David opened his mouth, then shut it. There was so much to tell: he was worried when his mate knew everything…but it was too late to turn back. He licked the dryness from his lips and continued. “When my mother realized how upset I was at the thought of leaving, she backed off, but she was always there when I needed some comforting after a particularly trying day.”
“You mean when you got punished?” asked Zane.
“That, of course, but she also hugged me, dried my tears, assured me I would find someone to love me in the future and did so much more.” Shaking his head, David tried to quell his tears. “I know, it’s crazy because the High Priestess was teaching me how my whole life would be devoted to do the work of the Four Gods. Each year, there was more and more for me to learn and, until I mastered each lesson, I would be caned before being locked up for the night. Some days, I was in so much pain, I could barely make it back to my room; usually one of my keepers would have to help me.”
Horrified at David’s words, Zane struggled to understand what his mate’s life had been like. “Babe, I’m trying to understand what you went through. What was an average day like for you?”
Sniffling, David nodded. “One of my keepers would wake me up in the morning and then bathe and dress me before bringing my breakfast. After that was finished, she led me to the classroom where I was chained up in the middle of the room. The High Priestess would come in to inspect and encourage me to do my best. I always tried, but mostly I failed. Then, my lessons would begin. My keeper would read the stuff for me to memorize and I had to repeat it. Every time I made a mistake, she gave me one to three hits with the cane the High Priestess had chosen for the day. At noon, I was released for lunch and then my keeper and I went to the Church of Four Gods where I would have to recite my morning lessons. After I was finished, we went back to the classroom for more instruction. At seven, I was given my dinner before appearing before the High Priestess to show her what I learned that day. If I did well, she would send me to bed, but if I messed up anything, my keeper would bend me over so the High Priestess could administer my final punishment for the day. Then I was taken to my room, undressed, and locked up.”
Anger flooded Zane’s body as he listened to David.How the hell did my mate ever survive this?His wolf demanded justice, pushing forth—as Zane felt his fangs begin to drop and his claws extend. Fighting his wolf, Zane’s body shook with intensity for several minutes until he was finally able to gain control. That’s when he saw fear reflected in his mate’s face and knew he had to fix it. “Babe, don’t be afraid. Do you know what was happening to me?”
“N-n-nooo, are you angry with me?”
Sighing, Zane picked up both of his mate’s hands, holding them gently as his thumbs again caressed them. “I’m sorry that happened. I was so angry listening to what you went through, I lost control of my wolf. Once that happened, he pushed to come out so he could avenge you and your wolf. At the last minute, I took back control and stopped the shift he was forcing on me. But trust me, at no time was I angry at you or would my wolf ever harm you.”
Nodding, David looked down at his mate’s gentle hands. “I believe you. Sorry I reacted the way I did.”
“No, no, babe, don’t apologize. You did nothing wrong. Tell me more. I promise Iwillcontrol my wolf.”
“Uhm, what else do you want to know?”
“So, I’m guessing your mother would come in after your keeper left for the night, huh?” asked Zane.
“Yes, she visited me every night but she never pressured me to leave again. Instead, she read stories to me, or gave me treats she snuck out of the kitchen or just held me when I was feeling down. And of course, she always took care of my legs where I was caned. Looking back, I know now, I was able to get through each day regardless of how much I screwed up because I always knew I’d see my mother that night.”
“Babe, why didn’t you shift to heal the welts? If you had, you wouldn’t have any scars today.”
Shaking his head, David said, so low Zane almost didn’t hear him, “I didn’t know I was a shifter until one day when my keeper removed the iron collar around my neck in order to replace it with a bigger one. While I was standing there, waiting, I suddenly felt enormous pain throughout my body and the next thing I knew, I was on all fours, howling at my keeper. The High Priestess ran in, demanding I shift back and repeatedly hit my wolf on his nose until he retreated into me. From that point on, I wore an iron collar and cuffs on my wrists and ankles so I could no longer shift. What the High Priestess didn’t know was that it was so painful when I shifted, I knew I’d never do that again.”
“Have you shifted since then?”
“Only a couple of times, usually when I’m being chased.”
“What about the pain? Was it less than the first time?”
Thinking about it for a few seconds, David replied, “I think so, though I wouldn’t swear to it because it happened when I wasscared so it wasn’t as if I’d planned to. In fact, I don’t think I can shift on purpose like you do.”
“I guess when you were chained up, you couldn’t pop somewhere else either.”
“No, I couldn’t, but I didn’t do that growing up either, in fact, I didn’t know Icoulddo that until I ran away…wait, that’s not right. One day the High Priestess showed me a drawing in a book of a boy who had the same markings that are on my face and neck and told me I was that boy in the story and that I’d be able to disappear and reappear whenever I wanted to.”
“Did you do it for her?”
Looking askance at his mate, David said, “Are you joking? The High Priestess prevented me from doing anything. The first time I ran away, I disappeared and reappeared in a muddy ditch.”
Chuckling at the image, Zane asked, “Okay, I’ll bite. How did you end up there?”
Swatting his mate, David said, “Stop that. It wasn’t funny. I was wet and covered with mud.”
“Sorry,” Zane said grinning.
“Better,” David said, giggling. “It happened when I was cornered in an alley by a couple of Michael’s men. I was trying to shift but I couldn’t; then suddenly I found myself in a ditch I’d seen the day before. It took me a while to figure out what happened; when I tried to do it again, I ended up back in the alley. Luckily for me, the men were gone but that’s when I realized I had thought of the alley just before I disappeared. Eventually, I figured out how to disappear at will and land wherever I wanted to.”
“How long were you at the convent?” asked Zane.
“Mmm, I ran away a year ago. My mother told me I was an adult and the High Priestess couldn’t legally keep me there anymore.”
“Babe, if you truly believed you were the High Priest meant to save the world, why did you run away?”
