Cold ✔

:::::Chapter 26:::::

"My mate is dead."

I'm left shocked after hearing Charles' words. I look at him. His eyes are brimming with tears. Before tears can escape his eyes, he blinks them away. "Wha...how?" I ask, not knowing how to frame my question properly.

"Alarick, Daniel, Rebecca and I were just exploring our territory in our wolf form. Suddenly, some humans came out of nowhere and they had rifles with them. And they started firing at us. One of the bullets hit Rebecca and it wasn't an ordinary bullet, it was a silver bullet with the coating of wolfsbane. Rebecca fell on the ground. And after that, I went crazy. I ran towards the men dodging their every bullet. When they realized that I'm a mad wolf coming to kill them, they ran for their lives. I would've gone after them but Alarick mind-linked me, telling me that Rebecca needed me. I ran back and I found my mate lying on the ground with a shirt covering her human body. The wolfsbane had turned her back into her human form. When I knelt beside her, I started crying because I knew that she was going to die because there's no cure for wolfsbane. I couldn't do anything to save her and I regret that the most. I wish I could save her."

I look at Charles. It seems as if he has just relived the incident. Daniel places his hand on Charles' shoulder. For a few minutes, there is silence in the room. When Charles composes himself, he says, "I found my mate but I lost her. And I'm miserable without her. Alarick is my friend and so are you. I don't want you both to be miserable without each other." After a pause, he continues, "After dropping you at your house, when I returned to my pack house, I had barged in Alarick's study and had tried to knock some sense into him because I know how it feels to live without a mate. But Alarick is thick-headed. He wasn't ready to listen to me but I hope you will. I don't want you both to go through what I'm going through."

I look at him and carefully choose the words to speak. "Charles, to be honest, I'm not going through what you're going through and neither is Alarick. We are not miserable without each other. In fact, we'll be miserable if we are together," I tell him.

"Don't you want a family?" He asks all of a sudden.

"What?" I'm entirely confused after hearing his question.

"When I found my mate, starting a family with her was the first thought that came to my mind," he says.

"I already have a family," I state. "I have my Mom and I have my little sister."

"You said that you won't give up. What happened to that?" He asks.

"I lost hope," I tell him.

"Alarick and you are mates. You both are supposed to be together-"

I interrupt him. "We don't want to be together!"

"Alarick doesn't know that he loves you," Charles tries to convince me. I can't help but laugh.

"If Alarick loved me then he wouldn't have denied me," I say.

At that moment the bedroom door opens and enters Alarick. "What are you doing here?" He asks surprisingly.

"I just came to say goodnight to Charles and Daniel," I say as I stand up. Then I turn to Charles and Daniel. "Goodnight," I tell them. I head out of the room but not before hearing Charles and Daniel saying "Goodnight" to me.

When I enter my room, Matt asks me, "Where were you?"

"I had gone to meet Charles and Daniel," I tell him as I lie on the bed.

"Why?" Asks Darius curiously.

"To thank them for checking up on me earlier," I reply.

"By the way, the new Beta and Gamma were asking about you when they came along with their Alpha to meet us at The Socials. You should meet them before we head back to our pack," Matt tells me.