"Any updates?" I asked once the phone connected.

"I don't know. I've been gone for a few days, so you'd have to ask Nolan," came Eli's response; however, instead of the regular, cheerful Eli I was used to, he was quiet and down.

"What's wrong?" I asked my beta. "You don't sound like yourself."

"I'm fine. Hold on. I'm on my way to see Nolan right now, so you can—"

"Eli," I interrupted. "I'm not worried about Nolan. I can call him later. Talk to me."

Eli fell silent, and I didn't like it. For as long as I've known Eli, the man never was quiet. Even when something was wrong, Eli was still talking. This wasn't the Eli I was used to. Something had to be wrong.

"I found my mate, Nix."

I expected him to be jumping off the walls with joy, but his voice grew impossibly quieter. He spoke barely above a whisper and sounded like he was about to break down.

"You don't see very excited about that, E."

"He rejected me, Nixon," came the broken response, and I could tell the tears were flowing. "He took one look at me and rejected me. No reason—nothing. He just rejected me and walked off."

Anger pulsed through my body. Someone rejected Eli? That didn't make sense. Ever since the day I met Eli, he'd always wanted to meet his mate. I knew he had thought and dreamed about the activities he would do with his mate. Now those dreams were broken.

"Who?" I demanded. "Who rejected you, Eli?"

"No, Nix," came his quiet response. "I don't need you to fight my battles for me."

"I just want to talk to him."

"You never just 'talk' to anyone."

"Eli—"

"I need to go, Nix. I'll talk to you later. Bye."

The phone call ended, and I knew then that Eli would spend the whole day crying or beating himself up. I made a mental note to call Nolan and tell him to check up on the beta.

"You look like shit," a teasing voice said behind me. I turned around, and there stood Tatum. He was dressed up nicely, indicating that he was planning on leaving. I rolled my eyes but didn't respond, causing Tatum's brows to furrow. "Are you alright?"

"Mates are fucking assholes," I said, anger radiating off of me.

Tatum's eyebrows raised. "What makes you say that?"

"The whole idea of mates is fucked up! What about being tied down to someone from the moment you're born is 'amazing'? What about being forced to feel pain because of someone else's actions is fair? What's the point of mates, Tatum?"

"You're right to some extent. The mate bond isn't as amazing and wonderful as we make it out to be. We're told from birth that our mates are something we should cherish and nothing else should be tolerated, but nobody talks about the pain that follows. It's like we're meant to suffer in silence and pretend that everything is okay and keep the cycle going. We lie to our children and hype the mate bond when we're hurting inside; we alienate those who leave their mate without knowing their situation. You're right. The mate bond can be a nightmare, Nixon," Tatum leaned against the couch. "But it can also be an amazing thing. Don't get me wrong, there are bad parts, but I don't know; I've seen people whose lives have improved because of the bond. I've seen it be used to save lives and help others. I think that those who respect and use it in the way it was intended are the ones we should aspire to be like. It doesn't mean that we shouldn't try and change the stigma around bonds and work to improve them, but there's some good to mates too."

"You sound like you're speaking from personal experience," I said to him.

My eyes dropped to Tatum's neck, but there wasn't a mark there. Not to mention that I hadn't seen any pictures of a mate anywhere in his home. It appeared that he had been living alone for a while before I came to live with him. But his words? His words made it seem like he had a mate — like he had felt the joy most couples claimed to feel when they met their 'perfect match.'

Tatum's eyes dimmed slightly, and he shook his head. "Not personal experience, just what I've seen from others around me who've met their mates."

His tone told me that there was more to the story. I wanted to ask, but he didn't give me a chance. Tatum stood up from where he had been leaning and glanced down at me.

"I need to go. I'll probably be back later, but there's food in the fridge if you get hungry. I hope you feel better, Nixon."

With that, Tatum moved toward the door and quickly exited the house, leaving me to sit there.