Since it's getting late in the afternoon, Faith and I decided to hike the Leigh Lake Shoreline trail. Yes, I want to get out of the house, but Beck's warning stays clear in my mind. I haven't told anyone yet. What I don't want to do is put any of my friends in danger. A part of me wants to say to her that we shouldn't go anywhere, but then again, I can't live in fear. I've protected myself my entire life. I have to believe I'm strong enough to take on whatever comes my way.
Being outside and surrounded by nature gives me strength. The crystalline views of Mount Moran are breathtaking, along with the glimmering lake that's partially frozen. I walk down to the water's edge and climb up on one of the boulders. Getting on my knees, I place my hands on the giant rock and close my eyes. I can feel the earth's warmth, its happiness. I wish the world felt like that everywhere.
"Are you using your magic?" Faith asks. She climbs up on the boulder and kneels beside me, placing both her hands face down on the cold rock like I am.
I look over at her and smile. "I am. The earth is happy here in this place. It's untainted and pure."
Her brows furrow. "I'm assuming it's not happy in other places?"
"That's right," I answer sadly. "Here, there isn't any pollution or heavy traffic. The land can breathe. In big cities, it's different. The earth is sad, and I can feel its pain." I traveled a lot with the Sierra pack, but I went to New York City with the man I thought was my father. It was one of the worst trips I'd ever been on in my life; I felt sick being there. After that, I stayed put in the North Carolina mountains.
Faith blows out a sigh. "Wow. I never thought about it that way. I wish I knew what your magic felt like."
And just like that, an idea pops into my head. "Maybe you can." I jump off the boulder to the water's edge, which happens to be frozen.
Faith stands up on the boulder. "What are you going to do?"
I place my hands on top of the ice. "Just watch." Closing my eyes, I picture what I need. I can feel the magic leave my fingertips and seep down into the water to the sandy bottom. It searches for what I want, the pull drawing me closer to the water. When my magic connects with what I'm looking for, I open my eyes and smile. "Found it."
I beckon Faith closer, and she joins me by the water. Underneath the ice, I can see the object coming toward us, floating through the water. Faith's mouth gapes, and she stares at it curiously when it stops in front of us. "Um … this is interesting."
Giggling, I punch the ice to break it and reach into the chilly water for the triangular-shaped stone. Wyoming Jade is what it is. It's a greenish-gray with pink dispersed within the base color. Holding the rock in my hand, I motion for Faith to move closer. "Put your hand over mine," I tell her. When she does, I draw on the earth's energy beneath us. It's full of life and happiness, clean and warm. Just feeling it brings me peace.
"Oh my God," Faith gasps. "I feel it. How are you able to do this?" Her hand slides away from mine, and she stares at me in awe. I hand her the stone, and she gasps again as soon as it touches her skin. "I still feel it."
"Wyoming Jade is a stone that naturally helps with emotional stability and balance. If you're ever having a bad day, just hold it in your hands. It'll help you."
She closes her eyes and holds the stone over her heart. "This is amazing. I didn't know you could do this."
When she opens her eyes, I shrug. "I can't with just anybody. There has to be an emotional connection, a link of sorts. I love you like a sister, so the magic recognizes you as that, even though we don't share the same blood."
Her lips tremble, and she helps me up. "Oh, Laila. I love you too. We may not share blood, but we're family." She hugs me hard, and I smile. It feels good to have a family. Before she lets me go, she clears her throat. "Now that we're sisters care to tell me what's going through your mind? You've been acting weird since last night."
Letting her go, I bite my lip sheepishly. "There's a reason for that. I have something …" The words halt on my tongue. My heart skips a beat, and I jerk my attention to the woods, gasping when I feel him. I've gotten used to my father being around, but I don't sense him near, only the man who is supposed to be my mate.
Faith notices the change as well and stares off into the woods. "Why did your father leave? He never gets too far away from us." She turns in a different direction and points. "Micah is still here. He's out that way."
And that's when it comes to me. I bet everyone knows who this guy is except me. "My father has to know he's my mate. There's no other way."
Faith squeals. "I want to know who it is." She bounces on her feet and grabs my hands. "Have you seen him?"
I nod. "Only as his wolf. He was at the cabin last night. A large gray with gray eyes."
Her eyes widen, and she freezes. "Holy shit, I think I know who it is. He's the only guy I don't remember you meeting at the party. I can't believe I didn't think of this before."
Impatiently, I wave my hand in the air. "Well, who is he?"
She stalks closer, clearly loving the fact that she knows something I don't by the sly grin on her face. "You've heard me talk about him plenty of times. He's tall, cute, funny, and a smart ass at times. My brother hates him. Then again, that's how unmated alphas are to each other sometimes. They need their mates to balance them out."
"He's an alpha?" I ask. That doesn't make any sense. I met them all. "I don't understand. I met all of them."
Faith shakes her head. "Not all of them. This one stepped aside for Ryker. He loves him like a brother and didn't want to compete against him." She glances back at the woods. "And he's here." Then she raises her voice. "You have a lot of explaining to do. I'm not happy you kept this from me."
Now I know who he is. There's only one guy she's gotten close to since we joined the Teton pack. By the way, she's talked about him over the past couple of weeks. I was for sure he'd end up being her mate.
"Cedric Convel," I whisper.
Faith stares back at me, her eyes twinkling. "I'll give you two some privacy."
She walks away, sticking close to the lake's edge. When I turn back toward the woods, Cedric is there, his glowing gray eyes on mine. His power emanates from him, just like an alpha. I'm drawn to it. All I want to do is touch him. He proceeds closer, one slow step at a time, almost as if he doesn't want to scare me. It's probably because he can hear the erratic beating of my heart. Am I scared? Yes, but I'm not afraid of him. I'm fearful of the unknown. Our bond is different from everyone else's.
I take a step toward him, and then another. He's so close I can almost reach out a hand to touch him. Power radiates all around him, and I know he's about to shift. I'm nervous about meeting him and seeing what he looks like. I don't know anything about him other than what Faith has told me.
I wait for him to shift, but then he growls and turns around, his body protecting me as he scans the woods. And that's when I sense it, other wolves and not ones from our pack. Whoever they are, they aren't friendly. Cedric clearly doesn't recognize them, which isn't a good sign.
Faith runs over and grabs my arm. "Rogues. We need to go."
Micah appears on the other side of the lake and races over to us, standing protectively in front of Faith in his hulking arctic wolf form. Faith pulls me away, and we run back up the trail, away from the rogue wolves.
"What do you think they want?" she asks, running faster.
I have a good guess, and it's not to say hello. "I'm sure you can imagine," I tell her, sucking in as much air as I can. A part of me wants to stay and fight, to show those rogues what happens when you mess with the wrong person. I'm not afraid to see what my magic can do.
Micah leads the way, with Cedric behind us. It takes a few minutes to get to the parking lot, and when we do, Faith gets right into my car. Micah and Cedric hang back, but I can still see him, staring at me with those steely gray eyes of his.
* * *
Faith and I have been home for two hours, and we haven't heard a single word from Cedric, Micah, or my dad. They're obviously okay because I sense them near, but I want to know what happened to the rogues.
"When do you think I'll see Cedric again?" I ask Faith.
She stares out the large window in the living room with the best view of the Teton mountains. "Soon, I'm sure. I'm curious to know what they did to the other wolves. It's not a good sign if rogues are lurking about."
That's not the only problem we have. I want to tell her what I know about the dark fae, but I can't find the words. The Teton pack are loyal wolves. If they know I'm in trouble, they'll stand by me no matter what, even if it threatens their lives. I can't let that happen. I need to figure out a way to keep Dorian from finding me.
"I think I'm going to go lay down for a bit," I say, getting to my feet.
Faith's brows furrow as she looks at me. "You okay?"
No, but I'm not going to tell her that. "I'll be fine. Maybe we can cook us up some dinner in about an hour or so?"
Her stomach grumbles, and she laughs. "Sounds perfect."
I leave her and go to my room, shutting the door behind me. I'm not going to be able to keep my secret for long. Releasing a heavy sigh, I lay down on my bed and close my eyes. The front door slams shut, and I can hear Faith walk outside. Micah is with her.
"I see you know who your mate is now." Beck's voice startles me, and he closes a hand over my mouth, his body right beside mine on the bed. He leans in close, his lips by my ear. "Shh … it's just me."
I smack his hand away and bolt off the bed. "What the hell?" I snap, my voice low so Faith and Micah can't hear me. "You can't just appear in my bedroom whenever you want."
Beck holds up his hands and stands. "I'm sorry. There was no other way."
Crossing my arms over my chest, I glare at him. "Can all fae just show up anywhere and everywhere?"
He nods. "Pretty much."
"Great," I grumble. "Does that mean I'll have more bedroom visitors?"
His icy blue stare darkens. "Not unless they want to die. I'm the only one allowed to get close to you."
"Were you in the woods today?"
Jaw clenched, he nods. "I was planning on intervening when your wolf got too close."
"Why?"
He steps closer. "You belong with your people. How are you going to feel when your mate dies trying to protect you from Dorian?"
The blood in my veins runs ice cold. "That's not going to happen. I'll figure out a way to keep Dorian away."
Beck's expression turns more severe than I've ever seen on him. "There might be a way, but we don't have time to figure it out. Last I heard from my men, they tracked Dorian to New Mexico. That's only two states away." He grabs my hand, his grip tight. "Please, Laila. You have to let me take you to my land. It's the only way to keep you and your pack safe." A portal appears on the other side of my room. It mesmerizes me, all the snow and icy trees, but I can't get my feet to move toward it. Beck squeezes my hand. "I will never force you, Laila, but you have to know how dire this is. If Dorian finds you and uses your magic to get into the Land of the Fae, it will destroy my people. So many lives are at stake right now."
A car rumbles down the driveway, and I can hear Phil Collins' song "In the Air Tonight" blaring over the speakers. "Amelie's home," I whisper.
Beck hangs his head and sighs. "Again, it's your choice. We both know your mate won't let you leave when he finds out the truth." He lifts his gaze to mine and takes my other hand. "You could be happy in the Land of the Fae … with me. You could keep your magic."
"But I would lose the shifter part of me, wouldn't I?" I ask, whispering the words. There's an ache in my chest at the thought.
Beck nods. "You would."
"Laila!" Amelie calls out. "I'm home."
The door slams shut, but Beck stays in front of me. "You may have a mate, but that's just the shifter side of you. Your fae side calls to me."
Amelie's footsteps pound up the stairs. "Laila?"
Beck kisses my hand and disappears through the portal just as Amelie opens my door. I'm in shock, and everything comes crashing down on me. Tears well up in my eyes, and I sit down on the bed. "Amelie, I don't know what to do."
Smile fading, she sits down beside me. "Oh my God, what happened?"
"Beck was here."
She gasps. "Was that who I heard?"
"Yes." A tear falls down my cheek, and I wipe it away. "There's something I need to tell you that no one knows."
"What is it?"
Lifting my legs onto the bed, I cross them so I can face her. "A war is coming, and not a pack war, but a fae war. If I'm found, it won't be good."
A look of confusion sweeps across her face. "Found? By who?"
"His name is Dorian. He's what you call a dark fae, and he's searching for people like me. If I can't find a way to conceal what I am, it's only a matter of time before he finds me."
Her eyes widen. "We have to tell the pack. Cedric needs to know."
The mention of his name catches me off guard. "Cedric? You know already?"
Sheepishly, she shrugs. "Faith texted me and might have mentioned it." She stands and starts for the door, but I grab her arm.
"Wait. There's more."
"Seriously," she gripes as I pull her back to the bed. "What can be worse than a fae war on our doorstep? Not to mention, we have rogues skulking about too." It's like everything is going crazy all at once.
I look right into her eyes. "Beck wants me to leave with him."
She scoffs. "Of course, he does. You're beautiful and powerful in more ways than one. What if he's trying to lure you away from us?"
"He's not. I can feel the truth in his words. The Land of the Fae is the only safe place for me and the pack. If I go, it'll keep Dorian away from here. His magic is dark. None of you would survive it."
She blows out a long-winded breath. "Does Beck know about Cedric? You can't just up and leave your true mate or your family."
I look away. "Yes, he knows about Cedric. Leaving would keep him safe. I don't want him dying trying to protect me."
I left out the part about Beck wanting to be with me. It goes against our shifter magic. Finding your true mate is something all wolves hope for. Amelie groans and flops back onto the bed. "This is a disaster."
I lay down with her. "What am I going to do?"
Amelie sighs. "If you don't want to tell the pack, then you at least need to tell your father. He'll know what to do."
"You sound like a mother saying that," I laugh, even though there's no humor in my voice.
Amelie's smile is sad. "I'd like to be a mom one day. God knows I'm old enough." She's twenty years older than me in human years, so she could literally be my mother, but we both look the same age. With having my shifter and fae blood mix, I'll look like I'm twenty-five for a couple of hundred years.
"You will be," I promise her. "You'll find your true mate."
She grips my hand. "Thanks, Laila. Maybe Seraphina can help you figure out a way to stay hidden?"
"I’ve wondered that. I'll talk to her soon." Certain gemstones can be used for protection, but the one I need hasn't been seen in centuries.
"Girls, I'm starving," Faith shouts from below. "Let's get cooking! We have to talk about Cedric!" I'm dying to know more about him. "Oh, and Colin's coming over too," she adds.
Amelie sits up and looks down at me. "Not gonna lie, but when we first got here, I thought someone like Colin would be your mate. He's a royal arctic like you."
Colin is strong, extremely good looking, and an alpha. He seemed interested in me when I met him, but alas, the connection wasn't there. "The world works in mysterious ways," I reply, getting to my feet.
She giggles and holds her hand out for me to help her off the bed. "That it does. I'm sure Cedric's going to love an unmated male eating dinner with you tonight."
I groan. "Yeah, that's the part I hate about all of this. Too much testosterone."
"It's just the way it is, Laila." And there's nothing I can do about it. Gripping her hand, I pull her up, and she stops in front of me, her concerned gaze on mine. "You promise you'll tell your father everything tomorrow?"
I don't really have a choice. "I will. You have my word." Either way, I decide, someone will get hurt.