Page 77 of The Alpha's Fated Bond

He leans me back against the large rock I was lying next to, and I look at him, shivering. “Are you hurt?”

He shakes his head. “Not as badly as I could have been. You really saved my ass back there.”

Noticing how cold I am, he wraps a fur cloak around me. “Here.”

I’m quiet for a few moments, trying to figure out what to say. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

He rocks back on his haunches, an odd combination of misery and relief in his eyes. “You saved my life back in Oakrest, you know. You didn’t have to, but you did. I’ve been wanting to thank you, but I never thought I’d have the opportunity to do so. I never thought I’d see you again, Sophia.”

I’m struggling with my own feelings. On the one hand, I’m happy to see Drew, someone I always considered family. But on the other hand, his lies and deception really hurt me.

When I don’t say anything, he murmurs. “You look good. Happy. I told you that you should be with your mate. And you’re practicing magic now!”

“Well, I am the Silver Wolf.” I wish I didn’t sound so harsh. “If I hadn’t been lied to my whole life, I would have learned magic much sooner.”

Drew flinches at my words.

I was sent to Oakrest at the age of sixteen only to be shunned by the pack members who resided there. At the time, I believed it was because of my latent wolf; I could not shift into my animal form. But now I know better. It had all been plotted by my Alpha, Robert Black, who wanted to isolate me and break me till I had no choice but to accept him as my mate. He wanted to use me for my powers and have me give birth to more silver wolves. Unfortunately for him, things didn’t go exactly the way he had envisioned.

But when I discovered Alpha Black’s plans for me, I also unearthed the web of lies that Drew had told me as part of it all.

“Where’s Tim?” I ask pointedly. “Don’t tell me you did something to him, too—”

Drew’s head whips up, shock in his eyes. “Of course not! Tim is…” He hesitates, a spasm of grief crossing his face. “Tim is with his maternal grandparents. I was selfish. The whole time he was living with me, he was trying to repress the memory of when I killed his mother. It became too much for him.”

There are tears in his eyes, and he lowers his head. “I told them—I told Katie’s parents what I did and why I did it. They deserved to know the truth. They forgave me. I didn’t deserve it, but they did.”

Drew murdered his pregnant mate on Alpha Black’s orders. He then pinned the murder on Freddie, a pack delinquent who had a history of getting in trouble.

His confession surprises me. Of all the things that I expected him to do, giving Tim up wasn’t one of them. I could always tell how much Drew loved his son. To give him up must have torn him apart.

“And what about Tim? Are you in contact with him?”

Drew shakes his head. He looks like a man who is has lost everything. “I left a letter with Katie’s parents to give to him when he’s older. But I sat him down and explained to him what had happened—a watered-down version, anyway. I apologized, not that it’s going to mean much. And I told him that he would be safe now. I’d been the monster in his life, and the monster was leaving.”

My heart aches as I think of the young boy who used to adore his father. “He’s going to miss you,” I murmur.

Drew smiles painfully. “I don’t think so. He was terrified of me, Sophia. I hope he forgets all about me, or that over time, I just become a distant memory, a bad nightmare. His grandparents will love him and provide him with a happy home. This is what Katie would have wanted. She wouldn’t have wanted me to raise our son.”

I don’t know what to say to him. I never expected him to go this far.

After a pause, I ask him, “Why are you here? Why are you in the North?”

The words are barely out of my mouth before I begin coughing. I smell the blood before I taste the metallic flavor in my mouth.

“You’re hurt!” Drew looks alarmed.

“I need to rest. I’ve exhausted all my reserves.” I shake my head slowly and then lean it back against the rock.

“Stay here,” he says as he gets to his feet. “I have some meat. Food will make you feel better.”

Alone now, I stare into the fire, trying to come to terms with Drew’s sudden appearance. The scene in the forest with him and Alpha Black plays over again in my head. I still remember each and every word from that night. Although it happened only a few weeks ago, it feels like a lifetime has passed.

Drew was trying to help me. For whatever reason, he chose to help me and betray Alpha Black. But in the process, the Alpha revealed Drew’s true nature and what he’d done to his mate and his unborn child.

I’m so lost in my thoughts that I don’t realize Drew has returned till he sits down a few feet from me, holding a couple of dead rabbits in his hands.

I watch as he starts to skin a rabbit. He’s not saying anything, but I have questions. Questions I couldn’t ask him back then.

---