"What are their names?" I ask curiously.
"That you would also know if you were there when they were born" he says simply. I sigh before jumping in the water, the cool water soothing the ache of my muscles. I wash my face and realise how long my hair was and how filthy I am.
" May I ask why you are so far from your pack?"
"Only if you tell me why you left my sister"
" I don't know why, because I didn't want to admit I was wrong" I tell him not having a reason that would be good enough to explain, me walking out on them.
"Lana tried to kill herself after you left, and she and Tate are doing good. They are a proper family, word of advice"
" What's that?"
" If you choose to go back I would think twice about leaving again, her mate or not I will kill you"
"Noted" I nod my head.
"So why are you here?"
" I used to come here with her," he says.
"Who Lana?"
" No my mate"
" Your mate? Where is she then?"
"Dead, I killed her?" He says like she meant nothing to him yet why was he here. His answer shocked me, and made me feel sick. I couldn't imagine that sort of pain to carry.
"Why?"
" For my family, my pack, my city"
" I don't understand"
"My family means more to me than anything, my pack does. That is the true meaning of being Alpha" he states looking over at me.
"You look like shit by the way"
"Yeah not much wild game around these parts" I tell him. He nods his head looking away.
"Your mate was family, so why kill her? Mates are sacred"
"Says the man who walked out on his" He retorts.
"Good point" I admit.
"I tried to help her, tried to save her from what I knew would happen. She grew up hating our kind, I thought the bond would save her, save us but I was wrong. She was using me to get to my family, to get to my pack. She was a hunter and once I realised she was using me. I killed her" he says looking down at his hands, I feel bile rise in my throat.
"Avery said if I didn't kill her she would do it, she was right. She planned to poison the water supply with silver and wolfsbane not realising it wouldn't kill my immediate family but would have my pack"
"So you killed her?"
"And what would you have done?" He asks looking over at me. I shrug not knowing if I would actually be able to go through with it myself.
" One life for everyone else, so I killed her and ripped her pieces along with her entire bloodline. I made her watch them die, everyone of them for her betrayal, while she begged me to stop. Her screams haunt me"
"You okay? You look a little pale?" He says with a chuckle shaking his head.
"So you're going back?" He asks when I say nothing, like what do you say to that, the horrors he suffered and inflicted.
"I could always make you" he says "but honestly I don't believe you deserve them"
"Do you deserve a second chance mate?" I ask, his tone irritating me.
" If the goddess granted me one, she wouldn't be trusted easily. That's if I let her live, I don't need a mate. They make you weak, blind you and in my position I can't afford weakness" he says.
"How did you do it, survive after I mean?"
"I never marked her, Avery took the remnants of the bond away"
"Huh she would do that for you but not me"
" Aamon and I are best friend's, for over a decade when my father introduced us. Avery knew what she was capable of"
"How so?"
"Because she saw it" He says, getting up and dusting his pants off.
"Come I have spare clothes, I will shout you lunch and later maybe beat some sense into you"
I stayed with Ryker for a few more hours, not that I had much choice, he could literally command me to do what he wants. After he left I shifted back but Titus wasn't happy, he was enjoying being back in our human skin. I zone out for a few hours when he suddenly shifts, forcing me to come forward leaving me bare in the middle of the road.
'Titus what are you doing?'
'I'm done Drake, go home. I want to see my kids, my mates, ' he says before wandering to the back of my mind where I can't reach him. Looking around I groan when I see I am on Tate's territory. Walking through the trees, I jump the fence when I hear wolves racing toward me. I halt waiting for them to find me. Four wolves surrounding me before the big one shifts, Elias.
"Drake?" He says his face lighting up before he comes over patting me on the back.
"Man where have you been? I was wondering if you would come back" he states.
I nod not wanting to tell him it wasn't my idea to come back but Titus's.
"I will call for Tate" I shake my head.
" No, I'm not sure if I will stay" I tell him and he seems shocked, taking a step back.
When I turn to leave Elias grabs my arm, pulling me back.
"Tate is on his way" He says, I growl at him annoyed that he called for him.
It only took around ten minutes before Tate walked toward me, Elias had given me some pants from one of the warriors on guard. My heart skipping a beat when I saw him, I didn't know if I was happy or scared of seeing him, yet the rage inside him as he approached was obvious. Before I even got to say anything he punched me. Knocking me to the ground.
"6 months Drake, 6 fucking months you made us wait"
"Look I'm sorry okay"
"Not good enough, we have made a life here without you I won't have you ruin it, ruin her not again" He says.
"Does she know I am here?" I wondered if she wanted to see me, or if I could see our kids.
"No, what do you want?" He asks, folding his arms across his chest.
"I wanted well, Titus wanted to see them" I admit.
"And you?"
"I don't know what I want Tate," I told him.
"I let you in, whatever baggage from the past gets left at this fucking gate, you don't bring your problems with you, we have started over I won't have you bring us back down. So you need to choose because I can tell you right now Lana won't put up with your shit not no more, not now that we have kids"
"There mine too Tate" I tell him.
"Really? because where the fuck were you when they born? Where were you when Lana tried to kill herself, they don't know you and I sure as hell won't allow you to come and go as you please, or when you feel like being a dad" He says. Guilt smashing into me violently.
"I don't want to disturb anything, I just want to see them"
"Well that's up to Lana" Tate says before walking off. I wait wondering if I should follow him, wondering if I was allowed to.
"Leave your problems at the gate Drake or don't come with me" He calls over his shoulder. I let out a breath before following him, Titus in my head wagging his tail, he wanted to come home for a while. But now I was wondering if I was too late.