16. Chapter Fourteen
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
MAE
M y eyes widen in disbelief. Why did he just say no? Does he plan on handing me over to the rogues?
“Please. I promise I won’t come back here. I’ll leave and never look back,” I sign, begging.
As those words fly off of my fingers, my whole being aches. I can’t believe I just said that, but I need them to know I’m serious. I don’t want to leave Michael or Rylee. I have grown so much closer to them in the last few days.
“Xavier has said no. You are to stay here,” Rylee signs.
Tears form in my eyes, and I shake my head. Whimpering, I push against Michael’s arms, trying to get out once again. But I don’t have any luck.
“I would rather take my chances running away than staying and the alpha giving me to the rogues.”
Rylee’s mouth drops open as I sign those words. She is absolutely shocked. Why? That’s what the alpha would do, isn’t it? He has to save the pack, not just me.
Rylee shakes her head back and forth, tears streaming down her face. Why’s she crying? Is what I said true? Fear rolls through my body at the thought. There’s no doubt I would die in the first couple of seconds in the rogues possession. Or they would take me back to their place and torture me.
“Please,” I sign. “ Just let me get a head start before they come after me. Give me a fighting chance.”
Rylee continues to sob and grips onto the alpha’s hand. Right now, I wish I could hear what the three of them were saying to each other in mind link. Michael’s chest is rumbling, and I don’t know if it’s because he’s growling or if he’s talking.
“You aren’t leaving! Xavier isn’t going to give you to the rogues. Michael won’t let that happen,” Rylee finally signs.
It’s my turn to stare at her in shock. He isn’t going to give me to the rogues? That’s not his play? Why not? I’m putting the whole pack in danger.
“I promise you. Xavier said you aren’t going to go back to them. He’s not going to let them have you. Michael won’t, either. If you leave, then Michael’s going to leave,” Rylee signs.
I shake my head. That isn’t true. “ No. He wouldn’t leave. His home is here!”
“But he would. You’re his mate. He loves you already and would do anything for you. He doesn’t want you to die, and he doesn’t want you to leave. If you leave this pack, he’s going with you. Michael has already told me that.” Rylee’s eyes plead with me as she signs to me.
“When?”
“The other day, and he just told us a couple of seconds ago. He’s serious about this. He’s serious about you.”
I feel his arms tighten around my waist. I feel relaxed knowing that he doesn’t have a clue what we’re talking about. But, no doubt, he’s asking Rylee what we discussed.
“Tell him not to leave if I do,” I sign fast. “ I don’t want him to give up his life with his pack for me.”
“I’ll tell him, but he’s already made up his mind. He’s stubborn and won’t change what he’s already decided.”
I shake my head again. He wouldn’t become a rogue for me. I don’t know much, but Rylee mentioned he detests rogues. He would really become a rogue for me? Something he’s hated for who knows how long.
“You can’t let him do that. Promise me you won’t allow him to do that,” I sign in desperation.
Rylee looks at me with sympathy. “ Everything’s going to be okay.”
I shake my head. “ You can’t know that. There’s no way to know if everything’s going to work out!”
“I do know. I promise things are going to be okay. Xavier isn’t going to give you to the rogues,” Rylee signs.
“I don’t want to be kept in the dungeon for the rest of my life, either!”
There’s no way I’m going to go from dying in the hands of rogues to being in a dungeon for the rest of my life. That’s worse than dying. I’d have no life. Nothing.
Rylee looks over at Xavier and starts to talk rapidly. I try to push Michael’s arms off of me. I need to get out of his arms and away.
She turns back to me. “ Xavier isn’t going to put you in the dungeon. He isn’t going to do anything bad with you. If anything, he’s going to accept you into this pack if everything checks out.”
I’m astonished. There’s no way the alpha would do that for me. He doesn’t even know me. How can he prove what I have said is the truth?
“I promise. He has told me that, more than once now. There’s no reason for you to get so worked up about this. We’re going to keep you safe from everything and everyone,” Rylee signs.
“How can you be so sure? How will he be able to verify information? There’s so much more that goes into this.”
Her smile is encouraging. “ Everything’s going to work out. Everything’s going to be fine. We’re going to get through this. I promise you. Just let us show you. Prove to you that we care about you and want the best for you. Please take a chance on us because we are taking a chance on you.”
I don’t know if I can do that. What if things change? What if the alpha decides to go back on his word? What if he decides to put me in their dungeon?
“Give him a chance, I mean, Michael, your mate. He’ll keep you safe. You just need to give him an opportunity to show you that, to prove he’s a man of his word. He won’t let anything happen to you.”
I take a deep breath. She’s right, but it’s so hard when there are so many things going on.
“Please. If not for him, do it for you. You deserve happiness in your life, and he can help you with that,” Rylee signs.
I melt into Michael’s arms and nod my head. Things had gotten pretty good before they had to have this talk. Well, as good as they could get considering I’m a rogue, an orphan running for my life.
“Okay,” I sign. “ I’ll give it a try.”
Rylee says something, and Michael lets go of me. A brief thought flies through my head…I could try and escape right now, to leave before they could even get to me, but I wouldn’t know where to go. Where was the closest spot on the border of their pack? How long would I have to run?
I have never been a strong runner.
As if Michael could read my mind, he grabs my hand. I look at him, and his smile takes my breath away. Oh, that smile.
His smile takes every worry and fear from my mind. It is so comforting, so beautiful, so mesmerizing. I could never get tired of his smile. But I need to stop looking at him right now.
Turning toward Rylee, I catch her beaming at me. She knows there’s a special connection growing between me and Michael.
“What now?” I sign.
I need to change the subject fast. Well, not the subject, but I have to get her focused on something else. She’s definitely going to bring it up later when I’m alone with her.
“Now, the boys are going to do what they do best while we relax,” Rylee signs. “ Well, while we try to relax. I figure it won’t really happen.”
“And what do they do best?”
“Keep us safe. It’s one of their top priorities, along with the pack. Michael’s going to keep you safe. My mate, Xavier, is going to keep you safe. They’re going to keep us all safe. I promise.”
I glance at the alpha but quickly look away and back at Rylee. He was already looking at me. Why?
“Is everything okay? Why is the alpha staring at me?” Nerves grow in my stomach as I question her. They all have an advantage over me.
They can hear.
They could be having a conversation right now, and I wouldn’t have any idea what they’re saying. Well, I know they aren’t because I don’t feel Michael’s chest vibrating. But that doesn’t mean they weren’t having a conversation through the mind link. I’m not part of the pack, so I can’t do that.
I don’t know how it really works. I’m deaf, but I could hear them in my head. It’s weird, and I tried to make sense of it years ago, but nothing came up. There aren’t a lot of werewolves who are deaf. It’s practically impossible, but not totally.
When I was a kid, I had so many doctors and healers look at me, trying to make sense of what was happening. After a few years, my parents put a stop to it. Every once in a while, they would ask some questions, but there were no more tests after that.
Michael’s grip tightens, and I quickly look at him. What is going on? I’m not trying to get out. I’m not trying to run away, either. There’s no reason for him to still have a hold on me, but he does.
I look back at Rylee. “ Can you tell him to let me go?”
“Sorry. I don’t think he’s going to listen to me. I think he wants you close because you tried to leave,” she replies.
I relax a bit and close my eyes. Of course, he won’t relax. He’s terrified I’m going to try and run away.
I look back at Rylee, and she winks at me.
“Everything’s going to be okay. Just give him a little time, and things will calm down. Promise. I had something similar happen to me, and it only took Xavier a day to ease up on being overprotective.”
“Is everything really going to be okay? Why’s the alpha looking at me? Have I done something wrong?”
Rylee discusses something with the alpha before turning to me. I have a bad feeling in my stomach. Why did she need to talk to him before answering me? Is something really wrong?
“Xavier says he wants you to join the pack ,” she signs.
What did she say? Did she really just sign that to me? Is the alpha for real? Why would he want me to join after I just told him the rogues are after me? To offer me that is basically putting his pack in grave danger.
“Really?”
“Yes, really. I’m not lying to you. He wants you to join the pack. We’ve got a ceremony happening tomorrow for some other people who will be joining. He wants you there for that.”
I can’t believe what she’s saying. There’s no way she’s for real. I look at the alpha, and his face softens as he nods. He really does want me to join the pack.
“He does know I have people after me, right? Like, he knows doing this could bring war on his pack, maybe even a lot of death to many…just for me?” I sign.
“He understands what this could mean for our pack. He understands, and he still wants you to join.”
For some reason, I can’t wrap my brain around it. How can someone want to accept me, an unknown outcast, in their pack, knowing there could be devastating consequences for many of their own.
“He knows you aren’t a bad person. We all can clearly see that.”
“Is he just doing this because Michael’s my mate?” I ask.
“No. He would have done it even if you had no mate here. Xavier doesn’t just throw anyone out. He isn’t that cruel to people.”
How was I supposed to know that? He wasn’t around the house a lot. Only at night when I was going to sleep, and I never interacted with him much to know him.
“What’s going to happen now?” I sign.
“We let them take care of it. We try to live normal lives. They’ll keep us in the loop. They may not let us in on all of the details, but they’ll tell us the things we need to know,” Rylee signs.
I relax into Michael’s arms. It’s going to be difficult to not know every detail, but I know there’s nothing I can do about it. I’m not going to bring it up to the alpha. Maybe I’ll be able to ask Michael for more information, but if the alpha tells him not to share something, he won’t go against him. I may be his mate, but he has utmost respect for Xavier, and he doesn’t know me that well yet.
“Ready to go back out there?” Rylee asks.
“Will he let me go?”
She chuckles. “ Yes, but he’ll most likely grab your hand.”
I sigh and nod my head. How am I going to go to the bathroom with him latched onto me? There’s no way he’s going to come into the bathroom with me.