Chapter Forty-Three

Regan’s POV

I spent the night in my study after leaving Lena and Jasmine in my room together.

It was clear to see that what they both needed at the moment was each other so I let them be.

When I went up later to check on them, I could hear them talking quietly from where I stood outside the room and figured I would just let Lena spend the night with my mate.

After all, she had been the one to save her life.

Ever since she had woken up from her unconsciousness at the healing house, I had found it impossible to ask her what had happened.

Partly because I could clearly see that she did not wish to speak to me about it. That was why I was glad she had Lena. That they both had each other in fact.

The second reason I had not asked was because a part of me did not want to know just how deeply I had failed her since I knew that it had been my fault she had gone to the stream in the first place.

I had thrown a ridiculously jealous fit simply because she had teased me.

She had felt comfortable enough to tease me and I had acted like a jealous fool and ruined the lovely time we had been having together.

And like that wasn’t enough, I had left her to go on a run.

I ran my hand across my face, a habit I had come to accept, as I leaned back into my chair in my small study at my house.

I had heard Nana several times give advice to mates.

One of her most common advice had always been, “Try not to fight with your mate. But if you do, stay and fix it immediately. Do not walk away from your mate after an argument. You may live to regret that choice”.

That was what Nana always said.

And I had heard it time and time again.

As always, Nana was right. Because I had walked away from my mate and had come to regret it bitterly.

Watching as the rays from the rising Sun came peeking through the windows, I figured I could go for an early morning run.

At least my mate was safely in bed with no form of threat in sight.

Just to ease my mind, I made my way out of my study and towards our room, pushing the door open as quietly as I could so as not to wake its occupants.

I peeked in to see that they were both still fast asleep, arms wrapped around each other.

I knew they had fallen asleep not too long ago because I had stayed up all night listening to the sounds of their voices that I could only hear since I had used my werewolf hearing abilities.

Satisfied that they were both asleep and safe, I closed the door just as quietly as I had opened it and quietly made my way away from the door and out of the house.

I stripped behind a tree then shifted into my wolf form before we took off.

After we had run for a while, we made our way to what our mate had named Rage’s Sanctuary.

When we arrived at the clearing, we were not the only one there.

Luke’s wolf, Lane, was resting in his usual position, under the tree and did not so much as move his eye lids to show that he was aware of our presence even though we knew he was. He had probably smelled me from afar.

I went to lay on the grass, allowing the morning Sun to stroke across my fur in a warm caress.

‘Why are you always here?’ I asked, mind linking him.

He didn’t move from his position.

‘You gave your permission that I could come here anytime’, he mind linked back.

‘Yes’, I told him. ‘But you seem to have forgotten the part that comes after. Anytime you have to train Jasmine is what I said’, I reminded him.

‘Well’, he said. ‘I am here to train her. She is simply not here’, he told me.

We lifted our head and turned to face him.

‘You expect her to come even after what happened to her?’ I asked, anger already building in me at the thought of his carefree attitude towards what had happened to my mate.

He still did not move, not even bothering to open his eyes.

‘I expect her to come especially after what happened to her’, he said.

Rage let out a growl and brought us to our feet. I stopped him as he started to make his way towards where Lane still laid.

‘You are being careless with your words, my friend’, I told him, getting more provoked with each moment that he maintained that unbothered position of his.

‘I know you do not understand the importance of a mate since you do not have one’, I said childishly, knowing that the topic of his mate was a sensitive one but still wanting to get a rise out of him.

It worked.

His eyes slowly came open and he glared up at me.

I went on.

‘But I could have lost my mate and the only thing you seem to be concerned about is that she does not miss a day of training’, I told him.

‘My concern about her not missing a day of training is still concern’, he said calmly. ‘You do not have to lash out at me simply because you feel guilty’, he said.

‘Guilty?!’ I bristled, taking a step towards him. ‘What do I have to feel guilty about?’ I asked him, knowing that he could clearly see right through me and hating it.

‘Perhaps the fact that you were not there to protect her’, he said simply.

But Rage had had enough.

To him, Luke wasn’t making his friend face his emotions as I knew he was doing. To him, Luke was disrespecting his Alpha and Rage only saw the challenge in that.

So before I could stop him, he attacked.

He let out a growl then launched at Lane.

Lane, probably already predicting his move, and always quick on his feet, dodged away from Rage’s attack and moved to put distance between them.

‘Regan, call off your wolf’, Luke mind linked, probably already knowing that it was Rage who had attacked him.

His words only seemed to anger Rage further and he laughed himself at him once more.

Once again, Lane escaped Rage’s claws and this just seemed to anger Rage the more.

‘Rage, that is enough’, I tried to tell him but he was past listening.

He continued to try to attack Lane, growing more angry and frustrated each time Lane eluded him, until he finally caught Lane across the face, his claws slicing across his eyes and cheek.

That was all I needed to see before I wrestled back control from him.

Knowing it would make it easier to control Rage, I shifted into my human form, picking up a pair of shorts from behind a tree and pulling it on and grabbing another pair before making my way over to Lane.

As I drew closer to Lane, he growled at me, snapping his jaws in warnings for me to stay away.

I did as he wanted, tossing the pair of shorts towards him and turning away.

‘Shift’, I mind linked as I turned away.

It seemed I had one more thing to feel guilty for.

I heard the sound of his bones breaking before hearing him grab the shorts and pull it on.

I turned back to him, making my way over to him to see how badly Rage had hurt him.

As I reached out to turn his face to my view, he slapped my hand away and moved away from me, one hand holding his blood covered face as he started to walk back to the tree.

“I did not mean to do that”, I called after him, curbing my annoying at him slapping my hand away. “Rage took control”, I excused pathetically.

He did not respond, simply bent to retrieve his shirt from behind the tree he always laid under before putting it on and turning to face me.

I resisted the urge to wince at the sight of his bloody face. His eye especially.

Thought it had already started to heal, it was obvious to see that Rage had cut him really deep and he would need to seek Nana’s help in order to fully recover.

“You know what your problem is?” He asked and despite the fact that I did not like his tone, I let him speak. “You assume that you are the only one who cares about your mate”, he said. “You have the audacity to mock me about not having a mate when we both know the reason I am yet to find her”, he said, his voice calm but face hard as stone.

It had been a very long time since I had seen my friend that angry. And even then, I had not been the cause of his anger or the one who it was directed at.

He walked past me to leave the clearing when I called after him.

“What is that supposed to mean?!” I asked him.

“Exactly what I said!”, he snapped, turning around and his eyes flashing. “You have found a mate for the second time and yet here I am, still without one. And we both know that is only because I chose to stay here and fulfill my duty as your Beta rather than going out there to find her!” He yelled, flinging an arm out.

“Have you ever even given a thought to how I may feel?” He asked. “Everyday I work, and work, and work, and I never refuse you anything. I always put your interest first not because you are my Alpha but because you are my friend”, he said. “Do you think I do not wonder where my mate may be?” He asked. “At least Lena knows where her mate is, I do not!” He told me. “I do not know if she is safe of not. I do not even know if she is…”, he paused before continuing. “If she is alive”, he finally said. “Yet here I am, holding nothing but genuine concern for your mate and what do I get?” He asked before lifting a hand to his mangled, bleeding face. “This”, he said.

He turned around to leave them stopped before turning back to me again.

“And just in case that mad wolf of yours wishes to attack me again”, he said. “You should both know that I will kill and die for Jasmine”, he said. “Not just because she is my Luna, but because she is a dear friend and has grown to become my other sister”.

With those words said, he walked out of the clearing that was Rage’s Sanctuary, leaving me to the guilt that ate away at me in mouthfuls.

Heaving a sigh of sadness, I slowly made my way to fallen trunk and sat on it.

Luke was right.

About more than one thing.

All these years, I had poured my emotions and provocations on Luke and he had simply taken them.

I had felt guilty and had felt like I deserved to be punished. But rather than hurt myself, I had chosen to hurt Luke because a part of me had always known that Luke would never dessert or hate me.

He never had.

And I had taken advantage of it.

I knew that the one thing that haunted Luke was him not knowing where his mate was. And yet I had done nothing to help him find her. Or even released him for a while to at least search for her.

I had been selfish to the most selfless person I had ever known.

Luke wanted Jasmine to resume training immediately, but not because he didn’t care.

It was because he wanted to ensure that if a situation ever arose where no one could be around to save her, she would be able to help herself and survive by herself.

He wanted to make her strong enough to stay alive. So we would not loose her.

But I had allowed my anger at myself to blind me to that truth.

One thing was certain.

I owed Luke a huge apology.