When they touch me (Shelagh Milano)



When They Touch Me

ARTEMISIA

"Stop it," I whisper pleadingly, my eyes still glued onto the dolls panicky. "Make it stop!"

Just as I have uttered my plea the voices stop and the dolls tipple over inanimate.

Turning my head slowly to face Fynn, I find him watching him with one of his stupid grins plastered on his face. "What was that? How did you do that?"

He shrugs, sadness taking over his features, "I got a few powers like this... Funfair tricks."

"This is insane," I whisper, looking over to the dolls sprawled on the floor. "I'll never sleep again."

He finally laughs, his deep vibrations rumbling through me.

"Not funny," I whisper, my eyes welling up with tears.

“Forgive me,” He says, leaning in to press his lips onto mine.

I let him take control of the kiss, moving my lips against his after his lead.

He pulls me up to straddle him, making me wrap my arms around his strong shoulders. I'm just about to enjoy it a little bit too much as he breaks the kiss, leaning his forehead against mine as we catch our breaths.

"I love how you clung on to me instead of running from me," he whispers huskily, his hands travelling up my thighs.

"Well, I couldn't run to the dolls, right?" I say annoyed, trying to hide my embarrassment but I end up taking a deep sigh.

"Sorry for doubting you," I say apologetically, and he shakes his head.

"It's okay."

Letting my hands glide down onto his chest, I lower my eyes to them. "So, something demonic..."

"Yeah," he takes my hand into his, kissing my fingertips gently, making me look back up at him. "She summoned an entity... That bastard planted something into me and tore out a piece of my wolf. I realised what I had done just too late and as I got out of there, it didn't take long to notice that something had changed."

I shift to sit farther away from his crotch, struggling to keep looking at him as he distorts his face. "On the way back to the pack, I thought I was going to die. I felt like burning alive, and it kept getting worse. I decided to just find a cave, and bury myself alive. But after spending the night in agony, I woke up feeling reborn. I felt stronger, I was faster, I felt there was something else pulsating through my veins that made me want to taste blood. And as soon as I stilled my thirst, I felt like I was invincible."

"What happened?" I ask in a whisper, gulping the lump forming in my throat.

He shrugs, leaning back in his seat. "I returned to the pack in just a fraction of the time it took me to get to the witch. I went straight to Cayden's office and challenged him. Oh, I was nothing near to even being a threat to him when I left but as he saw me then, I could see the fear in his eyes." "But you said you lost?!"

"Yeah. Yes, I lost. Because as soon

as we were fighting, he had no fucking chance against me. My brother, the one I had always looked up to, who was the strongest wolf that I had ever known, even stronger than my father, was fighting me like he was a puppy." He takes a deep breath, closing his eyes shortly. "IProperty of Nô)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

stopped just in time as I realise

that I was about to kill him. And I surrendered. And took everything that came for me. Them stripping my title, Logan stepping in for me, the hate of the pack... They locked me into the dungeons, and I just stayed there, even if I could have gotten out easily. Drake was a pain while I was trying to act responsibly. But I guess he was more driven by the hunger for power than I ever will be. The feeling of Aidan's throat crushing under Drake's paw, the picture of all the blood as he stared up at me, and Cayden's voice resounding in my head, telling me that it's okay and that 'he forgives me' haunted me, and kept me in check. Even when Logan came to provoke me as the new Beta."

I scrunch my nose, playing with his shirt. "I understand now why you were so triggered by me calling myself Beta-Female." "Yeah," he pushes out a dry laugh. "As I found you I couldn't stop thinking about how stupid I had been. How you could have been my Beta-Female, and wouldn't have to cope with a threat slumbering in me on top of that."

"I don't think that Drake is a threat to me," I say, smiling at him encouragingly.

"Drake is not the problem. But the thing nagging at his soul is," he retorts seriously.

I gulp, slowly like the air is getting too heavy for me. "What do you mean?"

He exhales exhaustedly, his hands grabbing my thighs. "The 'thing' that was planted into me is a piece of a soul a demon can distribute to a shifter. It is sold as a deal, but it simply allows the demon to take over the wolf and by that take over also the host's body, allowing him to get out of hell and it's impossible to get him out again."

"Oh no," I breathe out.

"Yeah," Fynn chuckles. "I got scammed."

"Oh, Fynn. What were you expecting?" I reprimand him, making him smile at me sadly.

"I was in a very dark place. There is nothing that can justify my stupidity."

"How did you find out all of this?" I ask, impressed by this world I'm discovering.

"I was getting worse. My anger was rising and my thirst for blood had me going insane. Cayden knew someone who knew a wicca who could be trusted. She came in to see me. And she gave us a piece of her mind and told us what idiots we were and that she just came in time. She could block the demonic entity from expanding, but she has to come around every now and then to redo it as she can't get it out as it is. But I still have this piece of him governing my body, so, I can still access his powers, I look

horrendous when I get angry or...

you know the black eyes... or shit like this," he gestures to the dolls with his head, making me follow his gaze.

"The risk is high that I will end up losing the fight, and he will win over my existence completely. Or, what Corvina told us will work out and I could get him out."

Biting my bottom lip, I scoot closer to him, making him increase his grip. "What would work out?"

He takes a deep breath, letting his hands glide up to my back to pull me even closer. "That is exactly what makes everything complicated. She told

me that once I get my mate, the fortified bond could get Drake enough power to enable her to make him reject the foreign piece of the soul for her to take it out and stop any further transformation."

"That's fantastic news," I beam at him, but his expression falls. "Oh, but you don't want me as your mate."

"No," he growls, making me flinch. "It's not that.”

"What?" I ask lowly, my eyes widening.

"I want you more than anything I ever wanted, Missy. I crave you. But..." he takes another deep breath, making my heart flip painfully in my chest. "She told us that there is also the chance that accepting you as a mate will not only make Drake stronger but also allow the demon to feed off this new strength, getting me to lose control right away."

He stops talking, looking at me intently as panic expands in my chest. "And that would mean the death of both of us."