Chapter 140

Dylan POV.

I drove in silence, my mind doing nothing but flashing back to the death of my father. I was going to be on edge all night now, I just knew it.

I could feel Lewis glancing at me every few seconds out of worry, I had just killed someone, yet, the shake in my hands were from anger and not from guilt.

"I'm ok, Lewis." I sighed keeping my hands firmly squeezing the steering wheel in front of me, my knuckles were turning white from the tightness of them. I gritted my teeth and looked out at the calm night sky. The practically full moon shone so bright that even I couldn't help but marvel at its tranquil beauty, while the thousands of stars that danced around it, shone down on us, providing a phantom warmth from to flow through me.

"You did what that man wanted. He was in pain and he asked you..." Lewis, didn't have to justify my actions to me, I would do them again in a heartbeat, and so I sighed again and glanced at him, taking my eyes off the path ahead of me for a split second.

"I know! I'm ok, really." I stared a little bit too long at the man beside me and the truck veered left, my eyes widened and a small squeal left my lips as I quickly turned the wheel right to straighten the car out. "Jeez!"

"How new are you to driving?" Lewis asked before grabbing the small handle that rested on the roof of the truck over where he was sitting.

"I told you, I can't drive. I don't know why you let me behind this wheel." I stated quickly looking over the dash board at the numerous buttons and levers.

"I'm starting to wonder that myself." I rolled my eyes but half heartedly smiled at his attempt to ease the tension. My knuckles still clutched onto the wheel tightly, even more so now that I was hyper aware of my speed and trajectory.

By the time we made it back to the pack house it was eerily quiet. Everyone was asleep in bed or patrolling the grounds. I didn't know what to do with the body in the back of the truck, so I looked to Lewis for help.

"What do we do with him?" I asked sadly as I stared at the closed rear doors in front of me. "I can't just leave him in there."

I felt a pang of sadness wash over me again as I thought about his final moments. How in pain he must have been, how I, of all people, was his only comfort. I felt the phantom touch of his once warm hand on mine as it clutched at me tightly.

"I'll tell the pack doctor to come and get him." Lewis stated, the man was at rest now, I wanted him to bee comfortable.

"I'll wait here until the doctor comes. You should go in, and get some rest." I knew he wasn't going to. I knew that there was no way Lewis was going to leave me alone, not after everything that had happened tonight.

It felt almost like a punishment... after what transpired between me and Lewis intimately, I thought I was finally on my way to being happy, on my way to actually be content with things, and then this happened... I just don't think I'm destined for pleasure.

"I'll stay here with you then. It's a nice night, and I'm enjoying the view with the girl I love. What more could I ask for?" Lewis was a rare diamond in a sea filled with coal. He was like my helium, all he had to do was speak and I began feeling lighter than I had previously. I watched as his eyes glazed over slightly, and his look became distant. I had no doubt he was mindlinking the doctor about what had transpired.

I found it so fascinating watching him mind link someone up close. His eyes were a bit creepy actually. They didn't move at all, they simply remained staring into the distance, they were eerily unblinking yet very captivating. I couldn't turn away.

By the time he had come back to the present his eyes landed on mine, a comical smile played on his lips and a small confused frown took over his features.

"What?" He asked as he looked at my engrossed and studying eyes.

"Do all lycans not blink when they use that mindlink thing?" I asked the hint of a giggle played on my lips as he nudged me gently.

"Oh yeah, lycans, mated humans, we all do the same." He stated widening his eyes so comically that he drew out a chuckle of my own.

As we both stood still, waiting for the inevitable arrival of the pack doctor, One of Lewis's large arms gently wrapped around my upper back and shoulders, and it effortlessly pulled me into a large embrace, I closed my eyes while I relished in it. His heartbeat was firm and steady, which in turn calmed me down immensely.

"Why are you so damn perfect?" I asked suddenly, drawing his attention away from the moon and the stars. His eyes glistened with joy as my word sunk in.

"I could quite easily say that of you." He countered chuckling slightly as he thought about it. My face must have scrunched up at his words because he chuckled even more, squeezing me a little firmer for a split second before simply holding me again.

My tired head rested on his shoulder, and a stressed out huff left my lips. I was tired of fighting with everything I had, and I was tired of sacrificing so much of myself and having nothing to show for it.

The silence was deafening, both of us were just reveling in each other’s presence, it wasn’t awkward in the slightest but, if I didn’t initiate conversation then I would have fallen asleep where we stood.

"Tell me about Iliana!" I finally plucked up the courage to ask about his previous mate. I wasn't oblivious to his and Oliver's argument the other day. The girl had obviously passed away, and by the way they were talking, I would say she was murdered. I could help but think that if she hadn't have died, then I wouldn't be here right now, with Lewis holding me in his arms.

"Iliana?" I felt him go ridged at the very sound of her name. His fingers dug into my skin ever so slightly, and I realized I may have overstepped a boundary.

"Yeah, I just thought maybe you wanted to talk about it. Oliver said You attacked the old king? Was it because of her death?" I asked slowly stepping out of his embrace so that I could face him head on. "I'm not an idiot, I know you must have done something to become the kings beta."

"I'm not proud of my actions, Dylan. What I did is unforgivable." My chest tightened as I glanced at the man in front of me. All of a sudden he looked vulnerable, and I wanted nothing more than to figure out why.

"I don't think so." God, I really had changed. If I had found out things about him months ago before I developed these feelings, then I probably would have attempted to kill him. "If it was really that unforgivable, then you wouldn't be here, trying to help to bring back prosperity." In my eyes it didn't matter what he had done in the past, things were different now, and despite all the odds he was attempting to better the world.

"The second I turned 17 I knew Iliana was my mate." He stated sighing as he let his eyes wander away from my own piercing glare. "It was ridiculous to the both of us, because we were genuinely such good friends, we didn’t really see each other as anything more, and her heart belonged to Josh, but it was clear as day, we had been paired together." The look in his eyes worried me slightly, because he held nothing but fondness for the girl. I couldn't help but be a little jealous actually, even though I know she was no longer with us.

"The rejection, we’ll that part was pretty much mutual. I wasn't going to force her to be with me when she only had eyes for Josh, but I suppose she never got the chance to tell him." He shrugged his shoulders and sighed finally looking at my curious once more before finally telling me how she died. "Josh said she was killed by hunters.”

“Hunters? As in lycan hunters?!” The notion was so strange to me. But he confirmed that that was what he said with a single nod before explaining.

“They were humans. Before the new world humans used to form groups that would hunt down us wolves and slaughter us in the worst ways possible. Some even ran experiments on us." It was amazing to hear his story, especially as it was in his own words, it was made all the worse when I realized that he was my age when all this happened.

"By the time I got to her, Josh had already beat me, he was stood over her, covered in blood himself. I had no doubt in my mind he had done everything he could have to try and help her." He swallowed thickly, trying his hardest not to cry, but failing as he remembered everything. "I'll never forget the strong scent of wolfsbane coming from her, it was as if they had bathed her in it before cutting her up. In that moment I’m guilty of not being able to stop my anger." I felt my stomach drop, nothing but pure emotion rested in his now glassy eyes. My hand rose to him, in an attempt to comfort him, but he stepped away abruptly, turning his head and aggressively wiping his orbs.

"I didn't know humans were so cruel to your kind." I admitted being slightly shocked at his story. Of course I knew full well that the two species werent completely separated by anatomy. There were some good wolves and some bad ones, just like there were good and bad humans.

"It's why the new world was planned in the first place. We were being forced to hide who we were, and then we were being hunted down simply for being different. Josh's dad swore that his plan would be to put a Lycan on the throne who would declare that lycanthropy wasn't something to be hidden. We would be able to come out of hiding and show the world our forms, while simultaneously making it completely illegal to hunt any of us." He began to fidget where he stood.

“Josh told me that the old king would never act out against the humans, he was pacifistic, he was old and he ruled with a kind heart. So he said if I helped them infiltrate the palace, then his dad could kill the king, and take over. At the time, it seemed like it was my only option, so I took all my anger and attacked the palace that night…” his hands began to visibly shake as he thought about it. He must have slaughtered so many people with them. I could see his face paling as he reminded himself of all the hurt he caused.

“It worked, and the new world was introduced a few months later. Except, I didn’t know just how bad the new world was… not until I met you in that school hallway. Your attitude of hatred matched mine from years ago. Except it was aimed at us… at my people. I had no idea how much you all had suffered, and I finally opened my eyes, in the span of five years, we had become the hunters.”