Chapter 5
1373 Words
“The one I saved…” I took a deep breath. “He had icy grey eyes.”
She shot up from the sofa as if she had seen a ghost. The color drained from her face. “What. Are. You. Talking. About?” She rushed to me and sook me hard as if trying to put some sense into me. “Are you on something?”
Honestly, I couldn’t blame her my first reaction had been the same. She yanked me again little harder than last time. “The one with the icy grey eyes, the one you saved. The butchers of our pack! How could you cheat on us, Scarlett? How could you?”
That’s right. He was from the Frostbane pack. Most precisely, he was Alpha Ace Craige. Only he had those eyes; no one has that color. He was born on a blood moon, which somehow caused this mutation. He had soulless eyes with a rotten heart.
I shushed her and tried to soothe her. “Aunt! I didn’t know who he was. I didn’t even see his eyes when I saved him.”
Her only reaction was to slap her hand over her wide-open mouth, but to my surprise, she recovered quickly. She sat beside me and held my hands tightly. “What’s done is done. This is the perfect chance you need to tell him you saved him. If you get into that pack… You can wipe them out completely.”
“I can’t tell him that I saved him. I can’t,” I shook my head.
She frowned, visibly displeased with my reply. “Why can’t you?”
I clutched my hands. My heartbeat raced like crazy all of a sudden. It was some kind of foreign feeling for me, as if my lungs forgot to breathe “B-Because he is my mate.”
This time, she showed no reaction at all, as if she had been expecting it.
I continued, “I’ve sensed him as my mate, and maybe he’s sensed me too. If I admit I saved him, he’ll know the truth. And I can’t accept him. What I’m saying is… W-We should proceed with mate rejection.”
The moment those words left my mouth, pain shot through my chest. My heart felt like it was being torn apart. I knew the Moon Goddess was angry. Mate rejection was like defying her will.
“Are you out of your senses?!” my aunt snapped. “You’ll end up losing all your powers. Without them, we can’t avenge our pack!”
She wasn’t wrong. My whole life, I had lived for revenge. But fate had other plans for me. From the very beginning, I was fated to be my enemy.
“What other option do we have?” I whispered.
Her eyes lit up with a strange fire. “You know what? I have a plan more hurtful than rejection. Rejection wounds you both. But this plan… this plan will only hurt him.”
Curiosity stirred inside me. “What plan?”
Her lips curled up to the most evil smile, “Moonbane Stone. Have you ever heard of it?”
I shook my head.
“It’s a rare stone that numbs the mate pull. If you wear it and face him, he won’t sense you as his mate.”
I have never in my life heard about a stone of such powers. How is that even possible for such a thing to exist? Do all the wolves know about this? Do…my thoughts were disrupted when my aunt snapped her fingers in front of me, “Back to earth, Scarlett.”
“But in order to activate that stone, you need to get your mate's blood. Otherwise, It is not possible.”
I blinked, completely confused. “How am I supposed to get his blood? It’s not that I’m scared of him… it’s just that if I go near him, he’ll recognize me instantly. Then our whole plan will fail.”
She raised a hand, signaling me to calm down. “Don’t worry. I’ve been collecting Scarlettria Blossoms every full moon for moments like this. Once dried and burned, their smoke weakens the mate bond for three to four hours.”
She looked straight at me. “I’ll burn them. I don’t want him sensing you.”
I nodded, still processing everything, and was about to ask how exactly I was supposed to get that bastard’s blood when she stood up and walked toward the kitchen.
“Follow me,” she said. “We’ll discuss the plan there.”
Once inside, she spoke while burning the leaves.
“Every year, there’s a wolf gathering where different packs are invited. Your parents attended it too.” Her voice cracked, tears filling her eyes, but she wiped them away quickly.
“I’ve arranged an invitation. You’ll go there. The rest… You already know how to handle.”
She placed the smoking leaves in front of me.
“Scarlett, this is our only chance. The mate thing came unexpectedly, but we won’t let it control us. We will stick to the plan.”
Tears burned my eyes as I hugged her tightly.
“I know, Aunt,” I whispered. “I’ll destroy that bastard and his rotten pack. I promise.”
My fists clenched on their own. I swore to God I would kill him with my own hands.
Our moment broke when my phone rang. Emmy’s name flashed on the screen.
“Scarlett, do you have the phone?” Emmy’s worried voice came through.
“Yes,” I replied. “Meet me at our usual place tomorrow.”
*****
“I don’t know how to thank you,” Emmy said, gripping my hand. “You’re my savior.”
She was my best friend, my only family besides my aunt.
I reached into my bag for my phone… and froze.
It wasn’t there.
Then it hit me.
I had dropped it in the forest. I’d been completely naked when I reached home. I facepalmed myself. How could I be this stupid? I was just about to tell Emmy everything when the restaurant door opened. A tall man with tanned skin and sharp eyes walked in.
“Is there anyone here named Miss Emmy?” he asked, drawing everyone’s attention.
Emmy stood up, confused. “M-Me.”
The man said nothing. He turned and walked out.
Emmy sat back down slowly. “What was that about?” she asked.
I had no answer.
Minutes later, the door opened again.
This time, two men entered.
The second one made the first look small.
He was massive with broad shoulders, a powerful build, a sharp jawline, and light stubble covering his face. Then my eyes locked onto his.
Icy grey.
Soulless.
My hands clenched under the table. My jaw tightened.
He took two long strides and stopped in front of our table.
“Are you Emmy?” he asked, looking at her.
She nodded.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a phone.
Emmy’s phone.
Both our eyes widened, but I forced myself to stay calm.
“Is this yours?” he asked.
His voice made the whole room vibrate. It sent a wave of nausea through me. Thanks to the aunt he couldn’t sense me. I believe that the Moon Goddess hated me enough to choose this monster as my mate.
“Yes,” Emmy stuttered. “I-It’s mine.”
Suddenly, he leaned closer and sniffed her.
Emmy flinched, frozen in shock.
“Did you by any chance save me last night?” he asked, staring straight into her eyes.
No.
No, you bastard.
I saved you. I regretted it. I regretted it so deeply that it kept me awake all night. My heart ached for my parents, for my pack, for myself.
He turned to the man beside him and whispered, but my heightened senses caught every word.
“She’s not the one from last night. We need to find her. Immediately.”
Without saying anything, he tossed the phone onto the table and turned to leave. Just as he was about to exit, he stopped and looked back. This time, his icy grey eyes locked onto me.
- Writer
