152. Asher

Asher

I stare at him in shock, like the air has been sucked right out of my lungs. My chest tightens. I blink-once, twice-hoping I heard him wrong. But Liam isn't joking. There's no hint of a lie on his face.

I blink again, more out of disbelief than anything else, waiting-begging-for him to laugh and tell me he's messing with me. But he doesn't.

The silence stretches between us, thick and heavy. The only sound I can hear is the steady thud of our hearts, beating in sync.

And then it hits me.

He's telling the truth.

The fucking truth.

One thing about us werewolves-we never know when the side effects of an unmarked bond will kick in. But now… now I know. Not marking Ally is making her weak. It's my fault.

"You're not joking, are you?" My voice finally breaks through the suffocating silence.

Liam shakes his head.

I see it in his eyes. Raw, honest truth.

I'm on my feet in a second, storming out of the room and heading straight to Ally's.

Why didn't she tell me?

And if she had… would you have marked her then? Kaidos asks, his voice deep in my head.

I don't know. Maybe not. Not before learning why my father really left the pack.

Rage boils in my chest. My fists clench, and before I can stop myself, I slam one into the wall. The impact sends a crack through the drywall-but it does nothing to stop the ache clawing at my insides.

I've been selfish. Kaidos is right.

I didn't think about how she felt when she asked me to mark her. I brushed it off, ignored her pain, and never asked why she wanted it so badly. I should have known. I should have asked.

I pray she's still sleeping. I just want to crawl into bed beside her and hold her. Watch her breathe. Be there when she wakes up.

As I reach her door, I raise my hand to knock-but something stops me.

The door is cracked open.

My heart skips.

Blood rushes to my ears as I shove the door wider and step inside, eyes scanning the room.

She's not here.

Panic claws at my throat. I rush to the bathroom, yank open the door-

Empty.

Kaidos starts pacing inside my mind, restless and agitated.

Is she in trouble?

Did someone take her?

A low growl rumbles from my chest as my instincts take over. I sniff the air, searching for any unfamiliar scent-any trace of someone else.

Nothing.

Just my scent.

But still-where the fuck is she?

The pain in my chest sharpens, stabbing through me like a blade. I can't think of any reason why my mate would be gone unless someone took her.

Panic grips me as I rush down the hallway, heart pounding, eyes wild. I burst into the living room, scanning every corner.

Empty.

But her scent is here. Faint in the air.

I follow it, barely breathing, afraid of what I might find. From the living room, I catch sight of the kitchen-and that's when I notice it. A used plate in the sink.

She was here.

She ate.

My chest tightens with a mix of fear and hope. My heart races, almost jumping into my throat. The fear that she might have been taken still claws at me, but something soothes it-there's no other scent in the air. Just hers.

Kaidos purrs softly in my mind, a low, calm sound. That can only mean one thing.

She's close.

My instincts flare to life. I move quickly, silently, following the invisible thread of her scent. And then I see her.

She's standing outside, wrapped in a light kimono, arms hugging herself tightly. Her gaze is far away, lost in the distance. I try to reach for her mind, to feel what she's thinking-but her mental walls are up, solid and unbreakable.

Then she turns.

Our eyes meet.

And I see it-panic raw in her expression.

That's when I realized I've been anything but subtle. I must've been running, feet pounding the ground so hard she heard me coming from a mile away.

I want to go to her. I want to pull her into my arms and tell her she's safe and that everything is going to be okay.

But I stop.

Because her voice breaks the silence, soft but sharp, like a knife to the chest.

"Please… go away."

Her words hit me harder than any blow ever could.

It's like a crack appears in the wall I've built around myself, and just like that-

It spreads.

It shatters.

And the wall comes crashing down.

Goddess, this hurts more than I could ever imagine.

Is this… is this what rejection feels like?

I want to be defiant. I want to take a step closer to her, my hand raised, aching to reach her.

"Don't," she says-just one word, but it's enough. Her voice is shaky, trembling with emotion, yet there's an intensity in it that freezes me in place. One word. That's all it takes to keep me still.

I don't beg.

I don't say please.

But for Ally's sake, I would break every rule I've ever known. I would fall to my knees if that's what it takes. I would beg her-beg with everything inside me-because right now, my heart is thundering so hard it feels like it's about to rip out of my chest.

And I'm just standing here, doing nothing.

"Please, Ally… you are my world. I'm ready to do right by you," I say, my voice thick with emotion, a choked sound escaping my throat.

She closes her eyes tightly. But the tears still fall.

Silent. Steady.

Her emotions crash through me like a storm. I can feel her heartbeat pounding, just as frantic as mine.

"Go away, Asher," she says softly, shaking her head. "I don't want anything to do with you."

No. No, she doesn't mean that.

I take a step forward, reaching for her.

"But that's not possible," I whisper. "We're mates. We have a son, Ally. Declan-he's ours."

Her eyes snap open.

And I freeze.

Because for the first time, I see it-the fire burning behind her eyes. Fierce. Unforgiving.

And in that moment, for the first time ever…

I'm afraid of what she might do.