Page 6 of His Mate

“Moonshine,” she said, holding it up with a little grin. “Figured tonight called for something stronger than water.”

I managed a smile, though it felt shaky. “You went to the underground without me?”

“You were working at the food bank that day,” Lia said with a shrug, handing me the flask. “But don’t worry, I saved the good stuff for tonight.”

I took a swig, the liquid burning all the way down and warming me from the inside out. It wasn’t great—hell, it wasn’t even good—but it was better than nothing, and right now, that was enough. I passed it to Mariah, who took a long pull before handing it back to Lia, and for a while, the three of us just sat there, the silence stretching out, comfortable but heavy, like we were all waiting for someone to say the one thing we’d been avoiding all night.

“Are you scared?” Lia asked finally, breaking the quiet, her voice barely above a whisper.

I swallowed hard, the taste of the moonshine still sharp on my tongue.

“Yeah,” I said, my voice cracking a little. “Yeah, I’m scared.”

Mariah looked at me then, her eyes softening, and reached out to squeeze my hand. “You’ll be okay,” she said, but I could hear the doubt in her voice, could see it written all over her face. “Imean… it’s just the breeding, right? It’s… it’s not like they kill you.”

“That’s supposed to make me feel better?” I laughed, though there was no humor in it, just this hollow, aching sound that bounced off the walls. I took another swig of the moonshine, trying to drown the fear, but it just sat there, heavy and bitter, refusing to be washed away. “They’ll take me, and I… I might never see you again.”

“You don’t know that,” Lia said quickly, her voice more cutting than usual, like she was trying to convince herself as much as me. “Most girls come back. They do. You know they do.”

“And what about the handful that never return?” I asked, looking at her. “What about them, Lia?”

She didn’t answer, just looked away, her fingers playing with a loose thread on the couch.

“I heard… I heard some women actually liked it,” Mariah said suddenly, her words stumbling over each other like she was afraid they’d bite her. “Like, it wasn’t as bad as everyone says.” She looked at me, eyes wide, almost pleading with me. “Maybe it won’t be so awful, you know? Maybe… maybe you’ll even enjoy it.”

“You really believe that?” I snapped, harsher than I meant to, and immediately felt a wave of guilt as Mariah flinched. “I’m sorry,” I muttered, rubbing a hand over my face. “I just… I don’t know if I can do this.”

“You can,” Lia said firmly, meeting my gaze, and for a moment, I almost believed her. “You’ve always been the strongest out of all of us.”

“That’s not true,” I said, shaking my head. “If I was strong, I’d have found a way to run. I’d have… I’d have done something.” My voice broke, and I could feel the tears prickling at the corners of my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. Not tonight. Not in front of them. Not when they would be in the same position as me in less than a year.

“You didn’t run because you’re not stupid,” Lia said, her tone gentler now. “You know they’d find you, and it’d be worse. And you know we’d never leave you. Not ever.”

“Not ever,” Mariah echoed, giving my hand another squeeze, and I nodded, even though I didn’t trust myself to speak.

We passed the flask around a few more times, the moonshine slowly dulling my fear, until the room started to blur around the edges, and I could almost pretend that this was just another night. That tomorrow wasn’t waiting to tear us apart.

“Remember that time we climbed to the top of the old church?” Lia said suddenly, her words slurring a little, and I laughed, shaking my head.

“You mean the time you almost fell and broke your neck?” I replied.

“Hey, I didn’t fall,” Lia protested, but she was smiling now, the kind of smile that made her look younger, softer, like the girl she’d been when I’d first met her. “You pulled me up, remember?”

“Yeah,” I said, my voice softer now. “I remember.”

We sat there for a while longer, talking about stupid things, memories that felt like they belonged to someone else. And for a little while, it worked. I forgot about the wolves, about the fear,about tomorrow. I forgot about everything except the warmth of my friends beside me, the sound of their laughter, and the way the moonshine burned all the way down.

Eventually, though, the flask ran dry, and the silence crept back in, heavier than before. Lia yawned, stretching out on the couch, and Mariah curled up beside her, their eyes already fluttering shut. I stayed where I was, staring at the cracked ceiling, the moonlight filtering through the slats of our broken blinds, casting strange shadows across the walls.

I wished I had more time. What I wouldn’t do for a little more time…

“Happy birthday, Kendra,” Mariah mumbled sleepily, her voice thick with exhaustion, and I felt my chest tighten.

“Yeah,” I whispered, more to myself than to them. “Happy birthday to me.”

CHAPTER 2

Kendra

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