Drago dreamt. He ran, his body powerful as he bounded over the rough ground. He felt something running alongside him but when he turned his head all he could see was trees. He recognised them as the forest on the edge of the grounds of his house. His feet knew instinctively where to go and he let them take him through the close trunks.
He skidded to a halt as he entered the clearing. He looked around, his nose twitching as he scented the air. A noise from opposite him made his skin crawl and he crouched low to the ground. He watched as a figure emerged.
Ealasaid stood there. She was naked, her pale skin held a soft blue glow in the moonlight that shone down on them. Her long hair hung loose down her back and she tilted her head to the side. Her bright eyes looked him over.
"I knew you were one of them." Her voice was different. A lilting accent lifted her words but he could still hear disgust. Her face was passive, she felt nothing for him. The sky darkened, the moon obscured by heavy clouds. Her hair lifted in a light wind.
He stepped forward. He knew he couldn't say anything but he had to do something to show her it was still him. Before he could reach her another movement in the trees caught his attention.
A steel grey wolf stepped into the clearing. Its teeth were bared, saliva dripping from its muzzle and its yellow eyes shining. It came closer, stalking Ealasaid but she seemed not to notice. With a fierce growl it leapt forward. Drago howled.
He jerked awake in a cold sweat. Beside him Ealasaid moaned softly and he stared down into her face. She still slept peacefully, her arms wrapped around a pillow and she lay on her front. Gently he touched her cheek and she nestled into his hand instinctively.
A thought occurred to him. Carefully, so as not to wake her, he swept her hair over her shoulder and brushed his fingers over her throat. There was no visible mark but as he touched her he felt a very slight change in the texture of her skin. A very thin line ran across her neck, a leaden weight settled in his stomach and he went cold.
Ealasaid stirred, a frown creasing her forehead – he yanked his hand away. Her eyes opened and she looked up at him with a tired smile.
"Are you watching me sleep?"
He prayed she couldn't see the worry in his eyes. Nodding he ran his hand over her arm. "You look cute when you sleep." His mouth twitched in a smile. "You know you snore right?"
She sat up, outraged. "I do not!"
"Don't worry, it's really quite sweet."
She pushed on his chest so he lent against the pillows and climbed onto his lap. His hands rested on the bed beside him, his smiled widened.
Ealasaid was still. Her mind was a haze of questions and doubt. The voice inside her head was screaming at her, she knew what he was but she couldn't admit it to herself. The minute she did she would cease to see him as the man who had made her feel safe for the first time in years. She would only see him as a bloodthirsty beast that thought of nothing but violence.
She placed her palm on his chest and her eyes stared into his.
"What are you?"
He didn't answer straight away. She was giving him a chance but he was too much of a coward to take it. "What do you mean?"
"Don't do that, you know what I mean."
"Eala I can't." His shoulders slumped and his eyes fell down.
"Why?"
"Because when I tell you, you'll leave. You'll be scared of me. I couldn't bear that."
"Drago please, this not knowing is scaring me. I know you're different."
"You don't know how different."
She sighed and her hand dropped from his cheek. "You'd be surprised."
She climbed off the bed and wrapped one of the blankets around her naked body. She rifled through the chest of drawers. She found what she was looking for, a pair of black leggings and a sport bra. She walked through to the bathroom in silence.
He stayed where he was, listening to her move around in the other room. She returned, piling her hair on top of her head and securing it with a band.
"I'm going for a run." Her voice was hard, a stark contrast to the husky purr he had grown used to. He opened his mouth but she held her hand up. "I won't leave the grounds. I wouldn't know where I was going even if I did."
She walked to the door but turned before she left. "Do you know if Tommy brought my running shoes?"
"They should be in the cupboard at the bottom of the stairs."
She left without another word. He listened as she made her way downstairs then a couple of minutes later the back door closed. He moved to the window and watched her as she ran across the grass. She was graceful as she moved. He watched her until she disappeared into the trees. He had to hold himself back from following her, he didn't want to crowd her.
A shrill ringing broke through his thoughts and he grabbed his phone from the nightstand.
"Hey Nix."
"Corban for fuck sake, what the fuck are you doing?" Drago held the phone away from his ear as his cousin's voice came screaming out. "I told you red on that table, white on that one. How fucking hard is that?"
"This is red." Drago heard Corban's voice in the background then silence.
"I love you babe, you're my rock. Hi Drago." Nix spoke and Drago held back his laugh.
"How's the set up going?"
"Flawlessly of course. We're nearly done. I'm just ringing to see what time we can expect you?"
Drago's mind flitted to Ealasaid. Would she even want to go anymore?
"You went quiet, what's wrong?" Nix could always tell when something was bothering him.
"Nothing's wrong, shall we say about seven?"
"Corban stop fucking about I'm on the phone. Does this have something to do with that pretty redhead you've been spending so much time with?" Nix moved perfectly between conversations and Drago felt the tightness in his chest ease. Nix could always make him feel better.
"I found a mark on her neck."
