A Warrior’s Fate (Wolves of Morai #1)

Chapter 22

CHAPTER 22

I sla had known a reunion would happen, but she hadn’t thought it would be like this. She’d been within Deimos’s borders for no more than five Goddess-forsaken hours—maybe even less than that.

“Damn mates.”

She barely heard Jonah grumble and paid little mind to him as he moved past her to go to the counter on the other side of the room.

She felt shameful for glancing to the floor if only to picture, for a moment, what he’d warned against.

Mates.

It took Isla, in her daze, a while to register exactly what Jonah had said. With wide eyes, she looked between him and Kai just in time to catch the two exchanging a glance. A knowing glance. A glance between acquaintances. Between…friends?

But before she could jump to the question, Kai’s attention was on her again—intent and arresting.

Something familiar blazed behind his eyes, pulling at that wretched part of her. The part of her that craved. That skittered through her body and torched her skin in a maddening way that she remembered well. In a way that only he could soothe, that only he could touch, kiss, and fuck away. Not some random suitor she dragged to her apartment. Only him. And he knew it—how badly she wanted him for the most dizzying of seconds. And maybe she was more in tune with him than she’d realized because now, she could feel it from him, too.

And it just made things worse.

“I’m not kidding,” Jonah reiterated as he sorted through some books. “I’m sure the binding of an alpha and luna is a beautiful, momentous event, but I want no part in it.”

Isla managed to tear her eyes away from Kai to look towards the shop owner again, hearing the words—her “destined” title—enough to jar her from whatever fantasies had been blooming.

“You two know each other?”

Silence fell.

It didn’t seem that hard of a question, but Jonah looked at Kai. And then Isla had to.

Sensing her impending irritation, her mate let out a sigh before gesturing between them. “Isla. Jonah. My…well, you could call him my brother.”

“Pleasure,” Jonah said before going back to his work.

Brother.

Isla knew what Kai had meant, but still, a dumbfounded expression cast across her face. She tried to wrap her head around how she’d ended up here, feeling horrified that she’d been with Kai’s “brother” for the past few minutes and had no idea. All the while, he knew exactly who she was the second she introduced herself.

She folded her arms across her chest, very aware that she was about to be a hypocrite. “You told people. We promised to keep this a secret, and you told people.”

Kai took a few gentle steps forward.

Isla retreated the same amount.

He flashed a deadpan look, and she raised her brows, urging him to explain.

“They’re not just ‘people’,” he said.

“They?” she echoed. “Who are they? ”

Almost on cue, the bell above the shop door chimed—high and sweet—as it was pushed open. Through it strolled a familiar small, full-figured woman. Davina froze a step into the shop, taking in the sight before her—Isla and Kai in some sort of stand-off, and Jonah left to bear witness.

“Hello,” she drawled, letting her russet hair free from beneath the hood of her cloak. Her greeting was followed by thick seconds of quiet. All too long. “Right,” she muttered before taking cautious steps to the counter. “This seems like something I’m not meant to be a part of anymore, so I’m just going to go into the back and get a drink. Care to join me, Jonie?”

Jonah didn’t speak, only dropping everything and eagerly following.

Isla watched as the two descended behind the shelves, not missing their whispered exchange.

“You weren’t supposed to send her here.”

“I didn’t think she’d go out tonight .”

She kept her head turned, even when they’d disappeared. She could feel Kai’s eyes boring into the side of it and could hear as he moved in closer again. Could feel it.

“Isla.”

She didn’t turn.

“ Isla .”

Her name was said slower. Deeper. Softer. And from closer. Much closer. A manipulation.

Isla spun around slowly, a grimace ready on her face. She wouldn’t let it falter as he was merely a foot away. As she clocked just the slightest bit of warmth exchanged from the proximity of their bodies, as she caught a hint of that scent she couldn’t bring herself to wash out of that damn gown.

She stepped back. “Do not.”

“You’re trying to make me believe you didn’t tell anyone? The Imperial Heir? Your brother?”

Isla clenched her teeth. There was no point in lying. “They figured it out themselves. I didn’t tell them voluntarily.”

The corners of Kai’s lips ticked upwards. “Why? Were you losing it without me?”

“No, you arrogant ass, because you couldn’t stay away from me for more than a few hours.”

“Can you blame me?”

Her glower persisted.

Kai sighed. “If it helps, they figured it out, too.”

Isla’s features softened, if only slightly. Whoever this “they” was—Jonah and Davina, she was sure of—she’d never met them beforehand. They weren’t at the feast. They weren’t at the infirmary. They hadn’t seen the look that Adrien had mentioned. Hadn’t found them together frequently.

“How?” The question spilled from her mouth before she could stop it.

Kai hesitated.

“I was different when I came back.”

And that was all he said. All he would say, judging by the pensive, solemn look that had threatened his face. Isla didn’t know if it was the bond, but she knew not to push for more explanation.

Not for that, anyway.

She relaxed her arms. “How did you know I was here?”

“I went to the hotel—where you were supposed to be—but when Davina rang up to your room, you weren’t there. Then she mentioned she’d told you about Jonah’s.” Kai let loose a chuckle. “I should’ve known you’d run off at the first chance you had.”

So, he’d been planning to see her tonight all along…

There was the sudden sound of a closing door, shuffling footsteps, and then laughter before Jonah and Davina reappeared from behind the bookshelves. Jonah was holding a decanter of brown liquor and some glasses while Davina matched with her bottle of wine.

“Oh, thank Goddess, they’re still clothed,” Jonah said blandly, placing the glasses down on the circular study table.

Davina gave him a small swat on the arm. “Don’t be inappropriate.”

“That’s bold coming from you after what happened when you met my brother.”

Davina flushed, her fingers going to the ring around her neck. “Oh, hush.” She drew her attention back to Isla and Kai, cheeks still pinked as she flaunted the wine bottle. “Any takers?”

Isla could feel Kai’s eyes drift to her, and she turned to meet his gaze. He nodded towards his friends. “You have time for a drink?”

Part of her wanted to say no . Thought it best to put some distance between them before the ties had more time to twist, but another seemed to keen louder. “I suppose one wouldn’t hurt.”

“So, you two really haven’t touched once?”

A glass of wine half-drunk and nursed in her hands, Isla’s eyes met Kai’s across the table. He gave a small sip of his whiskey before answering Davina’s question, “Nope.”

Isla echoed with her own, “No.”

It was strange, she’d admit, sitting with him like this. As the four of them had taken their places, with him pulling out a chair for her and then wisely taking the one furthest away, her mind had been buzzing with the simple fact that she was with him again. Her mate, her one and only…her nothing at all.

Davina, who had accepted their answers, followed her question with, “Is it difficult?”

That inquiry seemed to amuse Kai. He tilted his head to Isla, a smirk on his lips, that damn dimple popping out. A tease. An ask. Is it difficult, Isla?

He ran a hand through his hair, and Isla felt her insides warm, her fingers twitching around her glass. She hadn’t had enough wine to make her tipsy, but damnit there was just something about him that looked very…inviting right now. That rush of attraction around each other must’ve just been unavoidable. Though, bond or not, when he looked like that…

“Not at all.” Isla sipped her wine. “It’s actually easier than the first time we’d met. I barely feel anything at all.”

Kai hummed a laugh, his stare holding hers. Isla felt something within her tighten. “That’s a shame.”

“A tragedy.” She didn’t allow herself to withdraw from the standoff. “It’ll be a bit more difficult to use me to stroke your ego.”

In her periphery, Isla could see Davina’s jaw go slack, perhaps a smile quirking her lips as she turned to Jonah in disbelief.

Kai’s own grin grew wider. “You should know by now that I like a challenge.” He leaned forward in his seat, resting his arms on the table. “I’ve missed your stunning wit.”

Isla resisted the blush rising to her cheeks and ignored the way Jonah and Davina’s eyes homed in on their parlay. “Well, I’m here for a week.”

She wasn’t sure what she’d meant by it. It wasn’t like they’d try to maximize their time together or see each other much beyond tonight and the ceremony. Still, she regretted the words as they hung awkwardly in the air. Kai’s lips momentarily twitched downwards, and Davina and Jonah cast their glances away.

Ezekiel’s words pealed in Isla’s head. Here she was, Kai’s mate, their fated queen, and she wanted nothing to do with it. With them. Would they ask her about it? Ask her why? Had Kai already explained it?

“Why do you want to know about Phobos?”

Isla whipped her head towards Jonah. Though she hadn’t asked for his discretion, she didn’t want him to spit this out. Perhaps she should’ve been more covert in her search.

“Phobos?” Kai furrowed his brows at her, a question of, what in the world are you getting into now, lingering in his eyes.

“Curiosity,” Isla said, unsure how much she wanted to disclose to him. How much she trusted him. “I was just behind the Wall for a week. Technically, it’s that pack territory. I couldn’t find anything decent about it back home.” Actually, she couldn’t find anything about it.

Jonah snickered. “Figures.”

Isla narrowed her eyes, not keen on his tone. “What does that mean?”

She watched him and Kai meet each other’s eyes, and though it wasn’t as harsh as when he looked at Ezekiel, Kai’s gaze was tinged with warning. Don’t start a fight with her.

Jonah broke the glance and gave a curt shrug. “I would expect the pack that rules over all of us to be well-versed in all aspects of history across the continent, that’s all.”

Isla tried to hold back her frown, suddenly becoming very aware of what an outsider she was here both to this pack and this tight-knit group of friends.

“Well, you aren’t alone in that thought,” she muttered. She finished off her wine, the liquid souring in her stomach, and rose to her feet. “It’s getting late. I should be going.”

Kai downed the rest of his whiskey, pushing back in his chair. “Let me walk you back.”

Isla blinked up at him as he got to his full height. “You don’t have to. ”

“I have to return to the hall to finish some work anyway.”

Isla took note of the earnestness on his face. Realizing that of all the unknown she’d just walked into, he was the most certain thing she had.

And maybe it was that which had her nodding and saying, “Fine.”

The beautiful streets of Mavec greeted Isla with moon-touched stone and a cold slap on the face. She sucked in a sharp breath and let it out, watching the faintest cloud materialize before her mouth.

It hadn’t been this chilly when she’d left the hotel.

She circled her arms around her body to warm her exposed skin.

“It can get pretty cold here at night, even during the summer months,” Kai said, removing his jacket before holding it open to her.

Isla stared at it for a few seconds—a no, thank you sitting on the tip of her tongue—but as if goading her to take it, another ice-laced wind swept by. Self-preservation trumped pride and doubt as she stepped over and very carefully stuck her arm through one of the sleeves. As she and Kai went to work the other, they both moved in a way so methodical, so unusual, they couldn’t help but laugh.

Isla drowned in his clothing, the black fabric limp on her frame. The apparel was accustomed to the broadness of Kai’s shoulders and the muscles of his arms. But she was fine with it, how the sleeves extended past her fingertips and the hem ended at her mid-thigh rather than her hips. It was warm…and it smelled like him.

“Thanks,” she said as the two continued walking.

At first, they moved in silence, side by side, but at a safe distance. Isla shoved her hands in the coat’s pockets and closed her eyes for a moment, taking in the softest of sounds. The faintest hint of music, of laughter and joy, from people down in what she would consider the heart of the city.

But mostly, she focused on the easiness of their footsteps, finding herself calmed by each rhythmic hit of their shoes on the cobblestone walkway. Completely in-sync. Her breathing slowed, and her shoulders relaxed from a tightness she hadn’t realized they had .

And then the reality of the situation played through her mind again.

I’m with Kai . I’m in Deimos.

She angled her head to take in the scenery again. Beautiful…and all she was meant to rule.

“I’m sorry.”

At Kai’s apology, she snapped her gaze to him. “For what?”

“That isn’t how I wanted you to meet them,” he said. “At least, formally. Or to find out that they knew.”

Isla smiled softly, feeling warmth bloom in her chest at the fact he’d wanted her to meet them at all . “I guess I can forgive you.” She waved off and glanced away when a gentle grin graced his mouth. “When you say ‘they’ who know, you mean Jonah, Davina...”

“The only other people are Rhydian, Jonah’s twin and Davina’s mate, who you met at borders, and Ameera, who you haven’t met yet. Thankfully.”

Rhydian the guard. No wonder he’d been looking at her strangely. Isla furrowed her brow. “Why is it good that I haven’t met Ameera?”

“Because you two are frighteningly similar,” Kai said. “She’s also a warrior—or a warrior general, actually, one of the youngest to be appointed as she won’t let us forget—and will probably try to rip my head off for leaving her out of the plan tonight.”

Isla wondered if the plan was ensuring she’d made it into the pack in one piece. She’d encountered a friend of his at each checkpoint. But another sentence of his had struck her harder. “One of the youngest to be appointed?”

Kai nodded before adding, “She’s also Ezekiel’s daughter.”

Isla stopped in her tracks. “Oh, Goddess.” Ezekiel had a warrior daughter?

“She’s more pleasant than him, I can say that much. We’ve been friends since we were pups…or forced acquaintances. I’m pretty sure she hated me until we were ten.”

“Like me and Adrien—or almost. I think we always got along,” Isla said, feeling a small twist in her gut.

She’d come to the ceremony alone, telling the boys she would rather they stay in Io and not miss any important intel rather than fuss around the events with her. And she hadn’t even needed to convince her father as he’d left Io again on some “important business”. They’d all promised to celebrate her when she returned home.

Isla hummed and traced the sky. “You know, I haven’t had the pleasure of seeing good ol’ Zekie yet.”

Kai let out a laugh at the nickname, shoving his hands in his pockets. “I was thinking about having him check on the borders but went with Sol instead. I owe Rhyd and Thyra for tonight. I’m sure he was pissed I sent him out there and took it out on them.”

Isla remembered well the delta’s demands for an impossible return from the guards. “He wasn’t thrilled. Though, he called me a pretty little thing. ” At the words, Kai’s jaw ticked, and Isla failed to mask her amusement. “I’m assuming he doesn’t know who, or rather what, I am.”

“No, he doesn’t.” Kai briefly focused forward on their path. “But you can trust him if you ever need anything here; just don’t ever tell him you’re my mate. If he knew that’s why he was at the borders…He used to train me, Rhydian, and Jonah while we were preparing for the guard. Ameera, too, before she went into the warrior program and before he became a delta. He’d bash my skull in, but he’d do it because he cared.”

Isla’s face contorted into a grin a mix of confusion, concern, and slight amusement. “I didn’t know you were in the guard.”

“What else can be expected of the second-born son?” Kai mused, his own eyes going up to trace the stars, then the Pack Hall looming over them in the distance. “I loved it, though. Made it up to squad leader pretty quickly…but eventually, my father wanted me to prepare to be on my brother’s council when he ascended, and then Jaden kept bugging me about it, too.”

Isla blinked, stunned by the softness of Kai’s voice and the hint of vulnerability. “Jaden,” she breathed, knowing the name from bits of research.

Kai, however, took it as a question. A frown crooked his lips, and he cleared his throat. “That’s—that was my brother’s name.”

“Oh.” Isla swallowed a burning lump in her throat. “I—I’ve never told you that I’m sorry. I can’t imagine.”

Kai’s features twisted like he was sick of hearing the words. Still, he muttered, “Thanks. ”

Isla looked away, focusing on her feet. She wasn’t sure why, but she said, “I lost my mom when I was eleven.” She felt Kai’s eyes snap to her, but she couldn’t meet his gaze. That hole in her chest, whenever her mother came to mind, gaped open. “It never goes away, missing them, but it does become a little easier to bare it. To breathe. Eventually.”

Silence followed, and Isla finally peeked over to meet Kai’s eyes. Something gleamed in them that she couldn’t quite pinpoint. “I’m sorry,” he whispered with a softness that enveloped her in a way he physically couldn’t.

“Thanks.”

Then, all fell to quiet again. But it wasn’t a tense quiet. It was one that was almost…comforting. An understanding silence.

They walked a few more paces in their peace before it dawned on Isla that she’d blindly followed him down a different path. One that veered away from that she’d taken from the hotel to the shop earlier. “Why are we going this way?”

They reached the threshold of a sparse forest. “Shortcut, and a better chance that no one will see us together.” Kai cut over the dirt road. “I did want to talk to you about something else, too.”

Isla lofted a brow. “Should I be worried?”

Kai didn’t answer her question. “I’m not sure if you’ve heard, but we’re having issues with rogues on our southeastern borders. There’s been a rough debate these past few weeks amongst me, my council, the Imperial Alpha, and the warrior general regarding whether to bring in warriors to aid. Despite a bit of opposition, I’ve decided to allow a unit here to assist our guard. General Eli will lead it…and he has a keen interest in having you in his squad.”

“Me?” Isla jerked to a stop, her heart hammering. Was he serious? “But I—I don’t even have my lumerosi yet. How could I be put on an actual mission?”

Kai halted, too. “He obviously sees something in you. You were a promising trainee from the start, and you just ranked second in our running.”

Both true, but Isla found it difficult to let the pride flourish, the general’s manner nagging her mind. The way he’d kissed her hand at the feast and spoke to her—a way that had sent Kai mad. Even as they’d traveled in today, had he behaved as if he favored her? They barely had time to speak.

“Sometime before you’re meant to depart for Io, he’s going to offer it to you,” Kai cut through Isla’s thoughts. “If you accept, you’d return to Io to see your family briefly, collect your things, head to the base to be outfitted, but then you’d be right back here.”

Isla felt like she needed to sit down, with everything moving far too fast. A chance like this was rare, near impossible. New warriors, especially now with the times of peace, could only dream of getting time out in action. Most of the first couple of years were spent in even more training and patrols with the guard. But this ? Eradicating rogues? Helping people, protecting and serving the continent as she’d always wanted…but in Deimos.

Isla asked, “How long would I be here?”

“As long as the problem persists.”

She gnawed on her lip, on the cusp of spilling into her thoughts again. “What—what do you think? It couldn’t be smart to have me here, surely. The more we’re together, the closer we are; who knows what could happen.”

“I never ruled out the possibility that Fate would find a way to bring us together again beyond the ceremony—or I guess I can thank General Eli.” Isla didn’t miss his snicker or tone. It seemed Kai still wasn’t fond of the general. He continued moving, and she followed, catching sight of the backside of the hotel in the distance ahead. “I do have to approve everyone he chooses. But I’m not going to deny you what you’ve worked for just because I have to work harder to not think about you all the time and to keep my hands to myself. Plus, I have my own missions for you.”

Isla didn’t want to address or show a reaction to his tease. “Missions?”

His voice quieted as if even the trees could hear. “Like I said, I don’t trust everyone in the echelons of our hierarchy. I trust very few people, really, and call me a fool blinded by the bond, but I trust you. And the fact you’re from Io will only help my objectives. Bring it up when you want, hide it when you want, but I need to know how people act around you.”

Isla wasn’t sure why hearing that he trusted her made her heart skip, but it was only because of the bond. Everything was because of the bond. Part of her wasn’t so keen on being used by him like this; part of it felt wrong, but a larger piece wanted to do all she could to keep him safe.

Maybe that was all the bond, too.

“What are you looking for?” she asked.

“I’ll know when I hear it.”

The hotel drew closer, and this little pocket of time they were allotted together would end. Isla’s mind whirred. How bad would it be if she stayed? “Ezekiel won’t be happy about this.”

“Oh, believe me. I’ve already heard it all. He’s just going to have to deal with it.” Kai slowed until he came to a stop a few yards away from the hotel’s backdoor. He turned to face her, the distance between them only inches. “ I need you , Isla.”

The statement shouldn’t have made her shiver, shouldn’t have had her mind running through the other situations in which she’d want to hear it from his mouth. But it did. Thankfully, she was able to quell anything before it started.

Swallowing hard, she ran her eyes along his face. He appeared older now than he had when she’d last seen him, a tiredness to his eyes and a shadow of stubble dusting over his jaw and cheeks. Another month spent adjusting to a role he’d never prepared for and could never have a reprieve from.

Even with how assured he’d sounded, there was something pleading in his gaze. He needed her.

He needed her.

Stay.

Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad choice…or perhaps it could be the worst she’d ever made.