-------->Cedrick on the side.

~Connor~

The heat, it was all over me again but strangely I felt nothing but a warm breeze.

'Help me!'

It was the same voice from my dream earlier.

"Connor!" wait this wasn't the same voice.

"Oh god, Connor, please wake up."

With a struggle I pried my eyes open only to see blurry images,

"Connor?"

"Caleb?" I coughed out. He sighed in relief,

"That's dad to you mister." His attempt at trying to be stern made me crack a smile.

My vision cleared as I sat up; realizing I was on the ground I glanced around to see Caleb and Uncle Jim kneeling beside me.

"What happened?" I asked.

"What happened was that Jim saved your crazy butt from burning to death! What were you thinking running into their fight like that?!" Caleb exclaimed staring down at me with worry. Frowning I glanced at Jim,

"Burning?"

Then it came back to me, I remembered how my mate stood facing off to the ice lady. How he made a tornado of flames appear out of thin air. All I could remember thinking was I had to stop him before anybody else got hurt.

"Yes and thank god Jim was there to contain that crazy guy from killing all of us." Caleb growled shaking his head. This caused me to shot up in a sitting position.

Did they lock him away again? I won't allow them to, not after all Constance and I went through to free him. I won't allow them to kill my mate!

"Where is he?" I asked staring up at my dad. Caleb rolled his eyes.

"Hopefully long gone from us" he muttered.

I reached out and took his shirt in my fists,

"Where is he dad!?" a looked of surprise crossed his face at my demand.

"I think he's with the Head Elder, Mr. Heath." Jim spoke up.

Struggling to my feet I staggered towards the door, my wolf was screaming his refusal at being separated from his mate. And he could careless at how dangerous he was. I heard Jim and Caleb's footsteps behind me as I walked out the door and down the hall towards the Head Elders office.

"Connor what the hell do you think you're doing?" Caleb growled grabbing my arm.

"I'm going to see what Mr. Heath did to him." I said matter a factly.

"Like hell you are, how you could want to be around that guy after what he did to you."

"He didn't hurt me on purpose and I'm fine. Anyway I was the stupid one to walk in that fight." I had to snatch my arm out of his hold so I could continue to the Head Elders room.

"Jim say something to him." Caleb pleaded. I paid no attention to them as I spotted the door I wanted and burst through.

Mr. Heath turned his head towards the door and watched me with an irritated scowl. I saw his gray hair and could only guess how old he was to get such a color.

"Well do come in Connor, it saves me the trouble of going to find you." his well-educated posh accent grated on my nerves and I narrowed my eyes at him, cockily stomping fully in the room, my little entourage behind me.

I glanced around the room taking in the dark wood finishing's of the walls and his desk, the black leather chair behind it, along with the Persian carpet with its intricate patterns. There were two stiff leather chairs facing the desk, and a wall bookshelf filled with leather bound, frayed, and hard covered books. I glanced over to the other side of the room where a beautifully carved table was placed up against the middle of the wall; it held a decanter half filled with amber liquid and two whiskey glasses next to it. Above it hung a real coat of arms shield with two swords pierced through it. All in all the room was very old worldly, it was like I stepped back in time and into the room of a noble from the eighteenth century.

My gaze was suddenly drawn over towards the reason I came barging in here, lying in the corner motionless, he could have been asleep but I saw his empty glare focused on Mr. Heath. His feet and wrist were chained with silver manacles; I could smell the burning of his flesh. With a cry of alarm I rushed to him side touching the shackles without thinking and singeing myself on the offensive metal.

"Let him go!" I ordered as I spun round to glare at the Head Elder who was leaning up against his desk. I couldn't stand looking at him in this way. He had to be in so much pain even if his eyes gave no sign of it. He hmphed,

"Are you mad? After all the damage he caused not even an hour ago you want me to just set him free?" Mr. Heath said with narrowed silver eyes.

"You have to" I sneered. He gave a snort of disbelief and amusement,

"No, I don't" his face set firm as he watched me from across the room. "I haven't the slightest idea as to how you and Constance found him in the first place or why you went and broke him out of his cell but I will tell you that the man you are trying to free is more dangerous than you could ever imagine, boy. He was placed in that cell for that very reason; we were trying to keep the public safe from him."

"You're lying" I growled.

"You dare accuse me of lying?! Do you know who you're talking to?" His voice took on the hard demanding tone that made a chill run down my spine.

"All I know is that you're not going to kill him! I heard what your lackeys said yesterday and you're going to have to go through me first!"

"Connor?" I head Caleb's confused tone but ignored it and continued to glare at Mr. Heath who snickered.

"Oh, boy, quit while you're ahead. You're in a building full of Elders, what do you think you can accomplish by yourself, let alone as only a regular pack wolf?"

"He's my mate, now I said let him go!"

There was a stunned silence before my dad broke it.

"What? You're not serious are you Connor?" the flat look I gave Caleb made him straighten up.

"Unchain him" this time my voice held the note of a deep growl.

"So he can burn us alive? I don't think so." A movement caught my attention and I glanced over in the far corner where the woman from before, other than a few singed bits from her clothes she looked in pristine condition. Her eyes were focused on my mate like a starved wolf ready to maul its prey. In reflex I felt my canines grow as I curled my lips up in a warning growl.

She spared me a look of amusement,

"This is turning out to be such an obnoxious day" Mr. Heath groaned rubbing his eyes with his forefinger and thumb.

"If he is Connors mate there is no way the boy can be killed." Jim suddenly said causing us all to look at him. Head Elder turned his body towards him slightly.

"Oh is that so, Simons." His tone was flat.

"Yes it is, if you kill the boy you'll be condemning his life to one of the cruelest miseries a wolf could possibly go through." Jim said stepping further in room.

"Well good thing the boys' father is a healer of that particular problem isn't it." the man just tilted his head a bit as if it was the easiest solution in the world.

"No" I growled crouching closer towards my still mate.

Caleb was watching with a deep look of grief and apprehension. I knew he was remembering all the times he felt those dreaded feeling from the wolves he helped through the years; all the pain that he took into his own body to give his patients relief.

"You would do that to a pup that had just barely found his mate?" Jim's disgust came through in those words strongly.

"What do you expect me to do Simons, the boys unstable."

"I don't know but you can't get rid of him."

Mr. Heath growled,

"You've know about this from the beginning Jim so don't try and change things now."

"Yes but that was before I found out that he was mated to someone I cared about. Maybe he can be saved, redeemed somehow."

I couldn't quite catch up on their conversation, it was like they were speaking in code but the one thing I got out of it was that Jim was trying to save my mate from certain death. I looked over at said mate and sighed. He was no longer staring at Head Elder but at me. His empty black eyes were staring at me and his face made of stone I couldn't get a single emotion from him. Then it donned on me, he hasn't said a single word to me since we got him out, did he know I was his mate? Well he had to after my condition.

Did he feel it though?

Our gaze locked for a long moment and I felt a strong surge coarse through my body, mainly my chest as my heart stopped. I had the strongest urge to move the stray strands of beautiful dark hairs that lay in his face but I held myself back.

What is your name? I wanted to ask so badly.

".... not only that but they broke a prisoner out of his cell and attempted to escaped, that cannot go unpunished!" the Head Elder's words suddenly caught my attention from my mate.

I snapped my head up to the two who stood head to head.

"He was following his instincts Cedrick; don't tell me you wouldn't have done the same to save your mate?"

"We're not talking about what I would have done"

"Yes we are, we're talking about what ANY one would have done to save their mate." Jim was becoming heated from this argument. His anger was hard to miss because it was so unusual to witness,

"I won't let you lay a hand on either of them."

"Oh please save me the melodrama, Jim." Mr. Heath rolled his eyes.

"Besides you have no jurisdiction here to tell me how we are to punish the members of our community, which includes Connor."

"Yes, but he was originally from mine" Jim fired back.

"Well he isn't now, is he?" the man raise an arrogant brow.

Jim was silenced at this; he was right.

"If you kill him, you're going to have to kill me to." I finally said tired of their back and forth attacks on each other. I got the reaction I expected as every eye turned to me.

"Connor" this was Caleb's warning voice but I shook my head and closed my eyes.

"You all know killing ones mate is like killing the soul and if you do kill him I would be nothing. I might even go crazed with grief. I would no longer be me." I told them.

I would fight to save my mate but I knew I was only one insignificant wolf with no real power to back it up. But I would go as far as I could.

"You would really die for someone you've just met today?"

"Since you've never mated Cedrick there is no way for you to understand the deep emotions that run wild when your other half is involved." Jim said. I nodded but didn't miss the quick glance Cedrick gave the woman in the corner.

Everything was silent as I waited for the man to give my death sentence; I just hoped I was with my mate when it happened. Suddenly Mr. Heath shifted his nerve wracking silver eyes towards me before he reached out towards the woman who instantly stepped forwards and placed her hand in his.

"Thea my dear, can you please go find our escapee." His voice took on a light charming tone as he spoke to her. "Also I think we're going to need to contact our I Division." Thea eyes cast down showing off the dark eye make up on her lids as she nodded.

"Yes sir" her voice was dark and smoky.

As she glanced up I saw her hazel eyes shine in devotion and respect as they settled on the Head Elder.

"Thank you, my dear." Then she was gone.

Something was going on with them.

"What are you planning on doing Cedrick?" Jim asked.

"Oh you'll find out soon enough" the ominous quality of his voice sent a shiver down my spine.

If he was going to kill me I hope it was fast and painless.

Then I remembered the words he said when talking to Thea,

'Go find our escapee' oh no did he mean Constance?

Shit I got her in a hell of a mess... wait the I Division?

The sound of chains made me turn towards my mate, he looked tired as he lent up against the wall staring down at the floor. His legs were spread as he sat there, one of his legs were bent at an angle on the ground and the other was bent straight up so he could rests one of his arms over it. He didn't have the look of a man who was inches from a death sentence or a man who just found his mate.

His head was slowly dipping down so his dirty black hair made a curtain in front of his face. God he looked so thin, when did he last eat?

When the door opened again I looked up to see Constance struggling as the woman Thea pushed her inside, non to gentle.

"What the hell?!" she exclaimed as she stumbled trying to catch her balance again. When she looked up spotting the Head Elder, she straighten up quickly.

"Head Elder" she said shortly.

"Constance, so nice of you to join us" Mr. Heath smiled at her.

"Us?" she glanced around and saw me standing in front of my mate.

"Caleb?"

"I've called you in here for a special reason, Constance."

"Special reason?" she shifted from one foot to the other in an anxious manner. "Does that mean I'm not in trouble" Head Elder snickered softly as Thea walked up to him and whispered in his ear. I watched him close his eyes as he listened to her and nod.

"Oh you're in deep trouble, young one"

Constance winced.

"Both of you are, and I plan to have a very long talk with your father Miss Ellis. But before I do I think it's only proper for me to tell you what you and Connor are in for."

Both Constance and I looked at each other warily, this didn't sound good."

"Today this young man you saved was scheduled to for the death penalty because he was, of course, deemed too dangerous for the public, which he is." Both of us gasped, "But since Connor has revealed an important fact and Jim's adamant objection to the execution for his 'feelings' I've come to the decision that since you both took it upon yourselves to release said prisoner from his cell and Connor informing us of his mating you will be taking responsibility. Especially you Connor."

"Mating!?" Constance whirled around in my direction, a look of disbelief on her face.

"Responsibility?" this time it was Caleb with the question. Mr. Heath glanced at him with a curt nod.

"Yes responsibility"

"You said the boy was dangerous, why would you entrust him in the hand of children?!" dad exclaimed.

"Oh Mr. Carmichael relax, I'm not that dense enough to hand over a dangerous man to a couple of kids... that's why we're going to toughen them up a bit." there was a hidden smile behind his stern face, he was enjoying this.

"Excuse me?" Jim asked in confusion as Constance and I looked at Mr. Heath with furrowed brows.

"What does that mean?" dad demanded lightly, still trying to respect his Head Elder the best he could with his irritation surfacing.

"It means that our two vigilantes here will be staying at a special place called the I Division for the next six months."

"What!?" Constance shouted.

I didn't have to ask what the I Division was since had already been living with someone at the pack house who was already a member.

James Chandler, Avery's brother, went on these missions so often that sometime he would just get home one day only to go on another the next day.

The I Division was like the badass special forces, military section of the Elder and Pack Wolf society, even more efficient than the enforcers. They were also the ones who saved my dad's from certain death because of my very own Uncle and cousin.

Oh man what had I got myself in to!?

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Gosh it's like christmas, so many updates!