Kyle

She was gone. A part of me ached at the knowledge I still hadn't been able to find her.

I released a frustrated breath while I scanned the forest from the ledge I was standing on. It was getting late and the light was darkening into a sunset. Another day had passed and I still hadn't found her. The cool wind blew across my skin. It was difficult not to feel disappointed I had spent another fruitless day searching for her and I was no closer to finding her than I had been the day before.

It was like no matter how hard I looked I couldn't find her. She had vanished into thin air. Logically it wasn't possible, she had to be somewhere. I had to keep looking and I would find her.

It had been a couple of weeks since I had last seen her. By the time the fight between the rogues and the packs had ended, she had vanished. When I thought back to the last time I had seen her, I couldn't help but think about Keri and how she had kept the fact Crystal was my mate from me.

Keri's betrayal weighed heavily on my shoulders. She was my friend and her betrayal had hurt and I hadn't spoken to her since. Thinking back to everything I had done for her made her betrayal worse. Even when everyone had turned their backs on her, I hadn't. I had seen beneath the cold exterior she had hidden behind.

Letting out a heavy sigh I rubbed my forehead trying to stop thinking about her. Every time she entered my mind, all I could think was how she had kept the most important information from me. She had known Crystal was my mate and she had kept it from me. It didn't matter why, there was no justification in her actions. If I had found out sooner I would have been able to stop Crystal from leaving. But it had been too late and by the time I had found out, Crystal was long gone.

My thoughts turned from the darkness of betrayal to Crystal.

Crys. That is what I had called her growing up. My mind scanned through my memories trying to pinpoint the moment when she had figured out we were mates. There was a lake on our territory and at any time she would have seen my birthmark on my hip. It wasn't exactly something we hid. Finding your mate was a joyous occasion to be celebrated.

It was hard to believe we had never touched. It was only when Keri had asked me did I realize we never had. Crystal had been extremely shy and reserved so she had kept to herself. There had always been something about her that had piqued my interest, and I wondered if that feeling had something to do with the fact we were mates. But any time I had tried to single her out to talk to her, she had a point of avoiding me. I had always put her actions down to her shyness, never once considering it might be something else.

I struggled to figure out why she was running from me. I had gone through every single scenario in my mind but I kept coming up with nothing. Something was keeping her from me. Was I not good enough? I shook the thought from my mind. I was an alpha, so of course I was. There had to be a reason she had run away and was trying to keep hidden, but I couldn't figure out what it was.

For a moment I stood watching over the forest, wishing to see a glimpse of her, before I finally gave in to the need to go back to my pack. I had been away since the fight in Keri's territory where all the packs banded together and fought off the rogue pack. I had responsibilities that needed to be dealt with and I couldn't follow my instinct to find my mate when an entire pack depended on me.

There was no giving up, I would never stop looking for her. She was mine, my destined partner for all time. It was hard to understand her actions but that didn't change our destiny. Mates gravitated toward each other even before touch confirmed and set in motion the love and fate that would tie us together until the end of time.

Frustrated and tired, I shifted back into my wolf. As the sky above darkened and masked me, I let out a sad howl into the air. Would she hear it and know it was me? I scanned the forest one last time before I turned back and began my journey home.

I ran as fast as I could, pushing myself to my limit in the hope of tiring out my mind and body so I wouldn't be awake all night thinking about Crystal. She was it for me; there would be no other.

My legs strained with the pace as I shot through the forest, whipping past the branches. The air in my lungs burned as I pushed harder and harder. Without stopping to rest, I raced back home to my pack.

A couple of hours later I ran to the tall iron gates of the compound that housed my pack. The gates swung open and I entered. As they closed behind me, I stopped. I shifted back into my human form while I was still breathing hard. I greeted a couple of the guards through my mind-link.

The night air cooled my heated skin as I strode to my house. I entered through the back door by the kitchen. My uncle and I were the only ones who stayed in the main house. The rest of the pack stayed in apartments at the bottom of the estate. It was a similar setup to Cade's compound, which worked well.

Soft light illuminated the kitchen from the passageway. I wasn't expecting anyone to be awake but when I left the kitchen I could hear a low hum of conversation coming from the living room. As I got closer I could hear two voices, my uncle's and Scarlett's.

What was my sister doing here? I hadn't seen her since I had left Keri's territory. For a moment I hesitated before I entered the living room.

Uncle Nate stopped talking mid-sentence and Scarlett stood up, turning to face me. Her expression hit me first. It was filled with relief as she beamed at me.

"You're alive," Scarlett said with a gasp before flinging herself into my arms. Taken by surprise, I braced to hold her weight without it toppling both of us over. I held her while I gave my uncle a questioning look. She held me so tight it was hard to breathe.

"Why wouldn't I be?" I asked, not understanding her concern. Everyone knew I had left to find Crystal. She had been my sole mission.

"It's a good thing you're back," Uncle Nate said with a serious expression. He looked older than the last time I had seen him, tired eyes and lines etched in his features. His hair looked grayer as well. Scarlett hugged me tighter, her head against my chest. I held her, giving her the comfort she needed.

"What's going on?" I asked. Scarlett didn't say a word as her hold tightened.

Something was up. I pulled away from her gently and lifted her chin upward so my eyes connected with hers. Her expression hit me hard. There was a glistening of tears mixed with fear. I frowned, not understanding their reactions to my arrival.

"A lot has happened since you left," Uncle Nate informed me, the disapproval clear in his voice. He hadn't been happy I had taken off and been gone for the last two weeks.

"You know I left to try and find Crystal," I reminded them. They all knew finding her was my top priority.

"You shouldn't have been running around alone for the last couple of weeks," Scarlett lectured as she pulled away from me and hit me in the arm. "Something could have happened to you."

"Hey, what was that for?" I asked, rubbing my arm. I couldn't understand why my sister was upset with me. "I'm an alpha of a pack of werewolves. There isn't a lot out there I'm scared of."

"After what has been happening since you left, you should be," Cade said as he entered the room, and Scarlett turned to face her mate when Cade came to a stop behind her. They made a striking couple, both with midnight black hair. Cade's eyes were blue and Scarlett had the same gray eyes I did.

I frowned as my eyes studied his. He looked dead serious, and I had a foreboding feeling ignite in the pit of my stomach. Cade was no sissy. He was a powerful alpha whom, despite some disagreements through the years, I respected.

"Is someone going to tell me what the hell has been going on?" I asked, finally losing my cool.

Deep down inside, I knew whatever they were going to tell me wasn't going to be good.