Unanswered

Callan looked at his father who nodded in approval before meeting the eyes of his Alpha “I want a ceremony on the full moon day to announce Viola as my chosen mate.”

Einar tightly knit his brows as his mate continued to stare at him with hopeful eyes. He squeezed his nose every now and then. His hands twitched and he could feel a vein pulsating in his forehead.

“What did you say?” he menacingly whispered as his nostrils flared. He grinded his teeth while his eyes flickered from brown to devilish scarlet.

Callan could deduce that the Alpha seemed infuriated by his proposal. He did not miss the glint of hatred, the rage and tightening of the alpha’s jaw muscles. Einar seemed angry beyond control..

But why?

“I-I chose V-Viola as my mate..” Callan uttered with his withering confidence.

Burning rage hissed through Einar’s body. How unashamedly could Callan profess his wish to mate someone else? No one was allowed to touch him, to caress him, to be with him other than Einar himself! It was like someone else staking a claim on what rightfully was his..

White knuckles formed from clenching his fist too hard, he gritted his teeth from an effort to remain silent. His hunched form exuded an animosity which was burning; slicing; potent. His face was red with the suppressed rage and when he saw his mate’s desires directed at someone else, he snapped.

He held an end of the table and thrashed it to the wall on the left, breaking it in the process. The papers flew in air like swarming bees. He reached for Callan swiftly and clutched his throat by his bare hands. The circumference of Callan’s jugular was being strangulated by the palms of the alpha.

“How dare you even think of mating any other wolf!” He said venomously.

The aura which emanated through Einar forced the spectators to reluctantly transfer their body weights to their knees. Even Ragnar was not untouched by it as he tried his best to fight this submission and help his dear boy come out of his fury. Justus on the other hand was helpless and shedding tears of misery for he knew that his only son was on the verge of being slaughtered.

Callan however was in his own trance. Though his trachea had been tightly gripped by the Alpha with great power, he hardly felt anything. He on the contrary stared at Einar with defiance. He slowly brought his palm to hold Einar’s hand and threateningly whispered. “Leave me.”

The feel of his touch helped Einar to regain his control. He rapidly blinked his eyes. He gasped and slowly released his hands from the man. Soon after, the men were on their feet and trying to create some distance between Einar and Callan. Though many people stood between them, they stared at each other like they were battling with their eyes.

Einar clicked his thumb with his middle finger and pointed at Callan. “Listen carefully Ashton.. I wont let you mate with Viola or any other wolf. EVER!”

This statement fuelled Callan’s anger and he was about to say something when his father and Peter dragged him outside the chamber forcefully. Ragnar hinted Garrick to take Einar away and so he did.

****

Back in his room, Einar’s frustration was declining to alleviate. His bed was turtled upside down while all the lamp posts had been thrashed. The chairs and tables were broken while glasses were scattered wound into small brittle pieces all around the floor. He paced in anger while smashing his things at the wall.

Garrick stood at a corner and patiently waited for his friend to cool down.

“How could he...” Einar threw a glass at the entrance door. He clenched and unclenched his fist and muttered just those words “How could he..”

“How could he what?” asked Garrick.

“HOW COULD HE EVEN THINK OF MATING SOMEONE ELSE!” Einar gritted his teeth. “He has no right to even look at someone. Who does he thinks he is? I will not allow this.” he blabbered through his rage.

“Calm down Einar. I am sure he will realise that he cant mate any wolf.”

“You don’t know him!” He breathed harshly.

“And you do?” Garrick asked accusingly.

Einar in his own thoughts paced around and replied without filter “Yes. He is very stubborn. He will leave no stone unturned if he desires something.”

Garrick realised that his friend was distracted and found it a suitable opportunity to broach the subject he always avoided. He knew that Einar would not willingly accept everything and hence he decided to use a different approach - Jealousy.

“On second thought. The lady Viola has not found her mate for a long time now so she can demand to have a chosen mate.”

This raged Einar even further “She can have anyone else. ANYONE BUT CALLAN.”

“And why cant she choose Callan?” Garrick raised a brow and narrowed his eyes.

“BECAUSE HE IS....” Einar stopped abruptly and his body trembled as he tried to calm himself. He swallowed his anger when he realised what he was about to reveal.

Garrick stepped closer to his friend and looked him to his eyes “Because he is someone special to you.. Someone close to your heart.. Someone you yearn to be with.. Someone you desire the most..” He almost whispered “I know he is your mate!”

In that very moment Einar knew that he was busted. His hands trembled and his lips quivered. He suddenly moved back and faced the window. “W-What are you saying? T-That’s not true.”

Garrick stepped back and ran his hands through his hair in frustration “STOP PRETENDING EINAR.” he shouted “I know he is your mate. I see the way you look at him, how your jealousy peaks when he talks with someone. How you despise people who even look at him.”

Einar wanted to deny it but he knew whatever Garrick implied was not wrong. The guilt to have kept it hidden from his best friend had made him blameworthy over the years. Alas! It was the moment of truth! He closed his eyes and slowly turned his back to his friend. The rage and anger in him was long gone and replaced by fear and regret. His head low in shame, he whispered “H-How long have you known?”

“A while.”

“Have you told anyone?”

Garrick was perturbed and humiliated by the question “I am not the one who hides secrets from his best friend and I am not the one to spill the beans either.” He scoffed. He held Einar’s arm and turned him around to face him “I am your best friend Einar! I have told you everything that has transpired in my life. Even the minute of the details. But you..” he huffed “You have concealed the biggest and the most important truth of your life. Why? Was I not trusting? Have I ever failed you? Betrayed you? Or were we even friends to begin with?” Garrick’s muscle in his chin trembled, he looked to his friend as if he could sooth him. The strong exterior he portrayed collapsed in that instant and he broke down in Einar’s arms.

Einar’s own eyes were full of despair and guilt. Garrick was the closest being in his life. They had been together through thick and thin over the years and keeping secrets from him was much worse than betraying him. He held a vulnerable Garrick and tried to stabilize him on his feet. He almost pleaded when he looked in his puffy eyes. “No No No No Garrick. You are like a brother to me. I never wanted to hide this from you but I was helpless. I was bound to a promise.”

“A promise by who?” Garrick sniffled.

“Uncle Umberto.”

This caught him off guard “My father? He-He knew about you two?” His father had never been secretive in his entire life. When in his dying days Catherine could sense that his mate was deliberately trying to hide something from her. The desperation and helplessness in his eyes did not go unnoticed by Garrick either. At that time he refuted the thought thinking that Umberto was worried for his family when in reality he was worried for a greater cause.

“Now it all makes sense.” Garrick exhaled a long breath. He wiped his cheeks and closed his eyes to compose himself with a sigh. He looked at Einar with determination. He wanted answers. “When did you first realise that Callan was your mate?” He asked all of a sudden.

Einar sniffled and looked at the window again. “I confirmed my doubts on my sixteenth birthday.”

“So it was even before that.” But Garrick recalled that Einar and Callan were never close. “But as far as I remember as children you stopped playing with him when we were eight and had rarely talked after that.”

“That is what you remember Garrick.” Einar snickered “My memory goes beyond that.”

“How?”

Einar held the hem of the curtain and looked at a tree dancing to the tunes of the wind from the window, reminiscing his old memories. He spoke with a smile “Even as kids I liked to spend time with him. In fact were always together; almost inseparable. I used to share my food, my toys and even my clothes with him. He was so special to me.”

“Yes I do remember that. Even at the dining table you would insist that he sits with you. But if you both were so close than what changed?”

He jerked his face to Garrick “Did you know that our birthdays fall on the same day?”

“Really!” Garrick’s was a bit surprised by the new information “I never knew that.” he whispered to himself “So that’s the reason I never see him celebrating his birthday.”

Einar turned to face the window again with his hands behind his back. “Its not your fault actually. Very few people know that. As kids we used to celebrate our birthdays together. He was at my side for the entire day. On one such fateful birthdays my father presented us with two identical wooden toys. A wolf.” He smiled as his eyes sparkled remembering the moment. “I was very happy to see the joy in Callan’s face when he hugged the toy. Days later he got busy playing with his own toy and neglected me. That was the first time I snapped.”

“What did you do?”

“We had a fight and I punched him.” Einar’s smile faltered. “I was angry for he refused to play with me. In a fit of rage I broke his toy and got in a tussle with him.” He bowed down and lowly whispered “I was scared, angry that he would choose someone else over me and so I reacted.”

“That’s the reason he doesn’t celebrate his birthday with you.”

Einar slowly nodded “He was human so he was fragile. My parents knew my temper tantrums and hence suggested Callan’s parents to let him play outside of the Alpha house. Away from me.” Einar sighed and paused for a moment “I felt remorse when I saw the bruises on his lips and jaw. I thought this was my punishment.”

“Then you started hanging out with me.” He chuckled.

“Yes. You proved a great distraction. It wasn’t as if I forgot Callan. It saddened me deeply to not be with him but I knew we were happy this way. I used to talk to him on occasions but that was that.”

Indeed that was their relationship. Garrick recalled that as kids Einar and Callan would play separately. They never showed interest in each others company while they talked only when it was necessary. “What happened next?”

Einar’s eyes narrowed “It was all good for the following years until that tragic incident.”

Garrick perceived what Einar was talking about and gasped “The attack of the dragon!”

Einar nodded slowly “My senses were on a high alert that day, like my life was in danger. Something inside of me was pulling me towards the deep woods. I dragged you with me and we found an injured Callan trying to save himself. You got hurt of course. When I saw the dragon inching towards him; I snapped again.”

Garrick nodded in understanding “The shedim spirit was awakened.” He realised that the assumptions of the elders and the pack council failed as the spirit was forced to awaken to save its mate and did not show itself on its own as was previously thought.

“It was the first time I had killed someone but it felt good. How twisted was that!” He chuckled in sarcasm “And that was when I smelled him.”

Garrick looked bewildered for a moment before raising an eyebrow “Callan? Impossible!! He has no smell.”

“He does. It is very faint; but it is there and it drives me crazy.” He gritted his teeth as if even mentioning that delicious scent of his mate was making him weak to the knees right now. “When he was in the healers cottage he asked for his friends company- The witch. She seemed very fond of him. Their closeness incited a feeling so strong in me that I wanted to kill the healer then and there. It was jealousy.”

Garrick remembered the day very vividly. The dragon had attacked Callan when he was on his own in the woods. Callan was helpless and could not defend himself because he fell down and broke his leg. Garrick scowled and looked at his friend “His leg was so damaged that he couldn’t walk but all of a sudden his injuries vanished just like that. Was it you?”

Einar took a deep breathe “I could not take it. The veins pulsating in me were making me frustrated. The desperation to see him healthy and fine overtook my senses and I visited him. I turned into my wolf and licked all of his injuries.”

Garrick was flabbergasted with what he heard “But we were thirteen back then! For mates to do that they have to come of age and properly mate.”

“Everything is twisted in our case I guess.” Einar chuckled.

As a thirteen year old to go through such a trauma would have been hard. What worried Garrick the most was that his best friend had to endure it all alone. “You should have told me.”

Einar lowered his head and sighed “I was confused and scared. I did try to tell you once but you rebuffed me and thought I was joking.”

Indeed. He remembered Einar coming to him and expressing his weird feelings and happenings when was around Callan. Back then Garrick thought that he was bluffing or playing tricks on him. He could not comprehend that it all could be true. “I am so sorry.”

Einar waved his hand expressing that it was all in the past and he continued “After that incident, I became wary of his closeness so I decided to stay away from him to clear my mind. But it never happened. The more I was away from him the more deranged I was becoming. I was so mad when the news of his shifting base reached my ears, I threw a tantrum at my father that we need to move our Alpha house to the western borders. It took days for me to calm down.” Garrick squeezed Einar’s arm to control his emotions and give him support which he so longed “I still remember that I used to wake up early and do my chores before time to sit near the chair at the entrance and wait for him to arrive.”

Initially Garrick thought Einar’s behaviour was weird but he remembered that even in their training sessions Einar would make everyone wait for Callan to arrive. Talking of training he remembered a trivial incident of the past “Tell me about Roderick. Why did you hit him?”

“He was training with Callan. They were being taught to use muscle strength and you know what a poser that douche was. He undressed his shirt to impress the girls and asked Callan to do the same. But I saw what no one else could. The way he looked at Callan, the way his eyes flickered around his body. He wanted him!” His nostrils flared as he gritted his teeth to calm his beasts. “I was working on my self control those days but I was skeptical at that moment. The douche than just launched himself at Callan and they fell back to the ground. He was on top of my mate and all of a sudden nibbled his ears. That is why I lost it.”

“I knew you had a reason to hit him that day. Roderick was so scared that he left the main village and settled with his grandparents” Garrick snickered.

“I was reprimanded for what I had done. I realised I was becoming a bad person; a Monster, and it was all because of that green eyed boy.”

Garrick wanted to repudiate all allegations that were imposed on his best friend but he knew there was truth in what people said and it all started on his sixteenth birthday. “Tell me about the day my father was attacked.” Garrick almost choked.

Einar became more alert recalling that horrible day. His stance was grim “I was barely holding myself that day. It was as if a thousand gallons of water could not quench my thirst. I wanted Callan so bad. I managed to somehow control myself during the gifting but when we were on the run, uncle Umberto caught hold of my secret. He was really disappointed but he understood that I was not at fault. And then the attack came.”

“You left everyone abruptly because you sensed Callan was in danger.”

Einar nodded “I ran as fast as I could but when I reached the spot, lets just say that it was the most dreadful moment of my life.” A side of his lips curved as he huffed in his nostalgia.

“Why? What transpired.”

A red fury gained momentum in Einar’s eyes. His jaws trembled as his entire body was shaking in anger. “The woodcutters girl stole my first kiss with Callan. I was devastated, heartbroken and enraged at the audacity of the girl to malign my mate, make him impure.”

Garrick suddenly realised that the woodcutters daughter was found dead the very next day of the incident near the river. “Don’t tell me you had something to do with her death.” Garrick questioned his friend but Einar never responded and kept his stance. Garrick’s eyes widened as he whispered in shock “No..!”

In response Einar just took the curtain cloth in his fist and strangled it to curb his anger. “I could not get it out of my head. Those lips were mine to behold, mine to feel, mine to kiss and that stupid girl robbed me of my right. So I went after her that day and attacked her. She begged for mercy and even apologised but I was not having it. All I knew was I had to kill the girl and get her away from Callan forever.” he hissed in fury.

Garrick was taken aback. “But she never knew! How could you do that!?” he roared. “She was the only child to her parents.”

Einar gulped as beads of his guilt slid down from the corner of his eyes. “I know and I feel deep remorse for the killings but I could not control myself. The wolf in me had to be satiated. Make sure that there is no one else to stake a claim...”

“Wait a minute..” Garrick interjected as his lips quivered “You said killings.. How many more people have you killed Einar?” He looked to his friend desperately searching for answers he was not ready for.

Einar clenched and unclenched his fingers for a long amount of time. He let the tear drops flow freely as he looked to the side where his bewildered friend stood. “Seven.”

To say Garrick was startled was an understatement. Words had left him. He failed to recognise the man who stood in front him. This could not be his friend. He was a man who bloodied his hands with the deaths of innocents. This man destroyed other lives just to quench his want for his mate. He was a Monster.

With his lips trembling Garrick started connecting all the dots in his head. “Declan.”

“He snaked his arms around Callan so I killed him.”

“Miriam.”

Einar snickered in distaste “She wanted to see his penis.”

All of a sudden Garrick remembered something or rather someone. He wanted to believe this to just be a false suspicion. He was afraid for it to be true. With hesitation he gulped and slowly whispered “And Kamryn? Did you..” he gulped in fear ” Did you k-kill him too.”

Einar lowered his eyes in shame and looked aside.

Garrick gasped in shock “How could you!? He was old! How was he even a threat to you or your mate.” He roared

“His closeness to Callan unnerved me. I tried to reason with my mind but the beast in me wasn’t having it.” Einar looked at his friend apologetically “Believe me Garrick I did not wanted to harm anyone of them but I had no control over my myself.”

Garrick realised that these weren’t just killings; it was madness. Yes mates do things in love and protection but this was something else. it was beyond possessiveness, a grim warning to be away from Callan and a stake to claim Callan as his mate to the entire world. People just don’t go on killing other people for their mates! What was worse was that Callan and Einar had not even been bonded than how in the world would’ve any of the deceased heed the warning? Clearly Einar’s mind was demented. “It wasn’t fair to anyone of them. You should have asked for help Einar.”

“I did.” Einar hanged his head in shame “I confessed everything to the elders and they put me behind bars to control my thirst to kill. Those days in the dark dungeons gave a new perspective to my life. I thought about everything that happened and concluded just one thing.” he gritted his teeth “Callan was responsible.” he spoke the words ever so slowly.

“How was he responsible?”

Einar witnessed the atmosphere outside the window changing. The once waving tree tops were standing in attention. He huffed and sighed “He used to stir up my emotions like no other. It was becoming worse day after day. I was becoming an abomination. I never really cared about anyone until and unless it had to do something with Callan. I hated the fact that my life revolved around him. So I requested the elders to let me participate in the training before time.”

“The kings land.”

Einar kept his eyes to the window and nodded. “I wanted to be as far away from him as possible. I had a plan. I just had to keep the beasts at bay and I could control myself, turn into a new man.”

“The locket helped.”

“Immensely.” he turned to look at his friend “I was free from the thoughts of Callan finally. The beasts were there but I had full control over my mind and body. It felt exhilarating, liberating. For once I did not had to care about that stupid boy, but I knew that it wont last...”

“You would’ve met Callan some day or other.” Garrick completed Einar’s unspoken words.

“Exactly. So I trained myself hard, focused my skills to gain control on my senses. You being there helped me a lot and I could see the change in me that I always wanted.”

Garrick understood Einar’s need to be in control. He grasped as much that Callan influenced his emotions on another level. But what he could not comprehend was the role his current mate Rosaline had to play in his story. “How does Rosaline fit in the picture?”

Einar closed his eyes for a moment and sighed “I met her in the penultimate year when she was crossing a river. We connected and began a conceited friendship on her request.”

“Why?”

“There were people on her lookout. You see her mate had died when she was thirteen. He belonged to the same pack, ten years older to her. Her pack was ambushed and everything dear to her was lost. She with other survivors, took shelter with the kings people.”

“You introduced me and everyone else to Rosaline in our last year. Why did you wait so long?”

Einar tasted the air and dampened his dry lips before answering “People started noticing her being without a mate. After she turned eighteen she would have been forced to join the harem. So I came up with a solution; I asked her to be my chosen mate and escape this life.”

“And she agreed?”

“Not at first.” He replied quickly “It took a lot of convincing.”

Garrick thought that bringing Rosaline into the scenario was immoral. The poor lady was unaware how maniacal Einar’s beasts can behave. All because of a mystery mate of his. “Does she know about Callan?”

“Not exactly. She knows that I have a mate. I have told her that my mate is not a wolf and hence not acceptive of me.”

“How ironical!” Garrick chuckled. The fact was that the mate in question did not even knew about the other half of his soul being the leader of the pack himself. Einar never gave him a chance of even acknowledging the bond. How can he be at fault? But what disturbed him more was Einar’s behaviour. He claimed to not want him but his actions suggested otherwise.

“What about Callan? Do you want him as a mate?”

Einar lowered his head to think about what Garrick had said. He chuckled at the thought and looked at his friend, shaking his head “You have to understand this Garrick. The way I react whenever I am around my mate is not my doing. Its the beasts. I don’t love my mate but they do.”

“Just in case if you....” Garrick could not complete his sentence for he was stunned and completely shocked to see Callan on the entrance door.

********

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