The Mate He Couldn’t Control (complete)

Chapter 36

*I doubt you guys want to read abbreviated explanations of what I’m saying so when you get there, I left it in understandable English.

At first, I thought Noah was acting off, but now I understand he was wearing off the side effects of time traveling. When you have time travel issues or are new to it, it can lead to several problems, Noah’s being mental, which they didn’t discover until this morning. Sebastian explained it to me when I went to give him his birthday present and check on Noah. They have a good unspoken father-son relationship, so I trust he’s in good hands. As for me, they instructed me to “give him space” while he was under the sleep spell, so I turned my attention to my next puzzle piece.

Jaylon trusts that because of our bond, Noah will keep me safe, especially after their conversation last night. But any other time, he’s by my side, so I have an investigation buddy today. We’re cracking Dimitry.

When I first met Dimitry, I didn’t exactly like him. He was always strict and to the point, but I grew to appreciate and rely on him. Never in the past two years have we argued though, until last night. It started the second he came in the door and hasn’t ended since. I get it, I’m too reliant on him, but everything crumbles around me when he isn’t here.

“Alison, this hike is supposed to be refreshing. Your silence is like a black cloud,” Dimitry complained after twenty minutes of the silent treatment. Poor Jaylon on the other hand had to listen to me rant through the mind link.

“I have nothing to say.” Jaylon grabbed my hand and gave me a gentle smile. Now it’s his turn to make me behave.

“Ugh! Fine. What do you want to know?” Dimitry stopped in his place, dropping his face in his palm.

“What are you?” I’m not wasting any time.

“What do you mean what am I? I’m human.”

“Dimitry, you know about my powers! You proved it and then pretended like it never happened. You’re just as strong as me, which isn’t possible for a human. Now, what are you?”

He turned to face Jaylon and me, not bothering to hide his discomfort. “I am the guardian of the white witch. Happy?”

“The what?” I squinted my eyes at him.

“I have never heard of that,” Jaylon commented.

“Because you aren’t supposed to. Your grandfather didn’t even know about it, he thought I was another one of your grandmother's mates. Elgar let me stay in the castle to keep anyone in the pack from seeing me.”

“So you’re like a thousand years old? You said you were two years older than me and that you’re from Bulgaria. Shouldn’t you be acting older or something?”

“I didn’t lie about where I was from, just my age. I’m a very observant person Alison, it’s not hard to adjust.”

“Why would you hide from the pack?” Jaylon questioned.

“Because I didn’t trust them. In the early ages, they were extra suspicious of Juniper and some would plot against her. Elgar on the other hand was very protective of her so he arranged for me to stay nearby. That’s how I kept an eye on you when you were here before I got the job as your trainer.”

“So do my parents know now?”

“No they think I’m a vampire hunter, which isn’t too far from the truth,” He admitted as we made our way up the mountain. It’s not on one of the regular hiker or tourist trails, it’s actually within the forest safe zone that humans can’t enter. I’m not exactly sure it’s a regular hike though considering how much he keeps looking around and calculating our surroundings. He’s looking for something.

“You’re a vampire hunter? Do you have any idea what’s happened since you left?” Jaylon pulled me behind him and gave Dimitry a raised eyebrow.

“Kiana and Joseph informed me before I ever arrived. I said “not far from the truth” not that it is the truth. My sole purpose in this world is protecting her, do you think I’d kill her?”

“Wait no, because none of this is adding up Dimitry! If you’re my “guardian” then where are you when all of the crazy things happen? Like the mental prison, my two night swims, or hell even the time Noah decided to make me a late-night snack?”

“Noah did what?” Jaylon looked over his shoulder.

“We discussed this last night,” I mumbled quickly before turning my attention back to Dimitry.

“First of all, I can’t save you from a self-induced mental prison or your grandmother. I can only save you from the rest of the world. Second, no one in the castle even realized Noah was out until it was too late, but how was I to know you would be on his list? I’m a guardian, not a witch, I don’t see the future,” Dimitry defended, turning around to continue our walk. “I am not a vampire hunter, hints as to why I stayed with them, but I have been hunting a few of them. Look, news spreads, and very fast with how exposed you were as a child. Every wolf pack has met you. Many of them have seen your powers. It doesn’t take long for the news to circulate to the wrong people. Some of them were your grandmother's rejects who want revenge, but then some want you for other reasons. . .”

I glanced over at Jaylon who stopped in his tracks. His heartbeat began to quicken and his breathing slowed. “No matter what I do... You’ll always be in danger,” he whispered to himself. Immediately I pulled him down into a tight hug. I’m going to have to hire a therapist when this is all over because everything keeps hitting him like a truck. Every day, he’s more anxious, and now this? If one more dime drops, he won’t let me leave the sheets, especially when he figures out I’m pregnant.

I heard Dimitry stop and turn to face us while I whispered in Jaylon’s ear and placed kisses on the side of his face. “It’s nothing to worry yourself with. I have eliminated nearly every threat, except a man that thinks he’s some sort of dark prince or something. His name is Draven and over the years has built himself quite the army. But I promise he will be a tattoo on my back in no time.” So that’s the reason behind the tattoos. I knew it wasn’t a family thing.

I was going to say something but my head snapped back at the sound of the ground below Dimitry crumbling. “Dimitry!” Jaylon and I rushed over, but I couldn’t see a thing. “Are you dead?”

“Babe, what kind of question is that?”

“Well if he answers, obviously he isn’t.”

“I’m fine, but thanks for your concern,” Dimitry replied sarcastically. “Come down here.”

“Wait, what if it’s a trick? It could be a haunted cave or something.”

“Do you really think a ghost would use that attitude to persuade us down there?” I tried to send a ball of light down, but still nothing, so I blinked us inside. I refuse to jump down on a pile of rocks. When we were inside I was completely shocked. Up there, it looked pitch black down here but it was just an illusion. The cave was huge and lit up by glowing cobalt-blue water. Neon orange rocks lined the edges of the water, adding to the incredible site. “What is this?”

Dimitry didn’t look the least bit surprised, more relieved than anything. “A very special and magical place.”

“See I told you,” Jaylon blurted out. He’s come to like my magic, but anyone else's makes him feel uneasy.

“It’s not haunted or evil. It’s your grandmother’s place. She felt the safest here as you’ll come to find.”

“Well, I don’t exactly like-” I started confidently but froze when I popped up in the middle of the forest. For some reason it’s dark and now I’m alone. I almost began freaking out until I saw the silver color of the moon. At least I’m not there. “What the. . .?”

“Fix your appearance.” The voice sounded slightly familiar but strange. “Now.” My head snapped back at the attitude. I bit my lips together as a grin grew on my face. As much as Dimitry complains about me wearing my long hair down, he’s going to get hell for this. He says it’s the first thing someone will go for, obviously, he’s speaking from experience.

“Where am I?” Based on. . . all of that, the history student in me assumes sometime toward the beginning of the millennium. Yep, Jaylon is going to flip.

“Fix. Your. Appearance.” I squinted my eyes at him before making myself look like my mother. I couldn’t think of anyone else on such short notice. Apparently, my clothes didn’t matter because he said “Come, now,” and began walking off in the opposite direction. You know what, when I get home the first thing I’m doing is jumping him for his attitude issues. I thought it was bad in 2022 but whenever we are seems to be much worse.

I followed behind, very freaked out by the lack of noise. I usually hear wolves running around everywhere, but it's just crickets. Normally I start talking about whatever pops into my head in awkward situations, but they’re far too loud to share at the moment. I can’t even begin to describe the fear of being in a different time. It’s like my brain can’t grasp the idea of it while also screaming for a way back but my body is just walking around on autopilot.

Dimitry didn’t say anything until he stopped at the same spot he fell through earlier. “Open it.” I considered my odds of winning a fight against him once he turned around and looked at me as if I were an i***t. I thought he was extreme before, but this man needs an attitude adjustment. I don’t get why I’d show up all of the way over there if I was just coming right back here. Pointless.

“I don’t know how to do that,” I rolled my eyes before grabbing his hand and blinking us inside. In the blinking process, I felt resistance. It was kind of like running in water, doable but it slows you down. I’ve never encountered one before, but I assume we just broke through a shield. My eyes widened the second we got down in the cave. Screaming and sobbing echoed off the walls as my eyes landed on someone who looked exactly like me. There was no one it could be other than her. Grandmother. She lay on the floor, covered in sweat, and beside her sat Elgar on his knees. From the shock of it all, it took me a second to grasp what was going on, even though I should have realized it the second I saw her. She’s in labor. “What the- My father’s not this old. . .”

“She needs your help,” Elgar turned to me quickly.

“B-but the witches? Where are the witches? I’ve never delivered!” I mean, I’ve been traumatized by being in the room with my sister for six births, but I didn’t pull any babies out myself.

“They cannot know about this!” My grandmother shot up with worry all over her face. Elgar gently pulled her back down and ran a gentle hand through her hair.

“It must be you,” Dimitry explained before dragging me over to them. I guess now I could see why he had an attitude, but I would be kinder about it.

“But have you tried blinking the baby out? Can we do that?” The looks on their faces said no. Look, I had hope, okay? This is making my own birth terrifying. I spent all of this week calming myself with the thought of ‘oh I’m supernatural it’ll be so easy’. Obviously, I’m delusional. “Do you not have towels or something?”

“We do not have time for this,” Dimitry complained. I guess not. I quickly took off my hoodie, very thankful that I wore black, and placed it in front of my knees.

“Breath in and out with me. Focus on your breathing and hold both of their hands,” I instructed, placing a hand on her stomach.

“W-what are you doing?” she questioned worriedly.

“I’m numbing you. You’ll still feel the pressure so you can push. Now match my breathing.” You know what? This woman owes me BIG TIME. First, she kills me, now she’s making me see parts that no one should see. I don’t care if she looks like me and doesn’t have wrinkles right now, it is disturbing. I’m going to be right beside Jaylon in therapy after this. The good news is, she’s at ten.

Luckily it only took around twenty minutes. Secretly, I have magic to thank for that. “It’s a boy,” I beamed, trying to quickly wipe the baby off. “Now hold him close to your chest and use your dress to cover you both.” I don’t know much about childbirth, but skin-to-skin is essential. “Dimitry, come help me clean myself off in the lake.”

“Wait! Why are you leaving?”

“You need a few minutes of quiet with your baby. When I get back, you can tell me his name. Dimitry, now,” I demanded, throwing his tone back in his face. I have my moments, but I’m not an i***t. The pack hasn't arrived at this time and my grandfather literally doesn’t exist yet. There are only two men in this cave and I’ve come to the conclusion Dimitry wasn’t built for s*x, so that leaves one father. Someone she trusts and loves. There’s a reason Elgar was the only ex she stayed in contact with.

Once we were outside of the cave, I placed another shield around it and we made our way. I didn’t say anything to him and he returned the favor. Every time I think it can’t get any more outside of the box, it does.

Even though it was chilly enough that I could see my breath, I didn’t bother walking around to the shore. I walked straight off of the first cliff I found. I guess it's a wolf perk, I’m hot during all seasons. I swam up to the surface and let myself float for a second. The night sky will always be the most beautiful canvas in my eyes.

Dimitry sat on the edge of the cliff and looked down at me curiously, so I blinked beside him. “In my time, my grandmother and I aren’t on speaking terms.”

“She knows.”

“I’ve been trying to talk to her, but she refuses. I just want her to explain it.”

“Juniper does not explain things, she shows you.”

“But how-”

“Sacrifice. Both of you possess power unlike any other, but there is a price.”

“She wanted to mate with Elgar didn’t she?”

“The moon goddess wants you to do things her way, but refuses to make it easy.” My grandmother is a very clever woman that always thinks ahead. I see her thought process behind it. She needed to mate with a wolf and Elgar loved her enough to turn me, now we’re here. Elgar is a whole liar, but we’ll say it’s excused. Truthfully, they’re handling it better than me. Giving up Noah wasn’t easy, but Jaylon? I’m too attached to him. We have been through far too much and I’m carrying. I’d rather drown than deal with five hundred years of rejection.

“How is she pregnant? They aren’t mated.”

“If it’s meant to, it will.”

“Dimitry, look! It’s a little fur ball!” I beamed, turning to see a mountain lion slowly making its way over.

“That is Juniper’s familiar.” Its movements slowed the closer it got while its eyes studied me. Eventually, it decided it liked me and laid its head in my lap. Maybe it’s because I am one, but I love animals. I understand why now, but I used to beg my parents for a pet and they always refused. This is the cutest thing I have ever come across in my lifetime. I turned back to Dimitry who had a small smile on his lips. “You are just as strange as her.”

When we got back, I couldn’t help but smile at the happy couple. They were cuddled up and giggling while looking down on their baby. Once we were close enough, they looked up at me with bright eyes. “Have you decided on a name?”

“We’re naming him Sebastian.”