Kyle was starting to have second thoughts. Maybe Cassandra had been right all along and coming on this journey was a very big mistake. With every step he took forward, he could almost feel his sense of reality fleeting away- he wondered why no one had noticed it yet.
It had started as a slight headache on the third day, nothing to be concerned about. Then, by the next afternoon, the headache had abruptly stopped—and that was when the real issue started: the voices.
Unlike the whispers during the attack, these were a mixture of angry voices, most of them unintelligible and that he could tolerate. The problem came on those rare occasions when he could understand what they were saying. They promised something he dared not hope for—answers. Along with them came flashes of events he wasn't sure had already happened or were yet to happen. For everyone's sake, he hoped they were from the past.
The massacre of the pack had shocked him more than he could ever show. Mostly because—for the first time—things had not gone as he'd seen in his flashes.
Sometimes, he felt like he didn't exist at all because of the things he saw and felt. Nothing surprised him anymore. His visions had become more vivid and regular, and here in the forest, he didn't need to be with the group to see Cassandra's tantrum or Thalia trying to defend him.
Since the journey began, he was doing his best to avoid Thalia. There was something about her that he couldn't quite place, but her presence affected him in a way he wasn't ready to face. To avoid questions that he also couldn't answer or even worse, more encounters with Thalia had decided to stay behind the group, only showing up occasionally.
He closed his eyes and held his breath for a bit, after confirming that Cassandra's illusion was in place, he could finally rest.
Back at camp, Casten was burning with shame and slight fury at how he had easily submitted to Raphael.
"Too much for ignoring him. Just showing a little masculinity and you obey him like a puppy," he chided himself and slumped onto the ground. He adjusted his pants and groaned in embarrassment. He really hoped no one would approach him—this was a very bad time.
"Took you long enough, huh?" Thalia teased just as he was starting to drift into oblivion. Her face was serious, and if Casten didn't know better, he'd have thought she was complaining. He squinted against the bright flames in the distance and replied with a frown.
"It was a lot of firewood."
"Definitely. You even needed a strong beta to help you," Thalia continued, arms crossed. Maybe that's what triggered Raphael's protective instinct—or maybe it was the slim hope of joining their conversation. Carefully, he approached them.
"Is anything the matter?" he inquired lightly.
Hearing his voice, Casten frowned. Raphael had caught him off guard earlier, but that had been the last time. He had to build the wall back between them—he had to, because he was scared of what would happen if it crumbled.
Feeling defensive, he rose to his feet and said in a sharp voice, "And if something is, what do you intend to do about it?"
"Casten—" Thalia tried to diffuse the tension, but Casten was determined to smother the spark before it grew into something that would engulf him.
"I do not need your protection—or anything else from you," he declared, staring directly into Raphael's brown eyes. They continued staring at each other, and Casten found himself holding back tears.
"Please just step back. I'm too scared to meet you halfway," he wanted to say—but instead, he stared stubbornly until Raphael eventually walked back to the fire.
"Don't you think that was too harsh?" Thalia asked gently, but Casten just walked away.
Thalia sighed. Love always had a way of messing people up. Deciding Raphael needed her more at the moment, she joined him by the fire.
"You know he's doing all that because he is confused," Thalia cut straight to the point. She knew exactly who she was speaking to, a strong, intelligent male-someone who would appreciate honesty more than pity. He already felt enough of that.
Raphael chuckled mirthlessly. "Maybe. Or he probably just hates me." He tried to smile indifferently, but the look Thalia gave him made it impossible to hide behind that mask.
"It just hurts so much—seeing him every day and knowing he doesn't even want to look at me," he confessed. His voice was steady, but Thalia was confident that his eyes weren't always that light.
"I found out he was my mate before I even knew anything about pack hierarchy," he continued. The more he talked, the glassier his eyes became, though no tears fell. His emotions were too intense, but he was determined not to cry. His father always told him tears were a sign of defeat—and he hadn't accepted defeat yet.
"I loved him even before I understood what love meant. We were so young that I wasn't even thinking of any way it could go wrong. I just wanted to be with him and make him happy. I studied him for a while, and one day, I finally approached him."
Listening to him, Thalia finally saw the man—not the strong Alpha's beta or the renowned pack charmer, but a mate struggling with unrequited love.
Thirteen years earlier
Raphael walked hurriedly to the training grounds. He hated training days because they usually beat Casten more than necessary. He wondered why they wouldn't just let him fight in Casten's place instead. After all, he was his mate. He could do anything for him—and he could easily beat anyone in the training yard.
Today, Turag would regret giving Casten that black eye—but first, Raphael had to tell him the truth.
They were both boys, but if the moon goddess didn't care, then why should they? Besides, he'd overheard his father discussing how common such bonds were becoming in other packs.
He found Casten seated alone at the edge of the forest. He always sat alone. Before realizing they were mates, Raphael had ignored him—even when other boys teased him about his blonde hair and how feminine he looked. He felt guilty for that now.
"Hey, Casten," Raphael said softly, still managing to startle the boy who always looked like he was on the lookout for someone attacking him.
Raphael thought he looked cute with his blue bruise but decided not to say it. His father always said he joked too much and should learn to just remain silent sometimes- he knew this was one of those moments.
"Hello, Raphael," Casten replied uncertainly.
He knows my name, Raphael thought, smiling to himself.
"I wanted to tell you that we're mates," he said excitedly, staring at Casten expectantly.
"Mates? But we're both boys... and I don't feel it," Casten replied, frowning.
"There are many mates like us in other packs," Raphael assured him. "You don't feel it yet because you're an omega. You just need to grow a little more." He was proud of how well he'd remembered that from his father's lessons.
"Alright," Casten nodded with an unsure smile. He didn't fully understand the mate thing, but it felt good having Raphael around. He was confident and funny—and for once, a strong boy wasn't bullying him. Raphael stretched out his hand, and Casten accepted it.
Hand in hand, they went to join the others.
"Everything was fine, Thalia," Raphael said with a nostalgic smile. "Those were the best two days of my life.
But then everything suddenly changed."
"Cornelius' parents died in an accident. He became Alpha and chose me as his beta," he said bitterly. Where most men would kill to be the second most important man in the pack, he spat out the words like it was the worst thing to ever happen to him.
Thalia wasn't sure how to comfort him. Even after all those years, the pain still sounded raw.
"Hierarchy changed, and seeing omegas became almost impossible."
'I'll come back and take you with me. I'll protect you. I promise,' he'd once said desperately to a tear stricken Casten before leaving with the new Alpha, and his voice now shook with that same desperation.
"I told him that, Thalia. And he promised to wait for me," he whispered. "I admit I got carried away during the years, but it was always harmless flirting or diplomatic sex—Thalia, I swear it."
"And I did go back for him. Two years back, I visited him at the pack house. But he didn't even say a word. He just looked at me, frowned, and locked himself in the room until I left."
"I wonder how you can stay strong with Cornelius next to you," he added, giving her a side glance.
Thalia just smiled sadly and squeezed his hand.
She really hoped Casten would finally accept his feelings.
Perched on a low tree branch farther away, Kyle's eyes shot open. The forest was completely silent.
He hastily jumped down and ran toward the camp.
He desperately hoped this time he wouldn't be too late.