Alpha Mates (BoyxBoy)

Chapter 22.

I didn't feel any burning though, like they somehow removed the wolfsbane. Why hadn't I healed completely?

Why was Karabo in my room?! Why did he have to be there? To see me like that! I grit my teeth as I clenched my fist before grabbing the sides of the sink tightly while trying to hold back a shout. I couldn't even tighten my grip on the sink, my hands felt so lame. I wasn't feeling any wolfsbane but I wasn't fine. Something wasn't right. I looked into the mirror and gasped lightly at the black around my eye. Fucking great.

"Eli?" I heard a knock before the bathroom door handle moved.

"Yes, Dad?" I replied.

"Um... Are you hungry?" He was just checking on me but didn't want to say that directly. I could tell though.

"No," I replied.

"You sure? You haven't eaten in –"

"Really, Dad. I'm fine. Don't worry." I called.

I waited as silence settled between us before I heard him sigh an "okay". I moved over to the shower and turned the water on before I reached to pull my shirt off but hesitated. Did I really want to see more bruises? No. I sighed staring at the wall as I undressed before I headed into the water.

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When I exited the shower, I walked back into my room with my towel wrapped around my waist to find that my parents had moved Karabo fully onto my bed and left my room. I grabbed some clothing and dressed quickly adding a knife to my pocket because I felt uneasy before I made my way downstairs slowly, my ears incredibly focused for some reason and I could hear the TV so I assumed Danté was watching it and my parents were in the kitchen where I heard glasses and their voices. Tamia must have been at her house with Ashton.

I was surprised when I arrived downstairs and spotted my twin on the couch instead of our younger brother.

"Tamia?" I stumbled when she sped over to me and suddenly I was being squeezed tightly. I gave a chuckle as I hugged her back.

"I'm so sorry. Danté and the others were so sick when they got back, they couldn't tell us how to find you and no one else can do the tracking spell so we called Karabo and I'm so sorry we left you there for so long."

"Hey, it's alright, Tammy. You know I could handle whatever. You guys used the bottle?" I asked. The little black bottle Nicholas had left when he ran out.

"Yeah, we fixed the water with it and have wolves guarding the dam and the water towers. Everyone's getting better. Danté's asleep." she said with a small smile.

"Guards?" Why would they need guards?

"In case –"

"You let Nicholas go?" I asked.

"We had other wolves to save, we couldn't chase after him." She said.

"The human?" I asked.

"He wasn't there, Eli." I stared at her. Nothing... Nothing changed. We're just back at square one. Back to having to find them before they create another mess.

"Right... Ashton?" I decided not to focus on Craig when she was clearly upset about me already. I watched her face drop more as she shrugged before she went to sit down, obviously upset about him lying to her.

"It's not just that he lied. It's our whole lives. He's known we're mates, he's known me and he didn't trust me enough to tell me." She said bringing her knees up to her chest, her sock-covered feet on the couch.

"Have you been here since then?" I asked. She nodded. "Tamia, you should hear him out. He... probably has a good reason for keeping it from us." I had no idea what that reason could be, I didn't really think there was one. I just didn't like seeing her so hurt and I knew being near her mate would make her feel better. "Hey, I'm gonna go for a run."

"A run?" she looked at me shocked, "You can't –" she stopped.

"I can't?" I raised my brows.

"It's just... You're not fully healed yet," she said.

"Tamia, you know I can take care of myself," I said. "I'm perfectly fine."

"No," she stood up, "Just a couple of days ago you would have... died if we had not shown up. Just... just rest, okay?"

"I don't need to rest. I need to run – no, you cannot come with me. I said I'm fine." I pushed by her and walked out.

I was relieved to find the area around our house vacant and instantly made my way towards the forest to avoid running into anyone else. I smiled as I was surrounded by the familiar scent of the forest I had run through my entire life. I felt excitement fill my chest and my smile grew as I began to shift. Or tried to... but I didn't.

Stumbling, I felt my heart pick up as my breathing became tough. I grit my teeth and tried to shift again focusing all my strength on it. I let out an exhausted cough as I fell back against a tree before letting out a shout and slamming my fist into the tree.

What the fuck was wrong with me?!

Why did I feel so weak? What couldn't I shift? What did they do?

I tried to shift again but felt but my breathing became even more choked as I failed to do so once again. I tried to speak to my wolf in my head but nothing happened, no response came.

I leaned against the tree trying not to panic at not being able to shift and control my breathing. My breath caught in my throat as I heard something snap and I swiftly pulled the knife from my pocket. Listening for a few moments, I waited to hear another sound but there was only silence. I sighed looking down as I felt something weigh my wrists down. There was nothing on either of them. But it felt like there was... it felt like those cuffs were still around me, burning into my skin, weighing my arms down.

I shook my head.

Stop it, Eli. You're acting crazy.

I nodded to myself. There are going to be sounds in a forest. What was I afraid of? I was not afraid. It was just our forest and I was fucking Eli. I was the Alpha of Galaxy. I was never afraid. Still, as I put the knife back into my pocket and moved away from the tree, I never let my grip on it loosen.

I jogged back towards the house but stopped as it came into view. I was dreading going back in... I was especially dreading having to see or speak to Karabo... What did he think of me? I looked at the house beside mine. What did they think of me? No, everyone would just think I was hiding my power, no one would know I had become so weak.

"It's okay, Eli. You're fine." I mumbled to myself.

Fine? You can't shift.

No one knew that. No one needed to know. I would just play it off and focus on gaining my strength back enough to shift and heal faster. Just act like myself.

Alphas did not go down easily. I would not. Nicholas was wrong.

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