The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife.

"What are you guys doing?" I ask. 

"Laiela there's some things we want to ask you about your friend there." said Chris, half snarling the word friend.

James stiffened even further. I could practically feel his hackles rising. I was surprised he didn't start growling and baring his teeth.

"What? If you can say it to me you can say it to both of us!" I grind out through my clenched teeth.

"Who is he really? He out dominated both me and Chris! He might be an Alpha here to spy on us!" Growled Joel.

James stilled as soon as Joel started talking about dominance. I was an inhuman stillness that put everyone else on edge. 

Laiela what is he talking about?

The thing you did earlier in the entryway and then again in the library.

What about it? he asked sounding defensive.

Don't worry it's nothing bad. Your just stronger than them and they aren't used to being the weaker ones.

What do we do? he asked after a long pause.

Don't worry I'll handle this. I'm gonna talk to them in Russian now because I don't know how to explain in English.

Ok . . . He sounded unsure and slightly suspicious but let it drop even though it was an obvious lie. If he heard what I was about to say he would have questions I couldn't answer without going into Werewolves.

I promise I'll tell you later but not quite yet. On our date, I promise.

I then switched into speaking aloud in Russian.

"He's not an Alpha," I tell them, deciding to start with this.

"How can you be sure?" Chris asks in Russian, catching on to what I'm doing and asking the logical questions as always.

"He's my Mate, but he hasn't turned yet so doesn't know about Werewolves."

"WHAT?!?" All three of them replied simultaneously.

"You have a Mate?! Since when did that happen?" exclaimed Dillan.

"But that's impossible! He's way past puberty he should have changed already!" Chris exclaimed. 

"And that doesn't explain how he was able to make me look away!" Shouted Joel 

"Shhhhhh! Calm down!" I hiss looking over at James.

They all pause and look over at James before looking back to me then back to James again.

"I'll explain more later, but for now just know that he's not a threat. He has no idea about Werewolves or what's acceptable or not so just be careful how you act around him." I tell them quieting their reactions for now.

"This doesn't make sense. How is this possible?" Asks Chris, slightly calmer now.

"I don't know but I intend to find out," I reply seriously before grabbing James hand and half dragging him out of there. He came quietly looking confused and concerned but not saying anything. 

We hurried down the hall in silence, the good feelings from before gone and replaced with tension.

"There you are. Come on James we need to get home now," says Mrs Grey as we come round the corner into the entryway. 

What happened? Alex asks concerned.

Nothing. We just ran into Dillan, Chris, and Joel. I reply slightly tersely.

All three of them?

Yeah, I had to tell them that James is my Mate.

And how'd that go? He asks dryly.

Oh, shut up.

"Thank you for having us." Says Mrs Grey. "I have work tomorrow but I get off after 6 unless something important comes in. Would it be ok if I came back here after that? There's so much we have to catch up on and I want to spend as much time with you as I can."

"I know mum and I want to spend time with you too but I have a job to the Volkov's so it depends on them whether or not you can come over." Replies Travis glancing sideways at me beseechingly.

That gave me an idea.

"Travis since I'm still grounded your job currently is to look after me and follow me around right?" I state more than asking.

"Yeeessss." He replies drawing out the word, not knowing where I'm going with this.

"So if I went over to their house tomorrow you would have no choice but to accompany me, correct?" 

Understanding blooms on his face followed by a huge smile. 

"Are you sure? I don't want to take up your time with this. I'm sure we could sort something else out if you don't want to do this." Asked Mrs Grey. I smiled warmly at her and shook my head.

"It's no trouble really. I want Travis to spend time with his family and this way I get to leave the house for a bit." I tell them. I really just want to spend time with James and this gives me an excuse.

I look over at James to see his reaction to me going to his house. I'm a little anxious to see what he thinks about it but I needn't have worried. James was smiling almost as much as Travis thought he looked quite exhausted and I couldn't blame him. He'd had a long day with a lot of weird stuff happening. He needed sleep and time to process.

"Thank you! I guess we'll be seeing you tomorrow then!" Said Mrs Grey smiling and waving as she and James walked out the door. 

I stood there and watched him until he turned the corner and I couldn't see him anymore. The moment he disappeared from my site I felt my heart drop into my feet and the whole world seemed to lose its colour. I suddenly felt so alone. My emotions were so strong they seemed to choke me, cutting off my air and making it hard to breathe. Tears suddenly sprang up in my eyes and threatened to spill down my face. My knees felt weak and my hands started shaking. It was like I couldn't function without him there.

"Laiela?" Alex asked putting a hand on my shoulder. I turned around and berried my face in his neck, sobbing into his hair. His arms wrapped around me, holding me close and stroking my back to calm me down.

"Come on let's go up to our rooms and you can tell me about it then." he says, pulling me gently towards the stairs.

We reach the top of the stairs and Alex pauses looking over at me.

"Your room or mine?"

"Yours. I wanna sleep with you tonight. I don't wanna be alone." I tell him clinging to him even more than I already was. I can feel the loneliness wanting to consume me. If it weren't for Alex I probably would have gone running after James already.

"Ok. Let's go get you some PJ's first then we'll go to my room and talk for a bit."

After getting changed into some silky pyjama pants and a baggy T-shirt I went into Alex's room to find him carrying two steaming mugs of hot cocoa over to the sunken in sitting area in the corner of the room. I drifted over and curled up on one of the plush couches that faced the flat screen TV that hung on the wall. Alex placed the two mugs on the glass coffee table and sat down next to me, pulling his legs up underneath himself before grabbing the throw rug and pulling it over our knees. He sat there patiently looking at me with an expression that said; tell me when you're ready. Seeing that expression and feeling the weight of him caring for me like this the tears I'd been trying to hold back suddenly burst forth and with them all my feelings and worries.

"He's my Mate! I have a Mate Alex!" I exclaimed. I stood up and started pacing around the room.

"I'm just so overwhelmed, I mean I only just met him but I already care for him so much. I always thought all the stories about Mates finding each other were exaggerated, but they're not. It's even more intense and earth shattering than they said. I don't think I could live without him. Even having him out of my site for more than a minute had me about to collapse on the porch! Even now I'm just barely keeping myself from running after him. What if something happens and I'm not there? He's human as far as he knows. How is he supposed to defend himself if he can't turn? What if he thinks like his brother and hates his Werewolf nature? What if he hates me because I'm not human? How am I going to tell him? I need to tell him right? Of course, I do. How do you even start a conversation like that? I've never had to explain it to someone who hasn't turned yet. What if he doesn't believe me? What do I do then?" 

"First thing you need to do is breath. Sit back down and drink your cocoa."

I went back over and plopped down next to Alex again. He handed me the second mug and we sat in silence for a while well we drank the hot beverage. 

"Better?" He asks when I put my mug back on the coffee table.

"Better. You always know how to calm me down." I reply.

"So as to your questions, I think the best thing for you to do is to tell him, and sooner rather than later. The longer you wait the harder it will be to tell him and then it's like you're lying to him. You did the right thing not telling him tonight, he needs time to process what he's already learned. I think the best plan would be to tell him tomorrow when you go to his house."

"I don't know if I can do this. I mean what do I even say?" I ask.

"Tell him what you would normally tell a new Wolf who had just changed and start with that." he suggested.

"What if he doesn't believe me?" 

"Show him. Turn in front of him."

I bite my lip and look down at the carpet.

"Hey now. Look at me." He says tilting my chin up so we are eye to eye. "You can do this. Everythings going to be fine. You have to remember the Mate bond goes both ways. He feels the same way you do."

Realising he's right I take a deep breath and let it out slowly, some of the tension bleeding out of my body as I do so.

"Come here." Says Alex spreading his arms and shuffling closer to me on the couch. I fall against his chest and his arms wrap around me, encircling me in his warmth. We sit like that for an hour or so before getting up and going over to the raised platform on which Alex's bed sits.

We climb into the massive bed, big enough for four people to sleep comfortably, and Alex turns off the lights. We move closer together so that we can feel each others body heat and I link our outstretched hands in between us.

We used to sleep together like this all the time when we were younger. We shared a room until we were 11 - even though there were enough rooms for us each to have two or three - and the staff would often find us asleep in each other's beds. Apparently, we always used to get into each other's cribs when we were babies and would cry and scream whenever someone tried to split us up.

We share everything. Always have and now with James being both my Mate and Alex's Beta it looks like we always will. Lately, I had been worried that we wouldn't be able to stay together in the same pack but looks like my fears were irrational. I hope that this is a sign that things will be looking up from now on.

With that thought in my head, I drifted off to sleep.

I was standing in a clearing in the forest. It was dark and cold but I could just see the silhouette of the mountain to the north-west which told me I was still in Brighthall, but something seemed different. It was so quiet. There was none of the noise from the city nor was there any noise of birds or insects, there wasn't even any wind. It was completely dead silent. The hairs on the back of my neck started to rise and I felt a shiver run down my spine.

Apart from the unnatural silence, the dream seems almost too realistic. The scenery is so clear and sharp it's hard to believe it's not real. For a second I wonder whether I somehow sleepwalked outside and am actually standing in the forest but when I try to move my body won't obey. I try again but nothing happens. I try a third time and this time I move but not at all how I intended to. Instead of looking around at my surroundings I crouch down on the ground and shift into my Wolf form.

Before I have time to question what I'm doing the biggest Wolf I've ever seen comes stalking and growling out of the trees in front of me. They had grey fur and golden eyes. At the sight of those eyes, my hackles rise and I crouch into a fighting position.

Man Eater! I growl in rage and horror.

The other Wolf seems to smile and a glint of amusement and madness shines in their eyes.

Hello, Little Spirit Wolf. I found you! He sang mockingly.

I rear back at the menace and glee in his mental voice.

This Wolf is insane. I can feel madness tinting their every thought. 

How long have you been looking for me?

A very long time Princess, a very, long, time . . .

The huge grey Wolf then launched itself at me with its mouth open in a snarl and triumph in its eyes. I tried to leap out of the way but I was frozen again. Just as his jaws were about to close around my neck I was pulled from the dream by Alex shaking me and yelling my name.

I opened my eyes to see Alex's face hovering above mine. His expression is so worried and afraid. I open my mouth to ask what's wrong and that's when I taste the coppery tang of blood in my mouth. I sit bolt upright in bed, coughing and spitting blood onto the comforter.

"Laiela! You're ok! Thank god." exclaims Alex grabbing me and holding me to him in a bone crushing hug.

"Alex, what happened?"

"I didn't know what to do! You just suddenly started thrashing around. I thought you were having some sort of seizure! Then blood just started coming out of your mouth and I . . . I . ." Alex answered shakily.

"I'm . . . I'm ok. . . . I think I just dream walked again." I tell him in much the same tone.

"But you've never reacted to being in someone else's dream like that before!" He exclaims, wiping some of the blood off of my chin.

"I've never been in the head of a crazy Man Eater either. . ."

"A Man Eater!?" He gasped

I nod my head solemnly.

Alex grasped my head and stared closely into my eyes, looking for any change being exposed to the Man Eater could have caused. After a minute of staring, Alex lets out the breath he had been holding and gives me a tremulous smile. He then hugs me tightly again before pulling back and looking at me seriously, firming his expression. 

"I'm not totally convinced this happened because of your dream walking. I think you should get one of the pack doctors to check you out."

I open my mouth to object but he puts up a hand silencing me.

"No objections." He commands. "You stay here. I'll go get Stephan to come have a look at you. Don't move from that spot!" He then gets up and heads towards the door not breaking eye contact until the very last second.

I sigh and look down at my blood splattered on the white comforter, staining it crimson. With a growl, I wipe the remnants off my lips and chin.

Just thinking of the madness in those eyes had a shiver running down my spine. What had happened to that Wolf to turn him into that? I didn't want to think about it. The fact that he seemed to know me had me pausing. Who was this Wolf and why was he looking for me? No, that wasn't quite right. Saying he was looking for me makes it sound too innocent. Even saying he was hunting me is too much of an understatement. More like he's been stalking me. That had another shiver running up and down my back and along my limbs. I crossed my arms and rubbed them furiously, trying to warm myself back up. As I did so I thought I saw a shadow move out of the corner of my eye and heard a ghostly voice drift through my mind.

You may have escaped me, but the ones you love won't. I'd keep a close eye on that Mate of yours if I were you . . . 

The Man Eater's insane laughter was the last thing I heard as I jumped out of bed and fled the room.