4

FIVE YEARS LATER

TROY

I had been wrong, very wrong. People had also said that time healed all wounds, but guess what? They were wrong too. 

I told myself it was for the best. I lied to myself until the lies sounded like truth, that Ruby would cool off, that she would stay close, and that she would eventually come back because she had nowhere else to go, but I found out quickly how wrong I was.

She left that very day, and she never returned. I didn't want to believe it at first, but as time slowly crept into seconds, minutes, days and even years, that was the moment I really believed that I was done for. 

Her parents claimed they didn't know where she was, but I didn't believe them, not for a second. They had always been capable of cruelty; lying was nothing to them, so I easily chalked up all their excuses as lies. Filthy lies that only made my ears itch whenever I heard them. Still, whether they knew or not didn't change the truth.

Ruby was gone, and I was losing my mind. Losing my mind had to be the biggest understatement of the century. If there was a bigger word that I could use to describe how I felt, then best believe I would have used it by now. 

The pack was unraveling right in front of me, and I hated how it all felt like there was little to nothing I could do about it. The attacks had grown worse. They were more frequent, and more violent. If another one happened, we wouldn't survive it intact. We were bleeding from the inside out, and there was nothing and no solution in sight. 

The sound of footsteps approaching was all it took to pull me back to the present, and somehow, I already knew who it was. 

My beta, Chris walked into my office, his face drawn and grim. From the look on his face, I already knew he had nothing but bad news, still, I asked. 

"What is it?' my voice was low and gravely. 

"The injured count has risen to sixty," he said quietly.

"That's all?" I clenched my jaw. No one particularly liked bad news, but I told myself that maybe if I pretended they didn't affect me that much, they would go away. "They'll heal."

"They're not," he replied. "That's the problem."

Chris's last words weren't on the top of my list for the day, and even though I tried to hide it, it was as good as a lost cause. 

Everything had started falling apart five years ago, and I didn't need to ask when. I knew. It all started with Ruby.

My Ruby.

The thought of her still had the power to knock the breath from my lungs. I wondered what she looked like now, if she still had that stubborn tilt to her chin, that fire in her eyes, if she was still beautiful.

My wolf stirred restlessly. 

"She's more beautiful now," he murmured. "She has to be." 

"We need to do something." I pressed my palms against my desk. "We need to find her."

I should have needed her back then, before she walked out, before I let fear and pressure turn me into a coward. I had needed her long before I ever admitted it to myself.

"What about the healers?" I asked sharply.

"They're doing everything they can," Chris replied again. "But the wounds won't close. It's like something is missing."

I didn't let him finish before I snapped.

"Can't you all see I'm doing my best?" I barked, anger spilling out unchecked. "I haven't stopped trying for a single damn day!"

The room fell silent. One of the council elders cleared his throat carefully.

"Perhaps," he began, "if your mate…."

"Enough," I cut in.

I'd heard it enough times to last a lifetime, but they weren't wrong. Only Ruby, only my Luna, could bring the pack back together again.

"This time," I swore to myself, "I won't let her go."

"Keep searching," I told my beta. "Anything. Anyone. I don't care what it takes."

Years ago, I had refused to marry Alana. I couldn't do it, not after learning the truth. The attack that nearly destroyed us that year had been ordered by her father, and the moment I found out, she was banned from ever setting foot in my pack again.

Two days later, my beta burst into my office without knocking.

"I found something," he said urgently. "A company. They supply packs with barrier devices against rogues. Their healers are… exceptional."

"Where?" I demanded. "Where did you find it?" 

"It's tied to a bar," he said hesitantly. "In the human world. I did my findings before coming back and they all say it's a dangerous place. One wrong move and …."

"I don't care about the reviews of the place. Let's go." I was already on my feet. "Get your bike, Chris."

"What?" He blinked. "Now?"

"We're going for a ride." Chris knew better than to argue after that, and in the blink of an eye, we were both straddled up and ready to go. 

Even weakened, my pack was still one of the strongest out there, but strength without unity, or even healing, meant nothing. I needed Ruby. I needed my mate. 

With each road and territory we passed through to the human world, I couldn't help but count down till we eventually got there. Time felt like it had come to a standstill, but after what seemed like forever, we arrived. 

I had no idea what I was expecting, but the bar stood tall and proud. I couldn't see it, but there was something about the place that pulled me in, and the moment we walked into the bar, the noise died.

Conversations stopped mid-sentence, glasses froze halfway to lips, and every eye turned toward us. I took that as a cue to do a quick sweep of the place 

Men and women filled the space, each one of them hard looking, and dangerous. It felt too much like Chris and I had stumbled into an alternate dimension, and we were the only odd ones out. At the far end of the room, a woman was bent over someone, her hands glowing faintly as she treated his wounds.

My chest tightened immediately, with emotions I quickly recognized as hope and a tingle of something else. Fear. 

"We mean no harm," I stepped forward. "I want to speak to the owner. I have a proposal."

"We're not interested." The voice hit me like a punch to the gut.

I knew that voice. Even if I'd been in a coma all my life, I would never be able to forget, but I forced myself to stay calm, even as my heart began to pound.

I didn't move, but a few men stood, cracking their knuckles. 

"You heard her, time to leave," one of them said. "You're not welcome here." 

They didn't give us so much as a second, before they pounced on us from all sides. We didn't have the biggest advantage, but Chris and I fought our way through them, bodies hitting the floor, chaos erupting around us. And then, at the last minute, she was standing right in front of me.

Ruby.

My mate.

She looked different, stronger and almost harder. A quiche pang to my chest made me realize that I missed just how soft her features used to be. Her eyes were colder, sharper, but gods, she was breathtaking.

"Can we talk now?" I asked hoarsely, "You know I could do this all day, Ruby. I'm not leaving until you and I sit and talk."

Her gaze locked onto mine, and for the first time in five years, I felt something other than regret.

Hope.