Teaser Tuesday

It feels like a while since I did Teaser Tuesday. Today's post, unfortunately, is not from Shadow. I have been taking a mini-vacation from writing and I haven't gotten anything done. I plan to continue writing after I read two more chapters of Wuthering Heights. I really can't seem to put it down.

But anyways, this snippet is from Elysium, my tentatively titled paranormal romance. This scene needs a lot of work and it will probably change drastically when I finish writing the book and get to editing.

Background story: Grace Claire was conceived by two werewolf parents but strangely she doesn't have the gene. This saddens her mother, and so she leaves, leaving Grace and her brother, Sebastian, to be raised in the Pack. Sebastian is a werewolf and he hates humans, so he really doesn't like Grace. He also doesn't like that Grace is dating Leo, who is a were-wolf.

There's more to the story than that but that's all you need to know for now. Oh and excuse the horrible dialog. I really need to make this a scene a bit more emotional. What do you guys think?

The night was absent of stars and amongst the whistle of the leaves and the chirping of crickets, howls as sad as willows could be heard. Somewhere in the distance, my brothers were mourning my father. They were running the lands he traveled, smelling the air he breathed, while I sat on a bench with my knees pressed against my chest, tears becoming permanent marks on my jeans. This was how I mourned. Alone in the dark, biting my lips and holding my heart, rocking back and forth, to keep from exploding.

The wind whipped through my hair and then there was a light in the darkness. A four-legged figure emerged from the forest. I knew by the golden tan fur wrapped around his massive muscles, that it was Leo. Slowly, he transformed before me, his claws exchanging themselves for hands and feet. In human form, I could see redness surrounding his irises. I could see the grave look on his face, as if he had just lost his own father.

I turned my head away, suddenly ashamed of my pain. My father was did and it was all my fault. Another loud sob fell out into the air. In two large strides Leo was before me, pulling me to him.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, against my forehead. His caresses made everything worse. He should hate me as much as everyone else did. He should be trying to make my life a living Hell, instead of comforting me. I shrank away from him, which only made him hold me tighter. He kept telling me that I shouldn't blame myself but he didn't know what it was like to be human, to be stupid.

Some time, between the tears and the guilt, Leo carried me to my room and laid me down in my bed. We lay there together, my face buried in his bare chest, inhaling the minty scent of his skin. He ran his hand through my hair over and over again, humming softly to me.
"This is all my..." I started, closing my eyes. And then he moved from under me so fast, my heart didn't even get a chance to beat.
"Stop punishing yourself, Grace. I know you're upset...I know you just lost your father, but please stop punishing yourself."
"I can't. It was my fault. I shouldn't have..."
Leo was sitting on the edge of my twin sized bed, staring down at me. His eyes now illuminated by the lamp light, were filled with a pain that mirrored both anger and pity. This made the blood in my veins boil. I wanted to scream, throw something, hit something until I felt numb, until I couldn't feel anything, not even my heart. I wanted all my thoughts and feelings to cease so that I could fall into oblivion-die.
"I shouldn't have said what I said."
"Sebastian...made you angry."
"But that doesn't justify me telling him that he was the reason Jane killed herself. He loved her...and I just shouldn't have said it."

Jane was the only person that could get my brother to smile but she couldn't get pregnant and that frustrated Sebastian. He was next in line to the throne and if he couldn't produce an heir, then he wouldn't be the right leader for the pack. I didn't understand any of it but getting a woman knocked up was highly respected and if he, the leader, couldn't do it, then he was weak and therefore, not fit to be Alpha. Jane was found in the forest, dead, her body hidden underneath fallen leaves. She shot herself in the chest and bled to death.

Sebastian was the one to find her and I knew that he was hurt. I just wanted him to feel worse and to speak the truth, even if it's only in my head, I enjoyed seeing him writhe in pain. There was some part of me that felt bad for saying what I said, but I did not know how strong, how potent that part was.

My father was furious with me. He wanted me to apologize but I couldn't. I can still remember the look in my brother's eyes. Lost, empty, as if he just lost a piece of his soul. He had muttered something about not wanting to live, and stormed out into the night. My father ran after him, only to run into some vampire looking for a brawl. If I hadn't said anything in the first place, my father would be home, alive.

Leo tried to hold me again, but I pushed away from him, not wanting any of his comfort. I just didn't deserve it. The tears were coming, the pain and the anger and the hatred I held for myself, Sebastian, everyone in the Pack erupted inside of me. And I couldn't take it any longer. I started hitting him. Each blow hurt as my fist crashed against his hard chest. And he just stared at me, taking it. I was sobbing but there was no rain falling. I just wanted the pain to disappear.

Suddenly, his hands made make-shift manacles around my wrist and then I was paralyzed, forced to look into his eyes. His gaze was crazed and yet they made me bury my head into his chest. He let go of me and kissed the top of my forehead. We sat like that for a while, listening to the night; our hearts beating in sync.