Chapter 78: Bared To You: Part Six

The breeze swept away her words, and with it came the silence that ensued. Esme looked ahead again; her gaze followed the rock formation along the river to the trees and hills as the sun beamed down on them. It really was the perfect location for a casual stroll; it was just a shame they were discussing such topics.

"My mother.." Esme began, taking a step forward and inhaling deeply as the wind blew across her face once more. The lavender scent is now much more potent than earlier. They were definitely not alone. Still, Esme continued. "My mother was a very cold and calculative woman." She started to stroll forwards and heard the crunching of stones and leaves from behind her. She didn't need to turn to know Gabriel was following her; it seemed he was giving her a little bit of space.

"To survive, you had to be that way. But the funny thing was.." Esme stopped and started scraping her trainers in the dry, dusty dirt, creating random patterns in the ground. "Before my mother returned with me, she was never so cruel. Or.. maybe she never revealed it to me. I was young, and it was only through life as a rogue that I changed alongside her."

Flashes of memories crossed her mind from her mother carrying her out of the packhouse in the middle of the night to singing her a lullaby. Telling her about the Moon Goddess to swiftly change to training in the garden, her mother telling her how to take her opponents out at age eight. And the first time, her mother ordered Esme to kill Rick, the previous leader of the Hellhounds. 

Esme got a hold of herself, aware again of the man who could easily read her mind. Gabriel knew she was a Hellhound, but he didn't know she was a merciless assassin. Even though she was being so open to him right now, telling him what he wanted to know, she was still fearful of spilling this other side of herself. This more brutal side of herself. Right now, there was only so much she could tell him; even if he was an ancient vampire, he should still be allowed time to process all of what she was telling him now. 

"Bullshit!" Isana interrupted her thoughts. "You're just fearful. None of the above about how you want to give him time.."

"Isana.. It's true. I will tell him later on if there is more to this than the last twenty-four hours," Esme replied calmly in her mind, making sure her walls were still built up. It was odd now how she thought of her mind like a power to keep the vampire out. Esme knew there was no such thing, she was only a werewolf, but she could tell when she let her guard down, it was easy now with Gabriel. She trusted him. Whether that was reckless or not, there was no point stressing over it now; she would find out in the future. 

Esme licked her lips, suddenly feeling her mouth go dry, and she stopped playing with the earth with her trainer. Gabriel, by now, had caught up to her and stood by her side; he reached out and squeezed her hand gently. Such a small gesture comforted her in so many ways. Her mind went back to her mother, and she stared back into Gabriel's clear blue eyes. 

"But it's strange," Her eyes pooled with unshed tears at the loss of her mother, and she redirected her gaze at the riverbed. "Even with her faults and disowning me..  I still miss her. I miss her enough to call her old phone whenever I change location," Esme chuckled, but there was no humour. "I leave voice messages. I really don't know how that phone is still going.." She trailed off suddenly thinking the impossible but chuckled again at her foolishness, grasping at straws; she shook her head.

"Do you think I'm mad?" She whispered and looked back at Gabriel, who had been watching all the conflicting emotions run across her face.

"I think you are grieving," Gabriel replied gently, squeezing her hand again before stroking her head and leaving a kiss on her temple. Esme closed her eyes to the feeling of his lips on her skin. She leaned into him, snuggling her head into his chest as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her into him. She sighed, feeling her shoulders relax as she inhaled the sweet aroma that was distinctly Gabriel.

Esme nodded to his words, although she still thought she was a little crazy. It had been just over two years since she lost her mother so brutally, and since escaping Ethan, she seemed to have gotten into the habit of updating her mother's phone like it was a damn diary. She'd never had that sort of relationship with her before.

"You don't have to show me if you don't want to," Gabriel whispered; his voice was like a soothing song, keeping her calm from the inner turmoil that was soon to implode from revealing all these memories.

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Esme smiled bitterly as she opened her eyes and gazed at the scenery while leaning against Gabriel's chest, his arms shielding her from some of the chilly wind. "Too late. You might as well see now.."

Esme blinked away the tears as she recalled what happened on that fateful day.

Everywhere was chaotic, most of the pack was being killed, but with Esme's skill set, she levelled the playing field. Bodies lay on the ground, both pack members and Hellhounds in wolf and human form. The women, children and elderly had fled after she showed them a safe passage. For the first time, she used the power of the Luna and commanded Delta Bryant and a few others to guard them as they fled. 

Esme knew this attack wasn't about her, but because of Ethan's moves to overthrow the surrounding packs and the Hellhound's land. They weren't here to just kill the Alpha but to remove the whole pack. It would be a smart move for the Hellhounds, and in some way, they'd be doing a service to the surrounding pack lands. Though she knew that was definitely not what they wanted. 

Esme pulled her knife out of the rogue she had just killed and looked in her mate's direction. The bond between them wasn't blocked, and so she knew how he was feeling. Surprisingly there was a rising anxiousness that he couldn't seem to contain, and as she watched him, she could see his moves were sloppy. But even though Ethan was in charge of a small pack, he was still a competent fighter, and that was why there were more Hellhound bodies surrounding him than pack members. 

All of them were near the cliffside now, and Ethan had five Hellhounds surrounding him. Esme took a step towards him then halted as someone suddenly held her wrist. She instantly swiped her knife out, only just stopping as the blade neared the man's throat. A familiar set of deep blue eyes surrounded with long black lashes stared back at her. 

The man's unruly jet-black hair was tied back in a knot, the rest falling down to his shoulders. Marcus seemed to have grown more muscular in the time they'd spent apart, though he was still lean and only 5ft10. It was still a lot taller than her and one of the reasons why he was such a good assassin. He was light on his feet like her and not ridiculously muscular like a lot of werewolves.

Marcus grabbed her wrist, holding the knife and flicked it to the side, making her drop it. A move she'd never allow but right then, seeing him made her feel a number of emotions, and she was utterly powerless. Esme should have known he'd come for her. Her eyes went to the blade in his other hand, but then she blinked in confusion as he sheathed it behind his back again. 

"Come on," He growled and started to drag her away from the carnage behind them. 

"W-wait.." 

Marcus didn't listen to her, his grip tightened on her wrist, and she stumbled behind him, still at a loss at what was happening. "Is Camilla here?" She asked instead, watching his back; he was dressed in black as usual.

"She will end this. But I'm not here for all this bullshit," Marcus abruptly stopped and turned around; his eyes searched hers, and she could see a flare of emotion behind his. "I'm taking you out of here."

At those words, the words that seemed to make her heart race and her eyes fill with tears, she instinctively hugged him, surprising both of them.

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