Fatal Justice

† Chapter Twenty-Nine †

Pain is the strongest connection. 

He understood now. 

He knew why Fox wasn't surprised with his past, as any normal wolf would have froze with wide eyes, but Fox believed himself to be a monster. He supposed they had that in common now. They were running from their past demons, trying to find something else to define their existence. However, Fox was the subject of tragedy, but he? He had been forced to kill, rivers of blood ran with his name, and that would never be forgotten or forgiven. Only death would be deserving of him. 

When the night faded into the soft glow of the rising sun, he stared into the ashes of the burned-out fire. Tiny wisps of smoke paled against the chilly air that made his nostrils sting. He was deep in thought. Like the ashes of the fire, once the initial flame burns out, there are only pieces left. Flaky and grey, they blow away with a strong breeze. But, if the ashes laid there long enough something would grow because even ashes had a purpose. 

He thought about his plan for the future. It wasn't just him anymore. Fox had made it pretty clear that he wasn't going anywhere. Wherever he ended up, Fox was intent to follow, and that seemed foreign to him. He had never had someone following him. Someone looking up to him. He had always been alone but he wasn't against sharing this journey. Even when neither of them really knew where they were heading, it was still a journey to be traveled. 

Perhaps they could even rise from the ashes and build something to be proud of. Maybe when they reached Canada, they could finally find a place to belong and stop running from their pasts. Maybe they could leave this cursed world with a little less regret because if they could leave the foundations of a legacy, that was worth something more than this. Wandering without purpose. Lost in the shell of humanity. Breathing only to die. 

Fox stirred beside him and his attention drifted down. 

He realized Fox's eyes were actually hazel to an extent, faded green surrounding the iris, and their eyes met without guarded expressions. For a moment, only the chatter of birds filled the air, then Fox spoke, "Were you awake all night?" 

He shrugged one shoulder, "It happens." 

"I didn't mean to spill my whole life story," Fox was sitting beside him now, their shoulders barely touching, and their eyes rested on the ashes of the fire, "I couldn't stop after I started talking. It just kind of came out." Fox looked down, maybe in a sense of shame.  

He exhaled slowly, "I got what I asked for, I am not judging you," He paused, twirling a small twig between his fingers as he thought, "We all make mistakes, some a lot uglier than others. I have made several mistakes and one of them cost my mate's life, too." 

Fox spoke quieter. "How did it happen?" 

Briefly closing his eyes, he revisited the memory for the first time in four years. "My pack is a whole lot of fucked up, I guess you know that, and they often took females from packs we attacked. She was one of them and I had already been planning my escape that night but it felt like she threw a whole curveball in everything. I tried to get her out of the cells but I had not been expecting my sister to show up. I knew I couldn't leave without my mate so I stayed that night, hoping for another chance, only for my brother to challenge me for the Alpha Title, and then it all went downhill from there," He exhaled, trying to alleviate the pain of the memory as it resurfaced in his mind, "I was winning. I would have won the title if my sister didn't betray me. She knew the whole time and she used my mate as leverage. I watched my own sister plunge a knife into my mate's chest. I just watched and I hate myself for it because I could have tried to do something... and I did nothing." 

"What was she like? Your mate?" Fox asked, perhaps to help ease the pain but it only brought more pressure to his chest. He didn't even know her. He was ruthlessly ripping the scab off of his poorly healed wound but maybe this time, he could let it heal properly. 

"I do not know," He glanced away into the distance, "I never heard her speak, I do not know her name, I never even felt her touch, and then she was torn from my soul." 

"Your sister sounds like an utter bitch," Fox commented and he was slightly glad that pity wasn't being offered. He didn't need pity, he just needed someone to listen for once. 

He felt his lips quirking, "Yeah, well, she is dead now. I killed her the next time I saw her." 

"Good. She deserved it," Fox nodded, "There are some seriously evil wolves out there and they will do anything when they're blinded by greed and power." 

"That defines my entire family," He turned his head to look at Fox, "I just got caught in the crossfire and it might cost me my life." 

"We have each other's back now," The depths of Fox's eyes brightened with the first sign of hope, "I'll be by your side when they come for you and I'll help you kill them." 

His heart felt a little lighter for some strange reason. Someone he could trust? Someone who had his back? For the first time in his life, he found himself smiling a bit at Fox, "Then I will always have yours, my friend." 

"See? This is what I was saying," Fox stood up as he spoke, and then offered a hand, "You are an Alpha." 

He rolled his eyes but let Fox pull him up, "The Alpha thing again? When are you going to drop it?" 

Fox grinned back at him, "Never." 

He observed the bright look in Fox's eyes. It was inspiring, to say the least, that by sharing stories, sharing pain, they had formed this connection. A brotherhood. One that would never die for so long they both breathed. Maybe his life did have a purpose. Fox would have perished in this wilderness had they not crossed paths, so perhaps it was a bit of destiny that intertwined their stories. Only one thought lingered on his mind as they set out on their journey once more. 

He never really had a brother before. 

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Late update but all I can say is finally. 

I've been hella burnt out with college and I just don't have the motivation to do anything. Its been affecting a lot of areas in my life and I hate feeling so useless at the end of the day. But, I finally found my inspiration to get this chapter written. Hopefully it's not too cheesy. I just keep falling in love with these two and their brotherhood.