Page 31 of The Last Ultimatum: Part 1

“It’s going to be fine,” Colin insisted.

“What else could we do?” Tucker asked.

I put in my noise-canceling earbuds and sat as far away from them as the plane allowed. As long as we were in the air, there was nothing I could do. I may have been feeling a bit irrational, but not enough to put on a parachute and jump out in the middle of the bush. Hell, I didn’t even know how long I’d been out or how long we’d been in the air.

My best bet to getting back to my mate was to keep a cool head and allocate my own transportation when we landed. I would do whatever it took to get back to my mate before it was too late.

I tried to block it all out and not think about it, but it was hard. I never dreamed I could be so disappointed in my team. They were like family to me and now they were stabbing me in the back. I couldn’t believe they weren’t helping me.

The physical pain their betrayal caused was almost as sharp as the pain from the reality that I may never find my mate again. And now that I’d met her, I knew there was no way in hell that I could ever take another mate. My biggest fear was that she wouldn’t be able to now either.

I knew she was promised to another. I heard her words, but I wasn’t sure how she could go through with it and yet, if I wasn’t able to find her again, then I supposed I should be praying she would.

Right now, we had an unresolved bond in the making. I’d kissed her. Even without meeting her dingo, mine was ready to accept her. We’d nearly marked her right there in the street and I didn’t even know her name. But I did know her scent, and her lips.

Mine, my dingo howled.

“You know, of all people, you guys know how important a true mate is.”

“What was that?” Tucker asked.

I took out my earbuds and turned to look at them.

“Walker blew an undercover mission years in the making for his mate.”

He nodded. “I did.”

“Was she worth it?”

“Absolutely.”

“Colin, you brought a Collector right to us with your mate. Was that worth it?”

“Yeah, it was.”

“Tucker and Linc, you guys just had drama, but still.”

“Worth it.”

“A hundred percent.”

“And Michael, you kidnapped a cop and drove cross-country with her. It nearly broke alliances with one of our strongest allies.”

“And I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”

“You all risked everything for your true mates. So why are you going to just stand there and deny me mine now?”

They all hung their heads in shame, but no one would say anything.

“Answer me, damn it. Am I somehow less on this team because I’m not a wolf?”

“What? No! Of course not,” Michael insisted.

“Then explain to me why my mate is less important than any of yours. Why is my chance at happiness so unimportant to you all? I would have done absolutely anything to help any one of you. Hell, I like to think I did help each of you, most of your mates, even some of your kids. And this is how you repay me?”

“Didn’t know you were looking to collect on that,” Tucker said, irritated.

That only seemed to piss me off more.

---