“What are you doing?” he growled.

Cynthia held up a finger and hoped that he wouldn’t bite it off. She pressed the send button and then looked up at him.

“I realize that whatever it is that you are dealing with is sensitive and private. The person I just asked to come can be trusted. Please trust me.”

Decebel could see the sincerity in the doctor’s eyes. Though he didn’t really want to trust her, what other choice did he have?

“Fine.”

Just as the word was out of his lips, Elle appeared next to Cynthia. She glanced from Cynthia to Decebel and huffed. “This is going to be bad isn’t it?”  she asked.

Decebel looked at Cynthia with tight lips and a raised brow. It was very much a look that said what the hell doc?

“You say I can trust her?”

Cynthia nodded and then looked at Elle.

“Elle, now would be the time to reassure the obviously upset Alpha that he can trust you so that he doesn’t make you a snack before dinner.”

Elle let out a quick breath. “Right, um, you can trust me, Decebel.”

“No matter what I tell you? You cannot share it with Sorin.” He narrowed his eyes at her and took a step forward.

To Elle’s credit she did not back away.

“Yes, no matter what you tell me. And I won’t tell Sorin anything that you do not want me to. I’m capable of keeping my thoughts guarded.”

He told Elle the same thing he had told Cynthia and then waited for the fae’s response.

“I can put a block in your mind that will be triggered as you relax into sleep. Unfortunately, Jen will be able to tell that it’s there. There is nothing I can do to prevent that.”

Decebel would have preferred she make it appears as if his mind was just blank as he slept so that Jennifer wouldn’t think there was anything wrong, but at this point she knew something was up and as much as he hated it, this was his only option.

“Fine,” he told her gruffly. “Do what you must.”

Elle stepped towards him slowly as if approaching a beast that could rip her to pieces in a matter of seconds. She cringed inwardly as she realized that was exactly what she was doing; only the beast was an alpha Canis lupus.

“I have to touch your head,” she told him as she raised her arms.

Decebel knelt down so that she could reach him. She placed her hands on either side of his head and began to speak in a language that he didn’t understand. He felt warmth radiating from her skin and his scalp tingled. Then it was gone, as well as her hands.

“That’s it?” he asked.

Elle nodded.

“Why does everything with the fae seem so anticlimactic?”  Cynthia asked absently.

Elle smiled. “Peri likes to make a show of it, but the theatrics are more for intimidation rather than necessity.”

“For some reason, that doesn’t surprise me,” Decebel said dryly.

Elle smirked. “Well can you blame her? She’s older than the seventh layer of the earth. She has to get her kicks somehow.”

After reiterating several times to Elle and Cynthia that they were to keep silent, he left them and headed toward the indoor garden. It was the only place he knew to go to find solitude and privacy. He walked all the way to the back and took a small amount of something akin to peace from the rippling of the indoor creek and trickling sound the water made as it flowed over the rocks. Life seemed simple in here surrounded by nature, no matter that it was created by man rather than out in the open somewhere. His wolf longed for the forest, the smells of the earth, trees, and water. He longed to run with his mate alongside him, playing with him as they had done so many times. He forced himself to push those memories aside and to focus on the present.

He knelt when he reached the farthest corner of the garden and closed his eyes. His mind reached out to their Creator and he prayed she would hear him.

“Why is it that you insist on worrying that I will not come when you call?” The Great Luna sat before him on the steps that led up to the gazebo where a swing hung silently.

“I suppose that I feel very insignificant in this large world and imagine that you must have more important things to do,” Decebel admitted.

She smiled gently at him. “Well, there is nothing more important than one of my own seeking me out. It takes great strength to kneel and ask another for help, to know that you cannot do it on your own, and I never intended for you to.”

“Thank you,” Decebel told her and the words felt dry in his mouth as he knew they did not convey the gratefulness that he felt.

“I have some questions,” he paused and waited.

She nodded for him to go on.

“When will the bond be broken?”

He noticed that her eyes grew sad as she watched him. “It cannot be undone all at once. If I were to take the bond away immediately it could kill you both as you are of one soul. It must be done slowly, gradually, and even then it will be painful for you both.”

“Is there anything that will make it easier on her?” Decebel felt his wolf fighting him, the wolf did not agree with what the man was doing. His wolf was convinced that they could find another way to save their pup.

“Physical distance between you would help. As you know, you crave each other’s presence and touch. It makes the bond stronger.”

Decebel’s head fell forward as her words wrapped his heart in an icy cold embrace. The idea of not being with his mate, especially if these were his last months with her, made him sick and angry at the same time. He didn’t know how he would leave her. How could he? She would more than likely kill him if he told her he would need to be away from her. And what excuse could he possibly give her?

“Alpha, are you sure this is what you want?” The Great Luna met his eyes and the care and empathy he saw there comforted him briefly.

“Can’t you do something?” he asked and the words came out through a deep growl that he could not control.

“I have given you all free will. I do not force my own desires and will upon you, making you mindless robots. It is because of that free will that you sometimes choose things with consequences that are difficult to bear. Jennifer was offered a way out of death, a death that was meant to happen. And because of that there are consequences. She will face the consequences of her choice in one form or another. Don’t mistake my words for uncaring. It breaks my heart to see my children hurt. It pulls from me the deepest of grief and I mourn with you.” She stood up and walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. He felt peace rush through him and let out a slow breath.