Chapter 36: Ada's Mate

Ada

“We shouldn’t have told him,” Father sniffs. “We ruined his life.”

“No, Dad,” I sigh as I stand up. “Death will be ruining his life.”

“Ada,” Dad sounds broken, and I turn to him. “I’m sorry.”

“I know,” I smile sadly as I walk out.

There are so many emotions whirling inside of me right now that I do not know what I feel. I am angry at the universe for dealing Tyler with such a cruel fate. I am mad at Dad for keeping it quiet for so long. I am furious that my brother is going to die. But mostly I feel sad and broken. I feel sorry for Father that must deal with this again. I am devastated for Tyler’s sake. I have no idea how he is supposed to deal with this. There are no words of comfort. No hope. Just a sentence.

I only become aware of my surroundings when I am sitting on Mom’s bench and staring at the waves. I wish she were still here. She would have known how to deal with Tyler. Nobody would be able to understand better than her.

“May I?” Reese asks and I look up at him.

“Sure,” I try to smile but fail miserably.

“Do you want to talk about it?” He asks as he sits down next to me.

“I wish that would’ve helped,” I sigh as I sit back and rest my head on his shoulder. I need comfort and the second the thought crosses my mind, guilt strikes me. Tyler does not have a mate or a girlfriend. Who is going to comfort him?

Reese’s only response is to wrap his arm around my shoulders and pull me closer to him. I close my eyes and concentrate on the sound of the waves. But this time, it does not calm me like it usually does.

“Tyler is sick,” I mumble without looking at him. “And he’s going to die.”

It suddenly feels like I am going to burst and then the words tumble over my lips as I tell him everything. By the time I am done, his shirt is soaked with my tears.

“I’m sorry,” Reese hugs me closer. “You did the right thing telling him.”

“I know,” I sniff. “But I do understand why Father didn’t. It was awful telling him.”

“But your father …”

“No,” I sit up and look at him. “We don’t get to judge Dad on this one. We aren’t parents and we don’t have the slightest clue how he must feel. I know how hard it was for me to tell Tyler. I don’t even want to imagine what Dad is going through.”

“I wasn’t judging him,” Reese smiles tenderly. “I was going to say your father might deal better now that he’s sharing the burden.”

“Oh,” I say deflated and nestle against his chest again. “Sorry, it feels like all I’ve been doing today was defending Father. Do you have any idea how hard it is to defend a loved one’s mistakes?”

“As a matter of fact, I do,” he sighs and I look curiously at him. “My dumb*ss of a brother stole my mother’s jewels and sold them to pay off a gambling debt he made during a drunken stupor. It was a once-off occurrence, but the crime stuck with him. He’s still my brother, though.”

“We all do stupid things and need forgiveness at one point,” I sigh.

“And here I thought you’re perfect,” he teases me.

“I am,” I shrug. “Most of the time.”

“Ada,” Tyler says behind us and I jump up quickly. “Can we talk?”

“I’m going back inside,” Reese smiles as he gets up. He pats Tyler on the shoulder as he passes him.

“How are you feeling now?” I ask as Tyler comes to sit next to me.

“It’s too soon to tell,” he smirks as he looks at the ocean. “I guess the reality will kick in later.”

“Tyler, I’m …”

“I’m leaving,” he cuts me off brusquely and it feels like he is stabbing me with a hot iron in the gut.

My first instinct is to protest and try and convince him otherwise, but I keep my mouth shut. This is not about me. This is about him.

“According to Doctor Google, I might have ten, twenty healthy years and I intend to make the most of them,” he continues. “I’m not going to sit around and wait for this thing to kill me. I want to see the world and do things while I still can. When I die, I want to be able to say that I lived.”

“Tyler,” my voice is hoarse as I fight the tears and take his hand. “As much as I understand, I don’t want you to go. I want to spend time with you and be there when it’s time. You know about this for like an hour, don’t make hasty decisions.”

“And it’s an hour less for me,” he sniffs and wipes his cheeks. “An hour I could’ve been living and doing things. I’ve made up my mind, Ada. I’m leaving as soon as I can.”

“But what if you get lonely or need help or …”

“Then I’ll come home,” he looks at me. “Ada, I cannot stay here and wait for death.”

“Okay,” I sigh heavily as my heart shatters into a million pieces. “On two conditions. One, you better be home for every Christmas. And two, I want a postcard from each and every single city you visit.”

“Do they even still make postcards?” He chuckles through the tears.

“I don’t care,” I snuggle closer to him. “Then you take a photo and have it printed as a postcard. And on the back, you must write the date and something that stood out from that day. You don’t need to mail it. Keep it and bring it when you come home for Christmas. I’m going to bind it and together we can look back on the things you’ve done and accomplished. And your future nieces and nephews can learn about their awesome uncle Tyler.”

“I’d like that,” he smiles at me.

“And you better come to my wedding,” I bump his shoulder.

“If I get married,” I roll my eyes.

“That’s practically a given,” he snorts. “Blake and Reese are so eager, they are doing lunges instead of taking steps in case the opportunity presents itself to get down on a knee.”

“You’re ridiculous,” I laugh softly.

“I’m going to miss you,” he says emotionally as he looks away.

“Then don’t go,” I break down crying again as I throw my arms around him.

“Ada, I …”

“I know, I know,” I cry. “It’s something you have to do, but I’m selfish and want to keep you here.”

“Oh, sis,” he holds me tightly. “You’re many things, but selfishness has never been one of them.”

For a long time, we only hold each other looking at the ocean and taking turns crying.

“Giving up the alpha title is not the worst thing,” he sighs. “But I always wanted children. That is my biggest sacrifice.”

“But you can still do it,” I pull away and look up at him.

“No,” he shakes his head adamantly. “I’m not taking the risk of carrying this disease over to my child. This circle stops with me. You and Zayne can continue the bloodline.”

“Tyler,” I cup his face. “I’m so sorry that you must go through this. If I could, I would trade with you.”

“I know,” he smiles sadly. “But we all have a path and this is mine.”

“This isn’t fair,” I shake my head.

“Life isn’t fair,” he smiles and pulls me with him when he stands up. “All we can do is to make the best of it.”

“We still have to tell Zayne,” I sigh as we walk back together hand in hand.

“I will tell him,” Tyler sighs.

“I’ll be right next to you,” I squeeze his hand.

“You’ve always been,” he smiles.