The Feeling of Being Watched

The night was foggy, making the empty streets appear even more desolate. Felix huffed on his hands, pulling on the sleeves, as he made his way back home. It was already way past midnight, and he couldn't wait to jump into his bed and wrap himself tightly with blankets…

And then he felt it. A strange tingling, that made the hair on his neck stand.

He was being observed.

When he glanced around, however, the streets were still as empty as before.

Creeped out a bit, he quickened his pace, hoping to leave whoever - or whatever - gave him this feeling behind…

But even as he passed by a few more intersections, the tingling wouldn't go away.

It wasn't Kade, that was for sure… And yet, Felix's wolf was oddly calm? Well, it wouldn't be calm if it were Kade, of course, not really. Rather, it would be stupidly wagging its tail and running in circles… But that was not the point. While it was still a bit sulky with Felix, first for running away, and now for trying to avoid Kade while he should be clinging to him (only according to his wolf), it should still react if it sensed a threat. 

And yet, even when Felix nudged it with his mind, it only lifted its head, gave him a glance, and lay back down.

As if everything was perfectly fine.

But Felix wasn't just paranoid, he was sure of it! He had walked alone at night before, and he had never had such a strong feeling of being watched!

The sense of unease gave him extra strength to push his exhausted body, and he sped up even more. And when even that didn't help…

He stopped in the middle of the street, and turned around.

Perhaps it was better to try to face the threat head on. It was a risky decision, considering his current state… But he didn't like the idea of leading whoever was following him back to his home. And circling around the town would only tire him even more… So, since confrontation might be unavoidable, it was best done now, when he still had at least SOME energy left.

He waited for a few minutes…

And then, as if realizing that Felix was looking for him, the stalker stepped out of the shadows. A tall man, dressed in an elegant suit. Tall and muscular, much bigger than Felix. Either an Alpha or a Beta… And definitely a wolf.

Felix tensed up, getting ready for a fight…

But the man just bowed his head at him politely, and stood in place, showing no intention to attack.

The minutes passed, and they still stood like that, just staring at each other.

Seeing that Felix was still all ruffled up, the stranger bowed once again, deeper this time, and fixed his tie…

An understanding suddenly flickered in Felix's eyes, as he finally took notice of the emblem on the man's tie.

The Bloodmoon Pack?

…Right. Kade DID mention something about leaving some guards in Silverfall.

So that's why his wolf remained calm. It must have recognized that the shifter following Felix wasn't a threat to them, at least not by his wolf's standards.

'Well, whatever.' Felix shrugged his shoulders and carried on his way, going straight home now that he knew the identity of his follower. While he was still a bit uncomfortable…

He knew the guards wouldn't dare do anything to him. And it's not like he was planning to run away, not in his current state, no matter how tempting the option appeared. He knew he'd just be heading for a disaster then.

Good thing that Kade at least didn't order the guards to stay hidden. Because if Felix were to spend the next few days constantly feeling watched, and not knowing where the feeling came from…

Chills run down his spine at the mere thought. He was still on edge after fleeing the pack, so such secret surveillance could easily drive him insane! The open observation, while it wasn't something he enjoyed, he could at least tolerate.

It was better than having Kade follow him around, that's for sure. While he still needed to be careful, since the guards would undoubtedly report everything he did to the Alpha… The guards kept their distance, and didn't bother Felix with any nonsense, making their presence very pleasant in comparison!

And there seemed to be only one guard, at least right now. It was a bit unexpected - considering how extra Kade was, Felix wouldn't be surprised if he were to send a whole army to watch over his so-called 'mate'… But then again, despite his relentless pursuit of the Omega, perhaps he wasn't ready to reveal to his pack that his fated mate was a rogue hybrid. 

Not to mention, it was likely that his whole quest to find a mermaid was a secret. Otherwise, why would Kade, a future leader of the Bloodmoon Pack, which was one of the five Supremes, handle something like that on his own? Going so far as to ask around town for information? PERSONALLY?

Felix's steps faltered as the realization finally hit him.

That's right, why didn't he think of it before? He had been so focused on his own problems that he didn't even stop to question it… But did Jared ever handle any minor, trivial tasks, even before he became a leader?

Of course not!

And the Moonhill Pack was much, much smaller than the Bloodmoon Pack, even though their influence had expanded significantly in the past two decades, thanks to Felix's father. So if Jared didn't, then there was no way Kade would handle such tedious work on his own, unless it was actually something important!

The corners of Felix's lips slowly rose up, as a smile crept onto his face.

Finally, he had found a weakness he could use against Kade!

…But then his smile vanished again, as if it was nothing but an illusion.

So what if he found a weakness? He had no way to use it anyway. If he attempted to threaten the Alpha with it… Or maybe even just let him know he figured it out, there was a high chance he'd end up dead!

Reaching his house, Felix stepped inside with a heavy sigh. Even if he had to be mated again, why did it have to be someone powerful, whom Felix couldn't safely defy? Why couldn't Moon Goddess pick someone ordinary this time?

He threw himself on the bed, letting Remi cuddle with him. Normally, he would have liked to get at least some knitting done - his skill was still… severely lacking, to put it nicely, and it didn't bode well for his future plans - but he had been so tired recently, that he struggled to get anything done… Whatever little energy he had was all drained by his job and Kade - yes, even now that the Alpha was gone, he was to blame for Felix's tiredness. Because even thinking about him was utterly exhausting! - and he had none left for practicing his, ahem, 'craft'. He was barely able to take decent care of himself…