Filed To Story: Traded To The Lycan King Novel (Colette & Merikh) by MG Wattsons
“Poor fool was stumbling down the hallway, pounding his head into the wall.” Bile rises and my heart sinks.
“Did you hurt him?” I ask, trying to keep the emotion out of my voice, but he sees past my false show.
“I knocked him out and dragged him to the healers.” He says with a frown. “I had the opportunity to kill him, but I didn’t,”
“And you want us to thank you for not killing him?” Merikh lifts a brow.
“Your gamma was ready to kill himself to fight whatever demons he claimed were in his head. I figured knocked out was better than dead.” he snarks, “You’re welcome,” he says with a glare and a small smirk tugging hi lips up.
“Demons in his head?” I ask, feigning confusion.
I know what was in his head, what they want and their motives. But does Johannes? Not that he would outright admit it, but I think the fool is cocky enough to drop hints if he was a part of what is happening.
“Yeah, he kept saying there were demons and voices in his head. Wrestling with his inner demons or something to that effect. I have heard many humans use that phrase in my lifetime.” He shrugs, waving his hand like it’s not a big deal.
“And you helped him?” I ask and Johannes groans like he is annoyed. Clearly, he came out to get a rise out of us, but now that he is being interrogated, I can only assume he is now officially bored with us.
“I hate your kind, but my problem is specifically with you, Merikh. Not some little Gamma who would hardly be satisfying to kill. So yes, I helped him.”
“How very kind of you, Hayes,” clips out. I look at the two burly men bristling behind me, ready to go for another round if they could and I sigh. Tired of fighting, planning and plotting, at least for right now.
“Thank you, Johannes.” I say sincerely, giving him a soft, sincere smile. Then I turn, grabbing Merikh and Hayes and dragging them down the hall.
“Did you seriously thank that fucker?” Merikh growls, low in his anger felt through the mindlink, sending shivers through my spine.
“One of us had to act like our status,” I say with a teasing brow. He bites back a smile, his anger filtering away as he sighs in defeat.
We make our way back to the room, Hayes entering first and making sure the room is clear before he exits and gives us a nod. Merikh ushers me in first before stopping to have a quick discussion with Hayes so I head to the bathroom, starting the water for Merikh and grabbing him a towel and a change of clothing. I head out when I hear the door close behind him and he saunters over to me.
“Ezrah stopped by. An emergency council meeting is happening in the morning,” he says, cupping my cheeks before he takes my lips in a gentle, loving kiss.
“Mmm, then we should get some sleep.” I tell him with a smile. “After you shower.”
“Oh, you mean we,” he smiles coyly. “You stink too, my little luna.”
I scoff as he kisses me again and spins me around, pushing me to the bathroom. I freeze when I see the mirror, my hands shaking, and I watch as Merikh’s reflection sees it too.
It wasn’t there when I went into the bathroom, but the steam of the shower must have brought it to life, because on the mirror, as if written in a fog, is the word ‘Burn’.
*Merikh*
I wrap my arms around Colette, holding her close as she struggles to control her heart rate. Her fear pours into me like a free flowing fall over a cliff so I lower my head, pressing my lips to her ear.
“It’s Percy’s writing.” I whisper, but it doesn’t make her less worried. She shakes in my embrace, and I press my lips to her skin, giving her a reassuring kiss and forcing my calm into the bond between us, trying to help her relax.
“Why would he write ‘burn’?” She asks, finally waking from the shock. I move away from her, reaching out and wiping the word from the mirror with my hand before turning to look into her shocked face.
“Either he was under their control, or maybe he is trying to warn us.” I offer, stepping forward and wrapping her in a big embrace. Colette releases a heavy sigh but shakes her head. Then she leans into me, the steam still swirling around us in the bathroom.
“We should go see him.” She says, spinning in my arms, looking up at me. Her eyes are filled with doubt and uncertainty. I reach out, stroking her cheek as I move hair from her face and I offer her a soft smile.
“Percy will be out for a while. At least for the night.” I tell her, and she frowns.
“How can you be sure?” She asks.
“If he wakes up, Penny is staying in the room with him, along with the healers. We will be informed. I promise, Colette.”
She mulls over the information before looking over her shoulder and nodding that she is giving in. The hand writing isn’t easy to determine as Percy’s, but I remember the little pranks he would pull on Penny, the little notes he left on the bathroom mirror to make her paranoid that someone was watching her. This seems like a warning of what I can’t quite tell, but burn could mean anything.
“I don’t think I will be able to sleep.” She mutters and I reach down, tugging at the hem of her shirt.
“I can think of ways to tire you out,” I tease her, and she arches a brow.
“As tempting as that sounds, you truly do need a shower.”
“Care to help me?” I ask, and she bites her lip nervously. Mated or not, this is still all very new to her. “I promise to be a gentleman.”
She hesitates before she gently nods her head, giving me her approval. I remove my hand from her shirt, tracing them down her wrists and taking her hands and lifting them above her head.
Then I tug her top off, tossing it to the side. My heart is sounding in my ears, staring at her with her pink cheesy and lush breast on display. I hook my thumbs into her shorts, pushing them down to her ankles.
A shiver runs through her, and I step back, appreciating everything about her from her shy stance to her nervous energy. Then I strip my shorts off and place my hand out for her to take as I push open the glass door to the shower and bring us into the heated spray. She sighs on contact with the water, her eyes closing in relief as the droplets rain down over her.
I’m enraptured by the picture before me. Her chin tilted up for the water to roll over her face and down her chest. There is no looking away as a soft smile breaks over her lips and she reaches up, dragging her hands through her hair.
It’s not until her perfect brown eyes open, watching me curiously, that I snap out of my trance. I instinctively wrap my hands around her, stepping closer to her as the water runs over my sore flesh. The water temperature surprises me and I hiss, trying to step away, but she clings to me, giggling.