Breathe (Mates Saga #1) *Wattys2015*

Chapter 18

A/N: Check out the battle to the side! In my opinion, Joan of Arc won. What do you guys think? Let me know in the comments. Anyway, let's get this party started!

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        "He's not that bad, Ella," Maria claimed, but I still didn't believe her. "He only wants to protect you."

        "But he'd be willing to sacrifice my happiness, just to keep me by his side," I said, frowning. "That's pretty awful."

        "I'm sure he didn't mean it," Maria said, wincing.

        "You know and I both know that I have a mate, and the meaning of being mates. When you meet your mate, you want to be with them forever. You want to never, ever leave them behind," I pointed out. "And he knows that, too."

        Maria's mouth fell open. "H-he does? How?"

        I frowned and held the tears back carefully. "He told me that his mate was killed by rogues before she shifted. He knew that she was his mate, but she didn't. She died, but he somehow still managed to survive."

        Maria's eyes widened. "That's just about impossible. There's got to be more to the story, Ella. An omega might be able to surive losing its mate, but never an Alpha or a Beta. The higher rank you are in your pack, the more you depend on your mate once you find them. When an Alpha finds his or her mate, if their mate is killed, even if they aren't mated, the Alpha will die."

        "So how does one escape that fate?" I asked, curious.

        "You have to seek help from a dark witch or demon," Maria said, seeming to be nervous about discussing this topic.

        My eyes widened when I realized what that meant, gulping nervously. "So my only choice is to allow myself to be mated to a man who apparently knew his mate was going to die, so he sold his soul to allow himself to survive even when his mate wouldn't. How am I supposed to survive this, Maria?"

        Maria only shook her head, and I dissolved into tears. Her expression softened and she pulled me into a hug, whispering apologies for not seeing who Preston really was.

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         "This is so posh," Eric said, looking around the forest.

        Will rolled his eyes at his Beta, secretly examining the territory himself. "It's just some more forest. Haven't you seen enough of that at home, Eric?"

        Eric only laughed and continued to stare at their surroundings. Suddenly, a scent wafted to his nose, and he sniffed around, trying to pinpoint the origin of the sweet odor. "Hey, Will, do you smell that?" he asked, turning to his Alpha for just a moment.

        "No," Will said, cocking an eyebrow at his Beta's odd behavior. Suddenly, the answer for Eric's behavior dawned on him, and his face lit up with happiness. "You must have found your mate, Eric. Congrats. Now, be sure you go and find her."

        Eric's face lit up also, before it dimmed and he peered at his friend. "Are you sure, Will? I mean, we are in another pack's territory."

        Will shook his head and rolled his eyes, resting his hand on his friend's shoulder. "Go on, Eric. Find her. The Alpha can't ignore the mate bond that ties the two of you two together, so she'll be able to come back to our territory with us."

        "You sure?" Eric asked once more, looking just about ready to take off and run for his mate. "I don't want to leave you alone."

        Will smiled and lightly shoved his friend off. "I'm sure. I'm not alone, remember? I've got the others."