Save Me

THIRTYFOUR

"What do-" Then it clicked. His past sounded similar because it was exactly the same just from a different view.

Malia was the one that fell on the nail, the dead girl with my clothes is who Rhydian found, the wolves that I smelled would have been Rhydian's pack... The boy he tried saving was my brother.

I choked back the tears which failed miserably. I lowered my head into my hands. My past haunted me and Rhydian. Everything they did to me destroyed me in more ways than one. It's their fault I'm so fucked up. They stole everything from me.

'They haven't taken everything.' Aurora whispered.

I snarled aloud. Rhydian whimpered, I peered through my fingers at him, he was wincing against the tree. I shot my hands down from my face causing him to flinch. I frowned, staring at him. "I'm so sorry." He whimpered. I moved to go to him and he recoiled back. I halted and tilted my head at him. "I'm not going to hurt you," I whispered.

"Your eyes flashed red." He pointed out. I sighed and gently made my way to him, "Not at you." I breathed stopping in front of him. His posture relaxed and he drew in a short breath. I kneeled beside him and carefully took hold of his hands, he flinched as I touched him.

"I'd never hurt you," I stated, staring at him. "You believe me, right?" I fussed. "I know you'd never intentionally hurt me." He muttered. I exhaled out in relief, "I know you couldn't have helped Alex." I agreed, he needed the reassurance and I knew deep down, the minute he was dragged into that forest he was gone.

"I can't believe you were so close." He whispered, "I could have saved you both." He reached his hand up and tucked my hair behind my ear, leaving his hand resting on my cheek "Just think what if-" He started, but I cut him off. "Don't dwell on what could have happened. It happened, yes it was awful but I'm here. I survived." I placed my hand over his, "Alex lives on through me." I sighed.

It felt as though a weight had been lifted off my chest. I think, knowing he didn't die alone as such, is easier. Knowing that Rhydian risked his life for him, knowing he had someone fighting his corner until the very end, made everything that little bit much easier.

"Thank you for being there for him," I whispered. He nodded his head and gave me a small smile. "He loved you, Amaris. That much was clear." He answered, moving his hand down to my neck. His face was moving closer and closer, I was panicking. He's going to kiss me, I can see it in his eyes. I can't, I don't know if he-

'Don't you dare say it.' Aurora growled.

"Shall we head back?" I asked, quickly. I saw the disappointment in his eyes but he quickly recovered and nodded his head. He stood up, held his hand out to help me up. "It really is nice here." He spoke as we casually walked through the trail. "We should come again." He suggested, bumping his shoulder into mine. I chuckled and nodded in agreement.

"Once a month they shut the whole place down for our kind." I uttered, "We should come when they do that, let our wolfs run free here." I suggested. I glanced at Rhydian who had a massive grin on his face, he liked the sound of that. We carried walking and talking about random things. I'm glad the whole kiss situation didn't turn things awkward. I'm not ready for that... yet.

We reached the car park, I looked around for any sign of Maria or Gerald but couldn't see them. "Do you want to drive again?" Rhydian smirked, holding his keys up. "No, you can this time." I chuckled. I still need to tell him about Brett but I don't think telling him while he's driving is a bright idea. He unlocked his car and we got in.

"I'll tell you what I know about my wolf so you're not completely clueless when I tell the pack," I announced as he started the car. He looked at me from the corner of his eye, "Is it going to make me angry?" He questioned. I raised a brow at him and frowned, "No, I don't think so. It's just what I know," I replied puzzled. He grinned at me then looked ahead, "Good because I don't think I could drive if you were going to tell me something that hurts you." He said, sounding very sure of himself.

I giggled but felt my heart swell. He was slowly but surely edging his way into my heart. He pulled out of the car park and headed towards the pack grounds. "So, I don't know a lot about my wolf. Our Elders found a book that had some information but most of the pages were ripped out." I groaned. "Why would someone take pages out of a book if the wolf is supposedly a legend?" Rhydian asked the question, everyone always asks. "Beats me," I replied. "Well, the Dark Wolf apparently appears when there is a great evil born into the world. I don't know what that means, whether it means literally or figuratively. It apparently hasn't been heard of for thousands of years, they are apparently direct descendants of the royal bloodline." I explained.

Rhydian gasped, "So, what you are like a Queen or something?" He bleated. I laughed and shook my head, "Not that I know of." I replied. "A Dark Wolf is lost without their other half, apparently a Dark Wolf reaches their full potential when they're fully marked and mated," I said, awkwardly staring out the window. I heard Rhydian clear his throat, when I turned to him his cheeks had a hint of pink on them. I chuckled to myself and stared ahead, "I don't know where any of the information came from or how reliable it is. The Dark Wolf comes forward for different reasons, for me, it's my emotions." I sighed.

"All I know is I'm dangerous. I don't remember anything when I change, I blackout or I block everything out. I was starting to control it a little before I up and left. Then when I came back here, all of my self-control went. I don't trust anybody and I don't tell anybody about my wolf." I mumbled. "But, the rogues that you encountered are the ones who started all this mess with my pack. They deserve to know what's coming." I gulped.

I looked at Rhydian when he didn't speak, he was grinning. "What?" I shrugged. He glanced at me, the grin still planted on his face. "You called them your pack." He answered still grinning. I rolled my eyes and waved my hand in the air, dismissing him. I glanced at the dashboard at the time, it was 2 pm. We had 2 hours before the pack meeting, I wanted to at least tell him about Brett. I scanned the area for somewhere to stop. "Pull into that little layby there." I pointed. He raised his brow at me but swerved the car and stopped.

"What's up?" He asked, turning to face me.

"Before the meeting, I need to tell you about..." I hesitated, "About Brett."