39. Of Old Friends and Enemies
thirty-nine
Of Old Friends and Enemies
*ROSEA*
The impact doesn’t come! Instead, I hear a loud, angry growl. I snap my eyes open, turning my head to see Forest kick Clemmens in his stomach, tossing him across the room just like that.
“Forest!”
“Rose!” Forest turns to me before glaring at Clemmens again. “Griffin, make sure he doesn’t move.”
Before Forest reaches me, though, I can feel someone else loosening my ties. Alora is still weakened, but I take up a scent, a familiar one. So familiar. Before the ties are even loosened properly, I jump up, stumbling to my feet and turning around to see the man behind me.
“No way,” I whisper. “No way!”
I look right into the eyes of my cousin. Rory’s face is weathered. I don’t know how he spent the last years, but he has aged a bit; there are lines of worry and stress now marring his face. He is sporting a beard and has bulked up tremendously.
“Rosea,” he says.
“Is it really you?!”
“It’s me, Rosea,” he pauses. “Though I have heard you don’t like that name anymore.”
“It’s fine when you say it,” I exclaim, finally pulling myself out of my trance and wrapping my arms around him. Rory hugs me tight. “You are alive!”
“I am alive,” he says. “I am so sorry, I couldn’t protect you. Jordan wanted to kill me. Well, he almost did. Made a run for it and had to lie low. I always planned on getting you out of there, though. I am so sorry I wasn’t stronger, Rosea, so sorry.”
“Don’t apologize,” I mutter. “I am just glad you are alive.”
My only remaining family. Rory did not die! He probably did what he had to do to survive, just like I did, and am still doing.
“Griffin dug me up,” he explains. “I had heard rumors about Jordan’s ex-luna being mated to a new alpha, and well… the rest is history.”
“But where have you been all this time?”
“Pretty much stayed a rogue,” he says. “I had no backup. I did not expect Jordan to try to get rid of me so soon. I thought I had more time, but I underestimated him. I guess he saw me snooping around. I barely survived, then had to reorganize and try to find a way to get back at him and free you. But you were faster. You and Alpha Forest.”
“And Griffin found you?”
“Yes, he and one of your elders basically traced my last steps. I think they knew I wouldn’t be far if I were still alive.
Over the years, I have made some acquaintances.
Shady guys, sure, but they were helpful.
They told me about Griffin asking questions about me everywhere.
I guess it was a ploy to lure me out. It succeeded. I decided I just had to take the risk.”
“I am so glad that you did!”
“I am just so sorry, Rosea, that I wasn’t able to save you. He sounds miserable when he says it, guilt written all over his face.
“I know you did what you could,” I say quietly, wiping the tears from my face. “It’s not your fault, Rory. I should have believed you, but I was so stupid.”
“You were in love,” he says sadly. “He was your mate, Rosea. You wanted to believe him. You did nothing wrong.”
I disagree, but I also know that there is no use in arguing with him about it now.
“I thought you would maybe be safe for a while,” he tells me. “I had friends in the pack who told me they would protect you at all costs in case something happened to me. Marie, for example.”
I nod. “She was a great help.”
“Unlike…" Rory finally lets go of me, stepping past me.
I feel at a loss until I can feel Forest’s strong arms around me, pulling me into a warm hug.
“…someone else,” Rory finishes, his voice icy.
I follow his gaze, realizing it’s pinned on Clemmens, who is kneeling on the ground, eyes wide in utter shock. His stare snaps from Rory to Forest and me, back to Rory, and then back to us again. “How?” he whispers.
“What do you mean?” Forest sneers. “How we found Rory? You just heard the story. As for how we found Rose…” Forest still has his arms wrapped around me tightly, but now moves his hand into my bag, taking out a device and tossing it right at Clemmens. “We are not stupid,” he snarls.
“Do you really think I would have walked around without a backup plan in case something happened?” I ask quietly. “Forest is right. We are not stupid.”
I am not sure if he truly registers what Forest is saying; his eyes are pinned on Rory.
“Rory,” he says. “You are alive. I thought you were… You are alive.” He gets up on his feet.
Griffin looks like he wants to step in, but one glance at Rory and he takes a step back again, crossing his arms in front of his body.
“Rory.” Clemmens steps closer, his expression still one of disbelief.
He reaches out his hand as if he wants to touch Rory.
Rory has none of it, though. With one swift movement, he has slapped Clemmens so hard it sends him flying.
I freeze, the wheels in my head turning.
If he had punched him, it would be one thing, but he flat-handedly slapped him.
That was personal.
“You had one fucking job,” Rory yells.
“I thought you were dead,” Clemmens mutters.
“And that’s reason enough for you to betray the only family member I had left?” Rory snarls. “You promised me, Clemmens!”
“And you promised me to never leave my side.”
“It’s not like I had a choice,” Rory hisses. “I thought I could trust you. But you gave in under Jordan’s pressure and rejected me.”
“Wait… what?” I mutter, exchanging a glance with Forest. “You were… mates?”
“Yes,” Rory furrows his brows into an angry glare. “Unfortunately. Obviously, Jordan intervened. And you know, I get why you rejected me, Clemmens. He would have killed you.”
“We talked about it,” Clemmens blurts out. “We said we could revisit our mate bond later. Once Jordan was gone, we could pick up where we left off, and—"
“But Jordan isn’t gone. Instead, he almost killed me.
But you know what? I couldn’t give a flying fuck about what he did to me.
What I do care about is what he did to her!
” He points at me. “He tortured and abused my cousin, the girl who is like a sister to me. He tormented her. And you did nothing! You did absolutely nothing! You just stood by and watched and helped him.”
“No, Rory, but I am here now! I can help, now!”
“Like I care,” Rory spits. “When Jordan forced you to reject me, we said we’d give it time and forge a bond later. But fuck it! There is no way I want you as my mate anymore.”
Clemmens looks horrified, and then completely devastated.
There are things that just can’t be forgiven.
A while ago, I might have felt bad for Clemmens, but I don’t anymore. He had plenty of chances to change something, but never did. He could have conspired with me; we could have planned an escape together. Anything. But he didn’t do it.
He just did one thing, and I still owe him for it.
“Rory,” I say. “He did not kill me when he had the chance to do so. He let me run. I thought you should know. So don't kill him.”
“She is right,” Forest says. “I promised you it’s your call, but do you really want his blood on your hands?”
Rory tosses one look of disgust at Clemmens before turning towards us. “What’s the alternative?”
“One of our elders, Dr. Francis, will deal with him,” Forest says. “You don’t have to see him ever again.”
Rory meets my eyes for a moment, then nods. “Alright,” he says. He looks up when footsteps can be heard, and some of our warriors arrive; then he turns to his former mate. “Goodbye,” he says, his voice detached.
He doesn’t look back anymore and instead just walks to us. I take his hand, and Forest pats his shoulder. “You will come with us,” I tell him. “No arguments! You can even keep your shady friends.”
Rory’s dark expression softens a little. “Not going to leave your side again, Rosea.” He looks at Forest. “Is that really okay with you?”
“Of course, I’d love to invite you to my pack—" Forest stops. “Our pack.” He puts his arm around me. “Come, let’s get out of here. I want to make sure Rose isn’t hurt.”
Rory nods, following us outside, where I notice that we aren’t too far from the mall. “I wonder if Clemmens even thought this through,” I mutter.
“Judging by what Martin said, he was pretty desperate the last time they met. Apparently got wasted and all,” Forest begins. “By the way, it was Martin who heard the rumor that Rory may still be alive. He only told Griffin and Dr. Francis at first. They didn’t tell us so as not to raise our hopes.”
I sigh. “I kind of get it.”
“Yeah, but I will still kick their asses in the next training,” Forest says grimly.
“I knew you would say that.” Griffin’s voice reaches us from behind.
I turn to look at him, smiling slightly. “Choices, Griffin.”
“I know,” he chuckles. “But I am not feeling too guilty about that one. I was hoping I could surprise you, Luna.”
“Well, you did.”
Griffin nudges Rory. “Thank you for taking the risk and getting in contact with me.”
“I thought ‘it’s now or never’,” Rory says. “I knew Rosea disappeared from our old pack, but I wasn’t able to find her anywhere until I heard about her attending a gala as the luna of a different alpha. I could barely believe it.”
“But it’s true,” I say with a smile.
Rory frowns when he looks at Forest. “And he is not an asshole?” he asks.
Forest doesn’t look too bothered, but Griffin glares at the insult to his alpha’s character. “Alpha Forest is a fantastic alpha and a great friend.”
“You can see for yourself,” Forest reassures him. “I told you, I’d happily have you in our pack.”
Rory sighs. “Sorry. After Clemmens, my faith in other people is a bit… dimmed.”
“We get it,” Griffin says quietly. “That type of betrayal had to hurt.”
Rory’s eyes darken. “In my eyes, my mate died years ago,” he says. “I have mourned him already. Now I want to focus on helping Rosea get her revenge.”
There is so much I want to ask him, but I decide to respect his wish. He has the right to deal with his heartbreak the way he wants to. Clemmens was his best friend and then became his mate. I don’t even want to imagine how heartbroken he must have been over the years.
Forest puts a warm hand on my back. “Let’s go,” he says. “I’ll leave the rest to Griffin.”
“Do you mind if I help?” Rory asks. “Not necessarily with dealing with Clemmens. I am very happy never to see his face again. But I am sure there are other things I can help with.”
Forest gestures towards Griffin. “Griffin?”
The latter nods. “I’d appreciate the help,” he says.
Before we leave, though, I make sure to hug Rory again. I can’t quite believe he is here; he is alive. “Rosea,” he mutters. “I am not leaving. I am not going anywhere. I promise. I will help Griffin and then return to your pack with him.”
“I won’t let him run,” Griffin says. “Don’t worry, Luna, I am good at babysitting.”
Rory frowns at him. “You are a funny guy, huh?”
“See,” Griffin grins at me. “We are already like best friends.”
I take a shaky breath before looking Rory in the eye again. Then I nod. “I will take you at your word.”