The Blood Moon Twins
Chapter 35

CAULDER

\tThe look on Remy's face was one I didn't recognize. She had grown and matured, and I had completely missed it. She was fierce and ready to fight for this man I knew nothing about. I hated it but was proud of her at the same time. \t"You like him, don't you?" It was obvious. The way she stood in front of him to protect him from me. It all clicked together. When she was screaming earlier, it wasn't because she was scared for herself. She was scared for him. \tRemy tensed at my question, which only confirmed my suspicions. She opened her mouth to speak, but she couldn't seem to get the words out of her mouth.

\t"He's a vampire," I said. How could she like a vampire? My tone was harsher than I had planned for, but after replaceing out that it was a group of vampires who were trying to release the creature that attempted to kill Remy, I had grown a vile taste for the beings. \t"What's that supposed to mean?" She took a step back. Her face twisted, and she looked on edge.

\t"Vampires are dangerous. Don't you understand that? I get that you think this guy is helping you, but you don't know him. You don't know his real intentions. For all you know, he's using you to learn more information about this pack, and then when you least expect it, he'll turn his back on you." If she knew everything that was going on, she wouldn't even entertain this vampire.

\t"Blade wouldn't do that." She stared at me with a confidence that was new to her. It fit her well, even if it was frustrating for me.

\t"You don't know this Blade." I hated him, and I hated his name.

\t"You don't know Blade, but if you took two seconds to process what you saw tonight, you would understand that he isn't dangerous. When he thought you were attacking us, he made sure I was safe and let you attack him. He didn't want to leave me alone, because he wanted to protect me. Are you so blind that you can't see that?"

\t"Are you so dumb that you don't see the danger you are putting yourself in?" I needed her to understand the situation, even if it took me being harsh. \t"Blade is my mate!" she snapped.

\tMy body froze, and I didn't know what to say. The moment I found out Harper was my mate, I couldn't get her off my mind. If this Blade was truly Remy's mate, she would never see reason with the dangers of meeting up with a vampire. I didn't even realize werewolves could mate with a vampire. It made sense though, since our grandparents were mates and one was a sorcerer and one was a vampire. There were plenty of werewolves who never found their mate, and part of me often wondered if it was because their mates weren't werewolves. I had just never thought much about vampires before. Of course it was a possibility.

\t"Do you really think he's trustworthy?" My voice was softer now.

\t"I do, and if you gave him a chance, you would see it, too. He wants to help train the pack in case of an attack from vampires. He wants to stop this creature from attacking all together." Remy's tone calmed down as well.

\tl ran my fingers through my hair and started pacing. I didn't know what to do. There were dangerous vampires out there, and I didn't trust that this Blade had truly good intentions. However, I did trust Remy. Even with a mate bond affecting her, Remy wasn't the type to be rash with boys.

\t"I don't know," I finally said. "I trust you, and I want to believe this guy is good, but I don't know how to. I don't know him or his intentions. If there's even the slightest chance he'll hurt you, I don't think I can trust him."

\tRemy moved forward, closing the distance between us. She grabbed my hand and squeezed it. "You won't always be able to protect me, Caulder. We're the same age. You don't have to follow me and protect me for the rest of your life."

\tl knew Remy and I were the same age, but it was hard not to want to protect her from the world. She was a big part of my world, and I couldn't imagine one without her. "I'll never stop wanting to protect you. Soon it'll be my responsibility to protect the pack, and you are included in that."

\t"I know, but I need you to trust me. I need you to give me space and stop treating me like I'm this fragile flower."

\t"It's not that I don't trust you. I don't trust this world. You were attacked, and if I hadn't shifted and caught you, you would have been swallowed whole in that c***k. You could have died on our birthday. You are in even more danger than you realize, and I can't stand the idea of losing you!" I was yelling by the end of my response. It wasn't intentional, but it was hard not to raise my voice when the fear of losing Remy filled me to the core.

\tRemy let go of my hand and stepped back. "If I'm in so much danger, then why can't you or anyone else tell me what's going on? I could help. Mom and Dad might think that I'm too weak to protect myself, but I'm not."

\tl wanted to scream to release the pressure building up inside of me. I couldn't keep doing this, not when Remy looked at me like I was the enemy. "You're asking me to trust you with Blade, and I don't know if I can trust him, but I will trust you. I need your trust in return, though. I need you to trust me that the more you know about what's going on, the more danger you will be in."

\t"That doesn't make sense," Remy snapped back. "If I knew what was going on, then I could prepare. I could help this pack. I could play a role for once. I just want to help."

\tl stepped forward and grabbed Remy's hand. "I know it doesn't make sense. I hate it. I don't want to keep all of these secrets from you. I swear. But the moment I tell you what's going on, it'll put you in more danger, and I can't risk that. Please trust me on this. I will tell you everything as soon as I know it's safe, but please trust me for now. Please."

\t-

\tREMY

\tCaulder's voice cracked, and it looked like he was about to shatter into a million pieces. The pressure had become too much for him, and he couldn't keep going on like this. I threw my arms around him and held him tightly, trying to stop him from completely breaking. As angry as I was at him and everyone else, hearing his voice crumble before me broke my heart. I believed every word he was saying. He wanted to tell me everything, but he couldn't. He was feeling the break in our bond just like I was, and it was breaking him as a result.

\t"Okay, I'll trust you if you trust me." I squeezed him tighter, and I realized I was trying to stop myself from breaking as well.

\tWe stood there for several minutes, just holding each other, and it was nice. It was a good reminder that even when things felt tense between us, it didn't mean our relationship was actually broken.

\tWhen we finally parted, Caulder looked a little more relaxed. "So are you sure Blade is on your side?"

\tl nodded slowly. "He even offered to train the pack against vampires. He wants us to be ready just in case. I know it doesn't make much sense. I barely know him, but I feel it in my bones that he's a genuine and good person."

\tCaulder took a deep breath and took his time to respond. He was clearly not a fan of the situation, but he wanted to trust me like he said he would. "Can I meet him for myself?"

\t"Only if you promise not to attack him again," I laughed, trying to break the tension.

\t"As long as he doesn't touch you in front of me." He raised his eyebrows, and his tone told me he was joking-mostly.

\tl punched his shoulder. "I'm serious."

\tCaulder chuckled and raised his hands in the air defensively. "Okay, okay. I'm being serious. I won't attack him unless he intentionally causes harm to you or anyone else in this pack. Are you able to call him back?"

\tMy chest tightened at this question. I didn't have a way to contact Blade. I have just been meeting him here each night, knowing he would show up. I hadn't even thought of asking him if he had a cell phone or if there was a better way to get in contact with him.

\t"I don't know how to reach him," I admitted. I had no way of reaching out to him to make sure he was okay and making sure that Caulder didn't permanently scare him off. My heart raced as I thought about this. After Caulder's attack, I could see Blade going back to the city and never coming back, deciding it was too much effort.

\t"How have you been contacting him before?" Caulder asked.

\tl shrugged my shoulders. "We ran across each other, and then we've just been meeting up here each night."

\t"So he'll be here tomorrow?"

\t"If he comes back." I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to keep myself calm. I needed Blade to come back.

\t"Then we'll come back tomorrow," Caulder said simply.

\tThe trees rustled from above, and then there was a loud thunk next to us. Blade had dropped from the air and landed in a crouch position. "No need. I never left. I wasn't about to potentially leave Remy in danger."