46. Chapter 46

Chapter 46

T hey'd been running around in circles.

The witch's scent was everywhere and yet nowhere at the same time. But he'd seen her. He'd caught a glimpse of blonde locks through the trees as she had fled. The witch used the same tactic she had used to confuse the warriors when she'd sent rogues to their territory, but this time she hadn't left any trace of her dark magic for him to follow.

He hadn't caught her, but he'd sensed her emotions. He'd sensed her intent. Her hatred of him felt like it had taken a life of its own, and that was terrifying. All that anger was being used to make sure he suffered before he died, and for the first time in his life, he had someone his enemies could use to make that happen.

There had been no other clue at the settlement. No record of anyone. The paperwork had been exposed too long to the elements after the attack; nothing was left. Or the witch had already removed all traces of herself in anticipation of this moment.

He was furious and frustrated when he walked up to the packhouse gates at sunset. He'd set out to hunt but had achieved nothing. He didn't even know where she could have set up her home. Was she in the human city or the forest?

‘I'll double the patrols and make sure Alpha Brax leaves by the end of the day. There are still too many of them, even though the rogues have left. The witch could still use them,' Micah mind linked.

‘No. Get some rest. I'll tell everyone what to do.'

He shifted as he approached the gatehouse, and the guard handed him and Micah some clothes. Though his body ached from being too far from Layla, he had enough energy to continue looking. But the forest was vast, and he knew Micah would have continued to follow him. His future Gamma looked exhausted; he'd had to stop his fruitless search.

Besides, he could feel there was something else coming for them. Micah needed to be at his full strength if they were going to fight such a vengeful spirit.

The pack members greeted him as he walked down the driveway, which was the complete opposite of how they had treated him after the first attack. But others were still raw, and he knew it would take time for them to forgive him for not being there when their family member had died.

And then there were the ones that he would have to weed out of the pack to be sure there would be no targets on Layla or the baby.

‘Lock your door when you rest,' he said. ‘It's still not safe.'

‘I can round them up and put them in the dungeon if you want,' Micah replied. ‘They are still whispering among themselves.'

‘Soon,' he promised before he walked into the packhouse.

He took the stairs two at a time, eager to see Layla even though he had hurt her before he'd left. His muscles started to loosen, and the pain deep in his core decreased as he got closer to his mate. She was still awake and waiting for him. He could sense her anxiousness and her pain.

But her pain wouldn't change the outcome. Once their bond was broken, her human side would thank him for getting her out of the mess he had created.

When he opened the door, the first thing he saw was the tattered rucksack Layla had come with along the wall. It was full, so he knew she had already done as he had asked.

And somehow, that still knocked the wind out of him. Speared him right through his heart.

He lifted his gaze from the bag to the woman sitting on the edge of his bed, fully dressed in her old clothes and the shoes she had worn when she arrived. She was making a statement—she didn't need anything he had given her.

Layla stood and put her hands over her stomach. Her chin jutted out proudly.

"I'm ready to go now," she said.

There was something else eclipsing the pain he sensed from her, something that broke him even more. Layla was determined. She was indeed ready to leave him.

He didn't know what he'd expected when he'd walked into the bedroom. To find Layla crippled by her pain, maybe. To find her unable to do anything because the pain of leaving him made her wolf unable to function. He'd even prepared himself to be firm and shut down all his emotions to get her out of the house without breaking.

But he hadn't expected to see her ready to leave him as if he was nothing to her.

He looked away from her hard gaze and headed for the bathroom.

"Give me a moment," he said.

He was impressed he managed to speak. Because he was the one who wanted to roll on the floor in agony. He was the one who wanted to tell her he'd made a mistake and beg her to stay.

‘Beg! For fuck's sake, beg! You can't do this, you weak, heartless basta—'

He shoved Cain to the back of his mind and maintained his control. This was something he couldn't allow Cain to fuck up. Their emotions had no place in this.

His shower was longer than necessary, but he knew he couldn't put off the next move any longer. Layla was still sitting on the edge of the bed when he walked out of the bathroom. She didn't look at him. She ignored him as if he already didn't exist.

He had to clench his fists and tense his muscles to stop himself from dropping to his knees in front of her to beg for her love.

Layla didn't love her. Her wolf did, but Layla had never wanted to be there in the first place.

Six months.

He had six months to live with that agonising thought.

He didn't look in her direction again. As soon as he dressed, he headed straight towards the door and picked up her rucksack.

"Is this everything you're taking?"

"It's everything I need. Plus this month's bank transfer."

And at the root of everything was the reason she had agreed to come with him in the first place. Money. He wasn't surprised, but those words made the last few months seem cheap and worthless. She'd provided a service and he'd paid.

He left the room without another word and headed down the stairs without waiting for her. The warrior guarding the front door stood and lowered his head.

‘Alpha,' he greeted.

‘Has Beta Dylan returned?'

‘Not yet, Alpha.'

He hoped Dylan wasn't out doing anything stupid like trying to find a way to break the curse, but by the time he returned, it would be too late anyway. He gave the warrior instructions and sent someone else to tell Brax to go and find shelter somewhere safe by the morning.

Layla came down the stairs and walked past him without a word. He'd sensed her pain before, but now he felt nothing. She was just blank, masking her emotions like her mother did. And her scent, her sweet scent, was gone.

She had already distanced herself from him.

‘Are you going somewhere, Alpha?'

‘Just out for a little while,' he said vaguely.

He wasn't going to tell anyone where they were going. There were too many traitors in the pack, and any gossip would end up in the wrong ears.

By the time he walked down the basement stairs, Layla was already waiting at the garage door.

"Are you that eager to go?" he snorted without thinking.

"There's nothing here for me. Let's just get on with this," Layla answered calmly.

Another spear to his heart.

He entered the garage and chose one of the bigger cars with tinted windows. He opened the passenger side door for Layla, but she opened the back door and got in. She was doing all the right things. It would be easier to reject her like this, and there would be no awkwardness after. Maybe she wouldn't even feel the breaking of their bond; perhaps he was just worrying for nothing.

Just because the last few days had been different, it didn't mean their bond was stronger. Layla was just stronger than she used to be, which meant her response to their bond was also stronger.

He sighed as he got into the driver's seat and opened the garage door. There was no one waiting outside to pounce on him like last time. He drove down the driveway slowly so he wouldn't accidentally hit anyone, but he put his foot down once he was out of the gates. Through the rearview mirror, he saw the pensive look in Layla's eyes as they drove down the main street.

What would their lives have been like had they been allowed to live like everyone else? Would they have taken regular trips to town for a meal or some shopping? Would they have split their time between the city and the pack so they could spend time with Britney? Would they have travelled the world and created memories for themselves and their children?

He shut those thoughts down before they could hurt him further. He had never been destined for that life, anyway. He was an Alpha King; his life had always been full of chaos.

He drove for hours without saying a word. He kept his senses open to make sure no one was following them, but he still took a long way around and swapped cars at one of his safehouses.

By the time they drove down the hidden path that led to his hideout, it was dawn, and Layla was fast asleep in the backseat. The simple double-storey house was set on a large plot of land and surrounded by woodland. And the witch who'd placed the protective ward on it was already dead, so no one else knew about it.

Layla would be safe here until the baby was born.

"Layla."

She woke quickly as if she had just been feigning sleep. When she looked at the house, it was in darkness. It was clear there was no one else inside.

"I thought I was going to be with Britney?" she questioned.

"No. You'll stay here until you give birth. I'll be more confident that you'll stick to the deal this way."

"Are you fucking serious?" Layla snapped.

"Deadly. I don't have time to play games, Layla. Go inside; everything is ready for you."

The time had come to break their bond. He could do it. He had to.