maggieveach@g*******m

Hunter's Choice Chapter 17

Chapter 17: Wounds 

-------Mal's Perspective------

Cassandra!!! I see my mate held in Magda's arms. No, what went wrong? What happened? No, no time for that. I need to take care of my mate. 

"Here you are, Lord Everett." Magda passes her into my arms. 

"Come inside." I enter the castle and there is Charles. 

"Have the men execute those who are in front of the gate. Have the rest of the men on high alert. I do not want anyone entering this castle without my express permission." 

"Yes, Master." Charles bows and goes to implement my plans. I move as quickly as possible. My mate is not moving. Not at all. No! I will not lose her. I cannot lose her. I lay her down upon her bed. I feel Magda behind me. 

"What happened?" 

"I'm not sure. I saw her running through the city streets with a bunch of hunters on her tail. All of a sudden, she started to fall. I caught her and brought her here." 

"Thank you, Magda. There are no words to express the gratitude I feel for you. You saved my mate from certain death. I promise you, I will not forget this." 

"Of course, my Lord." She bows before me. I look back at my mate. She's not moving. I need to figure out what went wrong. Her face is a bit pale and there's a cut on her cheek. I can smell the spent blood. Hmm, her blood is divine. I need to focus. I need to figure out her injuries. 

"Magda, do you know anything about medicine?" I see her smirk. 

"I've picked up a thing or two, here and there. I'd be happy to look her over for you." 

"Thank you." Magda sits down on the bed. Magda starts at her feet and moves her way up. She checks for injuries. Please, let her be alright. Please. She starts touching her stomach. An arm grabs Magda's. Cassandra! I look at her face. Her eyes are barely open. 

"Please don't. No. Don't." My mate slowly lets go of Magda's arm and fall back into sleep. Magda looks to me. I do not understand. What just happened? 

"Do you know why she responded that way?" 

"I have a few theories. But, they're only theories. Won't know for sure until she's awake enough to tell us what happened. I think she hurt her stomach. That's where I was touching when she woke. Doesn't seem like anything's broken and I don't think she's injured internally. We'll just have to wait and see. I wish I could tell you more, my Lord." 

"That is alright. You have done more than anyone could have asked for. You have my eternal gratitude. I do have one question before you go." 

"Ask away." 

"Why did you save her? I thought you wanted nothing to do with her?" Magda's eyes start to shine. 

"I've been hearing things. She saved a little witch girl. And then this she-wolf comes barreling into one of our bars. Starts saying there's this hunter woman killing other hunters. That if she hadn't shown up, she'd be dead or worse. I know who that is. That's Cassie. Cause she's the only hunter I know of who would do a crazy thing like that. The only hunter who gives a damn about us. So, I thought I'd return the favor. You can tell her when she wakes up." 

"I will. I promise." 

"See you around, Lord Everett." Magda goes out. I owe her everything. If she had not been there. If she had not taken my mate and brought her here, Cassandra would be dead. I sit down on the bed next to my sleeping mate. I will stay by her side until she wakes. It was such a good plan, what could have gone wrong? Was it her Mother? So many questions and no answers. I will not be getting any until she wakes up. I need to be patient. As long as she's breathing and safe, nothing else matters. I lie down and gently hold her in my arms. 

---------End of Mal's Perspective------

---------Cassie's Perspective-------

Holy f*****g s**t damn. I am in hell. Every inch of me is in agony. I open my eyes. Wait, where am I? I thought I saw Magda. Was that a dream? I need to get up. I need to get somewhere safe. I need....I slowly start to move. f**k!! That really hurts. 

"Are you awake, love?" Is it true? It can't be. I was in the street. I was dead on my feet. I was gonna die. How? 

"Mal? Is that you?" I feel him around me. He gently pulls out from under me and I see his face. His beautiful blue eyes filled with worry. Oh God, I'm safe. The tears fall from my eyes. I can't stop them. I'm not dead. I'm here, I'm safe, I'm home. Thank God! I move to hug him. Dammit! I really hurt. 

"Yes, it is, love. Are you alright? Are you hurt?" Hell yes! 

"Yeah. I'm hurt all over. My legs are aching from all the running I did. My stomach is all busted up from being kicked in several times. And I think my face is bleeding or was bleeding. I'm not sure. It's been awhile since I checked." I see the shock in his eyes. 

"You need a doctor. Now." I see him move towards the door and there's Charlie. He comes into the room. 

"Charles will take care of you. He is a professional." Huh, who knew Charlie was a doc? 

"Ok, do I need to repeat my injuries? Or did you hear them through the door?" Charlie looks at me. 

"No, Miss. I heard your list of injuries. I need you to lift up your shirt to see the extent of the damage." My shirt. Oh God, Julian touched me. It was only a moment. The worst moment ever. 

"Um, okay. But, only my stomach." I slowly lift up my shirt. I can see Mal staring intently. No doubt, he's extremely worried right now. Hell, I'd be screaming at him by now if the shoe was on the other foot. Guess he has more patience than I do. My stomach has some purple and green on it. I hear Mal growl. Yup, I feel the same way. 

"There is some bruising on your stomach. It will take time to heal. You will need to forgo hunting for a time." 

"Of course." 

"You are being reasonable, love. What do you have up your sleeve?" He has every right to be suspicious after all the times I've manipulated him. 

"Nothing. Honestly. I'm hurt. Really hurt. I need to rest and get better. Then, I'll go kill that son of a b***h myself." 

"And who exactly is this 'son of a b***h'?" s**t! If I tell him, he'll want to kill him himself. Especially after he hears about what he did to me physically. God, it still gives me chills. I can't believe he touched me there. 

"Are you alright, Miss?" 

"What? Yeah. As fine as I can be." I put my shirt down. 

"Oh, what about my face? How bad is it?" Charlie takes a look at my right cheek. 

"There is a cut here, but it is not bleeding." 

"That's good." 

"You did not answer the question, Cassandra. Who is he?" I can see the rage begin to light a fire in Mal's eyes. Dammit. 

"I'll tell you. If you promise not to kill him. Only I get to do that. And I'm not up to it at the moment." 

"Alright. I promise. I will not kill him." 

"Okay, the person I want to kill is Julian. He betrayed me. It was a trap. And I fell for it like a complete f*****g idiot." I see the rage turn his eyes even darker blue. Hmm, he looks so sexy when he's angry. Focus, Cassie. 

"You have much to discuss. I will take my leave. Goodbye, Master, Miss." Charlie bows and exits. 

"Explain what happened. Do not leave anything out." Here goes. 

"So, it starts with us entering HQ. That went okay. I apologized and my Mother wanted me monitored 24/7. Julian and my Mother went to talk for a moment. Then some hunter starts shooting his mouth off and he takes a swing at me. I dodge it, of course. But they kind of ganged up on me. I let them do it, cause it would've affected the plan if I fought back. The kick to the face was the hardest part." Mal growls deeply. Yeah, just you wait. 

"Anyway. I black out from the pain and wake up in my old room. Julian is there. He examines my wounds, kind of like Charlie. Only he touches me. He....um.....touched my....breasts. I rolled away from him as soon as he did it. I swear to you. I didn't invite it. Not at all. I thought he was over me. I thought things had changed. Please don't be mad at me. Please." I look at Mal. He's quiet. 

"I am not mad at you, love. I only wish I could be the one to kill him. He should not have touched you." That's a relief. Mal's eyes are on fire. Damn, he's really f*****g pissed. 

"Um, good to know. After that, things got crazy. Julian was talking about how he wanted to be with me. How you weren't treating me right and you were manipulating me into doing what you wanted. That you were seducing me to your side. It was batshit crazy speak. I tried to leave but he pinned me. I screamed in his face and escaped. I ran through hunterdom and then into the city. My body was still pretty banged up, so I passed out again. I kind of remember seeing Magda. And that's all I got." 

"You did see Magda. She saved you from the hunters. She brought you here and was starting to check your body for wounds. You then woke up and stopped her. Now, I know why. The last person who touched you, betrayed and hurt you. I am so sorry, love." 

"I'm sorry too. The first person I wanted to touch my breasts....was you. Now, I just feel all kinds of weird. I don't know what to do to make this feeling go away." 

"I am glad you want me to touch you. I will gladly touch you when you are ready. I will never touch you without your consent." His eyes stare into mine and I know he's serious. 

"Thank you. If you could hug me. Maybe it might help. Be gentle, though. I'm pretty hurt." Mal gently places his arms around me. His chest lightly touches mine. Hmm, I missed him. I missed his presence, his touch, his everything. I need him. Everything is so f****d up right now. I need him more than ever. I tilt my face up and kiss him. His lips respond and I shoot my tongue towards his mouth. He opens and twists his tongue around mine. Hmm, so damn good. I missed him so much. He rubs my back with his hands. Feels so good. My chest starts to lighten. I pull back. 

"Definitely feel much better now. Thank you." His eyes light with lust. 

"Of course, love. I will always take care of you and your needs. Is there anything else I can do for you?" I lie back down. s**t, I hurt. 

"Sorry. Can't stay sitting up too long. Hurts too much." 

"That is alright. Do what you need to do." 

"What I need, is someone to tell me I'm not a complete i***t. I trusted Julian. I trusted him, even after his first betrayal. I really thought he had my back. I'm so stupid." 

"You are not, love. I trusted him as well. I was the one who encouraged you to do his plan. Your first instincts told you not to do it. I am sorry." 

"Hell, it's not your fault. It's not either of our faults. It's that son of a b***h. When I'm better, I'm gonna kill him slowly." 

"I would be happy to help you with that." 

"Thanks for the offer. But, I'm gonna be doing all of the work. You can watch, though." 

"Good. I would not want to miss it." Damn, I missed him. I missed the way we talk. The way I can depend on him. His smile and jokes. His little flirting. I missed him. It feels like my chest is burning. What? Did I get hurt there too? No, this doesn't feel like physical pain. This feels....good. What is this? What am I feeling? 

"Are you alright, love? Are your injuries bothering you?" I look into his kind eyes. Those lovely eyes that I could never stop looking at. Wait....do I feel this? What is this? Is this......love? No, it can't be. It's too soon. And yet....I do. 

"I...I'm....not sure. I don't know." I can see his confusion. What the hell am I saying? Tell him!! No, what if he doesn't feel the same way? Or what if he demands we have s*x? Oh God, I'm not ready for that. Especially after what happened. But, he said he wouldn't without my consent. Right. I need to stop overthinking this. 

"Do I need to get Charles?" Dammit! Just say it. 

"No. No, don't do that. I....I.....lo....love......you." He looks like he's been hit by a freight train. 

"You do?" 

"Yes. Yes, I do. Please don't make me say it again. I barely got it out the first time." Dammit, I need him to say something. Or do something. He smiles, biggest smile I've ever seen on him. Wow. He's drop dead gorgeous when he smiles like that. So f*****g breathtaking. 

"I love you too. I never thought I would hear you say those words to me. Cassandra, you have made me the happiest man on Earth." Thank God. He loves me back. Yay!!!!! He takes my face and lays a kiss on my lips. Hmm, so good. This is the best taste in the world. His tongue is so rich and feels so good in my mouth. Damn, I'm starting to get warm. I can feel it spreading down towards my core. I pull away. 

"Damn. That was fantastic." 

"Of course it was. It was full of our love." I truly love this man. 

"Um, right. So, I just want to be clear. I'm not ready to have s*x. I'm just not comfortable, especially after what happened." I know he won't hurt me. Or mistreat me, like Julian would, but I'm not ready. 

"I understand. And he will pay for what he did to you. I will never let him touch you again." I can see the righteous fury in his eyes and in his voice. Dammit, he's so sexy when he's possessive. 

"Thank you. So, the plan is for me to rest up. Then, we hunt down Julian and make him pay." 

"Yes." There's a knock at the door. Huh, who is that? Mal goes and opens the door and a little blond blur comes at me. 

"Woah! Hold up." I feel Dani pull back from hugging me. 

"Sorry, sweetie. I'm a bit hurt. So, I'm not ready for big hugs. You'll need to hug me real careful, okay?" 

"Okay. I missed you. So much." She wraps her arms around me so tenderly. She is so damn cute. 

"I'm sorry I made you worry. And I'm sorry I came back hurt." She looks up at me with her swirling eyes.

"It's okay, Momma. I kept the bad men out." Wait, what? 

"Um, what do you mean?" 

"I can answer that. There was a forcefield in front of the gate when you came in. I thought it might be Dani." Wow, she's really powerful. 

"That's amazing. Thank you, sweetie. You did a great job." 

"Anything for you, Momma. I love you!!" So. Damn. Cute. 

"I love you too, sweetie." I look down at this little person holding me and I mean it. She hasn't been in my life long, but she's so sweet and cute. She is so strong and smart. She's an amazing kid. I'm lucky to call her mine. 

"I love you also, ma petite." Dani goes and hugs Mal. I can see the tenderness in his eyes. I'm so happy. The two people I care about most are here. I love them. I love them so much. And if anyone tries to hurt them, they will die screaming. Yes, love is fierce as well as tender. 

"Now, Momma needs to heal. I promise, you can see her in the morning." 

"Yes, Dada. Goodnight, Momma. Goodnight, Dada." She blows us both kisses and skips out. She is too cute for words. 

"Our girl is really adorable, love. I am so happy you chose her." 

"Yeah, I'm happy I did too." I yawn. Damn, I'm tired. 

"You really do need to rest. I will see you in the morning." 

"No. You're staying here with me." Another shocked look. I do love shocking him. 

"Are you sure? You have been through so much." 

"Yeah, which is why I need you. When I wake up, I need to see you. I need to be reminded that I'm not there. That I'm home and I'm safe." He moves towards me. 

"Of course, love. I will always keep you safe. Always." He kisses my cheek. So good. I can feel myself begin to shut down. So sleepy. Need rest. Darkness comes across. 

-------End of Cassie's Perspective-----

End of Chapter 17