Kat came round to the beeping of a heart monitor. She lay in a starched, crisp bed, attached to several drips.
The room was bright white and clean, the stench of bleach stung her nose.
Cal's sleeping form was slumped in an armchair next to her, dark circles under his eyes. She watched his chest rise and fall, drinking in the sight of him.
She did a mental check on her body. Her hands were tightly bound and bandaged. Her back felt sore, but bearable. She felt strong. Impossibly strong.
She looked up at the drips, wondering what was in them.
"Quite the cocktail he had me put in you." a voice whispered from the door.
Kat looked up into the kind eyes of an elderly man. He moved slowly towards her, smiling.
"That one is to accelerate your healing, that one there is to help your body recover from the starvation, that one is to reverse the dehydration. And I'm sure you can tell that the last is a blood transfusion, you're on your third bag. Lucky Alpha Cal is the same blood type." At the last comment he nodded to Cal's sleeping form and Kat saw the bruises in the crook of his arm, needle puncture marks.
"The last lot took it out of him, but he insisted, said the bond would help." The man shuffled to the heart monitor.
"Your vitals look good, how do you feel?"
"I feel great, considering." Kat whispered back, eager to let her sleeping Alpha stay that way.
"I'm Katja," she smiled at the man warmly.
His old face crinkled as he smiled knowingly back at her, "I'm Doc."
"Doc?" Kat asked, bemused.
Doc laughed, a wheezing sound, "I'm sure that wasn't my name at birth but I've long forgotten what it is. I've served ImperialMoon for hundreds of years. I've seen Alphas come and go, they've all called me Doc." he shrugged, smiling again.
"Then you knew Cal's father?" Kat whispered.
Doc's eyes widened slightly, "He hasn't told you?"
Kat shook her head, confused.
"I'm afraid it's not my place to inform you." Doc shook his head at Cal's sleeping form, "He looks so young, when he sleeps. So like the innocent boy who's scraped knees I used to clean up."
Doc sighed as he turned to leave, "I'll check on you in an hour, Luna Katja."
"Oh. I'm not-"
Doc smiled, "Aren't you?"
He closed the door silently, yet Cal still shuffled in his seat, eyes opening lazily.
He rubbed his eyes and groaned, stretching in the chair, spine cracking.
He looked at the drips and frowned, checking his watch, then he looked at Kat.
"You're awake!" he jumped up and was sitting on her bed in an instant.
"Oh, ouch, sore." she complained.
"Shit! Sorry." he got back up, hovering awkwardly at her side, "I'm sorry Kat. I was so angry, I didn't stop and let you explain." he pulled his hand through his hair, frustrated.
She shook her head, "I should have told you the truth from the start."
"No, I can see why you didn't," he sighed, she felt his exhaustion, his sadness.
"Will you tell me what happened? To Alpha Theo? He was good friends with my father."
Kat sucked in a breath. Calming her nerves, she told him.
"Konan was jealous, he wanted to be the Alpha. But he knew that he'd never overpower my father with brute strength. He had to be cunning. He acted as though he wasn't interested in power. My mother saw through him, trying to convince my father to see the danger that lay in their son's heart. But Papa wouldn't listen, he wouldn't hear a bad word against his children, his love blinded him. One day, my mother had a vision-"
"She was a seer?"
"Related in some way to the Oracles of Three, I'm not sure how," Kat shrugged.
"She had seen her death at the hands of her son. This was the proof she needed for my father, but it was too late. Once she had a vision it couldn't be changed, all they could do was prepare for it. And so, they prepared, they taught their most trusted warriors how to cloak their scent, how to hide a lie, how to survive, if Konan came for them. They taught me, first."
Kat shuddered, remembering. Cal stared at her, eyes wide in horror.
"She wouldn't tell my father exactly how they died. She didn't want him to live it twice. She told me of Konan's intentions when I was too late to stop him. The day came too quickly. I returned from a hunt to find the pack house in flames, wolves attempting to douse the fire with any water they could find. I sneaked in, to find my family. I walked in on him as he beheaded my mother."
Cal dropped to his knees, feeling her pain, his head in his hands.
"I had screamed, I think. My father had turned and grabbed me and ran. He was always the fastest. Impossibly fast. He took me to the edge of the territory. He told me he loved me," Kat's voice broke, fresh tears flowed down her cheeks, "he made me promise to survive and he commanded me to run. And so, I ran. And I've been running, surviving, ever since."
Cal looked up at her, eyes glassy. He breathed deeply, she could feel their shared pain. She felt the moment his turned to anger.
He punched the floor, white marble cracking under his fist.
"And I let Vilkas crucify you for it!" he pulled at his hair.
"I know, I don't blame you, it looked bad when he sent my Uncle..."
"Ruthless. That's what they call me, Kat. The devil walks the Earth within my soul. That's what they say. I proved that. When I think of how I treated you-" he dragged his fingers down his face, tortured, "I felt you, every day of your pain. I felt the silver sicken me as it did you, felt my hands split open and reform. Still, I left you there. The bond punished me but I was angry, so angry, I just had to leave you suffer."
He punched the wall, white wood splintering.
"Cal, stop, I'm fine..." Kat tried to soothe him, while wondering why. He was right, he tortured her, his mate, why did she forgive him so easily?
He collapsed on the floor, head in his hands, shaking with shame.
Kat pulled the i.v's from her arms as she climbed from the bed, joining him on the floor.
She drew him into her arms, stroking his hair off his face with her bandaged hands.
He looked up at her with wild, pleading eyes. In that moment she saw his vulnerability.
"Cal -"
She wrinkled her nose, "No offense but, you stink."
His tortured face split into a smile, "No offense Kat... but, so do you."
"Well, you know, torture will do that to you."
"You speak like torture is a regular thing for you." he groaned.
"This was not my first rodeo." she laughed as his face dropped in anguish.
"Come on, stinky." he rolled his eyes.
Kat quickly worked out where Cal was taking her, their feet following the familiar path to the shower room at the back of the house.
"How do you do it?" Cal asked.
"Do what?"
"Conceal your scent."
Kat rolled her eyes. She wondered how long it would be before he asked.
Cal turned to face Katja, a huge grin lighting up his face, "I admit, I was impressed. But not enough to spare you from the pit."
"Yet you threw yourself to my rescue?"
"I caught your scent on the wind. I had no idea where it was coming from. No idea it was coming from you. You ripped a wolf's head off and I felt your anger spike and I saw you then for what you are."
Kat gritted her teeth, heart pounding. He knows. He knows what I am. "And what did you see me as?"
"My mate, of course." Cal gave her a peculiar look, "I saw the look in your eyes, felt the fury in your heart. You would have killed the last wolf" he grinned.
"Then why stop me? Why act the hero?"
"No one survives, Kat. The moment the victor is found, they're executed." he shivered.
"Tate said-"
"Tate lied. I couldn't take the chance of you winning and I couldn't bear it if you lost."
"Even if that meant embarrassing yourself in front of your pack?"
Cal laughed loudly, melting Kat's insides.
"Who's embarrassed? You're the best she-wolf fighter anyone here has ever seen. Why is that?"
"I've had to protect myself over the years."
Kat found herself remembering, again, the other packs that had caught her, and fought her.
Cal pulled her into the shower room, sending tingles through her broken palm.
He stepped away from her, grinning. Pulling his shirt over his head he revealed a taut back, skin completely covered in a large tattoo.
A dark night sky was inked into his back, a large moon, circled in gold, hanging among clouds. In the foreground stood a huge blood red wolf with glittering green eyes.
"Your back..."
"It's impressive isn't it. My mother used to dream of this scene, over and over, when I was a boy."
"It's beautiful."
"Thanks. Now, look away while I finish undressing."
"You're shy?!" Kat laughed as Cal blushed a deep red.
"Not shy, just thought I'd preserve your purity for a little while longer."
"I've seen a naked man before, Cal."
Kat wished she hadn't said it as the words left her mouth, she felt a spike of jealousy from him.
The unasked question hung in the air.
"So you're not embarrassed? About the pit? Showing your weakness for me?" she asked the question to change the subject, she didn't expect to see fire blaze in her Alpha's eyes.
"As I said, there's nothing to be embarrassed for. I was sure that I would win the fight, but if I didn't I was equally sure I'd give my life for you. There is no weakness in knowing that. My pack know me better than to think me weak."
"You have a fearsome reputation, I can see why."
Cal laughed bitterly, "You are yet to see me lose my temper, Kat. Are you stepping out now? Or are you eager to add another naked man to your repertoire?"
He smirked, obviously meaning it as a joke. But Kat saw the pain in his eyes.
She left the room quickly, feeling hopelessly guilty.
It can't be undone, the past. Just as his cannot. He obviously slept with Tia! What right does he have to judge me on the mere sight of a man?!
Katja was as pure as her name. The sight of a naked man meant nothing, wolves shifted all the time, often shredding their clothes in the process.
But there was... one. One man that almost took everything there was of Kat. Her heart and soul and body if he was willing. The first two, he welcomed with open arms. He was not comfortable with the last, not without a formal bond.
She'd left when he'd asked her to marry him. She was unwilling to show him what she truly was. She could not let the moon harm him.
And so, she had left the one place she had stayed the longest, the one place she would have been hidden.
Thinking of him now, it felt different.
Her love for him was so eclipsed by her love for Cal, she wondered if it was ever really love at all.
"Your turn." he opened the door behind her and stepped out, hair dripping wet, face flushed, lips rosy.
Kat showered quickly, pulling the bandages from her hands. Her skin was red and raised, but otherwise healed. She thought about her comment to Cal about the naked men, unable to shake the feeling that she'd let him down. She dried herself quickly and picked up a robe, flinging it over her body before stepping out.
Cal had dressed. He stood, staring out of the window at his pack, brow furrowed.
She watched him as he turned to her.
"What are you thinking?" he asked, puzzled.
"Of the past."
"Dangerous business," he smiled.
"The naked man..." she mumbled.
His smile fell from his face, "Can we drop that?"
"No, I need to be clear. I've seen naked men, when they shift. I've never been with a man in... that way. You are far more experienced than me."
"I am?" Cal laughed, throwing his head back, the sound booming from his chest, "Tell me, Katja, what do you know of my experience?"
"Nothing really, but, Tia, probably..."
"Probably? Conclusions without prior research are often incorrect don't you think?"
"Uh..."
"Maybe you should have researched your subject."
"My subject?"
"In fact, the best way to find the correct conclusion would be to ask said subject. Don't you agree?"
"I'm lost."
Cals eyes sparkled with mirth.
He held his hand out and Kat took it.
They both breathed deeply, relishing the feeling of completeness. He rubbed her sore palm.
Cal stepped forward, enveloping Kat in his scent.
He lifted his other hand, trailing his fingers up her arm, across her throat.
"Katja, I have never," he ran his fingers into her hair, she closed her eyes, "Ever," he brought his face closer to hers, his warm breath tickling her neck, "Been with anyone," his hand slipped down her face, as he leaned in to whisper, "In that way."
Kat's body exploded with goosebumps. She did not know if it was his touch or his words that did it.
She knew that the idea of him being her first, and her being his, filled her with joy.
Breathing heavily, she opened her eyes. He was watching her face, his emerald eyes hardened with passion, the amber flecks burning with desire.
Kat leaned towards him as he leaned in to her.
Her skin burned as he dropped light kisses on her jawline, moving ever closer to her lips.
This is it.
She felt the bond squeeze around her heart as he looked at her once more. Torture forgotten.
The door crashed open. Vilkas stood there breathing heavily, fury on his face.
They jumped apart as though they'd been electrocuted.
Kat was furious at the interruption. She saw that her feelings were mirrored in Cal.
His hands were clenched in rage, his anger reared like a snake, ready to strike.
"Vilkas. What is the meaning of this?"
"CALHOUN?! You took her down!" he raged, "She's a rogue and a spy, a TRAITOR! FALSE LUNA!"
Vilkas started towards Kat. He managed two strides into the room, before Cal's form blurred in front of Kat and Vilkas was thrown into the ceiling.
He dropped like a cat, hissing as Cal growled.
Kat stumbled backwards, Cal's power pushing her off balance.
"Do you out rank me?" Cal fumed, "What right do you have to tell me what to do?!"
Vilkas dropped his head in submission, his knees buckling in the face of Cal's anger.
"You will never interrupt me when I am with Kat again." Cal circled him, "You will also remember that I am your Alpha and should be addressed as such. Do I need to remind you of what happened the last time you forgot your place?"
Vilkas shook his head, closing one hand around the large scar across his throat.
Cal looked at Kat as she stared at Vilkas' scarred face in horror.
"Kat?"
Her head snapped up, she drank in the sight of him. His chest heaved with fury, muscles rippled in his arm. He was glorious in his rage.
He turned his head, indicating that he was leaving and she was welcome to join him.
She held his hand as they walked out into the sun, leaving Vilkas kneeling behind them.
"So, I met the Doc." Kat broke the silence.
Cal smiled warmly, "He'll be very annoyed that I removed his patient from his care."
"He mentioned your father."
She watched his face closely as the colour drained from his cheeks, his eyes raw with pain.
"I think," he stopped and turned to her, "I think, it's time you met him."
Kat looked at him, bewildered.
"But Alphas can only take over following the death of the preceding Alpha."
Cal took her hand and led her down a path she'd never seen before.
"You'll see." he whispered, cryptically.