Hearing these words made my head spin; my ears began ringing, and my body started to shake.
Ximena, your father is dead.
Ximena, your father is dead.
Ximena, your father is dead.
Ximena, your father is dead.
Those words echoed in my head, leaving a sick ache in my stomach. I looked up and towards my family. They were all gazing at me with a sense of hopelessness; I realized that this meant that I was the next Don. Taking control, I asked,
“Where are my sisters?” My cousin Armando piped up.
“They were picked up from school two hours ago; they are safe.” I nodded sharply.
“Well, everybody, start looking for a safe haven for them. If they killed P-Don Juan, they’re going to be the next targets. Have they been told of what has happened?”
“No, Ximena.”
“Alright. Get working!” They all left the room, allowing me to have some privacy. Taking a deep breath, I called, “Rosalina, Belinda, and Nubia!” The three girls ran down from their rooms and towards me. The eldest, Rosalina or Rosie, ran up to me and hugged me tightly. The fifteen year old asked,
“What’s going on? Hermana, donde esta Papa?” I fought back the tears threatening to fall by gazing at my sister. She was a tall young woman with luxurious red hair and green eyes; definitely the most beautiful in the family, she had already been asked out many times, but she rejected them all, claiming that he wasn’t the “One”. With a deceivingly innocent disposition, she proved to be extremely handy with knives. I closed my eyes and murmured,
“Dad’s been killed by Tio Eduardo.” It was the first time I had ever revealed the culprit in the murder; there was no doubting it that he did it. She gasped in horror, while Belinda and Nubia froze in confusion. Rosalina fell to her feet, sobbing quietly while Belinda fought the truth. She was thirteen years old and the most unruly of us all. With no doubt, she had taken after me as a ruthless and tomboyish girl; she had butterscotch blond hair and blue eyes, contrasting with her tan skin. Unlike Rosalina, she had more potential as the next leader. I remember my father mentioning that she would be a force to reckon with when she got older.
“What do you mean? I thought Dad kicked out Tio Eduardo; Papa can do anything-”
“Belinda, he’s dead!” The harshness in my tone cut her off. She fingered softly the hand gun hidden in her boot. She opened her mouth and angrily said,
“I’m coming with you to kill Tio Eduardo!” Rosalina wailed,
“What do you mean? We all have to go into hiding, Ximena included!” I sighed softly, and I could feel her hard gaze on me. “You are coming with us, right?” Looking up in the sky and cursing softly, I shook my head. I was surprised to have a full grown girl throw herself at me and knock me into the couch. I started yelling,
“WHAT THE HELL!” She screamed back with tears soaking her perfect face as she punched me.
“YOU ARE MY ONLY FAMILY! I CAN’T LEAVE YOU!” She broke down sobbing on top of me, making me hold my own back. I had to remain strong for the family. After gently pushing her off me, I walked to the youngest, Nubia. The ten year old hadn’t said a word since I revealed the death. With short black hair and brown eyes, she was adorable holding her teddy bear. I slowly approached her, but she ran back up the stairs. I would have followed if my grandmother hadn’t said,
“Ximena, un gringo esta pidiendo por ti.”Aleks. Without another word, I walked outside and found my best friend leaning on the porch, wearing a somber expression. He obviously heard what happened; with no hesitation, I ran into his outstretched arms and sobbed my sorrows out. He held onto me tightly and whispered soothing words of comfort into my ear. As I clutched Aleks, I faintly heard a wolf howling far away; maybe there’s one out there who’s feeling just as bad as myself.
~~~~~~~
“Is everybody ready?” I received angry faces as they marched out of the house, obviously ignoring me. Sighing softly, I walked them to the van, and Aleks escorted them. As he held Rosie in, she turned around and asked,
“Could you please come with us? It will be safer!” I shook my head, and she moaned with sadness. Next came Belli.
“Ximena, I could help you! You know it!” Another negative. Finally, Nubia. Instead of walking to Aleks, she ran to me and whispered,
“Ximena, I want you to kill that man. Entiendes, hermana?” I nodded and hugged my youngest sister in my arms, determined to protect her-
“OPENFIRE!” As the bullets appeared, I push the girl down on the ground, and screamed,
“ALEKS!” Thankfully, he wasn’t in the range so he crawled over and grabbed Nubia. She was shoved in the van, and Renee, who happened to be the getaway driver, sped out of the street. Not wasting time, I jumped up and started shooting random snipers. I got a few, but I wasn’t prepared for someone to grab me from behind. I started screaming to alert the others but fell silent as he grabbed my tits. In anger, I started kicking the crap out of him, but a gun to my head stilled me. I heard him prepare to fire, and my eyes closed.
“MENA!” I opened them to see Aleks running towards me, ripping off his leather jacket. I screamed for him to run away, but he didn’t listen. Instead, he did something else: he jumped into the air, and when he fell on the ground, he wasn’t there. A beautiful pure white wolf stood in his place, misty eyes boring into mine.
Stay calm, Ximena.
With that, I blacked out.
~~~~~~~~
Why did I do that? WHY? Damnit, Declan was gonna kill me! FUCK!
I watched the unconscious girl sleep on my bed, her medium length brown hair stand out on my pure white sheets. Ximena was muttering,
“Nubia, run…Belli, knife…” God, I was in so much deep shit. I ran a hand through my white blond hair as I looked at my best friend.
She was definitely a babe, but not the one for me. I was still waiting for her, my mate. My best friend was curvy yet slender at the same time. With chocolate mocha skin, she was probably the prettiest girl I knew. I remember at first having a small crush on her, but then, everything changed after I shifted. That’s when they explained to me about mates and all; then, I realized that Mena wasn’t mine.
“Aleksander-“ My mother barged in, holding cookies, and she froze as she saw Mena. She glared at me and hissed,
“Cén fáth a bhfuil Ximena anseo?” (Why is Ximena here?) In the Irish tongue, I flinched as I heard the harshness in them. She protectively walked over to her, checking her forehead. For years, Mena got along with my parents great. And they loved her; whenever we had a fight, they would always side with her, even if she was in the wrong.
“Bhí sí faoi ionsaí, agus a shábháil mé a saol.” (She was being attacked, and I saved her.) I could see the wheels turning in her head, and she gasped. Without warning, she ran up to me and smacked me. Her fiery green eyes were staring me down in anger.
“Tá tú buachaill dúr! Tá tú faoi lé linn!” (You stupid boy! You’ve exposed us!) Her voice echoed through the house, making me flinch and cringe in horror. What if Dad heard?
“Cad é a bheadh agat a dhéanamh dom? Bhí sí ar tí bás ceart ann; bhí mé a shábháil. Agus ... I mo thuairimse, riachtanais sí a fháil. Tá sí chun dul i bhfolach, agus sílim go mbeidh sí a bheith sábháilte anseo le linn.” (What would you have me do? She was about to die right there; i had to save her. And...I think she needs to know. She has to go into hiding, and I think she will be safe here with us.) Mom and Dad knew about her being in the Mafia, and thankfully, they never judged her for it. She slitted her eyes at me as she hissed,
“Agus cad a bheadh agat ar a dhéanamh?” (And what would you have her do?) I mind-linked her,
Be My Mate.
~~~~
I woke in Aleks’ room, with him intently staring at me. Our eyes met, and for the first time in a while, I felt like I was looking at a stranger. Those grey eyes were filled with apprehension and panic. Desperate to break the silence, I said,
“So, what am I doing here?” He let out a breath and ran another hand through his hair, making it even more unruly.
“Mena, what do you remember?” I struggled past the blurred pictures in my head, finding the one most impossible one. Aleks running so fast and turning into a-a-a Wolf. How? I stared at him, not sure whether I wanted to tell. He’d probably call me crazy or something. “Mena!” Trembling slightly, I whispered,
“You turned into a…Wolf.” He sharply inhaled and held his face in his hands. “Is that what happened?” He nodded softly and said,
“Yes, I’m a werewolf.” My heart rate increased in fear, and I could sense hysteria beginning to crawl up my throat. He saw my agitation and jumped for me. But by reflex, I kicked him away and grabbed my gun. Aleks held his hands up in surrender and said, “That doesn’t change anything, Mena. I’m still your best friend! And I can help you!”
“You’re a freak! You lied to me!” Tears ran down my face as I processed this information; nothing seemed real now. How could my best friend be some kind of Monster? I looked into his cool misty eyes and desperately searching for his comfort and care. He gazed back at me with pleading eyes, eyes that I had grown to trust. With my hands shaking, I put the gun down and whispered, “You aren’t gonna hurt me?” He exhaled angrily and retorted,
“Why would I do that?” I pursed my lips in doubt as I asked,
“So what do you mean by you can help me?” He grinned mischievously as he patted the bed for me to sit down next to him, a gesture that ignored. This was all too unreal; I needed to keep my distance. For me, Aleks was a threat. He sighed and shook out his head.
“I’m a werewolf in a pack of other werewolves called ‘Wolf Moon’. I’ve lived there for my whole life, and I think I can hide you there-“ I cut him off with ,
“I’m not going anywhere.” He groaned,
“Ximena, if you honestly think I’m gonna let you put yourself in danger, you’re terribly mistaken. You need to hide, just like your sisters!” Knowing he was right, I threw myself on the bed. “Mena, come on!” Taking a deep breath, I asked,
“So how will you hide me? Last time I checked, I can’t turn into a Golden Retriever at will like you.” He growled lowly at my comment, one that rumbled in his throat. I squeaked in fear, and he immediately stopped. I now understood his freaky mood swing from earlier this week.
“I’m sorry…it’s just…God, why is it so hard to tell you this stuff? I’ve already shown you my Wolf form…” He sighed softly and looked me in the eye. “We have this conscience, for lack of a better word, called our Wolf. He basically helps us in times of trouble, but he is an animal at heart. He’s easily offended.” I raised my eyebrow at him as I asked,
“And what’s he saying now?” He grimaced and said,
“Some very inappropriate words.” I chuckled slightly, but quieted immediately. I didn’t want to give him hope. “You see, for us, we have mates. It’s basically…werewolf girlfriend and boyfriend.” I jumped and headed to the door. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! Where do you think you’re going?” He lunged for the door at super speed and locked me to the door, holding my wrists. I felt that uncomfortable feeling again and tried to focus on something else.
“I’m not gonna go and kiss and fuck you in front of a whole pack!!” His eyes widened in surprise as he slowly said,
“I’m not gonna force you to do that. At all!” In his distraction, he loosened his grip on my wrists, and I took that opportunity to knee him at his crotch. Aleks groaned in pain but still held me. “Mena, no one will KNOW! All you have to do is play along. I promise. You will live anonymous; no one will know who you are. Hell, your name will be ‘Mena’.” Tears filled my eyes, tears of irrationality.
“Aleks, what if they find me out? WHAT IF!” He growled in anger and hissed,
“I won’t ever let them hurt you.”
~~~~~~~~~~~
“Are you ready?” I spun around to see Aleks holding my rug sack in his hand. His hair was moving softly to the wind, making his grey eyes sparkle. I looked down on the note in my hand, addressed to my sisters. I hope that if this plan does work out, that Rosalina, Belinda, and Nubia can come and stay. For now though, I will be off the grid. I placed the letter in the post box, addressed to Michaelangelo; he will get the message and send it to them. I nodded softly, and together, we ran through the park, blending in with the night. The chilly October air bit at my throat, making my throat hurt. I looked at my friend, and he didn’t look like he was bothered by the cold at all. In fact, he was only wearing a white t-shirt and blue jeans, appearing to be extremely comfortable. I however was wearing my favorite black long sleeved dress with leggings and brown boots; yet, the frost still reached me.
“How the hell are you not cold?” He chuckled slightly, and answered.
“Werewolves’ temperature is much higher than humans; we generally don’t get cold.” Stupid, mangy dog. “Anyway, we’re about to get there.” He led me into a cemetery, carefully locking the gate. I looked around, and I swear, someone was watching us. Despite the deathly quiet, I could sense the shallow breathing of someone.
“Aleks, someone is here.” He nodded softly and spoke out loud to the night in a foreign language. I had no idea what it was, and I gasped when I saw two guys come out from the shadows. They were both brunettes with dark black skin; I recognized the two of them from the “gang” Aleks was in. They glared at me and retorted (thankfully, in English),
“Who the hell is she?” The way they referred to me was disgusting, as if I was a bug on the wall. Tempted to beat the crap out of him, I stepped forward, but Aleks held me back. His hands found themselves on my hips, and he placed me behind him.
“She’s MINE!” The guttural voice was a possessive and terrifying. At that moment, I knew that this was an act. The two men immediately backed off and held their hands up in surrender.
“Sorry, Aleksander, we didn’t know you had a mate.” I listened closely and heard a strange accent in his voice, making my spine shake. My “mate” nodded softly and yanked me towards a spot on the ground and whispered,
“Go in and keep walking. I’m right behind you.” He pulled the grass, revealing a secret door. I obeyed his directions, but carefully felt for the gun in my dress. This place may have been my sage haven, but if the worst case scenario happened, I wasn’t going down without a fight. I walked forward, trying to ignore the aggressive beating of my heart. The wind was howling in the night, and my hair flew all over the place. I stopped and started putting my hair in a ponytail, slightly brushing my neck. I hissed in pain and fell to the ground. I felt Aleks behind me mind link me,
Mena, is your Mark hurting?
I nodded softly, trying to hold back my tears.
“Ok, do your worst, Aleks!” I sat down on the bed, holding my hair to the side. I had finally agreed to run away with him, but apparently, I needed to do something. My best friend looked terrified and scared.
“Are you sure about this? We could just fake one.” I shook my head.
“Nope; I want this to be a foolproof plan. If a werewolf mate needs her mate to bite her, I will have a fucking mark.” He sighed softly and went down on his knees in front of me and grasp my hips. It was an intimate gesture, one that I did not like. Again, that nagging feeling of me cheating flashed through my body, making me snort. His mouth slowly kissed my neck, making me squirm as well.
“Ready, Mena?” I gasped softly as I felt canine teeth brush my flesh, but then they pierced into my skin. A bloodcurdling scream left my lips, bringing his mother into the room. She didn’t seem to be surprised, and thankfully, she merely held me tightly, softly murmuring a lullaby. I cried into her dress, trying to focus on everything but the pain.
“It’s hurting a lot; before it didn’t bother me, but now…” He held me softly and thought,
Allow the pain to enter your body; it will subside.
I nodded and got off the ground, trying not to cry out. Together we walked on, and I looked to ahead to see a splash of light. As we got closer, I heard voices and noise. In excitement, I ran to the tunnel and gasped at the sight.
A beautiful little town stood in front of me, with people all around. I couldn’t help but grin at the simplicity and normalcy of it all. People were walking all around with children, and I heard Aleks whisper,
“Welcome to Pack Wolf Moon.” He walked me through the square, occasionally nodding at people. A couple of girls stopped us, their beautiful rich red hair glowing in the night. They spoke to him in that unfamiliar tongue again in eager voices, and he nodded, holding me tightly to him. Dammit! I gotta act like I’m in love with him! How?
“Jess, Lottie, she doesn’t speak Irish.” They nodded and looked at me. Irish? The girl with green eyes said,
“Hello, Mena! I’m Jess! I can’t believe Aleksander finally found his mate; it’s a miracle!” She hugged me tightly, and I then started wondering what the hell I got myself into. They’re making this sound like I’m his wife or something; I’m only pretending to be his girlfriend! He sensed my confusion and was about to say something when a man called him.
“Aleksander, come on over!” He nodded but worriedly gazed at me.
Mena, if you need help, just call out for me via mind link. Be careful!
I snorted, and, reluctantly, kissed him on the lips, eliciting squeals from Jess and Lottie. He froze somewhat and kissed back, wrapping his arms around my waist. I felt awkward and relieved when he pulled away. He gave me a little smile and left me with the two girls. Once he was gone, they dragged me through the street, talking animatedly in their cute accents. Lottie, the blue eyed beauty, was telling me all about their pack, and how their Alpha was coming back finally from Ireland. I was starting to curse Aleks for barely telling me shit about werewolves.
“Anyway, they say that he’s going to participate in the mating dance!” Confused, I asked,
“The what?” Her eyes widened in surprise.
“Aleks didn’t tell you anything, did he?” She turned to Jess who was shaking her head.
“It’s a dance that helps determine a Wolf’s mate; when you get in, you either come on out with or without a mate. Aleks will most likely be dancing in it as well, so you’ll be paired up with him.” I raised my eyebrows in confusion. How the hell did that work?
“How is that possible?” Jess looked weirdly at me as she slowly said,
“Since you’re his mate, his Wolf will be led to you. There’s no doubting that…You are his mate, aren’t you?” Oh hell, I was screwed. I put on a fake smile and nodded.
“Of course. So how do you dance this thing?” Lottie merely grinned and pointed at my chest. She said,
” Do mac tíre istigh i teaghais do chroí.” Huh? My face must have been amusing because she burst out laughing. “He’s definitely going to have to teach you to speak the language, Mena. Anyway, since you’re human, you need to know this: Your inner wolf is dwelling in your heart; follow your heart and you will be fine.” With a warm smile, the two of them led me to the pavilion where bunches of teenagers were standing, eagerly waiting. The girls were on one side, while the boys were on the other. I tried to find Aleks in the crowd of them, but all of a sudden, a blindfold was placed over my eyes. I immediately reached for my gun, but I heard a calming voice whisper,
“It’s fine. It’s just so you don’t see who your mate will be. Good Luck.” Before I could answer, an exotic melody began, and I felt a deep pull yank me into the floor. My body moved with the primitive rhythm, and I felt an unearthly pounding in my ears, leading me towards someone.
In the heat of the music, I felt a strong hand grip my waist, bringing tingles to my body. I remembered what Lottie said about this dance: when you dance, you either get out of it alone or with your mate. I realized what I thought was a mate wasn’t the truth. But what was it? Anyway, I was determined to identify my “mate”.
Now, I felt for his neck and ran my hand through luscious locks of hair. My fingers shook with anticipation as we moved together as one. Curious, my hand moved towards his jaw where I felt the slight beginning of stubble. He moaned softly, bringing racks of pleasure up my body. How was this even possible? I felt his hand reach the back of my head and slowly take off the blindfold. Yet, I didn’t look at him; for some reason, I wanted to surprise myself…
After all, he is yours.
What the hell?
Still with my eyes closed, I continued dancing with him. As we moved, I could feel his nose and mouth touch my neck, bringing little thrills up in my spine. Then with an animalistic desire that I wasn't aware that I possessed, I hoisted one leg around said man's waist and, to my horror, started grinding my hips. Another moan was heard as he pressed against me harder than ever. A little scream of pleasure escaped my lips, and then all of a sudden, I was resting on his hips, him moving my ass around in perfect rhythm with his own.
I wasn't sure whether I was mortified in embarrassment or euphoric in ecstasy. But I couldn't care less right now. All that mattered to me was the primitive want deep inside, an instinct I had believed that was long gone. I was about to give in to my desires and allow him to have me right here, right now, when I heard an unfamiliar voice.
"Mate, open your eyes for me?" I immediately obeyed and opened my eyes to see beautiful olive green ones. My breath was lost as I saw my supposed "mate" for the very first time.
He (thankfully it was a he) was tall, something like 5'10 to my 5'3; and he was dazzling. Short chocolate brown hair rested on his head, bringing out his tan skin deliciously. He was clad in black, wearing a black v-neck t-shirt and long black jeans; those eyes though...God, wars could be started for those eyes. That's how beautiful they were. Seeing him made me want to appease him, to make want ME. I groaned inside out of disgust from my thoughts. I was a free woman; I didn’t need some guy holding me back. I was about to push myself away from him when I heard him whisper,
"I'm the luckiest man in the world...to have the most beautiful mate." He then started leaning in towards me, and I was about to tip toe to reach his lips when if felt someone rip me from his strong grip.
~~~~~~~
“Aleksander, inis dom cad é an ifreann atá tú a dhéanamh. Cé hé sin cailín agus cén fáth go bhfuil sí anseo?” (Aleksander, tell me what the hell you’re doing? Who is that girl and why is she here?) Declan stopped me and held me against the wall; I flinched from the official tone he spoke to me in . Gone was the happy go lucky guy I knew; now, he was a Beta wolf. Before I could lie my ass off, I felt a wave of anxiety brush through my body. I froze and immediately realized Mena was scared. But why? I tried reading through her head, and all I saw was the pavilion.
“What’s going on in the pavilion?” Declan’s icy blue eyes squinted at me in confusion as he said,
“The mating dance; why?” FUCK! I immediately ran from the Beta, towards my friend. Geez, she was screwed. Everybody will know about her running away, and she’s probably get killed. How could I be so careless? “ALEKS!” I was yanked back, and I regretted stopping. The haunting music filled my ears and I knew that she was doomed. She didn’t even know what a mate was; I tried keeping as normal and not-creepy as possible; now…she was being thrust in a pool of unmated males. “Is féidir leat muinín dom; ach a insint dom cad atá ag tarlú!” (You can trust me; just tell me what’s happening!) I spun around and said,
“Mena is my best friend, and she happened to be Juan Montoya’s daughter; he’s dead, and now everybody is out to kill her. I snuck her in her, saying that she was my mate, and now she’s going to be exposed when she comes out WITHOUT A MATE!” But he wasn’t even looking at me. I turned to see what he was looking at and saw to my horror what was happening on the dance floor.
Mena wasn’t dancing alone; she was dancing with our Alpha.
Ok, here’s chapter 2! I really liked writing this, so I hope it’s good! Please read it! And review!