The Warrior’s Broken Mate novel Chapter 38

Everyone’s eyes were locked on me, and I couldn’t help but wonder what exactly they thought I’d done. I hadn’t done anything wrong. Especially not to Elias or his pack. So what were they even talking about?

“Why would you need to warn us about my mate?” Elias growled.

“She’s going to bring nothing but trouble to this land,” the man at the front replied.

“And who the hell are you?” Elias snapped.

“Alpha Damon. These are my warriors. We’re from the Grimstone Pack,” he answered.

“The Grimstone Pack is two hours north of here. So why are you sticking your nose into our business?”

Elias asked, stepping down the stairs.

“We keep an eye on what’s happening near our borders. Any possible threats. And that girl standing up there? She’s the biggest one we’ve ever come across,” Alpha Damon said.

“She’s my mate. So if you want to keep your damn tongue, you better watch what you say,” Elias growled lowly.

“Do you even know what she is? She’s going to drag danger here. The vampire council is looking for her. Their agents are everywhere. And we’ve heard whispers of werebears nearby. Witches too,” Damon warned.

“We’re already aware of those threats. Appreciate the unnecessary warning,” Elias said coldly.

“And you don’t care?”

“We’ve already handled them once. If they come again, we’ll handle them again. I’ll do whatever it takes to protect her. You’re an Alpha–you should understand that. I don’t care who’s after her. No one gets to her without going through me,” Elias said through gritted teeth.

“This was a mistake,” Damon muttered.

“Your guy over there got something right–it was a mistake. I’ll give you one warning. Get the hell off my land and keep your mouth shut about what you’ve seen, or I’ll send every warrior I have to wipe you out.

And we both know how easy it would be to crush the Grimstone Pack, Elias threatened.

The warriors released the intruders. Damon gave me one last look before ordering his men to leave. They walked off together, and I stood gripping the doorway tightly. Elias sent his men back to patrol, then walked back to me.

“He’s right, you know. Everyone would be better off if I wasn’t here,” I said, turning and heading back inside.

I walked upstairs, Elias following close behind, and sat cross–legged on his bed.

“No, he’s not. He doesn’t have a clue what he’s talking about. That guy’s never had a mate. He doesn’t know what it means to love someone so much you’d die for them,” Elias said.

“I know. I could feel it coming from him. And the men who stood with him, they didn’t seem to share his feelings at all,” I said softly.

“You really could sense that?” Elias questioned me with surprise.

“Yeah. But none of them are brave enough to oppose their Alpha. No one ever is,” I explained quietly.

“Don’t worry about those men. I’ll wait a few days, then try to arrange a meeting with that Alpha and see if we can come to some sort of understanding. Provided he keeps quiet about you being here,” Elias assured me.

“Yeah, I doubt he’ll say a word. Nobody’s stupid enough to anger the Vanguards,” I responded.

“Good. Looks like my reputation is working exactly how I wanted it to,” he said with a slight grin.

“Yeah. I guess it is,” I agreed. Elias sat down on the bed behind me, leaning back comfortably against the headboard, and pulled me back against his chest.

My back pressed against his chest, and his arms curled protectively around me, wrapping me in warmth and safety again.

He pulled the covers over both of us and turned the movie back on, but after everything that had happened, neither of us could really focus on the screen. Our minds were elsewhere, thinking about tonight.

We never imagined that a neutral pack would come warning Elias to stay away from me. It was just another challenge added to everything else we had to face.

The next morning, I woke up before Elias and quietly dressed in some old, worn clothes. I went downstairs where Chris was already waiting for me outside.

“I didn’t want to wake Elias. He’s been through a lot these past couple of days,” I said softly.

“That’s okay. What’s the plan for this morning?” Chris asked.

“Just jogging around the territory. We’ll stay inside the tree line, but I really need to get in shape, and Elias is going to start my training,” I explained.

“No worries. So jogging is going to be your cardio workout,” he replied.

“Yeah, something like that. But I have to warn you, I’m nowhere near the fitness level you guys have,” I admitted.

“That’s fine. I’ll take it easy on you today,” Chris promised.

“Thanks,” I said gratefully.

So, we started jogging away from the house and headed toward the woods, but stopped at the edge of the tree line to stay visible to the pack’s houses.

I hoped that if Elias woke up, he could see us jogging and wouldn’t panic. But I knew he’d worry anyway if I wasn’t in the house. I left a note on my pillow for him before I left, explaining everything.

By the time we finished jogging around the entire territory and returned to the house, I was drenched in sweat and utterly exhausted.

Elias opened the door immediately when we reached the front of the house and didn’t look pleased. Once I caught my breath, I told him about the note I left for him.

He said he saw it but was still upset that I had gone jogging with Chris without waking him up first.

I told him it was because he hadn’t been sleeping much lately, and I didn’t want to disturb him. Besides, I had a guard with me, and we stayed within the tree line. Now, I felt completely wiped out. I collapsed onto the veranda of the house.

“What did you do to her?” Elias asked.

“That was just one lap around the territory,” Chris said.

“I really need to get in shape. I’ve never done anything like this before,” I said, gasping for breath.

“Clearly,” Elias replied.

“Just give me a moment to recover, then I want to start training,” I insisted.

“I don’t want you to push yourself too hard,” Elias warned.

“I’m not pushing myself too hard. I want to train. I have to train. Did you take it easy on everyone else when they first joined your pack?” I challenged.

“I always gave them time to adjust before making them start training,” Elias said calmly.

“Well, I don’t have that luxury. Too many people want me dead. I have to be ready,” I answered firmly.

“Alright. Come inside and have some breakfast, then we’ll begin your training,” he said.

“Okay, thanks,” I replied.

Elias helped me up, and we went inside. I drank a glass of water, then another, while Elias prepared breakfast. I sat at the table, still catching my breath.

“I told you, I don’t want you training with anyone else,” Elias said.

“And I explained why I called Chris,” I replied.

“I know, but now that I’m rested, from now on you will wake me if you want to go jogging or training,” he insisted.

“Alright. I didn’t mean to upset you. I thought I was doing the right thing,” I said.

“I know. I’m sorry. I didn’t expect it to bother me so much seeing you train with someone else,” he admitted.

“There’s nothing to worry about. Chris was kind yesterday and the only person I could think of to take me around, someone I knew you could trust,” I explained.

“I don’t trust any male with you. And Chris isn’t mated,” Elias said sharply.

“Oh. I didn’t know that,” I answered.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Elias opened it to find one of the patrols from last night.

He stepped into the kitchen as Elias continued cooking breakfast.

“I just wanted to inform you that Alpha Damon and his men are still watching the pack. They’re keeping their distance for now, but they are observing us,” the guard reported.

“Did they try to cross the border again?” Elias asked.

“No, just watching. I thought you’d want to know,” the guard said.

“Thanks for the update,” Elias replied as the guard left.

I sank back into my chair and said, “Looks like we have another problem to worry about.”

“Don’t stress. I can deal with Alpha Damon. I wasn’t bluffing when I said we could wipe out their entire pack. He knows that. I’ll talk to him and they’ll back off,” Elias assured me.

“Do I want to hear how that conversation will go?” I asked.

“No. You better stay here while I handle it,” he said, and I nodded, knowing it wouldn’t be a friendly talk.