196
KS312
ERICA'S POV:-
We stepped out of Samia's car. We were standing in front of Alpha Blake's mansion. Carlos wrapped one of his arms around my shoulders. He intertwined the fingers of his other hand with Samia. Then he pulled us both towards the mansion. As soon as I stepped in, I jumped in shock. Nickolas had jumped in front of me with a party whistle in his mouth. He ruffled my hair the way he always did. He grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the table where Alen's letter and the same box as the morning were set on it. Leaving me with the table, Nickolas walked away. I didn't want to be alone while opening his last gift for me and the letter he left for me.
I didn't have enough courage to ask anyone to be with me. And I didn't want anyone else to read his last letter with me or see what he left me in that box. I grabbed both the box and the letter and walked towards the terrace. I knew I would be alone there. I sat down on the ground and looked up at the sky. The moon was growing bigger everyday. The full moon night was not far away. I was thankful as the light of the moon was enough for me to read that letter while sitting alone in the dark. I set the box aside as I wanted to read his last words for me first. But it was very hard.
I tore the envelope and tried twice to pull the letter out of the envelope. But I couldn't do it. My heart felt like it would stop the moment I would pull the letter out. An arm wrapped around my shoulders and I gasped. I turned my head and sighed in relief. It was Alpha Kaden who was sitting beside me. It was a little shocking to see him sitting beside me. I thought after the way I asked Carlos to take me away, he would never even talk to me again. He was not talking to me. But he was staring into my eyes. And I was staring into his eyes. For some unknown reason, none of us uttered a single word. I tried to say something to break that awkward silence between us. But nothing came out of my mouth.
After a few minutes, he narrowed his eyes and a small smile appeared on his face. As if he forced that smile on his face. "I will not read it. But I felt like you didn't want to be left alone while reading it. Go ahead. Pull it out, unfold the paper and read it." He whispered softly while his eyes were staring at the ground. His voice pulled me out of the daze I was drowning in. I nodded my head and pulled the paper out of the envelope. I was glad that I was not alone. Because reading Alen's last letter would be as painful for me as getting stabbed a hundred times with a silver dagger.
"My dear Erica,
I know this letter will be very shocking for you. Now that you are 18, it is my responsibility to inform you something that I have been hiding all this long. You already know about the mate bond. And you know well that you are not my mate. My mate died years ago. Yes, I love you. Just the way you love me. But as you are I now, you will feel the bond soon. And I know it will be hard for you. I want you not to worry about anything. If you choose your mate over me, I won't mind. It is because I know how hard it is to avoid the mate bond."
I stopped in the middle as I realised what he was trying to tell me. The letter was on my chest and I was crying crazily. Alpha Kaden pulled me to his chest and started rubbing my back. It was not a goodbye letter. It was something he wanted me to understand. I knew about his mate. He never hid anything about his past. But I thought maybe I could be his mate as he lost his.
"I just don't want you to be alone in heaven too. I can't ask you to do it. Because all of us will be paired with our mates. And knowing the fact that you are not my mate, I can never ask you to sacrifice for me. Because we all know, there will be a never ending life we are going to live in heaven. If you know who your mate is, try to give them a chance. Don't run away from them. Because we all deserve to be loved. I know how hard it would be for you. As I know how crazy you are. I know you will be a good girl. And you will consider my words. You will always be the girl who brought me back to life. And I will always be the Alpha who freed you from yourself." By the end of the letter he left me, my hiccups had gone crazy. I couldn't control myself but cry out loud.
I didn't care if anyone heard me. I knew he was going to give me that letter on his own. But he couldn't. "Shhh… calm down, Erica. You will be fine. I know it hurts you more than anyone can imagine. But he is now with his mate. The one who was born to be with him. He also deserves to have something that can make him happy. And he will finally be at peace." Alpha Kaden whispered in my ear and I pulled away from him. I literally pushed him away from me. I was staring at his face while gritting my teeth in anger. He assured me that he would not be reading the letter. But he read Alen's letter anyway. Without asking for my permission.
"Hey! I didn't read it. I kept my promise. Your wolf is the one to blame here. Didn't you hear her yelling every single word written in that letter inside your head loudly." He explained himself how he learned everything. I narrowed my eyes as I had heard Macy yelling each word loudly in my head. I thought she was mourning. But she was actually fooling me. Hesitantly, he wrapped his arm around my shoulders again and pulled me back to his chest. I rested my head on his chest again while wiping my tears. I knew I promised Samia that I would tell him everything. As he deserved to know everything that happened to his sister. But I was not sure if I could do it after reading Alen's letter.
"I thought my misery ended the day I saw Alen. He just made me forget everything I had been through. He knew everything. And the shocking part was that I never actually told him anything. He saw me naked the night I ran away and refused to submit in front of you. He saw my scars. And he always told me that my scars told him the story I never told him. Why would my fate punish me every single time? What did it do so wrong that I have to endure all that pain without a single whimper." I complained to him about everything. After all, Alpha Kaden was one of the people who punished me too.
"I am so sorry, Erica. I know just an apology can never get me your forgiveness. I know Alen made you believe that my bite saved your life. And I have no idea why he would say that to you. Because the moment I knew you were turning, I threw you in front of your father. That was the worst move. And Nickolas told me what happened later. He told me how he found you. But that is all I can do now. I can only apologise for all the monstrous things I did to you. But why Alen fill your head with all those lies?" He apologised to me again, accepting everything he did. Then he asked me a question in a confused tone.
"He knew those lies were not actually lies. It was the truth. The day you abducted me and bit me, that was the best day of my life. Back then, I didn't understand. But now I can see things more clearly. I was not talking about you. I was talking about my father. He sentenced me to endure all the pain without a single whimper. I had to endure it without a single complaint. Because I made a deal with him. And Alen was right. My father was a monster. If he wanted, he would have freed her. But instead, he decided to make me take all the pain. And I didn't complain because I didn't want anyone to touch Alicia." I replied to him honestly. I didn't know how but her name slipped off of my tongue.