The Taint of Wolves

Music Room.

Chapter Eleven: Music Room.

His brows lifted in surprise. "That is sudden."

"What is?" I tipped back my coffee, humming at the flood of taste in my stale mouth. "My sudden desire to talk?"

He propped his elbows on the table and his coffee cup look tiny in his grip. I could see the cream ladened on the top, sprinkled with a thick, orange sugar. My nose wrinkled. Too sweet. It took him a moment to respond, "Yes."

Over his shoulder, a gaggle of nurses stared at him. His head turned slightly, lifting as he caught what they were saying. His mouth pressed into a grim line.

"They're talking about you." I set down my cup, keeping a grip on it.

"They usually do," He tasted his coffee, grimacing, "Too bitter."

"Why?" I titled my head, eyeing the nurses again. "You're the Alpha Supreme, surely you can cease their whispering." It only served to remind me of whispering doctors beyond an unbreakable barrier, staring at me, whispering about me while I only dreamed of tearing out their throats.

He touched the edges of the scars that curved around his face. As if he always reached to touch them. His gaze flickered to me and his fingers curled, his hand dropping to the table. "People will always stare."

There was a tinge of embarrassment to his voice. I picked up on it, a frown pinching my brow. Strange. "So, what were you and Lux avoiding to tell me?"

He took his time, letting the silence settle like an ugly weight between us. I bit my tongue. Testing me? He watched me still, his expression stoic though I could hear the rapid patter of his heart-beat.

Finally, he said, "You're not safe anymore. I don't know how the Ravi found about your position so quickly, but they will be hell-bent on capturing you."

I blinked at him. "My position?"

"As Alpha-Female," there was a dark tinge to his cheeks now and I was starkly reminded of that day eight years ago. He had not managed to shed that awkwardness even after all this time. "You are a prime target for the enemies of the Lycan state. It took them hours to find you...which means that there could be a mole inside my network."

He didn't suspect. 

I could have laughed if my body didn't hurt so much. 

"You must know that I was there with Darren and Sunny." I pointed out. "In the Tube, as they called it."

"I thought about that," He admitted. "But we managed to pull some of the patients out of that asylum and they've been placed in programmes to help them to adapt to normal society again. The Ravi have never come for them."

I bit down on my inner lip, taking another slow draw of scorching coffee. "So, what does that have to do with Lux?"

His golden-brown eyes flickered. "I'm sure you know that the Ravi are ruthless. They strike hard and they fight dirty. Your friend, by being associated with you, will be hunted. She will hurt you, which will affect me. They thrive off of that. I made her an offer."

That dread curled in my gut, like a rotten husk. "What kind of offer?"

"Safety," He said the word softly. "And as much freedom as I can provide with it. There is a town, a haven of sorts. She will be safe there. As you could be too."

My nails prickled. "That sounds like a prison!"

"No!" His brows shot up, his shock turning his voice vehement. "There are all the trappings of a good life, just with guarded patrols and security. I- I live there."