Chapter 5 - Thane #2
I should be thinking about Rissa’s vision, about the crystalline blue eyes I’d sworn to track across the continent.
That was my duty, the reason I’d left Girdwood, the one thing that mattered.
And yet, here I am, back in Girdwood when I promised I wouldn’t be back until I found the woman—the werewolf—who will emerge as a witch, my fated mate.
All I could see were Willow’s eyes tonight—blue, yes, but not the kind fate had promised me. Her eyes were wounded, brimming with hurt, not furious and fierce the way Rissa and Brooks described, but it makes my chest feel like it’s splitting open.
Lying back against the mattress, I stare up at the beams overhead, my fists curling at my sides as I internally console myself with reassurance that I did the right thing.
What the hell happened to her in those missing years?
And why did the sight of her broken face feel like a failure carved into my own skin?
It’s going to take a lot for Willow to truly believe that she’s safe again, here in Girdwood amongst her own people. If anyone tries to hurt her, they’ll have to go through me first.
It’s an oath to protect her that I made with the Moon Goddess. It doesn’t matter what fate has in store for me.
All that matters is keeping Willow safe and making up for the rather savage way I rejected her advances in the past.
I swore I would never live up to my last name, but I did that night, five years ago. The only reason I did what I did was that there was no way my grandfather would have allowed me to have a wolfless werewolf as a mate, not when I was on the brink of becoming this pack’s sub-alpha.
It was never about not sharing her feelings.
She had the courage to speak them out loud that night, and I was the coward.
***
The journey of life is full of obstacles, strange turns that lead us on different paths sometimes. But no matter what, I strongly believe that everything that happens is divinely orchestrated by our creator.
Staring out the kitchen window that overlooks my backyard, it's that very sentiment that is validated as I watch Willow in the garden.
Though she remains a bony shell of her former self, there's a flicker of life in her eyes as she crouches by the rose bush and tentatively reaches out to touch a thorn with her fingertip.
I should be alarmed when she pricks her finger, but instead, I'm captivated, curious, and glad to see that she bleeds. She gasps and pulls her finger to her chapped lips, sucking on her finger gingerly as her brows knit for the first time since I found her.
Almost as if she's scowling at the thorn for drawing blood, or she's shocked at herself for reacting to being pricked, there's a spark of life in her eyes, in her body, and it gives me a sense of hope that bringing Willow back to Girdwood was the best decision I made.
I found her wandering outside early this morning and left her to her own devices, to explore as she pleases without being disturbed, and stayed inside to prepare breakfast for us.
Just as I'm about to return to flipping the pancake over, I see Rissa in the distance, approaching my house from the back. I quickly set the spatula on the side and turn off the stove, preparing to join Willow outside. I knew that I’d have some explaining to do as to why I’m back so soon, without the woman from Rissa’s vision.
Perhaps Rissa will remember Willow as a former Snehvolk member, or at least befriend her now to help her ease into the pack setting.
Pushing open the back door, I’m about to greet Rissa when she locks eyes with Willow and instantly freezes. Her green eyes turn milk-white as she stares blankly at Willow for a few seconds before snapping out of what I suspect was another vision.
Rissa gasps and turns wide green eyes on me, a loose smile playing on her lips.
“Oh, my Goddess! You found her!” Rissa exclaims, and I frown.
“Er—Rissa, this is Willow Barker, a former member of the pack,” I begin as Rissa turns back to Willow, walking slowly toward her as if she’s mesmerized.
Rissa reaches out and takes Willow’s hand.
“It’s you,” Rissa gasps, but I shake my head.
“Rissa? What do you mean?” My frown deepens as I watch Rissa inspect Willow’s face, lifting a hand to the scar on her cheek and sucking in a breath when she touches the scar with her fingertip as if she can see what caused it. Willow flinches and reels back, staring at her with wild disbelief.
Rissa turns to me, her eyes wide and brows raised. “It’s her. The woman from my vision. The fourth witch, and your fated mate.”
My jaw drops, color bleeding from my face as I stare at Rissa, stupefied.
“Wh-what?” comes Willow’s dubious question before I can ask the very same thing.
“What are you talking about?” Willow continues, and Rissa instantly blushes, glancing at me in confusion before turning back to Willow.
“He hasn’t told you, has he?” Rissa whispers, to which Willow’s frown deepens, the moment of awkward silence allowing me to step forward and stand in front of both women.
“I had no idea it was her,” I murmur to Rissa, turning to Willow and staring at her in disbelief. How is this possible?
Why didn’t I feel it before? Sense that she’s my fated mate, the way everyone told me I would?
Willow looks up, and my rejection in the past echoes in the dullness of her blue eyes, and suddenly, it all makes perfect sense. Why I rescued her last night. Why I stumbled upon her in Seward in the first place.
And most of all, why I was drawn to her years ago, only holding myself back because she’s a wolfless omega who would never be accepted by my grandfather.
This isn’t just a second chance to account for driving her out of Girdwood. This is a second chance to make things right with my fated mate and, in turn, save the pack by fulfilling the prophecy.
“We need to conduct the mating ceremony immediately,” I say to Rissa as I stare into Willow’s disbelieving eyes. “We shouldn’t waste any more time. Tell the others that I’ve found her. I’ve found Willow—my fated mate and the fourth witch from the prophecy.”
“Fated mate?” Willow repeats, and before I can respond, she continues, “Witch? Prophecy? What are you talking about?”
“She doesn’t know anything?” Rissa asks, and I shake my head.
“That’s what I was trying to tell you. I didn’t know it was her. I found her in a predicament in Blood Claw. Willow is a former member of this pack.”
“And an omega with mystical powers that have yet to be discovered,” Rissa nods in understanding, then turns to Willow, placing both hands on her shoulders as she begins explaining what all of this means.
Rissa tells her that she’s a witch and begins explaining why her powers haven’t surfaced yet, all while Willow becomes paler and paler, until her eyes roll back.
“Willow!” I cut in while Rissa is still explaining, noticing the way Willow’s body grows limp and her face pales. Instincts kick in and have me sweeping in to swiftly catch her just as a sigh escapes her lips and she faints.
“Oh, my Goddess! Willow?!” Rissa exclaims, her wide eyes flying to me. “What happened to her?!”
“Too much information,” I say as I lift Willow into my arms and carry her inside the house. “I think she’s overwhelmed.”
“Yeah, that’s understandable,” Rissa concedes as she follows me inside. “I still don’t understand how you didn’t know it was her….”
As I carry Willow into my bedroom, I explain what happened to Rissa. She listens intently while helping me get Willow into bed. When I’m done, Rissa nods.
“We have work to do, Thane. I’ll check her vitals, make sure she becomes stronger,” Rissa assures me, and I know Willow is in capable hands, because Rissa has been the pack healer for years.
“But now that she knows everything, you need to go ahead with the ceremony. There was a sighting yesterday when you were gone. The demons are coming back.”
I nod slowly, glancing at Willow lying unconscious on the bed, realizing that my work has only just begun.
“I’m gonna report this to the others and get Brooks to arrange a quick ceremony.”
“Good idea,” Rissa agrees. “I need to get my medical kit, but once I’m back, you'll go meet with the others.”
I nod, but just as Rissa is about to leave the room. I stop her.
“Rissa…don’t tell the elders about this. Not yet, anyway.”
Rissa turns at the doorway, recognition in her eyes. “Your grandfather…?”
“Yeah. He’s not gonna take this well,” I sigh, glancing back at Willow, a sense of deep regret and guilt washing over me. It’s not that it matters, but it’s the reason I rejected her in the past, and I despise myself for it. “She doesn’t have a wolf.”