Silver Moon (Colors of the Moon #3)

Chapter 6

"Do you think we did the right thing?" Rob voice flooded from behind me.

We were walking down a dark tunnel with me leading the way and him loitering in the back. Our footsteps echoed through the bare walls, creating an eerie feeling. The only source of light we had was the one coming from the flashlights in our hands.

"Don't be a baby." I mocked him, but we both knew I didn't really mean it. He now had someone else he needed to think of. "Sorry. I'm sure Zara won't hold it against you that we left without telling her. If she does, you can blame it all on me."

"I'm not worried about Zara," Rob scoffed.

For a second his answer confused me as I couldn't understand why he wouldn't be worried about her. Then I remembered just who Zara was. Even us witches knew that werewolf mates shared a mind connection that was similar to the werewolf's mind-link. It allowed them to communicate through their thoughts no matter the distance between them.

"I'm talking about Mom. She'll be worried when she learns we're missing."

I came to an abrupt stop and spun around to face him. I couldn't believe that while Rob was living in a castle crawling with werewolves, it was his mother's anger he was worried about.

"Don't worry." I rolled my eyes. "I'm sure we'll be back before she even notices we're gone. Besides, Vivian caught me sneaking off, so I had no choice but to tell her where we'd be going."

We were deep underneath the werewolf castle in a labyrinth of underground tunnels. The moment Rob had revealed their existence to me, I forgot about everything else. There was no way I would miss an opportunity for an adventure like this.

The tunnels were much narrower than I expected, just wide enough for a single person. Luckily, at least the ceiling was high enough, so neither of us had to crouch while walking. Despite the darkness, I didn't miss the spider webs that covered the corners and the ceiling of every inch of the tunnels.

From Zara, we had learned that they had been built by the daughter of one of the previous Alpha Kings. As story had it, her mate had been a lower-ranked werewolf, which is why her family opposed to their relationship. The tunnels then became the only way for the daughter to sneak off to meet her mate.

What Zara couldn't tell us, however, was where exactly the tunnels ended. Which is why the two of us were now down here, searching for an exit.

Blinking a couple of times to come back to the present, I turned around and began walking forward.

"Viv told me you refuse to talk about it, but I still have to try," Rob said after a moment of silence. "Where were you these past five years?"

"I wish I could, Rob. I really do." A lump formed in my throat as I thought back to how they must have felt not knowing if I was even alive. "But I can't tell you."

"You didn't even come to Dad's funeral."

I dug my toes into the tips of my shoes and came to an abrupt stop. In the next second I whirled around and shone my flashlight into his face. "Do you really think I don't wish things could have been different? I didn't get a chance to say goodbye to either of my parents... I know the way I left wasn't fair to any of you. But I couldn't, Rob. I just couldn't."

A treacherous tear escaped from the corner of my eye, and I harshly wiped it off into my sleeve. Without another glance at him, I turned back around and moved onward. The last thing I needed right now was to slip through the portal into the memories of my past.

"I'm sorry," Rob mumbled after a few silent steps.

He had no idea how much I sometimes wished to unburden myself onto another living creature. To be able to share what really happened. Someday... Maybe someday I'd be able to talk about it.