Page 94 of Fated
“But then we run the risk of endangering our packs that depend on us if we don’t attack them,” Cade explained in a hard voice. Their eyes clashed and I could see a fight brewing. They were both headstrong and not fond of backing down.
“Stop,” I instructed. “Fighting isn’t going to get us anywhere.”
“What do you think?” Blake asked while he studied me.
“I think we need to give her time. Let’s give her a day to get information back to us. If we don’t hear from her, we have to either accept that she didn’t make it to the pack in time or something else happened to stop her from contacting us.”
My eyes met Scarlett’s and I saw her fear. It reflected mine. We both knew Kyle cared for Crystal, but I was the only one who knew that they were mates. There was a chance that the rogues would kill her if they suspected that she could be an implant.
I left the meeting room alone. I wanted to talk to Kyle. Blake had been reluctant to let me go on my own, but I’d assured him I would be fine. My wounds were healing and I was feeling stronger every day. I just hoped that I would be back to my full physical strength soon because we would need every werewolf we had to fight off a potential attack.
I took a deep breath and released it before I entered the room. Kyle sat with his head in his hands and at the sound of my entrance he lifted his eyes to meet mine. I didn't know what to say and I was sure that anything I did say wasn't going to make any of this better. The door closed behind me.
"Say what you have to and get out," he said indifferently. His cold eyes held mine and I felt like I was looking at a stranger instead of my friend.
He was angry with me and I understood why, but it didn’t help me from feeling miserable inside. Even if I had the best intentions, to him I was stopping him from doing something he believed was the best decision. We both thought we were right. It was the first time I felt really scared that he may not be able to forgive me for what I'd done even if it had been the right thing to do and in my shoes he would have done the same.
"We're going to give Crystal twenty-four hours to check in with us to confirm that she has infiltrated the pack," I continued.
"What if she doesn't check in?" he asked calmly, although I could feel the anger radiating from him.
"If she doesn't, then we have to face the fact that something must have happened…”
I didn’t want to put my fear into words.
“If she dies, I will blame you.”
I kept his gaze, unwavering, although his words hurt me. If we failed and she died, I would have to live with the guilt.
“I’ll do everything I can to bring her back safely,” I promised him.
“If you care about me you’ll let me go so I can get her,” he said, and I saw a spark of hope in his eyes.
I shook my head.
“You’re not thinking straight and you will make a mistake that may cost you and Crystal your lives,” I reasoned with him.
“You can’t tell me that you wouldn’t do the same if you were in my place,” he said, trying to argue a new angle. “If someone you cared about was in danger, you would do whatever you could to protect them.”
My eyes rested on him for a moment.
“If I were in your situation, I’d be thankful that I had people who cared enough about me to keep me from making a mistake I would regret.”
He shook his head as his jaw tightened. No matter what he said, there was no way I was going to release him.
“I’ll keep you updated,” I said. The guard to the cell opened the door and I left without a backward glance.
Once outside, I stopped and took a deep breath to ease the hurt I felt at his indifference to me. He’d become my closest friend and it was hard staying firm on my decision when he was so angry with me.
“You okay?” Blake asked as he walked up to me and scanned my features. I nodded my head.
“I don’t like doing this to him,” I told him and he pulled me into a hug. His lips pressed a gentle kiss to my forehead.
“I know,” he whispered against my hair as I leaned into him.
“Has anyone heard anything from Crystal yet?” I asked.
“No.”
