Light in the dark

Ashlyn's POV

I opened my eyes the next morning to find a plaid covering Lucifer and me. At my stir, he also awoke.

I raised my head from his suddenly cautious of myself. He was already in his human form and naked under the plaid. Heat crept up my cheek as I looked away from his dazed gaze.

I saw Roselia smiling at me and behind her were Ripper, Rage, Stealth, and Kill.

Lucifer let out a gruff.

"You're alive and in one piece!" Rage exclaimed at the sight of me.

"I knew the fragile ones were tough at the end," Stealth said with a smile.

I looked over at Lucifer and he had a worried frown etched on his face.

"Get another plaid for the alpha!" Roselia yelled over at the maiden standing by the door the moment she saw Lucifer getting up and she dashed out quickly.

"Do not bother about it, Roselia. This is not the first time she'd be seeing me naked." He said. The heat of embarrassment crept to my cheeks as he pulled me up roughly and I fell flat on his chest. I gasped as my bare skin met his. I could feel every part of him rubbed with mine. His masculine essence pressed just right above my abdomen. For a tall vampire, I was a dwarf before this man. The plaid was still wrapped around the both of us.

"Everybody out. The Laird and his young Miss are alright." Roselia said smiling as she ushered everyone out. I wondered what thoughts ran through her head.

They obeyed, leaving the room and I was left alone with Lucifer. I attempted to pull away becoming too conscious of the feel of his body on mine.

He pulled me back to himself and the plaid dropped down, lying around our feet.

I heaved as I was forced to look into his eyes.

"This is not the first time you're seeing a naked male and been this close to him." He said, his hand on my waist and the other holding my hand.

"And I believe you know who that male is," I said to him.

He let out the tiniest of smiles. "He's standing right in front of you." He said and then turned immediately cold as his eyes bore into mine.

"You saw what you were not supposed to see." He said to me. It felt somewhat weird to be standing naked and about to be engaged in an argument with him.

"Should I perhaps say the goddess wanted me to?" I asked him.

"Damn the goddess Ashlyn," he said and I was beginning to love the way my name rolled out of his tongue these days. "What if I had hurt you? Would you say the goddess wanted you to be hurt?" He asked me as his cold expression softened.

"I'm living a life she fated me remember? Anything is possible." I said to him and he shook me hard and I felt my head spin.

"And who asked you to stay with me uh? What were you thinking?" He asked angrily. "Did I tell you I needed you by my side?" He demanded.

I shook my head. He did not tell me but I felt the need to, but I would not let him know that. He should vent all he wants, as long as he was alright.

"You're alright now?" I asked him instead.

He grabbed my shoulders.

"I do not need you to be bothered about my well-being. I've been in this decades before I met you." He said to me.

"I know," I said looking into his eyes without blinking. "I'll just be here if you need me," I said to him. Yes, I was finally crazy. This was not me talking.

He let go of my shoulders as he narrowed his eyes at me. "Do not think because I did not hurt you one time does not mean it would not happen next time. You're not my soothing medicine." He said to me and I nodded and looked away.

I moved away from him and he picked up the plaid and covered me with it. As his hands wrapped the plaid around me. I stared at him in confusion. Unable to understand myself anymore. Unable to understand him too. Why does he blow hot and cold at the same time?

He let go of me and I turned to leave.

"In this month of the full moon, do not come close to me and that's an order." He said as soon as I reached the door.

An order? I thought to myself. An order I knew I was going to break. I could not forget seeing the state he was in. I would not wish that upon anyone or even my greatest for.

I closed the door behind me and walked towards the left wing. Then I saw Catriona.

"Catriona?" I called her.

"Yes, milady?" She said coming closer to me.

"Accompany me to my room and return this plaid to Lucifer in the weapon room," I said to her and she nodded and followed me.

As soon as I got to my room, I took the plaid off and handed it to her.

"Thank you," I said to her.

"Anything for milady." She said with a smile and left. I still wanted to discuss it with her but this new Lucifer I just found out about last night was my concern now. An unexplainable concern for a man who treats me wrongly.

Lucifer's POV

I watched her leave and I groaned as I placed my head on the wall. I had not expected her to find the secret passageway. I had not wanted her to even see me that way.

How was I to know the task Kill will assign her would be in the weapon room? If I had known, I would have rebuked him immediately.

And now she'd seen what I'd been battling with all my life. I was a slave to the full moon. I was under its spell. That was why the secret passageway was created to hide my hideous monster from the rest of the world. To protect the innocent ones from their vengeful spirit. Only I alone was battling with the demons that afflicted me since I was a child.

I was battling with my inner demon, the complete opposite of Steel. It was only his form I transform into during the month of the full moon and at night. He was disastrous and had no iota of human feelings. He killed anything in his way without a motive and so many had died in his hands without upsetting him and they were women. Which one of them death was the pain of all to me?

Only I had the worst predictions of my birth stars. Only I was paying the price of being conceived by my mother. Only I was...

"Alpha?" A female voice disrupted my thoughts.

"What do you want?" I demanded.

"Milady asked for the plaid to be given to you." She said.

"Drop it, and get out," I said to her and she did as she was told as she closed the door.

I turned around walked to the door and picked up the plaid. I stared at it. Why was she so kind to me all of a sudden? Why was she not terrified of what she had seen? I wrapped the plaid around me as I walked out of the room and headed for my chambers.

I met Kill along the way. "Helldog." He said as he followed me into my room.

"I apologize for giving your mistress a task in the room leading to your fortress." He said apologetically.

"It's past Kill. No harm was caused." I said to him.

"How're you feeling now?" He asked me and I turned sharply at him.

"How am I supposed to feel?" I asked him trying not to sound too angry.

He lowered his head. "My apologies," he said. "The alphas are soon to arrive for the Games." He said.

"Prepare for their arrival," I said to him.

"As you say Helldog." He said and walked away.

I groaned as I threw the plaids off me. Thoughts of Ashlyn and everything that happened last night in my head. Last night proved to me that all the sayings were true. First I transformed for the first time in Steel's form and that had been said it would only happen when I get to meet my werewolf mate yesterday, she was able to make calm without hurting her.

"I told you we're finally being redeemed." Steel said in a gruff voice. He was also being affected by the monster in us.

"You did not want her before." I fired at him.

"That was because I thought her to be just a vampire. How was I to know her werewolf was hidden in her all along?" He retorted.

"So now you want her?" I asked him.

"I do not know. I wanted her body while she was just a vampire and now that I know she's a werewolf, I want her body the more." He said.

"So it's settled then. We only want her body." I said to him.

"Hmm." He said and retreated. I did not sound convinced about his answer but I did not push it either.

All I knew was I could not let Ashlyn know she was my redeemer. The redemption I needed to be saved from all these. The calamities coming my way. I did not want her to ever find out about it.

The moon goddess could win this and I did not want her to. After all, I was enslaved under the influence of her moon. She and the devil must have had an agreement on how to manipulate my life and they were succeeding.