Wolf’s Fox by Juniper Hart
19
Luthor’s fury was as palpable as Ruthie remembered it. He paced before her, half-shifted, his tail whipping out to strike her as he moved. The tip of his scales caught her tender skin, making her wince.
“Do you have any idea how long I’ve searched for you?” he snarled, licking his lips, his intense eyes studying her quivering frame. “How much time and manpower I have put into finding you?”
Ruthie said nothing, lowering her eyes on anything but the irate dragon before her.
“I was forced to marry another,” he informed her. “I had no choice! You left me with no other option!”
Ruthie knew that meant little. Like Bane Konrad, he was apt to take on as many wives as he desired, if only to populate the earth with little Luthor dragons.
Luthor dragons with white fox blood. Ruthie shuddered.
“How did you escape? Who helped you?” His face was in hers, breathing burning wafts of smoke at her. “I tore this place upside down looking for information, but no one said a word.”
He grinned sardonically, not an iota of mirth in his face. “So, I buried them all—the entire staff.”
Ruthie gasped, slapping a hand to her mouth as she did. She knew the truth now about what had become of Reyna and Miss Whitaker, even if it churned her stomach.
“Oh, so you do have something to say,” Luthor purred, inching closer. His tail wrapped around her, drawing her shaking form against his body to press his scaly flesh to hers. “I suppose you have enough time now to regale me with the tale of where you have been all these years—after we consummate our union. We have nothing but time going forward.”
Ruthie struggled against him, but she knew the motions were futile. There was nowhere to go, nowhere to run. This dark, dank room was nothing like the suite in which she had first stayed. She suspected she would need to get used to the new accommodations. Gone were the days of comfort, assuming that Luthor had intended such a life for her in the first place. Any hope of civility had died with Reyna over half a century ago.
She was finding it difficult to breathe, wedged against his ridged flesh. Sweat formed over her brow.
“We will make beautiful babies,” he rasped, forked tongue lashing out to lick her face. Ruthie whimpered and squeezed her eyes closed. “Did you really think you could run forever? That I would ever stop looking for you? You belong to me! You’re mine!”
His tongue lashed out to lick her face again, but as the fork lapped at the side of her cheek, sending a shudder of revulsion down her spine, a woman cried out.
“What the hell is this?”
A female voice shot out through the dim dungeon, causing Luthor to release Ruthie in surprise. Her eyes popped open, and she gaped in disbelief at the trio who had entered the room. Luthor seemed just as taken aback by the sight of Catherine, Nicholas, and the unknown woman.
“Arianna!” he rasped, putting distance between himself and Ruthie as if she were on fire. Stunned, Ruthie watched him shrink back into his human form, looking admonished. Nicholas stole the opportunity to rush toward her. She threw herself into his arms but sensed the mounting tension in the dank room.
“Are you okay?” Nicholas demanded, placing his hands over her shoulders and studying her face worriedly. “Did he hurt you?”
Ruthie shook her head, eyes darting around the room, knowing that they weren’t out of danger yet.
“I’m so sorry I didn’t get to you in time.”
“Get away from her!” Luthor roared, stalking toward Nicholas. The wolf whirled around to face the dragon, unperturbed by his nearness.
“You would do well to take your own advice,” he spat, making a shield of his body to protect Ruthie.
“She’s mine! I own her!” Luthor insisted. Arianna let out a gasp of dismay, but Luthor didn’t seem to hear it, his ire overtaking his guilt.
“You beast!” Nicholas snarled. “She’s not staying here.”
“You have no rights to her!” Luthor howled, his body elongating to shift. “Get out of my house!”
“Luthor…” Catherine mumbled. “Don’t do this; it’s not worth it. Just let my son go with his mate, and we’ll find you another white fox—"
Luthor abruptly stopped, whipping his massive body around and focused his attention on Catherine. Understanding colored his face.
“You!” he choked in disbelief. “You set me up!”
Catherine paled and stepped back, shaking her head.
“I’ll return your money,” she promised, her voice trembling. “Let’s just close this chapter of your life.”
Shock overcame Ruthie as she realized what she was hearing.
“You knew him all along?” she asked, the truth settling in with a slap. She looked to Nicholas in disbelief, but he purposely avoided her eyes, leading her to believe that he had been aware of his mother’s involvement for a while.
Luthor closed the short distance between him and Catherine. “Why are you backtracking on our arrangement? You owe me!”
“He didn’t give me a choice!” she whined, extending her hands to ward him off. “He claims Ruthie is his mate! He’s the son of Bane! I was stuck between a rock and a hard place!”
“She is my mate!” Nicholas snarled, puffing out his chest. “And she’s coming with me.”
“The hell she is!” Luthor yelled, whipping around to confront Nicholas now, but his wife had other plans.
“You bastard!” Arianna jumped forward to slap her husband with an open palm. “Aren’t I enough for you?”
Luthor reeled back, stunned by his wife’s action. His eyes blazed with humiliation and ire.
“Come on,” Nicholas said urgently, yanking on Ruthie’s hand. “Let’s get out of here.”
Ruthie’s head moved from one player to the other, unsure of how much of a distraction Arianna would be to Luthor, but she didn’t resist Nicholas as he tugged on her hand.
Can I trust him? He knew what his mother was up to and didn’t say anything!
Confusion was making her dizzy, but she continued to follow Nicholas—at least for a moment.
“STOP WHERE YOU ARE!” Luthor thundered. Nicholas didn’t slow his pace, even if Ruthie froze in her tracks. He pulled on her.
“Ignore him, Ruthie. Just keep moving. We’re almost out of here.”
Ruthie exhaled, trembling. The tension was mounting inside the basement, and although she could sense that something was about to happen, she was powerless to stop it.
“Luthor, let them go,” Catherine begged, her own eyes darting back and forth. “You have Arianna, and like I said, I’ll return your money—”
Without warning, Luthor fully morphed and unleashed a spray of fire over Catherine’s unsuspecting form. The wolf screamed out in pain, crumbling to the floor. Nicholas stopped and stared at the scene in shock and disbelief.
“I have heard enough out of you!” Luthor screamed, his face as red as his scaled body. “I should never have trusted a murderess! I know what you are, Catherine Konrad! Bane deserved better than you and those other whores!”
Nicholas seemed overcome with emotion as his torso fell forward, transforming him into his own beastly form, fangs dripping. Luthor didn’t see him coming as he attacked, body raising upward in double fast motion. His teeth sunk directly into Luthor’s unsuspecting jugular as the women watched in horror.
The dragon howled out, falling back, but Nicholas held fast to the flesh, back paws dangling as Luthor twisted around.
Catherine continued to sob, ash falling from her skin, her body trying to heal against the burns. Arianna gawked at the scene, her pale hands extended as if to ward them all away.
“Nicholas!” Ruthie tried to yell, but her voice caught in her throat, and she could do nothing except watch as blood spurted forward to spray all over the gray walls, staining Nicholas’ sooty fur. He was relentless, front paws taking hold into Luthor’s chest until the massive lizard began to lose the fight.
In slow motion, Luthor’s frame began to falter, slowing until he was on his knees. Nicholas’ growls continued to hum through the room, but he didn’t let go until Luthor was a pile of bleeding limbs on the cement floor. His eyes closed, his last breath escaping as he succumbed to the eternal darkness that Ruthie had wished upon him for so long.
A deep, thick silence ensued, even Catherine’s moans of agony diminishing to stare at the fallen dragon before them.
An eerie, low wail began to radiate through the walls, as if the house itself was crying. Ruthie quickly realized it was Arianna who was making such an awful noise.
“What did you do?” she screamed, dropping to her knees. She cradled Luthor’s head in her hands. “My love! My poor, lost love!” She glowered at Nicholas. “How could you?”
For a moment, time seemed to freeze, the beings all looking from one to the other, ensuring that the danger had indeed, been eliminated. Nicholas was the first to recover.
“Let’s get out of here,” Nicholas growled, yanking Ruthie through the still-open door of the dungeon and toward the stairs. “I’ve had enough crazy for one morning.”
“Your mother,” she heard herself say, casting a backward glance at Catherine’s crispy form. “What about Catherine?”
“She’ll be okay,” Nicholas said coldly, not bothering to look for himself. Catherine extended a hand beseechingly toward them, but Nicholas didn’t let Ruthie go. “Leave her. She’s been through worse. She’ll heal.”
Catherine mewled pathetically. Ruthie wondered how much of her cry was genuine and how much was wrought with self-pity.
She brought this on herself. If she hadn’t told Luthor where to find me, none of this would have happened.
Nicholas’ fingers locked around hers, and in less than a minute, the pair was outside the forbidding house, hurrying toward his waiting Jeep. It was only there that she pulled out of his grasp.
“Your mother knew all along,” she muttered. “Why did she hide me for only a little while? Why didn’t she turn me over right away?”
Nicholas hesitated, pressing his lips together and she could see that he was debating whether to tell her.
“I deserve the truth, Nicholas,” she insisted. “Why did she hide me only to sell me out to him in the end?”
“I…I made a deal with her that I had no intention of honoring,” he replied in a rush.
“What deal?”
Nicholas grimaced, unable to meet her eyes.
“I promised her a grandchild with you.” He finally raised his chin, locking in her gaze and reached for her hands before she could turn away. “I only agreed to that so she would tell me where you were. I would never put you in a place where you didn’t get to choose your own fate, Ruthie.”
Ruthie inhaled a long, quivering breath.
“Is that why you wanted to have a baby?” she asked, heartbroken to realize she had once more been a pawn in a larger game she didn’t understand.
“I wanted—I want—to have a baby with you because I love you, Ruthie,” he replied honestly. His hands closed tightly around her fingers, and he shook his head. “That’s been constant the whole time. You’re my mate, and you belong with me.”
Ruthie wanted to believe him, to dismiss all her doubts, but it wasn’t so easy, not when she had so many other questions bubbling inside her.
“Luthor is gone,” Nicholas reminded her softly. “The curse is broken. You can shift at will again—assuming you ever want to.” Ruthie eyed him. “You’ve spent so much of your life unknowing, on the run and afraid, Ruthie, but now…now you’re free to sort out who you are and what you want without anyone else telling you otherwise.”
The statement startled Ruthie, and she stared at Nicholas, unsure of how to react. He smiled and pulled her toward him, kissing the top of her head.
“You’ve got decades of soul searching to do, and I’m here to help you sort through all the noise.”
She pulled her head back and met his gaze.
“What if I decide that you’re not part of my future?” she asked bluntly. He wasn’t able to hide the look of hurt on his face, but he maintained the small smile on his lips.
“I would be crushed,” he admitted. “But I would fully respect your choice. I know you’re my mate, Ruthie, and part of that means ensuring your absolute peace of mind.”
Ruthie swallowed and nodded, feeling herself relax against the feel of his strong, solid body. She couldn’t be sure what the future would hold for her when she’d had no control over her past. Yet she suddenly couldn’t imagine being away from Nicholas, not when he had gone through so much to protect her.
He cupped her face with his hands, forcing her to stare into his.
“Whatever you decide,” he said huskily, “I’ll always be here for you, Ruthie. I promise.”
Tears filled her eyes, and she nodded, knowing for the first time in a long while that her instincts weren’t betraying her.
“Let’s get out of here,” she murmured, sniffling and wiping at her eyes. “If I never see this place again, it will be too soon.”
“Agreed,” Nicholas said, unlocking the passenger side door. In minutes, the Jeep drove off into the morning, leaving the memory of Luthor and his lair well in their wakes forever.