Chapter 148
+25 Points
I watched Ma sit down on the bed, a cup of steaming tea in her hands. Pa was already snoring
softly on the. Marco and Isabella, were giggling in the next room, playing a board game I had set
- up.
“Are you sure you have everything you need, Ma?” I asked, even though I had already checked three
times.
Ma smiled, her eyes getting soft at the corners. “We’re perfectly fine, Faith. Don’t worry about us.
You go do what you need to do.”
I nodded, trying to smile back. I wanted to make sure they were comfortable, safe, and happy. Now
that they were settled, I had another job, a much harder one. I needed to talk to Astor.
My stomach felt tight as I walked out the door. The cool air did little to calm the anger burning inside me. With every step, I felt a strange, strong pull. It wasn’t me though, it was my wolf, the human me wanted to run the other way, to hide under a blanket with my children and pretend
nothing bad was happening.
My wolf felt full of energy, an energy I hadn’t felt in a week. That’s how long it had been since Astor and I were truly close. I had been staying far away from him, and he had been fair, keeping his distance too. But my wolf… she was almost shaking with happiness, knowing her mate was only a short distance away. This feeling inside me was strange and almost painful, pulling me in two directions. My heart hurt with sadness and anger, while my wolf had a strong need, wanting me to get closer to him, to touch him, to feel him fully. I hated it. I hated feeling so torn.
I walked straight to his office and knocked loudly on the big wooden door. “Come in,” his voice said, a deep sound. It seemed deeper than I remembered, or maybe I was just paying too much attention to everything.
When I went inside, he was at his desk, looking at some papers. He looked up, and his beautiful deep brown eyes opened wide in surprise. A quick look of something I couldn’t name – hope? relief? crossed his face.
–
He clearly didn’t think I would come. I hadn’t said a word to him in a week. Standing there, now, my throat felt tight and unfamiliar. What was I even going to say? My mind was empty, but I knew what I had to do.
“Faith,” he whispered, pushing away from his desk. A small smile touched his lips. He started to stand up, taking a step toward me. “I’m so happy to see you. I… I’ve missed you.”
My jaw tightened. “Stop talking about irrelevant things” I quickly said, my voice flat and cold. “I’m
1/3
<Chapter 148
not here for that.”
+25 Points
His smile disappeared at once. His eyebrows came together, and I felt a wave of confusion, then a sharp stab of hurt, through our mate bond. It hit me hard, like a punch, his pain becoming my own. My wolf made a small sad sound, wanting to comfort him, to tell him I didn’t mean it. But I pushed my wolf down, pushing the feeling away. I couldn’t let myself feel his pain. I couldn’t let myself care. I had to be strong. So I acted like it didn’t bother me, even though every part of me wanted to
scream.
I reached into my jeans pocket and pulled out Kyle’s folded letter. I walked to his desk, not looking
at his eyes, and put it down. ” From Kyle.”
He picked it up, his face now showing no emotion. As he opened the paper and read the words, I
watched him. His jaw tightened, his knuckles turned white, and a low growl came from his chest.
His wolf was getting angry, a dangerous power filling the room. He looked at me quickly and
angrily, his eyes asking a silent question.
“I don’t want to lose my Ma and Pa,” I said, my voice very quiet but firm. The fear was real, a cold,
tight feeling in my stomach.
He slammed the letter onto the desk, his eyes burning. “You won’t,” he growled, sounding very firm
and protective. “I will make sure you don’t lose anything ever again.”
I gave a short, bitter laugh, without any humor. My eyes met his, daring him to argue. “You failed to protect our unborn baby,” I reminded him, the words cutting through the air like sharp knives. His face fell apart, and I felt another strong wave of sadness through our bond. But I stood firm. “I don’t trust you enough to let you protect my parents‘ lives, Astor.”
A heavy silence filled the space between us, thick with unsaid pain and anger. He finally spoke, his voice low and full of sadness. “Is this anger going to stay like this forever, Faith?”
I shook my head, my eyes steady. “No. It’s not going to be forever. Because as soon as we stop Kyle, I’m taking my children and I’m going to settle in the human world forever.”
His eyes grew wide, shock freezing him. He opened his mouth to argue, but I stopped him again. I needed him to understand, I needed him to just listen. “I will never take your children away from you,” I quickly explained, making my voice a little softer. Even in my pain, I knew that was too much. “They will visit you. And you can visit them too. But I… I can’t handle seeing you every day. It
reminds me… it reminds me of what I lost. Because of you.”
He finally spoke, his voice a broken whisper. “I lost too, Faith.”
I looked at him then, really looked at him. His pain was clear, shown in the lines around his eyes and in his slumped shoulders. But I couldn’t make myself care. Not right now. “I don’t care,” I told
2/3
< Chapter 148
him, the words cold and strong, a lie I needed to believe.
+25 Points
Another silence, heavier this time. Then, I remembered to be polite, the small thanks I owed him. “Thank you,” I said, my voice softer now, almost flat. “For bringing my Ma and Pa.”
He nodded, looking far away. “I know how much you needed them,” he answered.
And that was it. There was nothing more to say. I turned and walked out of his office, the heavy door closing quietly behind me. As I walked away from the packhouse, a strange feeling came
over me. We had been so close, but also so incredibly far apart. He was right there, his smell still on my clothes, his feelings still a quiet ache in my heart through our bond. But the more I stayed
away from him, the less it hurt. And right now, that was all I wanted.
”
cphakathi28
#vote# please check out Snowbound With The Hockey Star
2
