Page 62 of Soul Fated

The dagger was gone. Kael was gone.

Images of him flashed in my mind. His intense, stormy eyes. The way his lips curved when he smirked. The heat of his body pressed against mine. I could still feel his touch, still hear his voice.

I gritted my teeth and ran forward, searching the grass. “You didn’t take the dagger?”

Lana shook her head. “I couldn’t touch it. After?—”

“Kael took it, Lana!” I pointed where Bill’s clothes lay in a heap. I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to keep my heart from shattering.

Lana cursed under her breath. "Why didn’t you grab it?"

"Are you kidding me right now?" I snapped.

"You’re wound is healed, isn’t it?” Lana pointed at my arm.

I rubbed my temples. We shouldn’t be fighting. It wasn’t either of our fault that Kael had done what he’d said he was going to do all along. “He said he wanted to break the bond. We did. Of course he left.”

Lana watched me, and I worked to keep tears from filling my eyes. I’d been so stupid. Of course Kael had left. He didn’t want me, he didn’t want anyone. He worked alone, and no flash of a mating bond was going to change that.

Lana’s expression hardened. “We have to get back to Black Lake. Rowan will need to put out a warning to the other packs?—"

"About Kael?" My throat burned.

Lana's eyes flared. "Yes, about Kael.”

Pressure built behind my eyes as I imagined Kael stalking other wolves. “He won’t do it.”

Lana scoffed. “He just walked away with the most dangerous weapon in existence, Callista. And you think he's not dangerous? You think he's not going to use it again?"

I shook my head. "He wouldn't. He?—"

"He what? He wouldn't kill another pack member? He wouldn't use that thing against you? Because I’m pretty sure he already did."

I opened my mouth, but the words died on my tongue. He wouldn’t harm someone unless it was to protect. But that’s what he was doing, wasn’t he? He’d found a way to avoid hurting me, but the alphas still held his friend. The closest thing to a father he’d ever had.

Lana's expression softened. "Callista, I know you want to see the best in him?—"

"No, you’re right." I struggled to breathe. "If Kael kills, the dagger gets more powerful. If the dagger gets more powerful, then the alpha alliance gets more powerful. They’re the ones who are creating this bloodbath, and they’re the ones who are going to win if we don’t stop them.”

Lana blinked.

I ran a hand through my hair. "He doesn't have a choice, Lana. They have him in a vice. They tell him who to kill, and he does it or his only family dies. He doesn't have a pack. He doesn't have anyone to back him up." I blew out a breath. “If they had Blake, I’d probably do the same thing.”

“Who the hell is ‘they?’” Lana’s arms crossed over her chest.

My cheeks warmed. Right. I hadn’t told her about this. About any of it. "You remember that phone conversation you overheard?”

Lana nodded. Why hadn’t I told her about it? Right. Because she’d gotten into a yelling match with Kael the second we got back to the house.

I ignored that detail and continued. “Kael told me about the alpha alliance. They hired Nathan, then took someone Kael cares about to force him to come back and clean up the mess. They're forcing him to do this. To kill wolves from other packs and feed their power into that dagger."

Lana stared at me, her eyes searching my face. “You knew this, and?—”

“I didn’t have time, Lana! You didn’t exactly want to chat in the truck on the way here!” It was a low blow. It wasn’t her fault the dagger had been affecting her. “I’m sorry?—”

“No. You’re right.” Lana’s brow furrowed. She pursed her lips, then finally nodded. “Let's go talk to Rowan."

I let out a shaky breath. As we started back through the forest, my mind raced. I had to get to Rowan. We wanted to figure out a way to stop Kael from killing, to free him from the Alliance.

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