Chapter 8
His voice broke through the emotional storm brewing inside, but I quickly turned my face toward the fireworks, wiping away the tears that betrayed me.
“Yeah, I am just carried away by the situation,” I murmured, trying to mask the ache in my heart with a thin veil of admiration for the light show in the sky.
The sparks of color exploded above us, but their brightness could not reach the shadow in my chest.
The air grew heavier around us, a weight I could no longer bear in silence. Before I could stop myself, I asked a question that had been gnawing at me for what felt like forever.
‘Anyway, what would you do if, after marrying someone, you discovered a side. of them you didn’t know about? Their weaknesses, maybe.”
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He seemed taken aback by the sudden shift in conversation, but Deryl was always the calm, thoughtful type.
He paused, his gaze steady on mine as if he Were w
his words carefully. Then, a warm smile crept across his lips. “I would consider myself lucky.”
“Why?” I replied, feeling a bit flustered again. There was something about the way Deryl spoke that made my heart race, but I tried to brush it off.
Deryl continued, his voice gentle but sure. “If you marry someone, it’s because you love what you know about them. So, discovering something new, what’s more, it is their weakness, and you choose to love that side too, I think that’s a gift. There’s always more to learn about our mate.”
His words settled over me like a blanket on a cold night, comforting yet bittersweet.
The word mate sent a sharp pain through my chest, a reminder of the bond I never
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had with Jeremy. Since I had married him despite not being his fated mate, a choice I had come to regret deeply.
Maybe if I had waited for the one truly destined for me, I would not be left with this broken heart.
I forced a smile, trying to shake off the heavy emotions swirling inside. “Well, never mind that. It’s getting late. We should head home,” I said abruptly, standing up and brushing off my jeans, trying to regain control of the situation.
Deryl looked confused for a moment but stood up with me. “Are you sure? I can take you anywhere else if you want. There’s a lot that’s changed around the Blazemane Pack since your last visit. You might find something new to enjoy.”
I shook my head. “No, that‘ s okay. I will explore more another time. But… if you insist on helping me, how about dropping me off at the academy tomorrow? I have got an interview, and I am feeling a little
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nervous.”
Deryl’s expression softened. “Of course. I will drive you. After all, I’m the one who offered you the job, so it’s the least I can do.
I smiled gratefully. “Thank you for your kindness, Alpha Deryl.”
**
A week passed since my return to Blazemane Pack, and the chaos in Nightshade Pack after the rogue attack seemed like a distant storm I had escaped.
I settled into my new routine, having completed all the paperwork for my teaching position at the academy.
Yet, the air was thick with tension. The news buzzed with reports of tighter security across the Packs, and rumors spread about an impending meeting between all the Alphas in the Blazemane Pack.
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It was late afternoon when a border guard approached me at the office. His eyes were serious, his posture stiff.
“Miss Everly, there’s someone at the border asking for you, a woman named Alexa.”
The name hit me like a wave, stirring up a flood of emotions I had tried to leave behind.
My first instinct was to ignore her, to walk away from everything that involved Nightshade Pack and Jeremy.
But something in the guard‘ s voice made. me pause. He said it was important.
Reluctantly, I agreed. “Alright, I’ll go,” I said, the words heavy on my tongue.
The drive to the border was quiet, the sound of the engine and my racing thoughts filling the silence.
When we arrived, I stepped out of the car, and there she was, Alexa, Jeremy‘ s mate.
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To my shock, Alexa looked nothing like the radiant, confident woman I remembered.
She was disheveled, her clothes torn, her face streaked with dirt and dried blood. It was as if she had been through hell.
Seeing her like this stirred something deep within me, empathy, perhaps, or maybe it was just the remnants of the person I used
to be.
I crouched down beside her, my voice soft but firm. “Alexa, what happened?”
She flinched at the sound of my voice, but as soon as she registered it was me, she collapsed into my arms, sobbing uncontrollably. “Everly… what should I do?” she cried; her voice broken.
It took a long time for her to calm down, her body shaking with each breath.
Just as I started to ask her more, Evan and Deryl arrived at the border, their presence sending Alexa into a panicked frenzy. She looked around wildly, as if expecting an
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attack at any moment.
Sensing her fear, I asked Deryl and Evan to give us some space. Once we were alone, Alexa began to speak, her voice trembling as she recounted the events that had led
her here.
“After you left, Jeremy,” she started, her hands wringing nervously. “He directly prepared himself for his visit to the
Grimfur Pack with only some guards. At first, he forbade me to follow, but I decided to still go with him, representing the Pack.”
Her words twisted the knife in my chest, but I remained silent, letting her continue.
“We didn’t know… we didn’t know it was a trap,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “Grimfur Pack‘ s invitation was a setup. The moment we arrived, we were ambushed. We fought back, but we were outnumbered. Jeremy told me to run. He saved me, but they captured him.”
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Her words hung in the air, the weight of them crushing down on me. Something terrible had happened.
Seeing me still listening, she continued her explanation. “Jeremy sent me a mind link just before they cut it off. He told me to come here, to Blazemane Pack. He thought it would be the safest place.”
“But I didn’t just come here for protection, Everly,” she said, her eyes pleading with me. “I came to ask for your help. Please, help me free Jeremy. He‘ s… he’s the father of the baby I’m carrying.”
I stared at her in disbelief. “You‘ re pregnant?” I asked, my voice barely a
whisper, as the world around me seemed to tilt on its axis.
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