Silas’s P.O.V
I had been waiting in silence when they arrived. Zoya, in the passenger seat of Ezra's car. The mere thought of her anywhere near my half-brother filled me with rage, but I tried to keep it inside, watching their interaction.
She said something to him over her shoulder, a goodbye, perhaps, and stepped out of the car, closing the door. Then, without another look back, she walked up the front porch and walked inside the house.
Ezra sat still in his car, engine running, for a few moments after that, staring at the closed door of Zoya's cabin. He seemed to be in deep thought, like he was reeling from being in Zoya's presence, and then watching her leave all of a sudden.
I wondered if I was just like him whenever I watched Zoya leave, dumbstruck and wanting more of her. I wondered since I never had a mate before, if that was how strong the bond was, and if her absence affected me just as much as her presence did.
However, Zoya was my mate, not Ezra’s…then what could’ve caused Ezra to have that look on his face as he watched Zoya? Something about it made me uncomfortable.
“You’re back.” I told her, my voice soft as I saw her turn the lights on in the living room.
Startled, she looked into my eyes, her soft brown ones filled with an unknown emotion I couldn’t name. “So are you.” She raised an eyebrow, as if asking for an explanation. When I didn’t say anything further, she went into the kitchen, rummaging around the cabinets to find something to cook perhaps.
I could sense my mood plummeting yet again as I drew closer to her, almost like I was attracted by a magnet. The smell of my brother clung to her like persistent and sticky wax, a stubborn string of glue that I could not shake off her, and it was so overwhelming that I wanted to give into my wolf and tear the scent out of her right now, replace it with my own and see whose company she enjoyed more. The wolf in me hated his scent on her so much that it wanted to claw its way into her and mark her as mine from the inside.
I had to suppress this violent possessiveness I felt over her with teeth gritting strength. Because even though it was true that she was my mate, and therefore I had the rightful claim to her, as the Moon Goddess intended. She was still, a human woman who had no idea that werewolves existed. And I knew that a wolf's scent only attached to a person when the wolf was beginning to claim their territory, so if such a phenomenon was happening to her, then it was clear that Ezra had taken an interest in her too, and that knowledge only made my jealousy and anger worse.
This was not the first time that it happened, so it was twice as ridiculous and annoying.
“Here.” She placed a cup of steaming hot chocolate in front of me, as if sensing my mood. And the delicious aroma coming from that cup almost instantly lifted up the shadow of gloom surrounding me. I looked up at her with raised eyebrows. “What? I was feeling like hot chocolate, okay!”
I felt my lips tilt upwards. “I didn’t say anything.”
“No, but you were giving me that look.” She frowned, bringing her own cup to her lips as she continued to study me over the rim of her cup.
“What look?” I leaned on the counter with my elbows on the table. Now I was really interested. What kind of look had I been giving her again?
Zoya in turn, raised her eyebrows at me. “Mr. Sam…are you flirting with me?”
That gave me pause. Was I flirting with Zoya?
A little belatedly, the realization hit me that I actually might have been. It had been so natural, almost involuntary, that I hadn't even realized what had been happening. Shit!
“Sorry.” I apologized quickly, looking down at the mug. “I didn’t mean to.”
“Force of habit?” She asked me. “You seem like the kind who has women flocking to him without much effort.”
Well…she wasn’t wrong there.
The only difference was, we already had pre-destined mates fated to us by the Moon Goddess herself, and we were programmed to love only that person for the rest of our lives…much like how I was programmed to love Zoya.
And it was all the more reason why I needed to break that programming, remove the shackles that the mating bond was binding me with, because I had a bigger mission to fulfill…finding Lily’s killer.
“I guess,” I shrugged now, trying to appear as nonchalant as possible. “So? What are we having for dinner?”
I decided to change the subject purposefully, so that I could avoid any further discussion about my life. It would prevent me from unnecessarily giving away any information as to who I was.
“I’m not feeling like cooking tonight…will ramen do?” She asked wearily.
“You know what? How about I make that ramen and you go get some rest?” I offered. “You look like you could use a nap.”
“Really?” She looked around, trying to decide if it was a good idea to leave the kitchen in my hands. “You’ll be fine?”
“Absolutely.”
She nodded and went back into her room and closed the door behind her. But as she went, I got another whiff of Ezra’s scent on her.
Fuck!Why did this bother me so much?
I had already let go of Lily because she wasn't my mate, but with Zoya, it was different. She was my true mate, and I couldn't bear the thought of losing her to my brother, especially after what happened in the past. Despite my reservations about having a human mate like Zoya who could potentially weaken me, I couldn't help but feel drawn to her. She was beautiful and kind, and her scent was intoxicating. But at the same time, I knew I couldn't let myself be vulnerable to someone who wasn't a part of the pack. I couldn't, shouldn't, wouldn't open myself to a human.
My mind was filled with conflicting thoughts. My emotions were all over the place, and I couldn't think straight. On the one hand, I knew that Ezra had already snatched away my lover once, even if not intentionally, and I didn't want to let that happen again. On the other hand, I didn't want to use Zoya as a pawn in my game against my brother.
Because as much as I hated Ezra, I couldn't deny the fact that he was my brother. We shared the same blood and a bond that had been formed right after I was born. I still loved him. The thought of turning on him made me feel sick to my stomach, but the idea of losing Zoya was even worse.
All I knew was that I couldn’t let Zoya get hurt because of my unreasonable jealousy…and I couldn’t blame Ezra either until I had proof that he wasn’t the one who hurt Lily.
However…as I continued to stare at Zoya’s closed door, my thoughts suddenly took a dark turn.
If I had never brought him back into the pack, then none of this would have happened…
And all of a sudden, my thoughts were consumed by the idea that Ezra might be the one responsible for Lily's murder, and no matter how hard I tried…I couldn't shake it. It felt as if a dark shadow had fallen over my mind.
Only Ezra would have a lot to gain once he successfully shifted the blame on me and got me out of the way. Even now, in the wake of my exile, he became the leader, the alpha, and the strongest of the pack. He had everything at his disposal, and he shoved me off my rightful title, just like that.
And since the only other scent in that room belonged to Ezra…what had stopped him from killing her and leaving her there for me to find? Just so the whole pack would condemn me as the murder?
What if being the Alpha had been his ultimate goal…and Lily the poor, innocent scapegoat in his master plan for revenge?