138- Under the Silver Weight of Fate
POV Edric Eldoria:
We advanced eastward for days, stopping only when exhaustion took hold of our bodies. Then I would go out to hunt, which, in a way, helped me clear my mind and soothe my restless thoughts.
I faced the full moon, letting its silvery light fall over me. I closed my eyes and drew a long breath.
My arms hung at my sides, my hands clenched into fists. I breathed again, absorbing the refreshing touch of the pine-scented air.
“You’ve been very quiet,” Andrei commented, his steps crushing the snow behind me. He stopped at my side. “Do you feel Lunara?”
I opened my eyes and turned to him, nodding.
“She’s afraid, but she also seems worried,” I confessed, running a hand through my hair, pushing the rebellious curls back.
“Physical pain?”
I shook my head.
“Nothing, at least not since the last time.”
My pupils dilated, and a dark aura spread around us. Lunara had been wounded by Alessio. I had felt every damned injury he inflicted on her.
For a moment, when it happened, I lost control to my beast. Andrei and the others had to calm me, keep me restrained, before I killed all of us. Then, after destroying several trees and slaughtering a significant number of animals, I finally managed to regain control of my body.
Of all the deaths I had already caused, and all the ones I still had to cause, Alessio’s would always be the most satisfying.
Lunara had been awake most of the time. Her emotions were confused and conflicting. Our bond was weak because of the amount of drugs they had injected into her to keep her unconscious. And yet, I could still feel her.
Besides fear, sadness, and desolation—feelings I had sensed through our bond over the last few days—she now seemed worried. Deeply worried. I had no idea what Alessio’s plans were, but whatever he was plotting for her was disturbing her.
If I could somehow communicate with her, comfort her, show her that I was coming for her, that I would take her back home, I knew I could ease her.
“What’s bothering you?”
I exhaled through my nose and turned toward him, sliding my hands into the front pockets of my dirty jeans.
“I don’t know if this is right,” I confessed.
Andrei frowned, the moonlight tracing hard lines across his features.
“Don’t know what?”
“Anton is dead!” I swallowed with difficulty, trying to ignore the stab of pain that hit me as I remembered my old friend. “He died because of me—because of my bad decisions.”
“That’s not exactly true,” he cut in, tilting his head.
“Yes, it is. Anton died because I allowed myself to be deceived. And now you’re all here with me, ready to walk into a war at my side, while our pack remains unprotected.” I tensed. “You—whom I swore to protect with my life and strength, Andrei.”
For a moment, he said nothing, analyzing me with his brown eyes. He pressed his full lips together, weighing his words.
“Anton died because he believed in you. Just like we do.”
“That’s a mistake,” I growled, curling my lips. “I’m not worthy of that honor.”
He placed a hand on my shoulder, then crossed his arms over his chest.
“You can’t answer that for us. Not for me, for Anton, or for anyone else. We’re here because we believe in your cause—we believe in you.”
“Andrei… I—”
“You’re in love with Lunara, aren’t you? Fell for the she-wolf?”
I swallowed hard.
“Yes, I am,” I revealed in a whisper. He sighed audibly.
“Yes, the pack being unprotected can be fatal. And maybe it will prove to be a mistake, but we all knew the risks when we accepted this cause, Edric.” He swallowed. “Just as Anton knew, which is why he died trying to defend her.”
I furrowed my brows, narrowing my eyes in confusion.
“What are you talking about?” I held back a deep breath.
“Anton and I have been suspicious about something, lately,” he confessed, his mouth forming a tense line.
The silence that followed was far too heavy.
“Suspicious?”
He nodded.
“Anton and I raised these suspicions as soon as you brought Lunara home.” He leaned forward slightly, keeping his eyes locked on mine. “We thought it strange that you lost control and marked an unknown she-wolf just because she was in heat.”
The icy wind hit us, blowing my hair back as I remained still, studying him.
“My wolf took over.”
“And that’s what we tried to understand. Out of all the she-wolves you’ve slept with, out of all the heats of Thalira and Catalina that you’ve been through, he never behaved like this—not once in over three hundred years.” My heart sped up, my breathing grew rough. “In the beginning, they were only suspicions, but in the last few days, we began to get a sort of… confirmation.”
“No…” I shook my head, rejecting the idea.
“Predestined partners are still an enigma to all of us, Edric. Even mated pairs admit that. The only certainty we have is that our beasts feel it—they know when it happens.” He tilted his head. “It would explain why your beast took over and mated with Lunara, even without knowing her. Because you, man and woman, did not know each other, but the beasts connected the exact moment you saw one another.”
I exhaled, my body tightening.
“Anton… he brought up that possibility in my office a few days ago,” I confessed.
“As I said, we suspected it, but we wanted to be sure before bringing it to you.”
“Fuck!” I hissed, turning toward the forest, as if I suddenly couldn’t breathe properly.
If I said I hadn’t considered the possibility before, I’d be lying. But the idea surfaced and disappeared just as quickly. I dismissed it as unlikely—impossible. But now, faced with Andrei’s words and the facts he laid out…
I couldn’t breathe.
“Our suspicions only grew after Lunara brought her heat forward weeks ago.”
My throat burned as I turned back to him.
“Why?”
“Because she-wolves only do that with the intention to procreate. Her wolf wanted pups, so it triggered the heat early.”
“So what?”
“Have you ever heard of an unmated she-wolf doing that?” he countered sharply. “Her wolf did it because it sensed you—her predestined mate. That’s why the herb didn’t work; nothing can interfere with a female’s nature when she chooses to procreate.”
“Her heat lasted only three days, both times,” I noted. “I went to Aldren that day to discover why the herb hadn’t worked, but I never reached Valmorin; the moment I sensed Lunara was in danger, I turned back immediately. In the end, I never saw Aldren and never asked the question.”
“Another sign that led Anton and me to raise the hypothesis. Three days the first time and three days the second—just as it happens with predestined mates.”
I shook my head, closing my eyes, as if I couldn’t even bear to think of the possibility.