Fangs of Blood and Moon

Chapter 3

Celine

When I woke up, I was surprised. Even more so to see that I was in some sort of hotel room. When had I gotten here? How had I gotten here? I looked down to find a change of clothes on my body and my injuries bandaged and cared for. I reached up to find my hair had been cut, but was free of tangles. It fell just above my shoulders now. I scrambled out of the bed in a panic. Something wasn't right here. I had to get away.

I heard the shower running in the bathroom, and I darted out the door into the hall. I rushed through the hotel hall to the elevator. As I ran through the lobby, I bumped into someone, but I didn't stop. When I got outside, I realized I didn't know where I was. This wasn't the city I used to call home. It was somewhere else. I put my head down and rushed through the crowd. I had to get away from here. Had to find somewhere to hide.

When I got a decent bit away, I felt my chest clench, and I put a hand to it. I was too young to have a heart attack. I pressed on even as the feeling got worse. Soon, I collapsed against the wall of an alley. The pain was through my whole body now. I felt like I couldn't breathe. Like I was dying. I heard shouting, and I forced my legs to keep carrying me away from it. I didn't get far before I collapsed completely to my knees.

"Mate!" I heard a deep voice shout, and I looked up. I was met with the lightest green eyes I had ever seen. They were on a handsome face with a mess of light, sandy blonde hair that was wet. His eyes widened as our eyes met. "Your eyes." He breathed in wonder, and I cringed in pain. He rushed forward and crouched in front of me. "Mate, the bond is still new. You can't be away from me yet."

"Leave me alone!" I managed to shout at him, and I saw the pure pain in his eyes before they shifted gold.

"Mate." He growled the word out and reached out to touch my cheeks.

"NO!" I screamed and scrambled back until my back hit the brick wall. His face seemed to nearly break in pain at my reaction. He looked up as if hearing something I couldn't. Then his head snapped behind him.

"Reed! Over here!" Another man rushed down the alley to join us. With this second man there, I realized how big the first man was. He was tall and built like a man who lived in the gym. This new man was also muscular but of a more average height. He had dark brown eyes and hair, but he also looked handsome.

"Alpha. What happened?" He said as he looked at the man slowly moving towards me.

"She ran," he said to the other man, and then locked those mesmerizing green eyes on mine. "I know you are scared, mate, but please let me touch you. The pain won't stop until we have contact again. You need my touch right now. I will explain everything. I promise." Pain rocketed through me, and I let loose a screech of agony. The man with green eyes looked like he was in pain, too. He moved closer to me.

"Stay away from me!" I screamed, and I heard as we started to draw attention. I hoped someone would save me from this man. He growled, and it sounded more animal than human.

"Reed. I need you to help me get her back to the car." I saw the hesitation on the other man, Reed's face.

"Alpha, we can't draw attention."

"f**k that! She's in pain, and she is trying to run away from me! She's my MATE!" Reed flinched back from the other man's anger. Finally, he nodded, and then, before I could protest, I was scooped up into the first man's arms. Instantly, my body filled with heat, and his eyes went wide. "Damn it. This is why you shouldn't have run. Forget the car. We need to get back to the hotel. Her body is going to overload." It felt like I couldn't breathe with his hands on me.

He ran with me in his arms, but the world around me was a blur. I couldn't focus on picking out details. I could only feel the heat scorching me from the inside out. Then suddenly I felt a bed under me. The world came back into focus, and I was back in the hotel room, and the first man was over top of me on the bed. I whimpered, but I couldn't make my mouth form words.

"I know, mate. I know. Your body can't handle all this. You nearly snapped our bond in two." He reached up and gently brushed his finger over my cheek, and my body flared with heat again. He cursed under his breath. "I have to reset our bond. It's going to hurt. You have to stay in this room with me until it settles." I shook my head weakly, and he growled deeply. It sounded like a wolf. "Would you rather go back to that cabin instead?" My eyes went wide as I looked up at him.

He leaned forward, and his lips brushed my neck. I whimpered loudly as the heat flared inside me.

"Shhh. It's alright. I've got you," he said with reassurance, and then he bit into my neck. I wanted to scream, but I couldn't. The world shifted before me as my body flooded with what felt like sparks of electricity. He kept his teeth buried in my neck, and then the pain started. I finally managed to scream, but his hand quickly covered my mouth. I heard a rush and a door open.

"Dante. What if she runs again?" The man on my neck growled deeply as the pain only seemed to get worse. Finally, he pulled his mouth away, but the pain didn't go away.

"Get something to tie her down. I won't let her break our bond. She might not have gotten a choice in this, but I won't lose her so easily."

"Alpha, I don't thin-" He growled harshly and cut Reed off.

"Don't think. Just do it. I won't lose my mate over this." The world was getting fuzzy as the pain made it hard to think. He looked down at me. "That's it. Just give in to it. Relax. Sleep. When you wake up, I will explain everything." His voice was rather soothing despite the panic I felt. My eyes shut, and I felt his hand lift off my mouth and the bed shift as he stood. "I am so sorry it had to be this way, mate. I will do everything I can to make up for this," he said softly, likely thinking I was already asleep. I wanted to stay awake to listen in more when I heard the door open, but I passed out.