Audrey chose to make herself scarce before Deckard returned from wherever it was he'd disappeared to.
And yes, to exercise her strong sense of defiance, she decided to embark on a hunger strike.
"Come on, Wifey." Tristan teased. "You've got to eat."
"Not hungry." She definitely was hungry. "And, to prevent further mistakes, I'm not your wifey."
The devilish grin spread over his face. "You prefer Mate?"
Trembling with what she hoped was frustration, she packed up the residues of her dignity and started up the stairs to her room…prison cell.
"I know what game you're playing, Mate."
"I'm ok with just Audrey."
"Too boring."
"Just the way I like things." She turned around. The remaining words vanished from her lips.
She had not heard him climbing the stairs behind her. Now there was only a step or two between them, providing enough elevation to make her eye level with him.
He raised an eyebrow, obviously aware of the effects his proximity wrought to her senses. "You were saying?"
"I...I don't do games. I find them a waste of time."
His arms, strong and defined under his sleeved shirt, folded over his chest but the smile never wavered. "It's your wedding night after all. It's okay for you to want your dinner in bed."
"Oh, you mean the wedding you disrupted?"
"No, the one I commandeered." He completed the remaining steps between them, now succeeding in looming over her. "Seriously though, you need to eat. You've had an agreeably divine but stressful day. You almost ended up as chicken fodder for Dark Creek pack."
"What's the story there? Devil princess and her brood seemed hostile towards you two. I hate to say we have that in common, but I'm curious."
"Story for another day, love. I was talking about food? Sustenance?"
"Not hungry. Have a bad night." She made to turn away but Tristan wouldn't let her have the last words.
"You're free to ransack the fridge for leftovers when you feel like it." His thumb delicately passed over the outlines of her lips.
"Kitchen's yours, too. Good night, love." Mischievous grin still intact, he backtracted, eyes pinned on her until he was out of sight.
"I'm not your love!" Audrey shouted down the stairs. A free chuckle was all she got in reply.
Feeling giddy and unnerved for reasons she didn't want to acknowledge, she hurried to the room and bolted the door shut behind her.
Her better judgement was already frayed thin by Tristan's presence and, although she hated to admit it, his charm. Any further encounters with him tonight would not fare well for her.
Deckard, on the other hand, was a whole different ballgame. Beyond her control, to be exact.
Tristan had been right about one thing, though. Two things, actually, if she considered her growling stomach.
She was tired. The events of the last twenty-four hours sumed up into her most horrible and stressful day ever. She didn't get up to a minute of rolling around on the soft bed before sleep ceased her.
As was usual for Audrey, snarling beasts and harrowing screams of pain took charge of her dreams, causing her to toss and turn from how vivid they were.
When she woke up a couple of hours later covered in cold sweat, she couldn't remember what the nightmare had been all about no matter how much she tried.
Added to her discomfort was the dull ache at the center of her stomach. Hunger pains, to be exact.
"Not the way I imagined my wedding night going." She mused more in defeat than sadness.
No amount of tears would change the way her day and night had turned out. Besides, she was too empty to give out anything more tonight.
She stared down her body, at the beautiful wedding dress Marissa had made for her, now soiled and uncomfortably heavy on her. Evidence of her terrible day. She couldn't stand any more second in it.
Looking around the room, she spied a vanity cabinet of drawers on the other side of the bed. Tucked just beside the shelf, a little out of sight.
Inside one of the drawers, she found a black shirt and dark green cargo shorts, the pair too big for her slight frame.
Snagging a towel from the mix, she headed into the bathroom. Opting for the bathtub instead of a cold shower, she filled the vast basin with mercifully warm water before slipping in.
With her head submerged just below the water, she could cry freely without shame. She allowed herself time to sob. To release the pain and frustration.
But once she got out, her mind resumed calculating her next move. As she entered the big clothers, she considered all her options.
She'd tried to escape. Fat good that did her. She'd almost ended up as a shoo toy for rabid wolves. Strike out for the woods.
What other choice did she have?
Her stomach growled. She needed food. Sustenance, as Tristan called it. Maybe eating something would do her brain some good.
She was almost at the door when a strange noise drew her attention. A quiet shuffling just outside her window.
Dread creeped down her throat as she ambled towards the window. It was wide open, letting in a chilling wind. Had it been close before? She couldn't remember.
At first she saw nothing. Her mind relaxed a little before a form filled the window.
She flinched in shock, and would've landed painfully on the floor if not for the strong arms that reached out to steady her.
The texture and strength of them was familiar. She would recognize the feel of them even in the darkest of nights.
"Nickolas?"
Though tall and athletically built, he easily slipped through the relatively small opening to stand before her.
"Audrey."
"Nickolas?" She couldn't believe it.
He drew her to his chest, wrapping her in his warmth. "I'm so sorry, Audrey. I should've come earlier. I shouldn't have let them take you."
He smelled like home. Like peace and comfort. Like love. He held her until her body stopped shaking before pulling away to stare into her face.
"Please forgive me, Audrey. I should've fought for you."
"There's nothing you could've done. They're your Alphas. You're bound by blood to submit to them."
"Still, I couldn't protect you."
She leaned forward. Their lips met. She wanted to kiss him forever. To stay bound in his arms for eternity. To feel his warmth and breath his air till her last moment.
But images of Deckard and Tristan flooded her mind. Tearing those werewolves apart like mere paper. Deckard punching through a tree. Tristan moving as fast as lightning.
She pulled away.
"What are you doing here?" Her voice trembled with fear. "You shouldn't be here! They'll kill you."
He held her face delicately in his hands. "I can't live without you, Audrey."
"I can't exist without you too, Nick." She touched his shoulders, feeling the sinewy muscles underneath. "But they won't let me go."
Determination clouded all other emotions on his face. "Then we must escape. Together."