Chasing A Runaway Mate

Chapter 10

Kat

The rug in front of the window was becoming the worst for the wear as Kat paced to and fro, her mobile phone in hand. She had decided to sit down and have dinner with Rose, Alex, Isabella and some of the other pack members when she and Rose returned. As usual, dinner was loud and boisterous and served as the perfect distraction as she tried to calm her nerves. However, now that Kat was back in her room and the time had come to phone Anton, those pesky nerves came out again.

As certain as Kat was about her next move, she was still nervous about leaving home. She was born at the pack hospital and spent her whole life there. Sure, she had ventured out to the city occasionally once she turned eighteen, but she had the comfort of returning home at the end of the night. Now she was about to move, not just out of the pack-house, but away from everything and everyone she knows and loves.

The clouds outside her window parted and revealed an almost full moon. Taking a steadying breath, Kat stopped and looked out at the rare treat. It had been either raining or overcast for the last three weeks. The moon's absence had made seeing it now seem special and significant. Kat never gave the moon goddess much thought. She wasn't even sure she existed. She knew there was magic in their world and a force which drew mates together. She just wasn't sure she believed that a 'moon goddess' was responsible for it all.

Mates.

A thought occurred to Kat then. Was she nervous about leaving because she was secretly doing so to be closer to Wren? Was training at the Council something she really wanted? Or were her choices and thoughts now forever skewed because she had met her mate? Something Rose said earlier to her mother made her pause. Rose had said that this decision, this path, might lead Kat to knowing what her purpose is in this world.

Yes, that felt right. Kat would hold on to that when she questioned herself again in the days and weeks to come.

Turning her back on the moon which seemed to be winking at her, Kat located Anton's name among her contacts and dialed the number. The phone rang and rang, and Kat wondered if Anton would answer it. Her watch revealed it was well past eleven, which explained why he might not be so attentive to his phone. Kat was about to cancel the call when it connected.

"Hullo?" Anton's voice sounded gruff and Kat knew she had woken him.

"Anton, hi. I'm sorry for calling so late. It's Katina Turgenev."

"Katina, oh, hi. Is everything all right?" Anton sounded more clear now and was evidently concerned about why Kat would be calling so late.

"Yes, everything's fine. I'm sorry, I should've realized me calling so late would be alarming."

"Don't worry about it. What can I do for you?"

Of course he would know Kat needed something from him. Why else would she call him and at this time of the night?

"Ummm, right. I'm heading your way tomorrow and was hoping you could pull some strings to get me into the Enforcer Training Program." There was no point in beating around the bush.

"Well, um. Does your brother know about this?"

"Yes, he knows. And so does my mother. Any other person I should ask permission from first?" Kat's famous temper was coming out.

"As far as I'm concerned, you need no one's permission, Kat. I just don't feel like pissing your brother off when he is away from his pregnant mate." Kat chuckled at this. "If Black's OK with it, I'm sure I can wangle something. You say you're heading this way tomorrow?"

"Yup. I'll have to take a commercial flight though, seeing as our jet is somewhere on the continent. I'll book a flight now and send you the details."

"All right, then. I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"Thanks, Anton. I owe you one."

"Oh you'll owe me a lot more than one if your brother ever gets whiff of how intense the program is."

"Then we'll just have to make sure he never finds out, hey."

A shattering of excitement fluttered through Kat's stomach as she pulled the large luggage case out of the closet. She filled it to bursting and stowed her toiletries in a different case. She managed to book a flight for ten o'clock the next morning. That meant she would be able to get some sleep and be in Germany by the next afternoon.

*****

"Are you sure you have everything you need?" Rose asked as Kat heaved her luggage into the back of her car.

Surprisingly, it was Rose who was now fussing over her like a mother hen and not her own mother. Alina stood in the doorway of the pack-house, her arms tight around herself. Kat reassured Rose for what felt like the umpteenth time before walking to where her mother stood.

"Are you sure you're going to be OK, Mum? Just say the word and I will cancel my flight."

"I'm sure you are on the right path, my dearest Kat," her mother skirted around Kat's question. She unfurled her arms and pulled Kat into a tight embrace.

When Kat finally pulled away from her mother, Rose's look of concern mirrored her own. They could see how her mother seemed to fade a little bit every day she spent without her mate.

Please look after my mother. I know she won't talk to me. Maybe she will open up to you. Her grief is consuming her.

This was the first time Kat and Rose had communicated via a mindlink and Kat could see that it had caught Rose by surprise.

I will try my best.

"Please take care of yourself," Rose added verbally.

Kat's throat worked past the tightness that formed as she pulled away from the pack-house. However, when she reached the border, a sentinel of assembled wolves stood in a neat line, giving the Alpha's sister a proper send-off. The moment she crossed the border, they lifted their heads and howled. It simultaneously made the hairs on the back of Kat's head, neck and arms stand on end and made her tears spill down her cheeks. Shaking herself, Kat dashed the tears away and focused on the road ahead instead of what she was leaving behind.