Guardian - 10. Chapter 10

Tristan smiled when he saw Deception Pass Bridge. Finally he was close to home. He walked over the bridge, passing many tourists in the area as he moved through them easily. He smiled wider when he saw his brother resting near the end of the other side.

“James!” he called, his brother looking over to see Tristan walking over. He was smiling and ran to meet his brother, both trapping each other in a hug. When James glanced around, in hopes to see the Jarkla with his brother, his features changed.

“Where is the Jarkla?” he asked. Tristan frowned, his shoulders dipping low.

“We need to go meet Father and have a pack meeting. Things have happened. I lost Gabriel to Orion, but we are still bonded.” James shared his brother’s frown.

“Alright, hop in the car; I’ll give Dad a call too.” Both moved to the vehicle parked in the small lot and went off to their home where their packed lived. Tristan leaned back in the seat, resting as his brother drove. “So the Jarkla is a male?” he asked, Tristan glancing over to see his brother’s questionable look.

“Yes.” He watched his brother’s expressions and gave an eye roll. “What is the matter?”

“Well for one he’s male. I never thought of you being…well…that way.” Tristan, slightly upset over what his brother just brought up, folded his arms and stared.

“We can’t help what the Jarkla becomes James, you know that.”

“Yeah I know but …couldn’t Emily take on the guardianship?” Tristan rolled his eyes again and looked out the window.

“Why are you so against it all of a sudden?” James’ hands tightened on the wheel.

“Cause it’s wrong.” Tristan looked back and glared at his brother.

“It’s not wrong. Why did you have to even bring this up? We haven’t seen each other in two years and the only thing you can think about is me mating with the Jarkla. He’s not even 18 yet so I wouldn’t have even tried.”

“Well still! Why couldn’t Dad just send Emily? She’d be better for him...in that way.” Silence entered the car in a very uncomfortable way as Tristan looked out the window and seemed pissed about the conversation.

“Shut up James.” This was the only comeback he had for his brother who frowned and let the car fill with a very uncomfortable silence. Not even the soft music in the background helped the situation. The brothers travelled in silence until they got to their property where a beautiful neighborhood sat up on the hills. James pulled in the driveway of the house sitting highest on the hill and both men got out.

“Tristan! You’re home!” A female voice cried out. She ran to greet them and wrapped her arms tightly around Tristan as he held her lovingly.

“Hey Emily. Where’s Dad? Oh and beat James for me,” he said, giving his brother a glare as he walked up to the house. Emily eyed her younger brother and placed her hands on her hips.

“What did you do?” she asked him as he held his hands up and looked like he was caught acting badly.

“I didn’t do anything…let’s just go inside,” he said, ignoring his sister’s glares as the three went inside. Tristan went to the back where his father stood on the balcony.

“You’re back...” he sounded happy but the expression of joy on his face faded when he turned to see Tristan alone and no Jarkla with him. “Without the Jarkla…” Tristan bowed his head to his father who stood a full head above him.

“I am Father, and I’ve…run into some difficulty.” The older wolf came closer, his hand resting on his son’s shoulder.

“Tell me everything my son.” Tristan motioned for them to sit, his mother and siblings joining him.

“I was with the Jarkla, for two years actually. I found him about four to five days travel from here to the west. He was alone when I found him. I don’t think things went well at home at first and when I tried to get closer, he opened himself to me. His name is Gabriel, and Father, he’s had a rough start. I was with him for those two years but, on his birthday we were just relaxing and this cop came and took him away. I followed him back to the house and…” Tristan stopped talking; remembering how helpless Gabriel looked being carried to the car and he could barely do a thing without giving away his cover. “They shot me, I was out for a few hours and what they did was just...I don’t understand how they did it but they dumped him off. I searched for him for days and when I finally found him Orion’s goons had also found him. I battled to try and protect him but when he ran off, I could only keep one around. He’s with Orion’s pack, I know he is. And with how Orion has been in the past, he’ll force himself on Gabriel. He’s strong willed but the Jarkla never had too much interaction with large groups. Father I’m worried for his safety but if I go there alone, there is no doubt in my mind that Orion’ll force Gabriel to dismiss me just so he can take guardianship.”

“I still think Emily should take it.” All eyes went to James who had mumbled the words. Emily eyed her brother but their father quickly knew what he was getting at.

“James, I’m rather disappointed that you would let the gender of mating affect you with how your mother and I raised you.” James gave a scoff and received a warning snarl from the man. All cowered at it but the older woman placed her gentle hand on his chest.

“It’s alright Gareth. James is still young.” Her eyes went to Tristan. “We must get the Jarkla…” Gareth placed his hand over his mate’s hand.

“We will…” Gareth looked to his son. “Gather every able body, we are to go and rescue him at any cost.” Tristan stood and gave a bow.

“At once Father.” Turning he rushed out, his sister and brother following him closely.

Gabriel had woken up way before Orion and moved from the man’s arms. He stood and began pacing, his body restless again like the night before. Why did he do that? He practically gave himself to Orion, showing him that he enjoyed being held. He couldn’t do that. Not when he had to plot on how to get away. Running a hand through his locks, he gave a soft groan and his eye went straight to Orion when the man moved, rolling over to where Gabriel had been lying, his arm searching. Cursing inwardly when the adult’s eyes opened and moved up, Gabriel fell flat and lay quietly on the deck below him. Staying out of Orion’s view he heard him yawn and the creaking of the planks. Glancing up he saw the man staring at him with a glazed and tired look.

“What are you doing?” he mumbled between yawns. Gabriel stood, his sad attempt to hide from the man a complete failure.

“Thinking…”

“You think too much. Come back to bed.” He heard Orion grumble, watching the male roll back on his side. Gabriel looked away.

“I’ll pass,” he said, turning to walk away but as quickly as the words left his lips, he felt a hand on his pants and he was pulled back, making him cry out in surprise. He felt the pressure of the man on top of him, pinning him to the fur as he struggled to get out of the man’s grasp. He heard the soft growl against his ear and the large hand around his thin stomach and ever so lightly creeping down to his inner thigh. Before he could react, his body stilled after feeling the pressure of the man’s groin against his backside.

“Stop struggling and sleep.” The words were husky and Gabriel’s whole body held still in fear. “It’s getting close to a full moon, and you’re testing my patience,” he continued, Gabriel’s eyes glued to the fur before him. “Now go back to bed.” Gabriel laid there beneath the man for a while until he heard the soft snores and the grip loosen on his body. But fear kept him from even daring to move from the position he was stuck in. Now he knew one thing was for sure, he had to get Neil to sleep up with him. Neil would keep Orion at bay, or at least Gabriel was hoping that would work. It seemed like a plan and with half the night still ahead of him, he didn’t have much to think about besides that. He moved slightly and gave a squeak when the arms tightened and Orion’s face nuzzled into his neck. Great, now he was never going to get out of his arms. Waiting for another twenty minutes, he felt Orion shift completely and roll over. Gabriel turned his head to look at him, seeing the man just sleeping peacefully. Moving slowly and quietly once more, he snuck out of bed once more and moved as far away as he could. Looking down at the ladder, he knew he’d make someone wake up with its creaking. So deciding against going down, he paced a good distance from the bed. He hadn’t seen Amaya in the Meadow, which to him was strange, but figuring she was probably doing something, he just ignored it. He moved from where he’d been pacing to the window, the bale of hay still where he had pushed it the first night he was there. He climbed on top and looked out into the night which held the partial moon in the sky overhead. How long had he been there? Almost two weeks maybe? He wasn’t sure. Resting his arms on the sill, he stared at the stars and lost himself in thought.

‘I guess I didn’t know what to really think. After learning what I was, how my role in life was supposed to be, I was actually terrified of the thought. But when I saw Neil, and saw his human form and large purple eyes, I knew in my gut that he had to be hers. It was strange sometimes. Strange that in such a short time, all this took place and I kept finding myself in a spiral of just confusion and stress. I find myself mostly just thinking on a way to escape. But deep in the back of my mind, I wonder if that would be for the best. How could I possibly care for a toddler when I have no cash, no shelter and no guarantee that something won’t go wrong? I felt most of the time that I would fail Amaya. Fail in keeping Neil safe. Staring at the stars that night, I found myself thinking about everyone I had met in the past week. What were they doing? How were they doing? I hoped Ted made it home safely. He did so much when he didn’t need to and it made me feel important. Lance took me in when I thought I was just a pain to have around.. Looking back at Orion, he was still how he was when I left the bed. In his sleep he seemed completely innocent. But I knew better now. Though I tested him a lot, I was terrified about what he might do. I never tested my folks; it was something I didn’t want to chance. But with this new Jarkla thing, maybe he had no choice but to be nice to me. I wanted to change that. I wanted to break him, break myself even. Test my boundaries. Know my limits. If I get to that point, I can bullet out of here. ‘

Gabriel stood by the window for what seemed to be hours, lost in his own thoughts. He felt his eyes drooping just as the rising sun rose over the horizon. His eyes opened again to see the sun becoming a bright red. He gave a smile, watching the sunrise. He didn’t bother listening to the rustling behind him as Orion awoke, realizing again that the teen had moved. He looked around the bed until he noticed the soft shadow on the ground, glancing up to see Gabriel standing on the bale of hay to look out the window. When had he moved? He got up and moved to stand behind the boy, looking out to see the sun peeking over the fields. He didn’t say a word but looked down at the teen when he gave a yawn, his head turning and practically going into shock, stumbling and plastering himself to the wall and giving a rather loud scream. Orion’s eyes closed and his nose wrinkled up. Not the best thing to wake up to.

“Ow...” Orion muttered, opening a single eye to stare at the teen who looked like he’d seen a ghost. Of course the expression changed when Gabriel smacked Orion’s chest.

“Christ don’t scare me like that!” Gabriel exclaimed. Orion just looked at him blankly.

“How long have you been up?” he asked, his eyes staring straight at Gabriel’s whose turned down in submission. Gabriel could never act dominate despite how much he tried.

“I don’t know…” he muttered, Orion gave a sigh, running his hand over his face and pinching the bridge of his nose. He looked back at the teen who peeked out from his lashes back up at him. At that moment, Orion swore he felt his heart stop. The boy, even with the sun bright against his dark hair, looked absolutely breathtaking. He had to keep his hormones in check as he cleared his throat.

“Go back to bed then. I’ll bring up some breakfast for later.” He fought the urge to touch him, moving away and jumping down from the platform. Gabriel watched him leave and stood there slightly shocked. Orion hadn’t even bothered to touch him. What was this? He was thinking of it like a cat and mouse. Was he supposed to go for it this time? He gave a snort and got off the bale, crawling back into the bed and curling around where he could smell Orion’s musk all in the fur. He turned to try and get away from it. No luck. The man’s smell was everywhere. He gave a groan and rolled around, giving a sigh as he spent about ten minutes tossing and turning before he just gave up on it and closed his eyes.

Below, Orion watched breakfast be prepped by two of the women who always got up before the break of dawn. He grabbed a few pieces of jerky, placing them in a bowl as one handed him some fruit. He moved away and went back up to the platform. He could feel the full moon coming closer, just looking at the Jarkla now sent his hormones sky high. He walked over to see the teen in a restless sleep once again, rolling his eyes and sitting on the bale of hay he had set up on the other side. Taking a bite of the jerky he watched him. The creaking of the ladder made him look toward the end of the platform where he saw Trent, looking tired as ever. Raising a brow at his beta, the man walked over and gave a slight bow.

“Alpha, information shows that Tristan went back to his pack in Washington.” His voice was soft, knowing that the Jarkla was still sleeping. Orion gave a slight growl. Without the two adults knowing, Gabriel was wide-awake. He listened carefully and didn’t dare move as he listened to the men talk.

“Damn it…no doubt to get his father involved. It’ll still take a few days for them to get here. Just get ready to move the pack. Seems we’ll be joining Tasha down south in Arizona. The pups are old enough to travel.”

“What about the Jarkla? Will he follow?” Gabriel felt himself swallowing.

“I’ll make him.” That single phrase put goose bumps all over the teen, his body tightening in response. Now, it was a whole new ball game.