Chapter 13

Sylvia "heard" Kaelen's voice, not through her ears, but echoing in her mind. 'Sylvia.'

She instinctively answered him in her thoughts, 'I'm here.'

'Can you sense me?'

'Yes.'

Kaelen chuckled. The sound echoed in her mind, filled with a smug satisfaction. 'From now on, you won't be able to escape from me. Whenever I want to find you, I can.

'Whenever I want to talk to you, I can. Even if you block me a hundred times, I'll still be able to speak into your mind.'

Sylvia was lost for words.

She thought back to those hours when she'd blocked him before. It turned out that he'd known it was her all along, knew exactly where she was hiding, but played along with her act.

He'd faked being worried, called the cops, and begged to meet up for the show.

'You tricked me?' Sylvia asked in her mind.

'I didn't trick you.' Kaelen's voice was laced with amusement. 'I was courting you. I've been courting you online for half a year, and now I'm courting you in real life, too.'

'You knew it was me all along, why didn't you say so?'

'If I had, you'd have run away.' Kaelen's thumb stroked her cheek, matching his voice in her mind. 'You would've stood there with your med kit for a bit and then disappeared.

'I've spent half a year looking for you. I don't want to go through that again.

'So I set up a trap. I changed the rules of the ball to force you to show yourself. I kept you in the Forbidden Sanctuary to force you to get used to having me around.'

He pressed his forehead to hers. 'Sylvia, am I being too sly?'

She wanted to say yes, but couldn't stop the smile spreading across her face.

She said in her mind, 'Yes, you're totally sly. But I love every bit of it.'

Kaelen's eyes darkened, and his hand tightened around her waist. 'Say it again.'

Sylvia looked up, locking eyes with his golden gaze. 'I mean, I love every bit of it. I love the way you're sly, the way you scheme, and your shirtless selfie.'

Kaelen froze for a second and then burst into bright, cheerful laughter, nothing like his usual cold and dominant self.

Staring at his smile, Sylvia suddenly felt all her sadness, insecurity, and hiding over the past half a year were totally worth it.

Kaelen's doting voice echoed in her mind. 'Sweetheart, let's go home.'

*****

When they returned to the Forbidden Sanctuary, dawn had broken.

Sylvia lay on the stone bed, the crescent mark on her forehead faintly visible in the morning light.

She was still getting used to their mind link, and every so often, she could hear Kaelen's thoughts drifting by.

They were about restoring the territory, hunting down the last of the vampires, and about her.

'Stop snooping on my thoughts.' Kaelen's voice suddenly echoed in her mind, a bit uneasy.

'I'm not snooping.' Sylvia felt wronged. 'You're the one broadcasting them.'

Kaelen was lost for words.

'What are you thinking about? Is it something about me?' Sylvia asked in her mind.

'Nothing,' Kaelen replied.

'Liar,' Sylvia shot back.

Kaelen walked over and sat down at the edge of the bed, his ears flushing.

Sylvia's eyes widened. She was surprised that the Alpha would blush.

Kaelen's voice popped into her mind, sounding like he was laying it all out. 'I'm thinking that maybe the crescent on your forehead and the scar on my hand are a matching set.'

Sylvia was stunned.

Kaelen continued, 'That rainy night, half a year ago, the bandage you gave me had a crescent on it, too. I thought you doodled it for fun, but now I'm starting to wonder.'

'That's my mark,' Sylvia replied without thinking. 'I've been drawing it since I was little. Whenever I patch someone up, I always add a crescent.'

A subtle smile played at Kaelen's lips. 'So we marked each other long ago. You forgot, but I could remember.'

He raised his hand and pressed the crescent scar on the back of his hand to the crescent mark on her forehead.

Two silver lights glowed at the same time, intertwining into a perfect full moon.

Kaelen's voice was deep and unwavering. 'Fated mates were never the Moon Goddess's random choice. Two moons were destined to cross paths eighteen years ago.'

Tears welled up in Sylvia's eyes.

She remembered that night eighteen years ago, under the full moon, when she was born, and the crescent mark was already there on her forehead.

The High Priest once called it a blessing from the Moon Goddess, but when she never shifted into a wolf, everyone said it was a cursed mark.

It turned out that it wasn't a curse. It was a blessing. It was fate. It was Kaelen.

'Don't cry.' Kaelen's voice echoed in her mind, sounding a bit panicked. 'I'll stop. Please don't cry.'

'I'm not crying.' Sylvia wiped at her tears. 'The moon is too bright.'

Kaelen chuckled and wrapped her in his arms. His embrace was warm, with the scent of cedar, rust, and a hint of strawberry.