The Hunter

Chapter 12

Chapter 12

I pulled my car into the compound that was just outside of Rexford, Montana. The sun was setting on the horizon and my back desperately needed to be cracked after driving for ten straight hours. Daniel and the rest of the vampires would be arriving close to midnight in Kalispell in the jet. One of the wolves that was already there guided me to a parking spot in front of one of the larger homes in the compound. I turned the engine off and stepped out. I heard my boot crunch on a leaf. I looked at the terrain. Luna made me wear heeled boots this time around, and I was regretting letting her talk me out of my usual boots. She made me wear grey jeans and a burnt orange knitted top. She was adamant that I wear high heels, but I was able to talk her down from that ledge. We came to terms about me wearing black platform boots. I grabbed my bag from the car and locked it behind me. The wolf that guided me to the house came up beside me and matched my steps.

“Malakai is waiting for the Vampire King and his company in the hall,” he said from his clipboard. He looked around before stopping. “Where is the King?”

“They’ll be arriving later tonight.” Was all I said before continuing into the house. I was hungry, and I was sure food was either made, or easily accessible. I walked into the hall and the room fell silent. Malakai looked up from the book he was reading at the table, the food clearly abandoned. What a shame.

“Genevieve, I’m glad you made it safely.” He said, standing. All the other wolves followed his actions. He motioned for me to sit next to him in the empty chair on his left. I had no other choice but to sit in the only empty chair left. It was such an odd feeling, because Luna was always to the left of Daniel, and I just sat next to her. That seat always signified the higher-ranking person of a King. I walked with every wolf's eye on me, my heels making a muted clack on the tiles. Although the room was not large, it felt like a long walk to the seat. Once I reached it, Malakai pulled the chair, allowing me to sit down. I thanked him and he sat down. Every wolf sat down after him.

“Drink?” someone asked behind me. I looked up. It was the maid that was in Daniel’s mansion. I smiled at her, and she took that sign to pour my drink.

“I’m sure you’re famished. Daniel took his staff from the mansion. He said that this cook knows what you like.” He said. I nodded. As if on cue, the maid placed a plate in front of me. I thanked her, making a mental note to ask for her name. I picked up my utensils and suddenly the room was once again filled with voices.

“How long have you all been here?” I asked Malakai. He looked up from his book. He smiled at me and set it down. I guess I got his full attention.

“We arrived early this afternoon. Montana is such a beautiful state,” he said. I lifted my cup.

“I’ll cheer for that.” I said. The drive here was one of the most scenic rides I’ve taken. I drove during the day, which is odd for me to do as I’ve become accustomed to the night life. I had gotten several photos on my way here that are sure to make beautiful portraits for me to hang.

“Why did you not arrive with the vampires?” He asked.

“I didn’t want to leave my baby.” I said, putting a giant serving of steak in my mouth. I closed my eyes, allowing the flavors to settle into my tongue. This cook was amazing when it came to steaks.

“Your baby?” Malakai asked, a look of concern flashing in his eyes.

“My 4Runner. I have sunk thousands of dollars to get that thing to crawl over anything.” I said, for once, giving him a smile.

“You drove all the way here?” the wolf on my left asked. I looked at him. He was the same one who was fascinated and asking me questions about my shooting.

“Did you guys not drive here?” I asked genuinely. Malakai laughed.

“We ran here, it is a lot faster than a car.” He said.

“Sounds like someone I know,” I mumbled. I looked up at him with a sudden thought in my head. “Wait, what about your stuff?”

“We sent it to a moving company. They’ll be here tomorrow,” Malakai answered.

“And that is why I drove here. I don’t have to wait for anyone to bring me my stuff.” I commented. Malakai grinned at me.

“Got an extra toothbrush?” he asked. I looked at him.

“Oddly enough, I do. I never have extras, but you, sir, got lucky.” I said jokingly, pointing my fork at him. That was a lie. I always pack extra because I am a paranoid traveler, yet for some reason I played with him. Someone made an exasperated noise. I locked eyes with this beautiful she-wolf. She had platinum blonde hair, bright blue eyes and fair skin that was kissed with freckles. Just from looking at her t**s hanging out of her low-cut shirt, I knew she was curvy. And she knew it and handled herself with such conviction.

“We already got supplies, Alpha.” She spoke, never removing her eyes from mine. I raised my eyebrows at her, challenging her to say what she really wanted to say.

“Behave yourself, Olivia,” Malakai said and placed a hand on her shoulder. She looked at him, giving him a flirty smile.

“I was just informing the traitor that she doesn’t need to give you anything.” She said, her voice going an octave higher. I laughed at her. I knew she was trying to get a rise out of me, but after years of being talked down to, it just didn’t faze me anymore. I just laugh at their holier than thou attitude. One she clearly had on lock.

“I have spoken with each of you about treating Genevieve with respect.” Malakai spoke, the authority oozing out of him making the air feel heavy. I noticed that all the wolves looked down. Olivia stared at him for a moment before bowing her head. She challenged him. She lifted her eyes at me, and I saw anger flash before her eyes. I knitted my eyebrows together in confusion.

“I apologize for that.” Malakai said, and that heaviness lifted. What the hell was that? I smiled at him.

“No need, it’s not something I haven’t heard before.” I said dismissively.

“ It will not happen again,” he stated.

“I’m sure,” I retorted. A low growl came from Olivia. I smiled at her. It was unlike me to challenge a wolf that was giving me an attitude, but for some reason I had all the confidence in the world.  The rest of the evening passed without another incident from Olivia. Malakai kept the small talk going, occasionally asking me questions. After I was done with my meal, I went outside to grab my stuff from the back of the car. A butler had followed me to my car to take my stuff to where I would reside. He informed me that I would be taking one of the smaller homes in the compound. I walked towards the cottage-style house. It had a beautiful porch that already had some patio furniture.

Walking into the house, I gasped. It had natural wood flooring and off-white walls. The living room had a direct entrance to the open-concept kitchen. There were two doors to the right, where the butler dropped off my bags. I opened the other door, and there was another room available. I nodded to myself and closed the door.

“Will there be anyone else with me?” I asked him.

“The Princess requested to reside with you. That is why King Daniel gave you this house.” He said while he was unloading my clothes into a respectable sized closet. When I first started living with Daniel, it was an odd feeling to have someone do all the minor things, like unpacking, for example. After years of having this happen to me, I just didn’t bat an eye anymore. I sat down on the maroon duvet, testing out the bed. It was firm, and I was glad about that. “Is there anything else I can get for you, ma’am?”

“No, thank you.” I said with a small smile. The butler gave me a small bow before he disappeared. I took off my shoes, making sure I cracked my ankles and toes. I walked towards the quaint kitchen and grabbed myself a cup of water. Upon opening the fridge, I noticed it was stocked with all my favorite foods. With a tiny screech, I grabbed a honey crisp apple and padded my way to the couch. There was a large TV screen, which I gleefully turned on. Daniel really knew how to make things feel comfortable. I checked my smartwatch, it would be two hours before the vamps came, so I decided to watch a few episodes of my favorite show.

I had dozed off on the couch when I heard cars pulling into the compound. I grabbed my gun and slipped on my shoes I left at the door. I opened the door and was greeted by a rather irritated-looking bunch of vampires. Daniel was pinching the bridge of his nose. What in the world happened?

“Everything ok?” I asked, walking towards them. I slipped my gun back into my holster.

“Just dealing with annoyed vampires.” He said with a heavy sigh. He looked up at me and gave me a smile. “I’m hoping the drive was not bad for you.”

“No, sir.” I answered. He nodded. Luna came out from the other side of the car and squealed when she saw me. She ran and gave me a large hug. I laughed and wrapped my arms around her slender torso.

“Daniel, you made it!” Malakai said with an outstretched hand. Daniel took it and they began talking amongst themselves.

“Did my Father get us a house?” Luna asked. I pointed to the little cottage behind me.

“Yep, I’ve made myself at home already.” I said. She clapped her hands together.

“Good! I had a hand in the design,” she said.

“I can tell. Maroon duvet, nice touch.” I said, giving her a jab in the ribs.

“Alpha, were going to be doing our rounds of the compound.” Olivia said, coming to stand next to Malakai. He gave her a quick nod. Olivia shot me a glare before walking off with a few wolves. I gave Olivia my sweetest smile with a wiggle of my fingers. She sneered at me before shifting in midair. She had golden fur with the tip of her tail black. She was smaller than the other two wolves. They came up to at least six feet at their shoulders, while she came under them by a foot.

“What was that? What did I miss?” Luna asked, noticing the interaction between us.

“I’ll tell you later.” Was all I said. Daniel waved Luna and I over to where they were standing.

“Malakai tells me that you have eaten. Was the food to your liking?” he asked.

“It was fantastic. Thank you,” I said. Daniel gave me a smile.

“Good, I’m glad to hear that. He requested I bring the cook over so that you can have the foods you like.” He said. I looked at Malakai.

“I appreciate the effort,” I said. Malakai grinned at me.

“Have you settled into the house?” He asked, looking towards the cottage.

“I have, I was even dozing off earlier.” I said with a chuckle.

“Did my wolves tire you out that much?” he asked. I shrugged.

“Nah, the drive was a b***h,” I said. I pointed to my car. “That’s my baby I was talking to you about.”

“The 4Runner, right?” he asked while walking over to it. I spun around on my heels and followed him. I touched the hood of my car and looked at it with so much love.

“My pride and joy. I got her when I first came into employment with Daniel. Every assignment I received pay for, I got the parts to fix it up.” I said, removing a splattered bug from the grill.

“You did it all yourself?” he asked, looking into the cab.

“Oh, dear goddess no. I’m not savvy about cars. Guns, yes.” I said, shaking my head at him. He chuckled.

“Well, I am. Next time you need something done, I just ask you to pay me in beer,” he said. I met his eyes. Wow, they were an unbelievably beautiful grey in the fluorescent lighting. No one ever looks good in this lighting, but the man does really seem to compliment him. The corner of my lips tugged up.

“I’ll hold you to that. Might need an oil change soon.” I said and began to walk past him. I patted him on the shoulder. “Just tell me what your favorite beer is, and I’ll pay you for that.”

“Deal.” He voiced. I walked towards Luna, who had the most hilarious look on her face. She looked amused but thoroughly confused. I shrugged at her. She looked at Daniel, then at Malakai.

“So, if y’all are done with the pleasantries, this princess needs to take a long hot shower to remove the airplane stink off me.” She said, waving her arms in a circular motion while talking. “Gen?”

“Hmm?”

“I need my protector.” She said, grabbing my hand.

“But I’m not?” I said, a little bemused by her forceful tugging.

“For tonight, yes you are.” She said, then lifted her head up to look over me. “Weylin, you’re dismissed until tomorrow.”

“Um, ok?” was all he said. I looked at Daniel, who only shrugged his shoulders at me. Malakai gave me a questioning look as I silently pleaded with him to save me. But he didn’t because I was being dragged away already.

“Goodnight.” I said, tripping over my feet and grabbing onto Luna so I wouldn’t face plant on the ground. I closed the door behind me, Luna spun around and placed her hands on her hips.

“What the hell was that?” she asked. I glanced at her.

“If I was going to trip, I would be bringing you down with me.” I said, taking off my shoes and haphazardly throwing them next to the door.

“No, not that! I meant the flirting!” she said, flailing her arms around her.

“I was not flirting.” I objected. I stood a little straighter and crossed my arms over my chest.

“I might need an oil change soon. Tell me what your favorite beer is, and I’ll pay you.” She mocked me. I made a face at her.

“I do not talk like that,” I declared. She groaned and let her head fall back. “And again, I was not flirting.”

“Bullshit.” She spat. “As an outsider looking at your interactions, you were flirting, hard. You even did the ‘touching his shoulder’ action. That is, like, body language 101 of flirting.”

“I did not touch his shoulder,” I said. I paused for a moment. I gasped and my eyes grew large. “Oh my goddess, I did touch his shoulder. It was such a subconscious action that I didn’t even notice!”

“Exactly!” she said and sat down on the couch. I sat down after her and put my face in my hands. “When did you have a personality change? You were so apprehensive about him, and now you’re openly flirting with him.”

“I, honestly, couldn’t tell you.” I said, dragging my hands down my face. “It just came out naturally during dinner, and I guess I just felt comfortable around him.”

“It’s the mate bond.” Luna stated, very matter of fact. I looked at her with an eyebrow raised. “I’ve been researching a lot about it lately.”

“Why didn’t you ask me?” I said. She shrugged.

“You seemed so against it; I didn’t want to offend you.” She said quietly, looking down at her hands.

“It’s part of my history, it’s not something I’m uncomfortable talking about.” I said, scooting a little closer to her. She looked up at me and smiled.

“If I have any other questions, I’ll be sure to come to you first.” She stood up. “I’m going to shower; I was not lying about the airplane stink.”

I laughed at her as she walked away. I thought over the words she said to me about having a personality change. Having a mate was a sacred thing, so I was curious about where it would lead to. I wasn’t ready to fully commit right away, as I have read wolves tend to do. I’ve been hurt too much in my life to not proceed with caution. I didn’t really know Malakai. Whatever stories he has heard about me, or opinions he has formed, we are still strangers at this moment. I was scared, but I was also fascinated to learn about this man who was fated to be my mate.