"hy do you have to leave? Can't you stay?" I was nearly begging.

Drake stood up from my bed. He appeared a few minutes ago outside my window and I let him in. It'd been two days and I was afraid he wouldn't have come back.

"No, I can't." He was hiding something.

"Why not?"

"I can't tell you."

Mates weren't supposed to lie to each other, it was almost impossible.

"Just come with me and we'll be together." It was so tempting to say yes. Just one word, just one syllable.

I shook my head, "I don't even know you."

"We'll get to know each other," He argued, "I can take you away from this small town, I can give you whatever you want."

"I don't even know your last name."

"Villemaire. Now you know."

Even though I was happy I found my mate, it just didn't feel right. Maybe it was the fact that I wanted someone else. And even though my mate was supposed to cure that heartache, it didn't.

"I'm in love with somebody else." I blurted and Drake's eyes narrowed.

"What?" He demanded, his body looming over me.

"You heard me, I'm in love with somebody else."

Before I could react, he grabbed my arms and that's when I saw his canines.

He was trying to mark me.

I pushed him off of me, shoving him against the wall aggressively.

"Don't you dare mark me," I hissed then realized that it wasn't his fault I didn't want him, "I'm sorry, I just. . . can't. I can't abandon everyone I love." My voice broke.

It didn't feel right.

Drake stood where he was, his face unreadable.

"Then reject me."

I couldn't tell if he was being serious or sarcastic.

"Come on, reject me!" His voice shook my room and I almost jumped at how loud he was.

I inhaled and his scent filled my nose. He smelled so good, like freshly cut grass mixed with a burst of aftershave.

I could feel the pull to accept him but someone else was invading the back of my mind.

I leaned against my bed, looking him straight in the eyes and holding my ground. Only one needed to say it for the rejection to become real

"I, Lia Deliz, reject Drake Villemaire." I let the words sink in.

Complete silence.

Drake's face remained emotionless.

"Fine, I'll go. But this is the last time we'll meet as friends."

I stayed silent as I watched him leave. He jumped out the window I'd opened before to let him in, phasing quickly after he landed on the ground. He didn't look back.

But it didn't feel any different.

Did I do the right thing?

.•*•.

I knocked on Roan's door and waited a minute before he opened it. When he did, I could smell the water on him and the shampoo in his hair.

"Lia?"

I pressed my lips to his, not caring that it felt strange to kiss a man who wasn't my mate.

It was short and slow and desperate all at once.

As I was just about to pull away, he moved his lips against mine, both hands on the sides of my face.

"I rejected him." Was the first thing I said after we broke apart.

"Wait, seriously?" Roan's eyes bugged, "I thought you couldn't do that."

"And why couldn't I?"

"I don't know, it seems kind of stupid to reject your soulmate. Why even have one in the first place?" His logic wasn't flawed. But I wasn't in the mood.

"Roan?"

"What?"

"Shut up."

I grabbed his neck to close the space between us and kissed him again. He kissed back, with more confidence and more adoration that I wanted to melt against him.

He broke the kiss but didn't break the space between us.

"I just got a call from Asher's parents. He's gone missing."

"Ohmygod, is there some sort of place they're all going?" I swear, it was like the Minion movie where all the minions disappeared and ended up on some mysterious island.

I assumed the mysterious island had to do something with Jesse and the humans who despised werewolves.

"His parents sent their best trackers but his scent just stops."

"Definitely kidnapped." I held onto Roan tighter, resting my head on his chest and listening to his heartbeat.

"I don't know, he could've run away."

"Why would he do that?"

"Because of his sister. Didn't you hear?"

"No, what about his sister?" I remembered him talking about her once but he never brought it up again.

"Apparently she ran away a year ago but now she's back."

"He never told me that before." I picked my head back up from his chest, wondering if we should round up a search party for Asher.

"Lia," Roan murmured quietly and I raised an eyebrow.

"Yes?"

"I'm happy you dumped your mate." He was looking at me with such tenderness that I wanted to hold him and never let go. God, how I missed him.

I giggled like a dumb schoolgirl and leaned in to give him a big kiss.

After our conversation (during half of which was just us kissing), I called a meeting comprised of Taylor, Nicole, Laurel, Tori, Roan and I.

"It was Jesse. And I know where they took him." Tori announced as I sat down on the couch, trying my best to comfort Laurel, who was having the most difficult time with Asher's disappearance.

"You do? How do you know?" Laurel asked quickly.

"I overheard some hunters talking about how they were going to kidnap Asher."

"But why?" Were the humans and hunters planning an alliance?

"Didn't say. That's all I know." Tori stepped out of the room, probably to polish her knives or something.

"Then we need to rescue him!" Nicole said, turning all gung-ho all of a sudden.

"You don't have to come with us. It's going to be violent," I said, "Especially with Tori and Laurel around."

"What about me?" Roan pointed to himself.

"Oh, come on, we all know they'd both kick your ass."

"You forget that I'm also in training to become a hunter," I sighed and he backtracked, "Sorry, sensitive topic."

"Yeah, it is. Anyway, are you sure?" I asked my old friends again.

"We're with you, until the end of the line." Taylor said and I smiled.

"Oh, you and your Marvel references."

"So, when are we going?" Nicole asked, shoving her hair in a high ponytail.

"As soon as Tori's ready." I shrugged.

"I'm ready." Tori emerged from the kitchen.

"Who's driving?" Nicole asked and I took out my keys but before I could answer, Tori swiped the keys from me.

"I'll drive. I know where it is."

"Um, can you? Aren't you, like, fourteen?" Roan questioned.

"Yeah, you're not driving my car." I took my keys back and she nodded.

"Fine. But I call shotgun." Tori called dibs and all six of us headed for my car.

.•*•.

"Are you sure this is it?" I asked Tori. We stopped at an old, creepy house that looked like somewhere a murderer would lure their victims. And it was only a few miles away from Mystic High, which I thought was a weird coincidence.

"Stop shoving!" Taylor snapped at Roan, who I saw roll his eyes in the rearview mirror.

"Lia, four people back here isn't very comfortable." Roan muttered and I turned to Tori.

She was the first one to get out while the rest of us said our prayers, "Let's go before they do something to Asher."

But as soon as we stepped out of the car, I heard someone's faraway footsteps.

"This looks really sketchy."

"Wait, I heard something." I shushed Nicole.

"Probably the kidnappers inside." Tori headed towards the house but was cut off mid-step when an arrow pierced the ground an inch from her foot.

"Ohmygod!" Taylor shrieked.

"V!" Someone called from the roof but I didn't see anyone there, "We only wanted the two!"

Before I could comprehend what was happening, a ring of hunters appeared from out of nowhere and ambushed us.

Each hunter held one of my friends, a blade to each of their throats. I was the only one who hadn't been grabbed.

Until Tori snatched my arm and forced me on my knees, a knife to the side of my neck.

"All of them. Get all of them."