Never Leave, A Human Mate - (Book 2 The Mist Series)

~Chapter 12 - Cold Hearts~

~Reece~

Dawn was still lost in the clutches of her nightmare, a soft whimper escaping her lips as she burrowed deeper into my arms. The tremor that ran through her fragile frame was a stark reminder of the cruel twist of fate the Moon Goddess had dealt us. A human mate. Sickly. Dawn. My Dawn.

My heart was a battlefield. Anger raged against the Goddess for bestowing her blessing in such a twisted form. Gratitude warred with the bitterness, for Dawn was a blessing. Hurt knifed through me at the thought of losing her, while overwhelming love threatened to drown me in its depths. How dare the Goddess gift me a future only to snatch it away with the same breath? How dare she do this to me!

“Maybe she gave us Dawn for a reason…” Donte said with a heartfelt whimper. “Maybe we can heal her… Are we sure marking her won’t save her?”

“I’m sure.” I ran a calloused hand over Dawn’s angelic face, her skin so pale. “We can’t force the mark on her unless she wills it, Donte. And even then… it might only buy us time. She’s human. The Goddess’ magic… it might not be enough.”

Donte howled, a sound ripped from the depths of his soul. “This is unfair!”

He wasn’t wrong. It was a cosmic joke, a cruel game played with our very existence. I pressed a kiss to Dawn’s hair, inhaling the sweet, intoxicating scent that was uniquely hers. A wave of longing crashed over me. “What I wouldn’t give to make love to her right now… to show her, to prove to her she is my future, no matter how short.”

“Dad,” Kingston’s voice sliced through the mental fog I’d been trapped in, a beacon in the encroaching darkness. “I know you’re busy, but… we might have a way to save Dawn.”

The words hit me like a jolt of pure adrenaline. “What?” I carefully, achingly, peeled my arm away from Dawn’s frail form. I practically teleported to the edge of the bed.

Donte perked up, his ears twitching with rapt attention. “How? Tell me.”

“Backyard. Now,” Kingston insisted, urgency bleeding into his tone. “We’re going to call upon the Moon Goddess…”

My gut clenched. “I can’t leave Dawn.” I risked a glance back at her. The terrifying twitching had ceased, but the thought of abandoning her, even for a moment, felt like ripping a hole in my own chest.

“We can save Dawn, Dad,” Kingston pressed, his voice bubbling with barely contained excitement. “We can give her… a wolf.”

A shiver ran down my spine. “That could actually work,” Donte rumbled, his entire body vibrating with agreement. The idea was insane, desperate, but a flicker of hope ignited within me.

“Okay, okay, give me a minute,” I sighed, dragging in a shaky breath. I leaned down, brushing a kiss against her forehead. “I’ll be back soon, sweetheart…” I whispered, my voice thick with emotion. “We’re going to save you. I promise.”

I yanked on a shirt, tiptoed out of the room, and gently eased the door shut. The possibility, however fragile, of giving Dawn a fighting chance sent a dizzying rush through me.

I bolted from the packhouse, one last desperate glance back at the closed door, and raced towards the backyard. There, bathed in the eerie glow of a dozen flickering red candles, stood Agatha, arms raised high in supplication. Behind her, Kingston, George, Louise, and Joseph formed a silent, hopeful guard.

“How is this going to work?” I asked, taking everything in.

“We’re going to do a reverse soul removal…well, something like that,” George mumbled, shoving his hands deep into his pockets, looking as uncomfortable as I felt.

“We’re going to call on the Moon Goddess and beg for her help,” Louise clarified, sensing my confusion. Her voice held a tremor I mirrored.

My gaze darted around the circle, taking in the makeshift altar, the nervous energy radiating from my friends. Was this a fool’s errand? Would the ancient celestial being even acknowledge Dawn’s plight?

“How are we going to do that?” I asked, scrubbing a hand through my hair.

Agatha stood. She stepped forward, her eyes gleaming in the candlelight. She gestured at me, her expression unreadable. “You’re going to do it.”

“Me?” My voice cracked.

“Yep,” she said, pointing to the heart of the circle. “Stand in there and…call to her. Let her feel the pain, the sheer, gut-wrenching agony. They have a thing about heartbroken werewolves,” she shrugged, a flicker of cynical amusement in her eyes. “I think they have a god complex.”

“Or she loves her children,” Louise added softly, though a hint of apprehension coloured her tone. She reached for Joseph’s hand, her eyes finding mine. “Reece, in my last lifetime, I was Faith, and Faith loved this man called Zachariah…”

“And Zachariah was me,” Joseph finished, a gentle smile gracing his lips. “The Moon Goddess came down and saved me when Faith called for help. It was her pain that brought the Sun Goddess down. It might work for you the same way.”

“I’ll do it…” I said, stepping into the circle. “If it means saving Dawn, I’ll do just about anything…”

“We will leave you to it…” George said, nodding at me. “This needs to come from your heart. We can’t interfere.”

“I understand,” I nodded, “But can someone please monitor Dawn?”

“I will,” Louise promised, her hand squeezing Joseph’s. “I’ll head up there now and watch her.”

“Thank you…” I said, sinking to the ground, crossing my legs, and waiting for them to leave

Once alone, I sat in the centre of the circle, surrounded by the flickering, dancing candles, their flames a warning of the storm gathering on the horizon. Behind me, the trees creaked and groaned in the rising wind. In the distance, I could hear the frantic scurry of wild animals, the urgent buzzing of insects, all sensing the imminent shift in the world. I closed my eyes, and Dawn’s beautiful face filled my mind. Time to beg.

Now’s the time… I breathed, the words tasting like ash.

“Let’s call her…” Donte’s voice, thick with unshed tears, cracked inside my head.

“Moon Goddess…” I roared, channelling every ounce of my being into the cry, cupping my hands to amplify the sound. “Moon Goddess, I plead for your help! I must save Dawn, my second chance mate, from her disease!”

Tears streamed down my face, hot, angry rivers carving paths across my skin. The memory of Dawn’s wide, brown eyes meeting mine from the bonnet of her car, the scent of freshly baked cookies that clung to her, the way her lips curved upward in a silent, nervous smile—it was all a miracle I couldn’t bear to lose. The way my granddaughter took to her instantly, a silent, unbreakable bond forged in seconds… all signs that Dawn wasn’t just a companion, but a destiny.

“Please, help her…” I pleaded, my hand pressed against my chest, trying to contain the agonizing ache. The pain was a physical presence, sharper than the moment I’d found her hidden medication. It was a shard of ice lodged deep in my soul.

“Please!” Donte pleaded, tilting his face towards the sky. “Please, Moon Goddess… We lost one of our true loves eighteen years ago… We need Dawn… We need our second chance mate!”

Silence. The wind continued its assault on the trees, the candles stubbornly flickered, but no divine intervention answered our desperate cries.

Sobbing, I curled into myself, pulling my knees to my chest, burying my face in the fabric of my shirt. “I can’t leave her like this…” I choked out, the words muffled. “I can’t live without her!”

Abruptly, the wind ceased its howling, its brutal grip on the trees loosening. The cacophony of the night receded, leaving an oppressive, unnerving stillness. A strange sensation bloomed within me, a heavyweight settling in my chest. It was as if something was listening… or perhaps something was changing.

I looked up as she materialised. A shimmer in the darkness coalesced into a woman, as translucent as mist clinging to a graveyard. Her dress flowed around her like captured starlight, each fold echoing the cosmos. Hair, the colour of a moonless night, was piled high in an elegant updo, framing a narrow face with delicate curls that whispered secrets. It was her. The Moon Goddess.

Instinctively, Donte, my wolf, bowed his head in reverence. A hopeful whine eluded him as he padded closer to me, intrigued by the ethereal visitor.

“Donte has always been very respectful.” Her voice was a breath of cool air, light and wispy. She placed a hand over her heart, a gesture of affection. “I adore all my children, but Donte was always a favourite of mine…”

Donte smiled and panted happily.

“You came…” I choked out, scrambling to my feet. I bowed, desperate. “Moon Goddess, can you help Dawn?”

The Moon Goddess’s gaze was unnervingly intense, as if she were dissecting my soul with a glance. She circled me slowly, her eyes following the flickering dance of the candles I’d placed around Dawn. When she seemed satisfied with her inspection, she stopped, folding her arms serenely. “What can you offer me in return?”

“I’m sorry, what?” My jaw dropped. “I’m begging you to save my mate, the second chance you gave me, from dying… What could I possibly give you that you don’t already possess?”

She listened, but her expression remained distant, almost bored.

“I don’t mean to be disrespectful, Goddess, but I don’t understand.” A flicker of frustration ignited within me, fuelled by her detached aura. “You send me Dawn… a beautiful, sick human, give me a glimpse of love again… then she dies, and I’m left with nothing but ash. How is that fair?”

A smirk played on her lips, a cruel twist that suggested this wasn’t the first time she’d delivered such a blow. “Reece White, what makes you think I brought Dawn here?”

The skin between my brows tightened, forming a deep furrow. “Someone did, and I imprinted on her the moment I smelled her. My wolf chose her. You know how it works.”

She nodded, her arms still folded, an unsettling anticipation radiating from her. “I tend to be… behind those moments. Not intentionally, mind you, but yes, I am the reason you imprinted on Dawn.”

Rage surged through me, hot and primal. Where was her empathy? Was the Sun Goddess, her sister, this cold and uncaring?

“She is not all sunshine and rainbows, despite appearances,” the Moon Goddess replied, her voice losing some of its ethereal quality, laced with a subtle tension. She’d heard my thought. “My little sister thinks she is, but she has her moments.”

“I’m sorry, Moon Goddess,” I exhaled, struggling to contain my rising anger. “But see it from my point of view… I can’t face losing another mate. It will break me.”

She brought a slender finger to her lips, lost in thought for what felt like an eternity. My heart hammered against my ribs, an erratic rhythm of hope and dread.

Finally, she lowered her hand. “What are you willing to trade?”

“Trade?” I rubbed my throbbing head. “I doubt I have anything you want or need, for that matter. But if you…”

“I need a few things…” She said, stepping closer, her eyes gleaming with an unsettling intensity. “I need fighters, strong and ever-faithful fighters.”

“You have that, my Goddess… We’re all fighters.”

“Not like that…” She shook her head, her gaze piercing. “I need fighters that will fight for me when I call…”

“I will fight for you…” I met her emotionless gaze, unwavering. “If that’s what you want, I will fight for you whenever you call…”

“I know you will,” she said matter-of-factly, dismissing my offer. “But the foe I face will need more than simply you.” A shadow fell over her features, darkening her eyes. “When the time comes, I want fresh, tough warriors to defend me against my enemy. It may happen ten years from now or a hundred years from now, but the time will come.”

“What can I possibly offer you in a hundred years?” I frowned, confused. “I didn’t know werewolves lived beyond a decade or so.”

“They don’t…”

“Then I don’t—”

“I know what you can give me…” She leaned forward so our faces were inches from each other, her breath cold against my skin. “I want one of your children…”

I gasped, taking a step back. “No, I can’t give you Kingston or Matilda… They mean everything to me!”

“Not them…” She straightened, shaking her head. “I want you to promise me a warrior child from each generation. I want them trained to fight by age sixteen. Male or female, I don’t mind…”

My hand flew to my head, a wave of dizziness washing over me. “That’s a monstrous price! I can’t just… sign away my family line! What about Anya? She’s my granddaughter!”

The Moon Goddess stood impassively. “I will not accept that half-breed… She is more witch than wolf!”

“That’s my grandchild you’re disrespecting!” I snarled, my wolf rising to the surface, ready to defend his own.

Her face remained unchanged, the smirk embedding deeper into her face. “If I give a wolf to Dawn, I want the next generation from your first child.”

I was speechless, trapped in a horrifying dilemma. She was forcing me to sacrifice my future family for her own gain! A shiver ran down my spine. Maybe Agatha, the pack witch, was right. The Moon Goddess was sadistic.

“You love Dawn, don’t you?”

“Yes,” I growled, the word ripped from my throat. “But you’re asking something I can’t do!”

“You will have more children…” she said, turning away to look up at the packhouse. “If I give Dawn one of my beloved souls, she will be strong, youthful, and powerful. I won’t give her just any random soul…” She turned back to me. “But you need to give me your word! And you will train and prepare them, and they will train and prepare the next generation, and so on until the time comes.”

I glanced up at the packhouse, tears streaming down my face. The fragile hope I’d dared to cling to shattered into a million pieces. Without Dawn, my life would be a hollow shell. But with Dawn, I would find happiness, build a future, raise pups I would love with every fibre of my being. But knowing that I would have to sacrifice one as a warrior and one of my future grandchildren to her beck and call… it was a soul-crushing weight. I pictured Dawn’s radiant smile, the joy that filled her eyes when she drew her whimsical pictures.

“Dawn will be your future…” The Moon Goddess whispered, her voice a deceptive caress. “Do you want to lose her before you can love her?”

Something in my chest tore. My body shuddered as I knelt before the celestial being, bowing my head in defeat. “I, Reece White, swear to train my future child and grandchild to be a powerful warrior to fight for the Moon Goddess when she calls upon me. And when the time comes, they will train their future children.” I looked up, my eyes burning with unshed tears. “You have my word! Now, can you save my mate?”

“Done!” she said with a curt nod, her expression unreadable. Then, with a final shimmer, she vanished into the night, leaving me alone with the weight of my impossible promise.

“Reece, you need to get here quickly!” Luna Louise’s panicked voice echoed in my mind. “Something is happening!”