Chapter 4

Connor

MY mate lays unmoving in the bed in front of me. She fainted while we were in the office and my wolf felt a huge wave of panic surge through us. I look at her now bandaged arm. I knew the whole reason she was not healing as quickly as werewolves normally do was because of the wound in her arm. My question still remains unanswered.

I immediately turned to face the door when I heard it open. Upon seeing that it was my mother, I returned my gaze to my mate.

“Connor, Tara is getting weaker and weaker by each passing minute,” she says as she approaches me.

I growl in response to this. My wolf does not like the idea that his mate is in danger.

“I think she’s having a negative response from being disconnected from the pack,” she explains to me.

“South Forest.”

I hear her sigh as if in resignation. They still haven’t explained anything about their so-called pack.

My gaze moved to my mate when I heard a soft groan from her. I immediately went to the side of the bed to see if she had woken up. I see her opening her eyes. When she saw that I was staring down at her, she immediately averted her gaze from mine.

My wolf whimpered in my head, hurt that his mate was ignoring us.

“Tara, you’re awake. How are you feeling?” my mother asked as she sat on the other side of the bed facing my mate.

I see my mate gulp before answering the question.

“I feel so tired,” she answered with a weary tone.

She struggles to sit up and I immediately leaned down to help her. I held my breath when she flinched from my touch. I rectracted my hands and let my mother help her sit up.

I can’t blame her for being scared of me. She was held down in the prison cells because I was too stubborn to help her and let her go.

“Let me see that wound,” my mother said while taking my mate’s arm into her hands.

Her arm was ghastly. The wound was still fresh; the werewolf genes not taking any effect on it.

I see my mother take a piece of wet cloth and lay it above the wound covering the mark from sight. I growl lightly when my mate winced at the first contact.

“What’s in that?” I turned to my mother.

“It’s just some herbs to take the pain away, but it’s only temporary. I haven’t encountered anything like this before. I’m not sure how to deal with it,” she answered, finishing the bandage on my mate’s arm.

“It feels cold, better. Thank you,” Tara said softly.

I feel my chest warm up hearing her voice. She leaned back at the headboard sparing me not even a single glance. My wolf was agitated with his mate not giving him any attention. I pushed him to the back of my mind and tried to focus on the main issue at hand.

“Explain to me what is happening. Right now,” I said to no one in particular.

I was looking at Tara, but she was looking the other way. I turned my gaze to my mother expecting her to answer my demand. She sighed and looked me directly in the eye.

“The wolves of South Forest are very much alive,” she said evenly.

I merely looked at her waiting for more explanation. I can hear her heartbeat getting faster as the seconds go by. She was nervous, very nervous.

“No one attacked that pack. We only made it look like that, but the truth is no witches and rogues ever killed them. They’re alive,” she further explained.

I frowned down at her words. Seven years ago, the whole werewolf community in the country received the most devastating news they’ve ever heard. A band of rogues and witches attacked South Forest leaving no survivor behind.

“What are you saying, Irene?”

My gaze quickly went to my mate. Her face was marred with a slight frown while she was looking at my mother.

“Tara, I’m sorry. This should never have happened. You were never meant to get out of the Veil. Only the Pioneers were allowed to do that. Kane made a bad decision banishing you from the pack,” my mother answered, holding Tara’s hand.

“I don’t believe you,” I declare with a clear voice.

Two sets of eyes shifted to my direction. I looked back at my mate, but she quickly looked away.

“You’re telling me that the biggest mass murder attack in werewolf history is not real? Everything that we’ve ever believed in was a lie? You cannot say something like that and simply think that everyone would believe it. You can’t make things up.”

My mother stood up and faced me with a sad look on her face.

“I am not making things up. I am sorry that you had to find out like this, but you were never supposed to find out,” she stated in a defeated voice.

“Irene, please. What’s happening? I don’t understand,” my mate said.

I looked down to see her trying to stand up. At my first step to move towards her, she immediately drew back as if trying to get away from me. I stiffened from this and let her be.

She was able to stand up with the help of my mother, but she was leaning at the wall. I narrowed my eyes taking in her appearance, searching for any indication that she was going to fall over. When she released her hold from the wall, I looked back at my mother only to see her staring at me intently. She then turned her eyes to Tara.

“I can’t believe you managed to run all the way here from the Veil with that mark on you. You could have died on the way,” she gently told Tara.

“I need evidence for what you are saying. If this is true, this can change so many things,” I said looking at my mother.

“I am not-.”

We both looked at Tara when she screamed and doubled over at the bed in front of her. I instantly held her shoulders to make her look at me. When I saw her face, I knew I would never forget the look she had at that moment. Tears were welling in her eyes and she started sobbing. I can only look as she gripped her bandaged arm. It was covered with blood.

My mother immediately took the bandage off and we both saw blisters on the mark. It was burning her skin. I looked at my mother with alarmed eyes.

“We need to return her to South Forest.”

MY mate shivered in my arms as I pulled her even closer to my chest. I looked forward and saw my mother glancing at the big tree in front of her. She stopped walking and looked back at us. I was carrying my mate while my Delta stood behind me.

Tara passed out earlier probably from the pain in her arm. The pack healers seemed to not know what to do with her condition so I caved in and agreed with my mother’s plan.

We were on our way to what she claimed was the border of South Forest. It was only a few minutes away from my pack’s border. Where we are right now was unclaimed territory; it’s where rogues roam free.

We were still in the forest. The surroundings remained the same and I did not feel anything different. I looked back only to see the same forest path that we took going there.

“We’re here,” my mother said.

“The patrol borders will soon catch up that someone has entered their land. We just need to wait for them. Let me do the explaining please,” she said, directing the request at me.

I nodded at this. We were waiting for about five minutes when I heard running steps nearing our location.

Two men halted in front of us; their face devoid of any emotion. They looked at us but their gaze eventually landed on my mothers. I watch as recognition lit their faces.

“Irene, what do you have here?” one of the men asked.

“I will vouch for them. I want to see the Alpha,” she answered evenly.

“Are they rogues?” the other one inquired pensively.

“I know them. We need help from the Alpha,” my mother responded.

“Who is that?” the first guy asked, looking at my mate in my arms.

He was not able to fully see her as she was facing my chest and a thick blanket covered the rest of her body.

“It’s Tara. She needs-.”

“Tara?! Irene, are you crazy? She’s been banished by the Alpha. We can’t take you to see him. She’s not even allowed to be here right now!”

I growled threateningly at his statement. All of them suddenly directed their attention to me. I looked menacingly at the man who spoke. I see him tremble a bit. I knew my pupils were dilated and my eyes looked even more black than they used to be.

“All I’m asking is to get to the pack house. I will explain everything to Alpha Kane,” my mother said, trying to relax the whole situation.

“There’s no need to go there. The Alpha is on his way,” the other man said.

“The Alpha is actually here.”

We all turned towards the voice that spoke. A middle aged man stood not a few meters away from us. He was looking directly at me. I guess he can sense I have an Alpha aura surrounding me. His gaze left me and went to my mother. I scowled when I saw his face soften when he looked at her.

“Irene, I see that you are back,” he said while walking toward her.

My scowl deepened when he touched her arm and my mother did not seem bothered by that. My father would throw a fit seeing what I am seeing right now.

“I brought Tara back with me,” she said looking back at me.

The Alpha frowned upon hearing this. He looked at me and I tried to gauge his expression. Our staring competition was halted when I heard a soft groan from my mate. I looked down to see her trying to wake up. Through confused eyes, she looked back at me only to look away immediately.

“What happened,” she asked huskily.

“Is that really Tara?” Alpha Kane asked, directing the question to me.

Before I could answer I felt Tara move her head to face the other direction. I saw her blink a few times before her eyes widened. Her heart began beating rapidly and she glanced back at me with a panicked look on her face. I was about to say something to comfort her when she began to thrash in my arms. Caught off guard, I dropped my hold of her and she fell on the ground. I was about to help her up when I saw in my periphery a movement from one of the patrol guards earlier.

The man lunged at us and Tara let out the loudest scream I’ve ever heard.