Wolf Magic: A Fantasy of Werewolves and Witches in the Twilight (4 page)

How comforting.

Still, so many questions lay on his mind. Hell, he didn't even know where the pack had left him or how they managed to get him here.

His body still ached, but he had new pain, delicious pain from Selene to minimize the annoying burn of getting his ass kicked by the elders.

Hell, her sexual gifts were an ego boost.

Letting out a slow, long breath, Marco closed his eyes and tried to still his mind.

A hand gripped his and warmth filled him. Comfort settled into his mind, putting him to sleep for the night.

C
HAPTER 4

An arm moved over her breast, startling her. Jerking awake, Selene scrambled off the bed, yanking the sheet with her when she realized there was a warm body beside her. It was only Marco, the harmless, but oh so yummy wolf, whom she'd worn like a second skin in the shower earlier.

He stirred, reaching out for her. A glance at his features reminded her how young he was.
He still had baby fat, though after last night, she was sure he was a man. At least, in human form.

"
What was I thinking, saying I'd watch their damn wolf," she asked herself.

"
Selene," the voice from her bed moaned.

He rolled over, facing her.
Eyes closed, he looked peaceful, and she was sure deceptive like the last wolf she'd dated, years ago. The memory wasn't a good one.

Her body ached in delicious places it never had before, bringing a smile to her face.
She could never have Marco again. The very thought of loving another damn wolf was impossible after what her last lover had done to her. He'd been polyamorous, which was fine with her.  But his choice of lovers always kept her wondering what he saw in her.

She slipped on her robe
and padded down the hall. The TV was on and she hadn't left it that way. With the feeling of hundreds of butterflies fluttering in her stomach, she approached her living room cautiously. Snapping her fingers, a blue aura surrounded her.  Protection was best, even for simple burglars.

The lush brown chair in front of the TV faced her.  Empty.
The chair rocked back and forth as if someone had occupied it and left before she came into the living room. The slow steady motion made her nervous. Had one of the pack followed him here?

"
I see you are awake after your little rumble with the baby."

Selene spun in the direction of the voice, glaring at a wolf standing in her kitchen.
The wolf plodded closer, his ruffled silver fur standing on end.  Even the grin on his face seemed smug.

"
What do you want, Les?"

"
The same as always.  You."

She frowned. 
"Never."

The wolf became a gorgeous man with long black hair and dark skin, dressed in blue jeans and dress shirt.
Long eyelashes fluttered over slanted eyes.  The one lime green eye still freaked her out. His brown skin was smooth and he looked too civilized to be the demon he was.

"
How did you get in here?"

"
You left the glass door open, my dear."

"
Get out, Les." She thrust her arm out, sending a breeze toward him.

Les didn
't even flinch. "Good luck with magic, silly woman.  I am stronger than that."

"
Get out or it'll get worse." Selene felt her eyes burning, her skin heating.  She raised an arm, fingers spread before her face.  Straightening her fingers with force, she cracked her knuckles.

"
I am not afraid." Les laughed, a rich, melodic sound.

A growl from behind her caught her off-guard.
She saw a large gray wolf jump at Les, jaws open.

Les simply waved his hand, smacking the wolf to the side.

He slammed against the wall and fell to the ground. Whimpering, he looked at Les and started to stand again.

Les snapped his fingers and sent an energy ball flying at Marco. Cowered, Marco covered his face but the ball never hit.

Selene looked back at him. She'd moved to absorb the energy blast. She couldn't stand the sound of Marco's painful cries. She sent calming waves toward him and his whimpers stopped.

"
You can either give in and give me a child, or die, Selene. It matters not.  My brother is far too old to find his mate and is slowly losing his mind."

"
I don't care about Kiba.  I don't care about you. I will not give you a child.  I'm not even sure I could give you a child if the thought didn't sicken me, Les."

Selene closed her eyes, concentrating on the focal point of Les
's skull. Every kitchen knife Selene owned raced toward his head. She opened her eyes and Les had disappeared, leaving his evil laughter to echo throughout the room before he'd jumped off the balcony. She returned the knives to their respective places.

How the hell did he do the things he did?
No other wolf in the pack could do that shit.

Marco
's whimpers drew her attention. Les had hurt him. He was still a pup.  Selene could not help but worry, Marco was bleeding.

"
Are you all right?" she knelt by his side, stroking his fur. His bleeding wound wasn't so large as it seemed at first glance.

Selene put her hands together over the wound, closing her eyes in concentration.
She imagined Marco healed, running through thick underbrush happy, tongue hanging out of his mouth. She envisioned his every taut muscle lengthening and contracting as he ran, as he morphed into a human and took her in his arms, driving himself into her arms.

"
S-Selene?" The voice brought her from her mental image.

"
Marco, are you all right?" She looked down, and Marco was gloriously naked before her, his lean body an enticing sight.

"
Yeah. What just happened?"

She sighed heavily.

"Who came here to harm you?" Marco sat straight up, hissing in pain.

"
Don't worry about it. There's nothing anyone can do to stop him."

"
Who is he?" Marco grabbed her shoulder and pulled her toward him. His arms, his embrace felt warm, protective.

She shoved him away.
"Don't worry about it. You're just a pup. Thanks for trying, but you're no match for Les."

"
Kiba's brother Les?"

"
Don't worry about it."

"
But we ... you and I, you're my—"

"
Fuck buddy," she blurted out.

"
Oh."  Removing his hand, Marco lowered his head.

Selene stood, running her fingers through
the tangled mess of her hair.  She'd long dropped her protective aura. The robe hung over her body, exposing a slight belly.  She cupped her tummy and sighed.

"
You're beautiful, you know." Marco walked to the couch.

"
You don't have to—"

"
Skip it. I'm a pup, remember? I don't know any better." He spat the words out.

Somehow, he didn
't look quite as boyish as before.  Frowning, Selene looked at him.  "That's not what I meant."

"
It doesn't matter.  Look, I need some fresh air."

"
Not in the state you're in."

"
You're not a wolf. You can't heal like I can. I'll be back." He stormed passed her and out the door of her apartment.

"
You have no idea what I am," she whispered.

For the first time in a long while, Selene was depressed.
She knew she'd just had a lover's quarrel but didn't want to admit it.

Kiba had been trying to persuade her to give the pack a child through Les, but backed off years ago.
He'd said a child from her would be born a great leader, would be the one to lead their pack and all wolves to paradise. She didn't believe in that shit any more.

Sighing, she slumped down on the couch and caught a glimpse of her reflection in the mirror.
She really did feel forty. Her breasts weren't sagging and her ass was still tight. Hell, she certainly had curves. Marco loved those earlier. Oh boy did he love her curves!

Goddamn Kiba and the Opeth pack!

Okay, so it was the stress that made her feel her age. Still, she was glad to have left the Opeth pack a few years ago, even though it meant hurting those she truly loved.  Lukina and Ilona were like children to her. And Krystyna and Katarina also. Hell, she knew there was some correlation between the four of them and herself but she wasn't sure what connection they shared.

Kiba refused to talk about their background.
Selene hadn't been able to translate her grandmother's diaries either. Her mother had tried to help but had been accidently killed off by a band of hunters before Selene was a teenager. All her own magick she taught herself. She was a proud witch, too. Kiba was a stubborn old wolf. And Les was an evil, sadistic bastard who needed a good beating.

Better to leave a dying pack than to go down with it.  Right? Except that Kiba had practically delivered Marco on her doorstep. Why?
It didn't make sense. She couldn't mate with the wolves.  She was human, wasn't she?

Leaning back against the couch, Selene snapped her fingers.  A glass of wine appeared floating in front of her and she reached for it.
Taking a long sip, she drained the contents of the glass and made a second glass appear.  She sipped it slowly while waiting for Marco to return.

He probably needed to run off some angry energy.

Damn, she remembered dealing with the other wolves when they were his age.  Nicholaus became stubborn and left.  Józsi became even more stubborn, distant then he left.  Both of them were roaming somewhere in America but she'd yet to see them.

Assholes.

How dare they leave their loved ones behind.

* * * *

Marco stormed out of the building, hoping to find a bar close by. He knew that wouldn't help him, but he hated feeling powerless, like he had no options other than to be treated like the pack baby. Lukina was treated better than he was, and she was a girl.

His power wasn
't much compared to the others, true. But his heart mattered, right?

Not as a wolf.

"Nobody said we were fair," Kiba told him repeatedly in his head.

"
Goddamnit Kiba!  Fuck you all!"

Storming down the street, Marco bumped into a thug, who pushed him back.

Flipping a knife blade from his pocket, the poorly dressed thug, sneered at Marco.  "You need to pay to pass me, fool."

Marco snickered.
The dark skinned man didn't even realize what he was doing.  "Are you high?"

"
Fuck you man. Just give me your wallet."

Marco laughed louder.
"They won't treat me like a child if I act like an adult." He didn't care that his insides were burning or that he'd been rejected by the woman he believed he loved, knew he should be with.

He didn
't understand the reason for the strong attraction, just knew it felt right. Being with her in her bed, made him feel like he had something worth dying for, worth protecting. That alone was something he hadn't been given from his pack.

Her scent smelled lupine, earthy.
But she smelled of human too of magick, bright and warming.

"
What?  What the hell are you laughing at? I said give me your damn wallet."  The stranger took another step forward.

The voices inside Marco
's head repeated the phrase "survive" over and over again.  Dropping his human illusion, Marco stood before the thug as a large gray wolf with beautiful fur, menacing teeth and a wicked glint in his eyes that was noticeable in the thug's eyes.

I have no pack.  I have nothing left to lose if I don
't have Selene.

"
Look man, I was just trying to make a buck. I didn't mean nothing by it!"  The thug took a few steps back, but it was too late.

Marco felt something inside him shut down as his world changed before his eyes.
Things blurred, movement occurred but Marco couldn't distinguish what else had happened other than the fact he had left the thug in a pool of blood and his own mess with the knife still in his hand. Running into the alleyway, Marco donned his human illusion and quickly made a B-line for the nearest bar in town, visible from down the street.

The worst part was, he didn
't give a damn. Not about the thug, not about Kiba or the fucking prophecy or anything right now. He held onto his anger.

So he was.

* * * *

A few hours later, a loud noise made Selene jerk her eyes open. Spinning her head around, she looked to the front door and readied an energy blast.

"Witch!" the voice slurred, "are you home? Is this the right place?"

Looking at the sky, Selene muttered something at the Goddess then at the front door.
Frowning hard, Selene realized she'd felt guilty. He'd tried to protect her.  It wasn't his responsibility, but he'd tried anyway.

Opening the door, she caught Marco as he stepped through the threshold and fell into her arms.
She winked and said, "Hello there."

Marco
's eyes pleaded with hers.