Fated Mate

They were on the couch, the pain in her shoulder had died down after a few hours, but the other was still there. She was regretting that she had thrown the meds away. They would have numbed more than just her arm. Her eyes were swollen and red. She had been crying for a while, regretting her decision, she wanted him back, whether or not he wanted to trust her, she didn’t care anymore, he loved her and she loved him, the rest could all go to hell. She opened her eyes and looked at Maria.

“I gave him an ultimatum.” The word felt like hot coal on her tongue.

“What do you mean?” Maria stroked her hair back and wiped the fresh flow of tears from her cheek.© 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

“I’ve been sharing a bed with a stranger, and I couldn’t do it anymore. Though right now, I couldn’t care less what or who he is. I just want him back.” Lee could feel a sob creep up her throat.

“Is that why he threw the chair into our TV?” It was Ann who asked, pointing past Lee. She turned and looked. The TV was broken on the floor with the chair on top of it.

“I did that.” Lee massaged the new swelling on her shoulder, not paying much attention to the broken TV on the floor.

“What! You threw a chair from the kitchen into our living room!” Ann sounded amazed and amused.

“How do you think I pulled my shoulder?” Lee spoke, her mind still on Ash.

Maria shook her head. “That’s impossible, that distance with that shoulder. Are you covering up for Ash?”

“No. And our apartment is an open space, it’s not so impossible.”

“If you were on speed it’s not,” Ann muttered.

“So what’s going to happen between the two of you?” Maria spoke again, even more concerned than before. Lee knew that answer but she wasn’t quite ready to admit it to herself. She stood up and headed to her room. “Where are you going?”

“I’m going to school.”

“You have permission to stay home until finals.” Ann turned to face her.

She knew that, but she didn’t want to stay home, she needed a distraction. “I need to speak to my teacher. I’ll be back early.”

“Okay, but I’m driving you.”

She didn’t want to fight her on it; she wasn’t really giving her a choice. Lee nodded and went into her room. She came back out fully dressed and sat on the couch with the girls. They were discussing something, whatever it was it looked pretty serious. Before she could say anything, the doorbell rang. Ann stood up to get it.

“Yes, how may I help you?” Ann looked at the woman, refraining from making fun of her leather cat suit.

“You can’t. But she can.” The woman at the door pushed past Ann, went round the couch and stood in front of Lee.

“Listen you bitch! Get out before I throw you out!” Ann was pissed, but the woman just kept staring at Lee. Lee cringed back at the lethal gaze she gave her. If eyes could kill she would be dead.

“Listen to me very carefully, if you value your life, you’ll stay away from Ash. He’s mine. And another thing, if you so much as breathe a word of this to him, I’ll kill you exactly the way your family was slaughtered, do we understand each other!” She walked out, banging the door behind her.

Lee couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t think. It wasn’t the threat that was suffocating her; it was the fact that she said her family was slaughtered, not burned slaughtered. Lee grabbed at her chest, struggling to breathe.

“Lee, are you okay?” Maria was all over her, she was worried, scared.

“Did you hear what she said…slaughtered not burned-”

“Lee. Focus. Are you okay?” Maria turned Lee’s face with her hands and starred into her eyes.

“My family died in a fire, why would she say that?” the words were rolling out of Lee.

“I’m calling Ash.” Ann reached for the phone, Lee held her hand back, she couldn’t find her voice so she shook her head. “That woman just threatened you!”

Maria hugged Lee tight. “Ann, give her time to recover, then she’ll decide what to do. In the meantime get her some water.”

****

Ash drove into the drive way like a mad man and almost crashed into the wall. He got into the house and banged the door behind him. The doors this time completely came off their hinges, falling on the floor inches away from Joe.

“We just had the doors fixed!” Joe lamented.

Ash ignored him and headed for the AA room. He headed straight for the back wall where the tequilas were, knocking the table over with Billy’s legs still on them.

“Ash, what the hell’s wrong!” Billy stood up from the couch and turned to Ash. Joe walked in, with his phone in his hand. “I called the repair guy, I asked him to bring steel doors this time. What’s with him?” He asked Billy pointing in Ash’s direction.

“If I was to guess, I’d say Lee.”

They stood there and watched Ash break the neck of another bottle before he downed it.

“Ease up Ash! Instead of getting drunk, tell us what happened?” Billy was behind him, he reached for the bottle in Ash’s hand.

“Touch it, and you’ll lose your hand!” Acid spewed out of his lips. Billy took a step back in reaction to the warning.

“Lee gave me an ultimatum,” he broke the neck of his third bottle, “it’s either I tell her the truth, or I never go near her again.” He tossed his head back and gulped down the tequila.

“You can’t do that.” Billy sounded scared.

“Why not?” Joe asked his face was somber as was his tone. They turned and looked at him. “She already saw that we weren’t normal at the diner, so why not just tell her?”

“Because it’s dangerous!” Billy called back, surprised at Joe’s suggestion. Ash stood there, he was thinking about it.

“It will be better if they know what they’ve gotten themselves into by being involved with us. That will at least lower the risk if they too are looking out for the danger.” Billy stayed quiet, taking in Joe’s reasoning. “Ash, Lee hasn’t said anything to anyone, and she’s been patient long enough. It’s time to tell her, to tell all of them.”

Ash took another swig of the tequila. “What if the truth scares them away, and then what? I can’t handle losing her for good, Joe, I can’t risk it.” He looked at Joe, waiting for his answer.

“We’ll deal with that, if it happens, which I highly doubt. And any way, you will lose her if you don’t.”

“But what about Lee and Dave? He’ll have to tell her first, before we say anything. If she sees her dead father walking around her wolf-boyfriend’s home, she won’t be able to take it.” Billy sounded worried; he knew it wouldn’t end well.

“I’ll talk to Dave,” Ash said before he finished the bottle. He reached for another one.

“Pass one over.” Billy reached out for the bottle.

“Pass me one too.” Joe was anxious, all of a sudden, he wasn’t quite sure of his solution.