~~

Reece

~~

After stalking back into the house, I made my way to my office. I did my best not to shift as I stomped through the halls. And I tried really hard not to destroy anything along the way. I only managed one of those tasks, and as I walked into my office on two feet, shifting was what I had not done.

I don't even remember what all I tossed, smashed, or threw recklessly around the rooms and halls I passed as I made my way to my office. It didn't matter. My wolf was angry, and I would only be able to hold him back for so long before he lost all control.

I slammed the door behind me, still wanting to be alone. I could hear the numerous sets of footsteps following behind me as they sought to know exactly what had happened tonight. Nobody knew why I had ended the event early and roared at everyone to leave. Nobody knew why I was so rightfully and thoroughly pissed off. If only they did know.

"Doesn't she know what's happening?" I growled to myself as I flung my chair out from under my desk with more force than I intended. It flew toward the window, had it not been reinforced glass it would have crashed through and fallen to the ground three floors below.

"Does she not know that she is my mate? Can she not tell by my scent like I can tell by hers? What is wrong with her? Is she just frightened? Was she just overwhelmed because I am the alpha?" These were all questions I wanted answered but had no one to ask them of. For the rest of this evening I just wanted to be alone.

"Alpha?" I heard an insistent knock on my office door. I growled in response. "We need to talk about this evening." He demanded. Michael was the most persistent of the elders, he was the typical liaison for them and therefore one of the biggest thorns in my side lately. I was really starting to dislike him.

"Not now." I roared toward the door.

"We need to discuss the events that transpired this evening Alpha." Michael insisted.

"I said not right now." I roared in an even louder tone of voice. "We can discuss things tomorrow, but for now go away and leave me be." I made it a command knowing full well he would be forced to obey.

"As you wish, Sir." He conceded. I could not see him through the door, but I knew he would be bowing his head at least. Good, he will not be bothering me for the rest of the night.

I needed to run. I needed to think. I needed to find her. These were the thoughts that were running through my mind. I opened the balcony door and stepped outside, taking a breath of fresh air. If I didn't shift soon, I was likely to lose control on the wrong person.

Looking down at the ground three stories below I kicked off my shoes. I was too impatient to take my time, but good shoes were harder to replace than clothes.

Once the shoes were safely set aside, I leapt from the balcony and shifted in mid-air. I landed on all fours, my paws digging into the dirt. I could feel the dirt and leaves pushing up between my toes, it was a familiar and comforting feeling.

I spent most of the night running in the mountains. The higher I climbed the harder the run got which was exactly what I needed. I could feel the frustration ebbing away with each passing hour.

It was nearly dawn when I finally made it back to the house. I shifted and walked as quietly as I could to my room. A long hot shower was what I needed now.

Usually I showered quickly, get in, wash, get out, there was no reason to linger. But this time I saw the merit in lingering. The hot water seemed to be melting away my anger and frustrations, leaving behind the exhaustion that I had hoped the run would leave me with.

After the shower I dried and dressed in a pair of hunter green sleepers and a dark gray t-shirt. I was exhausted. From the morning run, finding and losing my mate twice in one day, the gathering, and the evening run. I was physically and mentally spent. I drifted into an uneasy sleep.

I kept dreaming about a girl. A girl that I had only glimpsed fully in the distance. I had seen her figure just fine when I was up close, but I hadn't seen her face at all. She was short, slim, but sporty. I felt the firmness of muscles beneath the skin of her arm, but that didn't take away from the soft supple feel of her skin.

She was so much shorter than me, it seemed she was shorter than most of the she-wolves were, but it could have just been the way we were standing. I was taller even than the average male, so all women, even pack women, were short to me.

When she was running from me, I had seen that her hair was long and dark brown. It flowed down her back in hypnotic waves. And the color of her skin, it looked like it had been kissed by the moon. She was pale but not sickly pale, it looked like a natural color on her. And it made her look beautiful. If only I have seen her face. I kept telling myself in the dream. Then I would have a complete picture.

My body was reacting to her, even from the memory inside the dream. I felt the jolt run through me when I first fell on her and again when I grabbed her arm. Our bodies would call to each other until the mating was complete, until I marked her.

As the dream progressed, things started to turn dark. There was a dark purple cloud that started to fill not just the sky but was also creeping across the land. It was unnatural and everything it touched seemed to scream in pain and agony. Pack members were running from it in fear and the girl that would be my mate was standing just out of my reach as the cloud engulfed her. When it dissipated, she was gone. I had no clue where she was.