C18 Your pack? Or your family?

There's something about the way he says this that makes me feel a knot in my stomach. I don't know anything about him. What brought Luke to Carrie's group? No one would choose that path, unless they were forced to, or coerced, in the case of the tau wolves. What kind of pain has he suffered? What have I dismissed about him by focusing only on my own past? This is all very confusing. His overbearing behavior makes me resist, but I have not considered that there might be a reason for it. Did he mate before me? Has he lost someone to the Order? Questions assault my mind, but now is not the time to ask them. We must both concentrate so we can stay alive long enough to save others like us. I soften my voice. I feel a horrible sense of guilt, but I still respond, "I didn't ask you to take care of me." "I know, but I'm going to do it anyway." Well, that makes my insides melt a little and I suddenly feel a little choked up. "We'd better get a move on "I say in a strained voice. "Please stay close to me, no matter what, okay?" This time I don't fight back, but nod. As we walk through the streets of this small town, I am on high alert. I can't smell anything unusual, nor can I smell or sense magic in the air, but that doesn't mean the Order isn't here. They're good at covering their tracks, so we have to be on our toes. As much as I don't want to admit it, I feel better with Luke by my side. I know I'm not strong enough to take on a full-grown wolf or man alone. I tried in the past and was not victorious. My trust in others may have eroded, but that tells me I can put my faith in Luke , who walks beside me, towering like a skyscraper. I feel an inexplicable attraction to him, as if he has me tied with a rope, pulling me to him. I can't deny my attraction to him, and I can't help but wonder if it's only because of the bond between us. "You're thinking too much " he observes as he sweeps his gaze down the street we're walking down. "I'm surprised you know what that looks like. Have you ever had a single thought in your life other than wanting to fuck me?" he snorts at my mischievous attitude. "If this is the method you plan to use to push me away, you'll have to find another one. This won't work." "We'll see, "I murmur. He stays close to me as we walk down the sidewalk. I furtively glance at his profile, trying to decide if I would be attracted to him if we had met under normal circumstances. "It's the lack of options that bothers you," he says suddenly. "What could possibly bother me about being forced into a relationship with a domineering maniac who only wants me because magic tells him to?" Luke stops walking and my steps falter as well. "Is that what you think? " "It's true. You would never choose someone like me if you were given the option." His head tilts to the side. "Someone like you?" I snort at his attempt to deflect. "You wanted to get stuck with an abomination of nature?" Her expression falters. "Alison , that's not who you are." "Isn't it? I'm neither one thing or the other. I'm too much of a witch to be a wolf, but too much of a wolf to be a witch, and neither side is strong enough on its own. I'm a failure of evolution, Luke , and you can't pretend I'm not." There is sadness in my tone and I hate that it makes me sound weak. I shouldn't care what others think of me, but I still crave approval from others. "If you're a failure, I am too. Vargr wolves aren't exactly welcome in most packs." "Being unwelcome is not the same as being hunted down and killed or forced to breed because of your genetics." "No, it isn't, and it shouldn't be happening, but the Order is not targeting tau alone. " It isn't. James is a vargr and had been a prisoner. Other vargr wolves and pureblood shapeshifters were also captured by that group of maniacs. "I'm never going to let that happen to you, Alison ." My heart shrinks and the ice around it melts a little more. "Don't make a promise you don't intend to keep. Too many people have let me down over the years, Luke ." "Your pack? Or your family?" he guesses correctly. "Both." I laugh, but there's no humor in it. " No one cares about blood ties when they find out you're a monster." He grabs my face. "You're not a monster. Don't fucking say that." "I'm not " I agree, but other wolves and witches have a different opinion of me, and that's why I wanted to be here today. "I have to do something, be the engine of change. I'm sick of people trying to kill me or use me." I walk ahead of him and, after a moment, he follows me. I can feel his pensive state through our bond and I'm sure it mirrors my own. Life is really unfair and I'm not sure if we can make things better, but this is the path we were given. For better or worse, we have to walk it. Maybe having a partner isn't so bad after all. I've been alone for so long, afraid to connect with anyone, and the last person I connected with turned out to be a lying bitch. Clearly, I'm not the best at judging people's character. I barely take two steps when Luke's arm wraps around my chest and pulls me to him. I let out a gasp of surprise that he quells by covering my mouth with one hand. Shut up, little buddy. My instinct is to fight him off, but then he pushes me back behind a nearby vehicle as the first shots fill the air. LUKE I wrap my body around Alison , holding her tight against my chest as bullets ricochet off the metal of the car we're hiding behind. Alison clings to me, making herself small as the fire continues. The only thought I have at the moment is to keep her safe. I don't know how many hunters are here, and the fact that I can't smell them makes me nervous. Is it a spell or are these soldiers not wolves? I used to not care if I lived or died. I lost everything, which made it all meaningless. Now that's changed. The death of a companion can tear at a survivor's mind. I owe it to her to keep breathing, even if she doesn't feel the same way about me. I lift my head slightly and look around the street, trying to find a safer place to hide. We're easy prey here. "Can you use your magic to get us out of here? " During my time with hybrids, I've learned that everyone's power is different. I hope Alison has something useful in her arsenal. Of course, she doesn't understand what I mean and gets testy with me. "You think I can snap my fingers and we'll be transported across town?" Her words are laced with sarcasm, and I'd be pissed if it came from someone else. Instead, my lips turn up at the corners, something that doesn't happen very often, if ever, these days. This isn't a movie, Luke . I can't just teleport us away from danger.