Cedric sat up abruptly, eyes widening in the realization that the mere thought of her had somehow lessened his gnawing hunger.
Casting a gaze at the darkening skies, he reminds himself of the consequences of neglecting to feed. If he didn't, his now beastly wolf would seize control, unleashing havoc upon the pack. Guilt clawed at him, a suffocating reminder of the havoc he had wrought in the now mostly blank spaces of his memories.
He was taunted by horrid glimpses of his incomplete memories daily. He saw himself ripping open the bodies of werewolves that were once close to him. Werewolves that he respected. Sometimes, it hadn't even been about the hunger, but rather, an unexplainable anger at everything and anything fueling the need to wreak havoc and the beast had always succumbed.
He tried to shake those memories off and focus on what was important. Right then, nothing was more important than the need to feed.
An idea came to mind. Determined to test his bond with the pack, Cedric takes a deep breath and tries to summon his brother, Caleb. Normally, these attempts were met with impenetrable resistance, but this time, much to his own shock, he could sense Caleb. The connection felt palpable, and beneath it, his brother's own shock and fear.
Through the mind link, Cedric conveys his urgent need for a well-cooked meal, emphasizing his hunger. He warned Caleb that if his demands weren't met, more members of the pack would suffer. Caleb, fear evident in his thoughts, reluctantly agreed.
And make sure there's a room ready for me in the hidden castle. Cedric instructs. I want clothes, amenities, everything. I need it all. This place is stinky, I need a change and make it glamorous.
Caleb hesitates at the other side, seemingly still grappling with the fact that his brother had reached out and the realness of it all, but eventually gives in, agreeing to fulfill Cedric's requests.
A smirk spread on Cedric's face at Caleb's fear. It reminded him of how powerful and wicked he'd become.
A question flashed through his head.
Why am I still alive, Caleb? He asked. He might have become powerful, but that didn't mean that he couldn't be put down by the new Alpha.
There was no response, and he pressed on.
Why haven't you taken the opportunity to kill me and assume the alpha role entirely?
Silence lingered still.
"Why haven't you taken over yet?" Cedric demanded, his voice echoing through the mind link.
Caleb's response was delayed, creating a tense pause before he finally replied, tone-heavy, "It's not that simple."
Cedric scoffs at that, "You're a coward, Caleb." He supplies curtly, and with that, he severs the connection just as abruptly as he'd initiated it, leaving Caleb to contemplate the gravity of his brother's words.
As Cedric awaited the arrival of the promised meal, conflicting emotions swirled within him. The thought of the girl lingered, a distraction from the turmoil that enveloped his existence. The bond with the pack, once an unbreakable tie, now strained and frayed, reflected the fractures in Cedric's identity.
When Caleb heard Cedric's voice echoing in his head, he nearly stumbled over in shock. Fear gripped him tightly, memories of their father's voice resurfacing after such a long time. Cedric's voice held a chilling resemblance, stirring both emotion and dread within him.
Especially with the suddenness and unexpectedness of it. Cedric, on the other hand, didn't seem to register the fact that the sudden reconnection after months of dead silence was bound to take the other totally off guard. He just continued to speak like he would during any other normal conversation, except, this wasn't exactly normal, atleast not for Caleb.
As the messages flooded in, Sophia took note of her mate's tense posture until it seemed to end, and he collapsed into the closest chair.
"Are you okay, Caleb? What's wrong?" Sophia questioned, concern etched into her features as she rushed to his side, voice laced with worry as her eyes searched for answers.
Still, in a daze, Caleb could only manage a single word, a mutter of "Cedric" escaping his lips.
Sophia's eyes widened in alarm. It was only normal at this point that she would assume the worst. "He attacked again?" she questioned, fear evident in her voice.
Caleb shakes his head, attempting to compose himself. "No, he didn't attack. He... he just asked for food through the mindlink. And he wants his living space cleaned."
Sophia's eyes seemed to grow even wider at that, now mirroring Caleb's initial shocked state.
Since the curse had befallen Cedric, he had remained in wolf form, never communicating with anyone. All parts of the new revelation were shocking, and she struggled to find even the right questions to be asked.
"He wants food? And the mind link reopened!? And how are we supposed to get food to him!? No one would dare go down there after seeing just what he's capable of. It would be a death wish!" Sophia voices worriedly, a sense of foreboding settling over her.
Her intuition, sharp as ever, warned her of impending danger. What scared her most was the sinking certainty that Caleb would volunteer to go.
Caleb, sensing Sophia's unease, tries to reassure her, "He's my brother, Sophia. If anyone has to go down there, it should be me. And if he's reaching out after all this time, then something is definitely different. We need to understand what's happening here."
Sophia squeezed her eyes shut at that, shaking her head in refusal, in no lifetime of hers would she offer up her mate as bait for an unpredictable beast, selfish as it was, she sucked in a breath, "Send Marisol," she continued quickly, not missing Caleb's disbelieving gaze, "She's the one who triggered his recent shift as much as we know. You've seen how she's escaped him unscathed once, too. Maybe she could talk some sense into him."