Beasts Read online

  Beasts

  Angelina Kanan

  To Lex, who hates reading, but listened to my stories for years. You've been a sounding board for almost everything I've ever written. Couldn't have done it without you!

  Contents

  Title Page

  Dedication

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  CHAPTER 29

  CHAPTER 30

  CHAPTER 31

  CHAPTER 32

  CHAPTER 33

  CHAPTER 34

  CHAPTER 35

  CHAPTER 36

  CHAPTER 37

  CHAPTER 38

  CHAPTER 39

  CHAPTER 40

  CHAPTER 41

  CHAPTER 42

  CHAPTER 43

  CHAPTER 44

  CHAPTER 45

  CHAPTER 46

  About The Author

  CHAPTER 1

  I smelled it before I heard anything. The distinct smell of rotting flesh filled the air, bringing with it a feeling of dread. Leaves crinkled softly as the creature moved through the forest. I stilled to be sure that I could hear correctly. The footsteps seemed to be going farther away from me, something that didn’t make sense. I’d only smelled this scent once before, and if it was what I thought it was, it should be coming towards me. I let out a curse, realizing that I would have to hunt it down. He was probably toying with me, trying to lure me to a ground he recognized where he would have the advantage.

  For the first time in years, I began to regret not having a pack. This would be the perfect moment to link with someone to alert them of the danger. And to give myself a chance of being found should I get injured. I sighed, knowing this was a problem I’d have to fix when I made it home. Maverick would be over the moon, finally getting his wish, and I would have to deal with them. I looked up at the moon, silently pleading for mercy. Three monsters from my past all at once; the moon really was a cruel goddess.

  I began to move forward. It wasn’t a very full moon tonight, creating a blanket of darkness that I welcomed gratefully. This beast may think he was safe, but I knew these woods like the back of my hand. I weaved in and out of trees in a pattern that I knew would take me to the monster. I would come around from the side and stop it before it got to wherever it planned to hide. Or so I thought. There was a low whimpering coming from the beast before it collapsed on the forest floor. It was weak, I realized. It hadn’t been trying to lure me anywhere; it was hurting and trying to escape.

  I felt the hair on my body stand up as fear crept over me the closer I approached it. It lay on the ground, looking up at me through tired eyes. As I had thought, it was half-human half-beast. There were patches of fur surrounding its disgusting body, all matted and caked in blood. The blood seemed to belong to the beast, knowing that if it wasn’t their blood, it wouldn’t be dying right now. I watched it closely for any signs that it was faking. The beast let out a little whine, moving his head in an attempt to show me his neck. He was submitting to me, leaving me dumfounded. From what I knew about these beings, they were crazed, acting out of bloodlust and unable to think.

  I walked around him to assess how hurt he was. The sight brought back painful memories from a different time and place. With the small amount of light the moon offered, I could hardly see the details on him, but I remembered enough. I knew the skin would be a sunken grayish- yellow, stretched along its body tightly. The bones would be outlined distinctly. Depending on how recently the monster was turned, there would be yellow claws and teeth, covered in blood and ready to devour. My wolf hissed in my mind to back up before I let history repeat itself.

  I couldn’t bring myself to kill the beast. I wasn’t certain if it was because I wanted to try and rewrite history by helping him or if I wanted him to suffer. I chose the latter and decided to wait as he died. There was no need for me to trouble myself with the violence, so I lay a few feet away from him, watching and waiting silently. I couldn’t trust that he would die if I left him here, so I made sure to stay close by as proof that he died.

  By morning, the beast's life had faded. I sighed tiredly. I had run away to avoid this, yet it managed to follow me here. I heard my name being called and before I knew it, I heard frantic running. It sounded like a human, but I knew Maverick better than that. If I had been hurt, he’d have been useless as a human; too slow and unable to track me by my scent. There was no way he’d come out to find me in human form. I curled up in a ball so the human wouldn’t realize that I was a larger wolf than I should’ve been. Being half lycan sometimes made things more difficult.

  As soon as I saw the ugly crocs, I paused. I looked up at him slowly, shocked that I had been wrong. At the sight of me, Maverick ran his hands through his brown hair, tugging on it. He was clearly upset with me, but at the moment I didn’t care. Maverick really came out here in human form. What kind of idiot?

  “Seriously?” he asked. “What the hell are you doing out here?” I growled lowly at him, my wolf not liking his tone. I had temporarily forgotten to be upset about him not having turned. I jerked my head in the direction of our house to let him know that I would explain everything once we got back. Before I could take off in that direction, he was kneeling in front of me, peering at me closely. His green eyes met mine and refused to look away. It seemed like he was searching for something. My wolf paced in my mind as he maintained eye contact, thinking he was challenging her. Instead, he brought his hand up and stroked my dark fur, letting out a relieved sigh. “I was worried, Selene.” Whether he meant to or not, his tone was accusatory. I knew exactly what he was thinking. I sighed again and jerked my head for us to get moving. Unfortunately, I knew I wouldn’t like what he had to say.

  We walked back to the pack house in silence. One of his hands stayed in my hair, petting me in an attempt to relax me. He was aware of my realization, and he recognized that it wasn’t an easy decision for me to agree to. I had demons I still hadn’t faced, and this wouldn’t make any of that better.

  I could sense the agitation of Clyde and Diana as we walked through the doors. I ignored their anger and went to my room to change before meeting them in the living room. Maverick and Diana were sitting on the love seat across from the TV. Maverick had his feet up on the coffee table, scrolling through the channels on the TV, one arm around his mate. Clyde was laying down on my recliner. I scowled. We had all chosen to pick our own furniture when we bought the house, and Clyde had turned down the recliner. I refused to sit on his beanbag chair and chose to sit on the arm of the love seat with Maverick and Diana.

  Knowing they all expected an explanation; I began talking. I didn’t need to wait for them to lecture me. “I saw a wendigo.”

  As soon as I said it, I saw the amusement. Diana started to laugh and Maverick coughed. I could tell they didn’t believe me. It reminded me of before. Gabby had come home saying the same thing. Dad and Jackson had laughed- hell, everyone had laughed at her. I blinked my eyes quickly, willing the memories to go away before they went too far. I couldn’t afford to lose control right now. I needed them to believe me.

  Clyde sat up, ignor
ing the other two. He closed the recliner and leaned forward, studying me intently. His blue- green eyes scanned every inch of my face. Clyde nodded. “Okay. You saw a wendigo.” Diana and Maverick turned to him in surprise.

  “That’s impossible,” Diana said shrugging. “Everyone knows they’re extinct.”

  “It’s worth hearing her out, isn’t it?” Clyde turned to Diana, raising his brow.

  I sighed again. “It’s not impossible. They’re real, and they’re dangerous. I didn’t think I’d ever run into them again, but here we are.”

  “You’ve seen them before?” Maverick asked.

  Diana hit his arm, “We can handle that later. Are you okay? Did you get hurt? We just assumed you went out for a run and lost track of time again.”

  I nodded, “I’m fine, he was dying- he did die, actually.” I had a habit of losing track of time when I went out and it tended to worry them. Which is why they had been planning another lecture. They’d go on and on about how rogue wolves are the ones that get attacked and I should stay safe. I appreciated them caring, but it got annoying.

  “This is why we tell you not to go out for too long,” Clyde snapped. “It could have been anything out there that could attack you. A wendigo isn’t even a threat we’re prepared for.”

  Maverick looked at me, his face serious. “We need to register as a pack, Selene.” I felt sick, knowing he was right. If we were a pack, we’d be able to mind-link. We’d be able to help one another if something happened. “It’s not safe that we can’t communicate with you.”

  “I know.” I hesitated. The wendigo problem was what drove me away from a pack, and now it would be what forced me to be in another one. I knew we would never have a repeat of what happened, but the memories were too painful for me. Besides, I didn’t want to be an alpha, and I certainly didn’t want to have to go see the reapers. Those creepy monsters had no souls.

  “I know it’s tough,” Diana said. “I assume it’s because of your old pack, and I don’t know what they did, but I promise it won’t turn out the same way."

  “Besides,” Maverick added, “We already live like a pack, anyway.” He had moved so he was now laying on Diana, a reminder that he lived with us, rather than alone with his mate. This wasn't really ideal for any of us.

  Clyde grabbed the remote out of Mavericks hand and hit him on the head, “Get off my sister.” He glanced at me for a second and I knew he had done it for some kind of reaction from me. He had a little smirk on his face, letting Maverick know he was only slightly joking. It was out of character for him to attempt to brighten the mood, but I appreciated his effort.

  Maverick pouted, playing along. “You’re just jealous.” And the moment was over. Everyone quickly turned serious again at the thought of Clyde’s mate. About 4 years ago, Clyde and his mate had been hunting near their pack when a group of campers had heard them. The campers got scared. One of them ended up shooting Lydia, causing Clyde to kill the whole group. As a result, Clyde was exiled from his pack for killing innocent humans, and his sister followed. Two years later, they found me and Maverick and chose to stick with us

  “What does it mean, though? I’ve never seen a pack registration, so what do you have to do?” Diana pushed Maverick off of her, trying to change the subject to spare her brother some pain.

  “I’ll have to go to Lunar Island. That’s where the Council of reapers lives. They have to accept my plea for a pack and assign me a reaper to watch over the pack. That should earn a certificate or something allowing me to expand and such.” Maverick reached out and grabbed my hand, knowing how much I hated the reapers. Each pack had one. They were there to help keep the peace between the lycans and the wolves, making sure the alphas followed their laws.

  “You can’t go by yourself, sweetie. Lycans are dangerous!” Diana looked at me, letting me know there was no changing her mind.

  “Do either of you think before you speak?” Clyde glared at the mated pair on the couch, referencing Maverick’s comment earlier. “She’s half-lycan, Di.” He reminded his sister, with a point in my direction.

  “Goddess, Selene, I’m sorry! I totally wasn’t thinking-”

  I held up a hand to stop Diana. “It’s fine, I get it, I don’t trust them either. And I wasn’t planning on going alone. I’ll need my beta.”

  CHAPTER 2

  We had arrived on Lunar Island earlier this morning. They had escorted us straight to the castle and into rooms. I wasn’t complaining, though. I felt no need to endanger Maverick. I may share their blood, but he was a werewolf, and I was raised around wolves. I didn’t want to deal with anyone who still harbored hatred toward them.

  The lycan in me whined at not even getting a glimpse around the island. This would’ve been my home had my mother mated to a lycan. Unfortunately for all of us, her mate was an alpha wolf. That prevented him from joining her on this island. My mother, smitten with my father, gave up her life to join his pack. Sadly, I mean that literally. The lycans were exiled to their island, and matings wouldn’t stop that. Bishop Tate, the reaper of Old Moon pack, agreed, and sentenced my mother to her death. Dad was powerless to stop it.

  “Remind me why I have to be your beta, and not Clyde?” Maverick whined.

  I looked at him, glad to put an end to the thoughts running through my mind. They were headed in a dangerous direction, and this was the last place I needed to lose control.

  I looked around the room before answering him. They had set us up nicely, Maverick and I having neighboring rooms. A king-sized bed stood out in the middle, a chandelier hanging in the center of the room. There were 2 mahogany dressers along one wall with a circular mirror above them. The carpet was a deep burgundy. Dad used to tell me that was Mom’s favorite color. I sighed before giving Maverick an answer. “You know more about my past. And you would be beta of your old pack.”

  His eyes flashed, anger and pain hidden behind them. “You could just tell Clyde.”

  I looked at him, refusing to feel guilty for putting him through this. I was only playing as dirty as he was. “You all voted me alpha because I have alpha and lycan blood. Why can’t I make you beta because you have beta blood?”

  Maverick was sitting up on the bed, his back facing me, shoulders slumped in shame. His voice was quiet when he spoke, “Because I failed them.”

  Maverick had left his old pack to visit some friends who went to school out of state. He had left his pack behind in not-so-stable conditions. There were tensions brewing between his pack and a neighboring one over some land. When Maverick came back, he found his pack had been conquered by the other one. The new alpha wasn’t very welcoming, and Maverick had lost so many friends and family that he ran away. That was when I found him.

  An image of Gabby popped into my mind, as I thought about my old pack, as well. I turned to the mirror, deciding to put my hair into my signature messy French braid. It was a way to calm myself down, while also making sure my hair was out of my way. “I failed my pack, too. We understand each other, and we’ll prevent history from repeating itself. Together.” I knew I wouldn’t be able to do it without him. He understood my pain and knew how easily I could lose control.

  “I don’t really have a choice, seeing as I’m already surrounded by lycans,” He playfully glared at me.

  There was a loud knock on the door before it opened, and a guard stepped in. Every guardian on the island had a moon tattooed on one of their arms. It was a sign that the moon had blessed them for dedicating their life to protecting another. Werewolves found it archaic and opted not to follow the tradition, making it a rare honor. His skin was tan, like every lycan on the island, and his face was serious. “Prince Lucian would like to speak with you.” He announced. “I will escort you now, if you are ready.”

  Maverick looked at me, panic written all over his face. “Is that the Deserter?” he whispered frantically.

  I chuckled and shook my head, following the guard out of the room. The hallways were long and narrow, paintings lining t
he walls. It seemed very medieval, torches on the walls casting shadows as we walked. “Lucian is the youngest son of the tyrant lord.” Maverick let out a sigh of relief. The Deserter, Sebastian Drakov, was the oldest son of the tyrant lord. Legend has it he killed his own mother, and later betrayed his father and got him killed, too. In his defense, he ended a war and saved all the werewolves, but still. It takes a certain amount of cruelty to turn your back on your own family. An image of my own father appeared in my mind, making me scowl.

  “Has something offended you?” An unfamiliar voice reached my ears as I froze, not realizing we had entered the throne room. The walls were massive, leading to a high pointed ceiling. There were circular windows on every wall to allow for the moon or sun to shine through. The throne was made of marble, the moon phases carved across the curve at the top. There were claw marks decorating it, as though someone had the strength to scratch through the stone. I glanced up and noticed a man was looking at me, waiting for an answer. He had a well-sculpted jawline, brown stubble not doing much to hide it. His deep brown eyes held a fire that made me want to leave immediately

  Way to go, Selene. I sighed inwardly. “Not at all, just lost in old memories.”

  “Ah,” the beautiful man said, rising from the seat and coming towards us. “I would hate to be the poor lad who put that murderous glint in your eyes, angel.” I nodded at him, uncomfortable talking about it, and choosing to ignore his nickname. “Lucian Drakov at your service,” he bowed low, lifting my hand and placing a warm kiss on my knuckles.

  My wolf howled, agitated for some reason and I felt dizzy. I pulled my hand away from him and took a step back. “I was under the impression that your brother ran this island?” I glanced at Maverick, wondering if he was having weird feelings from this guy, too. His face gave nothing away. Stupid beta.

  “Whoever informed you of that is correct. Sebastian does reside as Lord Drakov.” He stated with a smile that seemed well-rehearsed. I studied his face, trying to read him. I wasn’t on this island for the lycans, so I wasn’t sure why he bothered with me.