The Alpha's Cursed Mate

Chapter 18

"You seem depressed, Alpha. Has something happened?"

The table is wasteful with food, yet all I reach for is a cup of wine. Gaius queried about finer wines stored in the cellars; in his opinion, the previous one tasted as though it was stomped just this morning. And I would mind the trouble if it weren't for the gaping hole in my chest. The fine wine is as red as my blood—warm in my belly too—and it makes me feel different as I wanted, but I worry its consequences are looming like distant times before.

"I cannot be with my mate."

"Why not? He said you couldn't?" Edith asks.

"To put it plainly," I sniffle, "something irreversible was done to me, and now I cannot be with him because of it." Her face twists, so I assure, "The choice made sense before, but matehood changes one's priorities."

"Hm. That must be heartbreaking. I couldn't imagine rejection from my mate if I were lucky enough to get one."

I drink. "I'm not rejected. I'm ruined, and once he finds out, he won't want me."

"Are you sure?"

I drink again, emptying my cup of wine, licking my lips as they curl into a soft grin. The edge of the cup rests on my mouth, and I mumble, "He spoke like a different man today."

Edith bends over her plate of fatty pink fish. "That means he said good things?"

"Not necessarily good, but honest. He's never been so direct, and I was drowning trying to match him—stuck in disbelief." I reach for the long-necked amber bottle and fill my cup. A clattering noise causes a bit to spill onto my hand. One of the priests dropped something at the opposite end of the table, and Karim stoops to pick it up—a fork. I set the wine bottle down and use a napkin to pat my knuckles dry. "I had to get away from him to realize his words only hurt. It's torture to hear of the life I could have lived if only..."

Edith's attention returns to me. "What you've done couldn't be so terrible to deny you of your mate's love."

"How much of your mother's craft did you see?"

"I saw her rites and bits when there was no time to push me into my room. Sometimes I peeked around corners when she wasn't looking."

"Did you ever see anything that frightened you?"

"The things she said would frighten me." Edith questions, "What have you seen?"

Her sleeve nearly drags on her plate, so I motion for her to remove her elbows from the tabletop. "I won't burden you with details now that you're safe here."

"Well, I couldn't live without knowing the truth."

"Of witchcraft?"

"No—I would have to tell my mate whatever mistake I've made to know whether or not he will love me still. If you never ask, you will never know."

"My conclusion is common sense," I counter, fascinated that Edith is more interested in mates than witches, especially since her mother riddled Edith's life with secrets and barriers at the cost of power.

"There is no sense in love, Alpha. Have you not read romance?"

I watch Gaius and his apprentice leave the dining hall. They are sure to be off to their apartments for the evening. "I couldn't take it if he hated me for what I've done."

"Maybe he will change your mind."

"That's what I fear."

"Is it in poor manners to call an Alpha stubborn even though it's true?" Edith prods, so I stop staring about the room.