A/N: Not Edited. On the random side, ugh. I love snow, but when it starts getting to be more than like two feet falling... **sigh** no.

Chapter 18 – Walter POV (18 years old, Three and a half years ago)

My dad used to say that something, much more than not, we found our mates when we weren’t even looking, I thought that was complete shit, what were they chances that you would just stumble onto them without any effort whatsoever? I’d roll my eyes, of course it didn’t matter whether or not you had human parents or shifter parents, it was all one in the same. You’d hear the same things, if you just stopped and listened.



‘One day you’re going to meet someone that knows exactly what you’re worth, that will love you on the inside and the outside, will show you kindness, will offer you a shoulder and ear when you need someone to listen, it might not happen right away, but you’ll find that person…” see you wouldn’t know that a shifter father told his shifter daughter that, or a human father told his human daughter that. I stood, picking up my photograph case heading out earlier for my class than normal, not wanting to get even more homesick than I already was thinking of my parents, and family.



We had been living in Texas, not with a pack or anything though, but after getting a scholarship after high school to study abroad, I took it, and my parents encouraged it, I even had a cousin – Andrew – that came as well, the two of us sharing one flat. One very small flat. But it kept us safe, warm and dry so couldn’t complain.



On campus with nearly an hour and a half to spare I just strolled, walking aimlessly, until I stopped dead in my tracks, inhaling, Mate! Mate! Mate! My wolf, Zed alerted me loudly, howling. Inhaling again though, I was confused; I couldn’t scent any shifter, none, not even the faintest bit. Taking my camera out, I started walking, pretending, and taking shots, while actually narrowing down the most enticing scent I had come across, that of my mate. Each frame, a different person, couples walking by, I tensed when I thought of my mate with someone else, but each one that passed that didn’t match the scent I was seeking, I sighed in relief.



The air seemed to be bringing vanilla; with a hint mint and lilac from the right of me, so I crossed the street where a cabbie had stopped, the scent stronger than before. Crazily I continued taking pictures, stopping near the cabbie when I realized that the fragrance was the strongest right there, but didn’t belong to the driver. I went to the driver, “Excuse me, are you available?” I asked even though I’m sure he was waiting for someone, but it gave me a chance to stick around, waiting for my mate to come about.



“Yeah, I’m just dropping off,” he nodded, so I waited even though I didn’t have the money to waste to take a cab back to campus grounds, it’d be well worth it to get a good look at my mate. My wolf, Zed, eagerly waiting, until she appeared, the most beautiful, looking girl, young, just from looking I could tell she was young, couldn’t be any older than 18 years old, like me. Brown hair shined, and when she finally looked up our gaze meeting, I listened, watched as her lips parted, her hazel eyes dilated, her heart skipped. Shaking her head, she looked down, getting something from her side bag, money, handing it too the cabbie.



“You all set?” he asked her, and she nodded shyly, not meeting his eyes, or looking away from me deliberately, don’t just stand there gawking at her, she’ll think you’re a creeper! Zed whined, but he was right, normal people didn’t just stare all wide-eyed at strangers, not the sane ones at least.



“Yes, I’m fine,” she whispered with a thick, sultry accent, in addition to the nod, and walked to the hatch. I glanced away and then back as the cabbie opened the hatch. I expected that most of her things were already inside of course, because the only thing she pulled from the hatch, were three violin cases, one guitar case and one suitcase. Strapping them to her, she bent the suitcase onto its wheels and went inside, glancing back at me for the briefest moment over her shoulder, while I gawked at her, dazed. She’s going to think I’m an idiot… I thought as I finally entered the cab, already plotting on how to run into her again, next time asking for a name. We’re doomed… Zed thought sadly.

.

.

.

Tom POV (Walters Father)

I stood with Jax and my eldest son, Theo, watching a hunched over Walter walking away, a ghost of him self. I sighed walking back to the house, but my mind clouded over with the words and thoughts I had just been given, information that made sense while throwing me off completely.



We entered the house, and I tried to avoid meeting Lynns’ bluish green eyes, the hopefulness that we had brought Walter back with us, only to realize we hadn’t and to shrink inside her self. “That boy of yours,” Greg – Lynn’s father – said, shaking his head, and I could only imagine the pain he was in right now, watching his daughter fade away because of the rejection she was facing from my son. Still his words rang clear in my mind, ‘No! No! She is not,’ he said stubbornly, almost broken, ‘Dad, I don’t feel it, nothing, when I look at her I don’t see what you do when you look at mom, or when you look at Jenny Theo. I can’t explain it, when I’m around her I wish I wasn’t and when I’m not, I’m happy or as happy as I could be here.’ My mind still unable to get over that statement, it was nothing like a mate should be feeling, he was right.



“Lynn,” I called her watching as she moved her food around her plate but not really eating, my own daughter, 17 years old as well, sitting next to her. She lifted her head, and again my heart broke for her pain and suffering, “Since you’ve been on this island… have you felt panicked? Not sad, but has your heart raced to where you felt you were in danger?” I asked her, keeping my face as blank as possible, Jax and Theo widened their eyes only to immediately and conveniently become interested in their own plates.



“No sir, once we got here, I’ve been feeling safe, I mean even when we were on the helicopter I’ve known we were going to be alright, that the Elders wouldn’t find daddy here,” and while those words should have brought a smile to my face a natural one, it didn’t, I nodded and she went back to her not eating, but with each bit I swallowed, the food seemed to get heavier and heavier, struggling to swallow.



“Lynn, how about we go back to your house?” I heard Claudia ask her and I was thankful, because things were settling in right, things were making sense and I could only hope we hadn’t done the wrong thing, but whatever happened, Lynn would still be getting hurt in this situation because I knew my son. Or I thought I did… but when the time came for us to disappear, we had no reason too… not really… but we had been getting more visits from the Elders, until we knew for sure we were in danger and fled. When Lynn and Claudia left I dropped my fork abruptly, my eyes focused on my eldest, his mate right next to him, “Is it possible that you have any children with some girl, some one night event that you just don’t know about Son?” I asked pointblank, because now with what Walter was saying I hated to think of the mess that had been created here.



Shocked, Theo, coughed on some food in his mouth, Jenny, his mate, patted him on the back, but I could see it in her eyes before she covered it up, that disappointment that he may have a child out in the world, one she didn’t give him… “No!” he said to me, “No!” he turned to face Jenny, reassuring his mate, I closed my eyes, hoping to dear god that it was this and not the other because I’m not sure how we would survive this, how or where the lines would be drawn. My own mate – Scoria – gazed at me, it wasn’t possible, but it was.



“What’s going on here?” Teresa Hellmann asked, I just shook my head. Claudia had already given up on her brother, building a nice friendship with Lynn; they were the same age after all. Then when Lynn shifted and Walter rejected her, it seemed to make Claudia distance herself from Walter, picking sides, not understanding why her brother would reject a beautiful, kind and smart girl like Lynn? We had all wondered, me the most assuming that this was his way at getting back at us, for bringing him hear against his will, for faking our deaths to hide away. I had failed him as a parent in this aspect, not seeing clearly all the pieces before I made this decision; one I do not think he would forgive me for.



“When we called Walter at his school in England, he didn’t want to come back to the states, he said nothing had been happening to him, like us. He wasn’t being followed and that was that. He didn’t give us much reason so when we decided it would be safer to have him here under any condition, he was brought here unconscious, they had to sedate him immediately, before he was even in the car driving him to the airport hanger. When he woke up here, he was confused, thrashed, you all remember?” I said my Scoria nodded.



“We know that Lynn is his mate, but I do not believe that Walter is her mate…” I said resting back, “I believe that Walter had found his true mate, and for whatever reason he didn’t tell us,” Scoria brought her hands to her mouth, her eyes wide and ready filled to the brim, her mind, the memories of Walters behavior over the year making better sense. His hatred toward us, the door opened, we all turned to it, watching his defeated form enter, the rage in his eyes killing me inside, “She was human…” he whispered.



“I – I didn’t know for sure, all the signs were there but I wasn’t sure if she would – I didn’t tell her… I was going too but – but then…” his eyes filled, wet, broken, his entire being reflective of a man losing his mate. He lifts his hand to his chest, rubbing, to remove the ache… my wolf answered.



No one answered, I wouldn’t dare finish my belief right now, that we were never the targets of the Elders, but it was Walters mate they had been after all along, an innocent girl we forced him to abandon, but was tied to tightly.



“Right… but…” Jenny, Lynns older sister started, “you’re here and Lynn is here… you were given a second chance-” she stopped cold when Walter growled but didn’t approach her, his eyes blue eyes turning gray, not enough fight in him to reach black, “I can feel her… when she’s scared, which is all the time. I can feel how confused and sad she is, and I don’t know why, she’s hungry… I can eat for days, non-stop but I feel like my stomach is folding inside itself, I’m here, where I have plenty of food, where I’m safe, and should be happy but I’m terrified and I can’t sleep, I’m anxious to the point where it feels like my sick is crawling,” he shouts.



“You think I want your sister? That I’m just going to have her because she’s here? She’s available? That’s what you want for her? To be second best?” he said in disgust, pointing it out in a way I hadn’t thought of.



“What if it was Theo, Jenny? What if he was gone, hurting, scared, hungry somewhere, you think you could just replace him with someone here on the island? What type of person would that make you? You’re that finicky that if my brother were missing you’d just replace him like he was an empty box? The love you felt, the pain you couldn’t explain because it wasn’t your own, you’d ignore it? Knowing it was he suffering? Really enduring what you were just feeling?” Jenny shook her head once, her eyes drifting back to her half empty plate, “that’s what I thought,” Walter muttered under his breath.



“So do me a favor, stop helping her win me over, because I can’t be won. I’m not hers, and I don’t want her. Making me breakfast to gain – gain I don’t know what they fuck you think she could gain by cooking for me, but just – just stop,” Walter heaved deeply, shaking his head. Then he turned to me, “You brought me here against my will dad… and my mate, when I found her, she had no one, she was alone. I was all she had, all she could count on. We aren’t going to be here forever, soon we will leave and mark my words, if I don’t find her alive, you will be dead to me. Do you understand that?” I blinked the urgency and promise behind his words took my breath away.

.

.

.

Chelsea POV (Six Years ago)

I was on the floor of my bedroom, Dad and I had just come back from Brazil, there was a patient he went to see, but the trip… all I saw was beauty. Península de Maraú, Bahia State, Brazil… white sandy beaches, clear water, lush green natural surrounds, tree’s, mountains, turquoise color like water from the Atlantic ripping upon the pure sand. Leaving it smoother than when



I was too afraid that Leo would come after me so I didn’t leave my room or the house we were staying in, but I saw plenty on the ride there and back. So now I was drawing, sketching before I painted a scene I couldn’t get out of my head. I wasn’t very good but dad said that if I practiced I would get better, I liked the colors, I liked when I painted the picture wasn’t all there, I was forming it, making it grow, white blank canvas to the end product – mixing colors to get just the right shades.



Listening to my music, ear pods in, I just lost myself painting the beach scene, until a ding interrupted the music, a text message from dad: I’m Knocking On Your Bedroom Door.



I placed my paintbrush down, pulling the plugs from my ears and stood walking to the door, opening it, to see Jason smirking, “Sorry, I was painting,” I said immediately and saw the smirk drop and his eyebrows furrowed together, “You aren’t in trouble Chelsea, I just didn’t want you to be afraid if I just came in and tapped your shoulder,” I nodded, not sure because it was all confusing living with Dad. He didn’t yell, he didn’t hit, I got to choose everything and if I didn’t want to do something I didn’t have too. I had – it was different with him, I had options, he didn’t try to bend my will and if I said I didn’t want to do something, he dropped it. He rarely came into my room, unless maybe if I was having a nightmare, but even then he’d turn on the lights so when I woke up it wouldn’t be dark in the room. He didn’t even get angry when I slept with the bathroom light on, and door open in my room, because I didn’t like the dark. Everything was just wrong, different, I was afraid to even like it because I bet in no time I’d be going back to Leo.



“Chelsea,” he said again, waiting, as I got lost in my thought, I focused better, not wanting to test his patience, “yes?”



“Well there’s someone I want you to meet downstairs,” Jason said not giving me more information but stepping away from me waiting, until he was sure I was following him. “Uhm, our guest is a man Chelsea, but he is a friend of mine and he wanted to talk with you,” Jason said nonchalantly but it still caused me to stumble and stop.



He turned around facing me frowning, “Chelsea… sweetheart, I swear I wouldn’t bring someone that wanted to hurt you around,” I nodded, because I mean what else could I do? Going down the stairs we head to the sitting room, and inside was a big bulky man, buzzed cut hair, with light matting of dark blonde facial hair. Wearing just a black shirt and jeans, but all I could concentrate on was his size, overall, then specifically his arms, large, thick, muscular arms… Jason took a step forward, however I took one small step back, staying in the doorway just mesmerized and frightened just by his size alone.



“Chelsea, this is Lux Carmine, he wanted to come meet with you, speak to you,” Jason said, but I kept my eyes on this Lux character, walking on the edge of the room closest to the wall, then standing behind the sofa that Jason was sitting on.



“It’s a pleasure to meet you Chelsea,” he said not smiling fake, and I actually liked that, he didn’t look like the type of man that a smile looked good on, or natural. I nodded, my voice stuck, not working, but thankfully Lux continued, “Well your dad, told me that you – well you have a fear of being taken…” my eyes widened, “So I wanted to offer to teach you judo, or maybe just some basic self defense skills,” I tilted my head, only to shake it, “No, I don’t want to hurt anyone,” I whispered.



Jason turned to look at me, giving me a small smile, probably because I spoke to someone else other than him, Helen and the occasional female guards we take on trips, “Chelsea,” Lux called my head snapped up to meet his eyes, “I’m not asking to teach you how to hurt someone, I’m interested in teaching you how to stop someone from hurt you. I came to the hospital a few times but you were unconscious then, so I know that someone hurt you really bad…” my hand was at my side, and while my face was blank, my hands shook at my side.



Lux wasn’t looking away though, so I didn’t either, “Do you know that I can tell a lot by what happened to you just what type of person did those horrible things to you?” he didn’t let me answer not that I could, my heart sped up, sweat bedded on my face and my neck felt like I was being stung by needles, “He was a coward, he wasn’t a man Chelsea. Men don’t need to tie down the people they are fighting, in doing so I can tell that the man that hurt you has no skill in fighting. None Chelsea. Tying you down, was a way to protect him self, even though he may have said that you were tied to be held in place, he lied Chelsea-” his voice sounded so far away as unwanted memories rushed to the front, closing my eyes, I put my hands up trying to fight the imaginary demons from my mind, my stomach rolling as I felt the beating without getting real blows.



My hands flying to my mouth to keep the contents of my stomach from escaping but that was a futile move because my stomach was demanding that it be emptied and so it was on the hardwood floor of our living room, the fear of what would happen to me for doing such a thing sent my young heart into panic, “what’s going on-” I hear Helen but then I hear Leo as well, and that’s when the fear I had inside, really surfaced, but I hated that reaction and that made me want to be prepared. Leo was going to find me, I knew that like I knew my own right hand, the real question was whether or not I would react this way, throwing up, tensing and unable to speak or control my own bodily functions when I did? Or stronger than Leo would expect?

X _ O _ The Present _ O _ X

I didn’t have time, not when Lux came charging for me, he wouldn’t hold back, even though I was in no condition to take him on fully after my sparing with Jack and Jamie. Still I pushed Oakley out of the way, not waiting for Lux to strike me first, all his lessons coming into play. When I shifted the first time and finally told Dad I was sure he’d bring Lux back, but instead I was met with Jack and Casey.

I could see the gleam in his eyes, the excitement to take me on right now, especially when he had never had the chance, he only coached me when I was human. Claws out, I was ready, because Lux had taught me so much, showed me that you could tell so much about how a person fault, it was like a conversation, you could reveal who they were based on how they attacked, were they blood thirsty? Were they patient? Afraid? Blinded by fear? Did they fight dirty? Pull your hair? Fight to incapacitate? Or fight to kill? Did they get angry and lose focus? Or did they use each blow to focus on the objective at hand?

But before either Lux or I could get within two feet of each other, Oakley, roared out, “Noooo!!” her normally shy quiet voice shook, my eyes pulled away from Lux and immediately went down to her, my push had threw her down but her hands out in front of her, and if I had blinked I would have missed the bright white light that rippled off her hands pushed – forced away aimed towards Lux. His body flying back like a limb doll, the tree he hit falling down with him, with the force Oakley sent… a big smile on my face I turned to face her, but she seemed to be in a state of utter shock, her hands shaking, she looked afraid, unsure and the smile on my face dropped when her eyes watered, but all I saw was anger. So much of it.

________________________________

So.... thoughts?

© 2015 new_season All Rights Reserved