Chapter 30: 31: An Unexpected Visitor

ARIEL

My ex-destined mate is in my room.

What?

The.

Hell.

The one who ~rejected~ me.

The one who ~broke~ our mating bond.

The one who ~exiled~ me.

The one who told me he ~never~ wanted to see my face again.

Yeah, ~that~ ex-destined mate.

And he just asked for my ~help~?

~Is this a dream?~

~Is the Moon Goddess playing some kind of joke on me?~

I thought Xavier was gone from my life for good, but now he’s right in front of me, sitting on my bed.

“I...I don’t know what to say.” It’s the truth.

I’m completely at a loss for words.

“I know this must be confusing,” Xavier replies hesitantly, standing up and approaching me. “You don’t have to say anything... I just need you to hear me out.”

I’m not sure that Xavier deserves my attention, but there’s something about the brokenness in his eyes that compels me to listen.

He may be an asshole of the highest caliber, but I actually want to hear what he has to say.

“Go ahead,” I say, crossing my arms.

~This should be good.~

“First, I’m...I’m sorry for how everything happened,” he says, looking at the ground.

“You mean rejecting me and throwing me out of the pack?” I ask, ~just~ in case he forgot what he’s owning up to.

“Yes,” he replies, his eyes suddenly connecting with mine. He looks genuinely apologetic. “I...I was in a bad position. And seeing you after two years and finding out you were my destined mate…”

His words trail off as his gaze falls to the floor again.

“I didn’t handle it well,” he says quietly.

~That’s putting it lightly.~

“Why are you here?” I ask suspiciously. “You said you needed my help, not my forgiveness.”

I can’t pretend like this isn’t an apology that I don’t deserve, but at this point, I don’t want anything from Xavier.

I’m with Alex, and Xavier is with my sister.

Goddess only knows what ~she~ thinks about him being here.

“I do need your help,” he replies, his tone suddenly becoming dark. “It’s about the Hunters.”

My heart nearly stops.

They put me through hell. I’m hardly eager to get involved in anything related to them.

“Xavier, I can’t relive what happened to me at their hands. And frankly, I can’t relive what happened between us either. I’m not sure why you came to me, but—”

“Ariel, they took my son—my only heir…”

A shiver shoots up my spine, and my wolf begins whimpering in my mind.

“Oh my Goddess…”

“He’s your nephew…and you know the Hunters better than anyone,” Xavier says, his voice growing strained. “Please, you have to help me get him back.”

I’ve never even met my nephew…

I’m banned from ever returning to my pack.

But hearing that he’s in danger…

I know that I can’t just ignore this.

I immediately go into pack warrior mode.

“Tell me everything that happened,” I say firmly. “I need ~every~ detail.”

“They took him in the night…killed several of our guards,” he growls.

“Why are you so sure it was the Hunters?” I ask.

Xavier rolls up his sleeve and shows me an unhealed burn mark—seared from silver.

“They had silver hunting knives. I was lucky I didn’t get worse. But I…I couldn’t stop them.”

I can’t even imagine what Xavier must be feeling right now…

And Natalia too.

I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy—and that basically is Xavier and Natalia.

“Did you try to track them?” I ask. Letting my sympathy get the better of me, I sit down next to Xavier.

“Yes, but we lost the trail,” he replies. “You have more experience with them. Maybe you could pick it up?”

“But that would require me to…”

“To come back to the pack,” Xavier says, finishing my thought.

I’m stunned. ~Is he revoking my exile?~

“I never should have banished you in the first place,” he says, placing his hand on my shoulder. “Please…help me find my son.”

I steel my heart as it clashes with my head.

I’m being pulled in multiple directions all at once.

And my pacing wolf isn’t helping either.

~I know! I know!~ I shout at her internally.

I have to help Xavier, but…

~How can I go back to a place that holds so many bad memories?~

One thing is for sure…

I have to tell Alex.

ALEX

“Alex, ~all~ I’m saying is that you need to be thinking about your ~future~,” Mom says with just a hint of judgment, sipping her coffee.

She’s been on my case for the entirety of breakfast, harping on about me settling down.

I’d think she would have learned her lesson by now.

“Mom, honestly, what’s the rush? I’m happy right now. I don’t need to be jumping into a mating ceremony or anything,” I reply in frustration.

~Has she seriously forgotten how disastrous my last attempted mating ceremony was?~

“There’s plenty of time to make these decisions,” I say firmly. “And that’s my final word on the matter.”

She starts chewing her fingernails nervously. It seems like she’s about to argue but ends up thinking better of it.

Instead, she looks out the window silently, a clear sadness in her eyes.

~Damn, I wasn’t that harsh, was I?~

I glance over at Dad as he shakily picks up his coffee mug.

He’s been strangely quiet for this whole conversation.

“What do ~you~ think?” I ask, hoping that he’ll side with me. My dad may have handed most of the royal duties off to me, but in my eyes, he’s still the king.

His opinion means everything to me.

He takes a deep breath and speaks slowly: “I…I think your mother just wants what’s best for you. And so do I.”

“So, what? You two think I’m just wasting my time then? Is that it?” I ask defensively.

My mother looks at me hesitantly. “Did Ariel spend the night again? I saw her hurrying out this morning.”

~There it is.~

~The real reason Mom is so dead set on getting me mated.~

“You don’t think she’s good enough…,” I say in a low growl. “Fuck…I should’ve known this was about Ariel.”

“Watch how you speak to your mother.” Dad tries to speak with authority, but his voice comes out weak and tired.

~What’s going on with him lately?~

“Alex, dear, you have it all wrong,” Mom says, holding up her hands. “I was going to say…”

“That she’s not right for me? That she’s just a lowly pack warrior not worthy of a king?” I ask, seething.

“No… What I was going to say”—Mom crosses her arms, looking a bit annoyed—“is that next time you should invite her to stay for breakfast.”

“Oh…,” I say, feeling sheepish.

I’ve been feeling a little insecure lately. A new relationship isn’t always the easiest thing to navigate, and maybe I’ve projected that onto Mom…

~Maybe I’m too in my own head about this?~

She reaches across the table and places her hand over mine.

“Alex, I’m glad that you’re happy, and honestly…Ariel has ~more~ than proven herself worthy,” she says, giving me a genuine smile. “I’d just like to see a bit more of her. I know I haven’t always been the warmest to Ariel, but please let her know that she’s welcome to join us anytime.”

I nod, grateful for my mother’s effort.

“Olivia is a good girl,” Dad says suddenly, turning to me. “She’ll make a fine mate.”

“Ariel…,” Mom says nervously, correcting him. “It’s Ariel, dear.”

“Ah, yes, Ariel,” he says in a distant tone. “Of course. Just slipped my mind.”

I shoot a concerned glance at my mother, who avoids eye contact with me.

It’s unsettling to hear Dad refer to Ariel by my deceased mate’s name, but that’s not all that concerns me.

He’s more pale than normal, and his words are slow and stilted.

I’m not sure what’s going on, but…

~Something is off about Dad.~

***

When I return to my room after breakfast, I’m surprised to find Ariel there waiting for me.

That surprise turns to outrage when she tells me about her unexpected visitor.

Now I can’t think of anything else to do but angrily pace back and forth in my chambers, ready to shift and tear something apart.

“He has a lot of fucking nerve showing up here,” I growl. “After what he did to you, I should—”

Ariel places a calming hand on my chest. “Alex, I’m glad he did what he did. Xavier breaking our bond allowed me to create a much stronger one…with ~you~.”

She makes a good point.

Still, the thought of that asshole showing up in Ariel’s room makes my blood boil.

“There’s no way you can go with him!” I shout. “He’s asking you to put yourself right back in the Hunters’ sights!”

“Alex, it’s my family,” Ariel argues. “I can’t just sit back and do nothing!”

“But Ariel, you’ve made so much progress. Everything you’ve endured at the hands of the Hunters…” I lightly brush my thumb across her cheek. “What if you…”

“Have a relapse?” she asks, sounding a little hurt.

I can tell by the look in her eyes that she was thinking it too.

“I’ll send all of our best trackers. Hell, I’ll go myself!” I say, trying to dissuade her. “But I can’t stand the thought of you out there with ~him~.”

“It has to be me,” she replies forlornly.

“Why?” I ask, frustrated. “Just because you were taken by the Hunters? I refuse to—”

“It’s my family,” she says. “Whether we get along or not.”

“Fuck…,” I growl under my breath.

I know she’s right. It’s her duty to go.

She wraps her arms around me, and I rest my head on hers. “I don’t want you to leave,” I say quietly.

“It will only be for a couple days,” she replies, nestling into my chest.

I want to tell her to forget about them, but I know it would mean the world to Ariel if she could reconnect with her mother and sister.

Sighing, I lightly stroke her hair. “I won’t be able to convince you otherwise, will I?”

“The Hunters have to be stopped,” she replies. “And if my healing ability can help…”

“Then you have to do everything you can,” I say, giving her a nod. “I get it. I don’t like it, but I get it.”

I reluctantly release Ariel from my embrace. “Just be careful… I love you too much to lose you.”

“I love you too,” she responds, backing away but not breaking eye contact.

As Ariel leaves my chambers, I feel a sense of despair.

She may not be my destined mate, but she’s just as special to me.

I know Ariel has to help her family if there’s still a chance.

But it’s likely that a lot of pain is going to resurface.

~And I’ll make sure I’m there for her when that happens.~

ARIEL

The ride back to the Crescent Moon Pack is excruciatingly uncomfortable.

Xavier has barely said a single word to me, nor I to him.

I suppose that’s natural with ex-destined mates.

But maybe it’s best he doesn’t speak to me. What the hell would he say to someone who he literally ~banished~ from his life anyway?

I feel a pang of sadness as we drive through the familiar streets of my pack.

I grew up here.

Some of my best memories happened in this place.

~But also some of my worst…~

I try to push the nostalgia out of my mind.

I’m here to help, not to reminisce.

Xavier pulls up to a massive lakeside house. It’s night now, and the pale moonlight glitters on the water’s surface.

“This is the ancestral Alpha home that I grew up in. Where my father was Alpha before me,” he says, speaking for the first time. There’s a deep sadness in his tone. “It’s where my son would’ve been Alpha after me…”

“It’s where your son ~will~ be Alpha after you,” I say, placing my hand on his shoulder encouragingly.

He smiles softly for a second, but his face falls when a shrill voice screams from outside the car.

“What the FUCK!”

As I look up, I see Natalia storming toward us like a feral wolf, pissed as all hell.

~Oh, great…~

Looks like I’m in for another hostile homecoming.