Chapter 14
Levi
We went back to my cabin and I led Mason to the kitchen. He remained standing, seemingly unsure of what to do or say.
I moved on instinct, filling the kettle, setting two mugs on the table, giving my hands something to do while my mind tried to catch up.
The quiet stretched between us, thick and waiting. Mason hovered near the table, shoulders tight, fingers flexing like he didn’t know where to put them.
“Sit,” I said, gentler than I felt.
He obeyed immediately.
That didn’t sit right. Mason wasn’t usually this quick to fold into someone else’s direction. Even when he was unsure, there was a stubborn edge to him.
Now he just sat, as if he was bracing for the worst. My wolf shifted uneasily under my skin. He knew something felt wrong, and I didn’t like that.
I poured the tea, the quiet clink of ceramic louder than it should’ve been. Steam curled between us as I set his mug down, then took my own seat across from him.
I didn’t speak, or push him. Whatever Mason was about to say, it mattered. Dane’s voice flickered in the back of my head, telling me not to get too attached. I shoved it aside.
Mason wrapped his hands around the mug like he needed the heat to anchor himself.
He lifted it, took a small sip, and his hand trembled. A drop spilled over the rim, splashing onto the table. He flinched like it burned him.
“I’m sorry,” Mason mumbled.
“It’s okay.” I was already reaching for a cloth, wiping it up before it could spread.
Still, he reached for the cloth. Our fingers brushed for half a second. His were cold to the touch.
“Mason,” I said quietly, “what’s going on?”
He didn’t answer right away, he merely stared down at the table. At the damp ring the tea had left behind.
“Why are you always so nice?”
The question landed soft, but it cut deep. I stilled, and looked at him. Mason didn’t sound angry, he looked wrecked, and that worried me even more.
“Mason,” I said, more firmly now, “what’s this really about?”
Silence stretched, then finally he spoke.
“I’ve been lying to you.”
The words dropped between us like a stone. But I wasn’t surprised, not really. Part of me had known Mason had been keeping some secrets from me.
Still, hearing it said out loud was different. I leaned back slightly in my chair, forcing myself to stay still. I told myself I would listen, and not jump to conclusions.
“My brother and I grew up packless,” Mason began, voice low. “After my parents died, I took care of him. It was just us.”
Something in my chest softened at that, because I knew a little of that life. Knew what it meant to hold your family together with nothing but stubbornness and will.
“But then…” His voice faltered. “We got caught.”
My jaw tightened. “Caught by who?”
“Daniel.”
The name meant nothing, didn’t ring any bells to me.
“I don’t know his last name,” Mason said quickly, like he needed me to understand that part. “But he’s one of the leaders of the anti-shifter group your pack’s been investigating.”
Everything in me went still. My wolf surged forward, sharp and alert.
Danger, threat. Enemy. I leaned forward before I could stop myself, my hand coming up to tilt his chin so he’d look at me.
“Mason,” I said, my voice lower now, edged with something harder, “what are you telling me?”
His eyes met mine, and he flinched. That hit harder than anything else. I dropped my hand immediately, pulled back like I’d burned him.
My wolf snarled, pacing. Mason was ours to protect, but then he was a traitor? Get control of yourself, I reminded myself. Mason wasn’t done telling his story.
“What happened?” I asked, forcing the words out evenly.
Mason swallowed. “Daniel took Kai.”
“Told me if I didn’t follow orders…” His voice broke slightly. “Kai would be killed.”
I was on my feet before I even realized I’d moved. The chair scraped loudly against the floor.
“So the day my team and I met you—” I couldn’t finish my sentence, because I already knew the truth.
Mason looked up at me. Tears gathered in his eyes, unshed but close enough to wreck something in my chest. “I was a plant.”
The words were quiet, but they hit like a punch.
“Daniel wanted me to make contact with your pack,” Mason said.
Everything in me snapped tight. Anger surged up, hot and immediate. I turned away from the table, dragging a hand through my hair, trying to burn it off before it got out of control.
All this time, every moment and word. Were they all lies? Could Mason be that good of an actor?
“Levi…” Mason said softly behind me.
I couldn’t look at him.
“I need some air.” The words came out sharper than I intended.
I didn’t wait for a response, I just moved. The back door slammed open under my hand, cold air rushing in as I stepped outside. The chill hit me hard. It grounded me, but it was not enough.
I paced once across the small stretch of yard, my breath coming faster than it should’ve been. A plant. He was sent here, to us, to me. Dane was right. The thought made my jaw clench.
Dane was always the one who saw things clearly when I got too close. My wolf snarled, because it didn’t want to hear that, and refused to accept it.
The memories Mason and I created together, the way he looked at me when we were in bed together…that wasn’t fake. It couldn’t be. Could it?
I heard light and hesitant footsteps behind me.
“Mason,” I said without turning.
I could feel him there, standing so close my wolf wanted to turn, to close the distance, fold him into an embrace and kiss him. To tell him we could move past this somehow, someday.
Trust could be rebuilt, but no, not yet.
“Levi?” His voice was softer now, careful. “I never meant to hurt you. I never meant to…”
He trailed off. Something in my chest twisted. I turned then.
“What?” I demanded, the edge still there, still sharp. “What didn’t you mean to do?”
His eyes met mine, and for a second everything else faded.
Because there was nothing fake in that look, nothing calculated. Mason was genuinely scared, but there was another emotion there. My heart raced.
“I never meant to fall in love with you,” he said quietly. “Or with your pack.”
The anger in me stuttered. That I believed. Damn it, I believed him. I dragged a hand down my face, exhaling hard.
“You expect me to just what? Accept that?” I said, my voice rough. “You were sent here to infiltrate us, Mason. To earn our trust.”
“I know,” he muttered.
“You lied to me,” I reminded him.
“Yes.”
“You put my pack at risk,” I said, on a roll.
His face crumpled slightly at that. “I’m aware.”
The way he said it, like each word was something he was already punishing himself for, it took some of the heat out of my anger. Not all, but enough.
I looked away again, staring out at the trees, thinking. I was trying to separate what I felt from what I needed to do.
The pack always came first, but if I was still packless and had no one to rely on and my family was taken…I didn’t need to finish that thought.
I would’ve done the same as Mason, I’d do anything to save my only family, no matter the cost.
I hated it, and I understood it at the same time.
“You should’ve told me sooner,” I said finally, quieter now.
“I couldn’t,” Mason whispered. “If Daniel thought I’d said anything…”
“Kai dies,” I finished.
He nodded. I clenched my fists at my sides.
I turned back to him, really looked at him this time. I didn’t miss the tension in his shoulders, the fear in his eyes.The way he stood like he was waiting for me to tell him to leave.
“Daniel called me this morning. He told me to open the south gate of the compound during the summer festival when…”
“When most of the pack is in town,” I finished.
Ice slid down my spine, and for a second, I saw it again.
I held his gaze, searching for any sign he was lying again. My wolf leaned forward, settling instead of bristling. Mason was telling the truth.
I exhaled slowly. Some of the tightness in my chest eased.
“We’re going to have to tell Cooper,” I said.
Mason flinched. “I understand.”
“From now on, you’re going to relay to me whatever information Daniel gives you,” I told him.
Mason nodded. “I’ll do everything in my power to help. Levi, I mean it. I won’t let him hurt your pack.”
Your pack, not ours. The distance in that one word hit harder than I expected. I stepped closer before I could think better of it, close enough to see the fine tremor in his hands.
“I appreciate you telling me the truth,” I said quietly.
His breath hitched.
“I don’t expect you to forgive me,” he said.
“I’m not there yet,” I admitted honestly. “But I understand why you did it.”
His eyes widened slightly, and something fragile sparked there.
“I would’ve done the same,” I continued, my voice rough. “If it was my brother.”
That broke him. His shoulders sagged slightly, like he’d been holding himself up for too long.
“I didn’t want to lose you,” he whispered.
My chest tightened painfully.
“You might have anyway,” I said, not unkindly. “If you hadn’t told me.”
He nodded. “I know.”
Silence settled between us again, but it wasn’t the same as before. It was as if we were standing on something fragile, something that could either hold, or break completely.
I reached out before I could stop myself. My hand hovering for a second, then settling lightly on his arm. He stilled, but didn’t pull away.
“We’ll get through this,” I told him.
* * *
Cooper didn’t make us wait. The moment we stepped into the main house, one of the younger wolves nodded at us. “The alpha’s in his office,” he said.
Cooper’s voice had been terse when I called him. Mason’s been lying to us. Those were the only words I told him. He ordered us to come to his office.
Mason walked half a step behind me. He wasn’t exactly hiding, but he was close enough that I could feel the tension radiating off him like heat.
My wolf stayed restless under my skin, torn between two instincts that refused to settle. Protect him. Protect the pack.