Makara Ch. 02

I twisted off the cap of the bottle, taking a hesitant sniff before bringing it to my lips. The liquid was sweet, and more refreshing than I was expecting.

Cade watched as I quickly downed the bottle. I tried to hand it back to him, the strength in my hand failing. Dropping the bottle to the ground, my vision went dark.

•°•***•°•

Slowly, I lifted my heavy eyelids, blinking until the blurry form in front of me sharpened.

"What the hell, Cade?" I pulled myself into a sitting position.

He looked at me questioningly before typing into his phone.

"You drugged me?" I glanced around the room, recognizing my surroundings as Silas' suite.

"No, I didn't."

"You gave me laced water that made me pass out and told me it was to help me heal."

"I gave you exactly what I said I gave you."

"Water with postium?"

"Yes."

"And postium is for healing?"

"Yes."

I stared at him, unconvinced.

"I may have forgotten to mention the side effects."

"Forgotten?"

"Yes."

"And what else did you forget to tell me?"

"Nothing. Just that you'll be very tired for the next twelve hours or so. Actually, make that ten, you've already been asleep for two."

"Two hours?" I stood from the couch, trying to stretch the exhaustion from my limbs. "Why would anyone use postium if you're basically a write off afterwards?"

"They don't."

"What?"

"Nobody uses it, not really. You're also going to have a wicked headache tomorrow."

"Why would you make me take it then?"

"My father said to evaluate you, not let you get your ass kicked. I don't think bringing you back nearly broken and bleeding would fit into whatever he has planned for you."

I was about to ask him what he meant by that when he spoke again.

"Plus it was just more convenient. I think after finding out how far behind you were in training you would have happily stayed there for the rest of the day and well into the night."

"So," I challenged him. "What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing's wrong with it. But, that's not what my dad asked me to do. I was supposed to figure out what level you're at and then bring you back."

"Why didn't you just tell me that?"

"Do you think you would have agreed to stop training the second you realized you kind of suck?"

"I don't suck." I whined, defending my pride.

He shrugged indifferently.

"Let me get this straight, you drugged me, and, I assume, carried me from the basement to the top floor to avoid an argument with me?"

"No, I already told you, I gave you a healing mixture for your injuries. You passing out, and subsequently being silent, was just a bonus."

My mouth hung agape, shocked by his audacity.

"I don't think you realize how annoying it is to speak to you," he added. "You're very stubborn."

There was a familiar, soft knock on the door before it swung into the room.

"Hi Cade, I got your order," Emery began cheerfully before turning her gaze to me. "You're still here?" She asked sourly.

"Why wouldn't I be?" I replied, matching her tone.

"I just heard some of the guys talking about the beating you took. I thought maybe you'd be dead."

"Nope. It turns out I can take a beating almost as well as you can." I retorted, shooting her a sardonic smile.

She glared at me for another moment, her eyes a barely concealed threat, before walking over to Cade, forgetting I even existed.

"I made the sandwich with extra mayo, Cade. I know how much you like it dripping." She purred, setting the tray down on the table in front of him.

"Great, thank you, Emery." Cade leaned forward in his seat, seemingly unphased by Emery's blatant flirting. He lifted the cloche, sliding the dish over to me before setting it back down with a clang.

Emery stood awkwardly, apparently unaware that her presence was no longer required.

"I'm not eating that," I said defiantly, looking from the sandwich to Cade. My stomach growled loudly in protest. "It's probably poisoned."

"Do whatever you want, it makes no difference to me."

Realizing she was no longer being acknowledged, Emery quietly left the room.

"That girl likes you, you know."

"No, she doesn't." He stood, moving towards me.

"Hi, Cade," I used my most mocking tone, laced with us much sexual undertone as I could muster. "I made the sandwich with extra mayo." I moved closer to him, running my finger down his chest. I noticed the hard muscles underneath his shirt, but ignored them. "I know how much you like it...dripping." I dragged the word out, fighting back a smile. Failing, I gave up my performance. "No, you're totally right, she definitely hates you."

"She doesn't like me, she likes the idea of me. She wants power and she thinks I can give her that."

"Couldn't you?"

"Yes, if I wanted to." He reached down to pick up the sandwich.

"But, you don't?"

"No." He took a bite, proving the sandwich was just a sandwich. "But, I do love extra mayo." He hummed, letting the sandwich flop back on the plate. Turning on his heels, he strode towards the door. "Wipe that blood off your face, it looks stupid without a wound," he commented, without looking back at me, before disappearing out the door.

I raised my hand to finger the injuries on my face, only to find dried blood caked over smooth skin. Picking up the cloche, I examined my reflection. I scratched away at the only evidence I had been in a fight, noticing that there was also no sign of a bruise around my eye. Setting the cloche back down hurriedly, I inspected the rest of my body. Every bruise, every cut, every mark, was gone.

I guess Cade was right about the postium.

Satisfied that I had removed all the crimson flakes from my face, I turned my attention to the sandwich on the table. Picking it up, I scrutinized it, looking for anything suspicious. Not finding anything, I decided just to eat it, my stomach urging me forward. Cade had taken a bite, so it must be fine.

I devoured the sandwich, rolling my eyes as mayo flooded my mouth with each bite. Leaving only crumbs on the plate, I looked around for something to do. I spotted my phone as it vibrated on the table.

I expected the message to be from Rodan, so I was surprised when I didn't recognize the number. Curiously, I read the message.

"Hey, it's Bash. I'm sorry about hurting you. Next time I see you, I'll let you punch me in the face."

I chuckled at his concern and typed back a reply.

"Don't worry about it. Good as new." I attached two pictures. One of my forehead, where he had made me bleed, and another of my shoulder that was now free of a particularly angry friction burn.

He sent back a thumbs up.

I set my phone back on the table, looking for the next thing to remedy my quickly developed boredom. I walked around the room, trying to occupy myself by inspecting the artwork on the walls.

Wandering down a hallway that was inconspicuous from most areas of the living room, I debated whether giving myself a tour of Silas' apartment would be considered rude.

I got to the end of the hallway, faced with large, ornately decorated, double doors. They looked heavy, but more importantly, they were closed. Having no idea what was behind them, my curiosity threatened to overtake me.

Worming my self control back into place, I turned away, deciding there might be a reason for the doors to be closed. I would ask Silas to show me later.

As I emerged back into the living room, I realized Silas' bedroom door had been left open. Intrigued, I leaned into the room slowly, intending to sneak a peek before shutting the door.

A book on his nightstand caught my attention. Excitedly, I rushed into the room, grasping the familiar text. I noticed another book underneath it, but not recognizing the symbol on the front, quickly disregarded it.

I hurriedly opened the book, gasping as two pages fell out and fluttered to the floor. I picked them up, worried that I had damaged the book in my haste. I breathed a sigh of relief as a quick once over of the pages revealed they were not part of the binding, and had merely been tucked inside the cover.

Inspecting the first page more closely, I realized it was a list of names.

"...Dodge...Talismay..." I mumbled to myself as I read the last two names out loud. I didn't recognize any of them, which made sense, considering it was likely these were wolves from Silas' pack. There was no heading for the list, and the reverse side was blank. Deciding this information was of little value to me, I tucked it back into place in the front cover.

The second page had a poem that meant about as little to me as the list had. I had never been particularly interested in poetry, but I read it slowly in my head anyway.

'Body, mind and soul,

And blood used to bind,

Sacrifice through ash and coal,

Save humankind,

-

One year one hundred makes

And untold screams and pain

Patiently it sits and waits

For unmatched strength and gains

-

Mega pool and fountain,

Sit empty dry as bone

First or last to mount in

And bathe to atone'

Concluding that that had, in fact, been a waste of my time, I placed it with the first page and began flipping through the book. I ran my fingers over the rough paper, feeling the texture of the slightly raised ink as I read.

"What are you doing?" I heard Silas' voice from behind me.

Startled, I launched the book in the air. It landed with a soft thud, its pages sprawled open. I hurried to pick it up, sighing as the two loose pages fell out once again. Embarrassed, I reached for those as well, inserting them back into the book and closing it tightly, placing it back on his nightstand.

He watched me expectantly as I turned to face him.

"Nothing," I answered sheepishly.

"Nothing? It looks like you snuck into my room to read that book, there." He motioned to the nightstand with a subtle thrust of his chin.

"Well, you did leave your door wide open, so there wasn't much sneaking involved, but-"

"But you WERE reading that book."

I looked from Silas, to the book, and back again, unsure of how he would react.

"I might have been, yes." His harsh stare bore into me, willing me to provide him with more details. "I noticed your door was open and I came over to close it when I saw the book. Clearly, I wasn't really thinking when I ran inside, but I just had to hold it."

"Why? What's so important about this book that you had to hold it."

"Nothing, to anyone else I suppose, but to me...I just love these stories. I used to read them all the time before Rodan wrecked my copy."

He took a step towards me.

"I know I shouldn't have come into your roo-"

"Nonsense," he interrupted me, his voice developing a dangerously sexy tone. "You're right where you should be."

He smirked as heat inflamed my cheeks and I worked not to divert my eyes.

"Tell me about the stories."

He looked utterly pleased with himself as my eyes widened in surprise. I had been expecting something more along the lines of a barrage of advances and sexual innuendos. He seemed to enjoy the game of catching me off guard.

"You have a copy of the book on your nightstand, surely you've read them." I managed to pull the words through my vocal chords.

"I have. But, I want to hear you tell them."

He seated himself on the bed, which gave him a much less intimidating appearance as, in my standing position, I was now a little bit taller than him.

"Well," I began timidly. "The stories tell of our history, where the werewolves came from."

"Go on," he encouraged.

"There were wolves once, of their own flesh and blood, separate from people." I gained confidence as I spoke, allowing the familiar stories from my childhood to bolster my narrative. "But, there was war, fighting over territory and power. The people outnumbered them, but the wolves were strong and proud, they would not give up. There was brutal violence between them, humans shredded by teeth and claws, wolves skinned and displayed."

It was easy to lose myself in the stories. I almost didn't notice Silas' hand reach up to my leg, tracing delicate circles on the side of my knee.

"Eventually the wolves' low numbers proved to be their achilles heel. The humans hunted them to extinction, celebrating that their biggest enemy was no more. The Moon goddess, who cared for the wolves, was enraged by the destruction of her children, and vowed that she would not let them be wiped out.

"She could not create flesh from nothing, and she refused to take another's life to reshape their body. She forced cooperation on the humans, the ones who had hunted and killed, placing a wolf soul and mind to share in their flesh."

I was mildly aware of Silas' attentions moving to the back of my leg.

"For years, the wolves and humans fought against the pairing, for control of the body, for control of the mind. Many went insane, unable to deal with the constant struggle. Some were able to set aside their hatred in order to survive. They worked out their issues, creating a symbiotic relationship. The wolves developed a higher intelligence, far past the primal instincts of their parents, that allowed them to communicate in our language. And the humans gained enhanced senses, agility and healing, and improved physically overall.

"It didn't take them long to discover that, together, they were more powerful than the humans who were not paired, the ones who had not participated in the original war. It was easy then, to demonstrate their prowess and superiority over these humans, and easier still to cut down anyone who rebelled. These new werewolves would slash and bite any who stepped out of line, and often hunted the humans for sport."

He squeezed my leg, pulling me closer towards him. I stepped forward obediently, too distracted by my story and the hypnotic movements of his hand to resist.

"It was then the Moon goddess discovered the role her children had played in their own demise. Their unrestrained blood lust bringing on their destruction as much as that of the humans. Angered by their actions, she punished the wolves, banishing the use of their flesh as a tool to control others. No longer could werewolves shift from one body to another. They would be bound in furless skin, still clinging to the mind of their human for life. They would see everything through the eyes of their host, but never experience it for themselves, until their misdeeds were paid for."

A quiet growl emanated from Silas as I realized both his hands were on my hips. Without me noticing, he had managed to pull me so I was standing between his legs, my hands resting on his shoulders, fiddling with the collar of his shirt.

He ran his hands down my legs and back up again. I swallowed hard and kept my eyes trained on his, trying to avoid giving him any kind of response. I shifted my weight from one foot, to the other, the wetness between my legs suddenly becoming obvious. He gave me a knowing smirk.

"Were you even listening?" I questioned, taking a small step out of his embrace.

"Of course I was. But you didn't make it very easy, bombarding me with your alluring scent."

"The story is not suggestive in any way," I began, more confidently than I felt. "If you had kept your hands off me, that wouldn't have happened."

"Ahh, but there in lies the problem in keeping my hands off of you."

That he wanted me was no secret, but my stomach gave an excited lurch anyway. Once again, my body looking for the exact opposite of what I wanted.

"But it is nice to know I can elicit such a reaction from you." He said when I remained silent.

"You already knew you could."

"That I could what?" I gave him an annoyed look, knowing he was perfectly aware of what I meant. He stood, catching me in his arms before I could step back. "Make you yearn for my hands on your body?" He leaned in, his warm breath on my neck as he spoke. "That I could make you drip, and ache for release?"

He held me there for a moment, lips barely an inch from my neck, never touching. I swallowed, searching for words, knowing he was waiting for an answer.

"Yes." I finally whispered, refusing to break our arrangement by lying.

"I guess I did know that. But it's fun to hear you say it."

I scowled at him, not having nearly as much fun as he seemed to be. I struggled to rein in my unruly body, puzzled by the intensity of my urges. I didn't want him, so why did it feel like I needed him so badly?

"I can help you with that, you know." I gasped as his lips grazed the sensitive area below my ear, forcing me to picture exactly how he could help. "I know you want it, I can smell it." He pulled me tighter to him. "All you have to do is say yes, and I'll make you experience pleasures that you've only dreamed of. Do you want me to take care of you?"

I fought for control over my body, trying to stamp down every impulse pressing me to assent. He had warned me he would try this, I should have been more prepared. I could tell him to stop trying, but that would only prove I'm not able to resist him, that he could control me in that way. I spent my entire life being controlled by others. It was my decision who I slept with, and when I slept with them, I wouldn't let anyone take that away.

"No, thank you." My response was barely audible, but there was no mistake that Silas had heard it. "I've got it under control."

He pulled back to look at me, his mouth turning up in a predatory smile.