The Defiant Claim - The Claim: Book 2 [LGBTQ+]
Chapter 24 - Mik (Part 2)

A thin layer of ice coated the walls and the corner Mik pissed and shit in and was hosed down every so often—maybe once a day, he couldn’t be sure. The cells stank even more with the frozen moisture and lingering odors of excrements.

At least they let him stay in his wolf form to keep warm. There was no heat in the basement and the subzero temperatures would have probably killed him slowly in his human form. He wasn’t chained to the ground like last time, but a pronged collar embedded with silver was around his neck and chained to the floor.

All but the really deep wounds from his fight with Noodin had healed. He licked them clean but his heart ached. He knew he was no match against the older male but at least he made it clear that he wouldn’t go down without a fight. At least he had that little bit of dignity to hold onto.

He missed Sam. He missed his smell. He missed the comfort his presence brought, even though he had been unconscious. He missed talking to him even though he couldn’t talk back, pretending he could hear him and understand where he was coming from and that he was trying. Trying to be there for him. Trying to take care of him. Trying to be more than the worthless piece of shit that he was.

He saw it coming though, and he didn’t blame him when Sam rejected him. He deserved it. Sam deserved better.

Trying wasn’t good enough.

All he ever did was fuck up. Fuck up and fuck around. Those were the only two things he was good at—that he excelled at.

And Sam deserved better.

The front door upstairs opened and murmuring voices were heard over the boots thumping on the floor overhead.

Boots and a wheelchair.

His ears perked up.

Sam?

Standing up, his tail began to wag. He lifted his nose and dragged air into his lungs, trying to replace Sam’s scent. He strained his ears for any hint to indicate that it was Sam above. He heard Noodin’s voice and Luna Aki talking with the guard and working together to get the person in the wheelchair into the cabin, but the fourth person was silent. Rapid heartbeats drummed indistinguishably from the others, giving him no further information.

He knew. Deep down, he knew that Sam was in that wheelchair. Who else would come to this place in the middle of nowhere in a wheelchair?

He threw his head back and howled, the chain tugging on the collar and digging the prongs through his fur and pinching his neck.

He heard a whimper upstairs—it sounded like Sam. Mik’s tail wagged harder and he threw his head back again in a howl, his soul calling out to his mate.

The wheelchair was locked into place overhead while Noodin’s boots tromped across the floorboards to the staircase.

“Yes, yes, I’m coming,” the older male said as he pulled the door open and began his descent.

When he stepped in front of Mik’s cell, key in hand, he said, “I’m sure you’ve figured out why we are here. Sam wants to talk. I will remove the collar so you can shift and speak but as soon as you’ve shifted, I’m putting handcuffs on. You’re still a prisoner unless otherwise stated. If you run or attack anyone, I will come after you. Understood?”

Mik plunked his rump next to the door and pawed at it. His ears were folded back in submission as he waited for Noodin to put the key into the lock and turn it. He waited for Noodin to open the door. Caution mirrored his movements as if he was half expecting Mik to attack or bolt. No points would be scored if Mik tried to screw around with Noodin—not with him or Sam. If he stood a chance at all now with Sam, he had to be good.

Opening the door, Noodin stepped into the cell and removed the collar. Mik lowered his head and shifted, crouching down at the older male’s feet. A blanket was draped over his shoulders before his wrists were shackled. Noodin held the end of the chain in his hands and led him out of the basement and up the stairs.

Mik could smell Sam’s anxiety at the top of the stairs—pungent as ever—before he even got a look at him.

The sun was lowering in the sky, illuminating the room in a warm glow from the small windows, and casting shadows across the Luna and Sam in a wheelchair at her side.

Noodin pushed him down to his knees in a stream of sunlight. Head bowed, he pulled the blanket tighter around his shoulders as best as he could with his wrists constrained together.

“Do you want some privacy, Sam?” Luna Aki asked, rubbing her small but growing belly, her winter coat unzipped.

“Yes, please,” he mumbled.

Mik couldn’t read his face in the shadows but he could see that his neck was still in a brace. His heartbeat thundered in Mik’s ears,

“Okay, we’ll be outside. Holler if you need anything.”

The older pair zipped up their coats and left, closing the door behind them with a creak of the rusty hinges.

Mik looked behind him to see the end of the chain resting on the scuffed wooden floor, loose. Turning away from it toward Sam, he took a deep breath, staring at the floor between them.

“I’m sorry.”

“I know you are. Doesn’t change anything, though.”

Sam’s voice was soft but heavy in tone. Dejected. As if he didn’t want to talk about this but had to.

“How long have I been down there?”

“A week.”

“Are they taking care of you? Luna and Alpha?”

“Of course.”

“How are you doing?”

“Fine.”

These short answers made Mik nervous. His palms began to sweat as he clutched the blanket around him. No wonder Sam was so anxious when they first met. Mik responded in the same manner and when he wasn’t curt, he was aggressive, demanding, and threatening.

“I’m sorry,” he said again as he reflected on those first few days.

“I know. You said that already.”

“No, I mean, I’m sorry for making you so anxious in the beginning. All I did was demand, threaten, and give short answers—like you’re doing right now—and it’s making me nervous.”

Sam’s heart picked up its pace as his scent shifted, flustered. “Oh... sorry. Yeah, I...”

Looking up, Mik tried to replace Sam’s eyes in the shadows, but could only see his teeth rake over his bottom lip where light and darkness met.

“And I yelled at you when you stammered. Insulted you. And even though I treated you like shit, all you wanted was a chance. A chance for us. And like the selfish prick I was...” He swallowed, lowering his head and clenching his eyes shut. “I fucked it all up.”

That’s all I ever do.