"No?" my master sounded confused. "No, what?"
"I won’t be taking up this job. You can give it to someone else."
Another long stretch of silence as he searched my face as if he was looking for clues to my sudden rebellion. This was the first time I was acting .
"Kael, is everything alright? Are the therapy sessions getting to you?"
I didn’t answer. I was scared that if I opened my mouth, I might reveal everything to him. About the mate bond, about Charis’s true identity, about the way she trembled in her sleep when she slept. Instead, I turned and walked toward the exit.
"Kael, stop!" my master called after me, but I kept walking.
I reached the door and tried to open it, but it was locked from the outside. Of course it was. I turned back to face him, my voice dropping to the cold, emotionless tone I’d perfected over years of training.
"Ask them to open the door."
"Not until you explain your erratic behaviour. What’s going on, Kael?"
"I don’t need to explain anything to you," I said. "And don’t act like you don’t know anything about that man."
"Alpha Silas? What about him?"
His confusion seemed genuine, but I’d learned long ago not to trust appearances in this business. I turned back to the door and rattled it again, putting all my frustration into the handle.
After what felt like an eternity, I heard the locks disengaging. The door swung open, and I stepped through without looking back.
My master followed me out.
"I’ll assume someone pissed you off today," he called after me. "Come back in two days’ time, in the evening, and we’ll bring you up to date with the progress of finding Charis Greye. Take care now, Kael."
I didn’t say a word as I continued walking. I was bursting with anger, and I was afraid for Charis. Given my master’s extensive network and resources, he might be able to figure out Eamon was Charis within a week.
I needed to figure out how I could protect the woman I loved from theorganisationn I’d sworn my life to.
As I reached the forest, I shifted into my wolf and started the long run back to the Academy.
By the time I arrived at Ravenshore, it was already dark.
I slipped through my secret entrance, a hidden, loose section of the perimeter fence behind the old football field. I’d discovered this route during my first week here, and it had helped me a lot in going out and coming into the Academy.
After walking a safe distance from the fence and into the Academy grounds, I turned on my phone.
As soon as I turned it on, my phone began to vibrate, flooding with missed calls and messages. But before I could even begin to sort through them, the phone rang in my hands. Charis’s name flashed on the screen. I didn’t even think, I just picked up. Google seaʀᴄh NovᴇlFɪre.ɴet
"Kael?" she sounded breathless.
Hearing her voice after the torture of looking on while she was arrested nearly brought me to my knees."
"H-hello?" I asked with scepticism.
"Oh, moons, Kael. Are you alright? Where are you? Your phone’s been switched off."
The concern in her voice, the way she was worried about me when she was the one who’d been arrested, accused wrongly and locked away. My chest tightened.
"Charis, aren’t you supposed to be in detention?" I managed to ask, but my voice was rougher than I intended.
"I’m out of there. Rhett and his dad helped. They were able to get me bailed until the trial."
Relief surged through me, and I felt dizzy for a second, so I stopped walking for a minute to fight the dizziness. I nodded even though she couldn’t see me as I felt my throat tighten again.
"Where are you now?" I finally managed.
"At Rhett’s house," she supplied. "I’ll be staying here until after the trial. It’s a long story and I’ll tell you everything when I see you. Will you come now?" she asked.
"Yes," I nodded again. "I’m on my way. Do you want me to get you anything at all?" I asked.
"Nothing," she replied. "Just come."
I practically ran the rest of the way across the Academy to Rhett’s house.
After a guard let me in, I walked briskly past the foyer, into the sitting room, and there she was.
She was sitting cross-legged on the couch, staring at the TV with a soft smile. She noticed my presence and looked up.
"Hey!" she said, smiling and waving at me.
Without any other words, I crossed the room in three strides and wrapped my arms around her, holding her so tight I thought I might crush her.
She chuckled softly, patting my back in that awkward way she did when emotions overwhelmed her, but I felt her arms tighten around me, too.
When I finally managed to pull back enough to look at her face, her expression shifted to concern. She reached up, using her thumb to brush at something at the corner of my eye.
"You’re crying, Kael," she said quietly, like she was sharing a secret.
I laughed shakily and caught her hand, pressing warm kisses to the back of each one.
"I’m so sorry, Charis," I whispered, as more tears ran down my cheeks. "I couldn’t protect you. I’ve never felt as helpless as I did this morning. I’m so ashamed of myself that I couldn’t be the man you desired at that moment."
More tears flowed down my cheeks, and I didn’t try to fight it. I leaned against her, as my shoulders shook from crying. From the corner of my eyes, I see Rhett and Slater entering the room, but I couldn’t care less, all my focus was on the woman in front of me.
"It’s not your fault," she murmured, moving closer and wrapping her hands around me this time. "It’s no one’s fault, okay? Someone is trying to frame me. I didn’t do any of those things they said I did, and Alpha Terry has promised to get me the best lawyers, don’t worry."
She didn’t understand what I wasapologisingig for and the decisions I’d taken in my heart. How could she? She had no idea that her father was out there right now, paying a hundred million dollars to find her.
She didn’t know that my entireorganisationin was beingmobilisedid to hunt her down. She didn’t know that every second she spent here, she was exposed and brought her closer to being dragged back to the life she’d risked everything to escape.
But I had to protect her, whether she understood the danger or not. Whether she wanted my protection or not.
I cupped her face in my hands, leaning in before I could stop myself as I kissed her desperately.
She was everything. My mate, my salvation, my reason for existing, and I would burn the world down before I let anyone take her away.
Her hands came around my neck as she returned the kiss.
Suddenly, Rhett’s voice rang.
"That’s not fair, Kael. "She’s tired and needs to rest."
Slater was beside him, shooting a glare at me. "You cannot keep dominating like she belongs to you alone.
I ignored them, rising to my feet with Charis’s hand in mine. I wanted to be with her alone.
"Where are you taking her?" Rhett asked, blocking our path. "Don’t do thi,s Kael. You cannot..."
"Where else?" I interrupted him. "I just need to be with her for a while."
"What about us?" Slater asked, moving forward to try to pry our joined hands apart. "We also want to be with her, but we know enough to know that she’s tired. Give her a break, Kael."
"Boys," Charis sighed, and I could hear the exasperation mixed with affection in her voice. "I told you, fighting and bickering all the time would never change anything. Just let Kael be, and he’s allowed to have alone time with me."
"Kael is the favourite one?" Slater hissed. "You’re always choosing him over us. We’re all your mates, Charis. I want to be held too, I want to be kissed and loved up all the time, but you seem to be focused on only him, and that’s not cool."
"He wants to tell me something, Slater," she said quietly. "Besides, I haven’t accepted any bond yet. Leaving both of you alone for a few minutes won’t kill you."
With that declaration, she pushed past both Rhett and Slater toward the back door, her small hand still firmly clasped in mine.
I felt slightly victorious,, but even then, my heart broke knowing that what I had to tell her would shatter the peace she was trying so hard to maintain.
As we stepped out into the night air, I knew that everything was about to change. The conversation we were about to have would either save us all or destroy us. But there was no choice anymore.
The hunters were closing in, and the only way to protect her was to tell her the truth.
Even if it meant losing her trust forever.