The Alpha's Protective Mate

31

Charlotte Sanguinite

She’s getting closer. My hand tightens around the taser in my back pocket. Ever since my run-in with the vampires outside the animal shelter, I’ve started carrying one. It’s always fully charged, but I’ve never actually tested it against anyone, much less a vampire.

As soon as Arabella is close enough, I bring out the taser and dig it into the side of her neck. She lets out a strangled noise of pain, but before I can give her a sufficient jolt to incapacitate her long enough for me to escape, she grabs my wrist, twisting it and forcing me to drop the taser.

The backhanded slap I receive has my head spinning.

She digs her knees into my chest, and I gasp for breath.

She looks annoyed. “You never used to fight back this much. Not that it’s going to make any difference now. Something like you shouldn’t exist, Charlotte. You’re a waste of space, a waste of breath. I always told Father he should have ripped off your limbs and tossed you into the woods to be food for the wild animals. At least your life would have amounted to something then!”

Her words stab me in the heart, but I don’t stop struggling.

For years, I have battled low self-esteem, taught myself that I matter. If not to my family or to humans, or to anyone, then I matter to the animals I care for. They depend on me. They need me. They love me.

I’m not worthless. I may not matter to anybody else, but I matter to the one-eyed feline who’s waiting for me at home, patiently.

Tears burn my eyes.

Mano is waiting for me. She needs me.

With renewed strength, I try to push Arabella off me, screaming, “Leave me alone!”

“Stop fighting back!” Arabella punches me in the throat, and I choke.

I can’t breathe!

She realizes what she just did and presses her heel down against my neck, laughing all the while. “Look at you. You’re so weak. You can’t even defend yourself! Why are you even alive, Charlotte?”

Her laughter grates my ears as I gasp for oxygen. My attempts at fighting her off are weakening.

She lowers her head. “I’m going to leave you with a gift, sister. Every time you look in the mirror, you’ll remember how ugly you are, how utterly unwanted, unloved, and undesired.”

Her nails dig into my left cheek, then she presses them deeper, tearing my flesh. As she drags them down, I can’t even scream. I can hardly breathe. Amid the pain, I can see black spots in front of my eyes.

My hands fall limp by my side, and I fleetingly worry about Mano. Who’ll take care of her once I’m gone? She’s going to be all alone. I hope Ricky takes her in. Or Angie.

Robert’s face swims into my mind, and I feel a pang of regret. If I had known I was going to die like this, I wouldn’t have been so mean to him. He’s so sweet to me. Nobody’s ever been so sweet to me, so gentle. I should have said yes.

I can feel Arabella mauling my face, but the pain is a distant feeling. Darkness is dragging me in, bit by bit, whispering to me that my torment has finally ended. Maybe my next life will be better. Maybe somebody will love me in my next life.

Suddenly, the pressure on my neck disappears, and my body reacts instantly, trying to suck in all the oxygen it can. As my back arches, I hear a scream.

Arabella.

Using the fallen chair by my side to support myself into a sitting position, I see a familiar-looking man holding Arabella by the neck against the wall. She’s trying to fight him off, but my sister, strong as she may be, is no match against an Alpha.

Her eyes are bulging from her head, and even now, all I can see is the sweet, adoring gaze of the little child I taught how to walk. Tears spill from my eyes.

“...on’t.”

My voice is raspy, and it’s hard to speak. My throat hurts so bad.

“...bert.”

He’ll kill her!

I don’t know how I manage to get to my feet, but the movement gets Robert’s attention, and when he turns to look at me as I stand there, swaying on the spot, I see the amber color of his eyes. I’m looking at his wolf right now.

“...ister. S—She is—She’s my sister.”

I garble the words, stumbling toward him. He doesn’t hesitate, dropping Arabella to the floor in a heartbeat. I’m in his arms now, and he holds me to his chest protectively, growling under his breath.

I clutch his jacket, wondering why the raw fury in his eyes soothes my soul so much. “Sh—She’s my sister. You can’t—can’t kill her. P—Please.”

His hand smooths over my cheek, and his eyes tighten. “She tried to kill you.”

His tone is deep, a meld between his human voice and the raspy growl of the wolf.

I shake my head, finding it difficult to say anything further. Everything hurts.

I hear footsteps, and I look at the doorway to see the back of Arabella’s dress as she runs for her life. My body sinks into Robert’s, and I close my eyes, unable to hold on, unable to fight this creeping darkness. All I know is that I’m safe.

Robert will protect me.