Page 102 of His Forsaken Alpha

“There was no choice. If there had been, it would’ve been you.No onebut you.” Wynter’s breathing shuddered. “I didn’t want to cause you pain—but pain seemed better than death,” Wynter whispered. “I can’t say for certain that you were in real danger, but what I saw and heard that day…” He released another slow, shaky breath. “I could only assume my papa would harm you to get his way. The demented light in his eyes as he made his accusations—he wasn’t well. I didn’t know what he might be capable of. I had no idea if they’d even shot you or not. For all I knew, it was a ruse.” Wynter paused a moment, his chin tremulous. “But the body…” He gasped. “Isawthe dead body outside, ready to be my stand-in, and knewsomeonethere had likely caused it. If they could kill that omega, then they were capable of killing you, too.Thatwas enough for me to play along and do what he demanded of me.”

Cavanaugh lowered his head, sliding his hands through his hair—where he felt the scar from the bullet that clipped him all those years ago. “Iwasshot.”

Wynter whimpered, a fresh batch of tears shining in his eyes.

“It came close enough to knock me out but not enough to cause any real damage. Just a scar.” He trailed his fingertips over the scar again. “I woke up freezing, in a small pile of blood. I was on a bed of pine needles with a cloth wrapped around my head, so I knew someone had been there. At first, I thought it was you and you’d gone looking for help. Then I saw the black smoke in the distance. I forced myself up and stumbled to the cabin. By the time I made it back, it had nearly burned to the ground already.The Guard and Fire Brigade were there. I showed up just in time to find your body—” He scoffed, fighting his own tears. “What Ithoughtwas your body—in a body bag there.”

Wynter pressed a hand to his lips, eyes bright with unshed tears. After a few seconds, he lowered it, returning to the tugging of the handkerchief. “I can’t imagine how you felt seeing that. I’m sorry,” Wynter said, his tone barely above a whisper. “I know what you went through was hell… but the alternative… I couldn’t stomach that. Knowing you were alive… that was the only thing that kept me going most days.” Wynter stretched slightly, wincing as if he were in pain. “When I saw your book in a bookstore a few years later, I was so relieved. Proof of life. I read it, my heart breaking, yet happy knowing you lived. You were traveling again, healing yourself. You’d moved on with your life.Without me.”

“You know full well I didn’t.”

“But that’s what you wrote in your book, and at the time, I believed that. It broke me, but I believed it and I told myself I was happy for you. Not that I wasn’t, I was. I was happy for you, but it was hard to envision your life without me in it.” Wynter smiled wryly. “You’d lost your omega but found new purpose amid your adventures. That’s all I’d ever wanted for you.”

“I traveled. And Itriedto forget about you. I failed in that endeavor, and I wrote a book about it. My editor removed the darker stuff, like the Guard initially thinking I’d murdered you, or the subsequent breakdown followed by a four-month stay in an asylum. While I personally think it was a riveting story, the publisher said it would never sell. Readers want lighthearted escapism or a feel-good story. Not a dark, twisted manifesto about loss and the inability to heal.”

Wynter’s eyes were wide when he looked back up. “I had no idea,” Wynter whispered. “I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but we’d not been together long—I had hoped you’d find a way through and forget me.”

“Did you, Wynter? Did you find a way through and forget?”

“No,”Wynter replied. “Of course I didn’t.”

“Then how could you imagine I would?”

“You were free. I was stuck in this prison of circumstance, not you. I thought… I thought you might have a chance, and Iwantedthat for you. Maybe I was naive but Ididthink you could move on.”

Cav closed his eyes, knowing they’d both been imprisoned by misfortune. He might have some semblance of freedom, but it was a lie, at best. “I’ve been stuck in that same moment since it happened. Reliving it in my dreams and nightmares. My life had no meaning without you in it.”

Wynter sobbed. “I had to put on a mask and pretend all was sunshine and rainbows, all while I was shattered to pieces on the inside. I was an empty shell. I moved about like a puppet, dancing and performing to the best of my ability to keep you alive. In time, it did get a little easier. Muscle memory, to some degree, I guess. You do a thing enough times and it becomes routine. Slap on enough smiles. Pretend you had not a care in the world. Perform to your utmost ability and make the entire world believe you to be someone you’re not all while you were dead and cold on the inside.” Wynter chuckled. “All the warmth and light departed when I walked away from you. I’ve never known true happiness since.”

Cav held Wynter’s gaze, aching within. He’d not known true happiness since that moment, either. Everything seemed pale compared to what should’ve been.

“You had me hooked, mind, body, and soul. One heat and I was completely yours.” Cavanaugh sighed. “I’m not sure how I could’ve hadthatstrong of a reaction over a man I’d known for a week, but I did. The idea of going on without my omega didn’t seem possible.” He stretched the fists clenched at his sides, the fingers aching from the tightness. “Once the doctors got my head straight, I immediately left the Palatinate for another world tour. You were gone. The cabin where I’d claimed you was gone. Trout was gone, too. I had nowhere else to go, but travel. I bought a duffle and whatever I might need to fill it, and jumped on a freighter headed for Europa. Then I hit nearly every continent. It took me three years, journalling the whole way.”

“Wait…Troutwas gone?”

“He supposedly died trying to rescue you—or whoever it was—in that cabin.”

Wynter gasped.“Oh gods…”

“Who was in the cabin, Wynter?”

Wynter shrugged. “Like I said, my papa claimed he was a distant relative who was gravely ill. Other than that, Idon’tknow.”

“No name? Nothing?”

“None.”

“He died for you—or rather, your papa’s plan—and you didn’t even bother learning his name?” Cav asked.

“I was in shock!” Wynter argued gently. “After I returned to Alexandria, I never spoke to my papa or father again. I couldn’t stomach the thought of seeing either of their faces, so how would I know anything more than Papa told me that day?”

Silence hung between them.

“You said… that they initially thought you’d murdered that omega?” Wynter asked, frowning.

“They did, but I was never questioned while I was at the facility. By the time I was released, I was informed I’d been cleared of any charges,” Cav said. “At the time, I took it for a blessing and got the hell out of Blacksburg without question. I didn’t have the mental fortitude to dig at that point. All I knew was I couldn’t be there, haunted by your memory.”

“I never wanted that for you. I just wanted you breathing.” Wynter inhaled and released it slowly.

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