Page 12 of Their Mate
A harsh, bitter laugh tore painfully from my throat, tasting metallic. “Finally. The wolf has sense,” I rasped. “At least someone gets it.”
The first man turned back to me, meeting my gaze directly. “You’re right. This has to be your decision, but you’ve got only moments. I’m Aidan. This is Declan. Trust me, we’re not here to hurt you, Edward. This is about saving your life.”
The other man, Declan, shifted anxiously, eyes clouded with genuine concern. “I know how you feel right now, believe me. I was human too, not long ago, bitten in a moment just like this. I didn’t want it either, but it saved me.”
I struggled to focus through the haze, their names anchoring me slightly, grounding the spinning dizziness in my mind.
Logan leaned closer, his voice softer now, carrying unexpected intensity. “Edward, we haven’t exactly gotten along, but dying here, like this? You don’t deserve it.”
I forced air painfully into my lungs, staring directly at Logan. “Better to die human than live as a wolf like you,” I growled defiantly, voice shaking with pain.
Jamie leaned in with a frown, his face taut with frustration. “You’re bloody impossible, Fairchild. You really want to end it here?”
I hesitated, the reality of death pressing in on me, heavy and cold. Memories surged within my head, the endless training, the bitter conflicts fought in service to England. My entire existence had been defined by discipline and duty. To now become something that I’d spent my life working to eradicate felt wrong, a violation of every code I had ever lived by.
Beneath that stubbornness, though, the primitive desire to survive started to come to life. To keep breathing, keep fighting. It went deeper than duty and felt stronger than my stubbornness.
Aidan’s voice pulled me back from the edge of darkness. “You fought bravely today, Edward. You deserve a chance to live. To keep fighting. You’re not alone. We’re here to help you through it.”
My breathing shuddered unevenly, the fight inside me wavering. Blood trickled slowly from my lips, mingling with sweat and dirt. I looked at the faces around me: Logan’s fierce determination, Jamie’s frustration tempered by concern, Declan’s quiet empathy, and finally Aidan, steady and strong, offering life at a cost.
I drew a painful, shaky breath, my pride and training warring furiously with the primal instinct roaring inside me, screaming for survival.
Finally, as darkness crept closer, the answer came with brutal, simple clarity.
“Ah, fuck it,” I growled weakly, surrendering bitterly to fate. “Bite me, then. Go on then, bloody bite me already.”
Aidan nodded firmly, respect flickering in his green eyes. “Alright,” he said softly. “Brace yourself.”
He shifted in an instant into a powerful, majestic wolf towering over me. Aidan hesitated just a fraction of a second, and then his jaws sank deep into my shoulder. Pain ripped through me, fiery and fierce, blazing outward through every nerve ending, sharp and terrible. My body jerked violently beneath his grip.
I groaned in agony, vision darkening at the edges, my pulse roaring wildly in my ears. In those final conscious moments, I felt an overpowering force rushing into my blood, overtaking me, reshaping everything I’d ever known.
Then darkness claimed me, pulling me under into oblivion and the last thought I had before everything faded away was this:
I was becoming the very thing I’d been trained my entire life to fight.
CHAPTER 6
Logan
The pub’s interior felt oppressive now, the dark wood and faded walls closing in tighter around us. I stood near the back window, looking out toward the foggy Dublin streets, senses keen and unsettled.
Around me, the men moved restlessly; Edward pacing like a caged animal, Aidan leaning against the bar with narrowed eyes, Jamie fiddling impatiently with a hunting knife, and Declan staring quietly into the fire, his face shadowed by the flames. A pack forged by circumstance, not choice, yet united against threats none of us had foreseen.
Aidan’s gaze met mine from across the room. “They’ll be awake in a few more hours, I reckon,” he said quietly, inclining his head toward the ceiling. “Your sister and her pack mates.”
I nodded, something warm blooming in my chest at the mention of Zara. “She trusts them completely.”
Edward glanced sharply toward me, raising an eyebrow. “You seem surprised.”
I gave him a cool look, keeping my voice even to hide my emotions. “I’m not surprised she’s found allies, but she’s my sister. I’ll never be comfortable seeing her with strangers.”
Edward’s gaze flicked briefly toward the staircase leading upstairs. “From what I saw out there, they’re not just strangers. They’re more to her than that. Like a proper unit.” He hesitated, then added, softer, “It’s rare to see that with wolves. Usually, they’re chaotic. Unpredictable.”
I met his stare, a challenge unspoken, but clear. “Well, it’s often a mistake to judge all by some.”
Jamie grinned from across the room, twirling his blade idly between his fingers. “Aye, it’s cozy up there, but don’t let your guard down, lads. Remember who hired me—and why.”
