An entire two and a half years have come and gone since Quinn left home. She was 2 semesters away from finishing her 4 year program.

She worked tirelessly, picking up extra coursework every semester so that she could finish her program an entire year early. She wanted a year off for herself, to work in a real kitchen in the city and she was so close.

So, far she'd only been able to find work as a dishwasher. But that would change. She'd soon be part of the kitchen staff.

She hadn't told anyone her plans. As far as they knew, she'd be in school the entire 4 years. She'd have to return to the pack at some point to face her demons. In the meantime, she'd do what she'd always wanted to do.

Alivia and Ellie called Quinn often and kept her in the loop of the going's-on in the pack. They told her they couldn't wait for her to come home. Quinn missed them and wished she could see them. However, she knew it was best she stay away as long as she could.

She thought about Christopher often. Quinn wondered what he was doing. She thought he would have picked someone by now, his chosen mate, but she hadn't felt anything. If he had mated with someone else, she surely would have felt it, right? Or at least that's what she thought. A very small piece of her had hope that maybe he was waiting for her

In the fall of the year Quinn left the pack Evan, Christopher and Ruben officially assumed the roles of Alpha, Beta, and Gamma. Their parents all eager to start their retirement.

Alivia said it was quite the induction ceremony. Neighboring pack came to celebrate with them. Everyone was so proud of the three friends and their respective mates.

Just to annoy Quinn, Alivia mentioned in extraordinary detail, all of the she-wolves that attended the celebration hoping that they were Beta Christopher's mate. "They practically threw themselves at him" she said indignantly " but he hardly paid them any attention."

Evan and Sarah completed the mating ritual and she became the pack's Luna. Alivia became the gamma female.

Christopher's father wanted him to take the summer to drive from pack to pack so that he could find his mate and bring her home. Christopher refused, knowing already where his mate was but never telling anyone. He silently awaited for her arrival back home.

However, at the insistence of everyone, he caved and visited a few packs. Christopher knew it was a waste of pack resources so after about the fourth or fifth trip, he told his father that he would just let it happen on its own.

Just another year and half and she'd be mine, he thought. He and his wolf would wait patiently for her.

Fortunately and unfortunately there had been a rising rogue problem that was enough of an excuse to keep him in the pack. It also kept him very busy. It kept his mind off of Quinn and at the same time kept him at ease. At least she was safe while they dealt with the dangerous situation in the pack.

"Christopher!" said Evan, snapping him out of his thoughts of Quinn.

"Sorry, what were you saying?" Christopher asked, slightly embarrassed.

"Are we ready for tonight's scheduled sweep of the territory?

"Of course, Alpha."

"Great! I'll be in my office taking care of some paperwork. Please, if you find anything, let me know. The sooner we can solve this issue the better for all of us," said Evan rising from his chair. "Christopher, if you'd like to join me and Sarah for dinner before the sweep, you're always welcome."

"Thanks Alpha," he said "I'll consider it."

"Of course" said Evan walking out of the room.

Christopher knew they pitied him. They felt sorry he hadn't found his mate. They thought he was lonely and maybe he was but he hated the way they looked at him.

Christopher wanted to tell them, he wanted to tell the world that he knew who she was. He wanted to say her name but he wasn't sure he should. He didn't know if it was what she wanted. So, he stayed silent.

He focused on being the beta any Alpha would want and any pack would need.

He caught up to Alivia and Ruben as they all walked out of the room.

"Hey Alivia," he said "have you heard from Quinn?"

"Uh, yeah.. I just spoke with her earlier today. Why do you ask?" She looked at him with one eyebrow cocked, puzzled and suspicious of why he might be asking.

"I was just curious," he said nervously. "So, how is she?"

"She great.. she said school is going well. She found out today that she's top of her class."

A huge smile formed across his face. "Wow," he said proudly. "That's fantastic."

Smart, beautiful, talented. Our mate is something he thought to himself. "Thanks Alivia. I'll see you guys later," he said as he walked off in the direction of the trees. He needed a run by himself before he had to have dinner with his friends.

Alivia squeezed Ruben's hand and whispered "I'll be right back. I just need to talk to Christopher."

Ruben nodded and continued to walk while Alivia followed Christopher.

He undressed inside one of the changing huts, transforming into a beautiful honey colored wolf as he stepped outside. Shaking himself off, he bolted.

His wolf ran swiftly between the trees, swerving left and right to avoid any obstacles in his way. Once he thought he was far enough into the woods, he slowed to trot and took a deep breath, taking in the cool air.

He walked a little further to a sparkling lake in a clearing up ahead. Christopher's wolf took a sip of water and laid on the edge looking out in the distance. He was completely lost in thought.