Austin's Point of View
Cass had yet to bathe my smell off of her. I could smell Abby mixing with the kitchen scents. Her soothing odor contrasted with the oleander from Cass, making my nose itch in discomfort.
I watched Cass sniff the air before turning to me, rage transforming her face. "Who the fuck have you been around? You stink like a cheater!" she yelled out, causing Bree to jump in fright.
The fright turned to tears as Cass put her down. My heart jumped at the roughness of the action. Cass had never handled Bree so harshly before. Instead, she handled her with kid gloves, as if she were made of porcelain. Bree's crying turned to loud screams. I began to walk towards her to sooth the pup when I felt Cass fling her clawed hand at me.
I stopped in shock.
"What the hell is wrong with you Cass? Calm down, your scaring Bree!" I yelled at the female before me. Of all the time we have spent together, not once has she ever raised her voice, nor her hands against me.
"You stink of a human female. Who is she Austin, who is the female that has her smell all over your body. I can't even smell anything but her in this damn kitchen. Who the hell is she, Austin", her voice getting louder the longer she spoke.
I was almost to Bree when I answered, "My moon-given mate, Cass. My brother found her and brought her back," I chose not to give her all the details as it didn't pertain to her. My hands reached out to pick Bree up when I felt her claws make contact with my upper arms, ripping into my flesh, extending into my chest as I turned around. Shock. Complete and utter shock flooded into my system. Cass, the female that settled for me when she couldn't find her moon-given mate, the female that kept me company as my brother left me behind. The soft-spoken wolf that was kind to everyone just attacked me. I left Bree in her bassinet and gave Cass my full attention. I don't know what I was expecting, but this was not it.
I thought she would be upset, sure, but all we ever talked about was finding our mate and creating a permanent bond with them. Bree was an accident, a beautiful accident, but one regardless.
I shut my eyes in grief.
My actions led us here. It was me. Sure, Cass had some part in it, but I chose to ignore my mother, my father, shit, I even ignored my brother and shut our communication off until today, when I discovered Abby in the meadow. I let him listen to everything she said, the stalking she suffered, the fear of his pursuit. It was an attempt to hurt him as much as he hurt me by leaving. Yet, he is the one that marked our mate and walked away while I had this problem to try and fix.
But how do I fix this? We have a child between us for love's sake.
Cass is wailing at me, flesh coming off with each swipe. Instead of calming down, she is getting more rampant. I can smell a new scent coming from her. Jealousy.
I smelled this briefly the first time I held Bree, but it was so short-lived that I convinced myself that I imagined it. This is not short-lived. It is pungent and foul.
I pick Cass up and carry her outside, fearing for my pup's life with her in this situation. The entire time, she is scratching the shit out of my chest. I can feel blood trickling down everywhere she has scratched, including my cheeks and in my hair.
"Enough Cass!" I growled at her. Dominance coating my voice.
She halts her actions, her hands down at her sides.
"You need to use your voice and talk to me," I relaxed my voice and stance, trying to calm the wolf inside her. It is this action that gives her the opening she needs as her hand punches into my chest, breaking through my ribs to get to my heart.
A fatal move.
Instead of staying as her punching bag, I finally responded to her aggression. I release my wolf, transitioning quickly, healing the minor wounds, but my chest will take time.
In this form I can see what I couldn't before. Cass is jealous, sure, but it runs so much deeper than that. The news of my moon-given mate...has her wolf going mad.
Not insane mad, but close to it. I watch as her body turns and runs back to the house. I am running behind her, but still, I am too late. She turns around with Bree in her hands. "Shift, shift now or I am leaving with her and you will never see Bree again!"
I shift, causing my chest to rip a bit as my flesh alters.
"Let's talk, Cass, that's all we need to do. Just talk. We've been friends for so many years. Please, calm down and talk with me," I pleaded.
I don't know if it's her threat or if I really do value the friendship we've had. My daughter stopped crying, her small frame hiccuping as her tears dried. Cass is calming down, but the anger in her gaze is blaring even louder. "You told me I would be your mate, Austin, you told me that. We were planning our ceremony." She looked down at our pup, tears brimming her eyes.
I did this.
Instead of waiting for my mate, I hurt Cass, and soon, once my mate is aware, then she will feel the pain of my betrayal too. I sat at our kitchen table and put my head in my hands. My body was beginning to heal, but my chest was still oozing blood. She broke my ribs and even scratched my heart. It would take a day or two to heal properly. I looked back up at her as I moved another chair back for her to sit in. This would be a complicated discussion.