Rivals of the Heart

Rivals of the Heart:~ Chapter 6

“The Bible tells us to love our neighbours, and also to love our enemies; probably because they are generally the same people.” – Unknown Author

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"What was what?" Brad asked, sounding relatively confused. I scowled at him, a growl rumbling at the base of my throat. I knew he was trying to avoid the subject, just like he was trying to avoid my eyes.

"There are mutts surrounding your perimeters!" I reminded him, pointing out the blatantly obvious. Brad used his free hand to pry away my fingers from around his narrow wrist, and I let his hand drop to his side as I let it go.

He looked at me with an eyebrow arched in question. "Didn't you have that back in Florida?"

"We didn't have them pushing us around like pups."

"He wasn't pushing me around." Brad mumbled a protest, his eyes trained on the wrist that I grabbed as he rubbed the joint. I silently chided myself for grabbing him so harshly without a thought to whether or not it would hurt him, but when he started to walk off - presumably in the direction of home - it only added fuel to my anger.

"Oh really? Well I'm sorry for misinterpreting that for a pissing contest."

"Owlan." He scolded disapprovingly at my language.

"Don't 'Owlan' me." I growled in annoyance, stalking after him. "He was threatening you! Back in Florida, we put a mussel on that bark and make sure they learn their lesson."

Brad spun on his heel and snapped, "Well I'm sorry this isn’t Florida."

I felt my anger subside as he landed a low blow, criticizing the very land I grew up on and helped to shape.

Florida has the largest concentration of Werecats in the world, due to the fact that I managed to convince dad to do the unthinkable; allow other Prides into our land. Each Pride is handpicked and assessed by Tae, and in return for allowing them safety, many Pride's residing in Florida will blindly obey us.

Combining this with the fact that we personally get rid of any Wolves entering our turf, and then you can understand why to the Wolves my Pride is exceptionally feared. Sure, I've lived in a safe haven my life, but that doesn't mean my life has been peachy. I am the only surviving girl from the Dawn Pride; therefore the most sought out female in the world.

However, Brad is right. This isn’t Florida, where the Wolves know coming within a mile of the border is suicide, and Tyson and his friend most certainly do not know that we live here... as of yet. I know I shouldn't be treating Brads territory like I was, but I'm not entirely use to mutts having the nerve to threaten a member of my Pride.

I unclenched my fists as I glared a hole in the ground, trying to keep myself from tell him off. I was only worried about his safety. Brad sighed and dragged his hands over his face, regret carved into his features.

"Look," Brad said softly, linking my arm with his, "over here we don't have the strength nor the numbers to even look the least bit threatening. To them we're inexperienced whelps who aren't even worth the trouble to finish off."

"You have us now." I reminded him slowly, running my free hand through my hair. "We can help."

"It's the only thing that keeps us safe, Owlan. They eliminated the threat." I caught the hesitation before the word 'threat' and then the wince on the actual word. I smiled sadly at him. He wasn't always fatherless, just like I wasn't always motherless. "As long as we aren't a danger to them, we get to keep our lives, and as a Lord my Prides safety is my first priority."