Chapter Twenty-Six: What Could Have Been

Chapter Twenty-Six: What Could Have Been


Midnight in the bayou was just as Ember remembered: magical and beautiful. The full moon beamed brightly over the expanse of the bayou, lighting up the foggy water and old cypress trees. The night was filled with sounds of animals, and the moonlight sparkled on the surface of the water. 

Ember walked cautiously, side stepping some members of the pack who were huddled together. She was keenly aware that this was her first night being back with the pack on a full moon. She felt the weight of their gazes pool around her like quicksand and this made her quicken her steps.

She found herself wishing that she could transfer her memory loss to them and maybe they could all forget about that night. Even though she had served her punishment for what she’d done, seeing everyone flash her a judgmental look was another form of punishment.

She made the decision to isolate herself from them and pay them no attention. She was here for Jene and that was what mattered. Making her way to the far corner of the woods, Ember felt somebody’s stare boring holes into her back.

She wheeled herself around to catch a glimpse of who had been staring at her, it was Pete. Their eyes locked and stayed that way for a second, before Pete tore his eyes away from hers, a huge scowl on his face.

The smile on Ember’s face faded as she realized once again that Pete was probably never going to forgive her. She hung her head low as she walked away, this action made her bump into someone.

“I.. I’m sorry” she apologized and whipped her head up. Jene’s smiling face stared back at her. She wrapped Ember in her arms, giving her a warm and happy hug. “Ember”, said Jene in a sing-songy manner. “You came!”

Ember flashed her a clipped smile as she said. “Of course, I came. I wouldn’t have missed your mating ritual for the world”. Jene clutched her chest in a way that expressed how thankful she felt about Ember’s kind words. “That’s very kind of you, Em”.

She nodded in Pete’s direction, softening her eyes at Ember. “Is Pete still mad at you?”, she asked. Ember shrugged. “He is probably going to be mad at me forever”, she confessed.

Jene chuckled softly, giving Ember a playful tap on the shoulder. She replied, “Nobody can stay mad at you forever, Ember. He just needs time to process the fact that you’d rather run away and be punished than mate with him”

Ember winced at the impact of Jene’s words. She told Jene truthfully, “When you say it like that, I feel like the most terrible person in the world “

Jene replied, “You are not. You’re just working things out. Everybody does what is best for them at the end of the day”. In that instant, an Elder signaled to Jene. “Come on now Jene, everyone’s waiting for you”

She gave Ember a rueful look, squeezing her hands softly. In order to break the tension, she joked. “I can hear my heart pounding loudly. I just hope that I don’t run away too”

Ember tipped her head back, laughing loudly. “If you do run, I’ll be the one to chase you down and drag you back here myself”. This response prompted even more laughter from Jene. She strutted off and stopped before the Elders.

Ember watched with false indifference as Jene walked up to her mate and clasped her hand around his. They smiled at each other and muttered things to themselves that only they could hear. He led her into the circle and the flames from the pyre cast a delicate look on Jene.

There was a crown made of flowers sitting pretty on Jene’s head and her white gown pooled around her legs, fitting her like a glove. Ember couldn’t help herself but admire Jene’s beauty. Her old friend beamed like the sun on a hot summer day.

The Elder rubbed red earth on Jene’s forehead and then proceeded to do the same with her mate. She chanted some old Lycan language and they did the same, repeating every word the elder had said. During this process, the bayou was pin-drop silent. The chattering stilled and even the breeze stopped blowing. Everything was bearing witness to an intimate moment. 

After the chanting, Jene snapped out her claws and buried it deep inside the neck of her mate. His head whipped backwards and his eyes glowed a light shade of green. He whipped his claws out also, repeating the same actions which Jene had just taken. 

Everyone hooted and cheered at them because they had just completed the first step in marking each other as their mates. There were three steps of marking and each were very crucial in werewolf mating.

Now that the first step was completed, Jene and her mate had to bind their vows with a kiss. Ember looked on wistfully as Jene locked her lips with her mate’s lips. The kiss was deep and filled with reckless passion. As they kissed, both their lips made smacking sounds and this action spiked up Jene’s Lycan libido.

Streaks of liquid trickled down her laps and she deepened the kiss even more. Then for the third and last step, Jene and her mate shifted from their human form into their wolf form. They howled loudly as they tackled each other to the ground in an intense session of love making.

Ember turned away from the scene, her mind reeling with wild and imaginative thoughts. This was what would have happened between Pete and her if she had not run away. She found herself drawing up images of what could have been in her head.

Just then, she whipped her head around and her eyes connected with Pete’s again, but this time, he did not look away. His eyes were filled with the weight of unspoken words, which only confirmed to Ember that the same thoughts which had been in her head were in his also.

Ember felt the rush of air into her windpipe, fast and overwhelming. Her head began swirling around and her heartbeat sped up. The loud sounds coming from Jene and her mate coupled with the intensity of Pete’s gaze were making her feel fuzzy. 

She needed to get away from there. She heard someone ask “Ember, are you okay?”, but she couldn’t make out the voice nor the face. With her head still swirling around, she made a dash out of the bayou.

She walked in circles around another part of the woods until she found somewhere comfortable enough for her to stay and gather her thoughts. Images of Jene and her mate filled her head but somehow, her mind replaced them with Pete and herself.

She shook her head, trying to erase those images from it. The only reason why she felt she had ran away from Pete on the night of their mating was because she knew she had no feelings for him. But, seeing Jene and her mate tonight, maybe feelings were not the most important thing to consider when mating.

Recently, she had started having desires; those kinds that were wild and sweaty. These desires were overwhelming her and it dawned on her that she really needed to mate.

A loud, clanging noise pulled those thoughts away from her head and she jerked up to her feet, startled. “Pete, is that you?”, she called out because she had been half expecting him to follow her. Still, there was no response and Ember’s blood ran cold.

She whipped her head left and right in search of what had made the noise and yet, she found nothing. Instinctively, she extended her fangs, scanning the area with her supernatural sight.

“Whoever you are, show yourself!” Her voice boomed.