Soul Mates

Chapter 16

Mary-Katheryn

I watch Alpha Jacob keep on pacing after his statement, then looks to me and shakes his head to keep on pacing the length of his office.

"There must be something we are missing." He says and I look at Ms Nomonde maybe she has a clue as to what is going on with the Alpha.

"Hhmm." I sigh cauz she has wide eyes on me and her hand still covering her face. "Umm." Well this is awkward. Alpha Jacob is pacing. Ms Nomonde's wide eyes are on me, and both of them are quiet not saying what is wrong.

"Is it okay for me to leave? I promise not to take the book again." I say as I get up to leave.

"Sit down." Alpha Jacob growls at me. I'm really getting fed up with his attitude.

"Alpha Jacob, I may be new to your pack but I am a shifter like you. Not an actual dog. So please calm your tone." I say as I sit down.

I look to him expectantly but he ignores me and keeps on pacing. "Sorry my dear. We are just surprised about what you can do, and my son our Alpha, is not handling it well." Ms Nomonde says brushing my arm and looking to Alpha Jacob.

"There is something you never told us about yourself. Who are you running from? You said it's a forced mating. Is he really your mate or is someone else your mate? Have you met your mate?"

The questions pour out of him so fast I can hardly keep up with what he said. "Didn't catch that." I say looking around the room. I don't want to explain about my mating situation.

I myself know nothing about Jason or Dominic. What if I tell them who I am running from and they actually know him, and call him to come here. I cant let Dominic find me. I'm still not ready for him yet.

And with Jason I know nothing about him. Only that he and his parents moved to our pack last year and they are pretty quiet people. They don't like to stand out. Unless Alpha Jacob wants me to talk about how handsome Jason is. With his big brown eyes that are always inviting and can see all of me. With those big fluffy pink lips that just dare you to kiss them. His smooth light brown skin that reminds me of the most tasty chocolate. His tall frame that is all muscles.

Yeah, I could keep going but I don't think that is what they are talking about.

"Okay, I'll say it slow. Who are you running from?" This time he comes back and sits on his chair then stares at me waiting for my answer.

Feeling uncomfortable, I fidget on my sit but keep quiet and look to the garden passed his desk.

"Honey, I promise no-one will hurt you here. You are safe. You can tell us who you are running from." After Ms Nomonde said that, I looked at Alpha Jacob pointedly.

He growls at me. "Jacob! Dont worry dear, he is all growl and no bite." Ms Nomonde says.

If she wasn't here, this would be going in a whole different direction, but I still cant say anything, I need more time.

Ms Nomonde glares at Alpha Jacob. After some time he clears his throat. "Okay I'm sorry. I wont growl at you anymore. So who are you running from?"

His apology is kind of laughable with the hard edge to his tone.

"Please. I need more time. I cant tell you yet, I feel like if I say his name put loud. I'll call him here." I say pleading with Ms Nomonde.

"This place is secure as I said before. For us to know how our security was breached we need to know more about you. Who is your mate?" Alpha Jacob says to me firmly.

"Alpha Jacob, I'm sorry but I can't. I can't do that yet. I'm afraid he's going to find me" I say. I looked pleadingly at him, but I could see that Alpha Jacob wasn't going to be swayed by what I said.

"Katherine trust us please, for you to have entered our clan house is a gift to us. So believe me when I say you are safe here." says Ms Nomonde rubbing my arms like shes warding away the cold.

Tears fill up my eyes because I feel like they don't believe me when I say something's going to happen. I take a deep breath to fortify myself.

"Remember... remember the first day I came here. When you didn't want me to enter your house. Well when I got to my room. I found a letter from the person I'm running away from. And that tells me that he will be able to enter this place and find me. So I'm sorry but I can't tell you his name yet. I can't tell you who my mate is. The only thing about my mate that I know is that he moved to our pack two years ago. Nothing more, nothing less. He never talked to me. He only told me a few weeks ago that he's my mate. Before that, I only had a crush on him because I didn't even know he was my mate. I just turned 17 last month. So please, I'm begging you. Don't make me tell you who's after me, because the person after me, is also after my twin sister. And is trying to make both of us mate to their family. It's going to be much worse for us, you'll be able to sit here in your protective place, but me and my family are going to be in trouble. Already my brother's missing, but my stepfather says he's..." I widen my eyes and put a hand over my mouth mortified of my word vomit.

I feel tears prickle my eyes. I stand up in a rush, with tears flowing down my face and quickly exit the office with Ms. Nomonde, shouting behind me for me to stop. But I wouldn't stop. I ran and ran until my heart stopped beating so fast. When I looked up, around where I had ran to. I saw that I was in the forest again. Oh my god, I ran to the forest again. I hope, since I'm alone, that those shadows won't come again.

This is so so so wrong. Why am I here running again? Why can't they leave it alone. I know that they need to know what's going on, but for me. For me this is too much, I already found a letter from Dominic saying he would find me. I cannot make it easy for him to find me. I know they say that I should trust them, but I don't know them, and they don't know me and if it so happens that they know Dominic and they tell him. My life is over and I feel like I have to wait for Jason to come for me, Jason will know what to do. Jason will take care of me.

I hear footsteps coming near me. I pick up my head a little and see Alpha Jacob. I look at him and say, "Please Alpha Jacob. Just let me stay and train. Then I'll tell you who I'm running away from. But before that, let me become stronger. Strong enough to take him on. Let me wait for my mate. I have a feeling my mate will come for me" I look at him giving my best scared helpless look.

"So please, please let me stay." He looks at me with this look in his eye like he's trying to read me.

Then he nods his head. "Fine. I'll leave it alone. But know this, this clan needs to come first. This clan needs to be protected. We were already attacked once. And I won't let it happen again. And if you bring bad to us. I will make sure you regret even crossing our magical border." he says with his growl back.

I look at him surprised. Magic. "You guys used magic?"

He gives me a patronizing look.

"Really?" I ask again.

"Yes. That's what we kept on telling you. You are safe here." he finally answers and starts to walk back to the house.

I get up wipe my tears and try to catch up to him.

"We have a barrier that protects us against people who don't belong in this clan. That's why we kept on asking you who your mate was, because only people who belong to the Jackson clan are able to pass those wards and get into the clan house." He says to me. I can practically feel the derision in his voice.

"As I told you before, I belong to the White Crescent Pack. My mate belongs to the White Crescent Pack. The other person I am running away from is not part of the Jackson clan as well. His line is a long one full of brutal Alphas, and maybe a Beta or two, but still in that pack going decades back. So I know he's not from the Jackson clan. So maybe your wards don't work anymore." He looks at me and says

"That's not possible. But to be safe we should get the Magicians to come and check it out. Maybe this spell has run its course." I want to laugh at him.

I want to laugh at him because Magicians don't travel this far. Magicians usually like to stay in their own continent. They believe in not socializing with the lesser species and people who turn into animals, are a lesser species to them. So how can Alpha Jacob believe that Magicians have actually secured his clan to be truly protected.

But this sort of explains the rooms. How my room is exactly the same as the one at home. Well minus my sister. But it does not explain the note. I really need to ask them about that. I cant keep living with people I don't trust.

"Batsembe. Batokusita." Those words come to me with a gust of wind that's passing.

"Did you hear that?" I say as I pick up my pace to match Alpha Jacob's.

"Not this again." I hear Alpha Jacob mumble. "No, I hear nothing. Like the last time. No-one is here." As he says that, his face turns from annoyed to curiosity. "Tell me, this voices you hear, what do they say to you?" He says slowing his pace down a little.

"I don't know. They speak to me in another language like..." I say as it dawns on me that Ms Nomonde usually speaks the language of the shadows.

Infact this whole clan speaks this language. I'll have to ask Siphesihle or Beta Nhlakanipho what these words mean.

"Like who?" Alpha Jacob asks.

"Oh... I don't remember, it slipped my mind."

He growls and starts to walk again. "You know you will have to trust us at some point." He says moving out of the forest to the clan house.

*****

Translation

Batsembe. Batokusita. = Trust them. They can help you.