That caught Alistair and Gunner's attention, as well as raised every eyebrow of the werewolves standing in front of him. With every pair of eyes bearing into him, he raised his chin up and locked his jaw.
Colten stared at him as if looking an extra-terrestrial in the eye—slack-jawed with his eyes bugging out.
[Are you serious about the human?] Alistair asked.
Stone mentally shushed them. [Let me enjoy this, please.]
A small grin spread across Stone's face when Colten stuttered, "H-How is that possible? Your mate died a century ago. Everyone knows that."
Stone shrugged, enjoying the sight of Colten's lower jaw hanging off its hinges. The twenty-something-year-old needed his ego knocked down a few pegs. "Perhaps the Goddess has bestowed mercy upon an old soul such as myself? How generous and loving She must be to reunite two old souls together after all these years. It's a miracle really. She deserves our praises."
"Praise the Moon Goddess," the werewolves said in unison, while Gunner and Alistair murmured the same, but in Lykostroya.
"I expect you to maintain the same level of commitment in keeping the vampires at bay from now on," Stone said, his smile fading and his tone growing serious once more. He lowered the angle of his face so that his eyes had to look up a bit, even though he was still four inches taller than the young alpha. "I won't tolerate an alpha who doesn't fulfill his duties. I expect no more issues to arise by our next meeting at the winter solstice. Until then." He dipped his head slightly before turning and leaving the werewolves to stare at his back.
Stone's oldest companions followed him into the dense forest.
[Talk to me, Stone,] Alistair said once they had shifted into their wolf forms and began the long run around the southwestern edge of the city.
Stone knew they would pester him with questions as soon as they left the North Fang Pack. Not that he had made up his mind or had answers for them about what he had said. He wanted to ruffle Colten's fur for his lewd behavior and lack of responsibility.
[There's nothing to talk about,] Stone said.
Alistair barked and playfully nipped Stone's ear. He nudged his shoulder with his own. [Come on, even I picked up on the pride in your voice. You can't fake that.]
Stone's throat rumbled in exasperation. [I was setting an example. He can't be neglecting his duties to the pack when his mate's in heat.]
[Excuses, excuses.]
[I'm with Stone on this one,] Gunner said after being silent for so long. [The human female would be in constant danger if she joined him.]
Alistair growled. [My sister's soul has been reborn again—I want her in the pack.]
[She can't be part of the pack,] Stone snapped, curling his lips up in warning. [It's physically impossible. You know that.]
Alistair growled and put distance between them. Frustrated, he pulled up his mental barriers and continued to run in silence.
Brushing off Alistair's discontent, Stone continued on his way back to the pack house, keeping his thoughts to himself and trying to figure out the best course of action to take next.
He wanted to see Aubree, but he was hesitant. The more he saw her, the more he would yearn for her; it was the nature of the matebond. It would be torturous to be with her and not be intimate with her.
He reached out mentally to Gavin, who was still in the city and called him back home.
When he, Alistair, and Gunner returned to the pack house, Gavin met them there a few minutes later.
"Who will keep an eye on her this afternoon?" Gavin asked after shifting into his human form and stepping through the front door. Confused by the fact that no one came to relieve him of his post, he furrowed his brows at his father standing in the doorway.
"I will," Stone said. "Everyone needs to get some rest before sunset. Guinevere will continue to patrol the borders until then. I will expect you to return to your post by sunset, unless I say otherwise."
Gavin nodded looking away from his father as he ran his hand through his hair. Something was on his mind.
Sighing, Stone leaned his back against the doorframe and crossed his arms over his chest. "What is it, Gawain?"
Gavin pursed his lips, his eyes trailing along the crown molding in the foyer.
When he didn't respond, Stone said impatiently, "Is it about Aubree?"
"Wouldn't it be easier to bring her here?" he asked. "Rather than have someone continuously spying on her."
Stone frowned. "That would be kidnapping. Humans have strict rules regarding that, soulmate or not."
Gavin's expression remained unchanged as he looked up at his father. "Couldn't you claim her already? It would be better if she understood and could be with us here."
Stone stiffened, his heart constricting at the thought of someone else replacing Adelaide. Yet, it was more complicated than that.
The bite of a lycan on a human had dire, sinister, and horrific consequences. It was their curse; where the creatures of ancient lore originated from. The ones that were forced to transform into half-men, half-beasts at the light of the full moon. Bloodlust surged through their veins as they raced through village after village, slaughtering every living thing in sight. Men, women, children—it made no difference. They had a heartbeat and that sound lured them in as the smell of their blood turned them insane with hunger.
They were worse than vampires.
"You know I can't do that. That would turn her into a monster every full moon. I can't do that to her."
Voice fading away to a whisper, he looked away, his eyes falling on the soft blue flowers growing in a pot on the doorstep. "That's why we cannot be together."
Gavin paled and cursed in German under his breath. He ran his hand through his hair, his eyes scanning around them as if searching for answers. "Isn't there something we can do? What about the Oracle? Could we to go to him for help?"
"She," Stone emphasized, turning back to his son, "is somewhere in Europe, and you know I cannot go back there unless the Council demands it. It's futile."
He sighed. "Besides, requesting passage would only heighten suspicions."
Gavin frowned. "Don't say that. You never know until you try."
"She'll probably send me on a wild goose chase to find the Goddess, not that She would help me," Stone mumbled.
"Father," Gavin said solemnly, "The Goddess has been known to be merciful to us. We are Her children. If you can find Her—"
Stone snapped, pulling away from the doorframe and clenching his fists at his sides. His muscles tensed as his blood began to boil. He pointed a trembling finger at Gavin, seething as he tried to reign in his temper. "The Goddess abandoned us when She took your mother!"
Gavin didn't flinch, as he'd gotten used to his father's angry outbursts over the last century. He maintained a calm composure and let his father vent.
"She gave us the matebond as a blessing and a curse. Without it, we cannot reproduce. That, in a sense, is a means of controlling our numbers. Even then, we still cannot conceive unless it's during a lunar eclipse, when a mated female goes into heat. Our love for our mates exceeded our love for Her overtime, and She became envious. She takes our mates from us to punish us."
"I'm aware of our history and the Goddess' wrath when we don't worship Her properly," Gavin said, his tiredness leaking through every word.
Closing his eyes, Stone rubbed his forehead, his anger dissipating slowly and leaving him feeling tired. He didn't want to talk about this anymore.
Dismissing Gavin after gathering information about the location of Aubree's workplace and when she'd be off, he went upstairs for a quick shower.
He changed into jeans, a T-shirt, and a leather jacket before leaving the house and hopping on the pack's motorcycle and roaring into the city.
His thoughts filled his mind over the next few hours over his dilemma. He didn't know what to do. He didn't know how better to protect Aubree while maintaining their regular patrol duties. He didn't know what to do about their bond since she was human. He couldn't mark her, claim her as his, not only for moral reasons, but because he didn't want to turn her into the wolf-man monster. It made him cringe in disgust, not just at the thought of the creature, but at himself as well.
He was a monster for even thinking about Aubree as his mate. It was wrong. She wasn't Adelaide. She couldn't replace Adelaide.
He couldn't handle another heartbreak if he came to love her, only to lose her a few decades later as her short human life came to an end.
The last week had been hard on him. He wanted to see her but sent Gwen and Gavin instead. He tried to deter his thoughts, but he couldn't stop thinking about her smile and laughter that first day he saw her in the café. Even though she was with her boyfriend, he'd caught her eye, and even though she fought him, he knew she felt something toward him too.
He rubbed his face after he pulled over at a gas station. The ache in his head forced him to put earplugs in his ears. Even though he hadn't made it into the downtown core, he couldn't handle the strain on his ears anymore. He usually wore his hair down to conceal the plugs. Even though they were supposed to be invisible, some humans still noticed them, and he wasn't ready to explain to Aubree what they were for yet.
He made it through Mall of America without them yesterday, but just barely.
After putting some gasoline into the motorcycle's tank, he ran his hand through his hair once more before putting his helmet back on.
He'd never been more lost and confused as to what to do next than he did right now.
Fate would bring them together, but not until it had ripped them away from everything they once held dear.
---- Author's Note ----
So, this has been Stone's internal struggle with marking/claiming Aubree. He's afraid of turning her into the classic wolf-man type of werewolf because that's what happens when lycans bite humans. That's mainly why he's so opposed to her being human. Dun, dun, DUN.
Dedicated to cathyjnichols
*Copyright Jo Lee Hunt (Joflower) 2015*