"My parents wouldn't have known!" I exclaimed, my stomach flipping and uncertainty growing inside me. They wouldn't have surprised me with a staycation if they knew the resort belonged to the beast.

My mind kept drifting to the things Mrs. Pitts had been telling me since the past week. She knew everything and everything coming out of her mouth was correct, completely.

"Yeah, it's a popular resort and the only one around here so I think it was a coincidence." Cora agreed, nodding. It was actually true. Horizon resort was the only fun, adventurous place near our town, everything else was either a flight or a long drive away.

After taking in a few deep breaths and controlling my thoughts, I said, "I'm never going to see your grandmother again! She's scares the fuck out of me."

Ann laughed at my face. "She's sweet."

"She's wicked!" Cora was with me. We still respected Mrs. Pitts as she was our elder, and disrespecting her wasn't an option but she just frightened me, first with all the cannibalism and now this.

Ann sat on my right and Cora behind. I felt a twinge of pain in the silence that stretched between us. The more I pondered about Mrs. Pitts and her words, the more terrified I got. Why did she have to ruin everything for me?

Ann gave me a wide glance before placing her hand over my shoulder. "It's going to be fine. Let's go and let's not fuck up our only plan to enjoy and get drunk." Her voice raised by the end.

"You're right!" I pulled down the gear and pressed hard on the accelerator before pulling out from Mrs. Pitts house. It wasn't my time to get worried, it was my time to relieve the tension of my shoulders and enjoy with my girlfriends.

Two of them only.

During the car ride, the speakers blasted and loud music buzzed the entire car while I drove. We didn't utter nothing about my mate, or Mrs. Pitts, that was all going to be spoken after the wonderful, drunk staycation we were going to have.

Our first spot was the Queen club, the main attraction of the resort, exclusive to those who stayed in there. Far Waters was a very strict town, we didn't have any drugs, only bars and one club where all the bad wolves hanged out.

I slowed down the car, my foot hanging over the break as a frown landed on my face. I titled my head, looking over at the unseen forest, where Ann's lake house was and the beast's cabin.

I rolled the volume of the radio to low. "Well, does someone wants to see where I went to on our last night at the lake house?" I asked my friends.

"When you got fucked by your mate?" Cora asked, teasing me.

"Yes."

"Why not? Although, we don't want to die. Doesn't your mate kill everyone that passes his land?"

"I'm sure he'll make an exception for my friends." I answered, turning the wheel around and going over the raw grounds of the forest.

I was curious and with curiosity came the urge to see my mate again. He had showed up at my room earlier but I wasn't there then. It wasn't going to hurt if I went over to his cabin. At least I knew where he lived.

"Let's see then how handsome is your mate." Ann said, licking her lips.

Both of them were eager to find out who my mate was and what he looked like. There weren't any pictures I could find on the net of him and describing him to my friends would have taken hours and hours and way too many details.

The leaves scrunched underneath the thick tires of my car and the branches snapped as I drove deeper. Ann tightened her hand around the side handle as I went off-road and she hated when I did that.

We crossed the free land, the land that didn't belong to anyone and entered the beast's territory. It was dark and the only light was provided by the full moon and the stars. When the cabin came at my view, I stopped the car.

"That is where you got fucked?" Cora asked, her head poking out from the two seats as she looked ahead at the cabin.

"Yeah." I said.

"Well, go on, call out your mate."

"Aren't you going to come?"

Cora continued. "I think we should sit."

I laughed at them both. "You both are scared!" And, they were. They had fear in their eyes, just like I did when I came here for the first time.

"If it was someone else and not the beast, we wouldn't have been!" Ann raised her hands in defense, making a point.

"Fine, fine. Let me see if he's in there." I got out of the car and walked over to the cabin only to notice a large metal chain and a lock over the door.

I stopped at the two stairs in front of the door and picked up the lock. My excitement disappeared into the oblivion when I raised my head and glanced at the windows that were shut closed, a metal lock over them as well.

There was nothing, no one, just silence and darkness.

My gaze caught Ann and Cora's as I went back inside the car. "He's gone." I mumbled.

"What?"

My muscles tensed and I shifted over the seat, breaking eye contact with them. What happened?

"The cabin's locked." I explained further.

"But, didn't he live here?" Ann furrowed her brows.

"Yeah, I thought the same too. I believed he did, until now." I ran my hand through my hair out of frustration. How was I ever going to find him again? I had no contact details and I assumed he lived at the cabin—Mrs. Pitts and my parents told the same as well.

"I'm sorry, Lily." Cora said, racing her warm hand over my shoulders.

My heart throbbed in my chest. Did my mate just run away? "Do you think he doesn't want me?" I asked my friends in a low tone.

"He'd be a fool if he didn't. Maybe he went back to his house or something." Cora replied.

"But the cabin is where he had been staying for more than a decade. My parents told me that and so did your grandmother." I raised my hand at Ann

Heat surged through my veins and a concerned feeling tightened at my chest. I dragged my bottom lip into my mouth, biting it until blood drew out. It took me a while after Evan's death to come into a conclusion, and I did, I wanted him and I was ready to be claimed in front of everyone—my parents, my Alpha, my pack wolves and everyone else at the town.

I wasn't ready to leave everything behind but I was ready to start this chapter of my life.

I didn't want to be rejected or reject my mate.

But he was gone now.