Mated

Twenty-Seven

Cort was on his knees, hovering above the ground, his eyes closed.

"Are you okay?" I asked from a few feet away, still standing near the water. He merely grunted and stood so suddenly like he'd only just remembered he was alone with a werewolf standing directly behind him. His eyes swept our surroundings. I couldn't imagine what his human eyes could see. This property was only moonlit with not a single light on in the house on the other side.

"Where's your mate?" he asked, finally looking my way. His expression was expectant, impatient almost, that I hadn't blurted out James' exact location without him needing to ask. Even after spending the past three days with him, his tone was still blunt, anything but friendly as if I were wasting his time.

I was taken aback by his question, though I'm not sure why. Yes, James is my mate, I've accepted it from the day we met. But no one's ever outright asked me about him–his location–for me to tap into our link and discover exactly where he is.

"He's..." I turned my face so that he couldn't see me crinkle my nose and imagined James. I've never done this before, so I had to make it look like I knew what I was doing. I'm sure it's not hard. How hard can it be to find my mate–my Alpha?

My mind went to where I last saw him inside of that pack's home. Then it zeroed in, showing me James' presence without seeing his body–a thin mist-like thing that hovered in the air. I took a sharp breath, surprised that it worked so quickly and glad that he was okay. It reappeared inside of the alley, then again on the road Cort and I took to find this house, this pond.

"This way..." I led us toward the wall we'd jumped over not half an hour ago, knowing he would be led there. I was able to get over the wall without help this time, now that my leg was healed.

Not a second after Cort planted his feet, James appeared out of the shadows seeming completely unharmed but for a coating of blood on his bicep in the shape of a gash and a splotch on his cheek. He seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.

"You're not hurt?" He was in front of me now, having closed the distance between us so quickly. His eyes moved over me, inspecting.

I shook my head fast. "N-No."

He took in the Hunter's condition. "Good, you're unharmed." He'd told me he doesn't trust the Hunter, so for a second, I was shocked at his careful observation. Until he said, "You won't slow us down."

Cort blinked a hard stare, making me wonder if I had imagined the momentary exhaustion I'd witnessed just minutes ago after climbing out of the pond.

I realized we were without the Twins. "Where are Hugh and Brent?" I blinked my confusion. James' jaw tensed and he looked away from me. But not before I caught the quick, dim glow of his eyes. And it wasn't unusual. I've witnessed my father's eyes do that when my Grandmother passed away, and again when Sam, a guy who didn't seem to fit in with the others, accepted an offer into a neighboring pack.

"Oh no," I started, taking a step toward him, my hand raised as if to place it on his arm, but I stopped myself.

He gave a slight nod and said, "Hugh's dead." He held my gaze, "Brent wouldn't leave his brother behind. He refused me when I told him we had to go before more Rogues come here searching for us."

I stifled a gasp. "I'm so sorry, James," I said, trying to ignore the ripple in my chest. I couldn't feel the same pain as James, as he is Alpha and bears the loss of pack members. Just like I–Diana did in the memory when she was made to watch her people die.

James is dealing with both kinds of pain.

"We'll keep moving," said Cort.

"Where? What exactly is our plan? Keep running?" The questions spilled out fast.

"We need to get out of this town and find a safe place to spend the night," answered James. Cort seemed to agree to that and trekked ahead of us.

I didn't move.

"James..."

'We'll talk," he promised with furrowed brows and a clenched jaw. Then he surprised me by reaching for my hand, Turning before I understood what was happening. He was already completely Turned, his large awkward paw hung over my arm. He made a motion with his head for me to climb on.