Feral

Chapter Fifteen

"Mommy...? Where are you going?" A young girl stood in the doorway of the room, fiddling with her white hair.

"I have to go away, Baby... I am sorry..." The woman looked up from the bag she was stuffing with things. "But don't worry... Daddy will take care of you."

The walked over and pressed a kiss against her head, hugging her tightly. The woman sighed, trying to blink back tears as she gently pet the girl's head. Reluctantly, she let go of her daughter, moving to hold her shoulders. "Sweetheart...  things are going to change... I'm sorry... Just be strong for mommy. And be smart too. Which I know won't be hard for you."

The woman sniffled and smiled sadly as a tear rolled down her cheek. Then the woman let go and quickly walked away.

"Wait! Mommy!" The girl cried out and tried to follow.

"Get the fuck out of my house, bitch." A man growled as he walked up to the woman.

"I am... just don't talk like that around my daughter." She frowned and walked away and out the door.

The little girl walked up to the man. "Daddy... Where is Mommy going..." She teared up as she stared at the man.

"Don't call me that... I am not your father..."

Meleni's body jerked as she woke up, her eyes welling up with tears as she felt choked up now. Soft sobs escaped her as she looked around the room. Her mate was nowhere to be seen. But she remembered that he said he was going for a walk around the house.

She sat up in the bed and pressed her face into her hands, just holding them there a second. Meleni sucked in a few breaths to calm down. Then, glancing at the clock, she saw it was about 5:30. She thought she might as well get ready.

Slipping off the bed, she opened her suitcase and pulled out the dress she was meant to wear. It was dark red, almost like the color red. But it was made of a thick knit material that covered her arms and had a turtleneck. However, the dress clung to her like a second skin, showing off how slim she was. However, she was still thin enough to look a little unhealthy. With a whine, she looked in her suitcase for anything that might be able to cover her. Finally, she just dumped it out. There wasn't anything.

She sat on the bed, glancing at the door, just as Basilius walked in. She smiled just a little and pushed up, shuffling over to greet him. Greet meaning to quickly press her lips against his for a passionate kiss. She was glad he was back. She didn't like being left alone in this strange house.

"You look so beautiful, Meleni." He breathed out once their lips finally parted.

"I don't really know..." She shook her head. "I can still see my ribs..."

"You're still healing, Meleni..." Basilius shook his head, taking her hand and kissing it gently before running his fingers along her cheek. "You're absolutely beautiful..."

Meleni drew in a deep breath, her cheeks turning red. She didn't feel pretty. But she could tell her mate was trying and she didn't want to disappoint him. Looking away from him she nodded a bit.

"Thank you, Basilius... I think you're very handsome as well." She smiled as she looked up at him.

"Just wait till you see me in a suit." He chuckled and got into his own suitcase, pulling out what he needed before quickly throwing his clothes off.

Meleni didn't even pretend to look away. Her wolf was purring at the sight of her mate. Oh how strong he was, and how attractive he was was was her wolf was telling her about. Meleni rolled her eyes at this, sitting back on the bed and slipping into the red heels that matched her dress. Then, she just waited.

Basilius was quick to get ready, and boy was he right about the suit. Meleni stared at him a few seconds in awe before he walked over and offered his arm to her. Smiling a little, she took his arm and led her to the door. Of course, Meleni struggled to keep up in the heels so he slowed down a lot. The two took quite some time to make it from their room to the dining room.

As they entered, they saw that Vasso was already there, along with a few other wolves, like the woman who welcomed us.

"Alpha Basilius." A man said, drawing our attention.

He was an older man, his skin crinkled and his black hair streaked with grey. Meleni felt my stomach drop, but only for a second. After that initial moment, she felt dazed, as if everything was surreal. This man. Why did it have to be him, she thought. Everything came to her at once. This house, that woman, this man. She knew it all too well.

"Alpha Emilios, I present my Luna, Meleni." Basilius gestured to her, snapping her from the trance she was in.

"Ah... Meleni. Good to see you again." Emilios leaned forward a bit.

A look of confusion flashed on Basilius' face for a second before he looked to Emilios again.

"Do you know my mate?" He tilted his head.

"Yes, actually. I raised this girl... or at least before she ran off." He sighed. "I don't know why. She had a home... food, shelter."

Lies. Meleni knew the truth, so did he. However, she remembered something. She didn't want to start a war. Gulping, she pushed down her fear, her hatred and breathed in. She couldn't be hostile.

"It's... been so long." She spoke up, her voice shaking.

"And you remember your sister, Katina. Oh and your brother, Alexio." A disgusting smile crawled on his withered face.

They were not her siblings, they were her own personal terrorizers.

"You're both..  so different looking... I didn't recognize you." She stammered as she studied them. She remembered when they were kids, even though they were both older than her, they looked about the same age as her. Now they were both so grown up, it was intimidating to her.

Meleni's eyes moved to her mate. He looked somewhat angry. His eyebrows furrowed together as he looked between them. She could tell the cogs in his brain were turning. If he knew what happened, she knew he wouldn't hesitate even a second before attacking.

"I-I don't feel that well. I think I may be getting sick..." Meleni whispered to Basilius.

"Excuse us, Emilios... I guess this is a little overwhelming for Meleni. I am going to take her to get some fresh air." Basilius wrapped his arm around Meleni's waist, leading her to the door as he spoke to the other alpha.

Meleni's eyes welled up with tears as soon as they left the room. However, she wouldn't allow herself to cry just yet. She quickly blinked a couple of times, her white eyelashes fluttering as she did. This didn't go unnoticed by her mate, however. Once they were beyond the walls of the large house, he stopped her, placing a hand on her shoulders carefully. Her eyes drifted up to him.

"Meleni. What happened?" He said sternly, though with a worried undertone.

"Noth... Nothing happened..." Meleni whimpered, her eyes growing watery again.

"Please do not lie to me. I am your mate and your alpha." He frowned a bit.

"I said nothing, Basilius. Nothing happened. There is just a lot to process." She snapped.

The alpha wolf in him didn't like this. He didn't like being lied to by his own mate. And Meleni didn't like lying to her mate, but she knew that if she told him the truth, he would rush back in there and kill them all. They were there to keep the peace, not to stir up trouble. 

"Meleni. You're testing my patience. Do not make me ask again." Basilius growled deeply.

Meleni's white brows pushed together and she let out a growl of her own as she stared at him. But her expression shifted into one of fear as she tilted her head down, a sob escaping her. She shook her head slowly, laying it against his chest as she began to quietly cry.

"I can't tell you. Y-you will... kill them... I don't want that. I want to go home." Meleni's words came out as quiet weeps. "Please. I want to go home..."

Meleni dared to look up at him. She found him looking right back at her. He seemed tense like he was trying to stop himself from doing something. However, he clenched his fist into balls as he nodded to her. "Alright. We'll go home. But then you have to tell me what happened."