Chapter 4
1881 Words
Jan's POV
I looked after the fleeing barefoot girl and grinned triumphantly.
What naivety!
Did she really think she could run away from me?
The animal essence burst forth, demanding to follow its prey and brand it, but I held back. Not yet. I'll follow in half an hour. I promised. She's not going anywhere anyway.
“My Yaroslava.”
I repeated her name over and over, driving myself mad with the growing distance between us.
Nothing, nothing, nothing.
Just a little more and I'll get what's rightfully mine.
What did she say? She is the Alpha of the Gray Clan?
That's even more interesting. Hunting has always been one of my favorite pastimes. Shall we play, baby?
I grinned and walked over to the nearby classic fire metallic sports car that follows me everywhere.
What can I say?
Everyone has their weaknesses. Mine is my Iron Baby.
I really should have been somewhere else. But as the werewolf I needed was out and wouldn't be back until tomorrow morning, I had time to enjoy myself.
Actually, that was why I'd came to this club in the first place. I remembered the last time I'd had a good time with the owner, even though I usually tried to stay away from people…
I was here because of the bad weather that forced us to make an emergency landing and wait out the hurricane in this town. So I thought I'd take a break from the Clans. So I picked this place by rote. I was actually attracted by the name and the fact that it was not far from the airport.
After a decent drink, I decided it was time to go back. And that was when the fun began. On my way out, I accidentally bumped into some asshole and I didn't like it. Word for word, fist for fist, it got ugly. Realizing where this was going, I quickly retreated from the crowd and went up to the second floor, grinning at the showdown. Downstairs, there was a good-sized pile of bodies rolling around. One or two of humanity's strongest flew out at regular intervals. The girls huddled against the wall, laughing as they watched. Some of them were even shouting to encourage the guests to carry on.
I leaned against the railing and sipped my whiskey until my amusement was interrupted by a bored voice:
“It's not nice to s**t in my place like that, boy.”
I turned and stared at the stranger. A man. But there was an inner strength about him that made me respect him. And the man himself did not look suspicious, like most human representatives, but rather studied and interested.
“If you're waiting for an apology, there won't be one,” I shrugged and returned to the interrupted spectacle.
Downstairs, people began to disperse into corners, to their tables or out into the street. In general, who went where. Some were simply bored with the entertainment, some had been forcibly removed, some had even made friends with their opponents and were now drinking with their acquaintance. At that moment, I felt, with animal instinct, that I was surrounded.
Naive.
I turned and looked the owner of the establishment straight in the eye.
“Call off your people before they get hurt, and we'll discuss the situation with you calmly.”
I didn't want any trouble with these people, even though they couldn't hurt me. But the stranger aroused curiosity, which was very rare, so I decided to make peace, even though I could leave quietly, leaving behind mountains of mangled bodies. And I did not miscalculate. That night I found, if not a friend, at least a good acquaintance.
That's why I came back here the next time I was in town. And it was a good one. But who could have known that it was in such a place that I would meet my soul mate?
I sat behind the wheel and started tapping my fingers on it, looking at the clock and counting the minutes. When there were only five minutes left, I asked one of Mikhail's guards to watch the car. And I took a deep breath and headed in the direction the girl had run away.
“Clever girl,” I said with anticipation when I realized I was heading back to the club.
I had to go back and find the right way. After a while, I stopped at the entrance to the hotel.
“There you are!” I said in anticipation.
I found out which room my prey was in and went to get my car. On the way, I ordered a bouquet of flowers from a local florist and asked them to deliver it to the right address.
Satisfied with myself, I finally drove to the meeting.
When I arrived at the right place, our acquaintance with Yaroslava kept replaying in my mind.
Mikhail and I were already relaxing, the evening coming to its logical conclusion, when the scent of night lilies reached my nostrils. I involuntarily began to search for the owner of this particular scent until I spotted a stately brunette with wavy hair wading through the crowd. I didn't notice how I ended up standing next to her. Furthermore, I couldn't deny myself something as small as inhaling the scent of lilies once more. Suddenly, an impatient growl escaped my throat. The beast within me stirred, and my mind was literally branded with fire: “My girl.”
It was common knowledge in the werewolf world that once a wolf had made a choice, there was no escaping it. But, damn, it was bad timing and it was so problematic!
And I don't remember werewolves ever recognizing humans as their true mates before.
I'm a lucky asshole, as usual.
But if anyone asks me if I have any regrets, my answer is a resounding “no”.
How can I regret something like that?
Many people over the centuries have never met their mate, and I was lucky to find her so early. But I haven't even turned the first hundred years yet. And there's no way I'm giving up on this human girl now. My one and only. The one who has become the center of my personal universe in the blink of an eye.
All that remains is to take care of her betrothed. I'll do that as soon as I've solved the case that brought me to Moscow.
As the Supreme Alpha of all werewolves, I had to visit all the packs under my jurisdiction once a year. That's a big word. I'd only been in charge for a year. And I still had to prove to the heads of all the packs that I was worthy of my place on the council. This time I flew to Russia to check on the Gray and White Wolf Clan.
The latter were once quite numerous and more advanced than the former, but a fire twenty years ago killed nearly half the population of the White Pack, including the Alpha and his family. It had come as a great shock to everyone. No one could really say what had happened or how it had happened. The official version was that there had been an accident with fireworks during the holidays and that several houses had caught fire. The fire could not be put out in time. Panic broke out.
I did not believe it, and it would be difficult to find out the truth after such a long time. Most of all, I felt sorry for the newborn child of the head of the White Wolf Clan. Mother and child had died in bed together, but the Alpha had been found burned in the living room. The children whose parents had died were taken away by other families. Many went to live with the Gray Wolves. Rinat Aidarov — the head of the Gray Clan — united the territories of neighboring packs, which was a good decision for everyone. He was also an excellent leader of both packs. And now he's decided to rebuild and develop the White Settlement. That's why I'm here today, to see for myself the work that's been done.
I hope it will be as much fun as today because the local Alpha was not at the last meeting when I was elected Supreme and does not yet know who I am. I wanted to be a normal werewolf for a while. Frankly, I was tired of the constant problems in all the packs, and at this point I had to solve them myself. There was a lot of bureaucracy to deal with.
“Yes, it's hard being the king of the beasts,” I grinned, stopping the car near the mansion of the Gray Wolf village.
I took in the air, feeling the echoes of the scent of night lilies, and licked my lips in anticipation. I found you…
- Writer
