The World Of Wolves

Chapter Six: Travels

Lyra spent what felt like hours crunched up in the back of the truck. When it had turned on for the first time, it had startled her but after a while, she welcomed the purr of the engine. The vibrations were unfamiliar yet comforting, numbing her sore bottom. The truck stopped and went too many times for her to count and the people around her continued their quiet conversations whenever the truck was moving. Aya tried to talk to Lyra, but after many short replies, Aya finally got the hint and began pestering others around her.

At one point she even fell asleep for a short while. The nap was uncomfortable and she woke up sore as she couldn't stretch out, but the rest was nice. It beat sleeping in mud and it was nice not having to be constantly aware of her surroundings. The worst was the bubbling anxiety growing inside her in anticipation of their destination. Aya mentioned the capital. There were many 'capitals' around. Each belonged to a different wolf tribe that took over large cities once the human race was overthrown. Lyra had never seen a city before, a part of her was excited to see something like that, but another part of her was racked with guilt and fear.

She was terrified of what was going to happen once she got there and she had no way to prepare for it, but another part of her felt guilty for even being fearful. She poured a large majority of the time into imagining the many possibilities of her village's demise. She even made the mistake of giving herself hope believing it was possible Liam just left them alone, but when she finally faced the likelihood of that happening, it crushed her. She regretted all of her choices, wishing she had just gone to Tristan, to begin with. He may have been angry but it's better than being dead.

Suddenly the truck came to a stop and the engine turned off. Everyone inside went silent as steps and voices were heard outside. Lyra felt the anxiety growing inside her as the padlock on the truck was undone and air rushed into the truck. She took a big breath but before she could finish it the guards grabbed her and pulled her from the truck. The wolves barked orders demanding everyone to get out and as they quickly hopped out they formed a line letting the wolves place shackles on their ankles and wrists connecting them all.

Lyra tried enjoying the night air, realizing she had been stuck in the truck for an entire day, but she was shoved and pulled forward. The weight of the shackles made it hard to walk and her injuries and stiff body found it hard to keep up with the line of prisoners as they were all led down into a cellar. She barely managed but did keep up and once everyone was packed into the cellar, she sat down on the pavement. The cellar was cold and very damp, there were even rats running across her hands and legs, but the cellar was much larger than the truck, enough so Lyra could actually lie down. The shackles were uncomfortable but she found a position that made them comfortable enough. Everyone around her was also quiet and laying down. She wondered if she would be able to sleep and after a while, she began listening to the quiet drip of water at the far end of the cellar which helped her ease into a deep sleep.

Lyra's deep sleep didn't last long when she was rudely awakened by a hand clasping over her mouth. Her eyes shot open and in between her panic and the darkness surrounding her, she could barely make out the figure shushing her. She nodded her head and the figure removed its hand and slowly undid her shackles. The figure gently picked her up and made its way through the bodies of sleeping prisoners and out from the cellar.

Once in the moonlight, she could see Ethan's face clearly and sighed in relief that Cain didn't decide to pay her a visit. She couldn't help but feel uneasy with the sudden visit though.

Ethan put her down and beckoned for her to follow him. As they made their way, Lyra looked at the surroundings that she was rushed through earlier. It looked as if they were in just a small cul-de-sac of homes within a small neighborhood. In the distance, a dim light lit up the sky along with the moon and as much as she wanted to see what was off in the distance she knew it was best to stay close to Ethan.

They came up to a large brick house and Ethan ushered her in there quickly. Lyra was in awe at the home, decorated beautifully with various kinds of wood and antique furniture. She couldn't enjoy the view for too long before Ethan pushed her up the stairs and into a room by herself.

She stood at the door for a moment, confused at what was going on and also just taking in the room before her. A very large bed was to her left, facing an elegant fireplace that was illuminating the room. It was decorated like the rest of the house with antiques scattered around and the wood adorned with red patterns. She walked slowly over to the fireplace, squatting down and letting the fire surround her. She smiled softly, finding herself getting comfortable as she laid again the soft rub and just watched the fire dance and warm her soul.

"Would it be safe to assume you've never even seen a bed?" Liam said from behind Lyra causing her to jump up.

She turned around to see Liam leaning against the bedpost in nothing but a robe, his hair wet and pushed back. She felt her cheeks heat up and she backed up against a heavy vase scaring herself when the vase wobbled. "I-I'm a-sorry"

"You look terrible. Come here." Liam said, ignoring her and directing her to the bed beside him as he left for the bathroom behind him.

For a moment she was too stunned to move then pushed herself off the floor and slowly walked to the bed. She glanced at the mirror hanging above the fireplace, seeing herself and immediately looking away in disgust. She looked horrendous and opted to stand next to the bed in fear of getting dirt on the clean red comforter.

Liam came back in, holding a bowl of water and a rag. He placed it beside her, pushing her so she fell against the bed. She caught herself with her elbows, but she immediately felt like she shouldn't be there and wanted to get up. Liam gave her no time as he sat her up and put the warm washcloth against her temple. She winced, realizing she must have a decent size cut right there.

Lyra bit her lip once she saw how close Liam's face was to hers. He was focused on cleaning her wound, moving to her shoulder, none the wiser to Lyra's reddening cheeks. Liam was gorgeous in every way. He had a clean shaved face now, showing off his strong jawline. He had cut his hair a bit too, it was still long enough to put into a bun, but it was cleaned up and shorter. His hazel eyes focused on her body and his lips in tight lines as he worked. The robe wasn't tightly fashioned as every time he moved it would show off more of his toned exposed body. Her heart raced and although she was embarrassed he was tending to her she also couldn't help but wonder why he was caring for her. Aya's words of wolves enjoying pretty girls ran through her mind and mixed feelings erupted in her of fear, anxiety, and a small bit of unexpected arousal.

Liam suddenly coughed bringing Lyra's attention back to reality before it wandered too far. "So you're a seer."

She furrowed her brows at him and tilted her head.

"You saw my brother was coming and warned me in a very unsubtle way."

"What's a seer?" Lyra asked, her brows still furrowed.

Liam stopped cleaning her wounds and took a step back studying her. He didn't even try to hide the confusion and mistrust on his face. She fidgeted under his glare, waiting for his response before he sighed and put the cloth back in the bowl of water, and pinched the bridge of his nose.

The silence between them was deafening and Lyra averted her eyes from Liam and to the ground. The crackling of the fireplace was the only thing filling the gaps. It soothed her at the same time as increased her anxiety. "Why didn't you kill me?" She blurted out, surprising herself and Liam.

She bit her lip again to prevent any more random bursts but suddenly felt Liam lifting her face to look at his and began wiping the dirt off her lips.

"You keep chewing your lip like that, you'll bust it open," Liam said, looking at her.

She watched his eyes search her face as he continued to scrub her face. "You don't look so bad once all the dirt is scrubbed off." His voice trailed off as his thumb slowly caressed her bottom lip.

Her heart began racing, realizing Aya's psychotic rants were true. She desperately wanted to push him away and run out of the room, but she was frozen in place.

"You are my mate," Liam said plainly, pulling away from her and placing the rag in the bowl of now dark brown water.

Lyra's eyebrows furrowed. "M-mate?"

"Yes. You do know what a mate is to my kind, correct?"

Lyra looked down at her fingers and began fidgeting with them. "I-it's like… a predetermined lifetime partner?"

"Basically. You're mine… The irony does not elude me." His voice was flat, almost filled with disappointment.

"B-but I'm not a wolf…" Her voice trailed off, unsure if she should even be questioning him.

"Indeed. So I won't mark you, but that doesn't mean I can't have you." He brushed the hair from her face, pulling her face up once again.

Her stomach sank at his words and her heart raced in her chest as if it were trying to escape. He inched closer to her face and her breath quickened and she slowly tried pulling herself back.

"The moment I saw you stumble out of that jungle, I wanted to take you right then and there. You looked like a wild barbarian though, so I wanted to kill you." Lyra's back collided with the bed and Liam was on top of her.

"Then I watched you touch that flower as if you'd never seen something like that before. You were so gentle and delicate with it, your smile actually made me feel something I haven't felt in a long time. I knew you would be bad news though when I realized you were human, so I had to try and kill you before I couldn't." Liam had grabbed Lyra's hands, which were pushing Liam's chest away, pinning them above her head with one of his hands with ease while his other hand gently rubbed his thumb across her jawline. She was frozen in fear, her body in complete panic mode as her lip quivered and her eyes began to sting as she felt Liam's core pressing against hers. She hated every part of herself for feeling aroused before, begging herself internally for this all to end.

"Even when I had you pinned under my claw, just a few moments away from death and yet you noticed the cut on my shoulder and actually took pity on me. You didn't look at me with hatred or fear like every other human I've held under my claw. It was then that I knew I had to have you." Liam pressed his lips against Lyra's forcing his tongue past her lips and exploring her mouth, fire erupting from every movement of his tongue.

Her body was tense as she felt Liam's hand travel down her torso, lift her shirt and place his hand against her bare stomach. She whimpered involuntarily, as tears streamed down her face. Her body was reacting to his touch in a way she had never experienced before and she wanted to hate it. She wanted to push him off of her and she wanted to scream and yell and beg for it to stop, but she was frozen in place. The only thing her body allowed her to do was to cry. The tears fell heavily past her cheek and into her ears and hair and she couldn't even see past them anymore.

Just as quickly as it began, it stopped and Liam pulled away from the kiss. His eyes glowed a deep red as he tried to regain control of his breathing. Every breath he took though was filled with an intoxicating scent that he could only describe as lavender, coconut, and the smell of the sea. He desperately wanted to take her, but his body revolted at the idea once seeing the stream of tears pouring silently from her eyes.

Lyra felt Liam's weight disappear from hers making her sit up instantly. His back was to her and he stared out the window. "Get out." His voice was cold.

She hesitated for a moment, her heart still racing and her entire body shaking unsure if she should move but also because she was frozen in shock and confusion.

"GET OUT!" Liam roared, causing Lyra to jump up and stumble, catching herself on the bedpost and pushing herself off of it, and darting out of the room without any thought.

She ran and didn't stop to even catch her breath as tears still poured down her face. She ran down the stairs and through the house, out the front door and across the cul-de-sac, and flew by the houses Ethan originally walked her by. She did stop running until she made it back to the entrance of the cellar before collapsing before it, large tears falling to the ground.

Her arms struggled to hold herself up and she let herself collapse onto the grass as she held herself and let out a hard cry. She just held herself, burying her face in the grass, and let herself cry until nothing came out any longer but lip quivers.

Her body was exhausted and now her mind felt like it had been beaten as much as her body. She wanted to sleep, and for a moment wondered what it would have been like to sleep in that bed, but fear struck her as thoughts of the events that just unfolded so she shook her head and forced herself to sit back up. She looked up at the sky full of stars before sighing and wiping her swollen eyes dry. It didn't appear anyone was around and for half a second contemplated running and hiding in one of the nearby houses but all she could do was sigh deeply again as she slowly opened the door to the cellar and crept her way down through the still sleeping bodies, and to her shackles. She tried to quietly put them on herself, eventually giving up and just doing anything she could to put them on before collapsing to the ground and letting sleep take over.