Ch. 49
I pull my hand back from Wake’s as if I’ve been burned, the warmth that had been spreading through me replaced by a cold, creeping dread. My breath catches in my throat, and I struggle to process what I’ve just seen—what I’ve just felt.
“That was you,” I murmur, more to myself than to him. “You were there when I was a child. You’ve known about me all this time…”
Wake watches me with those intense eyes, his expression unreadable. “Yes, Pho-ebe,” he says quietly. “I have known you since that day. We have been connected since then. It was destiny that brought us together.”
“Destiny?” The word tastes bitter on my tongue. “How can you say that? You’ve been manipulating me from the start, haven’t you? You touched my mind, you knew everything about me, and you never said a word.”
Wake frowns, clearly not understanding why I’m reacting this way. “It was not manipulation, Pho-ebe. It was meant to be. My people believe in destiny, in the bonds that tie us to one another. You are my mate, and I am yours. This connection between us is sacred.”
“Sacred?” I laugh, but there’s no humor in it, only a rising sense of panic. “How am I supposed to believe that? How do I know that anything I feel for you is real? For all I know, you’ve been messing with my head, making me think I have feelings for you. You even invaded my dreams, didn’t you?”
His eyes narrow slightly, his gaze hardening. “Pho-ebe, this bond is not something I created. It is a force greater than either of us. It is real.”
But I can’t accept that, not after everything I’ve just realized. My heart is pounding in my chest, my thoughts a chaotic swirl of fear and confusion. “You’ve been in control this whole time,” I accuse, my voice shaking. “You’ve known about this connection, about me, and you kept it to yourself. How can I trust anything you say?”
Wake’s expression darkens, frustration and anger flashing in his eyes. “You are letting your fear cloud your judgment, Pho-ebe. I have not manipulated you. I have only ever tried to protect you.”
“Protect me?” My voice rises with a sharp edge of disbelief. “You’ve been keeping me in the dark, letting me think that all of this—these feelings—were mine. How am I supposed to trust that when you’ve been hiding the truth from me?”
Wake’s eyes darken with frustration, the tension in the air between us growing thicker by the second. His normally calm demeanor is cracking, revealing a tempest beneath the surface.
“You humans in your ignorance,” he growls, his voice low and dangerous. “Do you think I chose to be some pawn in a game played by gods? I am as much a prisoner to their will as you are.”
I start to get up, my anger flaring again at his words. “I don’t know anything about your gods, Wake, and they don’t get to dictate how I feel. My emotions are mine, not theirs, not yours.”
“Stop being so damn stubborn,” he snaps, his patience clearly wearing thin. Before I can react, he grabs me by the back of the head, his fingers tangling roughly in my hair. His grip is firm, almost possessive, as he pulls me toward him.
“Wake, what are you—”
His lips crash against mine, cutting off my protest. The kiss is fierce, demanding, and it catches me completely off guard. I can feel his frustration, his desperation, in the way he kisses me, as if trying to convey everything he’s feeling in that one heated moment. I try to pull back, but his hold on me tightens, and suddenly, I’m not just feeling his emotions—I’m seeing them.
The world around me shifts violently, like being pulled through a vortex. My senses are overwhelmed as I’m plunged into another vision, but this one is different. It’s raw, unfiltered, and it’s not just a memory—it’s his reality.
I’m standing on a cliff overlooking a stormy sea, the wind whipping through my hair, the air thick with the scent of salt and rain. The sky is dark, angry clouds swirling above like a brewing tempest. Below, the ocean roils and crashes against jagged rocks, the waves foaming with fury. It’s a scene of chaos, of nature’s unbridled power, and I feel the weight of something immense and ancient pressing down on me.
Wake is there, standing beside me, but this isn’t the Wake I know. This version of him is younger, less hardened by time, but there’s a fierce determination in his eyes that I recognize. He’s looking out over the sea, his expression one of grim resolve.
“They told me I was chosen,” he says, his voice echoing in the vastness around us. “The gods themselves decreed that I would be the one to find her, to find you. But they never told me what it would cost.”
The scene shifts again, and now we’re beneath the waves, deep in the ocean where light barely penetrates. The water is cold, oppressive, and there’s a sense of isolation here that chills me to the bone. I see Wake swimming alone through the dark waters, his movements powerful yet somehow burdened. The deeper he goes, the more the pressure builds, and I can feel it too—the crushing weight of expectation, of duty.
“I was trained to be a warrior, a leader,” his voice continues, though I can’t see him now, only the endless darkness. “But they never told me how it would feel to be bound by something greater than myself. They never told me that the bond would be so…consuming.”
Suddenly, the darkness around me erupts into light, blinding and brilliant. I’m thrown into another scene, this one more vivid, more intense. Wake is there, but he’s not alone. He’s surrounded by others like him—his people, his kin. They’re engaged in battle, fighting against enemies I can barely comprehend. The water churns with the violence of it all, and I can feel the raw power of each strike, each clash of wills.
But amidst the chaos, I feel something else—something darker, more sinister. A presence that looms over everything, massive and terrifying. It’s the creature from my nightmares, the one that haunts the edges of my mind. I can sense its hunger, its rage, and it’s directed at Wake, at his people.
“They told me I would have the strength to face this,” Wake’s voice says, tinged with bitterness. “But they never told me that it would feel like losing myself. Like losing you.”
The vision shifts again, and this time, I’m back on that cliff, the storm still raging around us. Wake is staring at me, his eyes burning with a mixture of anger and something else—something more vulnerable, more human.
“You understand nothing,” he says, his voice rough. “This bond between us isn’t just some arbitrary decision made by the gods. It’s real. The future of my people depends on it.”
I can feel the pull of the bond he’s talking about, the way it tugs at the edges of my consciousness, the way it makes everything between us feel more intense, more inevitable. But instead of feeling comforted, I feel trapped, suffocated by the weight of it all.
The world around us shatters into a million pieces, and I’m lost in the depths of his mind, his memories, his pain. And through it all, I can’t help but wonder if I’ll ever find my way back to what’s real.
The vision is overwhelming, the intensity of it nearly suffocating. I can barely breathe, barely think, as I’m assaulted by the sheer scale of the destruction. And then, just as suddenly as it began, it’s over. I’m back in the tank room, gasping for air, my heart hammering in my chest.
“What was that?” I demand, my voice trembling with terror and anger. “What the hell was that, Wake?”
Wake is breathing heavily, clearly affected by what he just showed me. “That is the fate of my people. You want to know more about us, this is the reality,” he says, his voice rough.
I shake my head, trying to make sense of it all. “Why are you showing me this? What am I supposed to do with this?”
“I needed you to understand,” he replies, his tone desperate now. “This is why I have been searching for you, why I had to find you. You are my mate. That means nothing to you, but it will mean everything to my people.”
The word “mate” rings in my ears, but it feels hollow now, tainted by everything I’ve just learned. I don’t know what to believe anymore. I don’t know if I can trust the feelings I have, or if they’ve been twisted by whatever psychic bond he claims we share.
“You have to let me in, Pho-ebe,” Wake says, his voice softer now, almost pleading. “We don’t have time for doubt. The threat is real, and if we don’t act, it will be too late.”
But all I can feel is the weight of betrayal, the fear that everything between us has been a lie. How am I supposed to save his people, when I’m not even sure I can save myself from him?
“Give me time,” I whisper, my voice barely audible. “I need time to think.”
Wake looks at me, and for the first time, I see something like regret in his eyes. He nods slowly, though I can tell it costs him. “But not too much time, Pho-ebe,” he warns, his voice a low rumble. “We do not have much left.”
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