Forbidden Fables, page 10
“Gran beat me when I didn’t pray. She beat me when things weren’t clean enough. My mother collected crystals, herbs, and candles—and when Gran found out I had kept them…she locked me in my room without food for days.” I fight back tears as Fenrir pulls me close to him.
Leaning into my ear, he whispers, “An eye for an eye…a life for a life, perhaps?”
I watch as the shadows dance over his face, his brows and cheeks looking more prominent, even sinister. My belly flipped and flopped, and I could not think of anything more than kissing him again. I tug and bite at his beard, and he rumbles deep in his chest each time.
“First, I want to tell her exactly how I feel.” I pull on his beard, bringing his face close to mine. “Then I want to skin her alive.”
Chapter 33
Fenrir
The more time I spend with this woman, the more surprises I uncover. A temptress, a healer, and a killer…
The moon was high in the sky this night, and it would be full by tomorrow.
I needed to shift, and I needed to run soon. For now, I am content lying next to her body that fits so perfectly tucked next into mine.
We drift by the fire, speaking of dreams and desires.
It isn’t until the early hours of the morning that I wake with a shiver and realize the fire has burned out.
I step outside and walk to the neatly stacked pile of chopped wood, stacking large and small pieces in my arms, and still bare chested.
Fog has rolled in—the nights getting slightly warmer during the spring equinox—and in the distance I see two black figures.
Each one wore a black hat and coat, carrying a lantern filled with fire. The men rarely came to the woods since Lux had arrived.
“Fenrir,” one man calls, sternly.
He cannot feign bravery with me. I can smell his fear clinging to him just like that hideous coat.
Setting down the wood in my hands, I feel for the hatchet looped around my waist, but it is not there.
So much for a bit of intimidation.
I step in closer as they approach me. “Sirs.”
One is almost as tall as I am, the other is much shorter. I could kill them both easily, even in my human form. I was itching to shift, and my wolf howls in the recesses of my mind.
A visit from these men in the wee hours of the morning only meant trouble.
“We know you have her. Thomas has told us as much.” The taller man steps in a little too close to me, his bravery fighting his fear with equal measure. He doesn’t appear to have any weapons, only the fire blazing inside the glass of the lantern.
“I do not have anyone. I do not know who it is that you speak of.” Bored, I pick at my teeth with my nails.
The shorter man steps up to me now. “We have no reason not to believe Thomas, for God has delivered this message himself.”
I chuckle at this. Gods do not address a mortal man, they would not waste their time on such things. “I assume Thomas is your leader, the one who first came to pay me a visit.”
The taller one clears his throat. “It would be in your best interest to hand over the girl. It is God’s will—to rid the world of evil. Our work here is not done. We need to continue, beginning with the girl.”
I do not appreciate his demand, and I do not owe his God anything. “Leave, now. Or you will meet your God this morning, at my hands.” I bend down to retrieve the wood and turn to leave, giving them a chance to rethink their request.
“Fenrir, she is Thomas’ daughter…a Lost Daughter. She belongs to God now.” The shorter man steps up to me, and I do not smell fear, only anger.
She belongs to God now.
The man who visited me that day long ago, the one who politely asked me to keep to myself…was Lux’s father. The realization sparks me with rage, remembering that she told me they took her mother and she could not understand the reason. It was him, then. Burning his own wife alive for his false God and his even falser promises.
And I would never let him, or these foolish men, near my little lamb. Let them try to take her.
I turn to the smaller man. “Well, Thomas is wrong, and so is your God.”
I take a step toward the cabin, but I feel the small man’s hand grip my arm.
My wolf rears, and the rage burns behind my eyes until I am incinerated by it. The wood drops to the ground, clacking together as my body stretches and cracks. Fur sprouts over my body and I double in size, as do my snout and fangs. The relief of accepting my primal instinct in its physical form.
The small man is struck with a look of pure horror, holding his lantern out in front of him as if it could protect him.
Foolish man.
The tall man reaches into his pocket as I shake out my form and bare the sharp canines, already wet with saliva. My head snaps back and I howl, enough to send the men running for their lives.
But this is not over.
The pads of my paws beat down the cold ground until I am nipping at the short man’s heels. I could easily grab his leg and be done with it, but I wanted to be sure I was far enough away that Lux wouldn’t hear his pleas.
The tall man drops his lantern, easily escaping me in the darkness—not the short man, though. I grasp his foot and toss him into the air, shaking him like a rag doll. My size nearly triples his, and I easily lift his flailing body into the air. He screams and begs for mercy, but I rip out his throat to end his racket.
Satisfied with a kill, my wolf is content, but I am covered in the man’s blood.
I shift back into my human form, bones cracking and my legs shaking.
I fall to my knees, shaking out my hair as I try to stand. I am completely nude and vulnerable to the elements, and need to get home. Doubtful that Lux slept through the screaming, I brace myself for her questions.
I enter the cabin, realizing I am most likely covered in more than just blood. She is awake, and her eyes squint into the dim sunrise, nothing less than enchanting.
“You are filthy.” Her voice is thick with sleep, and she rubs her eye. “And why are you naked?”
Chapter 34
Lux
Ifeel the absence of Fen’s warm body, but sleep keeps taking me under until I hear a loud howl.
My body aches, but I desperately need water, so I force myself to sit up.
Fenrir quietly opens the front door, his body splashed with what looks like mud and deep red blood.
Then I remember the voices of men outside, screaming…followed by the howl.
Realization floods over me and I look over his tall, marked body that drips with strength and instincts.
The Wolf of the Woods.
“You…You are…” I stutter over the words, but my heart is beating out of my chest at the prospect of my fantasy becoming a reality.
He approaches slowly but doesn’t speak, his face almost morose.
Sinking to his knees in front of me, he covers my hands with his. “Yes, little lamb, I am the monster that lives in these woods.”
I squint my eyes, confused by his words. I already know that he is a killer, a savage…born and raised that way.
It is all he’s ever known.
“Tell me what happened.” I squeeze his meaty hands, tucking the loose hair that brushes his shoulder behind his ear.
He takes his hands from mine and stands, disappearing into the back room.
When he returns, he is wearing a fresh pair of breeches, but still no shirt…perhaps he enjoys reminding me of his wild ways.
“Could you hear the men?” he asks, studying my face.
“Vaguely, I remember voices. What men?” The only men that lived near Gran were the people of a neighboring town, but the rumor of the Wolf kept them well enough away.
“These men…they know your father. I think they are his brothers.” He pulls the stool near me and sits, bracing his arms on his knees, leaning forward.
“His brethren?” I ask, excited at the idea of my father finally returning home.
Fenrir nods, understanding the difference after our conversations the night before.
“Did you kill them?” My voice raises, unsure if I even want the answer.
He doesn’t move. He continues to stare at the floor, but nods again.
“And my father? Him as well?” I am standing now, wondering if I am angry or just overwhelmed by everything that has happened in the past two days.
“He was not with them, but they came here for you, and I could not let them have you.” His hands are clasped together tightly, and for the first time since I have been here, I see fear in his eyes.
I did not know the men that my father associated with. I was not allowed to partake in any rituals or meetings that involved the world of men and worshipping their God. It mattered not to me if they were dead or alive. My stomach squeezes at the thought of Fenrir defending me, standing his ground…just as I wished my father had done for my mother.
“So…then my father didn’t come back for me.” I fight back tears, swallowing them down. I should count my blessings on the number of times my life has been spared.
Fenrir’s voice is a low timbre, and he stands from the stool, taking my hands into his again. “Your father sacrificed your mother to his God, and now he wants to sacrifice you as well.”
I back up, looking down and un-linking our hands.
No, my father saved my life by hiding me away. This can’t be true.
“I don’t believe you. He saved me.” My chest heaves again, and I feel a line of sweat drip between my breasts.
“I am a monster. I never should have kept you here.” He turns to the shelf of stores and grabs my leather satchel, filling it with water, skins, and food. He plucks my red cloak from the nail it hangs on beside the fire, handing it to me.
I take the cloak, dumbfounded. “Wait, I am not done discussing this with you. Where is my father?”
Fenrir is standing with the door open now, the sunshine beaming through the trees. “He is not here, little lamb. He is the one responsible for all of this.”
Fenrir
My heart is breaking, watching her golden eyes gloss over with sadness at the betrayal by her father. I couldn’t let them take her. I would spend the rest of my days keeping watch over her from afar and wouldn’t let any man make it near her. No matter if I needed to sleep outside her door each night, I would.
I stand, holding open the door for her with a few things packed so she could take the lead alone.
I can’t keep her here. I need her to see these things for herself, even if it meant letting her go.
Only she wouldn’t move. She just continued working that beautiful mouth of hers.
I cannot read the emotions on her face. She is too lost in thought.
“Come, Lux, I will bring back to your gran’s.” Even the words stretch my heart, and my wolf whimpers.
“I don’t believe you and I also don’t need your escort. I came here on my own and I can leave that way too.” She snatches the bag and cloak from me, throwing the cloak around her shoulders.
“If I remember correctly, you fell face first into a river and I found you.” I followed her out the door, surveying the land for any uninvited guests.
She whirls on me, furious, and I cannot tell if it’s because of her father, or because of what I had done.
“Yes, you saved me. But now, you are throwing me back…” She sniffles, but keeps her strong composure. “Maybe I don’t want to go back. Did you ever think of that, you big…big…beast?!”
I want to laugh at her adorable outburst. She may think she is fighting me, but she is only making me fall for her even more.
“I simply want no more blood on my hands, and if you stay here, there will be much more.” I spread my hands, showing her the evidence left behind.
“If I go back now, my gran will not protect me. She despises me, and I reckon she would have rather I burned right beside my mother.” She is shouting now, her cheeks flush with the cold, her breath misting the air.
I step in close to her, her lips so plump and red that I can’t help but cup her face. “I only want to keep you safe, and perhaps if I return you home, you will be, but I will be there to make sure.”
Tears wet her cheeks, and she pulls her head away, backing away from me.
I hang my head again, wanting nothing more than to return her to my furs, where I know she will be safe.
I had to let her see for herself.
Chapter 35
Lux
“And what should we do about it, sweet lamb?” He reaches for my hand and looks into my eyes as if I am the most divine sight he has ever laid eyes on.
I could never go back now, and the thought of it makes my stomach turn. I had been gone two days and tonight was the full moon. Surely, if I returned home, I would walk straight to my death.
I choke back the thought that perhaps he no longer wanted me as his problem, and he was done playing his deviant games with me.
The games that I enjoyed so much.
I walk to him, and I kneel before him. “If you keep me, I promise to worship you more than any man God has ever made. I will give you offerings of my body…and my soul.”
He sinks to his knees as well, removing my hood and grabbing my chin tightly. “You owe me no offerings, and I would be a lucky man to have you grace my furs every night.”
I run my fingers through the coarse hair of his beard, tugging lightly, and he smiles. He is seemingly the least terrifying man, in my eyes. He was strength and savior, but also a cold-blooded killer.
I wanted him to be my killer.
But even after all this, part of me still cannot accept the fate handed to me by my family. I needed to go back to her, to where the last few items remained of my mother’s. If I needed to have acceptance, the time was now to face it.
The words come stern and certain from me, a vengeance that had been brewing for years. “I want them all dead.”
***
Fenrir
This woman drives me wild. My wolf is pleased, and ready for another fight to defend her honor. When she kneels at my feet, I am lost to her…I want nothing but her, and I will do anything for her.
“You cannot say such things to me, or I will take you right here. The way you are stroking my beard makes me want to throw you over my shoulder and take you back to our bed.” I lean in and kiss her roughly, her head forced back and her mouth welcoming me wide.
Leaning back, she wraps her arms around my neck, and I bring my arm around her waist, pulling her onto my lap.
Snow begins to fall around us, and I need to feel her. I am desperate to press our skin together. I want to watch her shatter beneath me over and over for the rest of our lives.
Her words send me into a frenzy, and my wolf howls in response.
Bending over, I lay her on her back and un-lace her cloak, spreading it around her. Her face is soft, but dry of tears, and she bites her lip while I untie my breeches.
Reaching under her shift, I slide my hands down her thighs and under her knees, hooking my hands beneath them. I push her legs up and apart, exposing her pink flesh, readying my tongue.
She gasps as I lash her folds, flattening it wide. I have not splayed her this way to only taste her. I want to lick her from seam to seam.
I prop her up higher, so her ass is splayed under my lips, and I flick my tongue over the tight hole. Her hips buck, but I hold her in place, sinking my fingertips into her skin. I plunder the hole with my thick tongue. Leaning back, I drip spit over both holes.
“Ohhh…Fen,” she says with a whimper, and I pick up my pace. Darting my tongue in and out, tracing a line to her sensitive nub. She shudders as I use long strokes up her center, meeting her eyes with mine each time I reach the top. I can feel her climax climbing, and her pleasure forces my cock tight to my belly.
I am ravenous for her, and I bite the insides of her thighs, leaving a trail of red marks.
I pull back, savoring the way the snowflakes fall on her skin, melting on impact. “This body should be praised every day. Does your God praise you, sweet lamb?”
“He does nothing for me,” she says breathlessly.
“If your God can see us now, what would he say?” I free my cock now, readying for her to see everything that I am.
“Sinful…” Her hands are reaching for my hips, pulling me deeper, stirring her to the direction she needs.
I bring the tapered tip to her sex. “Ah, but it feels so good, does it not? And how can something so sinful feel so sweet?” I groan, piercing her, the walls of her cunt embracing the shaft.
Her back arches, and she cries out, pulling my hair, driving me into a frenzy.
My face is smeared with her blood, and she strokes my lips as I stroke inside of her.
She spirals, every string of self-control broken. I let her ride me, legs wrapped around my waist, her fingers still in my mouth.
I watch her until she is replete and panting, my eyes fixed on hers while my mouth works through her orgasm.
I trail kisses over her thighs where my bite marks are, and its then I notice the burns.
Chapter 36
Lux
Never have I brought myself to climax the way Fenrir had. My climaxes left me feeling drained, dirty, and wrong.
My body was not supposed to bring me such pleasures. It was sinful.
But his mouth brought a euphoria that could only be explained as holy.
Of all things that stood out to me from my tutoring, from my long Sunday mornings in church, it was the word holy.
Described as devotion to one service or God, entitled to reverence and respect. This man deserved my devotion.
As I pull down my dress and adjust my cloak around my shoulders, Fen is still kneeling in front of me, breeches untied. “Who did this to you? These marks on your thighs?” He looks concerned, but his brow is furrowed, angry.
