CHAPTER 15

The fire crackled, throwing shadows around the RV as Sommy, Buchi, and their friends sat in a circle, enjoying steaks and drinks. The warm air was heavy with laughter as Jessica, Elena, Oga, and Stephen were swapping stories; their voices carried across the campsite. Meanwhile, Zain and Timothy had disappeared into the truck, leaving the rest to pretend they didn't know what was happening. It was Buchi's voice, slipping into Sommy's thoughts as if trying to cut through the noise of their celebration.

"Think they're drunk enough for a run yet?" Sommy stood and offered her hand to him. "They're probably wondering why we haven't left yet."

A rustling from the woods pulled their attention, followed by the unmistakable scent of a female werewolf. "Ama," Sommy muttered, her voice low with a growl. Stephen and Oga went ramrod straight, alert in a second, as Jessica and Elena went towards the RV, their eyes keen.

Sommy's wolf stirred in the surface, wanting to charge, to confront this woman who almost took a life from Buchi. Self-controlled, she held herself. Ama stepped out from the trees-a far cry from the confident woman she had once been. Disheveled, wrapped in a stolen towel, her hair disheveled, and her face sunken from sleepless nights, her hands rose, palms out in greeting.

"I come in peace," Ama's voice rang out surprisingly clear. Oga and Stephen growled, ready to pounce, but Buchi held them at bay with a calm, commanding air. "Speak." Ama's eyes found Sommy, and she took a cautious step forward. Her fingers brushed her neck, where Sommy's mark still lingered, a visible sign of her claim on Buchi. "You're his true mate," Ama said, her voice tinged with regret.

"And you had the power to save him." Sommy's gaze locked onto Ama, fury bubbling beneath her calm exterior.

"I did," she replied, the words weighted with the tension between them. Ama's gaze flicked to Buchi.

"My pack has cast me out," she confessed, her voice shaking. "I don't deserve to live as a wolf anymore. I've come to accept my fate." A storm of emotions swirled in Sommy's chest—anger, resentment, and something more complicated. Ama wasn't here to beg for forgiveness. She was here to face the consequences of her actions. Buchi nodded, his expression unwavering.

"Not here. "Move." The only sound was the rustling of leaves under their feet and the very faint hum of cicadas afar.

Stephen moved at the lead, and Ama followed; the curve of his body was almost beguilingly supplicant. They reached an open area; it was where Sommy first met Buchi in wolf form. No words were spoken; all undressed themselves and transformed. It all flowed smoothly yet felt weightily tensed.

Sommy, Oga, and Stephen's wolves seethed with rage, their growls a warning. Buchi remained still beside Sommy, calm but alert.

Ama knelt in front of them, her body trembling, her neck exposed in submission. Sommy's anger flared, and images of Ama's betrayal flooded her mind—of the woman sinking her teeth into Buchi, hatred burning in her eyes.

Her wolf growled, demanding retribution. Buchi's voice echoed in her thoughts. My friend." Sommy stepped back, letting Buchi take over. She knew what her instincts screamed for, but this was his moment.

"It would be an honor to let you avenge the act that almost took my life," she said, her voice steady but filled with heat. Buchi's gaze met hers, golden-brown eyes locking in silent understanding. Then, in one swift, brutal motion, he was upon her, teeth deep in Ama's throat. The forest fell silent.

Shifting back into human form, the group remained in silent unison as they made their way back to the RV. She knew the weight of the decision hung in the air, and she didn't press him for words. He needed space to process.

When they came into the camp, Buchi turned to him, stopping. "We will report the wolf in the morning, that there's no threat from it for humans." Then he cast his eyes towards her, the question in the action.

"Will you care to explain all this to the others, or will Oga and Stephen be more suitable to explain?. "I trust them, but I need to stay with you."

Oga and Stephen nodded gravely then faced the RV once more. Sommy took Buchi's hand, drawing herself closer as he wrapped his arms around her, the beat of his heart sure against hers.

"Let's run," he whispered, desperation in his low tone.

It yanked and pulled, wanting to run, outrun the ghosts of his past that haunted him. She followed his quickening, feet racing to keep his pace as wind whipped around them.

The world blurred-a step closer, a release each of them searched for, finally within reach. They didn't stop until they reached the top of a ledge overlooking some sort of wide valley.

There, they shifted back into their human forms, lying on the cool ground while the stars above stretched to infinity.

Buchi's voice cut through the silence, heavy with weight. "I've killed for punishment five times," he confessed; it sounded thick, like his voice was exhausted.

Sommy reached for his hand, interlocking their fingers. "I hope you never get used to it," she whispered softly but firmly. "That's what keeps you compassionate."

Buchi propped himself on one elbow, his gaze soft as he looked down at her. "I still can't believe I found you. In a coffee shop of all places."

Sommy laughed, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "I go on vacation and end up with a hot fireman. Who would've thought?"

Buchi smiled up at the sky. "Destiny had its plans."

Sommy grinned. "Seems like it.

Buchi leaned down and kissed her, his mouth meeting hers with unhurried gentleness, then slowly firming into fierce, desperate pressure. But beneath that, though-the pulsating sense of wild animal, wolf linking to wolf as the bonds that tied them solidified a little more with every touch, sizzled hot.

Time elongated, and it was just the two of them in the universe at such a moment-proclaimed by scent, by flavor, by flesh on flesh.

They collapsed with the aftershocks of this, their limbs wrapped around one another.

Sommy rested on top of Buchi, his arms shielding her from the world. "You're perfect," he murmured, his fingers weaving through her hair.

Sommy smiled, feeling the weight of the moment settle around them. "I feel the same way about you, Buchi."

She kissed him again, savoring the warmth between them. The realization of what being true mates meant settled deep in her heart.

Buchi's voice was soft. "You're ready."

Sommy nodded, her heart so full of love. Lowering herself onto him, she nipped his skin with wolf teeth, sealing their bond once and for all.

The air hung heavy with intoxicating desire from their combined fumes as she claimed him whole.

Above them, stars twinkled, diamond-like, silently witnessing an unbreakable bond forged into the heart of night.