29. Decisions

Finn

I would have taken my side being gashed open by an aswang one thousand times over the pain that had erupted within me when Everest had attempted to reject the mate bond. It had taken every ounce of strength I’d had to hold myself together enough to decline the rejection. I could feel the tether to her holding on by a thread and I’d grasped on to it with everything I had. I left the room and fled the house, trying to run from the pain that had consumed me upon her rejection. Nothing quenched the flames that scorched me on the inside. I fled into the woods and shifted allowing the grief to envelope me alone in the dark, damp forest. I’d ruined everything. Lupin had nearly died trying to undo the hurt I’d caused, and Everest had given up on me. I hadn’t given her a reason to keep trying, but now that I knew what I wanted it was that much more painful to see the repercussions of my actions.