ROLEX POV
I saw the mole," I muttered, breaking the silence in the car. The words
felt heavy on my tongue, like a confession.
Xavier looked over at me, his eyes sharp with intensity. "The one on her
shoulder?"
I nodded, gripping the wheel until my knuckles turned white. "Yeah. It's
her. There's no doubt. She's our mate." The truth of those words made
my chest tighten.
Xavier leaned back in his seat, rubbing a hand over his face. His
shoulders slumped with the weight of our past. "She's changed, though.
She's not the same Mia we knew."
"Of course, she's changed," I said, my voice laced with frustration. The
anger-at ourselves, at the situation-burned in my chest. "We broke
her, Xavier. What did you expect?" The memory of her tears from years
ago clashed violently with the image of her confident smirk today.
He didn't answer, but I could see the guilt etched across his face. It
mirrored my own. His fingers drummed nervously against his thigh-a
habit he'd developed whenever he felt overwhelmed.
And yet, despite the guilt, I couldn't stop the other thoughts swirling in
my head. She was stunning now-so much more confident and
composed. She had this untouchable aura about her, and it was both
intimidating and... attractive. My wolf howled in agreement.
"She's hotter now," I admitted, earning a sharp glare from Xavier. His
eyes flashed golden for a moment-a sign of his barely controlled
emotions.
"Do you ever think with anything other than your hormones?" he
snapped, his lip curling in disgust.
I shrugged, unbothered by his reaction. My wolf found some satisfaction
in stating the obvious truth. "I'm just being honest. She's gorgeous. You
can't deny it."
Xavier looked away, his jaw tightening. A muscle twitched in his cheek-
his tell when he was fighting against agreeing with something he didn't
want to acknowledge. I knew he saw it too, even if he wouldn't say it out
loud.
When we got home, Nathan and Sean were waiting for us, their
expressions anxious. Nathan's eyes were lined with dark circles-
evidence of sleepless nights-while Sean couldn't stop fidgeting with the
hem of his shirt.
"It's her," Xavier said without hesitation, collapsing into a chair. The
leather creaked under his weight.
Sean's face lit up with relief, his eyes suddenly bright with unshed tears,
and Nathan let out a breath he seemed to have been holding for years.
The tension in his shoulders visibly melted away.
"She's alive," Sean whispered, his voice almost trembling. His hands
shook slightly as he gripped the edge of the table.
I leaned against the wall, crossing my arms as I watched their reactions.
The cool surface against my back helped ground me. "She's alive," I
confirmed, forcing my voice to remain steady despite the storm of
emotions inside me. "But she's not the same. She hates us."
Nathan frowned, running his fingers through his disheveled hair. "We
deserve that. After everything we did to her..."
"Exactly," I cut in, pushing off the wall as restless energy coursed
through me. "Which means we have to work twice as hard to make
things right. But here's the thing-no one else can find out about her.
Not our father. And definitely not Tristan." My stomach churned at the
mention of his name.
At the mention of his name, the mood in the room shifted. Sean clenched
his fists until his knuckles turned white, and Nathan's expression
darkened, his eyes taking on a dangerous glint.
"That bastard," Xavier muttered, his claws briefly extending before he
forced them back. "He's too close to her already."
"And we can't let him get any closer," I added, my wolf snarling at the
thought. "Which is why we need to keep this quiet. If he finds out, he'll
use it against us. And if Dad finds out, he'll shut us down before we even
have a chance to fix things."
As we discussed our next steps, the reality of the situation hit me like a
physical blow. The Blood Moon pack was in another city, and we couldn't
just show up unannounced whenever we wanted. My wolf paced more
frantically at the thought of being so far from our mate.
"We need to move closer," Nathan said, pacing the room. His footsteps
echoed against the hardwood floors, matching the rapid beating of my
heart.
"The estate near their territory," Sean suggested, his eyes lighting up
with hope. "It's expensive, but it's the only option." His fingers tapped
rapidly against his thigh, already calculating costs in his head.
"It's not just about the money," I pointed out, massaging my temples as
a headache began to form. "If we move there, it has to look legitimate.
We can't just uproot everything and expect no one to question it."
"We'll use the business as a cover," Xavier said, sitting up straighter as
the plan formed. His eyes took on that calculating look he got when
solving complex problems. "Expansion plans. No one will suspect
anything."
I nodded, running a hand through my hair as my mind raced through the
possibilities. "It's a good plan. But we can't waste any time. The longer
we wait, the harder this is going to get." My wolf growled in agreement,
already impatient to be closer to Mia.
"But what about the pack?" Xavier asked. "We're running out of time,
and we still haven't found the white wolf."
The weight of his words hung heavy in the air. The curse that plagued
our family had always loomed over us, and the lack of a white wolf made
our situation even more desperate.
"She's our mate," Nathan said firmly. "If anyone can save us, it's her.
But we need to earn that right first. We've already taken so much from
her. We can't just expect her to save us without proving we're worth it."
Sean let out a breath, nodding slowly. "Agreed. But we need to act fast.
We don't have much time left."
Later that night, we sat down with our father to discuss the move.
"We've been looking to expand into the southern territories," Nathan
began, keeping his tone casual. "The estate near the Blood Moon pack
would be the perfect base for that."
Our father, ever the strategist, narrowed his eyes. "The Blood Moon pack
is powerful, and their territory is valuable. Are you sure this is a wise
move?"
"It's necessary," I interjected. "If we want to stay competitive, we need
to establish a presence there."
After a moment of consideration, he nodded. "Fine. But I expect results.
Don't waste resources on this if it won't yield anything substantial."
We nodded in unison, the plan already set in motion.
The next morning, we packed our things and prepared for the move.
"We are coming for you, little sister," I chuckled and couldn't wait to
hold her in my arms.