Chapter 13 ~ He Doesn't Call Me

When they started visiting the Black Devil pack on a regular schedule, Beta Crucifero was back to his broody self. Or also call it "I-never-leave-the-side-of-mate, stay-10-meters-away-from-him-or-I'll-cut-your-head".

Marco was like a character from one of those movies where the injured person was entirely covered in plaster, from head to toe, with legs and arms kept elevated. Where you can only see eyes, mouth and nostrils. He looked kind of funny like that.

The irreversible aspect was his left hand. He had lost it forever, thus he will have to learn how to live without it. Thanks to his Beta blood and the strength from his mate always at his side, Marco was recovering at a steady pace. At least physically. The bitchy and lovingly annoying sides had not returned yet, still under an induced coma to allow his body to heal faster.

A strange feeling hung over Elena every time she entered Black Devil. And for several reasons.

Firstly, her best friend in the world was healing within the same pack that had been the cause of nightmares amongst werewolf packs, and its reputation always preceded them. Secondly, the historical conflicts between Full Moon and Black Devil weren't a minor detail. Thirdly, Marica's disappearance - Elena's cousin - may be associated with their frontier warriors and her body may still rot somewhere in their darkest woods. Last, but not least: their current Alpha was Elena's mate, making her their future-freaking Luna.

He was also the same Alpha that her pack dreaded.

Could it be any more complicated??

It rained mercilessly that afternoon and the school week progressed slowly. Elena hadn't seen Mirko for exactly six days (not counting half a day today!), since they had almost kissed outside the Medical Facility. He was busy with pack matters, Lord Skull's negotiations and wild wolves that were infiltrating his territory. At least so she had overheard from random conversations at school or from her dad's office. As far as she knew, he could be hiding in his secret harem enjoying his many fans. Elena pursed her lips, jealousy filled her soul like a green poison.

Why hadn't he contacted her yet? How difficult could it be to move a finger and send a message, in six full days? In other words, in 8640 minutes, he hadn't been able to find a single minute for a quick call or a 30 second message.

Elena was irritated at herself for being the type of girl she had always mocked. That desperate and needy one who constantly checks her phone, regardless of what she is doing. Titilas had begged her many times to just call him and get it over with, but it was a matter of principle...

Well, this resolution had only lasted until the third of those six days, when she finally called the Black Devil Pack House.

With an unknown number, just in case.

Long story short, their Gamma had answered the phone, coldly demanding her to state her name, pack and business to which Elena had invented a fake identity and insisted that she speaks to his Alpha only, as it was a extremely personal matter. With a little more persuasion, that rude Gamma finally relented, but Elena ended up waiting for over an hour on hold, since 'the Alpha is a very busy person'. And her poor heart had burst out of her chest every time she heard a sound at the end of the other line.

When he had finally picked up, with a simple 'Alpha Mirko speaking', his icy voice held a hint of impatience that panicked Elena, who had just managed to stammer out some incomprehensible words before hanging up the phone abruptly.

Angry with herself, she hoped to meet him by chance somewhere, at school or during a visit with Marco.

So, she could have ignored it pointedly.

At the moment, Elena was heading towards her favourite rock, in the middle of the woods of her pack. Running in the rain had always satisfied Titilas. Freedom and wild nature flowed through her veins as her paws devoured kilometre after kilometre, avoiding trunks and bushes along the way and jumping over fallen trees.

Elena wanted to see Herculi and check on his unstable health, especially after the strange event in which he had almost eaten her arm. In the past, the lone wolf had always disappeared for long periods of time, only to suddenly reappear again, bleeding heavily, or extremely thin and lethargic. Elena had always fed and cared for him like a giant personal pet.

Nearly there, she shifted back, hurriedly dressing in some clothes from one of her hidden spots. For some reason, Herculi preferred to interact with her in human form.

When she finally reached her destination, in the depths of the Full Moon woods, what was waiting for her scared and excited her at the same time, like a lighting strike that had just hit the floor beside her. Two piercing blue eyes shone in the fog and a massive shadow stood completely still. Even Titilas was in awe at the sight in front of them.

Her mate will never stop stealing her breath away.