Their Mate And Luna

CHAPTER 14

Where Is She?

Vince and Vance stood still, pondering.

Vance spoke first, saying, "We can't afford to lose both of them. They are the best we have."

His brother ran a hand through his black hair, ruffling the strands. "No, we can't. They are our best, and they have already agreed."

"Dad and Mom will suspect something is up if both or either of them refuse," Vance added.

"We should find them to learn their intentions," Vince suggested. Without waiting for his brother to follow, he set off in the direction of Savvy's house.

Vance hurried after him, voicing his concerns. "What if they reject us?"

Vince frowned, contemplating the possibility. "I don't know, bro. But they shouldn't. We had every right to reject her. She wasn't worthy..."

"She was far worthier than any other female," Ares interjected in his mind.

"Not now, Ares," Vince snapped at his wolf. "You know what's at stake here."

"My mate's life is at stake! Both of you rejecting her has put her in real danger," Ares snapped back.

"What is he talking about?" Vance asked his wolf, who was equally fuming. "What does Ares mean?" But Axel remained silent. "Axel?"

"What's wrong with these wolves?" Vince groaned. "Stop speaking in riddles, Ares."

The two brothers stood still as they conversed with their wolves, who had gone silent.

"What is Ares saying?" Vince growled in frustration, feeling a sudden fear he had never experienced before enveloping him.

"Vince!"

"Stop yelling at me; he's not answering me!" Vince retorted, feeling the same fear his brother felt.

"Make him," Vance urged, pushing Vince's shoulder. "Ask him to tell us why he thinks she's in danger."

"Stop doing that!" Vince snapped back at his brother, shoving him.

"Ask him!" Vance yelled again.

"Ask your wolf too. They're twins!"

"It's your wolf that said something. Make him talk."

"Make yours talk too."

Both brothers groaned and continued walking, frustration etched on their faces, fear gripping their hearts. Each felt at a loss upon hearing this news, and they couldn't help but display their pain and frustration at the unwillingness of their wolves to reveal more about Nicole.

"Is she sick?" Vance reached out to Axel again and met with silence.

Vince glanced at his brother. "Ares is refusing to speak as well."

"Do you think she is sick? Maybe we should go to the hospital to check," Vance suggested, his voice taking an unexpected turn.

"I don't think so. If she were, we would have sensed it. She didn't accept our rejection," Vince replied.

"Yeah," Vance agreed, nodding his head. Noticing that the emptiness seemed to intensify when Vince mentioned the word 'rejection.'

"We can also find out from Tim and Savvy about her," Vince proposed.

When they arrived at their destination, it appeared eerily quiet, as if no one had been there for a while.

"It doesn't look like anyone's at home," Vince noted.

The windows were tightly shut, and there was no car in sight.

"That's strange. I don't think Dad sent his Beta on any assignment. He's usually at home," Vance remarked.

"Unless he's with Aunt Mabel," Vince said as he tried the doorknob. "But Mom mentioned she's not at her shop."

Vance sniffed the air. "Their scents are still around... just a few minutes ago..." He followed his brother to the back of the house, where the windows were also locked tight.

"I don't like how this looks. Could they have left the pack?" Vance wondered aloud.

"Dad would have known. They would've severed the bond," Vince said.

"I wouldn't blame them if they did," Vance muttered under his breath.

"Really? You want to start this now?"

"I'm just saying, if I were in their shoes..."

"Just stop! Stop being so indecisive. We both agreed to let her go. You were furious when you found out she was our mate. Why are you suddenly so upset about rejecting her?" Vince scolded his brother.

"Maybe we made a hasty decision. Don't tell me you don't feel some regret for what we did. You feel it too."

"I feel nothing," Vince replied in a cold voice.

Scoffing, Vance said, "Keep telling yourself that."

"Just focus on what we're here to do and stop getting off track," Vince said with irritation, although he felt his wolf snorting at him.

"Yeah, let's pretend we didn't reject our mate," Vance sneered as he walked back to the front of the house.

"Whatever," Vince huffed as he followed his brother, initiating a mind link to Tim.

"So what do we do now?" Vince asked as they stood facing the building.

"Tim is on his way to us now. I sent him and Savvy a mind link," Vince replied, his hands in his pockets as he scanned the environment, stopping at a particular spot. The spot where he and his brother had done the one thing they had waited three years to do.

“Funny that we are here.” Vance said beside him, looking at the same spot.

Vince shook his head, frustrated by the surge of regret and fear emanating from Vance, intermingling with his and Ares' own anxieties. He clenched his teeth in response to the overwhelming emotions flooding their bond.

“Where the hell is Nicole?!” he screamed in his mind.

He met his brother’s gaze briefly before turning away at the sound of a car coming their way. It was Tim.

Their future beta sat behind the wheel, looking extremely tired with dark circles under his eyes.

"What happened to you?" Vance asked as Tim alighted from the car.

"Nothing," Tim replied, shrugging, wishing to return to his bed. He and Savvy had just ended their shift at the hospital, keeping watch over Nicole after the attempt on her life. He had left Savvy at his place to answer Vince's link.

"It's not 'nothing.' You look exhausted," Vance pointed out.

"Where's Savvy?" Vince asked, peering into the car behind Tim. He knew they were together because he could smell her on him.

"She's sleeping.” Tim replied. She needed it more. While he dozed off at intervals during their shift, Savvy stayed awake all night."

"Did you both handle patrols last night?" Vince inquired.

"No. We...uhmm..." Tim searched for the perfect excuse to divert their attention from Nicole's situation. "We had a long night." He winked with a coy smile.

"One night made you look like this?" Vince didn't believe Tim.

"Ask him about my mate," Ares said.

"You know how my mate is. What are you guys doing here, by the way?" Tim quickly asked, wanting to change the topic and wondering why they were at Savvy's place.

Vince removed his hands from his pockets and folded his arms across his chest. "Where have you all been, Tim? You, your mate, and her family?"

Tim frowned, knowing exactly who they were really asking about. "What do you mean, where? We've been where we've always been, here in the pack."

"The house seems like it hasn't been lived in for a while," Vance remarked, equally unconvinced by Tim's answer. "Are you hiding something from us, Tim?"

Axel said,“He’s hiding something.”

"Which question should I tackle first?"

"Just get to the point, Tim!" Vince snapped in frustration. "Where have you all been?"

"Right here, within the pack," Tim replied, his irritation growing with each query. Savvy was correct; they didn't deserve to know Nicole's whereabouts or condition, especially after their role in her predicament. "Where else would we be? And, Vance, I'm not withholding anything from you. You two have quite the knack for keeping secrets from friends," he added, shooting them a pointed glare.

"You don't have the authority to question our decisions," Vance retorted, his wolf failing to support him. Internally, he seethed at Axel, who mirrored his discontent with a growl.

"True, I don't, considering you're the alphas, and your decisions are final," Tim quipped with heavy sarcasm.

"Cut it out, Tim!" Vance barked.

"You too, Vance. And you, Vince. Both of you, back off!" Tim vented his frustration, disregarding their status as friends, alphas, or whatever they were. They had no right to manipulate him for information about Nicole.

"Tim, we didn't call you here to fight you," Vince attempted to explain, but Tim interjected.

"Really? Then why all the questions? We all know why you two are here."

"We came to inquire if you and your mate will continue as our betas," Vince clarified.

"Are you certain about that?" Tim tilted his head, his eyes narrowing as he scrutinized the twins. "You want to ascertain if we'll remain loyal to you. You're concerned about Savvy's commitment to being your Beta, especially after what you did to her cousin. Her sweet..." He continued without flinching at their growls, "...beautiful, kind cousin with the most stunning brown eyes I've ever seen."

"How dare you?" Vance seethed.

"Don't you dare call her beautiful!" Vince warned.

"I can and I will because both of you rejected her," Tim growled back.