Dangerous Territory

Epilogue

Bateman and Wellington had built themselves up to be gods in their own eyes.

Only, before they could reconsider their stance, the ladder was swept from underneath their feet, sending them hurling towards the ground.

Their pride had caused their destruction and countless others had fallen with them.

It turned out, Mala was right about Irongate in some ways.

It was impossible to break out of.

Funny thing was, she hadn't needed to break out. Rather, she had been able to walk right out the front doors with an army of free shifters behind her.

She felt like she was finally living up to her name's sake.

Malandra Alastriona Bates: defender.

The pitter-patter of rain outside the café was soothing to her ears.

After being isolated from society for a week, she appreciated the background noise of busy life even more than she had before. Every chatter and whisper and giggle in the distance, the rain and the birds and the cars driving past, the slurping of tea and clattering of cutlery and sniffing of runny noses were like music to her ears.

She could only imagine how Auden was feeling.

She was pressed against his side on the outside chair of the booth, cuddling against him and simultaneously shielding him from the world, though she was smaller in height. He was finding it more difficult to adjust to the noise and the natural light and general presence of humans, flinching and looking around warily at the crowds.

But he was happy.

She knew it as he smiled down at her and commented on how good the hot chocolate was before delicately pressing his lips against hers.

He was slowly starting to integrate, eat more and talk to other people in more pleasant tones than suspicious growls, though he refused to cut his hair or trim his beard and still preferred baggy clothes to jeans and fitted tops.

Mala was just glad to be with him. No matter how he looked or acted.

"The compensation has finally come through."

Mala glanced over the table to Blake who was half sat on Jon's lap. The girl had spoken the words so robotically that Mala almost hadn't realised it was her who spoke.

She had refused to go to a hairdresser to get her pixie cut shaped properly but had convinced Jon to buzz of the entirety of her hair. The buzz cut look suited her and Jon liked it too, the man hardly able to stay a minute without rubbing his hand over her head like it was a crystal ball.

"Ours too." Mala responded. "Just this morning."

A very nice check had been delivered to her dad's house with the due compensation. As expected, and rightfully so, Auden's check had been much larger than hers. They would be set for a long time.

As well as the money, Auden had also been assigned a therapist to make the rehabilitation into normal life easier for him. The years of drugs and abuse had left a mental mark, more than a physical. The man who he was seeing was doing a good job. Mala liked him.

"Hey, Jon?" She said suddenly, remembering something. "What ever happened to your guy?"

Jon removed his attention from Blake's head to Mala's question, crinkling his eyebrows as he thought back. "Oh." He exclaimed. "The break out guy. Well, he had just gotten into the system when the courts got involved so I spent about ten grand on nothing. But... it all turned out good in the end."

Mala agreed.

Jon snickered, "though the community service sucks."

"I can imagine." Auden said, dryly.

Jon and Mattheus had been sentenced to six months of community service. Mala knew they had gotten off lightly. As far as the law was concerned, they'd had their part to play as well, being in charge of the cameras yet doing nothing when they saw the abuse.

It was Blake who had reduced Jon's punishment, and Mitchel from SRLP who had reduced Mattheus'. Otherwise, the two of them probably would have been looking at a couple years' worth of jail time, just because of association.

"Cam's here." Mala announced, just as the door to the café opened and cold air came swirling in.

Auden made a noise. "How did you know?"

She winked at him. "It's called having eyes, darling."

He rolled his eyes at her.

Cameron reached the table and was swept in a tight hug by Mala, and then Blake, and then Auden and Jon were joining the huddle too- although Jon seemed more preoccupied with making sure he was plastered against his mate than anything else.

When they finished hugging and broke apart, Cameron was flooded with words of thanks and gratitude until he grinned and looked at the floor, waving them off with slight embarrassment.

"I get it guys." He laughed. "Your thanks have been duly noted."

They all sat back down, making room for Cameron to squeeze in at the end of the booth.

"So, what's next for you?" Mala asked him.

"I've been put on a fast track to detective position," he told them, sounding pleased. "So, over the next couple years I'll be working along the head at the station. I've also had offers to do private work across the country, it's insane."

"That's amazing." She squealed, patting him on the back. "I'm so proud of you, Cam."

"Thanks." He looked bashful, "what about you?"

She beamed at him and leaned into Auden's side. "Well, I'm twelve weeks along now." Auden's chest started rumbling and he placed a hand over her stomach, rubbing it affectionately. "So me and Auden are going to set a date for the wedding before I'm too big to fit into my dress."

Cameron whistled. "Damn, Mala. I'm happy it's all working out for you."

She looked up at Auden, "me too."

Auden looked back at her and smiled, the world fading away until it was only them.

"I love you." He told her, reaching down to take her hand. "And I love you." He said, looking down at where his other hand was still on her stomach, placed over the second heartbeat.

"We love you too, Auden."

"Yeah. We love you too, Auden." Cameron mimicked in a high, weedy voice before pretending to gag. "Reminder: some of us are single and miserable around here."

"Oh shut up, Cam."

The End.

We have officially reached the end of Dangerous Territory. 

This book was inspired by a werewolf story I saw on Wattpad a few years ago- it had about three parts and was never completed, but it was a similar premise on finding a mate in prison. 

Trivia: This was the first ever Wattpad book I planned from start to finish before I actually began writing. (Even though chapter 12 was WAAY off script).

Anyway, thanks for the reads, likes and comments. The last five, or so, chapters are largely unedited so apologies for errors but I hope you enjoyed!

Off to the next book, I guess!

Jade X