Falling onto his knees, the black wolf shook his head, struggling to stand up after what he had experienced.
"Fuck! That was rougher than I expected." Alijah cursed, gazing around the room to assess his situation.
When his eyes met mine, I felt a thump come from within. My bracelet shimmered brightly as the distortion from our surroundings quelled, allowing me a clearer view of this place.
Ah… I'm running out of time.
Much to my horror, it was identical to the one I had dreamt of. Thanks to my magic, the sky above us was red. The only difference was that the red sun glared down on us instead of the moon.
"Lilith..." he called.
My body grew cold, and every fiber shivered when I heard his tender voice. I stepped back, trying to control my emotions as Shade moved away from him. The power that radiated from him was surreal. It even had my feisty familiar on edge.
Fenris will surely...
"I didn't expect you to be here, my love." Alijah burst happily, tail wagging.
Although taller than me, this wolf didn't have much difference to Fenris's height. I took a deep breath to quell my emotions.
Focus, the last thing I need is to lose myself. So, I breathe in and out; this wolf can't win this fight. That dream isn't going to happen, not today or ever.
The only thing that broke his gaze away from me was when he accidentally stepped on Cora's body. He hadn't seen her until that point. Unlike how he reacted to me, I witnessed his eyes narrow as all the affection from before melted away to something more sinister.
The next moment, I flinched when the wolf kicked her hard enough to split her in half before her body melted against the wall on the side.
You're…
"Stupid roach," he muttered, stretching his arms as if warming up for what was coming.
The sheer force he had alone was astonishing.
If you get anywhere near Fenris… He has no chance against you.
Pushing aside my feelings, I took a step forward to this monster.
I have to stop this before it gets too far. This wolf can't be here when you get here!
"You were right, Alijah." I approached, trying to keep my body from shaking.
My magic was useless against this opponent. Shifting his gaze back towards me, his eyebrows raised.
"Ah, you're a little on the big side there, love." He narrowed his eyes before scowling, "I'm going to enjoy ripping into him for doing that."
I sighed, struggling to feel anything at all. There could be no distractions. After all, there was only one shot at this, and I had to make it count.
That's right, focus on… this alone.
Yet I had no idea how to close the gap between us with the bracelet in hand. Shade shifted into her tiny form to appear less threatening to him. Undoubtedly, if she moved towards him, he'd shred her.
Whenever Fenris was serious, he could shut down all magic within a certain radius, making us two magicless and harmless—something this wolf had more experience in.
If I don't sell it right… Then, this wolf…
"If you do... Then make sure I'm there to see his light go out." I closed my heart, preventing myself from feeling the weight of my words.
Thankfully, the inhibitors that took my emotions away had trained me to do so with ease.
"Oh, ho... what happened here? What did I miss, love?" Alijah asked, gazing at me as if he had won the lottery.
Even though he had been stuck there for all those years, he was still stuck in a young man's body. The prison froze him at twenty-three, which meant he was full of himself and gullible, at least with me—something I planned to use to my advantage.
Though, deep down, I felt bad for him.
Perhaps if you had a different life, none of this would've happened. I'm sorry the world made you this way, Alijah.
"When you left me, I realized he wanted to control me, as you said. It was a mistake to not listen to you sooner." I answered, caressing my belly.
The cramps were getting worse, which made it hard to concentrate on the wolf in front of me. Shade slowly trailed behind me when I stepped towards him, who seemed unable to control his smile, yet it wasn't one full of affection.
"Ah... So, you realized it. Why didn't you terminate then?" He questioned, studying my reactions.
He knew full well we witches had spells and potions to abort a pregnancy since most of those spells were older than him. I closed my eyes, trying not to let myself feel a thing.
A simple thing can ruin this moment; I can't let you get away.
I had to convince this wolf I was there for him alone. In a sense, that was true, but not for the reasons he wanted.
"Because I couldn't bring myself to kill something that came from me. My mother didn't when my father left, so I wanted to be like her." I answered, hiding the lies within the truths.
Alijah nodded before shrugging, "Ah, well, don't worry, love. I can work them into my plan. However, are you sure you should be here?"
It threw me off my game as he stayed right where he was.
Crap, are you catching on? Did I play too hard into it?
"What?" I mumbled, not understanding why he would ask something like that.
In my mind, in all the scenarios I had played, Alijah never questioned me. Instead, he had embraced me in his arms—something that wasn't happening fast enough for my liking.
I needed to get closer somehow. This can't fail!
"I mean, I thought I would have to find you. Not for you to walk here to me. After all, you weren't that accepting of me before, and the scent of blood is lingering everywhere." He pointed out, getting suspicious of me.
He was too smart for Lycan. However, he enjoyed any attention that came from me.
"I see. Well, I felt the tug of fate pulling me here. Should I have stayed away? Is that what you're saying?" I asked.
My questions triggered Alijah to shake his head quicker than I thought he could. It reminded me of a child backstepping because he was about to lose what he wanted. He hadn't matured in all the years he passed in that timeless prison, but what impressed me the most was how sane he was.
After all, he was alone for all those years. I thought he would be worse. No, something else was happening, but I would never know what it was. After all, my story didn't thoroughly mix with him.
I would never understand him and never thought I would want to, not while his existence threatened my family.
"No, I'm happy you came to me." Alijah breathed, taking a step towards me. "Well, I'm here now."
However, before he could get close enough for me to act, a weird energy pulse erupted around us. It quickly took his attention as he went on the defensive.
What the…. One of the shadow beasts I summoned was suddenly cut off from me. How...
No, that was a thought I quickly had to kill, as that was a problem for another day. The black wolf had to be my sole focus; he was agitated.
"What was that?" he questioned, readying himself for a fight.
Even though I didn't know what happened, I couldn't let him leave me. That would spell certain doom for everyone I loved.
"Probably my beast roaming found another witch or warlock. Nothing to worry about." I lied, trying to keep Alijah with me.
If he left me there, the game would be over, as there was no way I could catch him again. My bracelet shone, meaning Fenris knew I was missing and was searching for me.
You'll get here at any moment, too. I have to hurry and close this gap.
Luckily, Alijah turned back towards me upon hearing what I said.
"Ah… I don't... Wait, you killed the witches? Why are you taking my fun, love?" he shrugged, shaking his head.
I raised my eyebrows, and my eyes widened. He truly was a weird character, but that made him unpredictable.
How will I ever stop you? No… focus on the now. The future can wait.
"I'm sorry. I thought they weren't at the top of your kill list. After all, they 'worked' for you, but isn't your job to take care of the Lycans?" I tried to imitate his logic.
He smiled, enjoying this new me—someone different from the one he met during the dream.
"I'm really liking this new side. What changed you so much?" Alijah asked curiously.
I knew the perfect answer, considering his history.
"Lycans did," I answered.
He huffed, alerting me I had clicked the right button.
"Yeah, they can do that." He agreed, licking his lips.
My bracelet shone even brighter, alerting me to the danger that was rushing its way there.
Fenris... Please… don't get here yet.
Unable to keep coaching him towards me, I tried the latter. Even though I felt ill, that was never in question. The cramps were getting to me, but not to the point I was about to make it seem. I pretended to feel faint, causing Alijah to close the gap between us, preventing me from tumbling onto the floor.
"Lilith!" He called out, voice quivering a bit.
Releasing a soft groan, one of my hands gripped his arm as the other reached where I had hidden the pouch with the bracelet. His touch was so gentle, too.
If things had been different, you wouldn't have hurt anyone. I'm sorry for what they did to you, but I can't let you get away.
The pain the poor boy endured to become the monster from my dreams heated me up. The elders ruined a sympathetic soul.
And for what? Legacy? They're a bunch of fools. None of them will touch my babies; I promise you that much, Alijah. What they did won't ever happen again.
"Hey, are you okay?" he asked, cupping one of my cheeks as the warmth that resonated with him from my belly grew more assertive.
It almost left me breathless.
Why am I feeling this way? You aren't Fenris!
Even though I wanted to pull away from him, I couldn't.
"It must've been a kick," I mumbled, holding the pouch.
This was the point of no return, and if he saw through my intentions, it would be over. After all, a surprise was the only way a human would ever beat a wolf.
"Ah... The pup must be a strong one." He breathed, suddenly gazing towards the corridor.
Unlike me, his ears allowed him to notice something I hadn't. His aura changed from gentle and caring to menacing as I followed it. My heart stopped upon seeing what he was glaring at.
Ah… I'm too late.
In the doorway stood Fenris, panting from the marathon he endured to find me. The desperation was evident in his eyes when they met with mine. However, they quickly shifted away from me and towards the other Lycan in the room.
My wolf was far from happy by the turn of events, but seeing me in Alijah's arms was sending him over the edge. I had to move before…