The Dark Side of the Moon

F O R T Y

"The coven is planning to kill you."

At those words, Grayson lets out a loud growl and speeds around me to grip Eli's neck tightly. Eli gasps for air as Grayson's arms tense from the harshness of his actions. I let out a loud cry and put my hands on his shoulders as I shove him back as hard as I can. Looking back on it, that probably isn't the best thing to do when facing an Alpha who is blinded by rage, but Grayson is literally strangling Eli and I'm not thinking about my own safety.

It feels like hours, although it must be only seconds, before Grayson reluctantly loosens his grip on Eli and backs away from him. Grayson's steel eyes settle on me, and instead of the anger dissipating, it remains.

"Never, EVER, step in front of an infuriated werewolf! If you were anyone else, you would be dead!"

I back away from him, slightly scared of his black eyes and elongated canines. I rarely see this threatening side of him directing anger at me like this.He's been angry at Eli and Clay (the werewolf he attacked for disrespecting me," but never at me before. The way his veins strain in his neck and the malice I feel directed towards me is not something I want to get used to.

I remain strong in the face of Grayson's dangerous form as I cross my arms in front of my chest in a defensive stance in front of Eli. Just because I'm speaking to"Alpha Grayson" instead of "my Grayson," it doesn't mean I'm going to sit here and accept his behavior.

Eli continues taking ragged breaths as the heart monitor attached to him slows down from its increased speed. I feel partly responsible for Grayson's actions. Although I shouldn't feel this way, since we are mates, I feel like many times our actions are tied to one another and that I should apologize for him. However, I'm not going to pretend that this aggressive side of Grayson's is acceptable.

"I would hope that you wouldn't kill your mate, Alpha." I spit the word out like an insult. He doesn't deserve to be called by his first name when his werewolf side is acting all possessive and irrational. Grayson's eyes slowly turn back to their usual icy blue, and I can see the remorse now that his anger has passed.

"Baby, I'm sorry. My wolf side-"

He tries to reach out for me but I back up even further as I glare at him and cut off his apology.

"No, you don't get to be forgiven that easily. Eli just told us that his coven was planning to kill me- not him! He obviously doesn't agree! So why would you hurt him, especially when you know that hurting him will hurt me?"

"You don't know warlocks like I do," he attempts to reason. "They're loyal to their own while they betray anyone who isn't one of them. This is probably just some huge plot for you to trust him, then he'll kill you when you least expect it!"

I shake my head and turn around to see Eli's hand clutching at his neck which is now morphing into a reddish- purple color to match the rest of his beaten body. I hold Eli's broken hand gently in my own and rub my thumb back and forth over it. This is the closest I can get to giving him a hug while he's in this condition.

"Eli wouldn't do that."

Grayson's sarcastic laugh pierces the air, adding to the tension in the room. His jaw is clenched as he breathes heavily through his nose in a failed attempt to calm himself.

"You don't know that."

"I wouldn't do that," Eli adds, his voice rough and tired-sounding. He looks like he's on the verge of sleep as the medicines and the previous pain catches up with him, yet he still looks Grayson directly in the eyes. "You can hear my heartbeat. You know that I'm not lying to you. And let's be honest, I'm too weak to use any magic to deceive you."