CHAPTER 7
1069 Words
I turned my head fast. It felt like my neck was going to crack but I didn't care. The sharp pain only lasted a second before it went away, replaced by a shock that spread through my chest like ice water.
He stood there calm and confident like he'd just won something. Like he'd been waiting for this moment. Waiting for me to mess up and give him a chance.
He couldn't possibly remember.
No, there was no way. Those memories were mine and the Kaleb's. Not this stranger who looked like him, who wasn't him.
Kaleb ran his fingers through his hair and chuckled. The sound made something unpleasant crawl up my spine, something that felt much like fear.
"We found the wood when we were hanging out in the forest, " he said, his voice steady. "You had said the wood had a shade of brown you liked. We took it. Went to the waterfall near the cliff on the forest side."
My breath hitched for a moment.
I still had the ring clutched in my sweaty palm, the edges digging into my skin. It was my weapon, my proof, the one thing I thought would show he was a fake.
But now, it wasn't looking like it.
"We wanted to carve something out of the wood but couldn't decide what to carve " he said, tilting his head slightly watching me with those eyes that seemed to see right through me. "So we decided to carve a ring. You said it was easier just to carve a circle and make a hole inside it. That way we could have matching rings."
I couldn't move, couldn't breathe, couldn't do anything. Stand there like an i***t with my mouth open and my heart pounding.
"I suggested carving it because I thought I could do it better, " he said, a smile on his face showed he was just happy to remember. "But we didn't bring any chisels so we soaked the wood in the stream. We thought the water would make it softer that way, then we left."
Stop, please stop. I was fighting the urge to not yell it out.
My fingers trembled around the ring. This wasn't possible. None of this was possible.
"A few days later. I don't know how many days though…We came back to the stream with the carving tools we took from the people who built the training equipment " he said, his voice dropping slightly becoming more intimate. ". We started carving our rings."
There was silence.
The kind of silence that feels heavy like a blanket smothering everything. The guards by the alphas house had stopped pretending not to watch. I could feel their stares on my back but I didn't care.
I stared at Kalebs face searching for any crack in his composure. Any sign that someone had fed him these details. Any flicker of uncertainty that would prove he was guessing.
His expression was open, almost gentle. Like he was revisiting a memory instead of tearing down my walls.
How?
The only other person who knew as much as Kaleb and I knew was his babysitter, a woman who'd watched him when we were kids. She'd disappeared around the time Kaleb did.
I'd already ruled her out years ago. She was. No one knew where she'd gone or what had happened to her.
Unless she'd come back. Told Kaleb all about that afternoon...
No.
I was grasping at straws because the alternative was too scary to think about.
My chest felt tight like someone had wrapped ropes around my ribs and was pulling them tight. I didn't want to admit he was right. I didn't want to give him that satisfaction. I didn't want to look at his face and see anything more than a stranger.
So I started walking away without saying another word.
‘Just leave, go, put distance between you and him before you do something stupid.’ My wolf whispered.
His hand caught mine before I could take three steps.
"Now do you believe me?"
His fingers wrapped around my wrist. Not tight enough to hurt but firm enough that I couldn't easily pull away. His skin was warm against mine. I didn't want to snatch my hand partly because I didn't want him to think he'd gotten to me and partly because...
Something about his touch made me feel calm.
My heart pounded heavily. The tightness in my chest loosened. My thoughts, which had been racing suddenly felt clearer.
No, I don't get to feel calm around him. I don't get to feel anything around him.
I turned to face him. Really looked at his features for the first time since he'd come back.
His dark eyes were sharper, more intense and framed by lashes. His jaw was squarer, his frame taller and his presence larger than the space he occupied.
There was something in his eyes. Something that looked painfully like affection. That made my chest ache.
Maybe I shouldn't be so harsh towards him.
The thought slipped in before I could stop it.
Maybe he's telling the truth.
Maybe he really is Kaleb.
Maybe I've been cruel to someone who doesn't deserve it.
But that line of thinking led to places I wasn't ready to go. Places that would require me to apologize, to lower my walls to let someone in.
So I shoved the thought down. Hardened my expression.
"I still don't believe you're my brother, " I said, looking down at the ground. "You could have gotten this information from anywhere."
The excuse sounded weak and lame to my own ears.
"At least you let me touch you now."
My head snapped up. I snatched my hands away, my face hardening.
"Stay away from me."
I moved back preparing to leave. My heart was pounding fast and my thoughts were a tangled mess of confusion and guilt.
The apartment. I'll go to the apartment, lock the door, sit in the dark and figure out what to do.
Then I paused.
Garrett's voice was urgent in my mind.
‘Ashley, where are you?’
I swallowed hard trying to steady my breathing.
‘Near the alphas house. Why?’
‘Stay there, I'm coming to you. The meeting just ended.’
‘What about the meeting? What happened?’
‘There was a pause.’
‘I'll explain when I get there. Just... Don't go anywhere.’
- Writer
