Normally, Bree loved water.
Her mother was a water manipulator, so Bree had grown up in a life full of bubbles and water globes and tides and seas. They lived as close to the Talmerian river as possible, and Bree’s mother had taught her to swim at a young age.
Water magic was the easiest type for Bree, because she had inherited her mother’s genetics, so, at first, she wasn’t worried about being thrown into the lake. She would just use her powers to give herself a bubble to breathe, and wait under the water until Thera had gone.
However, when she tried to find her aerating abilities, she was reminded that her powers had been drugged into submission, and all that was left was a lot of nothing.
Bree panicked.
Her mouth opened without her meaning it to, and a stream of bubbles raced out as she exclaimed in horror.
She had already sunk fairly deep into the lake, and when she looked up, the sunlight-spattered surface looked far-away and unattainable. The water moved in teasing swirls, as though daring Bree to come back up for air, but she knew that she wouldn’t be able to do it. She had wasted precious air trying to find her magic, and she was running out of time.
Her lungs burned, and Bree kicked feebly a few times, but her body was rapidly weakening, and she saw the surface blurring in front of her eyes as her system demanded air that she couldn’t give it.
She wanted to cry; she had gotten so close to freedom, and now here she was, drowning in a lake.
She let out a final gasp, her lungs finally giving up as things started to go black around her.
Just before she passed out, there was a tug around her chest.
Suddenly, she was being yanked upward, the water rushing past. Then she burst through the surface, into the air and sunlight.
Bree coughed violently, feeling a hand on her back as she was sat on the bank, dripping water into the grass. She shuddered, expelling more water from her lungs. When the ringing in her ears stopped, she was able to make out voices around her.
“What were you thinking?” a familiar, low voice growled. “You could have killed her!”
“So?” a female voice answered. “She’s a witch! She’s nothing!”
“Shut up,” the low voice said.
Bree blinked the water out of her eyes to reveal the Alpha standing over her, stone-cold and furious.
“Are you alright?” he asked.
“What?” she asked shakily, her voice croaky from swallowing so much water. She hadn’t expected him to actually care about her wellbeing. “How did you find me?”
“I followed you,” the Alpha said, his face impassive. “I wanted to see what you would do.”
He held out his hand, palm up. “Give them back.”
“Give what back?” Bree asked, even though she had a sinking feeling that she knew.
“The keys,” the Alpha said, his hand still extended.
Bree thought about taking her chances and just running, or refusing to give the keys back, but she was in no shape for a conflict, even a verbal one. She spat more lake water out of her mouth, and then reluctantly took the key from her pocket and gave it to the Alpha.
“We’re going back to the castle,” he said roughly, but when he took Bree’s arm to help her to her feet, his touch was surprisingly gentle.
“Dallas!” Thera shrieked, and Bree had almost forgotten about her. “Have you lost your mind? What are you even doing with her?”
“That’s none of your concern,” the Alpha said.
Bree realized that she hadn’t known his name the entire time she had been at the castle. What was even more shocking was that she liked the name Dallas; she thought that it suited him.
“Of course it’s my concern!” Thera continued. “I’m your girlfriend! She’s just a stupid little slut who seduced you so that she could f*ck her way into our pack!”
“Thera!” Dallas shouted. “Enough!”
Thera glared at him, then turned to Bree, her look so terrifying that Bree nearly balked.
She managed not to, however, and Thera growled at the both of them, then took off, back towards the forest shortcut that she had brought Bree down.
Dallas sighed, shaking his head a little, and Bree noticed then that he was just as wet as she was.
“Did you… save me?” she asked.
Dallas gave her a side-eyed look. “Don’t ask questions.”
***
Unfortunately for her, Dallas took Bree directly back to the castle. She was still recovering from nearly drowning, and didn’t protest much—until she realized that she was being taken back to the room she had been locked up in and started to struggle.
“No!” she cried. “I don’t want to go back there!”
Dallas looked down at her in disdain. “It doesn’t matter what you want. That’s where you’re staying.”
Bree shook her head wildly, stopping in the middle of the hall and refusing to move. It wouldn’t mean much if Dallas truly wanted to force her to go with him, but she wouldn’t make it easy for him. “I don’t want to.”
A soft growl rose in Dallas’ throat. Bree was expecting him to yell at her again, but a voice from further down the hall stopped him.
“Dallas, be nice.”
Bree and Dallas both looked up to see a young, female wolf leaning against the wall, her arms folding, looking with mild disapproval at the scene in front of her. She seemed somewhat familiar, though Bree knew that she had never seen the girl before.
“Do you want to deal with her, then, Cerelia?” Dallas demanded.
Bree was waiting for Cerelia to back down, to say no, but to her surprise, the young wolf stepped forward, smiling. “Sure. I’ll take care of her.”
Bree blinked in surprise, and then nearly fell over in shock when Dallas actually relinquished his hold on her arm.
He didn’t seem like the type to give up anything, but he was just handing Bree over to this Cerelia like it was no big deal.
“Take her to one of the guest rooms, then,” Dallas said grumpily. “Make sure she stays there.”
Cerelia nodded, taking Bree’s arm.
“Don’t worry,” she said, “The guest rooms are a lot nicer.”
Bree didn’t know how, as the room she had been staying in was already very nice, but she let Cerelia lead her away down the hall. She was getting a bit tired of wolves thinking that they could just take her wherever they wanted.
The guest room wasn’t nearly as high up in the castle, and when Cerelia opened the door, it looked much more modern than the other room had. The bed was still huge, but there was a set of double doors leading to the balcony, a large closet, and a joined bathroom. The furniture all matched, and the bedspread looked very comfortable.
“I’m sure you’re cold,” Cerelia said, letting go of Bree in order to go over to the closet and open it. Rows of clothes hung inside.
“Are those mine?” Bree blurted.
“Yes,” Cerelia laughed. “You can wear whatever you want.”
“Oh,” Bree said, frowning. She hadn’t expected this type of treatment. “Um, not to be rude, but who are you?”
“Oh!” Cerelia exclaimed. “I’m Dallas’ younger sister. Sorry, I forgot that you can’t sense who is related to whom.”
Well, it now made sense as to why Cerelia looked familiar; Bree could see the similarities between her and Dallas’ features.
Cerelia was still smiling at her, so Bree felt comfortable enough to ask, “And Dallas… is the Alpha of this pack?”
Cerelia nodded. “He is. He’s a good Alpha, too. I know you might not be able to see it, but he takes care of the pack. He’s not a bad person.”
“If he’s not a bad person, then why did he kidnap me?” Bree blurted, the question she had been thinking about since she arrived tumbling around in her mind.
For the first time, Cerelia’s smile faded a bit, and she looked sort of uncomfortable. “It’s… kind of a long story.”
“I have nothing but time,” Bree said, gesturing around herself.
Cerelia nodded. “Right.” She sighed, and then, surprising Bree yet again, came over and sat down next to her on the bed. “Bree. You and Dallas are fated to be together. You’re Dallas’ chosen mate.”