Loud knocks on his door pulled him out of a peaceful nap. Rubbing his eyes, Kai shifted on his makeshift bed to take a look at the window of his small cabin. The sun was bright outside so he assumed it was early afternoon.
"Kai, wake up!" Lara called out
Groaning, he stood up and stretched his limbs, wincing when the deep scratches on his forearms throbbed. It will heal by tomorrow but he should at least get the wound cleaned. In two big steps, he reached the door and opened it a little.
"What is it?" He asked, moving behind the door to hide his nakedness. He gave Lara a once over, she was wearing loose pants and a T-shirt, her posture straight which meant her injury must have healed completely by now.
She held up the keys to the truck they had in the pack, "Did you forget it's Friday? We have to get the supplies"
"Fine. Just give me a minute" He scowled and closed the door.
He hadn't got a chance to sleep for three nights straight and his head was aching a lot. He grabbed a loose shirt and pants from the pile in a corner and went out in his birthday suit. He handed the clothes to Lara who now stood with her back to him while he shifted. Kai took pride in his size, he was the largest wolf in their pack, rivaled only by the Alpha himself. Once Lara was settled between his shoulder blades, he sprinted off. She shifted to lower herself on his neck, her hands coming around to hold on tight, knowing very well how Kai loved the speed. The moment her arms were secure around him, he ran flat out. The trees around them became a blur and Lara closed her eyes to avoid them from tearing up.
Within a few moments, they had reached the clearing where they parked their truck, hidden well behind the thick bushes. It was already loaded with meat, fresh produce, and some handicrafts that their pack members made. Lara climbed down and handed him the clothes before heading over to start the vehicle while he got dressed in a jiffy and climbed into the passenger seat. Lara was the only one who could drive the 'man-made box', as their pack called it. She turned the key bringing the engine to life, in a few minutes, they were driving down the trail that lead to a holler nearby. Every week they would trade these goods with the warlock who lived in the holler to get essential supplies and sometimes cash in return.
"I wanted to talk to you about something" He broke the silence first.
"Me too," she said, glancing at him with a worried look on her face.
He shifted in his seat to face her, "You first"
"You brought it up so you go first" She took a deep breath, her hands tightening over the steering wheel, a movement he didn't miss. What was she anxious about?
He waited a few minutes, hoping she would share what was on her mind that made her fretful. Maybe she would finally tell him why she had been avoiding him for a few weeks? However, when she didn't say anything, he decided to go first.
"It's my birthday tomorrow" he smiled, "You know what that means"
"You'll find your mate" she nodded
"Find?" He scoffed. How can someone be so oblivious, he thought. "She's right here by my side"
Lara rolled her eyes, clearly annoyed. "What makes you think it's me?"
"I just know it in my heart. It's either you or no one else, Lara. You know how I feel" He sounded bitter. Crossing his arms on his chest he put his legs up on the dashboard.
"We've been over this enough times already" she shook her head. Lara peeked at him once, he had a stern look on his face and his jaw was set. Having known him since childhood, Lara could accurately predict his moods and she knew that look very well, this wasn't a good time to share her side of the story.
When she was around four years of age, Lara lost her parents. A young pup with no one to look after her and with her entire pack completely destroyed, Lara was on the verge of death. That was when the Alpha of the Cherokee pack had taken her in. Kai was the first friend she had made, being the Alpha's adopted child, they had been inseparable ever since. In the later years, Kai became quite vocal about his affection toward her. But that affection had always been one-sided because Kai was not the type of person she wanted to spend her life with. He cared about her, yes; however, he was too aggressive for her taste. Having seen her entire pack destroyed right in front of her eyes, Lara didn't want a partner with the exact traits she hated.
Werewolves were hot-headed but Lara was a pacifist. Call her weird for that but all she wanted was a peaceful life and that wasn't possible with Kai. Besides, she had found a way out of this, the wolf Goddess had blessed her with a fate she dreamed about. The only difficult part was convincing Kai of her choices. Though he wasn't the Alpha's biological son, he had Alpha blood in his veins. As passionate and caring as Alphas were said to be, they also tended to be equally terrifying. And to make the matters worse, Kai was the most violent wolf in their entire pack with the highest number of kills under his belt.
She took a quick look at Kai who had dozed off by now, mouth slightly parted as he snored softly. He had been a pillar of support throughout her life, a best friend she could count on no matter what but everything had become complicated when his feelings had crossed the thin border between friendship and love. He had been frustrated over the past few weeks since Lara kept avoiding him, but she couldn't shun him forever, she had to tell him the truth someday.
'Tomorrow' she thought, 'tomorrow would be the right time to share'
It was Kai's 21st birthday, an age when the majority of the wolves developed the senses to find their mates. It would be easier to explain everything to him once he realizes that Lara isn't his true mate.
It was an hour-long drive from the clearing to the holler where the warlock stayed. Kai slept peacefully throughout the ride while Lara made sure to drive slow so as to not disturb him. Once they reached, she rushed inside to greet Amelia, the warlock. She was halfway up the gravel path when the door to the house opened and Amelia walked out with a warm smile. Her long curls bounced around her as jumped down the steps to pull Lara in her arms
"You came at the right time, love. I've made some fish" Amelia said and looked beyond to the car, "Oh, he's here too?"
"Unavoidable" Lara shrugged, "Before I bring him in, you got any news for me?" she whispered
"Yes, he asked you to meet him tonight. The usual place" Amelia informed.
Lara smiled and thanked her before she turned back to unload the truck.
Warlocks were grumpy beings, usually because of their age but Amelia was different. She was kind and helpful. Most wolfs from the mountains came to her when they needed any assistance since she was a powerful warlock, blessed with unmatched healing abilities. Lara was fond of her, and even considered her a maternal figure in her life which is why Amelia was also helping by being the sole point of contact between Lara and her beloved.
The three of them had lunch and later the warlock healed the wound on Kai's forearms with a wave of her hands. It was late in the evening when Lara brought the truck into the backyard for Amelia to fill it up with the supplies they needed. She stood by the back door, waving her hands as symbols appeared out of thin air, swirling to the crates inside. Kai and Lara watched in fascination as those huge crates were lifted into the air as if held by invisible hands and were carried out to be placed in the truck in neat rows.
"I've filled the fuel tank as well" she smiled. Tricks like this were trivial to warlocks of Amelia's stature.
Once they got all the supplies, they waved their goodbyes to the warlock and drove back to the pack. It was night time yet Lara drove with an urgency that wasn't there before.
"Hey, go slow, will ya? This wretched thing might not make it there in one piece" Kai gripped the handle next to his head when the truck bounced off a rock. Lara merely shrugged. She was back to being aloof again, and Kai had the feeling that she was hiding something.
"Back then, you had something to say to me?" Kai asked, remembering their prior conversation.
"Nothing. Forget it" she spoke in that cold tone again and Kai couldn't figure out what was going on in her head.
The moment they reached the clearing, she parked the truck in haste. And before the other members of their pack began collecting the crates, she had shifted to race back to the pack. She hadn't even bothered to strip off her clothes which were now blown to smithereens. Kai found her behavior questionable but he stayed back to help the pack members unload the crates. By the time they reached back to their settlement, it was close to midnight. Once the crates were safely placed in their main hall, Kai went over to the cabin where Lara stayed with a few of her friends who informed him that she never returned.
Kai froze in shock. Where would she go at this hour? Mindlessly, he pushed his body to shift, running off the way he came, trying to sniff out her scent. He followed the trail back to the clearing, stopping mid-way when he caught a whiff of her. He struggled to run faster, the sleepless nights and exhaustion finally catching up to him. But now was not the time. Lara could be in danger and he might have to fight if it came down to it. He sent a silent prayer to the wolf Goddess to keep her safe.
As he followed her scent, confusion filled his brain because this was leading far away from their settlement. The scent was growing strong now, she had to be close. He sniffed the air, there was no smell of blood…. That's when he caught it. The scent of another wolf. A growl left his mouth at the thought of Lara being in the vicinity of yet another rogue. Kai sprinted, using every ounce of his remaining energy. He heard the sound of a stream, ears twitching to gauge the direction.
Her laughter, the sound familiar, a sound he'd recognize anywhere.
Lara.
He walked on soft paws, making sure to make no noise. There, in the stream was Lara with a man he didn't recognize. Kai stopped dead in his tracks, eyes locked on the girl he loved so dearly in the arms of another man. He felt his limbs go cold, he couldn't move, couldn't breathe. People say heartbreak is just a word but today he actually felt pain in his chest as if someone had crushed his heart to pieces. He stumbled forward, he needed answers.
Lara noticed him, eyes going wide as saucers when she saw him approaching. The man moved in front of her reflexively and Kai snarled, baring his fangs.
"Kai stop!" Lara moved to shield him, "Can you shift, please? We can talk this out"
But Kai was far gone. There was a huge lump in his throat, his breathing ragged. A few tears streamed down his face making Lara gasp. In all the years they had spent together, she had barely seen him cry.
"Kai, please? Listen to me. I was going to tell you about this"
A vicious growl echoed in the clearing at that and the man moved closer to Lara, hands gripping her waist. Kai followed the movement, blind rage filled his mind as he took a few steps toward them. He wanted to rip that hand right from the man's shoulders. That should be him, holding her close, taking care of her, kissing her.
"He is my mate Kai, my true mate. There's nothing I can do about it. I knew how you would react that's why I was waiting for your birthday so you could realize it yourself. I am not your soulmate Kai"
A whine left his mouth and it soon turned to a growl. She could have told him before, he would have been angry, yes; but if those two were true mates, there was no power in this world that could have separated them. He was so obsessed with the thought of having Lara as his mate that he hadn't realized the fact that she was a few months older than him. If they were mates, she would have felt the pull of the mating bond on her 21st birthday itself.
Yes, he had an obsessive type of love when it came to her because she was the only person who understood him well. However, wasn't it wrong of her to keep him in the dark when she clearly knew how he felt.
For the first time in his life, he felt anger towards her and his anger took him to one place only.
Violence.
So he stumbled back and Lara moved to step out of the stream too but he shook his head at her, making her stop in her tracks. As much as he wanted to hear her out, he wasn't sure he'd be able to control his rage. It was suffocating to stand there, he needed space and time to think. With one final look at their clasped hands, Kai backed away and took off.
He ran blindly, not really paying attention to where he was going. All he wanted was to be away from her, from the pack as well.
A loud howl echoed through the forest, the wail of a broken heart.