The Burning Claw (The Grey Wolves #10)(58)

“Don’t you feel bad about invading her thoughts while she sleeps?” Fane asked.
Decebel laughed. “Fane, consider who my mate is.”
Fane shrugged. “True.” He reached for his own mate and found that she was asleep. He smiled to himself. He felt a little bad, but at the same time, he wanted to know what she was keeping from him.
He heard Decebel’s growl and then let out his own growl.
“They went with Peri to Oceanside,” Fane snapped.
Decebel stopped abruptly and snarled. “Peri left them! She left them in Oceanside all night, by themselves.”
Vasile turned to look at him. “You know how much Peri cares about those girls. She kept an eye on them I’m sure. She was probably teaching them a much-needed lesson.”
“They sat on a swing all night,” Fane bit out, trying to consider his father’s words and not the fact that he wanted to rip Peri a new one for abandoning his mate.
“I know that you guys want your females to stay put, but you’ve been with them long enough to know that the likelihood of that is about the same as Desdemona coming back from the grave as Glenda the good witch. We need to focus on Costin and trust that Peri will not let anything happen to them.” 
Decebel’s eyes glowed amber. “I’m still going to take a bite out of my mate when I see her again.”
Fane chuckled. “That won’t be punishment to her.”
Decebel shoved Fane who just laughed harder.
Finally, after another few hours of walking on two feet, Vasile stopped. “What do you think about bedding down here for a couple hours before we phase and track his scent again?”
Both Fane and Decebel agreed.
The three men each propped themselves up against a tree. Fane wanted to slip back into his mate’s mind, just so he could feel close to her, but he knew he wouldn’t get any sleep if he did. He closed his eyes and tried to push away the horror of finding the dead human, the frustration of being separated from his mate, and the fact that they couldn’t catch up with Costin. All in all, it was a hell of a day.
Costin knew they were hunting him. He had caught their scent a couple of times. His wolf was leading them on a merry chase, doubling back and going over his trail again and then splashing through streams to try and shake them.
They’d found the dead human. He knew it because they’d picked up their pace after that. Decebel was probably thinking that he was beyond saving and dreading the idea of having to kill him. Costin had thought he was too, but then he’d come upon that man attempting to rape a female. With a flash of rage, he saw Sally as the victim. He’d dragged the man off of the woman and through the forest far away from her. And then his wolf had taken his rage out on the rapist.
He had wanted to go back and make sure that the female got to safety—he knew there was a house near where he’d found them—but his wolf was too worked up. So he ran. He ran until he felt as though he was going to collapse. Having pulled himself from the darkness long enough to kill the man that had been attacking Sally—but not really Sally—had helped him keep it together a little longer. And now that he was thinking just a bit clearer, he knew what he had to do in order to keep himself alive long enough to find his mate. It was desperate, but he couldn’t think of another way.
With a painful howl of turmoil, he sped onward to the one place that he knew he wouldn’t be able to hurt anyone else if his wolf lost control again—the In Between. It would be another day before he made it to the bridge, and he needed to come up with a payment for the troll. He wouldn’t be able to fight his way in. Even if he defeated the troll, the gate wouldn’t open unless the troll opened it himself, so that was priority number one for tomorrow. Slowing to trot, almost collapsing from exhaustion, Costin found a nice hole at the base of a large tree. With the screams of the rapist, and the whimpers of the poor girl he’d saved, ringing in his ears, he curled up for the night, hoping against hope that he might get some small amount of peaceful sleep before the coming ordeal the following day.
He didn’t know how long he’d been asleep when he felt a nudge to wake up. He blinked his eyes open and saw soft, pure, white light illuminating the area around him. Costin stood and realized he was in his human form and wearing a pair of shorts.
“Costin Miklos, my child, mate to Sally, father of Titus, and Beta of the Serbia pack,” the Great Luna called him.
He turned to face her and then bowed his head. “Maker,” he said, his voice full of awe. He felt peace for the first time since he’d lost his mate.
“You have been strong. You have stumbled, but you have not fully succumbed to the darkness. I implore you to stand fast. Your time in this world is not over, nor is your mates.”Costin fell to his knees at the mention of Sally. “I miss her,” he admitted. “I miss her so much and I don’t know what to do. I don’t know how to function without her. I lived so long without her, and then boom, there she was, and her light practically blinded me. Her goodness and kindness radiated from her but now she’s gone. She’s just gone.” Costin’s heart felt as though it was going to pound out of his chest as he poured himself out to his Creator. He was so very broken and trying desperately to hold it together.
He felt her hand on his head and the compassion she had for him flowed over him like a raging river. It filled every fiber of his being and he fell forward until he was bracing himself on his hands.
“She is the one I created for you. I did not design you to be an island. I designed you to complement each other. Her weaknesses are your strengths and yours are her strengths. But I also must allow you to go through the trials. Love is never easy. And choosing to love your mate through difficult, painful situations shows what kind of person you have become. You are wise to go to a place where you can control your wolf. Don’t take the easy road and give in. The reward for standing strong is so much better.” She stepped back and Costin stayed kneeling. “Remember you are loved, Costin of the Grey Wolves. I have loved you with an everlasting love and, no matter what, you cannot lose that love.”
Costin felt her presence leave him, but he could still feel her inside of him. He could feel her love. He closed his eyes and let the tears fall. He cried for his mate, he cried for the grace he felt from his Creator, and he cried for all of the lives that would be lost when all was said and done. He phased back to his wolf and once again curled up in the hole at the base of the tree. Morning would come quickly and he would have to push himself to make it to the In Between before Decebel caught up with him. He knew his Alpha felt responsible for his actions. If he could make it to the In Between in time, then he could keep his wolf at bay long enough to explain about the human.
That was his plan, at least. With the way life had been going for the past two weeks, he wasn’t putting a whole lot of stock in it, but he had to do something. He had to hold it together for his mate. Oh, how he missed her.
Chapter 20
“Just when you think life can’t get any weirder. It does. And doesn’t that just make you want to rear back and kick someone in the nuts?” ~ Zara
Skender listened as Alston and Sincaro discussed the best way for the Order to proceed, given that the high fae were apparently aware of their workings in Oceanside. They’d been in touch with the King of the elves, and he’d informed the Order that he was in the process of taking the kingdom back from his son. Skender didn’t see how it could possibly be that easy since Prince Thalion had been leading the elves for many years and they were loyal to him. The situation in Oceanside was much more concerning. Skender had warned Alston that if Peri were involved, then Vasile and his wolves wouldn’t be far behind. Skender knew what would happened if Vasile interfered and it wouldn’t be pretty. Skender had tried warning the Order leaders, but they wouldn’t listen. What pissed him off most is that he was the one who would have to go in and clean up the mess that was left behind when the wolves did come. And if Costin ended up in Oceanside, there was going to be a big ass mess. 
Costin reached the bridge that lead to the entrance of the In Between a few hours after sunrise. His wolf was not excited about going back into that hell hole, but he knew the rules of the In Between. If you went there willingly, seeking sanctuary, the experience wasn’t nearly as bad as when you were placed there for punishment.
He phased back into his human form and put on the shorts he’d carried in his mouth that the Great Luna had provided him. He pulled the three gold pieces out of the pocket. He’d found them lying beside him when he’d woken up. His Creator had provided exactly what he needed in order to gain entrance. The gift was confirmation that the In Between would be able to keep his wolf from going beyond the point of no return.
He started across the bridge and, as he expected, the troll stepped up in front of him, coming from somewhere beneath it.
“No payment, no pass,” he barked.
Costin held out the gold pieces. “I have payment.”
The troll stepped forward and examined the gold. After several long moments, the beast decided that the offering was sufficient. He took the gold and stepped aside so that Costin could cross over.
“Have a nice stay,” the troll cackled.