Word Count: 2302

~Evoni

I'm woken by a howl.

It's a heavy, forlorn sound that rents the air. Somewhere, in the distance, a werewolf is in its beast form.

I shudder, fear chasing every heart beat.

The dark doesn't help. Out here, this far into the woods, it's deeper, unrelenting. In Maric's tent, it's even worse.

He slumbers somewhere at the other end of the tent. I fall asleep before he retires, and he's gone before I wake. His unobtrusive nature is appreciated, although I'll be moving into Rhenn's tent shortly.

I can't see him in all this darkness. It feels so thick, it's as if I could wade through it with oars and a tiny boat.

In the middle of this dense night, I need some light, even if it's just a bit.

My phone.

It dawns on me that I've had my phone here this entire time, switched off and in my pack. I doubt I'll have reception here, but it could serve other purposes until the battery runs flat.

Right now, I could do with the brightness of my screen.

On my hands and knees, I fumble in the direction of my pack. I hold my breath the entire time, aware of the softly breathing Alpha lying a few feet away.

Snagging onto its canvas exterior, I drag it closer. It makes a terrible scraping sound against the mat that gives me pause, but Maric's breathing doesn't shift.

I find my phone at the bottom of the front pocket, closed in a dry bag. I fish it out and press the button the side, waiting for it to turn on.

Gradually it does, immediately painting light through the the tent.

The pressing ache on my chest relinquishes. Cherry's sweet little face appears on my lock screen.

I really hope Rowan has been feeding her.

Unlocking my phone, I grimace at my notification wall, cramped with texts from Rowan that are coming through from days ago. My breath catches as I realise, somehow, I have a single bar of reception.

I doubt it's strong, but it's something.

I waste no time calling Rowan. For a long while the call struggles to connect, until finally, I hear the blissful sound of my phone calling his.

"What are you doing?"

I jump, immediately ending the call before Rowan can pick up.

Turning my phone screen in front of me, I illuminate Maric in artificial light. He immediately grimaces, raising a hand to shield against its unfamiliar intensity.

He's standing at the foot of my quasi bed. The markings on his naked torso and arms are so dark, they appear to swallow the light, making it appear as if parts of him are melting into the shadow.

"What is that?" He questions through gritted teeth, still unable to look directly at the screen.

I quickly turn the brightness down. Neither of our eyes are accustomed to the light, but his especially. I doubt he's ever seen a phone screen in his life.

"It's nothing." I go to switch the screen off, but he's at my side so fast it almost feels impossible, taking it from my hand.

I jump to my feet, moving to grab it back but he holds it out of reach.

"That belongs to me. Give it back!"

He turns away, shifting the screen into view. He holds the phone with two hands, like it might jump away like a wild animal.

"I know what this is." He shifts his accusatory gaze to me, the light of the screen making the silver ring of his eyes glow. "Archie has one, although..."

He looks down, turning the phone from side to side. "...his has a lot less screen and a few more button things."

I reach for the phone again but he brushes me off.

"Just give it back, Maric."

His frown deepens suddenly. "I know this can communicate to other people. Is that what you are using it for?"

Clearly I'm not getting my phone back.

I brace my hands on my hips. "How inconvenient that Archie has told you so much about modern technology."

The screen dims, about to lock, and then suddenly lights up again in a flourish. Rowan's name appears on the screen - he's calling me.

I lurch for the phone again, but Maric steps back, inspecting the screen closely with squinted eyes.

"Something is happening. The phone is vibrating." He switches the phone to his other hand, perturbed by the unfamiliar sensation. "Rowan's name has appeared."

"That means the phone is about to self destruct. Best you hand it over before it blows up." I hold my hand out, palm up.

He glares at me, unconvinced. "What is it actually doing?"

I wipe my hand over my forehead, exasperated. "Rowan is calling."

He only stares.

"He's..." I blow out a breath. "Trying to contact me through the phone."

Alarmed, Maric holds the device away from himself. "I need to destroy this-"

"No!" I hold my arms out like I'm cajoling a frightened animal. "I saved for over half a year for that phone. Just press the red button to end the call."

I don't think he quite understands what I'm saying, but he obliges, pressing the end call button with his fingertip. Rowan's name vanishes from my screen, the hope deflating from my body in one terrible whoosh.

Maric blinks at the phone. "It's all gone and the vibrating has stopped."

"Yes, because you ended the communication before it started. Well done."

He doesn't look pleased with himself, only confused.

"What else does it do? Does it have other functions?"

I rub my eyes tiredly, suddenly fatigued. "Nothing that should interest your small mind."

The light and shadows harshen the sharp glare I receive from him. He returns to inspecting the device with near clinical scrutiny, as if it may reveal all the secrets embedded inside.

"Can I show you something?" I ask tentatively.

His grip on it tightens. He eyes me sceptically.

"I can't do that much damage with you standing here now can I?"

I mean, I can, but he doesn't know enough about the capabilities of a phone with one bar of reception to stop me.

He still doesn't move.

"I'll give it back right after," I assure him. The phone has little use to me if I can't contact Rowan or the authorities, anyway.

It takes a few moments, but he slowly holds the phone back out to me.

I open my gallery, flicking through a few of my recent photos before I select one. I turn it so Maric can see.

Squinting a little, he inspects the photo. A second layer, he smiles softly.

"Cherry, I assume?"

I nod, looking at the photo myself. It's of her splayed out on my bed at home, her legs curled and her belly showing. Her sweet little eyes are closed and she's halfway through a yawn.

"I miss her," I admit.

Maric is silent for a moment before he speaks again. "What about Rowan?"

"Of course I miss him too," I say hastily. "But he can look after himself. Cherry can't."

"Can I see him?" He asks.

My eyes widen. He wants to see a photo of Rowan?

Wordlessly, I return to scrolling through my gallery. I select a photo of Rowan and I standing on a hill that overlooks our town. He has dragged me on a hike, which I wasn't keen on at the time. But the view at the top was worth it, and so was the photo a kind stranger took for us.

Maric takes my phone so he can view the photo closely.

His brows crease as he takes Rowan in. My lover, whose arm is slung around my waist, tugging me to his side. He looks at me with a crooked smile, eyes shadowed beneath a green baseball hat.

In one move he lowers the phone, his face disappearing in the sudden dark.

"That's enough of that," he mutters, turning away.

I curse under my breath. I don't see where Maric puts my phone, but wherever it is, I doubt I will see it again until I can leave.

If that day ever comes...

Maric doesn't speak again as we settle into our respective beds again, but I feel the tension.

Why is he so bothered? He doesn't know Rowan. Maybe the photo reminded him that I'm human, that I have a very normal human life waiting for me beyond this dense forest.

A life he took me away from.

Silence descends for a long while. Long enough for me to be sure he's asleep, but I ask anyway.

"Maric? Can I ask you a question."

His breathing shifts, then, "I suppose so, Evoni."

"Are you planning on using the fertility powder once it's been made?" I roll onto my side, facing his general direction.

I hear the faint sound of his breath hitching. It's a personal question I've asked, but I'm deeply curious. Plus, I feel like I'm owed the information after being told by Rhenn I'm destined to be with him.

Can humans and werewolves even reproduce? The thought is disturbing.

"I doubt I'll ever have the opportunity," he admits after a while.

"Why not?"

"I've met every member of my pack. It's an opportunity not many are afforded." His tone lowers, deep and addled with self-loathing. "I know with certainty that I do not have a mate among them."

I know almost nothing about this fabled mate bond that seems to command the minds of everyone here. I'm deeply curious about it, though. Something about it seems so...otherworldly.

"Are you guaranteed a mate?" The prophecy comes to mind. How Rhenn and others think it might be me...

I hear him shift. "How do you know what a mate is?"

"Rhenn."

He sighs. "Of course."

My fingers curl into the blanket draped over me. Does he not want me to know about it? He sounds genuinely bothered.

"And to answer your question, no. There is no guarantee anyone of us will find our mates," he tells me.

Considering how this bond seems to mean to them, I imagine not being granted one by the Moon Goddess would be difficult. Especially when everyone else around them is being blessed in such a way.

My hands smooth down to my stomach, which has tightened. Why does the thought of that make me sad? It hardly applies to me.

"So what then?" I ask.

"We go without, or we settle for another." He says it without much change to his voice. He's holding something back.

"What will you do?" I ask. He must have a plan, if he feels no one here could be his mate? Surely he would be with another, someone he can love without the bond.

He hesitates. "Go without."

I frown into the dark.

Maric is powerful, a leader. He's beautiful and everyone here seems to respect him. He would have no shortage of options, even in his small pack.

Honestly, if he walked into town right now, I know of plenty of humans who would volunteer for the position right now.

"That is terribly sad. Plus, don't you need an heir?"

"That is why I have Oryn," he says. "He is too good to not be blessed with a mate. His offspring can rule in my stead."

I sit up on my elbows, my hair brushing around my shoulders. I squint into the dark, but it's impossible make out so much as the outline of Maric's body in bed.

"You don't believe you're good?" I ask softly.

He doesn't respond for a while. I hear him swallow.

"Look what I've done to you," he whispers.

The sound is so faint, I almost don't hear it. I almost don't want to hear it, because it's easier to believe that Maric has no qualms about stealing me away from my life to serve his interests.

I don't like him. I definitely don't trust him. I don't plan to stick around any longer than I need to.

Knowing he feels guilt...It confuses me.

"Even I can admit it's for the greater good," I concede, falling back into my pillow, which is comprised off a sweater I found stuffed in the bottom of my pack.

"I must admit, I am stunned by your resilience. You have handled this remarkably," he murmurs.

I huff out a breath. "For a human?"

"Yeah."

"We're not all bad," I tell him.

But then I think about Rowan, about his family history. About how his ancestors were infamous werewolf hunters, and helped the town reach a conclusion that werewolves were evil and needed to be hunted to extinction.

I was always appalled learning about the horrors committed against them. I never liked the way Rowan and his family would gloat about the contribution to their history.

Now, I feel even stronger against them. Meeting Rhenn, especially, and all her innocence. Even Billie isn't so bad.

And Maric...I can concede that he doesn't deserve to watch his pack be slaughtered.

"I know. Archie is good. He not like the rest," he says.

I pull the blanket up to my chin. "I'm sorry about what humans did to your kind."

He doesn't respond. I hear him roll away from me in his bed.

"You should get some sleep, Evoni," he prompts quietly.

Silence descends upon us, and for the first time sleeping here, I'm not so afraid of the dark.

❤️••❤️

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~Midika 💜🐈‍⬛