Chapter 4: Territory
Seething, Victor barely felt the blood cooling on his skin. His bare, hairy chest heaved with each snarling breath. The red vision gave way to two ripped corpses at his feet. For a moment, he couldn't recall why he was in the middle of a bloodbath. Why he was in the middle of the forest about five miles out from his home. His home in which his twenty-two cubs had been raised in. His home which had kept his mate safe for over fifty-nine years. His home where he could let down his walls and just… be!
Ah, he remembered.
Two maggots had impinged on what was his. Thought they could take what was his. Hissing, his eyes tore at his own person, his legs quaking and the tattered clothes on his legs were almost in ruins. Naturally, he protected what was his with a brutality which surpassed his passion for gore. For too long there had been peace and then suddenly, a threat. The animals and humans respecting his territory. Then, just as suddenly as his house became quieter and his cubs left to be their own people, these maggots came in.
Tried to harm what was his, his mate mate when she was grieving no less.
He had to get back to her. Take care of her. Make sure she was ok. Make sure mate was not harmed even if he had been a moment too late.
By the time he raced back home on all fours, the rain had washed out all traces of blood and dirt. But the stench of sweat and unwashed flesh was still on him.
He was only half conscious of what was going on. He couldn't even see properly. The quick flashes of lightning were the only source of illumination in the large manor. Not that he needed it, but his mind was still foggy from the burning rage.
The master bedroom was warm, but not stuffy. In the middle of the large room with an equally grand four poster bed, lay his mate in the middle. Her face was buried in the pillows and the large duvet had her tiny body buried and made her barely visible. He felt a twinge in his heart when he saw her small body like that. She looked so fragile, so fucking vulnerable in his bed which was three sizes too big for that it put his teeth on edge . He went on his toes into the dark room without a sound and crept closer, but he saw the set in her shoulders and knew that she was aware of his presence. She always was, fuckin' mate.
His soaking trousers hit the floor with a slop as he pulled them off, fatigued. She didn't make a move to show that she heard him and, consequently she didn't see the hardness in his eyes or the swell of panic in his chest.
He slipped into bed, crawling over her with a care he rarely displayed until his shadow engulfed her entirely. He hadn't noticed before, but she was shaking, her hands clung to the giant pillow as if it were her anchor to reality.
"Mate" he nuzzled the back of her head and repeated the soothing gesture when she was unresponsive, "Mate."
Noor whimpered and shuffled whilst her grip on the pillow loosened.
"Mate is fine now" he stuck his body to hers like glue. His one hand bracing himself and the other skimming her back.
"Mate is with me" he felt her relaxing further. His hands continued to rub circles on her back. She smelt of salty tears, pure agony, fear and those… runts!
"Mate is safe" his hand hiked up her nightgown. He needed to remind her. Remind her of him. Even though not a hair on her head had been harmed, she was still shaken. His instincts went haywire. She needed him to remind her that all was fine. He slipped an experimental finger down her snatch. She was wet, but not enough. That pissed him off. She was wet and he wasn't the reason. Of course, he understood that everyone had their own reactions with near death experiences, some got turned on later, a rush of endorphins when the body came to the conclusion that it was still alive with the subsiding danger.
"Safe?" her tone was lost, but she was finding herself.
He'd change that. Make her cry for him. Make her want him.
"Safe" he repeated, warmly. He filled her gently and started an unhurried rhythm as his hands found the soft bundle of nerves near her front.
"Mate is protected" the gruff tone was laboured. Noor whimpered again but raised her hips in an attempt to retreat from him. Needed to remind her what it was like to be with an alpha like him.
"Mate ain't hurt" his other hand went from her back to her stomach, pulling her up towards him. Safe.
"Mate is safe" his repeated growl was louder this time and his fingers were harsher on her clit. Warm.
"Mate is mine!" Content. Needed to remind her so she wouldn't leave him.
"Just like I'm yours" though his rhythm slow, it was not gentle anymore.
"Ain't no one's gonna change that!" his forehead connected with the base on her neck as he concentrated on her body. His clawed hands retreated and grabbed her love handles as lost himself in her softness. He couldn't remember when he rolled over, but he was sure he had made her cum at least twice before he roared his release. After, he tangled his hands in her hair and pulled her in his embrace.
As her eyelids closed, he repeated. "Mate is safe."
With his claim on her renewed and his scent was on every inch of her being just as he was covered in hers, Victor finally felt the tingling on his limbs being to subside. However, the fear still sat his stomach like a rock. No matter how long he spun it in his mind he knew he had fucked up. His promise to her all those years ago had been to protect her, but when the time came he had not been able to keep his oath completely. That night sleep did not come easy and his mind was plagued with scenarios where she would wake up and try to leave.
He wouldn't know what to do. A part of him thought it was reasonable, but a larger part, his instinctual part snarled with all the fury of hell itself. She couldn't leave. Mate was all he had. Really and truly she was his world. True, he had his career, he had his children, he had his brother and he had his reputation. However, in the end only she was all that mattered because she completed him. She was his home. A home that he had searched for over a lifetime and he was electrified when his home was threatened since he didn't know how to live without a home anymore. He had forgotten how to live alone. Everything else was just fleeting and expendable. Even his children seeing as how they were now their own people.
Mate needed him, but not for his protection either. No, his mate needed him for the same reason he did. They meant the world to each other and they didn't know any other way to live. In addition to that they were too old to learn anything new because they were content with each other.
Too soon his eyes snapped open to find just as he feared. His arms were empty and the warmth that had surrounded him before he slept was missing. Stumbling, he got to all fours and flew like a tornado, following the scent he knew by heart now. Much to his surprise, the scent did not leave his territory. In lieu, the scent went further into the forests. He made haste and soon discovered a cave which held many intimate memories.
His knees threatened to give way at the thought of harming his mate in order to bring his mate back to the safety of his arms. She would resent him for sure.
He steeled himself and entered without hesitation, his fear dissipating quickly and reformed into determination and possessiveness. His mate would not leave him, ever. He spotted her near the crude initials in the back, their children's chicken scratch, and was tracing them with her trembling fingers.
"Mate" he growled, warningly. "Come to me"
She didn't turn to acknowledge him which frazzled his tender nerves. "Victor, do you remember these?"
He couldn't understand where she was going with this and he didn't want to. He just wanted her next to him. "Mate!" he bellowed a roar.
She didn't even flinch for she knew he could never truly lift a finger against her intentionally. "Inu had almost cracked her head open that day and William went into shock seeing how much Inu was bleeding, remember?"
He stalked closer just as his anger welled to the surface though he remained silent. His claws lengthened and retracted back over and over again. His was sure if she looked at him now his confusion would be there for her to see.
"I couldn't stop crying and you didn't come near me all day." Her voice was hauntingly void of any emotion and as he loomed over her a part of him mind prepared him for the assault against his mate. He never thought he would be in this position and now that he was, he could feel his muscles spaz with hesitation.
"But then… when the kids were put to bed, you brought me to my favourite tree" her voice changed, "and you made a little nest for us just like you used to before."
When she swivelled in her spot on the ground and looked up at him so adoringly, he felt his heart seize up. "Then you held me all night and purred for me. Not once did you let me go that night even when you took me against the soft moss."
His eyes darkened with mixed intent, his pupils widened, and his bare chest heaved at the memory. Her head barely came to his chest when she stood on her toes, leaning towards him. Her hand stroked his mutton chop cheek and much like in the past, he lowered his head to accommodate her. He took a step closer and was pleased when she didn't retreat. Her other hand found home around her neck, "When you get worried, Victor, that's what you do."
His arms snaked around her large waist and pulled her into his warm embrace. "You hold me like you think I will disappear."
His forehead connected with hers, "But I was right there, wasn't I? I was still right next to you"
His brows almost touched but grunted affirmatively. His claws retracted to avoid any harm as he hugged her closer.
"I was, and do you know why Victor?" she leaned closer, all timidity lost over the years. Their breath was one and the same now, their hearts synchronised to each others as he attentively awaited her answer.
"Because I love you and that is why I chose you. You, Victor Creed, are more than a capable Mate. Where would I be without you?"
He had heard enough for now he knew for sure with the sincerity in her clear eyes that she was no going anywhere. He pulled her roughly to his mouth and snarled in satisfaction when he heard her whimper against him. His fangs protruded out of his mouth when he pulled back for air. He saddled her onto his back and made for his home. Neither mate would be satisfied even after days of affection but it was enough to strengthen their connection again.