XYRRA

"Holy shite!" I stumbled backward and tripped. I groaned as my behind hit the ground, but my eyes never left the creature because I was too afraid that he might attack me if I looked away.

The black wolf moved towards me and I froze. Its face was so close to me that I could feel its breath fanning the side of my face. It opened its mouth and I could almost taste death knocking on my door before another strange thing happened. The giant wolf licked me. It actually licked one side of my face before taking a step back.

Almost as soon as he had turned into a gigantic wolf, he turned back into a human. A naked human. But I was in shock that I did not even bother to look away and continued to watch him as Ryker snatched his pants and put them on.

"I certainly hope that helps explain everything," he said, sparing one glance at me. "Because if it doesn't, I don't know what else would."

I was busy picking up my jaw off the ground before I could even form an audible response. "What are you?"

"A shape-shifter. Well, a werewolf." He looked down as he buttoned up his shirt.

"A werewolf?" I reiterated, trying to register that fact in my head. The only knowledge I had about werewolves was from movies and TV series, and even none of that could be considered as a solid fact because werewolves did not exist. They were just fickle of people's imaginations, a myth, lore. Some bedtime stories that parents told their children so that they would not wander around freely. "Did you just drug me?" I asked again, because that was the only logical explanation. Perhaps I was drugged, thus explaining the hallucinations because surely there was no way Ryker truly turned into a mythical beast, right?

"Oh, Moon Goddess, why do you have to throw this into my plate?!" He pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers before he walked towards me and took a seat next to me on the ground. "I can assure you that I did not drug you. I truly am a werewolf. What you just witnessed was real, so for once, please do trust your own eyes or I could do it again, but it would be a hassle to have to take off my clothes and then put them on again."

"Okay, let's just say what you said was right and you are really a werewolf—"

"I truly am a werewolf," he corrected, sounding a bit annoyed.

"Fine," I rolled my eyes impatiently, "let's just say that you are. What does that have anything to do with me?"

Ryker looked like he was about to lose it but his voice was gentle when he explained to me, "Every wolf has a mate, some are even blessed with two. A mate is someone that the Moon Goddess has chosen for them. And you are mine." The last sentence made me catch a breath, but I still maintained my poker face, looking at him as if I was completely unaffected by him.

"But I am not like you," I waved my hand at him. "I am not a werewolf." Gosh, even saying that word out loud seemed funny to me.

"I know, but although it is rare, sometimes a werewolf's mate does not necessarily have to be a werewolf too. On some occasions, it could be a human, a fae, or a witch, any living creature that walks planet Earth, basically."

My eyes widened in both amusement and surprise. Did he seriously say a witch? "Are you telling me that Hogwarts does exist?" I watched him in pure anticipation.

For the first time since we had met, he laughed, proving that he could exercise any emotion other than anger and grim. His laughter was deep, unrestrained, and heartfelt. Looking at him right now, I was no longer scared. I even felt the corners of my lips tug, forming a small smile.

"I could not give you a solid yes or no answer but I suppose there is a possibility that Hogwarts," he let out a small chuckle, "does exist." The humor slowly left his face and was replaced by something else. When his silver eyes met mine, somehow I knew that he was actually feeling nervous. His voice was gentle when he asked, "Do you believe me now?"

I wanted to say yes, but in the end, I decided to be honest. "Maybe."

"That is good enough for now." Ryker nodded and rose to his feet, then offered me his hand.

I placed my hand on his and let him pull me up. My mind reeled over what had just happened, and I recalled what he had said at his wedding yesterday. "Can I ask something?"

"Sure. Anything."

"What did you mean yesterday when you said, 'he will not let me because she is here'? I know you were referring to me when you said 'she', but who was 'he'?"

His brows furrowed, and he seemed to give it a thought for a moment before he answered. "I was referring to my wolf, Khrysaor, the one you just met. He does not want Alana or Maya, he only wants you."

"And I assumed Maya is Alana's wolf?" I asked, trying to understand.

"Yes," he replied curtly. "He always opposed the idea of me marrying her or marking her as my mate."

"Okay," I drawled, trying to wrap my head around that. So thanks to Khrysaor, now he was somehow stuck with me, the unwanted mate who prevented him from marrying the person he actually loved and wanted. Not that I one hundred percent believed what he said about werewolves and soulmates, those were fairytales, children's stories. Brett was more into that than I was. "Well, can't you just persuade him?"

Ryker shook his head. His face looked dejected. "I have been doing that for years."

Okay, so Khrysaor was a big hairy arsehole, I concluded. "I have one more question. Did you know—" I took a brief pause, unsure whether I should even ask this.

"Don't hesitate. Ask me anything," he tried to encourage me, his hand slightly squeezed my hand, giving me the encouragement I needed to continue with my line of questioning.

"Did you know that I was your mate when you met me in the club a week ago?" I held my breath as I waited for his answer.

His silver eyes held mine. There was no reason or explanation, just a simple, "Yes."

"Did you look for me on purpose? Did you seek me out that night?"

Again, he answered in a matter-of-fact tone. "Yes."

I breathed out, unsure what I should make of this. Now it was time for the hardest question, "Why?"

"There is no easy way to say this, and this may make no sense at all." Ryker heaved a deep sigh. "But I wanted to see you. I wanted to be sure that my mate really did not exist before I make Alana mine. I don't know how, but I believe the Moon Goddess led me to you that night and when I met you, well, you know what happened."

I nodded. I understood what he meant. Sparks had fled when we had met. That was all I could say to describe what had happened and explain why I had ended up in the ladies' bathroom with a stranger I had only met for ten minutes. "Thank you for being honest with me and answering my questions," I told him.

Ryker nodded, then he dropped his head, and I followed his line of sight. My eyes fell on his hand still holding mine and realized that he had never let my hand go when he had been helping me get up a few minutes ago. I pulled my hand away and he let go of his hold. He looked up again and those silver eyes met mine. "Are you coming with me?"

"Is that why you came here?" I frowned. "Because you wanted to ask me to come with you?"

"Yes," he replied.

I let out a heavy sigh. "Since you're being honest here, I am going to be honest with you. I'm not sure I buy this whole werewolf thing. I know what I saw but I live my whole life believing that those kinds of stuff are not real and now you are telling me otherwise. And frankly, I don't even know if I like you. I still have not forgiven what you did yesterday."

"Fair enough." He shoved his hands inside his pockets. His brows furrowed, as if he was about to deliver bad news. I stared back at him nervously, waiting for the bomb to drop. "But there is something you should know about your father."

"Don't tell me my dad is also a werewolf?" I teased him, then laughed at my own joke.

I expected him to laugh along with me, but he did not. His face was dead serious. "Actually, he is."

As if my mind wanted to help vouch for his claim, it brought me back to what had happened yesterday evening. My dad had been acting weird and then I remembered what he had said. "The Ethereal," I breathed out, recalling my dad's monologue. "He asked me who I have been with and when I mentioned your name, he said The Ethereal. What's The Ethereal?"

"My pack." He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose again, a habit that I noticed he had done a lot. "So your father knew that I have been with you. This is precisely why I asked you to come with me yesterday." He reopened his eyes and his gaze held mine. "Did he hurt you?" He took a step back, looking down at my body as if he was trying to find any sign of injury.

"Of course not, he is my dad," I felt offended by the accusation, even though the wound on my arms protested otherwise.

"Xyrra, your father is a rogue."

I frowned. "A what now?"

"Rogue. Rogues are werewolves that have either left the pack of their own free will or been kicked out of their pack. In your dad's case, it was the latter. He was banned from his pack."

Despite everything else, I felt my body tense. "Are you telling me that my father is a criminal in your world? As in he has broken some of the werewolves' laws or something?"

"Our world," he corrected then, "And yes."

"Which one?"

"Pardon?"

"Which one are you saying yes to? Yes, he is a criminal, or yes, he has broken some werewolves' laws? Because getting a speeding ticket does not mean someone is a criminal. I want to know if he has done something bad enough to be categorized as a criminal."

"Sometimes our rules are simpler compared to humans," he commented.

But I did not care about the werewolves' rules. All I cared about was what my dad had done that caused him to be kicked out of his pack. "What was his offense?"

Ryker seemed rather uncomfortable answering my question. He shook his head and said, "I think you should come along with me before I tell you anything further."

"No. If you truly want to tell me, then you tell me right now. What did my father do that got him kicked out of his pack?"

"I hate to be the one telling you this," Ryker sighed.

"Just." I took a deep breath, shaking my head. "Tell me."

"He killed his mate, Xy."

"His mate?"

Ryker's eyes grew sad. "He killed your mother," he said in a voice no louder than a whispering level.

But I heard him. Loud and clear. My dad had killed my mother. And right now, I was not sure who to believe. I really wanted to think that a stranger I had met a week ago was lying to me just so I would go with him yet, at the same time, these wounds on my arms still stung and they reminded me of what I had bear witness yesterday. Even when there was a sliver of disbelief, my dad's eyes had turned black just like Ryker's did, and judging by the depth of my wounds, I knew that there was no way human nails could have done that.

"Xyrra," he called me, prompting my train of thought. "If your dad knew that you have been with me, it might not be safe for you to go home. I did my own investigation after I met you a week ago and I was told that your dad has never let his wolf out after what happened." I flinched, knowing he was referring to the day my dad had killed my mom. "I know you believe that he would never hurt you, but I can't bet on your safety like that. If he somehow loses control and his wolf gets out, his wolf might want to take control after being kept away for so long and no one can tell what would happen then. So please, come home with me."