Adam's Pulse

Part 24

Chapter 24

He rolled over in bed, but no sun shone through the room.  Even without a view into the outside world, Adam knew that it was morning.  Sometimes, he wished he could live in a house that had windows in the bedrooms, doors that were made from wood, and even use normal soap.  He had long ago given up the hope of being normal, knowing that wishing he were different would do no good, but mornings like this made the old ideas fly back through his mind.  It didn’t do any good, would never change who he was.  Not that he wanted to change, not any more.  Now, he had come to terms with everything that had happened in his past.  Sure, it still hurt to think of the lies he thought were truth.  It hurt to remember the betrayal he faced from someone he thought was his mate.

Pushing off the bed, he rotated his shoulders until he heard several cracking noises echo through the room.  Sleep for him hadn’t been easy last night.  Constant tossing and turning just left his body more tense than it had been the day before.  He knew the reason why.  Ally was leaving, and he wouldn’t know where she was.  It wouldn’t take much to find her, not with the bond in place, but he still didn’t like the idea of her being so far away.  Another effect of the bond, or maybe it was him just worrying for a friend.  Either way, he didn’t like it, but wouldn’t protest her leaving.  He knew she did it for a reason.  She did it to protect the ones she loved.

Barron would be with her.  That thought strangely made him relax.  The man was volatile, unpredictable, and far too angry for his own good, but he would protect Ally with everything he had.  He would put his life on the line for her and her family, probably more fiercely than many of her guards would.  That fact alone eased some of Adam’s worries.  However annoying he found Barron, Ally had given the man a reason to fight, and for that, Barron would always do anything he could for Ally.  Maybe it was the fear of the unknown.  What would they all do if Ally were gone?  Who would rule when there would be no more black leopards? 

He shook the thought from his mind.  It wasn’t going to happen.  Ally wasn’t going to leave this world until she died from old age, a very old age. 

“Your thoughts are depressing as hell.”

The words slipped through his mind, making him growl deep in his throat.  It had been a long time since Zeke had been able to break down the block Adam kept firmly in place, but with Ally leaving today, his mind had been elsewhere.

“Stay out of my head,” Adam shot back before finally rising from his bed and slamming down a mental wall to keep Zeke out.

Padding towards his closet, he didn’t even glance at the clothes as he pulled them off the hanger.  Slipping the shirt over his head, he yawned as it fell down his body.  After he made sure everything with Ally would be okay, he was taking a nap, a much-needed nap.  He tugged the pants up his legs, taking only a second to button them.  Shoes weren’t necessary, not when he had no plans to go anywhere but back to his room after he watched her leave.

“Still depressing.”

“Zeke,” Adam growled aloud, even if the man couldn’t actually hear his words.

Walking towards the door, he threw it open as thoughts flew through his mind.  His wall was up, something that had usually kept Zeke from hearing too much.  So why had the man been able to slip passed it now?  Was Zeke getting more powerful, or was he getting weaker.

“You’re getting weaker,” Zeke answered as he leaned against the wall opposite Adam’s door.  “I think it’s because of the bond, but it could be lack of sleep and stress.”  He shrugged as if the news wasn’t as bad as it sounded.  “Either way, you shouldn’t have to worry about it for too much longer.”