Page 37 of Resisting Fate

“It was more about him losing control. From what you are saying, it seems like he was trying to hold back as long as he could, but the wolf took the choice out of both of your hands,” my dad suggests.

I nod my head in agreement. “I know it’s not his fault, but maybe I figured it out too late because now he’s in the barrier. What if something happens to him in there and I can’t get to him in time?”

“You will, sweetie. I can tell you care about him very much,” my mom says softly.

I more than care about him. I feel like I had felt this way for a while now, but I was just too scared to see it.

The thought of losing him is already ripping me apart. I can see why shifters fall in love so fast. The pull of fated shifter love is more intense than any human love can experience.

I had always felt a little pull towards him; maybe that’s why his words always hurt so much. Now that I know it was the fates trying to bring us together, the pull is stronger than ever. It’s always pulling me in his direction.

I only just started to realise and accept my feelings for him. I have to fix this.

I feel like I need him as much as I need to breathe. If this is only a fraction of what he went through, then I don’t know how he has been able to hold on for this long.

I can barely hold on as it is.

Chapter Thirteen

Hailey

“I don’t know if this is a good idea,” Ryker says minutes later as the pack starts to gather around the barrier.

“I can’t just let him live in there for the rest of his life thinking that I don’t want him that way,” I cry out to my best friends who are both looking at me with concern.

“Then why didn’t you claim him back if you wanted him so bad,” Max snaps back.

“BECAUSE I WAS SCARED!” I shout, and everyone looks at me stunned by my reaction.

“Scared of what?” Ryker asks, looking at me with sympathy in his eyes.

“Well, I’ve hated the man my entire life, and then I find out we are mated and he’s nasty to me.” I take a deep breath to say the rest. “But then his parents died, and it was like he was this different person. The weight of the world no longer hung on his shoulders, and he could finally be the person he was meant to be. But how am I supposed to trust that he won’t change back to the person he was before?”

Tears are falling from my eyes when a bunch of arms surround me.

When everyone pulls away, Penelope looks at me with a soft expression. “He won’t. He was a different person when we were alone. I knew what his life was like. That’s the only reason we kept getting back together. The beatings would stop if we were together. I hated it, but we both saw no way out. We felt both relief and agony after finding out that we weren’t fated to each other. I knew the outcome wouldn’t be good for him. He doesn’t have to worry about that anymore though, and neither do you. He needs to know that you will give him that chance to be the person he always was but was forced to hide.”

“I just needed time, and now I may never get the chance to tell him how I feel,” I say brokenly.

“You will. We need to send someone with you. I can’t let you go in alone,” Ryker says, and the looks in his eyes shows that he is not backing down from this.

“I’ll go with you,” Max says, but I shake my head. “No, I can’t let you do that. Not to mention that Isaac thinks I want you over him, so showing up with you would send the wrong message.”

“She’s right,” Pen says in agreement.

“I’ll go,” Jet says. “He knows I don’t want his mate, and we were sort of friends over the years.”

“I agree,” Ryker says.

“Okay, everyone into position,” he shouts, and the pack surrounds the barrier.

My mom closes her eyes and raises her hands in the air. I see her hands light up and feel the magic of the barrier come down.

I hear her scream. I turn around to see a wolf taking her to the ground before taking a bite out of her left arm.

I run towards her but hear a bunch of animal noises and human screams behind me.

I turn and look in horror at the broken barrier, and then at all the feral wolves, bears, tigers, and any other shifters you can think of, going wild.

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