The Chase

Kael

The night of the rejection:

Kaden cried for hours that night before finally falling asleep on Aurora’s bed.

I had to take action immediately.

We needed her. I needed her even though I tried to tell myself Kaden needed her more but I couldn’t stand the pain and guilt of everything that happened.

I wasn’t as lively and happy go lucky as Kaden was so I wasn’t so readable like he was.

Back when we were younger I had hated how Aurora was treated so I summoned courage and asked Dad why.

“Shes the daughter of a traitor and should be treated as such.”

“But she didn’t do anything” I argued

“You will not associate yourself with her no matter what. She’s a servant and she’s beneath you.”

I couldn’t shake the feeling that she wasn’t in the wrong in any way but I had to do as I was told.

Kaden and I teased her a lot.

She had beautiful dark long hair and our favorite pass time was yanking it.

When she cut her hair I felt a tinge of guilt but shook it off.

I watched from the sidelines as Kaden orchestrated all the little “accidents” in school.

She had endured a lot from us and now we have to find every way possible to earn her forgiveness.

Yeah the moon goddess sure knows how to met out punishments.

This was going to be the toughest thing in our lives.

I went down stairs to the party.

Dad caught sight of me and came up to me.

“What was all that about?”

“We need to talk. You and mum need to come to the front yard with me”

Dad signaled to mum who was with some ladies laughing and chatting.

We reached the front yard and I couldn’t speak for the first 2 minutes.

“what’s wrong Kael?”

“We found our mate.”

“That’s wonderful darling. One mate for you both is so predictable. Who’s the girl?” Mum said happily

“Aurora.”

The air was thick so thick a butter could cut through the tension.

“You rejected her?” Dad asked

“She rejected us.” I said

“How could she? That ungrateful b…”

“Don’t you ever talk about her that way again “

My alpha voice came to the surface.

My father’s head tilted downwards.

“Can you blame her though? You treated her like trash when she didn’t do anything!”

I was livid at this point.

“Now my mate is gone and my brother is a mess!”

“Where’s my baby boy?”

Mum asked.

“he had been crying for hours. I managed to get him to sleep.”

Tears fell from her eyes as she looked at my worn out face.

“It hurts ma…” I finally broke down and fell on my knees. My mother rushed to hug me.

I let it all out, the pain, the grief, the guilt.

I cried for as long as I could then stood up from my mothers arms.

“I’m going to find her. With or without your blessing.

And we bring her home, she’s coming back as our Luna. Not a traitors daughter.”

Dad didn’t say anything to me so I left.

I mindlinked our only close friend and beta, Avalon.

“Meet me in my room”

I told Avalon everything and all he could say was

“You guys deserved it honestly.”

He was right. He was the only one in the pack to try and talk some sense into us about bullying a little girl.

“Anyways where do we start?”

Kaden

Kael mapped out everything and everywhere we would look for her and I was so grateful to him.

We started with the neighboring packs.

The woods.

Hotels.

Rogue communities.

It was like she had disappeared into thin air.

We were determined and didn’t give up.

For a month we searched everywhere and anywhere.

Last stop was the human town.

If she wasn’t there… I didn’t even want to think about it.

We searched every hotel there.

We decided to sit in a diner and plan our next move.

We stepped into the diner and it hit me hard!

Cookies!

‘Mate!’

My wolf was whimpering and jumping around.

Kael caught it too.

We traced it to the back of the diner but she had taken off.

So we followed her scent.

Aurora

They were close.

I could feel it in my bones. In my breath. In the way my wolf paced relentlessly inside me, scratching at the edges of my mind.

They were getting closer.

Kaden and Kael.

No matter how far I ran, the bond still clung to me like invisible chains. I’d said the words. I rejected them. I meant it. But the connection hadn’t snapped completely.

It pulsed. Quiet, but alive. A ghost I couldn’t bury.

Nova watched me as I folded my clothes into my bag that night. “You sure you’re ready to leave?” She asked softly.

“I’ll do whatever you choose to do but are you sure?”

“I don’t have a choice.”

“You do,” she said simply. “You could face them.”

“I did face them. I looked them in the eyes and told them I wanted nothing to do with them.”

“Do you still feel that way?” she asked, her voice quiet.

I paused, my hands still.

The truth was complicated.

I hated them. I hated the boys they’d been, the cruelty, the silence, the way they stood by while I was broken over and over.

But part of me still remembered how Kael looked that night, Cool and calm Kael, like the floor had been ripped out from under him. How Kaden had clutched my hand like it was the only thing keeping him breathing.

“I don’t know,” I whispered.

Nova reached over and zipped my bag for me. “Then maybe it’s time to find out.”

We didn’t make it far.

We’d barely crossed into the next wooded ridge when the scent hit us like a wall.

Stronger now.

They were here.

Nova tensed beside me, her hand sliding into her boot for the blade she kept hidden. “Do you want to fight or run?”

“I don’t know,” I said again.

But it was too late to decide.

Because they found me.

Kaden stepped out from behind a tree, breathless and wide-eyed, his shirt streaked with dirt, his hair damp with sweat. Kael appeared behind him a second later, his eyes locking on mine like they’d never left.

My heart stopped.

I took a shaky step back, and Nova immediately moved in front of me, protective and fierce.

“You’re not taking her anywhere,” she said coldly.

“We’re not here to hurt her,” Kael said, hands raised. His voice cracked slightly when he added, “We just want to talk.”

“I said what I needed to say already,” I snapped.

“Then let us say what we never did,” Kaden replied, stepping forward. “Please, Aurora.”

The way he said my name, like it was precious, like he’d waited his whole life to say it right broke something in me.

But I couldn’t let them win. Not now. Not when I’d survived this long.

“You don’t get to show up and act like everything’s fine,” I said, my voice shaking. “You don’t get to cry and plead and beg when you let me suffer for years.”

“I know,” Kaden said, eyes filled with guilt. “We failed you.”

“We were cowards,” Kael added. “And we don’t expect forgiveness. But we’re here because we can’t breathe knowing you’re out here alone.”

I laughed bitterly. “Alone? You’re the reason I was alone. But not anymore. She’s all you and that whole pack never was.”

Nova gently squeezed my hand behind her back. “Say the word, and we walk.”

But I didn’t say it.

Because I didn’t know what I wanted.

Kael looked at Nova. “Thank you for protecting her. We owe you more than you know.”

Nova didn’t respond. She didn’t need to. Her body said everything, one wrong word, one wrong move, and she’d tear them apart.

“Just listen,” Kael said, turning back to me. “One conversation. If you still want to leave, we’ll walk away.”

“But please consider.” Kaden chimed in.

I stared at Kael, searching for the lie.

I didn’t see one.

Nova looked at me, her expression unreadable. “I’ll wait nearby.”

She stepped back into the shadows, her presence still hovering like a safety net.

I didn’t speak.

I just crossed my arms and stared at them, heart pounding, waiting for them to explain why they let me rot.

Kael broke the silence.

“We thought we were protecting the pack,” he said. “We were raised to put duty above everything else. Even… even when it meant turning our backs on what we knew wasn’t right.”

Kaden stepped beside him. “But we were wrong. We let people treat you like nothing. We treated you like nothing. We stood by while you suffered. We were cowards, Aurora.”

My throat tightened.

“We didn’t know you were our mate,” Kael whispered. “If we had….”

“If you had?” I cut in, my voice sharp. “You think that would’ve made it better? You think I wanted pity? I needed kindness, and you gave me silence. I needed protection, and you gave me pain.”

They didn’t argue.

Kaden nodded slowly. “You’re right.”

“We can’t undo the past,” Kael added, stepping closer, his voice low. “But if you let us try… if you give us even a day, we’ll prove we’ve changed.”

My heart cracked open, just a little.

But I couldn’t trust that feeling.

Not yet.

“I’ll think about it,” I whispered.

Kael’s eyes flickered with hope.

“That’s all we ask.”

“Don’t follow me anymore please.”

“We promise. We will leave you alone till you come to a decision.” Kael said

“We are so sorry Aurora.. So sorry.” Kaden said with a low voice, tears welling in his eyes.

That’s when I looked at them, like really looked at them.

They looked worn out. The once shinny alphas looked like they hadn’t had any sleep in days.

But I didn’t care at that moment. I just wanted to be left alone.

“Let’s go Nova” She stepped out and behind me and we left.

I could feel their eyes on me the whole time but I refused to turn around and give a glance.

We reached the house soon enough.

Nova followed behind me silently, and when we got inside, she didn’t say “I told you so.” She just handed me a blanket, sat beside me on the floor of the living room where I had slid down on and said, “You don’t have to forgive them. But maybe you don’t have to run anymore either.”

And I sat there for a long, long time, wrapped in silence, wrapped in warmth, with my head on Novas shoulder and wondered what it would feel like to let go of the past.

Even just a little.