98 – I’m with them, not with you!
98 – I’m with them, not with you!
Marco
As I drag my tired feet through the dark, long deserted corridors of the third floor of the pack house towards my room, a sense of uneasiness floods my veins. I’m the only one who chose to remain here after that period. Even Nicholas evacuated the floor, where all the previous Alphas’ chambers had been, not wanting to be reminded of his parents’ loss. I don’t remember anymore what kept me here. I guess the same thing that kept me glued to this wretched pack instead of following my sister and my heart when I was young.
Lately, my steps have become heavier and my sharp mind is getting lost easier. After what transpired with Nel, my guilt for not standing up for her has been too much of a burden for an old man like me. Cathy would laugh at me, if she was here. She’d most probably say something cheerful and kind like that I would only get mature, not old or that excellent wines taste better when they age. Still, as the days that Nicholas is gone to Northam to fetch her turned to weeks and now nearing a month, my memories of how I should never have let her mother alone resurface more regularly. Not that I would ever rid myself of the question ‘what would have happened if’…
Flashback
“Look, brother! I got it! Don’t I seem pretty in the photo?”
Frida’s joy was contagious. She was about to jump from a cliff without a parachute and still she was so happy about looking good in her fake passport photo. How I wish I were more like her; daring and carefree… To follow my heart and not worry about the result. She was facing me with so much anticipation, waiting for my answer.
“You are always gorgeous, Frida. Even more so in reality than in a photo…”
I didn’t mean to sound bitter. The last thing I would choose for her is to stay here and be forced to marry someone who’s not her mate, just because her Alpha wants to have her under his influence and won’t compromise losing her to his birth pack, since her mate is from there.
“Come with us, Marco! Angie will be waiting in Northam. She’ll help us rent a car and give us instructions about how to find Linda’s coven. They reside in a small town on the shore, called Eastport. The risk is high, but it could work. United we stand, divided we fall… Remember?”
Her tone was almost begging me. There was a wild glint, full of hope in the way she looked at me. I knew she wanted me to follow her. It would save us both so much heartache and trouble. But I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t leave the pack. Her expression sunk at my delay. We had grown up together; she knew me all too well, and she realized I would pass this one.
“Is it because of Alex and the Black Moon?” she finally asked in a small voice.
It was indeed true that they were enemies, but despite being the pack’s Beta, my loyalty didn’t lie with the Alpha, nor with the pack. Under other circumstances, I wouldn’t give a fuck in the world about who I would work with to accomplish what I craved. However, this once things were different.
“What about Cathy, Frida? Who will protect her from Charles if I come with you?”
Her cheeks flushed at my remark and her gaze turned to the floor at the very same moment, stubbornly refusing to meet mine after that. Cathy, her best friend, the one she had so often opposed her Alpha for… the one who had so mindlessly betrayed her in response…
We exchanged no more words, just entered the residence of our parents, where we both grew up together for her to pack her bags. We waited there till the middle of the night, and then I escorted her to the meeting point to join her mate.
End of flashback
Leaving the apartment that night, I locked it forever behind the two precious women I bid farewell to. I didn’t realize my steps came to a halt before that same door as my mind traveled back in time. Only the door isn’t closed like it is every day when I pass in front of it for the past over twenty years. Stupid Omegas! How many times do I have to tell them not to mess with this floor? Cleaning the corridor is more than enough. I’m just one man alone, and I can handle myself more than fine. No need for anyone to disturb my ghosts.
The ajar entrance emits a tantalizing invitation to fight my demons and face the once beloved space again after all this time. I’m nowhere near the person I was when I last locked it. It somehow feels like a blasphemy to enter, but for some reason, I can’t resist it. My feet move on their own accord, pushing the door further open.
I haven’t taken more than a couple of steps, when a familiar scent I never thought I’d smell again engulfed me, almost bringing me to my knees. After all these years, I must face the fact that I’ve totally lost it. My ghosts have won; I’m imagining stuff. Have my regrets over my choices returned so wild that I’m dreaming of her again? It’s been so long since I last allowed my brain to travel back to what I gave up that night; not only my sister, but my mate as well. I had to choose between happiness and duty and I chose the latter.
Soft, eerie steps force me to look up. In the dark distance, an unearthly figure approaches. My eyes go wide as saucers as they take in her form. She’s grown up so perfectly. She’s as gorgeous as she was back then, yet the thin lines next to her eyes and mouth and the streak of white hair falling on her face remind me of the lost time between us.
“Hello, Marco… Long time no see…”
Even after all these years, and despite our age, her voice sounds like music to my ears. Our acquaintance was only a short one. I had to deny her and stick to my duty, but the more time passed by, the less positive I was about the rectitude of my choices. Having deprived myself of the right to a mated life felt like I had nothing more to lose. Therefore, I acted as if there was no tomorrow, so much so that after a certain point, I could hardly recognize myself. Only recently, after my encounter with Josh when he informed me about Frida’s child, did I manage to establish some feeble connection to that old self of mine, but even that is only hanging from a thread and would likely slip at any moment.
No words spoken. I examine her form. She’s grown stronger, and it’s too obvious she’s not the enthusiastic young woman she once was. Her laugh dominates the room, but her eyes don’t hold any humor. The softness in them has disappeared and something else is charging fast.
“Won’t you even greet your mate?”
“Is that what made you angry? Well, hello then, Linda… To what do I owe this immense honor after all these decades?”
I can’t help the sarcasm dripping out of me. I’m not who you think I am. Hell, maybe I never was. What difference does it even make?
“You knew she’d be with me, didn’t you?”
“I suspected it, but one wouldn’t be sure unless they see something with their own eyes.”
“Still, you didn’t come. Not even that was important enough for you to reach for me.”
She sounds bitter. Did she well believe I’d run looking for her coven just because Nel might be there?
“I’m too old for random scouting in faraway places. I trusted you’d keep her safe, and it was plentiful. You still haven’t answered my question.”
“Too old? That’s the best excuse you could find?”
“What do you expect me to say, Linda? If Frida wanted me to learn more about Elaida, she’d have informed me herself. Judging by the fact that she didn’t, she had some reason for me to stay away.”
“So you already know…” she mutters and I nod.
Of course, I know. I’ve always acknowledged my sister was special. After discovering her true birth identity, just to lose her soon afterwards, I spent years investigating, lurking in my shadows when nobody realized I was listening, bribing people who should never open their mouths, and blackmailing others who should at all costs have stayed loyal. Piece by piece, I put together the puzzle of what really happened and why both Alex and Josh were so resolute their only way was to flee; why Charles tried to keep her chained here and why Steven never dared to oppose him in that. And then I decided it was better not to learn any more, and I let sleeping dogs lie.
“I will fight them, Marco. Are you with me? Because if you’re not with me, you’re against me. There’s no neutral ground on this. You know Frida would want you to help her daughter.”
“You’re asking me to help you… not Frida’s girl…” I remark dryly and she retreats, taken aback by the hostility in my voice.
“I’m her only chance. Don’t you see that?” she says, tilting her head, as if that would assist her in reading me better.
“I learned how to shield my thoughts from curious witches many years ago, Linda. I’m not Nicholas; young, innocent, and gullible.”
“Why are you so spiteful? You’re the one who chose to stay behind and not follow. It’s not like we hid something from you or abandoned you here.”
“Her only chance is her mate, not you.” I say, ignoring her remark and plea. This conversation is several decades overdue and I don’t hold any interest in going through with it. After all, I may have stayed, but I never chose another mate, and even worse, I never had a child of my own.
“The key to her salvation and victory is their union. And now that you’ve seen both of them and recognize both their potential, you just choose to bet on the horse sure to win the race. I don’t blame you for that. The same goes for me, but let me make this clear from the beginning; I’m with them, not with you.”
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