Page 3 of Their Beast Mate

Chapter 2

Zenor

Norem and I sat cross legged on the cold tile, in the bathroom that barely fit one of us. My right shoulder rubbed the wall, and my left one was an inch away from the cabinet under the sink. Norem squeezed in between the shower and me, with the toilet on his right. He talked me into trying to meditate before we met with Lore. This way we’d only seem a little clueless about what we're supposed to do in Mayhem's court.

Two week ago, Lers, our healer, ran the annual physical on us and reported sporadic moments where we could see into each other's minds—something we'd already discovered. Alpha Beast sent us to Mayhem’s court, to practice meditation, a skill his hunters applied before a hunt.

The first time my brother and I connected, I was trying to have sex in the beast compound when he busted inside my mind and told me not to, because he’d already banged that girl. We honored a code; we did not share women.

For the next ten years, intrusions into each other’s minds happened but not intentionally. Alpha Beast believed Mayhem and his hunters could help us establish a deliberate link, which no other beasts had done before us.

So my twin brother and I arrived early and sat on the bathroom floor, noise cancellation earplugs in our ears. We attempted meditating, to be better prepared for Lore, Mayhem's right-hand beast, and not to make asses of ourselves.

My mind ran a mile a minute, and I'd be surprised if meditation worked for me. I'd never been one to sit still, unlike Norem, who could spend days guarding the empty fortress that was to become Alpha Beast's home. Guarding a building from a pod was boring, to say the least, when the only thing you had to do was monitor the screen that showed empty rooms and a bunch of workers painting walls. Norem thought it a great gig, while I got up every half an hour to do sit ups, pushups, jump in place, and such. Sometimes I danced. That was how desperate I felt in closed quarters.

I opened my left eye.

Across from me, not a single muscle twitched on Norem's body. Just looking at him all serene and calm made me want to jump through the roof. I bet he'd cleared his mind and thought of nothing.

"Norem." I removed my ear plugs and nudged his knee.

He wagged his finger.

I nudged him again.

"Mayhem said this requires a quiet environment, so we may connect to our inner selves."

"My inner self wants to crawl out," I said. He couldn't hear me, so I pulled the plug out of his left ear.

Norem sighed but kept his eyes closed. "We agreed we're gonna try. Five minutes, Zenor. Five fucking minutes of peace."

"I gotta ask you something, though."

"Ask."

"If your mind is clear, you're not thinking anything."

"Correct."

"So if I enter your mind, how the hell do I know I'm there? It's clear. Wouldn't it be better if you thought of something, so that I knew it was your thought and not mine? Kind of like the one time I was gonna tap that ass and you cock-blocked me."

"I'm thinking something now," he said. "Can you see it?"

"No. Think harder."

"Mm-hm."

"Are you thinking it?"

"Yes."

"What is it?"

"My fist connecting with your jaw." Norem plugged his ear again.

"I'm laughing my ass off." I cracked my neck and closed my eyes. Ah wait. Forgot the ear buds. I took the small tech and popped it in place. Right before I put the other one in, I heard a faint sound. Humming. I tilted my head, and my ear twitched. Definitely humming. Well, I’d better check it out. Norem stayed down, not hearing a thing. I didn't bother him. He wouldn't even know I'd left; he looked in some sort of a trance. It dawned on me I should be in a trance too but hey, humming from the bedroom, when the room should be empty, signaled a possible intruder. I would defend us. Solo.

I opened the door and came out.