Talons

Chapter 139: The Remembrance

Colton's POV

I knew my mate was lying when she said she didn't want children. She may not want to give birth, but she likes kids too much not to want any.

Fortunately, I know from eavesdropping on her conversations with Mandy that her feelings have nothing to do with me.

Rhea is afraid to have children because she’s terrified that she won't be able to protect them. She spent most of her life being mistreated, and in her mind, the general dislike people have for her will trickle down to her pups.

That belief, however, was developed before she was fated to me. I will literally kill anyone who I even suspect has hurt her or my children, but I keep those thoughts to myself, knowing that my mate is already overwhelmed.

"I thought we were speaking hypothetically. Unless you actually want a son."

“Can we please talk about something else?” Rhea says, and I make an open book gesture, meaning that the choices are endless, but she doesn’t choose a new topic, leaving me to decide.

“Tomorrow is open sparring; I want you there to pick personal guards.” I swear that my mate looked offended, but she will be luna of this pack soon, and guards come with the title; she knows that.

After going back and forth with her about what's necessary regarding her safety and what's not, Rhea finally gives up on the argument with a simple ‘okay,’ and it's then that I realize, okay has a completely different meaning to my mate.

When she says that word, it's got a tone to it, and because I know she doesn't curse, it suddenly occurs to me that her little ‘okay’ is short for ‘shut the f*ck up.’

“Let her have this one. I think we won tonight.”

Rhea’s POV

I’m sitting on my mother’s lap and she’s gently stroking my hair. She keeps threatening me with cutting it off if I don’t let her comb it, but I don’t believe her, so I ignore her words.

I turn to face her, staring at her beautiful face and eyes, hoping that I’m lucky enough to look like her when I grow up, and she seems to sense my thoughts.

“You’ll be much more beautiful, my little one.” I smile at her before snuggling deep into her chest, drawing a snigger from Lark.

“She’s such a baby,” he says mockingly, but I don’t understand a word he’s said, so I just smile at him. “Aww,” he replies to my smile, and he pats my head a little too roughly.

“Careful Lark; be gentle, she’s a girl,"

“So is Robin, but did you see what she did to my arm?” My brother shows my mother a huge cut, and I’m immediately disheartened by it. I don’t know why, but I start to cry, and Lark feels bad about it.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” He extends his hand and my mother gestures for me to take it.

“Lark, make sure you stick by your sister's side, okay?”

“I know, I know... and I'll keep her away from Colt.”

“Good boy," my mother says, kissing my brother on the top of the head before kneeling to hug me. 

She explains a version of what she just told my brother to me in Spanish, and because my mother is the only person I trust, I nod vigorously. 

It doesn't take long for Lark to get bored of playing with dolls, and he leaves me in search of someone else to play with.

I’m not offended because he and I have a communication barrier that prevents us from actually having fun.

I continue to play until I hear someone walking behind me, and when I turn around, my eyes light up. I’ve missed Colton, but every time he comes over, he says the same thing, and once again he disappoints me.

"What's your name?" he asks, and we do the chest touching thing again. "Thea," he repeats. I’m annoyed that he never gets my name right, but I prepare for the next part of our conversation. 

I pull out a piece of chocolate, and like I knew he would, he says some gibberish words, and doesn’t accept it, so I unwrap it and feed it to him.

Again, there’s nothing, and although my mother told me that I shouldn’t kiss anyone on the lips ever, I’m desperate for Colton to remember me.

Unfortunately, I was caught, but the boy I know as the other Colton isn’t what scares me. It’s the speed at which my sisters are going to tell our mother, making me run.

“Wait,” I hear from behind me, but I don’t slow down until the person calls me Thea. “Why are you running into the woods alone? You’re just a baby; come with me.” He extends his hand, and my heart starts thumping wildly, something I can physically feel outside of my dream.

“Please remember me,” I whisper in Spanish, hugging Colton tightly, but before he can hug me back, I’m ripped away from him. 

I shoot up in bed and my head is spinning, making me fumble without purpose. I start feeling around the bed for something, but I’m not sure what it is, and when I try to stand, my legs can't support my weight. 

I drag myself to the door, barely able to breathe, as my heart hammers in my chest and my head throbs. I manage to get it open, and there’s only one person I can think to call out to for help.

Colton’s POV

I was in the middle of the dirtiest dream when I heard my mate call my name, but it didn't come from the imaginary her. The confusion pushes my consciousness into the forefront of my mind and makes me spring out of bed.

Rhea isn’t a member of my pack and doesn’t bare my mark. She shouldn’t be able to do that, even if we are fated.

"I heard it too," Orlin adds. “She linked us, and it sounded like she needed help.”

I open my room door and find her dragging herself out of her room. She looks exhausted, and she calls out my name again, only this time using her words.

Rhea's POV

Warm arms engulf me, and I cling to the person in fear. All at once memories of Colton came flooding into my mind and not even Sylvia is spared the pain they are causing us.

My eyes flutter open and I take in the concerned expression of Colton, wondering what changed.

Suddenly, I don't even want his help anymore and push myself away, collapsing onto the floor fully. 

"Don't touch me," I say a little more aggressively than I would ever talk to the man. 

I don't even get up from the floor before curling up to cry. I can feel Colton rest his hand on my ankle, but I don't have the strength to pull it away from him.

Eventually, I fall asleep, and when I wake, I'm in the infirmary. 

"Colton is doing something on his laptop and I force myself not to look at him, but somehow, he can tell I'm awake.

Colton's POV

My mate was so covered in sweat that her clothing was wet, and while I wanted to rush her to the infirmary immediately, she pushed me away. 

She broke down in tears, which made me want to hold her more, but I settled on resting my hand on her foot, and when she cried herself to sleep, I took her for medical attention.

Fortunately, the doctor was on duty, and he was able to determine that my mate was dehydrated, which didn't shock me. It took a while to connect her because for our kind, being given a drip is extremely difficult once a wolf comes into their healing ability. The doctor also insisted that Rhea stay for observation.

There was a certain level of care I saw the man expressing toward my mate, and because I was somewhat jealous, I questioned him and he told me that she was already making ‘fabulous changes’ within the pack, so he wanted to ‘repay her kindness.’

I have no idea what the man was talking about, but apparently, my mate has been counseling some of the younger girls in the pack, mostly omegas. The doctor claims that the mental health evaluations of those girls have since improved, which means there’s less paperwork for him to send to my father.

With the conversation over, and my mate comfortably situated, I had my laptop brought to me, and began working on things I want to get done before my father returns. The pack needs new patrol routes, expansion of the patrol division, tougher training schedules, and quarterly warrior rank assessments.

Later, I will be sitting in on the first one that’s scheduled to happen, and I hope the pressure of someone taking their spot will encourage our men and women to remain vigilant.

My mate’s breathing pattern changes, so I know she’s awake, but she isn’t looking at me, likely because she’s still angry. I could tell that when she asked me to let her go, it wasn’t in fear, but her being mad at me didn’t make me feel any better.

“I know you’re awake… Please talk to me; tell me what happened...” My mate doesn’t respond, but I don’t give up. “The doctor says he needs to monitor you for a while. You need to take your diet more seriously; you haven’t been drinking enough.” Rhea nods like a robot, and I frown at her. “I’ll give you your space now, but is there anything you need?”

“Can you call Miracle for me? I need to talk to her about something important.”

Rhea’s POV

Colton did as I asked and called Miracle, but she didn’t come alone, and I had to ask Dolton for a minute. I could tell he didn't trust me, but I reminded him that my aunt arrives in the next few hours, and although bitter, he quickly made his way out of the room.

“Que?” (What?) Miracle says, and I intuitively understand that Dolton is eavesdropping, so I respond in Spanish as well. 

“Have I ever been around when you watched a drama about a boy who couldn't remember a girl no matter how many times they met?”

“Challenge accepted,” Miracle says, cracking her knuckles as she sits and searches her memory, but after a long time, she hasn’t said anything.

“Just forget it,” I say, but Miracle isn’t happy, and starts pressuring me for more details, this time, forgetting to speak in Spanish.

“You’ll never find it,” Dolton says, entering the room with a smirk. “Your memories aren't from a movie.”