Forbidden Mates

Vampire in the City

“Time to wake up!” Marilee sang as she danced across the room, opening the blinds and pulling off Eva’s covers.

“Please, just five more minutes, Mari. Stella kept me up all night.”

Marilee froze. “Stella? She never bothers you at night! She likes sleeping even more than you do! Oh my goddess… she recognized the scent yesterday, too. Please! Let’s go find him!” she yelled as she jumped on Eva’s bed.

Eva couldn’t help but laugh at Marilee’s enthusiasm, and rolled her eyes as she pulled herself up, shoving Marilee off her as she climbed out of bed. “Why are you so much more excited about this than I am, Mari?”

“Because you haven’t experienced life with a mate yet, and I have! There is nothing more incredible in the world than finding your mate… the one person in the world who was made specifically for you! Made to love you, protect you, support you. Your whole life changes when you meet your mate, and I can’t wait for you to experience it… to feel that connection with another wolf!” Marilee stopped talking abruptly and her face fell. “But, if you’re a destined Luna, he is probably an alpha of another pack… we know all of the alphas around here, and none of them are your mate. What if you have to move far away?” she asked with a sad expression.

“If I have to leave, I will visit you every chance I get. But maybe he is not an alpha, and he will come to live here. Maybe he is a rogue, here to interview for pack acceptance, and cannot be an alpha. There are hundreds of possibilities, and no matter which it is, everything will be fine. And you will always be my best friend. No matter where I go.” Eva hugged her as a smile slowly spread across Marilee’s face. “Besides, you’re getting way ahead of yourself right now. I might not even find him, or maybe we’ll stumble across a new bakery down the street that just happens to be baking up some of my favorite treats, and there was never a mate at all.” Stella howled at Eva’s last comment, and voiced her frustration with Eva’s skepticism, Stop saying that! Why don’t you want a mate?! I know he is out there… I smelled him! Eva closed her eyes, placing her face in her hands as she tried to force Stella to calm down, I’m not saying I don’t want one, I’m just not desperate. I know you’ve been waiting patiently for him, and when we find him I promise not to keep you from him. This seemed to appease Stella, and she calmed down, allowing Eva to finish getting ready for the day in peace.

“Ready to head down?” Marilee asked Eva, as she slipped her shoes on.

“Ready! I am starving!”

The two women headed down to the breakfast area, both of their eyes lighting up as they reached the door, smelling all the amazing food waiting for them. Though a common epithet in the human world and marketing ploys for sugary cereals, for werewolves breakfast truly was the most important meal of the day. A wolf never knew if or when they might need to shift, and they needed to be fueled and prepared, as it burns a lot of calories and energy. So the women loaded up their breakfast trays with bacon and sausage, scrambled eggs, fresh fruit and breakfast potatoes. As usual, Eva doused her potatoes in ketchup and her eggs with pepper, while Marilee ate her breakfast plain. As they shoveled the food into their mouths, they saw a familiar figure heading toward them, and Marilee practically screamed with excitement.

“Good morning, Lukas!!” she squealed as he approached. Marilee had been staying with Eva recently as the anniversary of her father’s passing was coming up, despite Eva telling her it was unnecessary. But not having that time together each night was a challenge for a mated pair. They always seeked each other out before either of them left the Hold for the day.

“Good morning, my love.” He said as he took the seat next to her, pressing a kiss to the top of her head and wrapping his hand up in her curly hair at the back of her neck, bringing a soft purr from her wolf as she melted into his side. “I know you two smelled the…” he looked around, keeping his voice low, “creature… last night. I’m just letting you know that we’ll be setting up some cameras in the area. We wanted to set some traps but Nic says it’s too risky with all these humans around, and I have to agree with him. So, we’ll find where he’s staying, where he is going at night, and then we’ll catch him. But keep this in mind when you decide to wander around late at night. And please keep it to yourself…the last thing we need is a panic at the Hold.”

“Thanks for letting us know. Where is Nate this morning?” Eva asked. Not because she was hoping to see him, but so she could do her best to avoid him.

“I’m not sure. He got angry when Nic said no traps… he thinks Nic is being too soft and we shouldn’t care so much about the humans. He stormed off last night and I haven’t seen him since, even though Nic and I continued working on these plans for another hour or so.”

“If you do catch him, will you kill him?” Marilee asked softly. She had a huge heart and a kind spirit. She never agreed with killing anyone or anything that didn’t truly warrant it. She would be an incredible Luna for her new pack, ruling with compassion and consistency.

“I’m not really sure. It will depend on what we see in the video, and if we deem him a threat. It’s possible he’s not from the area, and truly didn’t know this is a wolf zone. If we have no reason to kill him, we will likely just release him with instructions to never return. Of course, Nate didn’t agree with this, either. He’s comparing it to trespassing on pack lands, and posing that it warrants the same reaction from us.”

“But that’s not even close to the same thing,” Eva responded. “Pack lands are clearly marked, and identifiable by anyone who is not a human. I don’t want to run into a vampire or anything, but we don’t really have any ownership of this area. It’s a human city. If his plan were to attack, I would think he would have already done that. He was out last night, and so were we. Whether he knew we are wolves or not, a wild vampire has very little control. So my guess is he’s a young vampire that belongs to a coven and is just out exploring. Whether he knew this was wolf territory before last night or not, I’m sure he knows now. I’d be surprised if he’s still around tonight.”

“That’s exactly the conclusion that Nic and I came to, and another reason we are choosing not to alert the Hold. We’ll see what happens tonight and regroup accordingly.” With that he turned to Marilee, effectively ending that conversation and opened a new one. “What is your schedule tonight? Can I take you to dinner this evening, my Luna?”

Marilee blushed and smiled, “I would love that, Alpha.” Her use of his title earned her a soft rumble from his chest, and a passionate kiss.

“Whoa! Guys! I’m still right here. Save that crap for after your date.” Eva laughed as she picked up her tray. “Also, Mari, I expect you to just stay with Lukas tonight. You guys obviously need a little time to…reconnect. Finish up your kissy-face here and I’ll meet you outside to head to class.” Marilee giggled and turned her attention back to Lukas while Eva took care of both of their trays and headed for the door.

As she was making her way through the doorway, Nate came out of nowhere, grabbing her arms and pushing her against the exterior wall.

“What is your problem?!” She hissed, trying to push his arms off her. He didn’t say anything, but his eyes burned into hers, flashing black as his anger surfaced. Before she could say anything else, he took off down the sidewalk, leaving her confused and irritated. Marilee came rushing through the door just then, asking her if she was alright. Many inside the building had seen the encounter outside the window, but it was over too quickly for anyone to truly react.

“That was super bizarre. He just held me there for a second and stared into my eyes. It was kind of like Lukas did with you the first time he saw you, except it was terrifying instead of exciting.”

“Ugh, I can’t stand the way he acts like that with you. Like he thinks if he just continues harassing you, you will somehow magically become his mate. It’s unbelievable.”

“Tell me about it. Stella started going nuts this time though. She usually just ignores him and Ian, but she was worked up about it. She might have even forced a shift if he hadn’t run off so quickly.”

“Really? She almost forced a shift? I’m telling you… Stella smelled your mate last night, and now she can’t even stand another male being close to you, until you’ve paired with your mate. You need to find him. And then, once he claims you, Nate and his stupid wolf Ian will have to get over you. Even if Nate doesn’t want to, Ian won’t ever be able to bond with Stella, so he will push Nate to go looking for his mate.”

“Ya know, if you needed a way to convince me to go looking for my mate, telling me that finding him would get Nate off my back was the trick. I’ll spend my evening sniffing around, and see if I can track him down, or at least his scent again. But don’t get your hopes up! There is no guarantee that he is around.” At that last word, Stella began going crazy in Eva’s head, Mate! He is near, Eva! Please find him! Eva stopped walking, holding her temples.

“I don’t get it! Now Stella is shouting at me, saying she can sense him nearby, but I don’t smell anything!” Eva said, her frustration obvious to Marilee.

“Eva, just take a deep breath. She’s still antsy about Nate being so close, and excited about the possibility of finding your mate.” Then Marilee took Eva’s face in her hands and looked deep into her eyes, “Listen, Stella, and listen hard. Eva has a lot going on right now, and she needs to focus in class today. As soon as class is over, she will go looking for your mate. And tomorrow, you and Sada can get out for a good run. Okay?” Okay, replied Stella, and Eva nodded. She was always amazed at how Marilee could calm her wolf. The inner wolves could have vastly different personalities than their humanistic counterpart, but for Eva and Marilee, it was like their wolves were just an extension of themselves, and their friendships were equally strong, no matter which piece of their being was interacting.

Finally, the young women were back on their way to class, dreading the coming hours of boring lectures and textbook assignments.

Nate was pacing in his office. He knew he needed to win Eva over, he just didn’t know how, and he didn’t know why she was so difficult. Other she-wolves were falling over themselves, trying to get his attention. He was chiseled, powerful, handsome. But she was somehow immune to him. Nic had told him a number of times to forget about her, and go searching for his real mate. But he knew Eva was the one for him. She would be his partner, his mate. And when they paired and reached their true potential together, she would be his Luna. Dominic could stand down or Nate would battle him for the Alpha position. He didn’t care that tradition handed the pack to the first-born son. It wasn’t his fault he was born second, but he was being punished for it. In his mind, if there is more than one son, there should be an opportunity to challenge for the position, with the strongest brother ruling the pack. Isn’t that what the pack should want?

Nate hated Dominic. He continued pacing, becoming more and more agitated as he thought about his older brother. He knew Nic was weak. Too weak to kill a lone vampire trespassing in their city. Too weak to live a life without his destined mate. Too weak to lead the most powerful werewolf pack in the country.

Nate didn’t know how, or when… but he knew that Eva would be his, and that he would take control of the pack with her by his side. She should be angry, too! He thought to himself. Everyone knew she was of royal blood, and as an only-child, she was the last of the royal bloodline. In Nate’s mind, it was her duty to mate with a powerful wolf of alpha blood, and restore the power of the true wolves, descending directly from her own great, great grandfather; the last Royal Alpha. An alpha wolf with the purest blood, untainted by disease, biological weaknesses or interspecies mating. But nearly a century ago, he was slain in The Great War; the war between the vampires and the werewolves.

Before the war, they had lived in harmony, even sharing lands and resources. But one day, the Royal Alpha discovered that the Vampire Elder’s first-born son, Vertanen, had fallen in love with the Royal Alpha’s only daughter, Rosemary, claiming she was his destined beloved. She, in turn, insisted he was her mate, that her wolf recognized him, and that the Moon Goddess had chosen them to blend the species. Both he and the Elder had forbidden their relationship, calling it a betrayal to their species, and demanded that they reject each other. At first, it seemed that the young couple had agreed, openly denouncing each other and their relationship in front of their fathers. But with their respective houses filled with resentment and anger, it was only a matter of time before fate brought the two back together. They began sneaking out to see each other in the night, hiding in the forest under the moon, dreaming about what their life could have been. Though they knew they could not claim or mark one another, they relished every moment they spent together. The rest of the world just disappeared as the laid under the stars, pretending that when morning came, they would wake together.

They continued their relationship in secret, until one day, the Royal Alpha declared an engagement for Rosemary. She was to marry the unmated alpha in a neighboring pack, forging an alliance between the two packs, by royal decree. Vertanen was furious, and begged his father to appeal to the Royal Alpha, and free his daughter from such a fate. The Elder refused, and Vertanen was left broken-hearted and hopeless. That night, he met Rosemary as usual, and they spent the night lamenting their future, and her engagement in a forced marriage. Rosemary wept for hours into Vertanen’s shoulder, breaking his heart and shattering his resolve. He knew he could not leave her to be marked by another, and before he could stop himself, sunk his fangs into her marking spot, claiming her as his for all of eternity. Triggering her wolf, her canines quickly surfaced, all reason and logic gone from either of their minds. Just as she prepared to mark Vertanen, he was ripped from her arms by her older brother, Keval, and her father’s Beta, Mikahl.

“How dare you?!” They shouted at Vertanen. Rosemary leapt at them, trying to get to Vertanen.

“Let him go!” She screamed.

“How could you be so stupid, Rosemary?! You let a vampire mark you, after Father forbid your relationship and promised you to another! This will bring a war upon our pack!”

Vertanen continued to struggle, but was not strong enough to break away. Gamma Roakor, the pack’s third in command had arrived, and was holding Rosemary back from interfering with Keval and Mikahl, doing his best to disguise the sadness in his eyes while doing it.

Slowly, the sun began to creep up over the mountains, as Keval and Mikahl chained Vertanen to a tree, with Rosemary screaming and fighting, realizing their intent. Suddenly, she shifted, ripping herself free from Roakor and leaping onto Mikahl’s back, tearing his head from his shoulders while he fought to secure the chains around Vertanen. Before she could attack Keval, he wrapped a silver chain around her own neck, yanking her to the ground and holding her there, forcing her to watch as the sun disintegrated her mate before her very eyes. She held Vertanan’s gaze until he was gone, then let out a mighty roar before being dragged back to the castle to await her father’s punishment.  

Nate punched the wall, then turned to look in the mirror as he declared, “She is the only one who can restore the Royal Alpha’s reign. Weakness destroyed it, and I will show her that truth. Then, she will share my throne and restore the true supremacy of the wolf.”

Nate turned to leave his office, when he sensed someone else was in the room. He slowly turned to find a dark, hooded figure in the corner. He extended his claws, prepared to defend himself against this unknown intruder.

“Who are you?” Nate asked apprehensively.

The figure stepped forward, removing his hood. Nate’s breath caught, recognizing him immediately, though struggling to comprehend his existence in that moment.

“I am the only person who can make your dream a reality. And I have come to make a deal.”