Torn between Wolves & Myths (Book 2)

TRIGGER WARNING!

The story will contain graphic sexual scenes, violence and scenes of abuse and torture. Reader discretion is advised.

When a wolf is given a human skin to shift into, they become a supernatural. They are not what nature intended and shouldn’t even be real, yet they walk the earth, populating it just like any other living being does.

Being a supernatural gives them abilities that a normal being wouldn’t ever have. Their speed, strength and healing are heightened up to a point where they can survive almost anything. And their length of life has been prolonged to the point where they become semi-immortal, but this is not all they are gifted with. When a wolf becomes a supernatural, they also get another gift. The gift of memory. They can recall anything they have experienced up from their first birthday. Memories are stored and can be called upon by the wolf whenever they want and need. It gives them wisdom and, through it, they can experience anything they have already been through. This is why the wolf will never fully bounce back when someone they love dies. They will always have the memory and so they will never truly recover from the pain.

This was the first thing Liv was taught when she was still living at her pack. Her mother sat her down at the fire and told her about what it meant to be given a human skin to use. She had told Liv about the Lycanthropes, the name that the Greek Gods had given their creations. The only race of wolves who were given a human skin. That has been the one thing she had always been sure about. Until she heard a myth about another species.

The Ulfhednar- a species of wolves given a human skin by the Norse Gods.

According to the myth the Ulfhednar came to be around the same time the first Lycanthropes were made. They were granted a human skin because of the strength it would give them. A strength they needed in the war that was going on. A war between gods.

She didn’t know much more about the myth as they always stopped talking once they noticed that she was there. She didn’t know why they aways did that, but she never asked. To this day she just believed it to be a story that would be told around a fire to honor the Norse Gods, as her pack wasn’t entirely native to Greenland and came from all over the lands close by. To her the myth has always been a story. Something that was never proven to be real and was made up by those who wanted to believe there was more out there. In the human world, the Ulfhednar were described as men, Vikings, who wore the skin of a wolf and their own skin was black-died. They howled like wolves during battle and their ferocity and behavior made them more like wolves than men. Over time they became the inspiration for werewolf lore in the human world for many. Which is why it wasn’t hard to believe the story that her pack told each other was just that- another story.

“We are not Lycanthropes, Livana. We are Ulfhednar, and you are the last remaining royal of our kind.”

And yet, here she is. Still locked up and pining about how her pack’s beta and the asshole of an Alpha could’ve become so insane to believe it was real.

Two more weeks have passed since Augo told her that impossible “truth” he believed in and in those weeks, she refused to believe it. If she did, she might as well kill herself, before the madness spreads even further. There was no way the Ulfhednar were real. They just couldn’t be.

A headache started to form behind her eyes.

So much has happened and she had barely been able to comprehend one extreme after another and there were quite a few...

King is dead. She helped Caden kill him, but before she could even truly accept it, she was kidnapped by the ones she stupidly trusted when she was told not to. King’s dead was quickly overshadowed by that little fact. Not to forget the fact that her pack’s beta is alive as well.

Augo is alive- and had a hand in her abduction...

Liv couldn’t lose the sting of betrayal, no matter how hard she tried. It stuck and she knew it will for a while. How can it not when the person she saw die, was miraculously still alive and decided that it was a good idea to abduct her when she was finally free from the monster who was responsible for all the pain she had ever felt.

The wolf inside of her rose and some kind of comforting feeling came over her as she played with the blanket on the bed she sat on. That was another thing that had changed. The wolf and the human have been reconnected. She could feel the wolf grow stronger because of it with every passing day and she was truly glad that she could rely on her other side to be there when she needs it. She even shifted when King almost killed Caden.

The comforting feeling turned sour as the name ran through her mind. No matter how badly she felt betrayed by Augo- Caden was worse. She hates him; truly hates him for what he did. Ben as well, but where he still had the regret on his face as he handed Caden the chains, Caden had none. He even had the nerve to smirk when she told him she would kill him. Everything about him makes her want to rip out his heart- or fuck his brains out...

No matter how hard she tried not to let herself react to him, even thinking his name is making her body yearn for him. That guy had a deadlock on her and she both hated and loved it. These were the times she truly hated it to be a wolf.

But no matter how her body reacts to him, she will never let him touch her in that way again. The only thing that will happen between them is the fact that she will kill him and burn his heart and nothing else.

Multiple howls pulled her out of her thoughts and made her look at her barred window. Liv got up from her bed and walked to the window. The moon was full and she could see multiple fires and wolves running around. Apparently, there was a feast going on while she was still locked up in here, with nothing more than a bed, the sweats and T-shirt on her body, a toilet and a bucked that is filled with clean water when she sleeps so she can wash herself. She always tried to stay awake, but in the end, her exhaustion gets the best of her. Liv hates that they come into her room when she is completely vulnerable, especially since they are delusional enough to believe a myth to be real, but no matter her efforts, there is nothing she can do, besides allowing the wolf to be as close to the surface as the human is so she can shift if she needs to when she’s asleep.

It took her a while to trust herself and the wolf enough to allow the wolf so much freedom. It’s not that the wolf is feral, but because she hasn’t shifted in so long that she is still a bit afraid of what will happen when she shifts longer than a second. Especially after the story Doc and Ben had told her.

Liv sighed as she turned away from the window and went back to the bed. There was so much still going on and she doesn’t even know half of it. And if Caden was even telling the truth about one thing, then she is in grave danger from Lycaon. She didn’t know if she could believe Caden’s words, but if they were true, she is fucked. And if it was then why does he want her dead? Why did the curse not affect her?

Yes, she refused to believe that some myth was real, and that she was some kind of royal, but there was something going on and she was going to find out what. She just needed to get out of here first.

Neither Caden nor Augo had come back to talk to her after she told them to get the hell out of the room that day. Not that she would let them or hear to anything they say if they did. The only other wolves that she has seen on a daily bases were her guard, a massive male who is as strong as he looks, and the scared little wolf who brings her food. Not that she could blame him for being scared of her. She did use him to try and escape more than once and he had always been in the crossfire between her and her bear of a guard. After what Augo and Caden told her, she hasn’t tried to escape though. She didn’t know why, but every time the door opened, the words they told her replayed in her mind and she hesitated to do anything. Even though she doesn’t believe them, she couldn’t deny the fear of what was said about Lycaon to be real. If the Lycan King truly wanted her dead, then maybe being surrounded by deranged lunatics, who believed that she was their royal, was the safest place for her to be. Even thinking like that meant that they got in her head and she hated it, but she couldn’t deny the truth in it. She knew that sooner or later; they would notice her restrain as well and they will try to come talk to her. That was a given, and she had no idea what the fuck she should do if they did. She had no idea what to do to get herself out of this situation, and that was unacceptable. Whatever was going on, it involved her in some way, and she needed to know in what way. She needed to find out the truth, but she had no idea where to start. The wolves here cannot be trusted, and Lycaon was a risk as she didn’t truly know what he wanted with her. Finnegan works for Lycaon so that is also a no go...

How was she going to find out the truth this way?

The sound of a lock clicking open pulled her out of her thoughts and made her look up at the door which now opened. A familiar scent filled her nose and she couldn’t hold back the snarl that escaped her lips as Augo met her gaze. He swallowed as his gaze briefly turned to the ground as a sign of submission.

“Please, I just want to talk.” He said with his gaze still focused on the ground.

“You’ve said enough.” The strength of her wolf backed her voice and made Augo bare his neck. “Get out, Augo.”

“I will, but we cannot go on like this, Livana.” He said as he finally forced himself to meet her gaze once more. Her being the dominant one here, made it a brave movement on his part. “I know taking you like we did was wrong, but-”

“It was more than wrong.” Regret coated his face as he took a step forward with his palms up. “I know.” He said softly. “I’m sorry, but with everything that is going on, we needed to get you here. We need to keep you safe.”

“Oh, really?” Liv got up from her bed. “If that is the truth, then where have you been for the last eleven years when I was working as a fucking killer for hire to survive?!”

“We didn’t know where you were, no one did. Not until King got the information and by then we were too late to do anything without blowing our cover. This was the only way to get you here, Liv. I’m so sorry.”

“Sure, it was. It never ran through your mind to just tell me everything instead of abducting me!?”

“We weren’t allowed to tell you.”

“Why not?”

“Would you have believed us if we had?” No, she wouldn’t have. She doesn’t even believe them now. Augo read her face and had his answer. “You wouldn’t have.”

“I still don’t.” She stated as a matter of fact. Augo sighed as he ran his hands over his face. “I know you don’t and I don’t blame you. All I can tell you is that everything we told you is the truth and we will give you the time you need to see it for yourself as well.”

“By keeping me locked up and only releasing me once I do.” She crossed her arms over her chest.

“By letting you out of this room.” That took her a little by surprise. Augo opened the door for her and gestured into the empty hallway. “You can’t honestly think that I will stay here if you let me out of here.”

“You’re not our prisoner, Liv.”

“But you can’t let me leave out of your sight either.” Augo sighed as he walked into the hallway. She had a feeling that he would just slam the door shut in her face and let her rot here, but he didn’t.

“Just let me show you who we are.” He said before he walked away, leaving her alone with a way out of her cell. She didn’t know why they suddenly would allow her to go out of this room, but she is not going to be the idiot that turns down the invitation to plan an escape. So, she finally stepped out of her cell after five weeks. Augo stood at the top of the stairs. He walked down as he saw her appear in the hallway. Liv swallowed as she walked towards the staircase. The sounds from downstairs confirmed that there was some kind of celebration going on.

Liv walked down the stairs and entered a large living room. The sounds died down as she appeared and everyone looked at her. She recognized some wolves from Caden’s pack who all gave her a pitiful smile. None of which she returned. All she did was give them a stare that told them exactly how she felt.

“Liv.” She looked at Augo who stood at a door. Liv walked towards him before he opened it and showed the courtyard she had seen from the window. Taking a step outside she was swallowed in the music and sounds of the feast. Wolves were wrestling in both human and wolf skin. Others were laughing and drinking, and some were having a party like there was no one around. What was it with these people and public sex when they were celebrating something?

As she took a few more steps forward she was almost knocked over by some children who ran past her. She didn’t recognize any of them, but she could tell they were all human. There were more women here than she had seen in Caden’s pack as well.

“Liv!” Her head snapped to the left where Nessa came running. Knowing what she wanted to do, Liv took a step back as she shook her head and stopped Nessa in her way towards her. She didn’t need this right now, no matter if Nessa was human. The woman was still in on Caden’s plan as female beta and so she doesn’t get to hug her. Nessa’s face fell as she held Liv’s gaze. Rev walked up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders.

“Don’t punish them for you being here.” Augo said from next to her.

“They are the betas of the pack; they had a say in what happened and so I will punish them for me being here.” She could see Rev clenching his jaw as he heard her words. Augo sighed as he moved to stand in front of her. “I am trying, Liv.”

“Trying what? To convince me that you guys aren’t completely insane for believing in some myth and that I am some kind of royal?” A hurt look came over his face before he dropped his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Or to convince yourself that abducting me was the right thing to do after everything I’ve been through?!” Her voice rose as her emotions started to get the best of her. The sounds and music died down around them and she knew that they had all the attention now.

“You wouldn’t have believed a word if we had told you, Liv. You don’t even believe us now. We needed to get you away from them, before they were going to make a move to grab you. Please, try to understand that everything we did is to ensure your safety.” Liv scoffed as she shook her head and walked a few paces away.

“Everything you did was to ensure that you have me in your grasp, Augo.” She said as she turned back around and met his gaze. “Don’t try to make me believe otherwise. It’s unbecoming and just plain disappointing.” A whine came from Augo as he took a step back at her words. Even though he was the beta of her pack, she is the Alpha blooded, which makes her higher in rank, so he has no choice to be submissive to her.

“If any of what you claim is true, then why did my parents never tell me before everything happened?”

“Because Leif didn’t want you to know.”

Liv turned around at the new voice and was met with the male she had seen standing outside of the cabin when Caden and Ben had turned on her. A faint feeling that she knew him from somewhere came over her. He had something familiar about him, but she couldn’t tell what. So, she pushed it to the side for now and focused on the things she did know. Like the fact that this must be the guy that saved Augo as he was clearly calling the shots here.

“You must be Rafe.” The male gave her a crooked smile as he bowed his head a little towards her. “What would you know about what my dad wanted or didn’t want?”

“More than you know.” He said with a smug smile. A snarl rose and she had to restrain the wolf more than usual. Something about this guy made the wolf bristle and it was enough reason for her not to trust him.

“And how is that?”

“Come, join us. There are a few things you need to know.” He said as he gestured to a table. Four males sat at the table, watching them. Two of which were unknown to her, while the other two were more than known to her. Rafe didn’t wait for her reaction before he walked to the table. She really didn’t want to join them, but she did want to know how he knew her father. And so, she followed him.