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CHAPTER 19
AXEL
During my morning jog I received a message from Cassius instructing me to meet him in his office. The sun had barely peered over the horizon and dewdrops still glistened on the grass. I’d been running for almost an hour and was on my way back when the link mercifully disrupted my thoughts.
He’d been firm, to the point and left no room for argument. Great qualities for an Alpha, but not so much for a brother. Not that he had been one to me since that night. I didn’t blame him; I wouldn’t want me as a brother either.
In the past years, training had become my salvation, the only thing keeping me sane. Sure, sharing my body helped chase away the shadows for an hour or two, but it was short-lived. A mere distraction. I never stayed longer than necessary, sneaking out or simply leaving when the deed was done. Secrecy wasn’t necessary - they used me just as much as I used them. It was a mutual agreement. They got to have a bit of fun, and I could forget for a while.
My mind was my worst enemy. I had no control over it and thoughts and feelings bombarded me at any time. Sometimes without cause or triggers. I was handicapped by it. Weakened. A permanent mask of indifference had found its way onto my face. It was the only way I knew how to cope, how to keep people at a distance without feeling guilty for it. They knew I cared about nothing but my own pleasure, and I preferred it that way. I had no interest in relationships and my brother’s rejection was a blessing.
Knocking on his office’ door three times, I winked at a she-wolf passing by and waited for permission to enter. Instead of yelling through the door like he usually did when he expected me, Chase - his Beta - opened and gestured for me to come in. I eyed him as I strode in and heard the door shut behind us. Sinking down into one of Cassius’s comfy leather chairs, I realised that this was not a casual visit. The silence was unusual, even for Cas.
“Sup, Bro?” I asked, plastering on a grin and propping my feet on the coffee table. A grumble escaped Chase’s throat and he bumped my feet off as he moved past, taking a seat in the other chair next to mine.
I kept my eyes on the cocky Beta as Cassius announced, “I have news on Lily.”
He might as well have smacked me with a brick. Lily. It could only mean one thing, the bond, it must have shattered. I closed my eyes, sitting dead still. No. Don’t say it, please don’t say it.
“I felt a stir in the bond yesterday.”
A stir. My eyes flashed to his, mouth drying up and falling open. “What do you mean, a stir? What kind of stir?”
He rubbed at his temples, exhaling loudly. “Like a ripple of emotion. I really don’t know how to explain it.” Cassius’s green serious eyes darkened a shade and the permanent wrinkle between his brows deepened.
“Have you tried making contact?” I leaned forward, resting both elbows onto my knees. Lily? I sent through the link, but no response came.
“I’ve been trying all night. The bond’s fragile, she’s either too weak to respond or too far away from us.”
“But it’s still there, right? It wasn’t a shatter?”
We locked eyes then. “It wasn’t a shatter.”
This was torture. Absolute torture. We still had no clue as to where to start looking.
“Have you told Raiden yet?”
Cassius shook his head. “I don’t want to get involved in that.”
“What do you mean, ‘that’?” A frown had already settled on my face.
He sighed and turned to gaze out of the window.
“Brother?”
“Raiden has chosen a new Luna for his pack. We received a formal letter last week, inviting us to the mating ceremony.” A heavy weight pressed down on me as his words sunk in. “They’ve been pressing him for almost three years to choose a worthy mate from his own pack.”
I didn’t want to hear this. Slumping forward, I buried my head in my hands, tugging at my hair. If Lily wasn’t dead yet, this would certainly destroy her.
MATHEW
The next morning, as I finished breakfast, the link came through that our newest visitor was awake. I’d ordered Blade Rock’s medical staff to attend to her needs, but not to converse with her in any way until I was present. I needed to know every word coming from her mouth.
I’d barely slept, my mind running wild with possible hidden agendas. I needed to know where she’d come from and what she was doing in my territory. Today I’d get my answers, one way or another. I wouldn’t be losing another night’s rest because of her.
Linking my Beta, we met up in the voyeur again and continued down the hall to her room. Nodding to the guard posted outside, he opened room13’s door and a nurse, a different one than yesterday, walked out. The familiar smell of antiseptic hit my senses with a heavy pang, but I didn’t let it show. Instead, I masked myself with a face of apathy. She was a threat, and she was in the wrong place.
Upon entering, my eyes fell on hers immediately and my steps slowed. She was sitting in an upright position, with a mountain of soft pillows keeping her upright. The harsh bruise on her face seemed darker than the day before, stark in comparison to her pale blue eyes. The latter large and weary as they scanned me.
