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anniesocsandgeneralstore · 2 years

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the echo (or the answer) - a werewolf au (Jake "Hangman" Seresin x OC)

Summary: Jeremiah Bellmoral is alive. He has taken Ronnie to bate the Alphas into a fight. But will his plan succeed?

Pairing: Alpha!Jake Seresin x Human!OC (Ronnie Bradshaw)

Word Count: 16,542

Warnings: bellmoral being a creep, blood, injury, violence, fighting, gore, angst, parental death mention, EXPLICIT SEXUAL CONTENT 18+ONLY MINORS DNI (size kink, fingering, slight breeding kink, belly bulge, unprotected pinv, creampie, multiple orgasms, sex while injured)

FOUR | FIVE | SIX

-> likes are great but comments/reblogs are even better!

-> thank you to my werewolf love @blue-aconite for beta reading. for helping me with ideas. for encouraging me. for being an amazing friend and creative mind. i am eternally blessed by you. thank you.

-> this is the end, my babies. it has been a wonderful, crazy, sometimes intense ride. thank you all for reading. for engaging with my content. for commenting and reblogging. your love for this series has made me love it all the more and has filled my days with such joy. so please, feel free to come into my askbox at any time with questions, with ideas, with thoughts. i love to hear them all. my love to you all.

It started to rain. The dark sky rumbled and cracked as it finally released the heavy weight it had been carrying upon the world. This deep in the woods, Ronnie could hardly feel the rain. But she could hear it.

The droplets of water pattered softly against the hemlock, spruce, and adler leaves that made up the canopy above. At another time, she would have found the atmosphere calming. The gentle sounds of the rain, the tree trunks stretching before her for miles, the fallen pine needles soft beneath her as she leaned back against a tree. If she had a book and a thermos full of hot coffee, it would be a perfect relaxation spot.

Except she was far from relaxed, calm, or safe. Pale blue eyes watched her every move. Blood dripped from the wounds that marred her face. Her shoulder and hip screamed in pain just sitting there and breathing.

Jeremiah Bellmoral still crouched in front of her. Very much alive and very much amused by her horror. Elbows on his knees and long fingers threaded together as he observed her with a tilt of his head. Not watched, observed. Like she was a specimen in a jar.

He was supposed to be dead. He should be dead. Jake had the power of the Alpha, won it in the challenge against Bellmoral. Tore it from the wolf who did nothing but hurt him and his pack. And that could only occur when the other wolf was completely defeated. Ronnie couldn’t wrap her head around how he could possibly be before her now.

It made it hard to move, hard to think under the calculated, pale gaze of what was surely a ghost.

“Your fear…” Bellmoral whispered as he reached out to her, Ronnie flinched as he ran his finger along her jawline — collecting the blood that wept along that edge. “Smells so sweet.”

He pulled back his hand, pointer finger coated in crimson. Then he put the digit to his lips and tasted it with a groan. Ronnie clenched her jaw tight as her stomach turned.

Get out, run, don’t let yourself become a part of his plot, every instinct inside her screamed as he leaned back on his haunches with a face-splitting grin. She knew she couldn’t just start running. He was clearly faster and stronger than her. If she had any chance, it would be to attack him with something first. Catch him by surprise to give herself a head start. Only the pockets of her fleece were completely empty save for some lint, and it seemed that Bellmoral had taken every stick from the clearing.

As he continued to stare at her, lips now stained with her blood, she tried to move her hands imperceptively on the ground in search of something she could use. Anything.

Her eyebrows jerked up as her fingers caught on the smooth edge of a rock. Just behind her back in front of the tree trunk she leaned on. She glanced up at Bellmoral’s face to see if he noticed, and maybe he did. His head was tilted to one side, his smile fallen from his face. Shit. She needed him distracted if she was going to do this. The more she felt around the rock she could tell that it was buried in the dirt — it was going to take time to dig it out without being able to look at it.

So no matter how much she didn’t want to, she started talking to Jeremiah Bellmoral.

“How did you — ?” She coughed to clear her throat, her voice sounding underused and horse. “Jake’s the Alpha…How’re you alive?”

“I am the Alpha!” Bellmoral roared as he pounded his fist into his chest, then he repeated, quieter. “I am the Alpha. Your mate…Was too weak to finish the job. Left me barely clinging to life — gave me these.”

He ran his fingers along the litany of raised scars on the left side of his face. Ronnie’s nails dug into the dirt around the cold stone.

“But it was enough for the power of the Alpha to go to him. No need to fret, no need to fret. I will be getting it back soon. The power that is rightfully mine, that is wasted on that ungrateful scum.”

This made Ronnie pause, even as she continued to dig out the rock. It was bigger than she first thought. Good.

“How’re you going to take it back if Jake and Bradley are going to kill each other?” she asked.

Bellmoral shook his head at her. “I really thought you were supposed to be smart. You know — you know — I read a few pages of that little book of yours. What did you call it? The Blue River Pack: A Werewolf History?”

A shiver ran down her spine, her blood turned cold. He had been in her house. In her room. Without anyone noticing. She dug into the dirt just a little bit faster, the scrape of her nails more frantic.

“So — So tell me what you wrote, about the Spirit of the Alpha.”

“It’s — It’s the embodiment of werewolf strength and power. It grants the wolf with the ability to hold control over the Betas in their pack and — and turn humans into werewolves with a single bite,” Ronnie explained quietly, eyes trained on Bellmoral’s filthy boots. “It was given as a blessing and a curse to Augustine Bradshaw and it’s passed down from firstborn to firstborn. Or taken in a challenge.”

“But-But, have you ever thought about what would happen if an Alpha were to die with no firstborns…And no challenge won?” Ronnie’s brow furrowed as Bellmoral crawled closer to her. “You see, your family isn’t the only one with ancient texts left for the generations to follow. I found that if that were to happen — the Alpha Spirit then goes into the wolf most worthy of its power. Called a True Alpha, because-because they received the power without birthright or fight.”

The rock finally broke free of the dirt. Ronnie had to resist the noise of success she longed to make. It was as wide as her palm, flat and sharp. The ridge dug into the fingers of her left hand. Finally.

She adjusted her grip on the stone as she said, “So when Jake and Brad kill each other over me…The Alpha Spirit will go to you?”

“See, there you go.” Bellmoral smiled as he gestured at her, both palms turned towards the sky — a few raindrops slipping through the foliage to land on the pale skin. “Now you’re getting it. The Spirit, the power, is mine. By birthright and by the divine. The Moon Goddess…Chose me for a reason. All of this — these six months of torment and your mate running wild — was just a test. Soon, what is mine will be mine again. And you…Veronica Bradshaw…”

She pushed herself back against the tree as he reached for her. As his hand wrapped around her throat.

“Will be able to do nothing but sit back and watch as your life gets torn apart. But really you won’t be able to blame me. They killed each other after all…And maybe…You’ll find some comfort in my embrace when this is through.”

Ronnie screamed as she lifted the stone and brought it down hard onto Bellmoral’s head. He made a sound of surprise as he fell back, his grip on her throat disappearing as he clutched his bleeding face. As soon as he was out of her line of sight, she scrambled up from the ground and took off at a sprint.

White spots danced in her vision but she didn’t care. She needed to get away. Get somewhere safe, find Jake or Brad and explain what was going on. This wasn’t how she wanted any of this to go down. But none of that mattered anymore when lives were at stake. She couldn’t let Bellmoral’s plans come to fruition. Even if that meant telling her brother in the worst way possible that she was mated to his rival.

But she barely made it past the edge of the clearing before Bellmoral tackled her to the ground. All the air was forced out of her lungs as she hit the hard earth with a thud, Bellmoral’s entire weight on her back as she struggled and writhed to get away. She managed to roll over onto her back, the rock she had managed to hold tightly in her left fist raised to hit him again. But Bellmoral had learned his lesson. He grabbed her wrist with a snarl and squeezed until there was an audible pop. Ronnie cried out as a sharp pain went down her left arm, fingers falling limp and the stone plummeting with them.

“You are proving to be — “ Bellmoral rose to his feet, leaving Ronnie stunned on the ground, holding what was surely a broken wrist lightly. “More trouble than you’re worth, Veronica Bradshaw.”

He took hold of the front of her fleece and began dragging her back into the clearing. She struggled feebly, booted feet digging into the dirt as she repeated: “No, no, no!”

She gasped as Bellmoral suddenly yanked her to her feet before him, lifting her until only her tip-toes were touching as he bared his sharp fangs at her. The stone's mark on his forehead and face was already beginning to heal. She whimpered, bottom lip trembling as she tried to lean away from him.

“Maybe I should just rip out your throat.” This only made her struggle more, feet scrambling for purchase as her uninjured hand scratched at his forearm. “Leave you here for Jake and your brother to find. Fighting over your dead body will surely end in the same result.”

“No,” she sobbed softly as she tasted the salt of her own tears on her lips.

Bellmoral perked up, ear turned towards the west. Then he turned back to her with a grin. “Your mate approaches — drawn by your call.”

He set her down on her feet and retracted his hand. She wobbled unsteadily, broken wrist cradled against her chest. Her stomach heaved as reality set in. She couldn’t stop this. Jake was so close that Bellmoral could hear him. Bradley was surely not far behind. His plan was in motion and there was no stopping it.

“If you try to warn him, I will attack…And he’ll watch as I finally get a real taste of your blood.”

After that, he disappeared into the woods. Leaving Ronnie trembling in the middle of the clearing, unshed tears blurring her vision. She could still hear the rain. Pattering against the canopy, rare drops landed softly on her skin. Mixing with the dried blood on her face. She stared out at the trees infinite before her, like a silent audience to her tragedy. Bystanders who just stood there and watched as everything fell apart. No warning. No guidance.

Just silence.

For a moment, Ronnie wanted to scream. It expanded in her chest and filled her throat until there was nothing left to do but open her maw and unleash her shriek upon the world. Her defiance. Her pain. Her call for justice. Her call to a goddess of the moon who had now joined the audience. Who seemed to withhold all Her blessings from a daughter who sat on the fringes of the world She resided over. But the scream got caught in her throat. Threatened to strangle her as she screwed her eyes shut, tears pouring down her cheeks. She gasped and gurgled around it as she fell to her knees.

Do something, she pleaded to the trees, to the goddess above.

Just silence.

Through blurred vision, she saw a large, golden wolf break through the treeline. Despite everything, the fear and the pain of her injuries, relief flooded her veins at the sight of him. Released from her in a sob as Jake shifted before her. Behind him, the rest of Red Sky followed after — noses upturned as they sniffed out anything suspicious.

“Jake!” she cried as he came to his knees before her.

They crashed into each other like tectonic plates that formed entire mountain ranges. He pulled her into his chest with an arm around her shoulders, his other hand threaded into the tangled hairs on the back of her head — holding her to him with that gentle strength. His heart was beating erratically, his shoulders heaved as he assured himself that she was there. His hands snaked under her layers of clothes to feel her bare skin, clammy against his warm palms.

But then she hissed in pain when her wrist bent only slightly and he pulled back to look at her. He inspected her wrist first, eyes still glowing that deep crimson of the Alpha as he touched the delicate bones gently. The flesh was already beginning to swell and turn red. Then he looked up into her face, fingers trailing along the edge of her jaw coated in dried blood. He took in the state of her. The claw marks on her face, the tear streaks in the dirt coating her cheeks. And she watched as his expression darkened. As his lip curled and that crease formed between his brows.

“Who did this to you?” he whispered, voice trembling with barely there restraint.

“I…” For a moment, she considered telling him the truth anyway. Anything to save him, to save everyone. But then she saw Bellmoral’s white eyes flash somewhere in the distance just over Jake’s shoulder and she relented. “It doesn’t matter right now. Can we just go, please?”

“No, we’re gonna find whoever did this.” Jake looked over his shoulder at his pack. “Fan out, they couldn’t’ve gotten far.”

The pack trotted into the trees and Ronnie desperately wanted to call out to them to stop. But she couldn’t. Bellmoral was out there somewhere. And how could she explain without telling the truth, without giving some warning?

Jake helped her get back to her feet tenderly. And as soon as she was stable, he wrapped her up in his arms again, pressing firm kisses into the top of her head. She sagged against him, let him take the brunt of her weight. If only for a moment. The danger was still real and ever-present, but she needed just a moment. A moment of respite, a moment to think, even. She needed to find a way to save Jake, save Bradley, and save herself. But how could she? She was just one person, one unpowered, unsupernatural person.

“S’okay, little one, I’ve got you,” Jake whispered as he ran his hand up and down the length of her aching spine.

It was only a few hours ago that she would have given anything to be with him. But now the only safe place for him was miles away from her.

“Jake…” She pulled weakly away from his chest. “Take me home, please.”

Wherever home was. The hostel? The house in Marnmouth? It didn’t matter as long as he got both of them out of there.

“Okay, if that’s what you want, Ronnie,” he replied.

“Please.”

She couldn’t help the urgency that slipped into her tone, making Jake pause as he looked down at her. It was hard for mates to hide things from one another. He knew her in a way no one else could. There was something, deep inside, that revealed her truest feelings to him. Being only human, it was something she couldn’t experience herself — that connection to him. Her father described the bond once as a place in his heart that was solely Carole, that whispered to him what she needed and what she felt. Ronnie was sure Jake could feel the anxiety roiling around inside her, the urgency, the horror.

“Who did this — ?” Jake started to ask, but was interrupted by the sound of yelping in the trees.

He turned, holding Ronnie behind him as the pack ran back into the clearing.

Closely followed by the entirety of Blue River — absolutely massive in comparison to Red Sky — Bradley at the lead with his lips pulled back in a vicious snarl. Jake’s grip on her tightened and for a moment, she was frozen.

God, this wasn’t how she wanted this to happen at all.

Bradley skidded to a halt. He looked so much like their father in wolf form. Deep chocolate brown, with no fur growing from the pink scars that littered his face and neck. Pete and Bob were hot on his heels, Bob towering above all the other wolves in the clearing. Pretty soon, all of Red Sky was corralled and surrounded on all sides by Blue River wolves.

And Ronnie never felt so hopeless. She promised they wouldn’t get attacked again. But it was because of her that this was happening. If she had just told Bradley sooner. If she just wasn’t a coward. None of this would be happening.

Over Jake’s shoulder, his grip on her waist tight, she watched as Bradley shifted back into human form. His cheeks were bright pink, his eyes fiery red as he approached the two of them with stomping steps.

“Get the fuck away from my sister, Red Sky!”

Bradley spat the pack name like an insult. Jake stood his ground, his arm tightening around her with a low growl. But Bradley wasn’t going to stand for it. She could see his perspective clearly. Entering the scene to see his sister bleeding and hurt, in the presence of the rival Alpha. The wildcard. The threat. It was only logical that he would jump to the conclusion that Jake had done this to her.

Bellmoral’s plan was working perfectly.

Bradley collided with Jake, his growl loud and menacing, and it all happened in a blur. One second she was standing behind Jake, his touch affirming and strong against her, and the next she was falling back.

On instinct, she reached to catch herself. Then she felt the already fractured bones in her wrist crunch and she shouted, gargled and broken in her throat. It hurt all the way up to her elbow, like a freshly forged knife was dragged along the nerves. Ronnie let herself fall back onto the pine needles with another cry of pain, right hand cradling her left against her chest as her head swam with nothing but white-hot agony. The canopy of leaves above shifted and swirled as her mind fought the pain, her stomach swooping.

“Ronnie!” she heard Jake call as she willed herself to stay awake, to grit her teeth and bare it. “Get out of my way!”

Bellmoral was watching, somewhere in the distance. In the back of her mind, she wondered how he was able to cover his scent from all the werewolves present. Not a single one of them, even the ones who would be familiar, seemed to know that he was anywhere near them. He was watching and waiting and puffing up with pride at the way it was all falling into place.

She needed to get up. She needed to stop this. But it fucking hurt. Everywhere. All at once.

Ronnie couldn’t let that happen. She just couldn’t. It didn’t matter that she was just human. That everything hurt. That she had no power and no strength. It was all up to her now. Even with a broken wrist and so much fear.

Rolling onto her good side, she pushed herself up onto her elbow, forcing herself to move despite the discomfort.

Bradley was pushing Jake back, away from Ronnie. Just another thing that was going exceptionally well for Jeremiah Bellmoral. She was injured. Jake was her mate, her Alpha, and Bradley was getting in the way. He was keeping Jake from protecting her, comforting her, helping her. He didn’t know it, but he was pouring gasoline on an open fire that was already more than willing to burn the world down to get to her.

Ronnie sat up completely, gasping when she noticed that she was starting to lose feeling in her hand. That couldn’t be good. Reuben and Mickey knelt down on either side of her, keeping her upright with gentle hands on her back.

Jake’s roar echoed through the trees; Ronnie felt it ring her soul like an ancient bell. And when she looked up, he was shifted into his wolf form. His hackles raised as he stared her brother down with eyes red as blood. Bradley muttered something about killing him for hurting his sister, then he too shifted back into his wolf form. This was the first time she had seen them together. She knew Jake was smaller than Bradley, not by much, but he was leaner — muscles well attuned to fighting rippling beneath his golden fur.

Ronnie knew that Bradley had never fought another wolf in his entire life — not for real. But he was bound to be stronger than Jake with the size of his pack. Every Beta under his control giving him strength. Something that he more than doubled Jake with.

“No! Stop! Please!” she shrieked as she tried to get to her feet.

To get between them somehow, make them stop. But as soon as she knelt on the ground, one foot planted to propel her into the impending fight, a set of muscular arms circled around her waist and lifted her off the ground. She shouted as she struggled against their strong grip, her mind turned to the worst. Bellmoral forcing her to watch. But when she looked back, it was Jake’s second-in-command, Javy, pulling her away to safety.

He dragged her back just in time.

Jake lunged at Bradley first. Growls, barks, roars, and the snapping of great teeth filled the air. It was a haze of gold and brown fur as they moved around the clearing. Rolling and biting and clawing at one another. None of the other wolves attacked, knowing that this was a fight between the two Alphas and the Alphas alone.

Ronnie went limp in Javy’s arms, heart seized in her chest — refusing to pump her precious lifeblood to the rest of her body. It was happening. She wasn’t able to stop it. She really would just sit back and watch as her life was torn apart. As her brother and her mate killed each other over what they thought was the right thing, over her.

She could see, across the clearing, that Dylan and Natasha were trying to get to her. Get her away from Red Sky and back where she belonged. But they were stopped by Pete and Bob, and for a moment she was grateful. And looking over, she saw that she was surrounded by her pack.

Her pack. Not her family’s pack. Not her ancestor’s pack. Not her legacy’s pack. Her pack. Her own.

And it was up to her to save it. Just her in her human strength. In her human wit. In maybe her kindness and truth. Her father always said she was human for a reason. And maybe this was it.

Suddenly, a yelp echoed sharp and clear through the canopy.

Jake lay on the ground, his great wolf body heaving with the effort to breathe. Bradley stepped back from his prone form, posture proud. Ronnie heard the sob she released before she even registered that it was her that made the noise. Wrenched violently from her throat like a rusted nail from stubborn wood. An answer to her mate’s cry of agony.

Bradley turned to her with a shake of his head, looking nearly surprised when he saw her crowded on all sides by Red Sky wolves instead of Blue River. Jake still lay on the ground, soft whines escaping him as he pawed at the earth. He looked like he was about to get up, lips pulled back from his sharp white teeth as another Alpha looked at his pack.

The strong arms holding her back released her before she even had to tell them to. Ronnie walked slowly into the clearing, her own injuries forgotten — numb — as she padded across the pine needles. The rain was coming down harder now. More drops slipped through the foliage to wet her cheeks, make her tears disappear with them. The wind howled through the trees. Its own wolf’s call.

Bradley looked expectant. He thought she would come to him, thank him for saving her, and tell him to take her home. But she didn’t. She walked right past him without sparing a second glance. His massive, furry head turned to follow her movement with a noise of confusion.

Everything felt so slow, as she walked up to Jake’s massive golden form. A single red eye followed her as she knelt down by his head. There was a large gash that started at his neck and went down to his chest, rendering the muscles of his shoulder asunder. Crimson blood poured out onto the ground, but she could see that the wound was already healing. Ronnie placed her good hand on his face and he stilled, his breathing less ragged as he pawed gently at her leg.

“It’s okay, my Alpha,” she whispered softly as she stroked his furry face. “We’re okay. You and me.”

Behind her, Bradley growled with a stamp of his massive paw.

Pete took a step closer, speaking calmly and clearly as he said, “He wants to know what’s going on.”

“Can you stand?” Ronnie asked, hand hovering over Jake’s gaping wound.

He huffed but lifted his head. And, as Ronnie slowly rose back to her feet, so did Jake. He had to hold up his front left paw so as not to put any weight on it, and she found it fitting as she held her left hand against her stomach. Bradley growled again, insistent and impatient.

But any of the agitations on his wolfish face disappeared once Ronnie turned to face him. A sad, understanding sort of smile tugged at her cracked lips.

“We’re mated, Brad.” She didn’t fumble for words, she didn’t even feel any fear as she looked directly into her brother’s chocolate brown fur and beaming red eyes. “And I accepted him — because I love him.”

A hush fell over the world. Nothing but the sounds of rain and Jake’s labored breathing filled the air.

“I knew as soon as he walked into the tavern that night. But I — I was scared to tell you. I almost rejected him I was so scared. And…And I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. That I let it go this far. I just — I didn’t want you to hurt them.” She looked over to Red Sky, huddled together like Roman soldiers ready to take on attack, and when she looked back to her brother, she couldn’t help the way her chin quivered. “I didn’t want you to hate me.”

Jake moved in closer to her side, now able to put weight on his leg, albeit gingerly. She felt his blood-matted fur brush against her shoulder and it brought her some comfort. Even as she stared into Bradley’s shocked wolf face. Felt the eyes of every Blue River wolf trained solely on her.

“But I…He was chosen for me by powers beyond our control. At first, I didn’t understand it. Why we would be mated. But I — I choose him, now. I-I irrevocably choose him. Over Blue River. Over the packs’ history. Even over you. Even if you hate me. Because I love him. And I belong with him.

“So if you’re gonna kill him.” Ronnie took one step forward, placing herself between Bradley and Jake. “You’re gonna have to go through me first.”

Just silence.

The audience was gathered to witness the final tragedy. The unhappy ending. Antigone’s brother left unburied and her betrothed doomed to death for his father’s mistakes. The trees, the goddess, the wolves wait on bated breath for the news to come to the hard-hearted king. Everyone is dead, and he would be left to live out the rest of his days praying for the end.

But then applause resounded before the tragedy was finished. A continuous, monotonous, clap clap clap from somewhere deep in the trees.

Ronnie’s heart dropped into her stomach. She reached out to Jake and tangled her fingers in his fur, gripping the golden strands tight. She had nearly forgotten he was hiding in the forest, waiting for his plan to unfold. But she had just thrown a wrench in it, brought it to a screeching nearly-driving-off-the-road halt. There was no telling what he was going to do now. And that terrified her more than anything else. The unpredictability of a man driven mad by the power passed on to him by his ancestors.

Jake curled his body around her as the clapping got closer, as a gentle, hollow chuckle harmonized along.

“Leave it to you, Veronica Bradshaw, to find some way to ruin my plans!” His voice echoed through the trees, distorted, like it was coming from everywhere and nowhere. “The key — you were supposed to be the key!”

“Ronnie, what the hell is this?” Pete asked as he looked around for the source of the voice.

“I — “ she tried to explain.

But Bellmoral cut her off. Somewhere in the trees. His wailing an echo and an answer.

“No! This wasn’t how this was supposed to go! We were going to be okay you and I…After you saw the light. After you saw that I was right all along. He was never meant to have it. It was always supposed to be mine. Which-which meant that you were always supposed to be mine, too. Don’t you see? Veronica?”

Jake pressed around her tighter, growl rumbling low in his throat as his lips curled back away from his teeth.

“And you…Jake Seresin. Ungrateful. Arrogant. Unworthy. I gave you everything. I gave you that family you always wanted, that belonging. On top of that, I gave you a power that you could never even dream of. And what did you do? You spat in my face! You danced on my grave — or at least, what you thought was my grave.”

Bellmoral laughed, the sound ricocheting through the trees — making the few birds that had stuck around take off into the rain-filled sky. Jake went rigid around her, ears flat against his head that was tilted low to the ground. Nearly every hair on his massive body stood on end. Ronnie looked over at the small Red Sky pack as she placed a reassuring hand on Jake’s shoulder. Every single one of them was pale, eyes wide as they stared out into the trees. Like they were encountering a ghost.

Their greatest horror. One they thought was long behind them.

Bellmoral stepped into the clearing with a smile on his face and a tilt of his head. Ronnie could feel, as Jake somehow wound his body around her tighter, shielding her from Bellmoral, that every muscle inside him was wound tight. Ready to snap. Ready to fight or fly or stand paralyzed before the monster who had done nothing but destroy his life, mar and kill those that he loved. She pressed her hand more firmly into him. Jake relaxed only slightly beneath her touch.

“Ronnie, who is this guy?” Pete asked as the Blue River wolves fanned out, each golden set of eyes trained on this new threat.

“Jeremiah Bellmoral,” she answered, voice shaking despite the strength she wanted to show; for Jake and Red Sky.

“A pleasure to meet you all, truly.” He looked around at the Blue River wolves with that Cheshire-cat grin. “I’ve been watching you for months and can I just say…You’re a mess. A mess that I sought to clean up.”

“It’s over, Bellmoral. Enough,” Ronnie snapped, a grimace pulling at her lips and brow.

Bellmoral jerked his head over to look at her, white eyes of the Omega shining. “Is it? Now more than ever — it’s clear to see that the Bradshaw line needs to be broken. I mean just look at him.”

He gestured wildly at Bradley, his skeletal face pulled back in some expression like he was looking at a puppy with only three legs. Doomed to fall and fail as it teetered around the yard. Almost sympathetic, almost pitying. But there was a hidden malice, a rushing river just beneath the ice. The Blue River Alpha stiffened under the sudden attention, head raised and red eyes unblinking as he stared Bellmoral down.

“I can practically see the silver spoon between his teeth. What has he worked for? For what has he toiled? Fought for? I know that — “ Bellmoral turned to look at Jake with lips pulled back into a smirk — whether it was at what he was about to say or the way the Alpha nearly flinched away from him Ronnie couldn’t tell. “Jake would agree with me. I heard you talking about him. It really is not fair. All Bradley had to do was wait for his dear papa to die, and then he got all that power, all those Betas, all that respect! While you, Jake, you had to fight tooth and nail for scraps.

“Little Bradley here has everything he could ever want — and when you want just one thing? His little sister as your own — as the Moon Goddess has ordained? He can’t bare it. He throws a tantrum. He blinds himself to the signs that were there! He refuses to see what was so clear.”

He turned on Bradley, taking a step closer as he roared, “How did you not see it, Bradshaw? How did you not know that your own sister had found her mate? Even I could feel it coming off her the moment she stepped out of that tavern four weeks ago! Sickeningly sweet and bright as the moon! Is it because you would rather keep your sister at a distance, keep her on the outside looking in? You would rather deny her any sense of belonging than let her leave your control — find her own place in this world.”

Bradley snarled and snapped his teeth, great paws digging into the ground as he lowered his head at Bellmoral. Ronnie could see it, however — see the river beneath the ice, the malice under the pity. This was Bellmoral’s backup plan. Pull at all of Bradley’s strings until he attacked, playing him like a fiddle, or a harp, or some other instrument that could very well snap from misuse. And she knew her brother. Knew that those words would reach something at the core of him, touch all his insecurities and make him lash out in some attempt to defend his hurt pride.

It was something she had done before, in their youth. When she really wanted to hurt him but knew she stood no chance against him physically. It was always in that way that siblings do. When she would say something so scathing, and then in the next hour walk close beside him to the corner store for snacks. Then at school the next day when someone said something behind his back she would threaten to knock their lights out.

She wanted to defend him now. Even after all he had done, all he had said. Even if, maybe, Bellmoral was even right. That didn’t matter. Because he was her brother. Her family. Her flesh and blood, with eyes that matched her own and a smile just like her father’s.

“Brad, don’t listen — “

But it was too late. Bradley roared before he dove at Bellmoral, who shifted into his wolf form in an instant. Prepared and ready for Bradley’s attack. Bellmoral’s wolf was nearly as big as Bob — but he was malnourished. His bones stuck out at odd angles, his once brilliant grey fur now matted and balding in places. His white eyes shown great and terrible as his teeth sunk into Bradley’s shoulder.

Ronnie cried out as Jake moved her away from the fight. Shoved her back as gently as he could until she was amongst the other Red Sky wolves. Mickey took her shoulder and pulled her in closer, his fingers dug into the spot where Bellmoral’s teeth had held her and she hissed against the pain. Everything hurt. Her shoulder, her hip, her wrist, her face, her heart. Maybe her heart most of all. It weighed heavy in her chest, spilled into her lungs, making it hard to breathe as she watched Bellmoral pin her brother into the dirt.

Bradley and Bellmoral grappled, teeth clacking and bodies rolling around on the ground. Blue River could do nothing but watch. A fight against their Alpha meant they couldn’t intervene. It would mean that they thought their leader weak, and none of them thought that of Bradley. None of them ever could.

Especially Ronnie. And despite everything, a sob left her lips as Bradley yelped. A sound she knew so well, a sound she had heard throughout her life. Bellmoral had him pinned down by the throat, Bradley’s paws moving feebly to try and get him off. Ronnie took a step forward before she even realized she was moving, but Mickey and Reuben held her back.

She remembered a time when they were as close as could be. When they would sit together on the roof of the pack house and watch the full moon with a kind of longing adventures were born from. When they would ride their bikes to school together. When he let her ride on his back through the woods. When they fought and forgave and hugged and cried and screamed and laughed. But then she went away to college and he stayed put. Then she stopped calling back home as much and he only texted when he needed something. Then she didn’t come home the last two summers, opting to find work in Seattle instead. Then when she graduated and moved back home, she didn’t move back into the family house. She took the hunting cabin their dad had built years ago.

A rift chipped away at both sides. A symptom of growing up. Of wanting different things. Of being different things.

But he was her brother. She was born knowing him. She was born loving him.

“Jake,” she called softly before she could put more thought behind her words. His giant golden head turned to look at her instantly. “Help him…Please.”

He stared at her for a moment. And she could see his reaction written all over his face. The fear at fighting Bellmoral again. The defiance at helping the wolf who moments ago wanted him dead. He was still bleeding, the wound Bradley gave him healing at a slower rate, he could barely put any weight on his leg. Ronnie glanced over his golden shoulder to see that Bradley had stopped struggling, Bellmoral’s lips pulled back as he watched the life drain from him — as he took Bradley’s death slowly.

Ronnie looked back to her mate with a pleading quiver in her lip. “Please.”

Jake turned to the losing battle.

And then he roared.

Bellmoral looked up just in time for Jake to tackle him off of Bradley’s prone form. The previous Alpha of Red Sky stared down the one who usurped him, pale grey head hung low and eyes glowing white. They may have been talking to one another, but Ronnie couldn’t hear a thing. Only Bradley’s hacking as he got back to his feet. Jake and Bellmoral met with a furious growl, raised up on their back legs as they swiped at one another. But Jake was clearly weakened, his shoulder refusing to heal. He landed back on all fours with a yap of pain. But he had gotten his claws into Bellmoral’s face. The grey wolf staggered back as he shook his head, trying to clear the blood from his vision.

Then Bradley came to stand at Jake’s side.

A laugh seemed to spill from Bellmoral’s red lips as he looked at them. The Alphas of two packs who had been warring for centuries. Standing together just to defeat him once and for all. Ronnie wondered, as she leaned against Mickey for support, if he was beginning to worry. If he was beginning to regret.

It didn’t seem like it as he charged at them.

He swiped at Jake as he went for Bradley’s throat with his teeth. But even wounded, the two Alphas together were too fast and too strong for him. In what felt like only an instant Bradley had Bellmoral pinned down at his waist. And Jake had his jaw clamped tight around the grey wolf’s neck.

Then Jake began to pull.

Bellmoral screamed.

And with one final yank, the grey wolf was ripped in two.

Jake arched up with the force of it, up onto his back paws as he pulled the top half of his body free. Leaving behind limp legs and entrails spilling out. Blood sprayed in every direction. Ronnie felt the warmth of it on her face as she stared wide-eyed at the scene before her. Jake spat out Bellmoral’s mauled neck. Bradley got off the rest of the body with a huff.

Ronnie slumped against Mickey completely. A relief-soaked sob echoing in her throat as he steadied her. When she looked back up, Jake and Bradley were shifted back into their human forms. Their shoulders working as they breathed, as they stared down at the body at their feet. Bellmoral was back in his human form as well — shifted one last time in the Goddess’ mercy so they couldn’t be caught in death — torso separated from his legs. Eyes staring unblinkingly at the grey sky. Mouth still pulled back in a smile.

Bradley nodded, a subtle curt thing, at Jake and he nodded back. A thank you. An acceptance.

It was over. It was finally over. Red Sky was truly free. Maybe it wasn’t a tragedy after all. Maybe there was still hope.

A fractured wrist, the bones now held in place to heal back together by a thick plastic brace. Deep muscle bruising to the shoulder and hip. Four gashes to the face, one requiring stitches and the rest held together with medical glue.

They told the doctors it was a mountain biking accident. That she was thrown from her bike when she snagged on a root. That they got her to the hospital as quickly as they could, seeing as they were pretty deep on the trail. Everybody believed it. Nobody even gave it a second thought. The injuries lined up.

And it wasn’t like they would have believed the truth anyway.

Ronnie was discharged around eleven at night with a pain medication ready to be picked up at the local pharmacy by morning, instructions to take it easy for a few days, and teasing remarks about being more careful on those biking trails. She smiled and thanked everyone for their help as she left, Jake’s arm secure around her waist.

Blue River was waiting for them out in the parking lot. Gathered around their vehicles and sipping on beers that wouldn’t inebriate them in the slightest. They all perked up as the Red Sky Alpha and his new Luna approached.

Natasha was the first to meet them — an overnight bag clutched in her fist.

“Figured you might want some of your clothes,” she said as she handed the bag off to Jake.

“Thanks, Nat,” Ronnie replied with a tired smile.

She could see that her friend wanted to say more, but she kept glancing at Jake. Nervously shifting from one foot to the other under the weight of the power he put off. Ronnie gave his hip a squeeze as she looked up into his firmly set expression.

“Go wait in the truck, okay?” she suggested quietly, and at his hesitance to leave her, she reassured him with another squeeze. “I’ll be okay. Just a few minutes.”

Jake pulled away from her reluctantly with a curt nod. Then he stalked off towards his truck parked haphazardly in the spot closest to the door. Natasha instantly relaxed once he was gone.

“Does — Does this really mean you have to leave?” Natasha asked softly.

She refused to look Ronnie in the eye. Hands shoved in her back pockets. The tears caught in her dark eyes reflected in the fluorescent light of the parking lot. It felt like Ronnie’s ribs were too tight as she reached for her friend — but then retracted her hand. Natasha caught it anyway, reflexes fast as she snatched Ronnie’s fingers in her strong grip. She gave a reassuring squeeze as Ronnie took a shuddering breath.

“If I could stay, if I could keep both packs, I would. You know I would,” Ronnie replied, eyes focused on their joined hands. “But I can’t. Red Sky is my pack now.”

“I wish…I wish you would’ve told me.”

Ronnie looked up at her then, at her rosy cheeks and soft little nose, at her dark hair slicked back into a bun and that sad look in her eyes. Reasons pricked at the very tip of Ronnie’s tongue. It all happened so fast. Everyone was showing animosity towards Red Sky. The less people that knew before Bradley found out, the better. But they all died in her mouth, turned to ash, to something sour. None of that mattered. Natasha was her friend. They grew up together. They worked together. Natasha always had, and always would be, a confidant and an ally. Everything would have been so much easier with Natasha at her side, so much lighter — someone to share the load. Tears gathered at the corners of Ronnie’s eyes as she squeezed her friend’s hand tight.

“Me too.”

“I knew that something was off.” Then she laughed lightly. “I thought it was because of Bob…”

Ronnie laughed too.

“I’m sorry that I didn’t say anything, Nat.”

The dark-haired she-wolf shook her head. “None of us made it easy, but…He’s your mate, ya know? And a really fine one at that, like, Jesus Christ.”

They both laughed now. Little chuckles accompanied by shakes of their heads as Ronnie smoothed her thumb over the back of Natasha’s hand. The tears welled up anew, her chin quivering as she looked at her friend. At her friend from this point forward she wouldn’t see nearly every single day. It was all so eerily similar to when Ronnie went off to college. They knew they would still be friends after this. Still connected. But it was going to be different from then on. Morphed into something else. Something more distant. Something more nostalgic rather than present.

“I’m really gonna miss you,” Ronnie said, voice wavering as her tears fell.

“M’gonna miss you too.”

Natasha pulled her into a tight hug, but minded her injuries. Then the friends parted, and over Natasha’s shoulder, Ronnie caught Bradley’s intense gaze from further down the parking lot. Natasha gave her hand one last squeeze before letting go of her completely.

Bradley was leaning against the back bumper of his Bronco. Arms crossed and body cleaned of the blood he had spilled. Bob and Pete stood on either side of him. His face betrayed no emotion, and that was somehow worse as Ronnie approached him. If he looked mad she could prepare for that. If he looked sad she could prepare for that too. But that neutral expression on his face, that blank stare, was nearly painful to her.

Pete met her first. She could see the tears clinging to his lashes just before he pulled her in for a hug. It felt like being hugged by her father. She clung to him tighter, buried her face in his neck as he felt his tears wet her shoulder. He pulled away, and Bob was standing behind him. The bespeckled wolf fidgeted with the edge of his flannel as he flashed her a tight smile. Ronnie smiled at him too. Knowing that Jake was watching, that he was still on edge, she reached out and patted Bob’s shoulder as she passed. Hoping that it would tell him just how grateful she was for all that he had done for her. Bob and Pete moved along, opting to talk with some of the other wolves, when Ronnie finally stood before her brother.

There could have been an entire canyon between them, not just that tiny strip of cracked concrete. An entire continent. An entire ocean. Standing face to face with Bradley now, she never felt further away. She wanted to be close to him again. Like when they were kids and adventure was just around the corner. But she didn’t know if this was a canyon that could ever be crossed. A continent that could ever be charted. An ocean that could ever be tamed.

Bradley finally broke the silence. “You okay?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Ronnie coughed, held up her braced wrist for a moment. “I’m okay. Just…Really tired.”

Just silence. Was this the tragedy she had been waiting for?

“Bellmoral was right you know,” he muttered, eyes focused on the way his boot scuffed against the concrete. “About keeping you on the outside…Keeping you under my control.”

She took a half step forward, longing to comfort, but unsure if she could. “Brad — “

“Don’t try n’ deny it, Ronnie. You know it’s true, too. S’just — “ He huffed, uncrossing his arms to shove his hands in his jean pockets. He opened and closed his mouth a few times, eyebrows furrowed as he searched for the words. “First it was Mom. Then Tom…And then Dad. I guess…I just didn’t want you to leave me.”

He looked up into her face then and there were tears in his eyes. Ronnie tried to swallow around the lump that had suddenly formed in her throat. She felt her tears flowing freely down her cheeks, surely wetting the fresh bandages that had been put over her cuts.

“Fuck. M’sorry. For all of it,” he said.

Then she crashed into him like a head-on collision. Her arms around his middle tight as she pulled him into her. As she buried her face in his chest. As she wept openly, like sorrow and relief all at once. He was stiff beneath her touch for a moment. Only a moment. And then Bradley caved in. Released. Melted into her hold. His own thick arms wrapped around her shoulder tight, his lips pressed into her hairline. The ocean had been crossed. The continent trekked over. The canyon closed together. Somehow, he felt closer than ever before.

“You’re gonna be an amazing Luna, Ronnie Bradshaw,” he whispered to her as he continued to hold her, continued to love her. “You were born for it. Leading. Helping. More than I ever was.”

She managed to blubber out between sobs. “We’re children of wolf kings.”

It was what their father used to say at the end of pack meetings. On nights of the full moon. When he would sit them down and tell them stories about their ancestors. It was nearly a joke he said it so much. But now that he was gone, they came to some solemn understanding of the power behind it. The faith. The strength. The history.

They were children of wolf kings. Destined for crowns that neither of them thought they could bare.

Prying herself away from him, Ronnie sniffed back the snot that had clogged her nose and wiped tenderly at her cheeks — making sure to avoid her bandages. Bradley quickly swiped at his own face, looking around to make sure no one saw him. It made her smile.

“Where’re you guys gonna go?” he asked, hands back in his pockets.

“The hunting cabin,” she answered, “We sent a few wolves ahead to get it ready.”

Bradley looked at her for a moment, a smile ticking up the corner of his mustache. “You really love him?”

“I know it sounds crazy. I barely even know him.”

“God.” He shook his head as he laughed, something like realization on his face. “You really do love him.”

“I do.”

They hugged again. And then Ronnie turned away. It felt final. It felt terrifying. It felt like walking into darkness and into the unknown. What was out there? What awaited her in the shadows, around the corners, just over the hill? What was in store for her in a world without her family at her side and an entire life to start over?

But then Jake.

Jake stood beneath the yellow light of the parking lot. Hands in the pockets of his jeans as he leaned against the side of his old beat-up truck. He smiled softly at her as she approached. He was her guiding light. Her steady shore. Her foundation and her architect. It didn’t matter what waited for her as long as he was there. He would be with her through everything.

Her mate. Her Alpha. Her love.

She fell asleep on the drive and Jake carried her inside.

The a-frame cabin was small, but nice. Jake smiled as he kicked the door shut quietly behind him. The space was so incredibly Ronnie. There were maps and pictures from her world travels hanging on the walls. With no space for bookshelves with the slanted ceilings, there were tall stacks of paperbacks and hardcovers lining the wall by the couch. Candles were scattered about that had been relit — unscented because they gave her headaches.

“Where’s the bed, little one?” Jake asked as he walked further inside, noting the small hallway further back and the short set of stairs that led up to the loft.

“Upstairs,” she muttered, voice laced with sleep.

Her eyes were barely held open. She felt heavy in his arms, though his muscles didn’t strain. The only thing that kept her awake was the way Jake’s heartbeat directly into her ear.

He carried her up the steps, careful not the jostle her too much as he came up into the loft where the slope of the roof was at its peak. Mickey and Reuben had made the bed, the linens freshly washed and warm as Jake laid Ronnie down in them. He pulled the soft blankets, flannel sheets and down-filled comforter, over her as she curled up on her side. Nearly like a cat. Her long, dark hair was still a tangled mess but she didn’t seem to care. She blinked up at him slowly. A soft, on-the-edge-of-dreams smile tugged at the corner of her mouth as she reached up and touched his cheek. Just the tips of her fingers, the majority of her hand covered by the thick brace. Still, Jake leaned into her touch with a grin of his own.

She hummed contentedly as Jake gently placed her hand back to rest at her side.

He pushed the few hairs that had fallen into her face out of the way, tucking them behind her ear. Never before had she felt so comfortable underneath a gaze so intense. He could look at her like that for hours and she would never feel the need to hide.

“Reuben said he left some clothes for me. I’ll be right back,” he said.

“I’ll wait for you,” Ronnie replied.

“You don’t have to — “

“I’ll wait for you,” she repeated, a bit more sternly, her eyebrows set in a way that nearly made Jake laugh.

The bed creaked as he rose from the edge and went back downstairs. Ronnie felt instantly colder without him there. Even though she was under the thick blankets and the heater hummed loudly in the background. Everything felt so heavy yet so weightless. Her eyelids slid shut despite her best efforts. Her body sunk further into the mattress; it felt like she was going to sink right through to the floor. But she was also floating. High up in the sky, above the trees, above the mountains. She was untethered as she teetered on the edge of sleep, detached, falling. Balanced on the edge of a knife.

But then the other side of the bed dipped. The covers pulled back for an instant and she shuddered at the sudden cold. But it was soon forgotten as Jake settled in behind her, pulled her back into his chest. He was so warm. She sighed deeply, some release, as she burrowed further back against him. His chuckle reverberated in her own ribcage. Jake was her anchor, her stake in the ground. Settling her in this plane of existence with a gentle grip around her waist and a soft kiss against her jaw.

Pure bliss. Sunshine incarnate. This was what it must have felt like to burn. Complete joy and complete belonging. This was where she was meant to be. Happily drowning in a golden ocean of pure warming sunlight, wrapped up in the citrus and bonfire scent of her mate. It was like looking into a grain silo on her grandmother’s farm. Mesmerized by the colors and suddenly falling in, surrounded by that earthy scent of wheat that lulled until dying didn’t sound so bad. But as she lay there, held and loved completely, she felt she was coming more alive.

“You love me?” Jake whispered into the place where her neck met her shoulder.

Ronnie, though half asleep, could hear the question bubbling like lava just beneath. You love me despite everything? You love me after what you watched me do? You love me injured and covered in blood and terrified?

“I think I always have.” She smoothed her fingers over the arm curled around her waist. “Even when I didn’t know you. I think I’ve been waiting my whole life for you.”

There was that calm confidence again. That assuredness the very foundations of the earth were made of.

“I feel like I’ve known you my whole life. Like I’ve loved you from the moment I started breathing, Ronnie.”

She smiled, a joyful noise humming in her throat, as sleep finally overcame her.

When she woke up, Ronnie wasn’t entirely sure it was morning. The sunlight streaming through the window above the bed was too bright, too powerful to be anything but brought on by midday. For a moment, she just basked in it. Too warm and too comfortable to move.

But the space beside her was empty. Cold.

As she rolled onto her back, her fingers trailed over the rustled sheets. The indent in the other pillow.

Was it all just a dream? The whole of it? Her father’s death. Going to live with Bradley while the dust settled. Finding her mate in the Alpha of Red Sky. She couldn’t decide if it was joy or sorrow that filled her heart at the possibility. To have her father back would be a joy beyond words. But to lose Jake to have him — that was a sorrow unmatched.

Then her broken bones screeched in a sudden pain that made her suck in a sharp breath. That was real. She lifted her braced hand to drape across her middle, fingers rubbing over the tough plastic in some attempt to soothe the discomfort. And if that was real — that injury, that hurt — then the rest of it was real too. It wasn’t just a dream. It was a beautiful, yet dimmed reality. Loss for gain. Her father was gone but that was okay. He might not have been around to take care of her anymore, but she had her mate now.

She had Jake now.

But where was he?

Ronnie sat up slowly, a soft noise of effort slipping from her lips as she pulled herself to sit up against the wall. Every muscle in her body felt tired, used up, and sore. It took some great effort, like Atlas willing himself to shrug with the weight of the world on his shoulders, just to get herself upright. She rubbed at the sleep that still clung to her lashes. Her tongue suddenly felt heavy and dry in her mouth, like it didn’t really belong there. Opening her mouth to flex her jaw, she looked over to Jake’s empty spot in bed again.

Where was he?

Somewhere inside, she knew he was close. He wasn’t too far.

But before she could will herself to get out from beneath the covers, Jake’s golden head of hair appeared as he came up the stairs. All the tension that had wound itself up in her shoulders suddenly relaxed at the sight of him.

His soft smile. That lock of dark blond hair that fell against his forehead. He looked comfortable. Wearing a pair of sweats and a waffle-knit long sleeve, the clothes that the pack must have brought. Ronnie was glad to see him out of the bloodied flannel he had been wearing the day before.

The smell of toast and eggs suddenly hit her and her stomach grumbled. He carried the breakfast, coffee, a glass of water, and her prescription bottle on the tray from her small dining table strictly used for decoration. But she didn’t mind in the slightest as he set the tray down in the spot he once occupied.

She opened her mouth to speak, but she could feel it. The way her throat gurgled with underuse and overuse at the same. The first noise of some greeting barely escaped before she was trying to clear her throat.

“Here,” Jake said as he snatched the glass of water from the tray.

He held it up to her lips as he sat down at the edge of the bed. She took it from him gratefully, taking a few sips to wet her throat. When she pulled the glass away, she smiled almost shyly at him.

“Hi.”

Her voice came out as a croak that made her wince.

But Jake didn’t seem to mind as he pushed her messy hair back away from her face. “Hey, little one.”

“How long was I out for?” she asked quietly, not trusting her voice to get any louder.

“About fourteen hours,” he replied as he reached over and grabbed the pill bottle from the tray. “It’s two in the afternoon.”

“Jesus — you should’ve woken me up.”

“No. You needed the rest. Still do.” He undid the cap and poured out two pills into his palm. “Take these, then I need you to eat.”

Ronnie put up no argument. Her stomach felt like it was eating itself as she eyed the eggs and toast laid out beside her. She took the pills, tongue smacking against the grainy taste they left in her mouth. Jake watched to make sure she did it before handing her the plate and a fork.

“Aren’t you gonna eat something?” she asked around a mouthful of toast.

How did he know just how she liked it? Golden brown and coated in a thick layer of butter. Classic and simple and honestly, in that moment, the best thing she had ever tasted.

“I already ate,” he replied with a smile. “Breakfast and lunch.”

She felt a heat rise in her cheeks as she took the coffee from the tray, leaving it empty. “Sorry.”

“S’okay. I didn’t mind. Got to figure you out a bit.”

“Yeah?” She sipped on the hot beverage. Black how she liked it. “What’d you figure out?”

“That you’re a huge nerd,” he said with a grin.

Ronnie made a face, but couldn’t help but smile knowingly. “I….Am. Yes. I can’t deny it. What gave me away?”

“Well, for starters, you own at least ten books on Greek mythology.” Jake got up from the bed and set the tray on the floor, taking his place beside her with a sigh as he relaxed back against the wall. “And you have the other Lord of the Rings books. No one has those except huge nerds.”

“Okay, okay, number one, sir — I have a degree in Classics and Linguistics so anything to do with Greece or Rome down there is warranted. And second…Tolkien was a master of his craft and he made a fascinating world. You should read it sometime.”

“I’m not really a reader,” he chuckled lightly.

“I’ll read it to you then.”

“I’d like that.” He smiled over at her warmly.

His presence was comforting, safe, and warm as she continued to eat. As she continued to feel like she was coming back to herself. Jake was a part of that now. A part of her that she could never reject or deny. Just as she was a part of him. She leaned into his side and it felt like a consecration. Something holy. Something divine.

But it felt like anticipation too. A string about to snap. A storm looming on the horizon. A finger hesitating over the trigger.

She could feel it in Jake most of all. As she set her empty plate on the nightstand and leaned back into his arm. He was tense. He nearly flinched away from her. Or towards her. She couldn’t tell. When she looked up into his face, his brow was pulled down in some agony, in barely there restraint.

Picking her head up off his shoulder she asked softly, “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, yeah — “

He was cut off by his own sharp intake of breath when Ronnie put her hand on his thigh. It was supposed to be a comfort, but his reaction only made her worry increase. Like a weed in a crack in the pavement. She twisted her torso to look at him completely. His eyes were screwed shut, mouth turned down in a grimace.

“Jake, are you sure?”

She turned to him further, nearly up on her knees to inspect him closer. And with her movement, her hand floated higher up his thigh. The soft whimper that tumbled from his mouth was enough to make her pause. His hand, which shook with some effort, shot out to gently take hold of her braced wrist.

His eyes slipped open and they were hazy, his blinking slow as he whispered, “Please don’t.”

Looking down at where her hand had been touching him, she expected some injury that just wouldn’t heal for reasons unknown. But she gasped softly at what she did find.

The outline of his cock, thick and heavy and hard against the fabric of his sweatpants.

Ronnie couldn’t help the way her mouth popped open at the sight. The way a sudden heat and pressure bloomed between her legs. The first few chords of the string were broken. The first drops of rain were falling. The finger was beginning to squeeze the trigger. She looked back up to his face to find Jake already looking at her, his green eyes hooded but hesitant. And now that her pain medication was kicking in and her stomach was full, only one ache remained. One that surprised her still, that throbbed somewhere deep inside her chest.

She knew what it was and knew that Jake felt it too. Felt it stronger than she ever could. Had probably been feeling it for hours while she slept.

“Jake…” She lifted her hand to his face to make him meet her eyes. “How long’ve you been like that?”

“Since I crawled into bed with you last night,” he replied, voice strained. He swallowed something thick. “I — I got up a few times to take care of it myself, but…Nothing’s worked. It just — it won’t — “

He looked guilty. His eyes downcast and his hand moving to try and cover himself up. He refused to meet her gaze, opting to burrow into the palm still resting on his cheek.

Ronnie’s grip became firm as she slowly, her body still sore and tired, pulled herself into his lap. Knees straddling his thighs. She settled down onto him with a huff, relief and effort, and Jake instantly reached out to hold her waist in a firm, yet gentle grip. Like he wanted her to stay but was prepared for her to go.

“It’s okay, my Alpha. It’s only natural,” she assured, her braced hand coming up to his other cheek as her right hand trailed down his neck and chest. “Our mate bond needs to be settled. Your body is telling you so.”

She watched the way his chest heaved with shallow breaths for air as the very tips of her fingers ghosted down his chest and stomach. Watched the muscles there jump beneath his shirt. It made her core clench in some desperate cry to be filled, her slick dampening her panties as she thought of what was to come. The ache that had once been housed in her chest now nestled between her thighs.

Jake took in a sharp breath, his fingers curling into the fabric of her sweater, tugging her closer. “Fuck — I can smell you.”

“Yeah?” she asked softly as her fingertips danced around the waistband of his sweats.

“We — I shouldn’t,” he said, even as his hips bucked up into her touch. “You’re hurt. You need rest. I should…I should be able to control myself. But…Fuck. I need you. I can’t stop thinking about it. R-Ronnie…”

His head fell back against the wall with an audible thud when her palm came in contact with his hard length. His expression looked nearly pained as she continued to feel him, working him through his sweats. He was big. Bigger than any man she ever had before, which were few and far between. For only an instant, she worried about getting all that to fit inside her. About him splitting her open. Then she felt the muscles in his legs spasm and flex beneath her, one knee rose — forcing her to slide further down his lap.

Her cunt, now burning with desire, nudged against his length and she gasped. All her worries were forgotten, replaced by her need to be filled by him. She was made just for him, designed and knit together in the most intimate way. Chest falling against his own, her hand moved to support herself against his shoulder. She nuzzled his cheek with her nose, a hum reverberating in her throat as his hands slid up the length of her back beneath her sweater. His breaths hot and heavy against her ear.

“You can smell it — how much I need you too?” she asked and Jake nodded. She pressed her fingers to the center of his chest, just below his sternum. “Can you feel it, right here?”

“Yes,” he breathed, tugging her closer, pushing her hips down against his own. “It hurts. I can’t…”

Ronnie kissed his cheek again, pulling him into her with a furrowed brow. She shushed him as he whined softly, his legs spasming beneath her again as she rolled her hips against the erection that had been paining him for hours. Having to bite back her own moan at the way the tip caught against her clit.

“I know, I know it hurts. But I want you. Want you to claim me as your Luna.” She drew close, her lips brushing the shell of his ear. “Make me yours. Completely.”

She tried to drag her clothed cunt against him again but he stopped her with a firm grip on her waist, mindful of the injury on her hip that she had long forgotten about.

“I don’t wanna hurt you,” he confessed, green eyes roving her face for any semblance of hesitance.

Ronnie pulled back to look him in the eye. Tone laced with that calm confidence that world leaders would envy.

“You could never hurt me.”

Jake was on her in the next instant. His kiss hungry and bordering on desperate as his fingers tangled into her hair. It was like he was trying to drink from her very soul as he nudged her to lay back on the bed, lifting her effortlessly and gently. He slotted himself between her spread legs, urging her to wrap them around his waist with a broad palm on her thigh. Ronnie obliged him happily, heels digging into his ass to get him to move against where her cunt throbbed in time with her heart.

Hands sliding over the back of his neck and into his hair, she made some noise of apology around his tongue in her mouth when her plastic brace knocked against his skull. Jake pulled away from her to laugh, breathless and shoulders shaking as his face fell into the spot where her neck met her shoulder.

“I hate this thing already,” Ronnie grumbled, displaying her left hand briefly before letting it flop back against the bed beside her head. “I wanna touch you.”

“You are touching me,” he replied, his eyes fluttering shut at the way her fingers traced over his bottom lip.

“Wanna touch all of you. Hard to do with one good hand.”

Jake groaned as he surged into her again, like water on rock — his kiss powerful but gentle as he explored her mouth with his tongue. Despite just how hot and hard he felt against her, he still tugged at the hem of her shirt. Fingers dancing around the edge of the fabric with a kind of respect that left her breathless as he pulled away to mouth at her neck.

“Please?” he asked quietly against her pulse.

“Yes, yes.” She couldn’t say it fast enough. “I’m all yours, my Alpha.”

Sitting up on his knees, he pulled her sweater up and over her head slowly. Like he was unwrapping something preciously fragile. They struggled to get her sleeve off around her brace and it made them laugh. But the chuckle died in Jake’s throat once he took in the sight of her. Laid out beneath him, having chosen to take off her bra sometime the night before, in nothing but those little shorts. Her nipples pebbled once exposed to the cooler air of the cabin. Her chest heaved beneath his intense gaze, but she didn’t feel uncomfortable or self-conscious. If anything, his attention empowered her as her hips rolled to relieve the ache in her cunt.

His calloused fingers trailed over her pale skin, between the valley of her breasts and down her stomach where the muscles twitched in anticipation. She gasped as the hairs on her arms stood on end, as her flesh pimpled beneath his ghostly touch. His eyes bled with the power he fought so hard for as he watched her body react to him.

“Your skin’s like moonlight,” he mumbled.

Then he reached behind his back and tugged his own shirt off, discarding it somewhere in the small room. Jake was thick and broad. Body carved by years and years of hard work. His chest and stomach were muscled, covered in a thick layer of hair that only made him more inviting. Made him look soft despite all that power. Ronnie bit down on her lip as her eyes trailed over him, taking in the way his hips started a V that disappeared into his sweats.

It felt like her heart swelled to a few sizes too big. It was surely about to burst out of her chest, snap into Jake’s waiting hand. She wanted to say something back. Tell him his skin was warm as the sun and his eyes reminded her of the Spring grain fields she saw in Italy. But the words never made it to her tongue. They were morphed, twisted, until they came out of her mouth in nothing but a moan as Jake kissed her collarbones.

His tongue and his lips laved down the slope of her chest. While his warm palm enveloped one breast, his mouth latched onto the other. Ronnie arched into his touch with a gasp, fingers of her uninjured hand tangling in the strands of his hair. His tongue swirled around her nipple, sucked on the tender flesh until he released it with a soft pop. Ronnie jerked beneath him, hips working in some effort to feel anything against where she needed him most.

“Mm, J-Jake?” she asked, a soft whimper quickly following as he dragged the attention of his mouth to her other breast.

He hummed against her heated flesh, sounding completely content.

“I need — mnh — I need you to touch me. God, please.”

She felt his smirk against the swell of her breast, heard it in the way he whispered, “I am touching you.”

“Touch all of me,” she replied and Jake groaned, loud and deep directly into her sternum.

“God, I want to. All the time.” He rose back up to his knees, leaving her a panting, wreathing mess beneath him. “Wanna do this right — wanna make you feel good, sweet girl.”

Ronnie whimpered at the nickname, at everything. She heard rumors and read tales about Alphas claiming their Lunas in the most brutal of fashions. Archaic and animalistic. But Jake was putting her pleasure first, even if it hurt him. She could see, as he tugged her shorts down her legs — past her bruised knees — that a wet spot was forming in the crotch of his pants. He was achingly hard, and kept that way by his instinct to fill her. It wouldn’t have surprised her if he took what he wanted with promises of making it up to her later. But that wasn’t Jake. That wasn’t who he was.

He was the kind of Alpha that risked his own life to save his pack. That kept his distance when she asked it of him, even though it pained him. That took the smallest room. That respected her enough and cared for her enough to wait until she was ready.

A high-pitched kind of sigh slipped past her lips as he pulled her shorts and underwear off in one go. Jake’s eyes now shown red as rubies as he drank in the sight of her, hands moving up her calves and into the crooks of her knees to prop them up — spread her open for him. He growled, eyes caught on the apex of her thighs. At her glistening cunt, at the dark thatch of curls that framed her.

She squirmed beneath his gaze now, every sense heightened and attuned to the near-desperate need that filled her. Trying to press her thighs together in search of some friction, some relief, Jake’s knelt form sat in the way. Keeping her from that balm. She whined softly, her cunt clenching around nothing at the way he watched her.

Reaching out to him in some attempt to keep her own fingers from slipping between her folds, she called, “My Alpha…Come here.”

He grinned as he lay back over her, forearms keeping him propped up as he kissed her sweet and slow. Gone was the hurried desperation, replaced by nothing but that strong love and longing that had been building upon itself for weeks. One of Jake’s hands slipped down her form, over her soft and bruised skin. Until finally the very tips of his fingers ghosted through the dark curls at the joining of her thighs.

His hand dipped into her cunt and she grunted at the sudden attention, sudden relief, sudden white-hot pleasure.

“Fuck, you’re dripping,” Jake muttered breathlessly, thick digits exploring as he teased at her entrance.

“J-Just for you,” she replied, hands latched onto his shoulders, his grin pressed into the side of her neck.

His fingers passed over her clit and she gasped, hips rocking, trying to get him to touch it again. He moved back over the correct spot and pressed in, her head pushing back into the comforter as she clawed into his back. How could it possibly feel this good and he had barely even touched her?

“There?” he asked against the line of her jaw before kissing feather-light at the burning hot flesh.

“Yes — there.”

Jake hummed as he began to circle her clit, rubbing slow and sweet in a way that made her lungs burn. That made her hands scramble for purchase. That made her back arch despite the dull pain that coursed through her at the action. But, of course, he sensed it — in that spot hidden deep within his chest. He pressed down with more of his weight, keeping her from straining herself. She wanted to say thank you, but all that came out was a wail as he added just a bit more pressure.

“Sound so sweet, little one.” He inhaled slowly at her pulse point, hips rutting against her thigh. “Smells so good.”

“W-What do I — smell like?” she managed to stutter out.

“Like lavender…And old book pages,” he replied, lips moving down the column of her neck, beard scratching at her skin. “Second one makes more sense now.”

She chuckled breathlessly, head spinning with pleasure as he increased the speed of his fingers. A quiet whine escaped her as he pulled his attention away from that little bundle of nerves, but it was short lived as the heel of his hand pressed down into it. Two of his digits instead focused on her entrance.

“Oh.”

The sound echoed around the room before she even realized.

Jake pulled back to look into her face, all movements stopped save for the gentle nudge of his palm against her clit. “Okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m okay. It’s just…” Her braced hand lifted to cup his jaw as best she could. “It’s been a long time, for me.”

A heat rose in her cheeks as he smiled gently down at her. Red eyes of the Alpha so soft just for her. He kissed her once, twice, then pulled away to nuzzle her cheek.

“I’ll go slow,” he said, then his hips jerked against her leg. “Need you good and ready for me.”

Ronnie whimpered softly as he slowly sunk two fingers into her, nails digging into his biceps, sure to leave crescent moons in her wake that would fade before she got the chance to see them. He just rested there for a moment, let her adjust. Then he curled his fingers up experimentally and the sound she let out was something primal, something she had never heard herself make before. It made Jake groan, teeth clenched, as he began to pump his fingers in and out of her. Stretching her out with his palm grinding against her clit.

Her fingers tangled in his hair and pulled, guiding him up to kiss his swollen lips. They breathed into each other as her hips rocked into his hand, her eyes barely able to stay open against the mounting pleasure. He curled his fingers up against her walls and with each breath, she was spilling some noise to him like treasured secrets.

Her release was building in the deepest pit of her gut, hot and heavy and begging to be poured out. Her cup nearly filled to the brim. It was a feeling she never wanted to leave but so desperately wanted to take over the edge.

“Jake…” she managed to pant out as some warning.

“Can feel it, little one — squeezing my fingers so tight. Think you can take another?”

She sobbed something frustrated as he retracted his hand, but all of it was smothered into whimpers when she felt the tips of three of his thick digits prod at her entrance. Jake pushed back in slow, moving onto his knees between her legs so he could hold her down with his palm flat against her stomach. Keeping her from taking too much at once. Her walls spasmed around his fingers once he was down to the third knuckle, his thumb pressed into her clit and rubbing tight circles that eased the ache. Ronnie’s chest heaved, the stretch delicious as her hands fisted the sheets until her knuckles turned white.

She cried, nearly a scream, when he flexed his hand. Head thrown back to expose her pale neck and eyes screwed shut. She felt so full, but she knew it wasn’t full enough. It wasn’t him. Jake moaned at the sight.

“Fuck, little one — you look so good like this,” he breathed, flexing his fingers again and watching as she mewled.

“Please, move, Jake — please, so close,” Ronnie babbled, rolling her hips as much as she could under his strong hold.

He began to pump his fingers, never fully leaving her cunt as he curled them against some spot inside her she was never able to reach. She cried out as she was brought right back to that edge, as her cup threatened to overflow, as her pleasure became intense and burning hot inside her.

“That’s it, sweet girl, that’s it,” Jake panted as he removed his hand from her belly, letting her ride his fingers at her own quickening pace. “Feel so good already — can’t wait to be inside this pussy. Claim you as mine. Have me dripping out of you.”

Her cup spilled over. Wrenched from her with a scream and her back arched and her walls around his fingers like a vice — sucking him back in as he worked her through it. It made something like a sob get caught in her chest as she blinked up at the ceiling, trying to come back down from an impossible high. Her bones went limp, tears gathered at the corners of her eyes. But Jake kept going, kept curling and pushing. He had slowed down to prolong her pleasure, but he was quickly getting back to that brutal pace.

“W-Wait,” she whined, already feeling herself teetering on the precipice.

“Just one more, gimme one more.”

A feeble sound of protest slipped from her parted lips as she burrowed her face into the wrinkled blankets. But she made no move to stop him as he leaned back over her, lips and tongue hot and heavy against her neck. The muscles in her thighs twitched in time with the press of his palm against her clit.

She came with a soft cry, a moan directly in Jake’s ear, though it was just as intense. Just as brutal. Just as overwhelming. And when it all became too much, she grabbed weakly at his forearm and tugged. He obliged her, pulling his thick digits from her dripping core. Ronnie whimpered at the sudden emptiness. Eyes unable to focus as she gazed up at the wood of her slanted ceiling.

But then Jake took over her field of vision and she smiled. His hair was messed, dangling over his forehead from all her pulling. There was sweat on his brow and his lips were swollen and pink. He looked beautiful. Otherworldly. A true Alpha.

Her fingertips reached and traced the line of his beard across his cheek. Jake’s eyes slipped shut at the gentle, barely there touch.

“Hi,” she whispered.

He chuckled lightly as he pressed his forehead into her own. “Hey, little one. D’you feel okay? Do we need to stop?”

“I feel more than okay,” Ronnie replied, fingers threading through the hairs on his chest. “And if you stop now I might cry.”

“Thank, God,” he laughed, relieved.

A sudden thought occurred to her.

“You should know — I have an IUD,” Ronnie said, hooking her legs around his waist in some subconscious effort to keep him as close as possible. “But, I’ll…I’ll make an appointment to get it removed as soon as possible.”

“You don’t have to if you don’t want — “

“I want to. God, I want to,” she insisted, pushing her forehead harder against his own. “Wanna be full of you, my Alpha.”

Jake growled. His hand, still wet with her juices, trailed down her front to ghost over her stomach. His cock twitched against her thigh. No doubt thinking about putting a pup inside her. And she wanted it. She wanted it more than anything. It was what she was made for, chosen for. To give him all the pups he could ever desire, to make his pack stronger, to pass his legacy and power on to. She longed to be full and swollen with him, with her Alpha, with his seed.

But all of that would have to wait for now.

“Ronnie,” Jake whispered into her neck as he drove his hips into her own, his still-clothed length brushing against her.

She took his face in her hands and forced him to look at her. His eyes, red as rubies, were hooded with desire, but reluctant. She pecked him on the lips once, twice, before nodding against his forehead.

“I’m ready. Make me yours.”

Jake nodded back before jumping up from the bed and ridding himself of his sweats, revealing himself fully to Ronnie who still lay blissed out in the center of the bed. He looked like the muse of an ancient Grecian sculptor. All that muscle, that perfect V pointing down to his cock, erect and perfect. All held up by strong, thick legs. He was golden and hairy and all her’s and the thought of it made her smile.

Crawling back into the bed between her legs, Jake grabbed his shaft and aligned himself with her entrance. The moment his tip stroked her folds, Ronnie gasped, unable to tear her eyes away from his face. Overwhelmed tears began to prick at the corners of her brown eyes as he positioned himself at the base of her core. Then he began to push inward. At first, it felt good, her mouth dropping open and eyes rolling to the back of her head. Then there was an acute and peculiar pain as she widened for the head. But all she did was grimace through the discomfort. She was made for this. It would only last a few minutes. It was the pleasure she would remember, it was Jake’s nearly pained face as he used every fiber of his control, it was the way she heard the sheets ripping beneath his clenched fists, it was the way everything felt like Jake and it felt like home.

He paused halfway inside her, breathing heavily as he bumped his head softly against her own.

“Alright?” he asked gently.

Ronnie nodded, afraid what sound would come out of her if she did open her mouth. But a whimper fell from her lips as he continued to push forward. Oh, God, there’s more? Jake immediately stopped again. Eyebrows pinched in concern.

“Don’t stop,” she croaked, taking a few calming breaths. “I can take it.”

Jake nodded before he finished out his thrust, slowly, both of their breaths ragged. But he stilled once he bottomed out inside her. Ronnie continued to breathe deeply, head tilted back as she adjusted to his size. She felt stretched to the limit, filled to the brim. It was everything she ever wanted and too much and never enough. The overwhelmed tears that had been building in her eyes finally fell. But Jake wiped them away with ease.

One hand releasing from his arms, Ronnie swiped her hand between their bodies — fingers brushing over her sternum and abdomen. Until she found what she was looking for.

The lowest part of her belly bulged around him. It made her moan as she pushed down on it gently.

“Oh — fuck,” Jake hissed as he spasmed on top of her, fist pounding into the mattress.

“My Alpha,” she whispered. “Feel so full.”

“F-Feel so good, little one, so tight. Shit. Could — Could come just like this,” he babbled, mindless, lost in the feeling of her. It made her smile. “Can I move? Unh, please?”

Ronnie nodded as she moved her hips slightly. “Please.”

He pulled out only the tiniest bit before grinding his hips back into hers. She made some noise like she’d just been punched in the gut. It felt like he was holding her heart in his hand, squeezing it to the point of bursting. She could barely breathe. He kept his thrusts slow and deliberate, not wanting to hurt her or go too fast.

“Jake,” she sighed as a heat bloomed through her veins, like the light from a freshly born star — white hot and spreading.

“Feel good?” he asked, voice strained.

Her hands on his shoulders, she could feel the tension there. The restraint. He was holding himself back. Holding back the beast inside him that longed to take what was his. Just for her. For her pleasure. For her pain. She put her hand on the back of his neck and forced him to meet her gaze — meeting him thrust for thrust.

“Let go,” she told him softly, reverently, “Jake, claim me.”

He stared down at her for only a moment. Searching for any hesitence. Any uncertainty. But she knew he would find none as she kissed him soundly.

With a growl, he pulled nearly completely out of her, then slammed back in. The moan she released ripped from somewhere deep inside her. Ronnie brought him down to her for a teeth-filled kiss, sloppy and desperate and noises captured in one another’s throats. The now rough snap of his hips sent her rocking back into the mattress. Ronnie clawed at his back, moaning into his mouth, as she resisted the urge to close her eyes against the mounting pleasure. At just how good he felt as he pounded into her. She wanted to see every expression that passed over his face, every noise that came out of his mouth.

She felt him twitch inside her as he bared his teeth, revealing his sharp fangs that she could never fear. Then he scraped them against the side of her neck, marking her as his and his only. His scent bloomed around her, citrus and bonfires, overwhelming her every sense. Made her dizzy as her eyes rolled to the back of her head.

A cry tumbled from her lips, wanton and echoing, as she came around him. As her entire being became electric, a live wire, a roaring flame prepared to burn the world down. Jake’s thrusts became sloppy and rough, stunted as he roared — spilling his seed and coating her walls with it. He gave a few more short rolls of his hips, letting her milk him for all that he was worth.

She smiled as she ran her fingers through his sweaty hair, as she relished the feeling of being his. In every sense of the word. Marked and stretched and claimed and filled with Jake. Her Alpha. His Luna.

Ronnie’s eyes opened wide, however, when she realized he was still hard inside her. He hadn’t gone soft at all.

“Shit, R-Ronnie…” Jake whimpered as he propped himself up further, looking down at the point where their bodies met with a furrowed brow. “It’s not — it won’t — “

She groaned as he started moving again. Her cunt so sensitive after just coming. She could feel his spend leaking out of her and onto the sheets. Jake planted his knees and drew her up into his chest, her legs wrapped around his hips. She choked at the change in angle which somehow drove him deeper inside of her — making him hit something that made her forget everything except his name.

“Jake,” she gasped softly as she tangled her arms around his shoulders, pulled him as close as she could get him.

“I can’t stop,” he replied, his hold on her hips tight as he thrusted up into her at a brutal pace. “Feels too — too good…”

“Jake,” she whimpered again.

Ronnie came sudden and sharp and powerful. Another cry dead in her throat, turned into a choked moan that barely slipped past her lips as she buried her face in her mate’s neck. Then he filled her again with a soft oomf — one arm bracing her lower back as he fell forward onto his hand. Shoulders curled around her as he buried his face in her hair.

He laid her back down on the bed completely, untucking her legs from around his waist and pulling out with a pained sound. All Ronnie could do was grunt at the loss. She now felt so empty without him. But she also felt so incredibly tired. So incredibly happy. So incredibly home.

Something warm was pressed against her aching core and she hummed appreciatively. Then she was lifted, set back down where the pillows were beneath her head.

“Rest, my little Luna,” Jake whispered to her as he pulled the covers over her naked form.

“Wake me up if you need me,” she muttered back, eyes already closed and thoughts already drifting between awakeness and dreams.

He chuckled. “You’d be awake forever if I did that. You’d go insane.”

“What a wonderful insanity it would be, though,” she sighed.

And then she was asleep.

“God, the fire really did a number on this place, huh?” Ronnie asked as she compared the photo Jake had handed her and the structure standing before her now.

In the photo, the log cabin was beautiful. Made by Jake’s own two hands. Months, maybe even years of hard work. There was a front deck. Green tile roof. A chimney made of stone. She could just make out carvings in the stair posts. There was even a pair of rocking chairs sitting out on the deck. She had to wonder if he made those himself too. He probably did.

But what laid before her now was nothing but a foundation, the chimney covered in scorch marks, and the still remaining pieces of the framework. The rest was all reduced to a black and grey heap.

Jake heaved a heavy sigh, hand carding through his hair, as he looked at the place. At what remained of the home he built.

Then he said, around yet another sigh, “Yeah.”

Ronnie slipped the photo into her back pocket before wrapping him up in a hug. He threw his arm around her shoulder, wide palm rubbing up and down the fabric of the flannel covering her arm.

“Just think, we get to build this one together this time,” she said as she continued to look at the frankly pitiful remnants.

But she could see the potential. What they could build together. The new deck with the new rocking chairs. The beautiful kitchen where she could cook hearty meals. The living room where the pack could feel at home. The bedrooms filled with the sounds of children. She leaned into him further as she grinned.

Looking down at her, Jake smiled. “I like the sound of that.”

“I’m only gonna do it though if you let me use the power tools.”

“I’m not gonna let you use the power tools.” He shook his head.

“Oh, come on, please?” she whined, squeezing him just a little tighter.

“Just once,” he relented, and she cheered.

The rest of the pack pulled up the long gravel driveway. Each of them ready to work. They hopped out of the bed of Frank’s truck with toolbelts and buckets and trashbags ready to haul the ash away. To make the place ready for the rebuild.

It was a symbol of a fresh start for all of them. For Ronnie. For Jake. For Red Sky. Gone were the things that held them down, that haunted them, that held them back. They were free. Free to move forward, free to forge their own path, free to grow and soar and be. Together. As a pack. As a family.

“Let’s get to work.”

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