Chapter 29 #2
“Did anything else happen today?” Freja asked, still hidden. It just wasn’t making sense. He was acting so normal now. She knew if she appeared before him, he would lose control again.
Hunter’s chest hurt. He wanted to see his mate, needed her to calm down.
He was getting anxious. How could he hurt her?
He couldn’t believe it. “Um …” His eyes widened.
“Yes. A child injected me with something today while I was checking the perimeter. Then she just disappeared.” Was this the cause of whatever was happening?
Freja felt a cold chill run up her veins. An injection that would cause him to only react when he saw her … that sounded like witchcraft. “It might be a blood potion. Maybe see if you can get Reed to check?”
“Can we cure it?” Jin asked, biting her bottom lip, her small hands trembling. Hunter had tried to kill Freja, and she was still in shock.
“I … don’t know. I don’t think it can be reversed by the witches. Maybe Reiya could reverse it? But I don’t know at what cost.” Freja could feel her chest squeezing in pain. A blood potion worked by merging with the person’s blood. Becoming one with it.
“I’ve got one better. I’ll send for our mother.” Chasen looked at Hunter and could see he looked pale. “I’ll send for Mom and Reed. They’ll be able to figure this out, okay?”
Freja … don’t leave me. I need you. Hunter looked upward as his eyes watered. He couldn’t lose his mate.
Hunter … don’t worry. I won’t go far. For now, I need to stay out of sight.
I don’t want you losing control and accidentally hurting someone else.
Right? Freja felt her eyes sting, along with her chest. She was struggling for air, and this time, it wasn’t because she was being choked.
She was going to have to stay away from Hunter.
Stay away from his touches. She wouldn’t be able to seek the comfort of his arms that she has grown so accustomed to.
So much for marking our mate, Ember thought sadly in Freja’s mind.
This time, though, Freja didn’t chastise her.
She welcomed her company. It helped with the loneliness that was beginning to fill her chest. Freja sighed sadly.
She was going to have to be alone again.
Since she wasn’t sure if it could be reversed, she would need to go and search for answers on her own.
As the demon huntress, she had connections.
She would need to enter her dark world once again.
Freja. A tear trickled down his cheek. I’m sorry I tried to … I would never ever ... His gaze darted through the leaves, knowing that Freja was up there somewhere.
I know, Hunter. Please don’t beat yourself up. I’m okay. Hunter looked shattered. Her only thought right now was to make him feel better. She would figure things out somehow. Even if the worst-case scenario came to pass, she would just become Freja, the hollow killer again.
Where will you go? Where will you be? Hunter didn’t like the idea of not knowing where his mate was. He wanted her in the safety of his pack territory.
Don’t worry about me. I’ll be okay. I’m going to go for now.
I … Freja closed her eyes tight. I’ll be back soon.
She quickly dashed through the trees at lightning speed until she was out of the Black Ice Pack territory.
Then she dropped to the ground and ran, racing at an incredible speed, trying to escape the drowning feeling inside her.
She had one place in her mind, and that was where she headed … a familiar, dark tavern. An information post. If the information wasn’t at that tavern, then she wouldn’t be able to find it anywhere. If there was a solution, she would find it there.
Meanwhile, Chasen had sent out a messenger fairy for their parents and sent Jin to Rosa to send for her brother, Reed.
He had asked for Jin to wait for him back at the pack house.
And now, he’d been staring at his brother for the last hour.
Hunter stood there, looking upward, just staring at the treetops where his mate had vanished.
“Hunter.” Chasen walked up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Come on, man. Let’s get you something to drink. I’m sure Reed will get here soon. And hopefully our parents will be able to come soon, too.”
“I really tried to kill her?” Hunter said in a broken voice and turned to look at his brother, his eyes full of grief.
Chasen sighed angrily. “That wasn’t you. You would never hurt her. She knows that, too.”
“BUT MY HANDS WERE AROUND HER NECK!” Hunter shouted angrily as he brushed away from Chasen. He looked at his own hands in disgust.
“Hunter … we’re going to figure this out.
” Chasen didn’t know how to comfort him.
He tried to put himself in his brother’s position.
What if he kept trying to attack Jin? The pain of that thought alone was hard, let alone knowing you actually put your hands on your mate.
And you couldn’t even look for comfort in their arms. Why did this shit keep happening to Hunter?
Chasen walked in front of him and put his hands on Hunter’s shoulders. “Hey.” Hunter looked into his eyes. “I won’t let you hurt her.” He gripped onto his brother’s shoulders. “I will protect her, Hunter. Even if it means from you.”
Hunter smiled and nodded. “Thank you, Chasen. You have my permission to do whatever you have to in order to protect her.”
“Alright! Free punches on the Alpha King.” Chasen grinned and pulled Hunter in a hug. “Come on,” he said as he pulled Hunter along with him, finally managing to get him away from the trees. “I can’t wait for dad to hear about you being the Werewolf King. He’s going to be stoked!”
Hunter nodded with a smile. He just wished he could introduce them to his mate, too. Hopefully his mother could figure it out. Deep down … he was depending on his mother to fix it.