Chapter Twenty-Nine

"Where's your dog, brother? Still angry, I assume?" Caius asked bluntly as he seated himself across the table. Aro only glanced up at him in response. He had thought that, upon hearing the news regarding the woman she felt threatened by, Lorna would be relieved. Her reaction had been quite the opposite. She had screamed at him, furious that he, as she saw it, was still playing some kind of game. She had thrown the rickety little table in her dungeon cell. It had crashed into the wall, a splatter of blood accompanying it as her fingernails grew into claws. She had burst at the seams. In her place stood a snarling beast the color of night, moons glaring at him.

She hadn't changed back since.

It had been approximately thirteen days, now.

"She isn't wrong, you know," the blond added, Marcus nodding his agreement. Aro suppressed his growing annoyance with a smile, "I haven't disagreed."

As much as it pained him to admit he was wrong, looking back, he could understand why Lorna thought the things she did, felt the way she did. Which was why he had been giving her the space she wanted. In fact, he hadn't seen hide nor hair of her in those thirteen days. She spent all of her time in the courtyard; pacing, growling, sleeping. Rolling in the dirt. As much as he desired for her to be by his side, as much as it pained him to not see her, he resisted the temptation to approach her. As much as he desired her, it was best not to risk making the situation any worse.

But now Aro couldn't help but wonder, since when had Caius begun sticking up for Lorna?

The double doors burst open, bouncing off the stone walls from the force. A livid Vladimir and Stefan strode in, followed by Felix and Demetri. Caius stood, "What is the meaning of this?"

"This!" Vladimir held up the severed head of his coven mate by her hair, "I finally discovered how you did this!"

Aro and Caius exchanged a glance.

"Werewolf," Stefan practically spat, "You break your own laws!"

Now Aro stood. Felix took a step toward the Russian pair but Aro waved him away, "That is quite an accusation to make, my friends."

"And this is hardly adequate evidence to support such a claim," Caius gestured toward the head. The foreign pair laughed in unison. It was almost harmonious.

"Come now, we are not fools," Stefan said, his voice turning dark, "You have destroyed these beasts. You have killed our own kind for trying to form an allegiance with the creatures."

Vladimir took a threatening step forward, but the Volturi rulers didn't so much as flinch, "And what is your punishment for breaking your own laws?"

Caius snorted, "You must first prove we have, in fact, broken such a law."

Clicking nails and thundering footfalls rumbled in the hall and, shortly after, the enormous black wolf the sounds belonged to had leapt into the room. Aimed directly for the visitors. Aro took a a step forward, "Lorna, stop!"

The hulking creature skid to a halt, teeth bared and snarling. Caius groaned, "Your mutt has the absolute worst timing, brother!"

Vladimir flashed a silver blade, baring his own teeth to Lorna. Felix made to stop the man but Aro beat him to it. He caught Vladimir's wrist as he brought the weapon downward, twisting his arm around to the point it cracked, "You will not harm my mate!"

Stefan immediately burst out laughing. "Your mate! That is a good one!"

"Yes, and it's unfortunate that it's true," Caius added.

The smaller Russian man was paying them no mind, "How did you make it do that?"

Aro's grip on the man didn't loosen, "I am her mate, she obeys my command."

The wolf growled. At Aro, of course. Like it or not, essentially that was what it was. The short blond laughed now, "A mutt obeying its master!"

Lorna snapped her teeth at the pair. Clearly she'd had enough of their mocking. Aro shot her a warning glance. Vladimir took several steps back, "It's funny, that fate would have it this way. You killed my mate. And now..."

Felix stepped ahead of Aro and Lorna, and this time Aro didn't stop him. Vladimir chuckled laughed again before addressing the remaining brothers, "Will no one really see that this crime is met with punishment? That this beast gets put down?"

"I wanted to, but no," Caius mumbled to himself before speaking louder, "We've no choice but to make an exception."

Neither of the Russians looked surprised. Vladimir shook his head, but smiled. Without another word, they both turned and darted from the room. Aro looked from his brothers to Demetri. The latter didn't need an order; he immediately disappeared out the door. Aro then turned to speak to Lorna, only to find she'd already gone.

I lost my shit.

Maybe he thought it would be reassuring to tell me this Natalia bitch had a mate and it wasn't him. But to me, it just sounded like another excuse. "Well, she has a boyfriend that supposedly isn't me so it's all good that I keep dangling her in front of you, knowing how you feel about what I did with her."

I was tired.

I was tired of the games. Being used as a pawn. He was never going to change. Guess it was true, what they say: you can't teach a three thousand year old douchebag not to be a douchebag. Now, I don't consider myself a violent person by any means. But when I've had enough, I've had enough. I grabbed the closest thing, which happened to be a small table, and threw it. Not at him specifically, but it did happen to go that direction. Considering he's a vampire, he dodged it with ample time. But he did catch some blood splatter across his face from my claws emerging as I threw it. He'd lunged forward, attempting to snatch my bracelet before I could change completely.

He wasn't quite fast enough for that.

Next thing I knew I was alone in a completely trashed dungeon cell.

I didn't even bother changing back. He wanted to still treat me like his dog, then I'd be one.

After about three days in my cell, the weirdest thing happened.

I'd been curled up in the corner, attempting to sleep, when I heard the door creak open. I growled, expecting it to be Sir Gilbert. The voice caught me by surprise.

"If you can behave yourself," Caius said, "I'll take you to the courtyard."

I half expected it to be a trick, so I was hesitant. But he walked beside me through the halls and did exactly as he said he would. And let me tell you, it was fantastic to be outside. To have some room to run, to have fresh air to breathe. Though, Caius wasn't nearly as impressed as I was with the massive hole I dug in the center of it.

Ten days later I was still out here. I'd been rained on, I flopped in the mud, I filled in and re-dug my hole several times. And in those ten days, guess who never came to see me? I wasn't sure if I was angry about it, hurt by it, or relieved. Admittedly, the space was nice. I could clear my head without him trying to feed me any bullshit. But, at the same time, it pissed me off that he hadn't attempted to smooth things over.

I let a deep breath out through my nose. The blades of grass in front of my snout waved in response. When I inhaled again…

I leapt to my feet and rocketed from the courtyard, busting through a door.

Intruders. Bloodsuckers.

I flew into the thrown room. There they were, almost toe-to-toe with Aro. The asshole actually looked surprised when he saw me. His voice resonated through my body, "Lorna, stop!"

Immediately, I did. My claws dug into the stone flooring. Caius rolled his eyes. His lips said, "Your mutt has the absolute worst timing, brother!"

But I'm pretty sure what he actually wanted to say was, "God dammit, Aro, can't you control your fucking dog!?"

The short blond one pulled a dagger, eyes locked onto mine. But before I could react, Sir Gilbert had chivalrously put himself between us, twisting the other vampire's arm aside, "You will not harm my mate!"

The bulky Russian busted up, "Your mate! That is a good one!"

"Yes," Caius said offhandedly, "and it's unfortunate that it's true."

The new blond douchecanoe paid their exchange no attention. Instead, he stared in faint wonder, "How did you make it do that?"

It. What a dick. Aro's focus didn't break, "I am her mate, she obeys my command."

I growled. Alright there, Glenn. Now the blond, whose name I didn't care to learn, laughed, "A mutt obeying its master!"

I snapped my teeth. At all three of the men. They could all fuck off. Only the foreign couple reacted, taking several steps back. Aro narrowed his eyes in warning.

"It's funny," said blondie, "that fate would have it this way. You killed my mate. And now…"

He trailed off, his gaze shifting back to me. Felix stepped between me and Aro and the Russian duo. I rolled my eyes. That was enough of this circus. I strolled from the chamber and returned to the courtyard.

Unfortunately, Aro followed only moments later. When he spoke, he used that tone, "Lorna. Enough of this. Change back."

Fuck me. I had no choice but to do as I was told. I turned my back to him, hugging my knees to my chest. He didn't approach, but he did issue a second command that pissed me off more than the first, "Give me the bracelet."

I ripped it from my wrist and threw it over my shoulder. Aro sighed as he stepped forward to retrieve it, "Lorna, this cannot continue."

I ignored him. He tried again, "I don't regret easily, Lorna. Most everything I do has been carefully thought through, and I accept the outcome. What Natalia and I did, I regretted the instant it happened. I stopped it immediately."

I snorted but he didn't acknowledge it, "I cannot take back what I've done. And dwelling on it is of no benefit. We are mates, Lorna. It's time you and I move forward."

"I'm not doing your stupid ritual."

"That is not what I was referencing," he huffed, "What I mean is, we cannot allow this transgression of mine to hinder us further. I have given you time. I have given you space. What is it you need of me?"

"Well, for starters," I turned just enough to see him, "try keeping her out of my face."

"Done. And?"

"How about a fucking apology?"

Aro stared at me, silent. Of course, that was asking too much of him. I turned my back to him once again. Only to suddenly find him crouched in front of me, cradling one of my hands in both of his, "I am sorry, Lorna. You have made me feel many things I have not felt in a millennia, and I dealt with them poorly."

Wow… The scariest part was that it seemed genuine. I was actually speechless. Which didn't escape Aro's notice. He smiled slightly, bringing my hand to his lips, "Mate with me, Lorna. Accept me as your Alpha."

A/N: After a super long hiatus, it's finally back! Life got extra crazy for awhile but I'm finally back in a routine where I have time to write again. So expect updates for this on the 8th of every month, at least!