Chapter 44
The sky above Kayla had already darkened to an eerie twilight as she stepped closer to a pathway leading to the tower that loomed like a forgotten monument of time.
The door was only a few feet away, but the path twisted strangely, narrowing into a corridor that hadn’t been there a moment before.
She hesitated for a breath, and then took a courageous step forward.
As soon as her foot touched the path, the air shifted. A whisper curled around her ear like a serpent.
"A mirror of regret," it said, breathless and ancient.
Kayla’s heartbeat slowed. She turned to the left and gasped. Standing before her was a long mirror that stood like a wall.
As she stood still staring at the mirror, she didn't see her reflection at all. The mirror wall shimmered like water, then hardened into moving images.
Kayla saw Alpha Zayron’s reflection and quickly looked behind her. Behind her was another tall mirror. Kayla couldn't tell what was going on.
She had never been this confused all her life. “What is going on!” she muttered under her breath as she continued watching the images.
The Zayron she was seeing in the mirror was not the Zayron she had known. Not the mate who had laid down his life to protect hers.
This version was raw, primal, with lips crushed against a she-wolf's. His hands gripped the she-wolf’s waist with urgent hunger.
And on the bed behind them, nine more she-wolves lounged, half-naked and waiting for him to come and mate them.
Kayla’s breath hitched. Her hands flew to her mouth.
Her vision blurred as she tried to make sense of it. She wiped her eyes quickly and took a step closer, as if distance would bring clarity.
Her soul shriveled. Blood roared in her ears.
“Is this a vision? Is this his past? Or his present? Does it mean a time will come when Zayron will go back to his old ways?
No, he won't! I won't allow him to go back to his old ways!”
Just when Kayla believed she had just seen a vision like her aunt, a voice spoke.
“Kayla, this is the world your mate now chose. A world you are not allowed to be part of.”
Kayla stumbled back, her chest rising and falling in sharp breaths. The jealousy that bloomed inside her felt poisonous.
It gnawed at her sanity, clawed at her heart. She clenched her fists.
“No, think, Kayla,” Nyra, her wolf, cried. “This place is enchanted. Nothing is ever what it seems! Don't give up! Keep moving!”
Kayla continued moving, but the image she saw didn’t fade. Then she heard a familiar voice. Soft, feminine and cruel.
"Jealous, cousin? He never needed you. You were just a distraction from his power."
Kayla turned sharply and looked at the wall again. Standing in the mirror was Selene. Her cousin. Cameron’s beloved daughter.
Dressed in pale silk, her smile was lined with venom. Kayla narrowed her eyes and whimpered.
"Nice try, whoever is behind these enchanted images," she said coldly. "Zayron killed Selene yesterday. Whoever’s conjuring this hasn’t kept up. Selene is dead!”
The she-wolf's smile faltered, just for a second, then dissolved into smoke.
Kayla exhaled shakily. Her pulse remained unsteady. Even though the illusion was broken, the ache it left behind stayed.
Was that really Zayron’s future? Kayla asked herself.
She turned her gaze back to the path. The mirror walls had all gone. It was as though she didn't know what she saw.
At the exact places where the mirror stood, were tall trees, rustling gently in the wind. Birds chirped.
Kayla faced her front again. There was no turning back.
She walked forward, step by step. Each movement felt heavier. With every breath, the bond between her and Zayron pulsed weakly like a thread stretched too far.
She felt it fray. And yet, she kept going.
The path led into a grove where the air grew unnaturally cold. Kayla shivered. Her hand brushed the bark of a tree and she flinched.
It wasn’t bark. It was skin, pale and pulsing. She stumbled back and took a sharp breath.
The tree moaned. "You’re too late. Your mate is gone! But he gave you himself before going! Turn back now."
Kayla covered her ears, but the voice didn’t stop the sound. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
“They’re illusions. They feed on fear. Keep walking,” Nyra said. She chanted it like a prayer.
When Kayla opened her eyes again, she looked around and saw a narrow footbridge stretched across a deep chasm. Fog hovered over it, thick as smoke.
She stepped into the wood. Halfway through, something moved beneath the bridge. Suddenly, the planks trembled.
A clawed hand reached up from the fog and grabbed her ankle. Kayla screamed, kicked, and nearly lost her balance.
Another hand emerged. Then another. “Your mate is gone! Go home! He is one of us now! He is a Vyrekin!"
Kayla fell to her knees. The voices clawed into her like hooks. "I saved him!” Kayla whispered to herself.
“What if the Silvershots shot him again with the poison dart?” Kayla asked and turned to look at the Silvershots she had seen earlier, but she couldn't see them again.
“Go back and see your mate’s body before he is buried!” another voice said. Tears blurred Kayla's vision.
At that point, she was confused. Even her wolf kept quiet as though what the strange voices were saying were true.
But Kayla knew she couldn’t afford to fall apart now. She had made it this far for a reason. Zayron needed her, and if he was already gone, turning back wouldn't bring him back.
Going forward was the only way to find out the truth and do what she came for.
“I can’t lose both,” she whispered to herself. “If he’s gone, I won’t save him by running away. If he’s alive, I’ll fail him if I stop now.”
Wiping her face with the back of her hand, she took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders.
She reminded herself why she came here. Not to question Zayron’s past, not to drown in her jealousy, but to save his life. And possibly, the life of the pup growing inside her.
She walked toward the corridor in front of her, her footsteps echoing softly. The moment she crossed the threshold, a strange coldness swept over her body.
A whisper rose from the air, neither male nor female, but clear and urgent.
“Do not look to either side,” the voice said. “Do not answer anything you hear. Do not respond. Keep your eyes ahead. This place is cursed. Be wise.”
Kayla froze for a second. The voice didn’t come from behind or above, it came from within the corridor itself.
She glanced forward. The corridor stretched out in front of her, the walls on either side slightly curved and glowing faintly as though enchanted.
She nodded to herself once and began to walk, slowly but steadily, focusing only on the path in front of her.
After just a few steps, she heard a familiar voice call her name.
“My Kay.”
It was Zayron’s voice. Soft, low, and filled with longing.
Her breath hitched, but she kept walking, remembering what the voice had said. Do not respond. Do not look.
But then he spoke again, more urgently.
“Kay, please, don’t leave me behind. I know you’re hurt, I know what you saw, but you have to understand, I didn’t want them. I never wanted anyone but you.”
Her steps slowed. His voice sounded so real, so raw with emotion, it made her heart ache.
“Come back to me. Look at me. Just once,” he begged. “You’ll see the truth. Just one glance, and you’ll know everything.”
Kayla clenched her fists and kept walking. Her throat tightened as tears stung her eyes.
Her instincts screamed to look, just to be sure, just to see if it was really him.
“I’m here,” his voice said again, breaking a little. “I’m trapped. I’m alone. They said you wouldn’t come for me. But you did. Don’t leave me now.”
She wanted to scream. She wanted to turn and run toward the sound, grab him and never let go.
But something inside her, maybe the same strength that brought her to the tower, kept her feet moving.
“Please, Kay,” his voice whispered, this time with such sadness it nearly shattered her.
“If you ever loved me, help me. Come back, and we’ll return to the Azure Moon Pack together. We’ll make everything right.”
Kayla had reached the end of the corridor now, just a few feet away from the exit, but her body refused to move forward.
The temptation to look was unbearable. Her breathing grew heavier. Her chest rose and fell rapidly as her legs locked in place.
She thought of everything they had survived. And yet, her head slowly began to turn toward the voice.
Just as her eyes began to shift to the side, a sudden force shoved her hard from behind.
Kayla fell forward, crashing onto the ground just outside the corridor.
Her palms scraped against the cold stone floor, but she quickly turned around in shock to find out who had just pushed her off the corridor.