word, but there is this thing about him...he's like a mean bodyguard, you know. We might argue and get on each other's nerves, but if it ever comes down to it, I know he'd protect me. That's what I feel. But then he yanks me around by my hair or leaves me without water for days, and I think he's just soulless. There's no way he can be feeling the bond."

"They both feel it, trust me. Think of it as Xavier just being more open-minded than Axel. Axel is older than Xavier, and he might have had terrible experiences with humans in the past. He's grown up in a pack that is still trying to stick to how things were immediately after the war between wolves and humans. Look at it this way - he's the alpha to be., It's a big role to fill to start with, then add in having a human Luna in a pack that hates humans, and you have a big problem. He must be stressed. If he doesn't reject you, his pack will force him to. He'll have to choose between you, or what he was born to be. That's a terrible choice for anyone to have to make."

When she explained it that way, I could understand the rock and a hard place he must be stuck between. His life had probably been going as planned for him to be the next alpha. All of a sudden, here I come, a human girl that he feels compelled to be with on a deep level, yet he can't because he has to stick to some twisted hatred passed down generation after generation.

"Yeah," I drawled. "I guess his mind must be a little effed-up right now, but that won't save him from my wrath. That bastard left me in a dungeon!"

Natalie raised her fist, and I bumped mine against it. "That's my girl. But I need you to come with me." I gave her a look, and my chest tightened as she stared back at me with regret. "He wants to do the trial tonight."

"Olcan? Why?"

I felt like the world around me froze. A chill danced down my spine as my eyes widened, and I began shaking my head. No, no, I'm not ready. I thought I had one night to prepare myself and now this?

"What's going to happen?" I asked. "What's the trial going to be

like?"

"I wish I had time to explain, but they're waiting on us." She got up

and held her hand out to me. I could only stare at it, and I knew she could hear my racing heart. "I need you to trust me. I'll be right there, Ruby, right beside you. I promise."

I had trusted Natalie from the moment I had met her. That moment seemed so very long ago. While I was still curious to know what inspired her hair transformation, I knew hair wasn't the only thing that had changed about Nathalie in the time since I was abducted.,. From the time we first

met, I had been drawn to Nathalie's spunkiness, her bubbly and chatty nature. I could consistently count on her to flash one of her charming Nathalie grins that practically touched her ears and made her eyes twinkle, and before I knew it, I'd be beaming right along with her. But now her smiles didn't even reach her eyes.

I took her hand, and she pulled me up. "Natalie, what happened?" She blinked once, seemingly caught off guard by my question.

"Nothing that didn't need to happen. I'm okay."

"Are you sure? I mean, your hair is the same as the Enchanted that came with Olcan, Reika, or whatever her name is. Coincidence?"

"Enchanteds of a certain power level have white hair."

I looked from left to right. So within the short time I had been gone, she became so much more powerful. How? No wonder she had been able to find me. Now wasn't the time for me to press her for answers though. Olcan was waiting, and I'd rather not piss him off before this trial even gets started. Knowing me, there would be more than enough time for that to happen later, whether I wanted to or not.

"Okay, we should go, but this conversation isn't over. I want to know what happened because I know something did."

We exited the room. I followed behind her slowly, my legs taking short steps. "I got a little help with seeing the world a bit clearer." She said almost inaudibly. "That's all. I know I'm not myself, but sometimes seeing more than you wanted or needed to see changes a person."

She stopped walking abruptly, and before I could react, she pulled me in for a hug. At first, I just stood there, shocked and mildly confused, before I wrapped my arms around her. I sank into the hug as she did, and we both sighed at the same time. While Natalie is only twenty years old to my nineteen, she has become someone that I look up to. She is an old soul, and I'm sure that was why so many people gravitated to her.

"No matter what happens tonight," she whispered. "I'm happy I met you." She pulled away but kept her hands firmly on my shoulders. "Us odd girls have to stick together."

I cupped her cheeks. "I'm ready."

◆◆◆

Axel

I stood by the window with my hands buried in my pockets and my eyes glued to the starry sky. Natalie had told Mathieu she'd wake Ruby, but that was almost half an hour ago. The longer they took to come downstairs, the more irritated I grew at being forced to be in the same room as these people.

Xavier had no right to talk about my father. I'm here. I'm handling things, and that's just the way things are. How dare he act like I don't know what I'm doing? My eyes wandered from the sky to the towering trees and I clenched my jaw. This land, this entire fucking land, belongs to my people, too. We barely have enough space in the area where we've been forced to settle for years, whereas both packs could easily spread out on this land and never even come across each other in passing.

I glanced over at Xavier whispering to his father, low enough that not even I could hear. They looked at me at the same time before Xavier stood up straight and crossed his arms over his chest. I looked away, not bothered in the least by his attitude. Olcan and Reika were busy talking about a fundraiser, the two of them not bothered by Natalie and Ruby taking so long. I would have thought Olcan would have torn the house apart by now.

Was this the Council that everyone fears?

I wanted this over with. Everything had been going smoothly for me until I came to this damn house and picked up on Ruby's scent. I looked out the window before closing my eyes, my senses taking me back to that day. I had never before smelled something, someone, so mouth-watering. I had tried to picture her just by her scent, but nothing in my wildest dreams could have prepared me for those devastating green eyes, vividly red hair, and that heartbreakingly human heart.

Then I had smelt Xavier on her, and I completely lost it.

I couldn't believe my mate was human. But even more than that, I couldn't believe my mate, my other half, was also mated to another wolf. It didn't make sense to me then, and it doesn't make sense now. I never thought I'd even find my mate so soon. That has never been something I was eager about.

After meeting Ruby, however, I've felt more torn than I ever have before. I can feel her, smell her, and I constantly sense the pull of our bond.

But I can't bring myself to trust her. I feel like this isn't real. A human mated to a wolf brings about so much tension, so many questions. How will a human survive a wolf pregnancy? When I do finally mate, I plan on staying that way for life. I won't become attached to someone that will just leave eventually. At this point, she's more Xavier's mate than mine anyway. She has made her choice.

That scent, that hypnotizing scent, drifted into the room, and I looked to the door as Ruby appeared with Natalie. She looked my way as she walked in. I could see the fear in her eyes, but otherwise, she appeared calm. That's something I could easily admit to admiring about her. Even in the face of danger, she puts on a brave face and tries to stand her ground.

"You ladies certainly took your time," Olcan said he took a seat and nodded to Reika. "I'm sure everyone wants this over this. So, how about we begin?"

Ruby said nothing as she held Olcan's gaze before looking at Reika, who stepped towards her. Her eyes darted to Xavier, and my hand twitched as their eyes locked. They stared at each other, an unspoken message passing between them before she looked at Reika once more.

I wasn't jealous.

Okay, I was. But at the same time, I don't want to be with her. We have zero possibility of a real future together. She is just a means to an end to get what I want. Mate or not, she's human. We'll never work out, and mate or not, Xavier broke the law to spare her.

"This will be simple and painless," Reika said as she held her hand out to Ruby. However, Ruby only looked at her hand before looking at me. I stared back at her, not sure why she was staring at me so intently. I nodded to her nonetheless. Reika shook her hand that was still outstretched, pulling Ruby's eyes away from me. "Take my hand. I'll create a mind link to see within you. That is all."

"That was already done," Xavier said. "Natalie did that, and it didn't work. There is some kind of block in her mind."

"We're here to find out who she is, Xavier, to start," Olcan replied. "That is what we will be doing."

Xavier shook his head, "Trying again might hurt her. You can't force through a block like that. It takes time, breaking it piece by piece. It should not be done by brute force."

I wasn't going to say it aloud, but I agreed with Xavier. Yes, I wanted to have this all figured out, but I didn't want Ruby to suffer unnecessarily. Wolves fear the Council so much, but they should remember that the Council is just wolves like us. They only want the best for all werewolves. The Council members over the years have remembered and held onto many of our old ways in order to secure our safety and protect our secrets. We must do so at all costs, even if it means that some lives are lost in the process.

Nevertheless, my deal with Olcan hadn't included hurting Ruby. I would reject her. Xavier would be given the choice to, though I knew rejecting her was something he'd never do. He didn't have the balls to make the tough calls for the pack. He, his father, and the entire Blackmoon pack would then be dealt with accordingly. That is what would happen here.

Though I had to admit, I was curious. How could a human girl, who was already responsible for bringing so much chaos, also be capable of sealing off her past so tightly that an Enchanted couldn't get through? What exactly had happened to her? What did she want so badly to forget?

"If something in her past was hidden behind such a strong block, then it must be important. Maybe it'll explain who she is, where she really came from. Maybe it'll explain why she can be mated to two wolves."

"I'm a normal girl, Axel. You keep talking about me as if I fell from the sky or something," she replied, and I shrugged. 

"We'll find out soon enough, won't we?" I replied.

"Of course, you wouldn't care if she gets hurt or not," Xavier shot my way, and my brow knitted.

"I care about getting this thing over with. I don't care if…"

"Enough!" Ruby yelled, and all eyes turned to her. "Can both of you stop it?" She looked from me to Xavier. "I can handle it okay. I want to know what's locked away in my mind, hidden from even me. I can do this."

Olcan leaned forward. "Okay, that's enough. Xavier, your opinion is welcomed, but this will be done whether or not you or Ruby want it. I want to know who this girl is. I want to know if she can be trusted with our secrets. Mathieu, you've allowed a human to walk free amongst our people without knowing her true self. You should have broken through whatever wall was there before you made a decision like that. Whatever is concealed in her mind might hurt more than just your own pack. She could very well be dangerous to all wolves."

Mathieu remained reclined in his seat, his left leg crossed over the right. "She was spared because she is the mate to a wolf, human though she may be. Yes, our law is to protect our secrets at all costs. However, I didn't think it was my place to break another even more important law in order to uphold that law. Harming another wolf's mate is punishable by death."

Xavier looked my way. I knew he was thinking - I could see it in his eyes. If only I weren't Ruby's other mate, he'd have been well within his rights to kill me with his own hands for abducting her. If she wasn't my mate, I would have no reason to be here other than to watch the fall of the Blackmoon pack.

Olcan sat back, a cunning smirk on his lips. "Right you are, Mathieu. But," he lifted a finger, "that law is for female wolves, not humans."

No one spoke for a while as Olcan and Mathieu continued to stare at each other. Olcan was right about that, and Mathieu knew it. Olcan then looked at Reika and nodded, and she took both of Ruby's hands into hers.

"I'll help," Natalie suddenly announced as she walked up to Ruby to stand behind her. "Maybe with the two of us it won't be as much pressure on you or Ruby. We'll take this slow."

Reika stared at her for a moment before looking at Ruby, who nodded her consent. She was beginning to look more terrified, her bravado slipping, and I couldn't blame her. I'd hate to have anyone roaming around inside my head. Reika released Ruby's hands to press her fingers to Ruby's temples, while Natalie placed both hands on the sides of Ruby's head.

Natalie closed her eyes as Reika did, but Ruby's eyes remained open. I watched as she swallowed hard. I looked away, annoyed that I was starting to worry about her. This is what I hate, this connection to her that won't allow me to maintain my indifference like I want to.

Both Enchanteds began to speak under their breath, their chant growing steadily louder. Ruby's eyes fluttered close as her body grew stiff, and even Mathieu sat forward. I could not understand their words as their voices grew louder and louder, but I could feel the sudden burst of power within the room.

I stepped forward quickly but stopped myself just as Natalie and Reika stopped chanting. Then the heads of all three women fell back at the same time.

◆◆◆

Ruby

I was on the verge of shitting myself as Reika and Natalie both held me. I had been doing my best to hide my fear, but I couldn't cover it fully any longer. These women were about to take a deep dive inside my head, and no one knew what was going to happen when they did.

I swallowed as I heard them begin to whisper words I didn't understand, and a chill went down my spine. It didn't take long for whatever they were doing to kick in because soon, my body started to feel weak and my eyes fluttered closed.

The moment my eyes closed, there was a burst of blinding light. I opened my eyes slowly as it began to die away, and I found myself standing in a white room. It was more like a box with no doors or windows, just white walls.

I looked down at my hands before touching my face and exhaling.

I'll never get used to how real this all feels.

"Natalie?" I turned in a circle. "Reika?"

My echo was the only response. Within the next second, there was a loud boom, like a bomb going off, and I crunched down. The white world around me began to change. People started appearing around me, along with cars and buildings. Everything was hazy and hard to see, preventing me from making out faces or anything distinctive. All I could tell for certain was that the people running were all humans.

I was facing one way, and they were all running towards my direction, their cries and screams mingled together. They were running from something, but I couldn't tell from what. I started walking, moving out of the way to dodge them, although I knew they would just run through me in this fake reality.

What is this?

If this was a memory, when had this all happened? I stopped as a woman tripped and flipped onto her back. I couldn't tell what she was looking at, but she was crawling backward on her hands. A black shadow appeared before her, and my brows knitted. It was a shadow of another person, and as they jumped on top of her, I screamed.

As I reached out and screamed, a large crack appeared just between her and the shadow.

"Ruby!"

I spun around as Natalie called my name, and another crack appeared, followed by yet another. I looked back at the woman on the ground and the frozen shadow above her. I took a step forward, and as I did so, a sharp pain surged through my head. I hunched forward, my hand on my head, before glancing up at the shadow once more.

It was shaped like a human, but why was it black? I could tell the color of the clothes of all the humans and their complexion despite everything being hazy, so why was this human just a black shadow.

My eyes widened.

A supernatural?

"Ruby!"

This time it was Reika's voice, and then another sharp pain, worse than the first, had me falling to my knees. The hazy world around me began to speed up, the humans began to run faster, and more black shadows appeared. The screams got louder as the humans were attacked, and I grabbed my head and hunched forward until my forehead was touching the cold ground.

What is this?

"Ruby!"

That voice I didn't know. It was contorted, neither male nor female, but a mixture of many voices. It was the last thing I heard before I blacked out.

◆◆◆

Axel

They had been standing there for ten minutes before I noticed they were moving. First, it was Reika, when a small crease appeared between her brows. Then it was Natalie, with the way her hand had begun to twitch.

"Something's wrong," I said as I narrowed my eyes.

"They're fine," Olcan replied as he got up from his seat. However, he didn't approach them, and as I did, he held his hand up to stop me.

"Small movements are nothing to worry about. We don't know what they are seeing."

Natalie and Reika's heads suddenly flung forward and then backward, their eyes wide open and as white as clouds.

"Is that normal?" Xavier yelled as he stepped forward, and Mathieu stood up as well.

"No," he said to Xavier as he placed his hand on his shoulder, "something's wrong."

Both women began shaking, and my heart skipped a beat as Ruby began to shake as well. "No fucking shit something's wrong! How do we stop it?" I ran forward, not waiting for someone's response. Just as I reached out to grab Reika's arm to pull her away from Ruby, Olcan grabbed me and pulled me back.

I didn't have time to be impressed by just how quickly he had gotten to me. I was more worried about Ruby and the way her eyes were now fluttering.

I flashed him off me. "If something is wrong, we need to pull them

apart."

"If we force them apart, we will do them more harm than good. We

might kill them."

I made a face and turned back to the shaking women. This was all new for me. My pack doesn't have an Enchanted, and while I've educated myself about them, there was still a lot I didn't know. My father never saw the need for an Enchanted.

"Mind links can be complex," Olcan said as he began circling them, his hands clasped behind his back. "Sometimes it's not just a link between minds. Right now Reika and Natalie aren't just seeing what's inside Ruby's mind, they are in her mind. Force them apart and their either their minds break or," He looked at me, and I clenched my fist at the smile on his face. "they die."

"And you're smiling because?" Xavier asked. Olcan shrugged, "It's fascinating."

"Fascinating! Something is wrong with her!" I yelled, and Olcan arched a brow, that annoying smile on his lips still.

"So, you're worried about the human after all?"

My lips formed a thin line. "If she dies, if all three of them die right now, won't that be a problem?" He returned to his seat and sat down. There

was no trace of concern or care in his eyes, not even for Reika. What kind of man is this? I turned away with my fingers rubbing my temples when I heard gasps.

I spun around as Reika and Natalie suddenly pulled away from Ruby as if she was the sun's surface. They both hunched forward, their hands on their heads as they began groaning in pain.

Mathieu grabbed Reika as Xavier made a dash for Natalie who looked dangerously close to fainting. Ruby was no longer shaking, but she was just standing there. I hated that my heart was racing, that I wanted to know if she was okay. When she finally started moving, I rushed forward. It was as if time was moving in slow motion as she began to sway and then fall. I reached out to her, her red hair covering her face as she fell when Xavier appeared and grabbed her just before she plummeted to the ground.

I watched him move her hair out of her face. She was saved from falling, so why was I so pissed all of a sudden? Why did I want to rip him limb from limb as he gently held her cheek and began calling her name?

"I-I don't understand," Reika said to herself as she held her head.

"What did you see?" Olcan asked, and she turned to stare at him. She looked like she had seen a ghost as she then looked down at Ruby in Xavier's arms.

"What is it?" I urged her on, and she shook her head and winced.

"She- I- I saw Elder Lovette," she whispered, and my eyes widened along with Olcan's and Mathieu. Olcan got to his feet slowly, his eyes flashing black as he looked at Ruby and then at Reika.

"Are you certain that…"

"Yes," Natalie replied as she lowered herself to the ground. "She's telling the truth."

Reika staggered and was caught again by Mathieu, her eyes becoming teary. This was not good, not good at all. If this was true, my problems weren't about to end, they were just beginning! "Why does a human have a memory of an Enchanted, of our Grand Elder Lovette?"

All eyes fell on Ruby because no one had an answer. I could see it in Xavier's eyes, the spark of doubt that I've felt for Ruby this whole time, and I sighed and left the room.