The Hunted - The Hunt #2

2. Break Free!

Daniel woke up at 7. He was too anxious to sleep any longer. He could hear his mother cooking breakfast in the kitchen, her heart beating rapidly. She was worried and scared. Daniel loved his mother, more than anything in the world, but she needed to come to terms with the fact he was an adult. He was twenty, time to find himself and maybe even meet his mate. Everyone around him were paired up - his brother, his parents. Elise was the only one in the family who still hadn't met her mate. But that didn't seem to bother her at all. She was way too wild to settle down any time soon.

Daniel got out of bed, dressed in a pair of black jeans and a white t-shirt - his usual attire. He took one last look at his room, not planning to see it for an entire year. He grabbed his bag and headed downstairs. Daniel put his bag down next to the door, ready for his departure. He gathered his strength and walked into the kitchen. His mother looked terrible, like she hadn't slept a wink. She probably hadn't.

"Good morning, mom!" Daniel greeted her with the most cheerful voice he could muster. If he seemed okay, maybe she would calm down.

His plan failed, as his mother started crying, those ugly blood tears running down her ageless face. She'd forever be 25, while his dad had aged a bit, werewolves aging slower than humans. Even though Daniel had some werewolf in him, he looked younger than his brother, he'd stopped aging around the age of 18, always looking like a teenager. He wasn't too happy about that, but what can you do.

"Mom, stop with the crying. I'll be fine. I promise to call once a week, we've talked about this. You need to let me go and see the world. I'm an adult, you can't protect me forever," Daniel tried to console her. She nodded her head and wiped away the tears.

"I know. I'm just... worried and I love you so much. I wish you'd change your mind and stay, but I get why you can't. Your mate is probably a vampire and it's unlikely you'll ever meet her if you stay here. And you need your mate, it's the best part of being a supernatural creature. Now, would you like some breakfast? Your dad will be down soon," she ranted. Daniel's mother had been worried about his mate situation since day one and as time went on, her worry grew. The more obvious it became how little werewolf was actually in him, the more she worried.

"Don't you waste your brain cells on that. When or if I find her, that's up to fate. And as you put it yourself, she's not going to simply appear here. Maybe I will meet her, out in the world, but that's not why I'm doing this. I need to get away from here. I need to do this, you do understand me, right?" Daniel pressed. They'd had this conversation countless times, it always ended with her crying and him angry. He didn't want to say goodbye after a fight.

His mother nodded her head and pointed towards the kitchen counter, where she'd laid out an impressive breakfast. He wasn't hungry for human food, so he grabbed the cup with blood in it and sipped it silently while they waited for his father to come down.

In about ten minutes, alpha Dorian marched down and sat next to his mate. He piled food onto his plate, avoiding eye contact with Daniel. This is new, he thought. Finally, after grabbing a piece of everything, he turned to look at Daniel.

"Good morning, son," he greeted him with warmth and love in his eyes. Daniel couldn't help but smirk. He'd always had a special relationship with his father, who'd supported him in everything. He'd even helped Daniel convince his mother to let him go.

"Good morning, dad. You ready to let Dylan destroy the pack?" he joked. Dylan had been trained and groomed as alpha since they were five years old, once it was quite clear Daniel wasn't going to contest the position.

"Funny," Dorian muttered. "You ready to break your mother's heart?" he countered. Daniel had enjoyed their little chat, right until that comment. It wasn't his father's style to guilt him. He looked at his mother and saw a glimmer of hope there.