ROTTEN LOVE - Chapter 8: Chapter 8

Last night's events replay. I felt a sting, but I was overwhelmed by extreme want and heat. I didn't investigate.
Zain marked me. I roll my eyes. Great. Now, I have to figure out how to hide it.
I get in the shower, but I opt for a cooler temperature. Anything that touches the burns sting. I curse the whole time but manage to get myself clean.
Once I am out, I grab the ointment and rub a generous amount on the wound. I hiss here and there but get the areas bandaged up.
I look at my work. One on my forearm and the other near my bicep. Broken could be a word to describe me. Yet, I still can't seem to shake this happy jitter in me. I walk out of the restroom and get my suitcase.
I grab a pair of jean shorts and a white tank with my white nikes. It's hot outside and as I learned yesterday, open-toe shoes are not ideal.
I go to the mirror and observe Zain's mark. I place my hair over my shoulders. It cascades down my front. I move my hair around, and look at myself from different angles, ensuring that my hair will cover the mark at all times.
Satisfied, I hear my stomach grumble. I wonder if the food is ready. I get out of my room and walk across my door to Marisa's.
Seconds later, she opens it. I don't know how to start the conversation with her. A lot of words were exchanged. Some I meant but most I did not. She must have felt cornered.
I attempt to say something, but she swings her arms around my neck. "I am sorry, Helena, I am so sorry," she says to me.
I relax, hugging her back. "I am sorry too."
She squeezes me more, but the pressure goes against my arms, and I whine. She lets go and looks at my bandaged arms. Another sad look on her face. I peek at her arms and there are no remnants of me or the burns.
"This is all my fault," she says sadly.
"I was the one who technically did the burning. This is on me."
"Why would you do it? You knew what it meant."
I sigh. "Yeah, well, someone wanted to throw down."
I laugh. She laughs. "I would have won."
I scoff. "I had you."
"A couple more minutes and the wounds would have stopped you before me."
I roll my eyes. "So not fair."
She kisses my cheek and grabs my hand. A seriousness glosses over her features. "We have never fought like that before," she says.
"I know. It won't happen again." I promise, looking into her beautiful grey eyes.
She shakes her head no. "Swear it. We can't. You will end up more hurt at the end of the day. I won't forgive myself, ever, if something happens to you."
"I swear it," I say to her.
We hear a door open. It's Jason's. "Oh, look who's made up." He greets walking to us.
I skim his face and see our similar features. Green eyes. Olive skin. But he has dark brown hair. It's hard sometimes recalling my parent's image but they say Jason is a spitting image of my father. I smile at his familiar face. "Put a shirt on. We are not home."
He is barefoot with jeans on. "You think the she-wolves will like it."
I punch him. "More like run for the hills."
We laugh. He grabs my arms and examines them. "How are they?" He refers to the burns.
"The inflammation is gone, and the medicine gets rid of the pain if I avoid pressure on them. Maybe two weeks tops to fully heal, but I should be able to stop bandaging them in a day or two."
"You got lucky." He reprimands, looking at me and then Marisa. "Next time you two decide to go at it, don't. This could have been much worse, especially to you Helena."
"I know. I know. We already promised."
"Good." He looks at Marisa. "May I?" He extends his hand toward her.
She grabs it and he hovers the other hand over one of my arms. A glow on his hand appears and then disappears. He goes on to the next bandage. Then drops our hands.
"There. It will still take time for the marks to disappear, maybe a week. At least now, you don't have to wear the bandages. The pain should be gone. The wound is recovering. Just keep putting the ointment to minimize scarring."
I smile. "Thanks. I'll keep them for today since they're on already. Go put a shirt on. We will wait for you to go downstairs to get some food."
With that, he leaves. I look at Marisa. "Are you feeling okay?" I ask, making sure the magic did not take too much out of her.
Jason and I are ciphers. It's extremely rare and one of the reasons no one argued with our leadership. We can do almost everything but need an entity to extract magic from.
It could be objects. But the thing most readily available to us is supernatural beings. There is a line though. It can take a lot out of the person we cipher.
We can also say incantations for small matters without touching a magical object. But cyphering is stronger and practically unlimited.
I might have burned Marisa, but it would not have happened if she had not touched me. Same with Zain. Little does he know that his being is what powered his blue balls. I laugh to myself.
"What?" Marisa questions amused.
"Oh, nothing. Thought of something funny." The secret an inside joke.
I'll tell her later. Right now, I am starving. Marisa should be too. I ask again, "are you okay?"
"You know I am. That was nothing," she answers.
"Still, you should probably feed."
She raises an eyebrow. "Are you offering?" She wiggles her eyebrows.
I snort. "No. But I can get someone up here."
She sighs loudly. "No need. Adam was up here moments ago. I am all good to go."
I shove her. She was going to allow me to feed her without letting me know she had eaten already. "You're a jerk."
"A girl's got to try."
"You might not even like it anymore. It's been years."
She gets close to me with her hands behind her back. Her eyes instantly a blood lust red, showing the sincerity in her next words. "I will always like you. You're my favorite." She winks.
I blush and playfully shove her. "You know I hate when you do that."
"Getting you fluster makes me all tingling inside."
Jason's door slams. He comes up to our side, ready to leave. We both look at Marisa expectedly. She looks at us annoyed. "Seriously, must we still do this here? You guys don't work for us. Why must we keep these appearances?"
I remind her. "These people don't know us. Let them think the big bad vampires have an entire witch coven enslaved. Anything is good if it keeps them afraid and away from you guys. It's for safety."
"I hate this. I don't need help scaring them. I can do that myself. And, if they think you have no free will, how will they trust you?"
Jason says, "she has a point."
She makes a pained face.
"What?" I ask.
"I'm sorry about that too. I wanted to tell you, but I was afraid Maddox would refuse altogether." She refers to her scheme with Zain.
In hearing Maddox's name, my heart feels heavy. I had gone a whole morning without thinking about him.
I square my shoulders. "Should you have told me? Without a doubt but it's done. I will do anything for you Marisa."
She smiles sadly and kisses my cheek again. It brought me back to my earlier reprimand. "Marisa, we talked about this. I'll agree to your condition of playing it cool if you agree to stop doing that...in public. The last thing we need is them thinking we are going to gang bang their alpha."
She beams sinisterly. "Now, that I would agree to."
Jason makes a disgusted sound. She hops on her feet, wrapping her arm around mine.
We walk downstairs, and head to the dining room. Upon entering, my eyes zero in on the large man at the head of the table.
His plate is empty. His short hair is disheveled. His lips are in a hard line. He had a rough night. I hide a snicker. We walk up to the table and my brother greets him. "Morning, Alpha Zain, may we join you?"
Zain gestures to the food in the middle of the table. "I was waiting for you all."
We take our seats. I make sure that Marisa sits beside Zain, and I sit next to her. My brother is across from her. Jason and I pile food on our plates while Marisa helps. She won't be eating.
The only sounds are from the utensils. Marisa chimes in. "So how was your night, alpha Zain?"
I spill the juice from my mouth. I could answer for him. It was shit. I decide to poke. "Yes, alpha Zain, how was your night?" I ask, amusement in my tone.
Marisa studies me trying to pick up what is going on. Zain grits. "Fine."
I silently laugh. "I slept like a baby," I add.
Zain focuses on me. I wink. My smile quickly dies down when a familiar presence enters the room. The air has been sucked out of me.
Maddox glances at me then Zain. He walks to sit at the other head of the table. There is an arrogance to him as he crosses his legs and leans back on the chair. "I am sorry things did not work out. We will be leaving as soon as they are done eating."
We all gape at Maddox. How can we leave when we have accomplished nothing?
Zain takes a sip of water. A large clank echoes as he sets it down on the table. "I do not know what you are talking about."
"Marisa refuses to get married and I imagine Helena is of no more interest to you considering our..." Maddox gives a smug smirk.
Zain huffs a laugh. "You would be wrong. Helena is exactly who I want. And after last night, let's say she knows who her alpha is." He gives Maddox the same smirk.
I choke at how he throws back the word alpha, remembering all to clear my words from last night. I cough away the dryness in my throat. My face heats up.
Marisa's stare burns holes in my head. Her mouth is slightly open. My brother stuffs food in his mouth, oblivious as to what is happening.
Maddox's face is stoic, but I know his features like no other. He is beyond outrage. Zain snaps my attention. "She can't go anywhere anymore."
I look at him baffled. This time Zain looks at me and returns my smile. "You see, Helena is mine already. Taking her from my territory is an act of war."
My mouth falls open. Maddox leans in. "She is not your wife yet."
"She was not yesterday. She is today." Zain answers.
With a snarl, Maddox replies, "fucking her does not make her yours."
Under normal circumstances, I would hide under the table. I did not fuck Zain. Of course, I wanted Maddox to think I did.
Zain is delusional if he thinks jamming himself down my throat means anything. Again, Marisa gapes at me. I meet her sight and she raises her eyebrow. "Helena, you did have a good night it seems." She grits, reproach on her voice for not saying anything.
"It's not what it seems. I'll explain later." I lean to whisper into her.
Maddox croons, "you have no claim to her. If that is all it takes to get married, I would have a harem by now, Helena included."
Disgusting. He sure would. I detest him.
Maddox dares me to negate him. But I don't, even though he is lying. I have never slept with him. Yesterday was the furthest we have ever gone.
Zain's face is serious, but he manages to be cool. He crosses his hands over the table. "Werewolves have a very keen smell. Had you truly been with Helena, I would have smelled you on her, which I do not. So, although you might have had some pleasantries with her in the past, she has not been taken by you."
Zain examines me for a protest but my mouth shuts. "Now if any of my men smell her, it will be evident who she belongs to."
I tired of the back and forward in regards to who I bang or didn't. I slam my utensil on the table. "I did not sleep with you either, Zain."
Zain smirks at my displeasure. I catch Maddox's eyes, the relief in them.
"No, we did not. But we did other life-altering things. Werewolves find their mates. Make love to them. Mark them. That's how scent mixes and unions are made. Under our ways, a mark is as good as a wedding ceremony."
My hair felt heavier over the imprint that should not be there.