Page 40 of Fated to the Rogue

“Nice meeting you, Zephyr. We’ll see each other again soon.”

Cassiopeia blinked at me before turning to face a wall. She moved her hands in front of her body in a circular motion, almost as if she was trying to open a safe, but really fast. In the blink of an eye, what seemed like a portal opened up, and she jumped straight into it. She left without a trace. Once the portal disappeared, it was as if she had never even been here in the first place.

“We hope Cassiopeia’s visit helped answer your questions, Alpha Zephyr,” Elder Laelius said, gesturing for me to leave as well.

Answer my questions? If anything, I had even more of them now.

“Of course. Thank you for your time.” I forced a smile and bowed my head, leaving without uttering another word.

My head was all over the place as I made my way back outside. Unable to go straight to my office, where I actually should be, I hid inside one of the stalls in the public bathrooms and prayed no one would come in. I was shaking with anger, and to add to my stress, the same old emptiness inside of me seemed to have just grown larger. Did I always feel that way because the other part of my soul was with someone else, while I had a random shifter’s wolf? And what the witch said about the prophecy and switching wolves… I never thought I would say this, but even if Dawn wasn’t mine, I wasn’t ready to let her go.

“Calm down, Zephyr. Take deep breaths,” my she-wolf instructed me in a calming voice. Only then did I realize that I was hyperventilating.“Everything will fall into place when the time is right.”

Then, it clicked.

“You know,” I whispered in realization.“When I got you, you said you knew what was going on, but you couldn’t tell me. Please, Dawn, I need to know.” I had never begged for anything in my life. Alphas don’t plead; they demand. But at this point, I was just straight up desperate.

“I never said I knew what was happening. I said that there was a reason for it all because that’s what the Goddess told me the last time I saw her. Sadly, she also erased my memories, so I’m afraid I can’t clarify anything.”She lowered her ears in shame. “I swear I would tell you if I knew, Zephyr. I’m sorry.”

All I could do was close my eyes. I instinctively massaged my temples in an attempt to get rid of my pounding headache. Nothing made sense, and it seemed like that wouldn’t change any time soon, which was definitely not relieving. My thoughts were deafening - at least until I started hearing Dawn humming a serene melody inside my mind. Little by little, it became louder, silencing every other sound. For a second, my mind went clear.

I took a few deep breaths, letting my head fall back against the cold bathroom walls as I focused on regaining my composure. Prophecy or not, I was an Alpha, for Moon’s sake! There were more urgent matters that required my attention, and I was done wasting my time feeling sorry for myself. I was tired of being a ‘scaredy cat,’ like my she-wolf used to call me.

“Now that’s more like it. Go get ‘em, big bad Alpha,” Dawn said playfully.

“Oh, that has a nice ring to it. I like it,” I played along.

“Don’t get used to it though.” She rolled her eyes right before her expression softened again. “Just remember, Zephyr, I’m with you. You’re not alone in this.”

There was something about her words…they spoke directly to my heart, making me feel warm inside.

“Thanks, Dawn.” She nodded at me, slowly retreating to the back of my mind as she went back to singing her sweet melody.

And somehow, it gave me the strength I needed to get through the rest of the day.

Interlude II

Malin

Four days had gone by since I found my perfect mate, but I still couldn’t believe it. Even as she rode shotgun while I drove the old truck my parents had passed on to me before they left the pack, I had to constantly take my eyes off the road to make sure she was really there beside me. It was too good to be true. She was too beautiful to be real.

“Why do you keep doing that?” Just the sound of her euphonic voice sent shivers through my whole being. And the way she smiled at me…

“What?” In my trance, I was completely oblivious to what she meant.

“That!” She giggled, and boy, did it make the butterflies in my stomach go crazy. “With the way you keep glancing at me, I’m afraid we might not make it to your family’s farm in one piece.”

I shook my head to snap out of my daydream, focusing on driving. “I’m sorry, my star. I’ll pay more attention.”

“I was just playing with you.” The second her velvet fingers touched the side of my face, I melted. Was she testing me? Because it was hard as hell to keep my focus when the sparks of the bond struck me. “You don’t have to apologize for anything.”

“Sorry,” I blurted out instinctively, immediately cursing myself. “I mean, I… If I’m being honest, I’m just a little nervous.” From the corner of my eye, I noticed her cock her head to the side. With a sigh, I continued, “You’re of pure Gamma blood. You come from a wealthy family. You used to live in the most beautiful city in the country. My parents are Omegas, and the money I earn as a Beta is sent to them to cover the expenses of the farm. I wish I had saved some to take you to a more interesting place. I’m afraid their little house off the dirt road won’t meet your expectations.”

“Hold on.” She placed her hand over mine as I grasped the gearstick. This time, I couldn’t help looking into her beautiful clear blue eyes, just for a second; when I did, I realized they were sparkling with sympathy. “I thought we had already talked this through. I don’t care about some stupid bloodline or where it puts you in our society. You’re my mate; that’s all that matters to me.” I glanced over at her again the moment she smiled, and all my troubles vanished. She looked away for a minute, gazing into the green fields rolling through her window. Through our bond, I could sense a change in her aura. “Besides, I’m the one who should be nervous. I’m meeting your parents! What if they don’t like me?”

“Are you kidding? They’ll love you!”

“You think so?” She turned to me again, shyly shrinking into her seat.

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