Chapter 12

ETHAN KENNEDY

The path we're walking on seems endless. The trees are tall, a little sunlight passing through the leaves; they appear as if they are taunting us, like our presence is being questioned. A light gush of wind brushes past us, making me shiver even though I'm used to cold. There's something off about the place, but I can't seem to find anything suspicious about it.

Leaves crunch beneath our feet, filling up the place with a sound that's almost too deafening. The place is so quiet that I can hear my own pulse, my own heartbeat, as we venture forward.

My eyes flicker to my mate, who is almost crouching as he looks forward. His body is on alert, a little tensed, his eyes trained forward but flickering to me every now and then. His Alpha instinct is surfacing, and it's a sight to behold. His forehead is creased, his brows are almost touching. His canines are extended, magnificent and deadly. His aura is everywhere, letting the nature feel his presence. Everyone can see, even at once glance, that Leon Adler is a force to be reckoned with, a powerful Alpha.

My heart swells at the sight of how strong he looks, how his muscles contract, and how dangerous he appears. All those trainings in the afternoon, the midnight runs he usually has with his father, the sparring; they all lead to this. They prepared him well, trained him beyond his limits. That's why he's ready to be an Alpha.

"Stay sharp," he commands, his tone low as he looks to his left and right, sniffing the air, trying to get a sense of what's going on. "I don't like this place one bit. I've been on edge since we came here, and it feels like there are eyes watching our every move."

"You feel it, too?"

"Yes," he lets out a feral growl as his eyes flicker to the bushes. He lets his wolf surface, his eyes going from its original color to yellow. "I've been out in the wild for quite some time now, and I can tell how dangerous this place is."

"But I don't think there are enemies though," I tell him truthfully.

"What do you mean?"

Although I can feel gazes upon us, I can't sense any presence here. This place is supposed to make us feel... unsafe. But for what? I muster up a strength to sense any life surrounding us through the ground. I crouch down, placing the tips of my fingers to the ground, trying to discern any objects. I shut my eyes, trying to get a grasp of this ability that just came inside my head.

It's already exhausting me, but I have to know how safe we are in this place. I don't want to risk my mate's safety. Leon is an Alpha, and he's got strength and power, but as a mate, I can't put him in danger. If we have to go back to Klein's pack and get help, then that's what we're going to do. We're not going to be noble here; we're going to take the high road as there are a lot of people who like to help us. We may have just met Klein and the others, but I know they are good people. There's nothing wrong with asking for help. Although they offered help before we left them, and we declined politely, a lot can change when you sense a great danger.

"This place is just eerie," I tell him, opening my eyes as I don't detect any sign of life around us. "What we feel may just be some sort of barrier, like it's supposed to keep us away from going forward, to stop us."

"Why would, well, the nature keep us away? Why would they do this?"

"There's only one reason I can think of, Leon." I stand up, clenching my fist as I turn to look at my mate who looks confused. "We may be near at one of the shrines. And although I don't feel sight of life, we still need to be cautious. Remember, the hunters could have gotten their ability to switch off their scents at the shrine's area."

"I know,"

"Good, let's move forward."

We take cautious steps, each footstep feels heavy as we put them light on the ground, hoping that we'd make no sound as we venture forward. My heart beats erratically on my chest in a bad way. I feel like I'm tiptoeing to my death, and I'm bringing my mate with me. My eyes flicker to his, and he has his serious expression on.

A gush of wind, this time a bit stronger, passes by us again. Leon lets out a shaky breath, but his eyes are crossed as he sniffs the air again. I don't have any idea where we are. Tall trees stand around us, surrounding us, their leaves sway with the command of the wind. Birds chirp from the distance.

The more we walk, the more it feels like we're going to our deathbed. I try to sense if there's any sign of life near us, but I can't detect anything. I can't keep doing this. Otherwise, I'd lose my strength and we'll be in great danger if I continue to use my powers. I can't control some of my powers yet, and if I force myself to use this, it would just take a huge toll on me, keeping me exhausted for a day. I'm surprised that today was different. Maybe it's because my mate is near me — just an arm's length.

I stop dead in my tracks, and Leon immediately turns to look at me. I scan my area, narrowing my eyes, then I turn around to look at the path we've just taken. I stare at my mate again and let out a big sigh.

"What?" he asks me, perplexed.

"We just took this path," I tell him. He scrunches up his nose in a cute manner, making my knees weak. I just want to kiss and hug him right now, but the timing is bad. We're in a danger right now, and this is not the time to be mushy with each other. Maybe, if we get out alive here, I'd be more than happy to be marked. "Remember that odd tree? And that huge rock there."

"Are you sure?"

I throw a little glare his way, and he raises his hands up in surrender. "I honestly did not notice. If you hadn't pointed it out, I would have walked over and over and ended up at the same place without noticing it." He chuckles.

"That's so you." I shake my head, smiling playfully.

"What do you think we should do?" He walks towards me a little gracious, his strong legs striding as he takes a step forward. At the same time, his stance is in battle mode, like if someone leaps out of nowhere, he'd be ready to attack and save me. "I'm not really good at decision making. As an Alpha, I know decisions can have a huge impact. But I can't seem to grasp that concept somehow."

Reaching for his arms, I look at him in the eye and give him a smile. "Hey, you're doing just fine." I wrap my arms around him, putting my head in the crook of his neck as I inhale his scent, getting lost in the moment. "Nothing is really born an Alpha, you know. I mean, it's your genes, but the skills, it doesn't get harnessed overnight. You'll get tripped over and over again, and there are times that your decisions may seem like it's not the best, but what matters is how you handle it and how you accept your flaws."

"You're too good at words,"

"I've been talking to myself for so long that I know how to keep my spirits lifted," I tell him. He pulls away, caressing my cheeks as he stares at me with sad eyes. He places a gentle kiss on my forehead, sighing in the process as he pulls me closer. "We're still in a dangerous situation, you know that, right?"

He chuckles, nodding his head. "Of course. A few more minutes, though."

"Sure,"

We stay for a moment just like that, hugging each other while we're out in the wilderness without any idea what's going on. I let out a silent sigh, wanting to be in my mate's arms as long as possible, but time is our enemy right now. Leon plays with the nape at the back of my neck while I run my palm on his heaving chest, feeling how strong it is against my fingers.

Pulling away, he gives me one more kiss on the forehead before breaking into a boyish grin. He has grown up a lot, and I still can't believe that this guy is my boyfriend. It feels surreal, like a dream I never want to wake up from. He tweaks my nose and I scrunch up my nose, taking a step back. He laughs, amusement clear in his eyes as he watches me stumble a bit.

"What now?" he asks me.

"It's up to you. You decide."

"You sure?" I nod my head. "All right. I have a theory. It just came up in my head. If we keep coming back to this place, something is preventing us from going there — whatever awaits us there. Now that I'm thinking about it... it almost feels like... have you watched The Mortal Instruments?"

I shake my head. Now is not the time to be talking about movies.

"It's a shitty movie," he chuckles, but then he goes serious. "So in that movie, they have this church, like the home of Nephilim or Shadowhunters, and it's hidden and no mortal can see it. Do you think we're already at the shrine but it remains hidden?"

"Hidden?"

"Yeah,"

"I'm not sure if that's... but it's possible, too." I turn around and scan my area again, trying to find anything that would give us a hint that the shrine is just hidden. I can only hear the chirp of the birds, the rustle of the leaves, and the blow of the wind. "If the shrine is really here, and it's hidden, what do we have to do to make it appear in front of us? And if it's hidden, how did the hunters get their ability to mask off their scent?"

Leon crouches down, running his fingers on the dirt, and studies his fingers. He narrows his eyes. He starts to dig the earth, taking a handful of dirt in his hands only to throw it away. He stares at the ground for a moment before frowning, then he stands up and walks over to me. He studies my hand before his eyes flicker back to the ground.

Looking at what he dug in, I study a small crescent logo on the ground, then I check my palm and notice the same mark. The logo etched on a piece of big stone, lying flat on the ground, is broken. Small patches of dirt and the roots of the trees are almost covering the logo. An ancient script writing etched around the rock. I try to use my powers to read what it says, but my body is exhausted from all the walking. Plus, I used my powers earlier.

"Same mark," Leon mumbles as he keeps switching his gaze between the logo on my palm and the hand. To be honest, the logo just came out of nowhere, and I wonder how my mate has seen it. "The logo wasn't on your palm before."

"Nothing surprises me anymore, to be honest."

"By body... by soul... by blood." Leon frowns before narrowing his eyes again, studying the ancient script writing. He runs a hand across his face then stares hard at the stone. He can read the script. "Lobos Antiguos. La luna azul y llena. Ancient werewolves. Blue and full moon? What does this mean?"

"Full moon. Blue moon." I mutter. My eyes widen in realization as images of my parents flood my head right before they got killed. I shut my eyes, trying to stop the images that come in my head. "Full moon. Blue moon."

My parents were running. Their breathing was ragged. They had been running for hours while my mom was carrying. Her arms were wrapped tightly around me, securing me so I wouldn't fall. I was crying. As a baby, I didn't know how to say anything, so I just cried and cried. My mom was just telling me stuff that I couldn't comprehend. I only heard a few words. She loved me, and that they were going to save me.

It was almost full moon, and the moon was a color of blue. It was so bright that it was painting the sky blue as well. I could see the twinkling lights above me, and for a moment, I stopped crying to admire it. But then I saw the frantic look on my father's face, and then I started crying again.

Tears were welling up in my mom's eyes. Her eyes were a color of green, beautiful freckles dotted her cheeks and nose as she stared at me with those loving eyes. My father had dark hair, with a brown strand on his bangs. His eyes seemed black, but it was actually a darker hue of brown. He had a look of determination on his face as he kept us safe.

In the distance, I could hear the rogues — the growls, the snapping of their jaws, the howls, and the pound of their paws hitting the ground as they ran after us. I could hear my parents talking, but I couldn't make out what they were saying. Maybe because I was too busy crying that I didn't bother listening. They stopped for a moment, dad looking to his left and right, trying to decipher which way they should choose. They took the right route and started running again.

Father switched to his semi-werewolf form, growling as the rogues started catching up on us. He turned around, motioning for my mom to continue running. The rogues were starting to get near, but my mom shook his head.

"Elliot, I can't just leave you here." My mom pleaded.

"Elena, we don't have time." My father said through gritted teeth, letting out another feral growl. The rogues stopped for a moment before baring their elongated canines. "We have to keep Ethan safe. We need to seek help from the ancient werewolves but one of us has to sacrifice here to keep Ethan safe, and it's not going to be you, Elena."

"You promised, Elliot!" Mom said as she transformed into her semi-werewolf form, her canines extending as she stared hard at my father. "No matter what happens, we stay together. That's what you said, and that's what I'm going to do. I'm staying."

"Shit," father said as the rogues lunged at us.

Father took out as many as he could, but exhaustion was creeping up on him. When the first batch of rogues were killed, my mom opened a trunk and put me there. She caressed my cheek before crying.

"Elena, what are you doing?" Father asked mom.

"I can use a little magic to hide Ethan here," mom cried out, tears pouring out of her eyes as they both looked at me with sad eyes. "I could switch off his scent, block out sounds, and get this truck hidden so they wouldn't know Ethan is here."

"Are you sure about this?"

"I am," mom tuck a strand of her hair beneath her ear, giving me a motherly smile. She leaned down and kissed my forehead before brushing her tears away with her hands. She had to wipe her face twice before sighing. "Ethan, I know you can understand this. It may not make sense now because you're a baby, but once you grow older, you will remember these things. And I want you to listen to me. To us. A people from another pack will find you here. You'll be safe there. You see that, blue moon. The moon's almost full. This is where we are at our strongest. We're part of ancient werewolves. Great Alpha. Guardian of the Werewolves. Demi-werewolves. Us."

"Ethan, our lineage is special, and danger will always follow you." Father said, eyes sad as he watched me. "Danger will always follow our kind. When you grow older, you have to seek help from your mate and your cousin."

"He's not really your cousin, but he's part of the family." Mom continued, brushing her eyes once again. "His name is Kieran. He doesn't have any idea who we are, but he and his wolf Furion are the key when you look for the shrines. I know you're going to look for it. And of course, you would need your mate as well. His name is Leon. You share the same abilities, but unfortunately, we cannot train you anymore because of this. But whatever happens, I just want you to know, Ethan, I love you. Please take care of yourself. Your dad loves you. I love you. I wish I could see you grow, but our time's up. But I know we will see each other again when the right time has come."

Mom closed the trunk and did her magic. Everything went quiet. I was crying. I didn't understand what they said. I wanted them back. I wanted to feel my mom's loving arms around me, and I wanted my father's hand rubbing my head. I let out another cry, shouting as loud as I could but no one could hear me.

It was a few hours later when the trunk was opened, and it was a different face who greeted me. It was of a man. He introduced himself as Larry Adler. He was an Alpha, he said. He said he was going to take me in, and I trusted him immediately. I remembered my mom's words, that people from another pack was going to get me. Larry seemed kind enough. I mostly forgot what my mom said. At that time, I was just a baby who couldn't understand anything.

I wish I was still a baby.