I Claim Your Love novel Chapter 50

When Callan heard the words of the demon he stayed there for a moment. His heartbeats raised as his brain stopped functioning. He slowly raised his head and looked at the spirit. Fear travelled through his veins but it never made its way to his facial features. He let out an understated sigh and nonchalantly asked “What would happen to Einar?”

Though Callan was clever enough to mask his feelings the demon was quite aware of the dilemma going through the mind of the handsome man. Callan was expressionless to say the least but the demon quickly judged him by his raised heartbeat that his mate was lying “You seem worried about him.”

Callan sighed in defeat and lowered his eyes. “I suppose I am.” he spoke meekly.

Daragor smiled for he was happy the way things were shaping up. Though Callan didn’t realise it, the demon was convinced that the handsome man has developed feelings for Einar. This also meant that Callan was close to forgiving the past mistakes done by his tormentor. A part of him was happy to see the concern in Callan’s eyes.

The demon held the chin of the handsome man with his fingers and lifted his head slowly. “Einar will stay.” An untold joy sparked Callan’s face. He looked at the demon with hopeful eyes as the spirit continued “He will be there in the hidden confines of the subconscious; inert in the depths of the mind.”

Callan nodded in understanding “But I am just worried about.. ”

Just as he was about to finish his sentence he saw the demon clutching his chest tightly. The spirit grimaced with all his might as the pain in him forced him to take refuge on the ground. Daragor kneeled and rested one of his hands on the ground while he breathed abnormally to calm himself.

“What happened to you?” Callan kneeled besides his mate and stroked the back of the demon slowly to ease him of his pain “I am worried!″

“It is Orcus. He is trying to dominate.” The touch from his mate did wonders as the once out of control situation was back to normal. However as soon as Daragor gained his composure he took his stance and gave a look of concern to his mate “I must leave.”

“No! Please don’t go..”

“You don’t understand.” Daragor caressed the cheeks of the handsome man “If I stay any longer the wolf would grab all the control and soon overtake this body.”

Callan bit his lips and lowered his gaze to think, however after a few anxious breaths he sighed in confidence and said “Let him out. I am ready to face him.”

Daragor was aware of the mental state of the man in front of him. He carefully pulled the man towards him and embraced him in a much needed hug. As Callan rested his chin on the shoulder of the demon his anxiety subsided a little.

“You don’t know what you are saying.”

The hurricane of thoughts which swarmed his mind was oscillating his views from the positive to the negative and back again. However thinking of it too much was pointless at this time. Callan had to manage to get rid of his cynical behaviour.

“I don’t want to delay it any further.”

“Orcus is an ancient wolf, and a possessive one to make things worse. The moment he gains control his only motive would be to mark you.”

Callan’s breath stuck in his throat and he clutched the back of Daragor’s shirt tightly. Meeting and getting to know a person was different but binding yourself to him for eternity was a tough choice. Though eventually Callan would accept the bond and harvest the love which follows the mating, he didn’t want to devote his entire life in a loveless bond.

At this point of time he really appreciated the efforts put in by Daragor. He wasn’t dominating neither was he imposing himself in any way. On the contrary the demon made sure that his mate was well taken care of, that he was safe and happy. Callan was unsure of his advances when they first met but today he felt comfortable in his embrace. He wouldn’t categorise it as love yet but still there was something special between the two of them.

The wolf however was incongruous on the matters of love it seemed. It was as if he wanted to claim an object as his. Moreover the transcripts which were handed to him by Aurora had revealed a lot about the mating rituals in the ancient times. The treatment meted out by the dominant wolf to its submissive was at times unfair and cruel. Callan didn’t want any of it. His lips quivered as he spoke with hesitation “I am not ready.”

“He won’t care. To establish the fact to the world that you belong to no one else but him, he has to do it.” Daragor took a pregnant pause “Even if he has to force himself upon you he will.”

“Now I am a bit scared.” the handsome man gulped “What do you suggest I do?”

“Try and talk to him. Persuade him to change his ways. He is just scared that he will lose you. Make him understand that you will always be there for him. If you have doubts than I can leave this place at will. It is your choice.”

Callan thought for moment and nodded, heaving a sigh of confidence “I can do that.”

“Are you absolutely sure?”

Callan was hesitating to answer. Deep down he was afraid for what the wolf had in store for him. However at this moment he had made up his mind “I-I can handle it.”

“If you say so my love.” Daragor untangled Callan’s hands from his torso and held both of his palms. He gave a soft kiss to his palms before admiring his mate “I wish the days pass by quickly so I can meet you again.”

Callan’s cheeks flushed by the constant glaring of the demon. He couldn’t help the little smile which plastered his face. Daragor kissed Callan’s blushing red cheeks from both the sides and sighed in disappointment. He slowly retracted his hands and marched backwards until there was enough space between the two of them. “Hope to see you soon my love.”

With a final stretch of his lips the demon looked above and opened his mouth wide. His eyes changed into completely dark orbs while the faint mist which constantly accompanied him glowed fiercely. His body trembled and he levitated above the ground. Soon the dark mist was absorbed by his body while the shivering was diminishing in strength.

Einar landed on his knees.

He felt cumbersome to open his eyes however he managed to lift his head where he could see a blurred figure standing at some distance. He squeezed his eyes and tried to focus carefully but was taken aback by the sudden pain in his bones. His haggard breaths and fastened heart beat made it difficult to compose himself. He arched his back and yelled in pain. The more he tried to resist the more agony he suffered.

Callan kept his stance stoic but he was dubious about his plan. He watched the transformation with alert eyes and was waiting for the wolf to show up.

Soon the elongated bones changed into a mass of fur while Einar’s face elongated into a figure of big eyes and tapering sharp canines. Even before Callan could get out of it, there stood a big black wolf with thick glossy fur surrounding him everywhere.

He lay positioned in the same place with his head hung low. His haggard breaths were lowering its pace as he was trying to find his rhythm. The wolf huffed and a strong blow of air left his lungs. He huffed again, and again, and again. Each of his exhales were stronger than the previous ones. He raised his head above to witness a frightened man standing in front him at a distance.

Orcus snarled.

The wolf elongated its teeth and his jaws vibrated with the amount of aggression he showed. He kept his red eyes focused on the handsome man while Callan was left clueless on the future course of action. He lay stunned. Callan was startled and he jumped in his place when the wolf all of sudden stretched his neck to the sky and bellowed a mighty howl. He lowered his head again and without wasting any more time he pounced ahead.

The red mist and the aura which surrounded Orcus left the handsome glued to his place in utter disbelief. However his dread increased when he could not anticipate the sudden attack of the wolf. Orcus in the very next moment took a mighty leap and jumped over his mate, landing both of his front paws on the shoulders of the beautiful man.

Callan laid flat on his back while his eyes met the furious red ones of the wolf “May be this wasn’t such a good idea after all.” he whispered to himself.

Callan closed his eyes instinctively as the wolf growled. He gulped and with a calm tone he uttered “I know what you want but you have to give me some time to explain.”

However even before the handsome man could utter his apology the wolf took charge and bit one of the arms of his mate. Callan grimaced in pain and tried to push the wolf away from him but in vain. Orcus retracted his canines and bared his teeth to his mate.

“I bet it is in your nature to discipline your mate.” Callan said between his painful sighs.

Callan realised that the smooth talk wont work on Orcus. His personality traits wont allow him to change his ways. The handsome man circled his fingers as a large stream of water gushed out of nowhere to displace the wolf from its position and take him away from the Elemental. Callan took advantage of the situation and glided his body to reach a high point leveling a tree. The wolf composed himself and looked all around in panic. His nostrils flared and his attention diverted to the sky. He growled in annoyance.

“No I wont come down.” Callan replied nonchalantly.

The wolf lumbered towards his mate with a low guttural sound. His nostrils flared threateningly before he took a high leap aiming at his mate. Callan was surprised to say the least. He did not expect the wolf to jump at such an extraordinary height. Though he was falling short in distance the beast wasn’t giving up.

When Orcus realised that his attempts were not bearing any fruit he stopped for a moment. He bowed his head to the ground and cried in an earth shattering voice. Callan was petrified when he saw the size of the wolf enlarging. His entire body was much bigger than what Callan was accustomed to. Even before he could come out of his shock the wolf jumped a greater height, barely fingertips away from Callan’s shoes.

Callan perceived that he had to up his ante otherwise the wolf will have his way. “We both can play this game.” With that the handsome man levitated his body towards a non fixed path and penetrated in the depths of the jungle. Orcus saw this as a challenge and chased Callan.

Callan glided in a zig zag pattern confusing the wolf. He stashed the tip of the trees on his way which somehow regenerated its growth from the breaking point. Orcus was determined to catch his mate. It was the fierce obsession in him which was not letting him quit. The handsome man reached the end of the plain and was hovering above the river. Orcus halted his stance near the end of the cliff and looked at his mate in frustration. He jogged in exasperation from side to side never letting his gaze divert from the target in front of him.

“Just stay where you are and listen to me.” Callan spoke softly. The wolf stationed firmly on his position and bared his teeth in warning.

“I know I am at fault but trust me I never knew I had a mate or was supposed to have one.” Orcus huffed in response while Callan sighed before continuing “I always thought that I would end up being alone. It was the most scariest thought.” He whispered the last part. “I was desperate and impulsive and I agree that I should have waited. The feeling of being left out was overwhelming.”

Callan moved ahead towards the wolf “Now that I have you I will not think of any one else.”

Orcus bared his teeth and growled at his mate again and again. He impatiently strode back and forth, contemplating to jump over the cliff and lay his hands on the handsome man. However this behaviour from the wolf was making Callan furious. He shook his head and pursed his lips in anger “Lets establish one thing clearly. I know it is your nature to be the dominant and claim me. I have no objection to that. I just don’t abide by the rules for how its done.”

Orcus thumped his paw and growled again “You can be the dominant all you want but I will not submit to you. Never!”

Pure vexation marked Orcus’ face when he heard the words from his mate. He let an earth shattering growl and howled a long hoot. He brought his eyes to face the man and scowled with determination “If you think of it as a challenge so be it.” Callan grinded his teeth “But remember your true purpose. I disapprove the thought of me being used as a toy. I am my own self and I wont be owned by anyone.”

Both the beings stared at each other in defiance before Callan spoke menacingly “You have to accept me as I am otherwise... This All. Ends. Now!”

Orcus was stunned to hear those words from his mate. Never did he felt completely losing to someone so powerfully. He growled and circled himself. This wasn’t easy for him. His nature demanded him to be the upper hand, the better half, the dominant part of the bond. This required the handsome man to submit before him, however the most important aspect of the bond was the blessing bestowed upon by the moon goddess herself. He cared for his mate and wanted him in his life at any cost even if that meant that he had to go against his nature, he was willing to sacrifice his pride.

He stood there for some moments before folding his back legs and wiggling his tail. His figure shrank to his original size. He kept his determined look intact and the thought of seizing the handsome man was long gone “This wasn’t so hard now, was it?”

Callan slowly moved forward until his feet landed on the edge of the cliff. He took two measured steps towards the wolf before stretching his right hand forward. He carefully snuggled his palm to the mane of Orcus as the wolf purred in content “I like you too.”

Callan moved forward and caressed the wolf with both of his hands “Is it weird that I can understand you? I mean I understood Cornell as well..”

Hearing his mate talking about some other being in front of him brought the jealous side to the fore and the wolf growled. Callan retracted his hands and looked Orcus with a pinch of annoyance “He was my friend.”

The loss of contact frustrated the wolf. The warmth he felt was gone all of a sudden. With dejected eyes he lowered his head and cried a bit. His tail was flat on the ground while his ears were stretched backwards. Callan felt compassionate when he saw the depressed wolf and he sighed “Alright! Alright! I promise to always be with you.”

Callan rubbed his fingers gently on the thick mass of fur as the wolf whimpered in pleasure. The wolf leaned on the hands of the handsome man and bobbed his head in rhythm with Callan’s movement. Callan in his own trance moved ahead and rubbed his face against the nuzzle of the wolf. His smell felt unique and quite distinguished. Other than the wolves of his parents, Callan had never felt this cozy and comfortable with any other wolf. He closed his eyes and dreamily smiled at this new feeling

Callan was alert at once when the wolf stood on all his fours and pulled his tongue out. The organ contacted Callan’s flesh and the beautiful man was wet in the face “What are you doing?”

Without answering the man the wolf raised his fluffy tail and moved around his mate. He sniffed him vigorously from head to toe. Callan felt shy and embarrassed when the wolf stuck his nose between the legs of the handsome man. However the Elemental was shocked when all of a sudden the wolf raised one of his back legs “No! No! No more pissing.” Callan shook his head with vigour and retraced his steps. He looked fiercely at the wolf “You did do it once in front of the pack and that was enough.”

Orcus lowered his gaze again and hummed a soulful cry. Callan’s anger evaporated in an instant and he pursed his lips “Now how do I make you understand that I have no one in my life. Trust me!”

Callan approached the wolf and snuggled an arm around his large body. He gently brushed his fingers through the fur of his mane. “Lets just talk about ourselves.”

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The small open area still had the black look of the night but the sky was soon turning its colour into blue. The sun was still resolutely behind the horizon however the wolfs fur gleamed even without the rays of the orange globe. Callan sat with his knees folded while the wolf flopped down in a relaxing position. Callan at times was caressing the wolf or rubbing his hands over the body of Orcus but he never lost contact.

He had finally made peace with the wolf.

He wasn’t sure for how far he was successful in controlling the aggression of the wolf but he was certain that the wolf wont go berserk anytime soon. The entire night was blissful to say the least. Callan was able to communicate and establish a strong connection with Orcus.

Callan and Orcus lay there aloof from the tiring world. Happy besides each other. They were all smiles and without care.

The environment soon changed when Orcus stood up abruptly and growled.

“What is it?” Callan looked concerned

Orcus turned his face to meet the eyes of his mate “This is bad. Einar must not know our secret.”

The wolf pressed his body firmly with that of the handsome man and licked his face. Callan giggled with the sensitive touch and cupped the face of the wolf “Listen here Orcus. I can understand your feelings and I promise that I will see you soon.”

Orcus nuzzled his mane to the face and shoulder of the man “Yes I know but I am certain that Einar will mend his ways. Moreover he took years to built this wall around himself. It would take some time.”

The wolf growled and looked away “I don’t know Orcus. I think Einar should be given a chance.”

The wolf hummed his disappointment while Callan smiled at his childish behaviour “I promise to hold on to you this time.”

However soon Orcus turned his face to look into the sky. He bared his teeth in frustration and howled his agony. Callan stroked the back of Orcus “Can you hold him for a few more moments. Let me vanish from this spot and then you can relinquish your control.”

Callan carefully stood in front of his mate. He snaked his arms around the wolf and buried his face in its coat. The wolf reciprocated by leaning on the man and breathing deeply; inhaling the intoxicating smell one last time “It is good bye for now.”

Callan stepped back and hovered above the ground with a disheartened look on his face while the parting broke Orcus’ heart as his eyes welled up with the tears of longevity and sadness.

Callan could take it no more, he accelerated his speed and moved away from the wolf. Orcus on the other side watched the back of his mate diminishing and he lowered his head in dejection. He howled one last time before giving up his control to the human. Bones cracked and the fluffy mass was replaced by the human flesh.

Callan watched the scene unfold from a distance and waited for help to arrive. He used his powers to change the direction of the wind so as to reach the pack mates who must’ve been searching for Einar.

Soon a few men arrived at the scene and surrounded the naked, unconscious man.

“Einar.. Einar!” Garrick lightly slapped his best friend fervently in order to wake him up. He heaved a sigh of relief when the unconscious man painfully opened his eyes and moaned.

“My brain will explode Garrick.” Einar groaned and clutched his head. He slowly turned his skull all around in bewilderment “Where am I?”

“In the depths of the forest. We had to use the help of Tusker to track you down.”

Einar nodded a thanks to the man standing besides the beta and shifted his gaze back to his best friend “Does father know about any of this?”

“Unfortunately yes.”

Einar mentally slapped himself and shook his head “How many days has it been?”

“It was just yesterday.”

This caught Einar’s attention and he raised his head in a jiffy. In the past few encounters the muscular man had to suffer the brunt of the agonising shifting of his demon. However the decoction he consumed rendered him ineffective from fighting back or showing any resistance. The days that followed were suffered by the implications of the man’s self destructive measure.

But if what Garrick spoke was true then the former alpha had survived the wrath of the demon and woke up the very next day. Einar could feel his wolf inside him but he wasn’t restless or a trouble maker for the first time in months. What could have brought in this change? Was the demon forgiving or was the wolf powerful enough to overcome the affects of the liquid and finally help him? More importantly why did he feel calm and serene?

This questions baffled Einar from within and he looked at Garrick questioningly “How?”

Garrick shrugged “I am surprised as well.”

Garrick’s attention was diverted when Tusker tapped on his shoulders and tilted his head to the right indicating him to leave the place at once. Einar found this behaviour odd “What is wrong?”

“Something bad happened back in the pack.”

Einar didn’t question any further for the matter seemed grim. He could see the fallen faces of his warriors and deduced that an unfortunate event might’ve occurred.

Callan was afar at a distance watching the men carrying the limping and powerless body of Einar. The adventurous of last night had surely drained him off. He saw the men diminishing from his sight and decided to head back to the alpha house before any one got suspicious. He looked all around him and climbed a tree. He took long strides and jumped from the branch of one tree to another.

His movements were halted when he saw the men from earlier. What surprised him though was the diversion of path where the men were walking. This road was certainly not taking them to the alpha house.

Callan was curious.

Against the better judgement of his mind he decided to follow his pack mates. The painfully slow steps of the wolves was making Callan more and more anxious as the time passed by. He followed them to the end of the forest and stepped foot on the ground cautiously with alert eyes.

His mind was suggesting him to give up but he changed his decision when he heard a commotion. He looked all around and realised that he had travelled a long way not to the centre village where the alpha house was located but in fact he was in the western borders. More importantly the men were heading for his house. Soon the voices grew louder while Callan kept a comfortable distance eager to know the reason for so many people gathering outside his house.

With trepidation in his heart he braved himself to move ahead. The mass of people were all of a sudden silenced by the presence of the man. They kept gawking at him with an unknown expression.

Callan’s mouth was slightly open while his lips trembled in horror. He could see the people surrounding something or someone. The doors of his house were open while there was no sign of his parents. With fastened heartbeat and heavy footsteps he moved ahead only to witness a person lying in front of his door.

That person lay on the ground flat on her back; unmoving; motionless! The only moving parts of her lifeless body were the dangling hair strands which danced through her forehead. Her pale body was stiff. The warmth on her face long gone. Her lips turned blue and her eyes were wide open staring into nothing. The fear on her face was evident while the sides of her eyes had dried out all the tears caused by the pain.

Fat water beads rolled through Callan’s eyes and his breath got stuck. His lips moved but couldn’t form a word. He gasped loudly with a crushed heart “NO!”

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