Chapter 06: Found.
2188 Words
"Alright, what do you want to know?" Mia asked as she stepped into the apartment, followed closely by Amelia, who looked like she was about to burst with curiosity.
"Everything. I want to know everything!" Amelia clapped her hands, her pupils—dilated by the potion—reflecting the excitement bubbling inside her. "Are you really mates? How does he not know? Why doesn't he know? Why won’t you tell him? He loves you!"
"Okay." Mia pulled her onto the couch. "Let's take this one step at a time... Yes, we are fated mates. And he doesn't know because of this." She lifted her wrist, showing the bracelet.
"Your amulet?" Amelia poked at the stones, almost as if expecting some hidden power to spill out of them.
"It's a containment amulet," Mia said, focusing on the small onyx stones. "It keeps Tomas from feeling our connection."
"That's so sad." Amelia pouted, shaking her head, her reactions all over the place. "He loves you, Mia. Why are you doing this to him?"
Even though Mia knew she shouldn't take the comment personally—not just because Amelia was drugged, but because she didn’t know the whole story—she still felt a sting of offense. It was always like this with her and Tomas. She was always seen as the villain in their story when, in truth, she was just trying to protect herself.
"I found out we were mates when I was seventeen, just a few months after Tomas made that ridiculous bet about me..."
"Is that why you're so mad at him?" Amelia furrowed her brows. "Because of the bet?"
"No, Amy. I forgave him for that. I never actually said it to him, but... after the anger faded, I understood he was just being stupid—and that he really regretted it."
"Then I guess I don't understand..."
"When I was seventeen and starting to rebuild my friendship with Tomas, he got a visit from representatives of his family," she continued, ignoring Amelia’s rambling. "Two advisors and a priestess. The advisors hated me the moment they saw me, and they didn’t even try to hide it. The day they arrived, Tomas and I were hanging out at his place, waiting for Daniel so we could head to the training center. I wasn’t even supposed to be there, but my brother asked me to deliver something to Tomas, and I... well, I always took any excuse to be around him, even after the bet and everything. I guess I was just too naive to face reality..."
"You liked him!" Amelia exclaimed, as if she'd just uncovered some grand revelation.
Mia ignored her again—because what could she possibly say? That she hadn’t just liked him in the past, but had once been completely in love with him?
Well, no. She wouldn’t say that.
"The advisors took Tomas outside to talk, and I stayed inside with the priestess. She was... eerily calm, with those eyes that looked like they’d seen far too much in their lifetime..." Mia shook her head, pushing the woman’s image from her thoughts—white hair despite a youthful face, grayish-blue eyes that looked ancient, and a voice that never rose above a whisper.
"I was scared of the priestess, so I excused myself and said I’d make us some tea. But I was so nervous, I ended up spilling the tray all over myself, completely soaking my shirt—and that’s how she saw my mark." Mia absentmindedly brushed her fingers over her chest, right where the mark had always been—one she’d grown up believing was just a birthmark. "You know the Akello family carries a curse that affects certain members every few generations, right?"
She looked up at Amelia, hoping she’d drifted off again into that potion-induced haze—but no, she was wide awake, eyes locked on Mia, nodding eagerly.
"Well, there are a lot of details to this curse. One of them is that every cursed wolf has a fated mate. And those mates are born with a mark in the exact shape of their companion’s ancestral spirit symbol." She swallowed hard, almost reliving the same overwhelming feeling from all those years ago. "That’s how I found out we were mates. The priestess saw the mark on my chest, and she... she looked so moved." Mia shook her head, remembering her own rush of emotions—the way she’d been caught in a whirlwind of disbelief and pure joy so intense it had left her speechless for what felt like forever.
"Oh my God. That’s... incredible." Amelia leaned in. "But why do you look so sad now? I don’t get it. If you already forgave Tomas for the bet, why didn’t you tell him about your bond?"
"I tried to tell him. I was so... happy, I rushed out of the house, ready to ask how much longer he’d be in that meeting with the advisors because I had to share this with someone..." She bit her lip. No matter how many years had passed, no matter how deeply she’d buried her feelings for Tomas until they were completely gone, remembering that moment still hurt—and that, more than anything, irritated her. "I was getting closer to them—they were in the back garden—when I realized they were talking about me. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but I froze, and... I heard Tomas tell the advisors I was just a friend. And when one of them suggested I seemed to look at him differently, that I could make a fine candidate to be his mate someday, he laughed and asked if they seriously believed he’d ever bond with a half-blood who didn’t even have a wolf."
"Oh... my God." Amelia lifted a hand to her lips, shock washing over her features. "He would’ve rejected you? But how... I mean, I’m sure he likes you."
"Just like he likes any other woman he’s attracted to," Mia shrugged, forcing the conversation into the casual tone she wished it carried. "He might’ve slept with me, satisfied his curiosity, maybe even had an affair... But to be the mate of the great Alpha of the Akello clan?" She let out a bitter laugh, shaking her head. "Seems like a half-blood would never be good enough for that."
"Mia, I... I’m so sorry."
Amelia squeezed her hand, and Mia let her—even though a part of her wanted to pull away. She hated being pitied. That was precisely why she had never told anyone.
"You already..."
"Go ahead," Mia prompted when Amelia trailed off. "This is your one shot. After this, I won’t bring it up again."
"What I was going to say is... have you ever considered that he might regret it? He really does seem to love you."
"It doesn’t matter anymore." Her voice was firm. "I promised myself I’d never care that much again—never let someone have that kind of power over me. And that’s exactly what a mate bond does, doesn’t it? It opens you up to wounds that never fully heal."
"You’re never going to tell him," Amelia said softly, sorrow clouding her voice. "You’ll never let him get close enough."
"No." The certainty in Mia’s voice left no room for doubt.
"Mia..."
"It’s not worth the risk, Amy. People deserve second chances, and I gave Tomas one when he made that ridiculous bet. But this? I can’t forgive someone for a truth they didn’t have the courage to say out loud. If I hadn’t overheard that conversation with the advisors, I never would’ve known."
"He doesn’t know you heard?"
"No. And he never will. Got it?" Mia met her eyes, unwavering. "It doesn’t matter anymore. It won’t change what happened. I don’t love him, and I don’t want to be his mate."
"But Mia, maybe if he knew—"
"No." Her voice cut clean through the moment. "To him, I was just another game. And that’s fine. But I won’t let him claim me just because of some bond neither of us chose. I wouldn’t accept him as my mate—do you understand that? That’s why I wear the bracelet. To protect us both from a bond we never truly wanted."
"I..." Amelia bit her lip, clearly trying to make sense of it all. "I just don’t understand one thing... How did he never feel the connection? I mean, before the bracelet?"
"He didn’t have access to his wolf until he turned eighteen. It’s part of the curse. Normal shifters transform during adolescence, but cursed ones only shift when their bodies are strong enough to handle the wolf. Tomas wasn’t ready until twenty. And by the time his wolf finally awakened—the part of him that could sense the bond—I’d already been wearing the bracelet for years."
"Damn."
"Yeah." Mia stood, smoothing her dress as if it might iron out the ache still lodged beneath her ribs. "Any other questions?"
"I think... no."
"Good." She extended a hand and helped Amelia to her feet. "Now promise me you’ll never bring this up again. Not to anyone. Not even Daniel. And don’t try to interfere, not directly, not indirectly. Don’t try to fix this."
"Wow, do you really think I—"
"Promise me, Amy."
She trusted Amelia—knew her heart was in the right place. But she also knew that part of her, the dreamer, the one who believed love could solve everything.
"Fine. I promise." Amelia squeezed her hand again, her gaze serious but shadowed with sadness. "I’m really sorry for all of this."
"Don’t be." Mia shrugged. "I was never meant to be Luna of this pack. One way or another."
"Fate doesn’t make mistakes, Mia. He wouldn’t have been drawn to you if—"
"This time, fate got it wrong. Now come on. Let’s get some food in you, see if we can flush out the rest of that potion."
And as if sensing the conversation was truly over, Amelia nodded and followed her into the kitchen.
***
Later, in the quiet bedroom of Amelia’s apartment, Mia tucked a light blanket around her and sat at the edge of the bed, watching her friend’s peaceful face.
Talking about her past had felt like slow torture, but Mia had gotten through it. And thanks to the lingering effects of the potion, it hadn’t been hard to steer Amelia’s mind away from the heaviness of their conversation. Soon after, she’d drifted off—like a child who crashes after spending every ounce of energy at play.
Mia had removed her shoes, tied up her hair as best she could, and even convinced her to take a shower. Still, the scent of the potion clung stubbornly to the air, as if it were seeping from her pores. The thought made Mia shudder.
She could’ve lost control at that party.
What if she’d taken the potion? What if Tomas had gotten too close? What if—
But the flood of torturous what-ifs was cut short by the sound of Amelia’s phone ringing. Mia silenced the call before it could wake her.
It was Daniel, of course. No matter how strained things had been lately, Amelia was still his mate. He would always worry about her. He would always be willing to do anything for her.
When the phone rang again, Mia closed her eyes for a moment, picturing her brother. He deserved to know what had happened—partly because she couldn’t stand the thought of him worrying, and partly because she knew he wouldn’t stop until he heard from Amelia himself. If he didn’t get answers soon, he’d show up at the apartment.
She reached for her own phone and sent him a quick message, assuring him Amelia was safe and asking him to meet her in the garden behind the building in ten minutes.
This was something she needed to explain in person. She knew Daniel too well. And if there was even a chance he’d ingested the potion, it was safer to keep him far from Amelia right now.
Casting one last glance at her sleeping friend, Mia slipped out of the room.
The gardens behind the luxurious apartment complex Tomas’s family had secured for Amelia were vast—lush with towering trees and sprawling flowerbeds bursting with color. During the day, the view was breathtaking, a place where peace bloomed as vividly as the flowers. But at night—that night—the garden felt different.
Even with all the lights, it sent a chill through her. There was something in the air. A tension. A warning. Like the world was holding its breath...
A sharp crack of breaking branches snapped her out of her thoughts.
She’d wandered deeper into the garden, trusting Daniel would find her by scent. Mia turned, already rehearsing how she’d explain everything without sending him into a panic—already preparing herself to be calm for his sake.
But then she froze.
Because it wasn’t her brother standing across from her.
It was Tomas.
- Writer
