The rolling hills ran on for miles as I basked lazily in the grassy field.

My skin prickled from the buzzing of a nearby dragonfly. My tongue tasted the smallest hints of rosemary that filtered through the breeze. I let out a moan as my eyelashes fluttered closed.

It was so peaceful.

Laying down amongst the tall grass, I soaked in the sun, positively immersed in the warmth that wrapped me in comfort. My senses were in overdrive. Everything was buzzing and I had never felt more alive.

Threading my fingers through the grass, my eyes peered open in response to the distinctive sound I'd not heard in what felt like forever. Phelan.

"Good morning..."

Removing my fingers from his tangled hair, I blinked slowly as I came to.

"Phelan?"

My voice was soft. Tentative. Unsure.

He sensed my uncertainty, his eyes falling to the pillow that I'd pushed myself from. "Don't move too fast, you're still healing."

I nodded slowly, acutely aware of the pain that shot through my neck as I craned to meet his gaze.

Then it all came crashing back.

Letting out a sigh, I stared up at the ceiling as my hands scoured the length of my arms.

There were no gaping wounds, no slash marks. I gripped each bicep to be sure... no bruising either.

But she almost killed me!

I gasped in incredulity, I couldn't believe how I was seemingly alive and... well.

I felt my brows furrow as I pushed the blanket off of me. I moved my shirt up to see... surely, surely there would be proof of my injuries.

Feeling my stomach, my rib cage, my sides... my hands grasped and prodded my flesh for any sign of pain... of evidence of what I remembered to be true.

Hadn't I died?

I strained my neck as I turned to Phelan for answers.

"How?!"

He was clearly exhausted. Leaning on his elbow, he looked down to me before gently tucking the strand of my hair behind my ear that had obscured his view of me.

Instead of answering my question, he posed his own, his tone cautious and controlled.

"What do you remember?"

I found it difficult to swallow as I mulled on his question. My pulse reverberating in my eardrums as I struggled to focus.

What did I remember?

Strobes of memories flashed through my mind like a scenes in a movie theatre.

"My Dad... Phelan, they killed him..." I sobbed, grasping at my temples, pulling my hair as I wracked my brain as if to shake away the truth.

"I know." He paused.

"I'm sorry I didn't get there quick enough... I tried Edie, I really did."

He stroked my arm back and forth between the silence.

"I couldn't do anything except watch it happen Phelan. There were four of them, I couldn't, I just could-"

I felt a lump in my throat, I was tripping on words that I couldn't articulate despite seeing in all in replay in my mind.

"Tell me Leila is dead, tell me you killed her."

"She is Edie. I did. I promise you. Not just her... all of them."

"But you. Are you hurt? Sophia? Gunner? Harlow?! Is everyone okay?!"

Wide eyed I turned to face him, pulling down the sheets to see for myself. Running my fingers along his torso, I inspected every inch that was exposed above the bedding.

His tattoo was intact, but my fingers stopped at the scarred skin that ran through his canvas. The claw marks travelled from under his chest up and around to the middle of his stomach.

I was fuming.

"Was this from her? Leila? Did she do this to you?!"

I felt her hackles raise from within, on edge and ready, her protectiveness was coming out.

Gripping my wrist he pulled my hand away, instead holding it within his own, and kissed it.

"We are fine Edie. Breathe. We each got a few little scratches but nothing that won't heal."

I stared at him perplexed, "what happened? How long have I been asleep for? How much don't I know?!"

I watched as he sat up in the bed, his hand covering his mouth before he gripped his jaw before letting it out.

"Firstly, three days... in and out. As for the rest, I don't know where to start."

He paused before continuing.

"Okay, we will just see how this goes...Your dad reached out to Magdalene, she told us where you were, and we left immediately..." he rambled.

"Excuse me? Magdalene, as in our Seer?!"

"Do you remember when we met her, and she gave you a portrait of your mother?"

I nodded.

"Well, it turns out her pact with your grandmother extended to her daughter, and to you... your father had stayed in contact with her all this time."

"What do you mean?"

"It means that when your dad wanted us to come for you, he let Magdalene know. We would have never known otherwise, we couldn't trace your scent anywhere."

"But why didn't he send for you sooner?! He didn't have to die!"

"Edie... he had his own purpose, and that was to save you. He did it for you. Had he done it sooner, Leila would have known and you'd both be dead."

"Did you know that he was alive?"

"No. The first I heard was from Magdalene when she told me where you were."

I mulled on his words, soaking in the information and coming to terms with it all. From my time with my dad I knew that he had it all planned. But I didn't expect that he was in contact with Magdalene, or anyone for that matter.

"So, she was keeping the truth of him being alive a secret?"

"At his request, yes. He didn't want to risk your safety. He'd been held captive by Leila as punishment for being with your mother."

"Do you think Leila knew that he told me who he was?"

"If think if she did, she'd have killed you..."

My awkward silence compelled him to elaborate as I pieced it all together.

"He knew they wouldn't kill him or you until they had the answer to your hybridity... he made sure to time it in such a way that we'd get to you first. Edie, I'm sorry to say, but everything he did was to make sure you had the best chance of getting out safely."

I knew Phelan was right. That was exactly what my dad had planned. He'd sacrificed himself for me. Waited years... decades for a chance to say goodbye.

But it still didn't answer the question that was at the forefront of my mind.

"It nearly didn't work though did it, how am I still alive?"

His fingers traced up my arm to my collarbone before resting on the softness of my neck.

Tingles erupted as he drew circles across the skin, without so much as saying a word.

"You... you marked me, didn't you?"

"Can you forgive me?"

I felt the hurt in his voice as I moved to face him.

"I thought marking was supposed to be a romantic gesture in the throes of passion? Your timing was less than ideal I have to say..."

I watched as he pinched the bridge of his nose before he stifled a laugh, shaking his head at my comment.

"What?!" I asked defensively.

"It can be romantic, yes. And I'd have preferred it to be so. But I did it to help you heal. You would not have survived your injuries on your own Edie... I nearly lost you."

"I had waited for so long, afraid it could kill you, but when faced with losing you... I took the chance."

"So what does that mean now? Are we bonded for life? You're stuck with me then?"

His hearty laugh bellowed out into the bedroom.

"You are not stuck with me, but I am stuck with you..."

I prodded his chest playfully, "stop speaking in riddles, what does that even mean?"

"It means... I marked you, I chose to be bonded to you for life. But you still have the choice of whether you want the same in return."

"So you have chained yourself to me even with the knowledge I could reject you; why would you even think that I would?"

"Well, your father did find a cure for mate sickness, you don't have to stay anymore."

"How did you know tha- let me guess... Magdalene..."

"Indeed."

His smirk gave way to his vulnerability which looked quite honestly, adorable with his stoic and hardened frame. He was the greatest juxtaposition.

I winced as I pushed myself up, laying across him as I played with the little hairs that trailed down his navel.

"Do I- do females mark their mates too?"

"They do. Once both are marked, then mates can mind-link. They can heal faster, they... their connection is deeper, it becomes sacred."

I nodded at his explanation. It made sense, but I didn't know how to do it.

"Don't overthink it Edie. It's instinct. You'll do it when the time is right."

"I didn't think we could mind-link?"

He tapped the side of my temple.

"I just know what goes on in that pretty little head of yours..."

I kissed the skin under me, the warmth of him heating my cheeks as I did so.

"I'm so glad you're okay Phelan. I can't thank you enough for putting up with all of my mistakes... being patient with me as I learn about this new world."

"It is nothing Edie. You're my mate. Soon to be Luna of this pack. Our pack. We will navigate it all together."

"So is The Guild a risk anymore? Are we all safe?"

"Thanks to you, they are gone Edie. You killed Leila's mate, she would have died from mate sickness anyway... I just put her out of her misery sooner. Because of you, there is no Guild anymore, you've become quite the heroine."

"Who else knows about what happened?"

"Only every territory on the continent."

"Seriously?!"

"Seriously. But best of all, you are safe. No one can exploit you for your hybridity now."

"What about Hale? Tell me you killed him too?"

"Look at you Little Miss I Don't Like Violence." He teased playfully before turning to answer my question matter a factly.

"Yes. I'll have you know my wolf relished it actually."

"Good."

I frowned as he picked up my head, gently guiding me to the pillow as he got out of bed.

"Where are you going?"

I watched as he walked over to the bookshelf in the corner of the room. He was looking for something in the little trinket box that was sitting nestled amongst the candles and books that littered the shelves.

"I almost forgot..."

I couldn't quite tell what was in his hand before he opened my own palm and placed something in it.

"This was in the pocket of your pants, near where I found you."

Uncurling my fingers, I gasped as I realised what it was before locking eyes with him.

"Phelan. It's my father's USB stick, he gave it to me before he died."

"You know I don't do technology speak Edie... I'm a werewolf not a nerd. What does that even mean?"

"It means you need to get with the 21st Century first of all, but second of all, it means there is something on there he needs me to know..."