“Why?” Kendra found herself asking in a whisper after a few minutes of silence. “Why did you renounce the pack? The red moon is still a whole month away… there’s still more time.”
She knew she had said she wasn’t going to talk to him, but she just needed to know this first, and then she’d go back to giving him the silent treatment,
Now that was a promise.
“Well, it is.” The Alpha shrugged. “But what’s the point anyway? I’m just delaying the inevitable. I figured I should just get this over and done with.”
Kendra had nothing to say to that, and so they sat in that uncomfortable silence for a little longer. “Was-was it because of me? Did you renounce the pack because of me?”
Killian didn’t reply.
The only answer Kendra got for all her probing was an almost indiscernible jaw clench.
The female-beta knew she had no right… absolutely no right at all to feel this way, but she still couldn’t help the irrational, unjustifiable anger that filled her veins and warmed her blood. “That’s always what you do, isn’t it, Kill, huh? Make decisions on my behalf as though I do not have a fucking head on my own set of shoulders, right?” She swallowed painfully, her voice reducing to a whisper. “I’m sure I would have come back, Kill. I would have. Eventually.”
“Well, maybe you might have.” He agreed, his voice low and deadly, “But you know what? That’s a gamble I’m not willing to bet the lives of my pack members on. Fuck, I don’t even know why I decided to follow you in the first place, I really shouldn’t have.” He stood up angrily and headed for the door.
“Where are you going?” Kendra found herself asking anxiously. She found that she rather didn’t like the thought of him out there in the rain even though he had completely ruined her plans.
“I’ll go stay with the horses. You can have the shack to yourself.” She heard him say right before he stepped out into the rain.
Now she felt terrible.
What at all was wrong with her?
Why in the hell couldn’t she just come to terms with the fact that the Goddess of the moon had paired her together with Killian?
It wasn’t as if he was a bad person… hell, she already had some feelings for him before all of this happened in the first place, if she was being honest with herself.
So why couldn’t she just accept things as they were so they could all have their happy ever after?
Truly, she wanted to. With all her heart, she really did.
But she just couldn’t shake off that feeling… that calling that was beckoning her out into the wild, to relive that adventurous thrill she had long lost.
And yes, the feeling was so strong that she was willing to be faced with the probability of losing her best friend if she didn’t snap out of it soon enough.
Call her callous or wicked, but that was just how it was.
And so with that thought in mind, the she-wolf tried to get some sleep, because at that point only the fates knew just how much of it she was going to get from tomorrow onwards, but try as she did, she couldn’t bring herself to close her eyes for that very much needed shut-eye.
She damned Killian for following her and making things harder than it already was, and then with a loud sigh, she clambered up to her feet and went in search of him.
The storm outside was just crazy, and by the time the she-wolf made it to the shed housing the horses, she was completely drenched again.
At the shed she found Killian soothing the two horses, smoothing their wet, silky fur.
If he felt her presence, he didn’t really show it.
“Killian.”
There was no reply.
“Look, Kill…” She sighed deeply. “I’m very sorry for all the things I’ve said. I realize now that I haven’t really been fair to you.”
She paused to hear what he had to say to that but she still got nothing.
Kendra sank onto the ground and got cozy in the mud.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
Oh, so he talks now?
“I’m staying with you until you decide to come in with me.” She insisted stubbornly.
“Just go in, Ken… I really want to be alone right now.”
“Alright, then I’ll sit here and not make a sound. It’ll almost be like I’m not here.”
“Now what exactly are you trying to pull here, woman?” He exploded violently… suddenly.
Kendra did not see it coming, and when she looked up at him, her fear visibly apparent, she saw that he really was struggling with his wolf.
“Just go inside, Kendra.” He growled. “You’re gonna catch a cold.”
“I’m not leaving you here—”
“NOW WHAT DO YOU BLOODY CARE?” He boomed in her face. “Why do you care, huh? As soon as this fucking rain stops, I’ll be out of your hair, so just start getting used to it.”
“Where would you go?”
“That, is none of your business.”
She deserved that.
But it was just that when she made plans to leave, she knew deep down that her best friend would find solace in the pack.
That for as long as the red moon was still a few weeks away, she still had time to come to terms with everything.
But he had just given up.
He had given up the one thing that would have consoled him in her absence.
And now she really didn’t feel okay with leaving him all alone anymore.
No one said a word as the storm continued to rage on, and even though Kendra was cold as hell, she tried to quell the feeling, but an involuntary shiver run through her… one that Killian noticed.
“Come on, let’s get you inside.” He said, stretching his hand out to help her up.
At first, she stared at the hand. And then at him.
She wanted to ignore him… because for some reason, there was still anger in her heart towards him, but she placed her hand in his… albeit a bit more begrudgingly.
And then they were racing into the shack.
Kendra really found it funny how they kept crossing the storm over and over again. It was almost as if they wanted to fall ill or something.
Granted, wolves didn’t catch colds, but because of their human side, they did catch it sometimes, even though their recovery was much quicker.
“You’ll need to come out of your clothes this time.” Killian said as he watched her squeeze water out of her hair in the candlelight.
“And wear what? My stuff are with the horses.”
“I’ll go for the—”
“There will be no need for that, I’ll be fine.” She brushed him off, sinking to the ground again.
Killian did same. He leaned his head against the wall and thought about what he was going to do when the rain stopped.
Thought about where he was going to go.
About an hour passed with the storm still just as strong as when it had started, and when Killian’s eyes finally opened, he was greeted with an alarming fact.
Kendra was freezing.
“Kendra!”
He was by her side in a minute, “Kendra, can you hear me? I’m going to have to get you out of your clothes. Body contact will warm you up faster than another set of clothes.” He murmured, fingers shaking slightly as he tried to get her out of her tunic.
She fought him, but weakly. So sudden was the cold that even she couldn’t comprehend it. And she could barely speak.
Killian was worried.
Wolves didn’t fall sick this quickly.
Something had to be wrong.
A band of cloth had been tied around the female’s breasts… something she liked to do when she was sparring so they wouldn’t move about a lot. And some kind of drawers that Killian had never seen on a woman before— not that he had seen that many a woman in this state of semi-nakedness before.
The Alpha decided to leave those two on.
For her sake and his.
His clothes came off in a flash, and then he shifted into his wolf form, wanting to warm her up more quickly.
His wolf yapped happily when she sighed in contentment and snuggled closer to his warm, dark fur.
He observed her keenly all through the night… even when the shivering had ebbed and she had slipped into a deep sleep.
Mate.
His wolf wanted to howl that word from the highest mountain top, stake his claim to the most beautiful woman in the world…
But she didn’t want him.