Ezra POV

"Ezra? Earth to Ezra! Hellllooo??"

A tan hand suddenly drops in front of my line of vision, waving up and down right next to my face. I reel back with a gruff sound.

"What?!" I snap out, I watch Ace's face perk up in a large grin at the reaction he got out of me.

"Wow, I was just going to ask if you wanted your muffin. Jeez." He chuckles, looking to Hyrum and his older brother before turning back to me, "You were gone man, lost in outer space. What's up with you?"

"You can have it, I don't care." Is my reply, I look down at the table, ignoring his other question while I play with the scrambled eggs on my plate. I am not in the mood to talk about Klepto... well... I never am.

I haven't seen her at all for the past week, and I am getting sick with worry. My reasoning is automatically to assume she was fine, and that I'm just being stupid. Paranoid.

But, I feel like there has to be something more.

My gut tells me everything is not just fine and dandy.

Ace reaches for my muffin, scooping it up and peeling off the wrapper in one smooth motion. He takes a huge bite, his cheeks distending while he chews. His green eyes watch me with amusement, and I look away again.

My teammates aren't stupid, they know me well enough to figure out when something is bothering me.

Despite being with them 24/7, Reid still hasn't talked to me. It isn't one sided though, because I avoid him as well. We are both good at holding grudges, it's almost a competition of sorts.

To prove my point, he gets up from where he sits, taking his plate and dumping his food before stacking it with the other dishes. We all watch as he walks out of the small pack cafeteria, not a word out of his mouth about where he's going.

I roll my eyes. His behavior reminds me of a pup throwing a tantrum. Typical Reid.

"He's not good with forgiveness, give him time." Ace says through his mouthful of blueberry muffin, small crumbs flying in the air with his words.

I smile ruefully at him.

"I have nothing to be sorry for, that's the thing." I assure him, but I avoid even looking at Hyrum as he bores his gaze into me. He knows we're both to blame here, but he isn't going to hear me admit it.

Ace sighs and shakes his head.

"I pressed him to tell me what the hell happened between the two of you, but he said I'll 'figure it out eventually' or some dumb shit like that. It's driving me bonkers! You guys know how much I hate secrets." He says in exasperation, glaring at me playfully.

"And, it's pretty clear that Hyrum knows, and I don't think that's very fair." He insists, and Hyrum laughs. I smile knowingly, trying to indulge myself in our typical banter. It's a well received distraction for me.

"I mean, it's never fair because Hyrum knows just about everything." I scratch my head before chuckling. "But, I get it. Being kept out of the loop is never fun."

"Well....?"

I shake my head and take a sip of my orange juice.

"It's nothing, really."

Ace doesn't look convinced at all, and I don't really blame him. I'm not terrible at lying, but I'm also not the best. I wouldn't believe me either if I were him.

"You guys suck." He huffs, returning silently to eating his muffin. I share a glance with Hyrum quickly, and can see his amusement that he's fighting. I shake my head.

I can only assume he thinks this is somehow funny because my mating with Klepto is inevitable, which it's not.

A few days ago I had another call with the Councilman, and it only succeeded in reconstructing my need to keep a good distance from her.

My mind is still caught up in her, especially after pretending to flirt with her sister. Kelpto's heartbroken, and I'd done that on purpose.

Obviously I feel awful about, makes me sick to remember it.

I'm a jerk, and I know it. That won't stop me from dreaming about her it seems.

"We should get going, training should start soon." I say suddenly, wanting to get fighting as soon as I can. Get my mind off of my situation.

As we stand and dump our remaining scraps, Hyrum turns to me as Ace walks ahead of us.

"Actually, I think you need a break. I'll cover for you... if you'll let me that is." Hyrum says easily, his deep timber thick with his Jamaican accent.

I feel anger heat me up at his offer. I don't need a break.

"What do you mean by that?" I grumble, shooting him a glare. He laughs under his breath.

"Cool down. I just mean you can't use training to keep your thoughts away from her. It doesn't work like that." I cover up my shock at his prediction, which is spot on like always. I really shouldn't be surprised.

"It is working." I mumble, and he just shakes his head, his dreadlocks swaying around him.

"If it is, then it won't for much longer, and you know it. And eventually you'll probably kill a wolf on accident because of your anger. It'll blind you." He says, serious now. Using a harsh whisper.

"You need her, no matter how much you deny it, avoid it, it's still true. You can't escape the bond. Can't outrun it. I think you know it, deep down, but won't accept it."

Heat flutters in my chest, as if my lycan is trying to roar it's agreement. I shake my head in denial.

"I think we can both agree that we're stronger than our instincts, Hyrum." I manage through my clogged my throat. We're outside now, walking towards the woods at a slow, leisurely pace.

"That's not instinct, my friend. It's fate, and the sooner you realize that, the better off you'll be." He looks at me then, really looks at me. It's almost as if he can see right into my brain, spot all my insecurities and doubts. I shiver under his scrutiny.

"Take my advice, take a break." He says, eyebrows raised. After a few seconds I sigh loudly.

"Fine. But only for today, because I do need some time away from Ace before the kid makes me blow a gasket."

At that Hyrum laughs, clapping me on the shoulder before lumbering into the woods while I stand there. I contemplate what exactly I'll do with my new found free time.

I turn my head left and then right, observing the slow morning events of the Green Pack. Barley anyone is outside, and I envy those who can sleep in and block out the world around them.

My feet take me around the grounds aimlessly, looking for something to occupy my attention.

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The only sound I focus on is the sound of my feet in the grass, occasionally the green blades become sparse revealing dirt and rocks instead, but for the most part it's a consistent flow.

As the sun rises higher, more and more pack members appear. Some make quiet the scene as they talk and hang around, others silently make their ways to wherever they need to be, not stopping to utter a single hello.

As soon as I start to enjoy it, I remember that these are the people that emotionally abuse my mate and a furious snarl comes out of my mouth.

I am anything but innocent as far as treating Klepto unfairly goes, but that doesn't mean I'm happy with myself either.

While I wander around aimlessly, I realize that I keep going the same route around the pack grounds. I continue to pace past her house, letting her scent settle over me like a silk blanket across my skin.

I didn't even realize I was doing it until now.

I stopped in my tracks, letting the wonderful aroma consume me completely. I close my eyes for a minute, soaking it in, when I pale when I realize something.

The scent is stale.

I don't know how I possibly could've missed it before, the smell of her around the house is old. It would be fresh if she were still inside, but it isn't. It's dry and faint, and I swallow hard at the discovery.

The trace of it leads me to believe she hasn't been here in days.

Something is definitely wrong and I should have acted on the bad feeling sooner.

I draw closer to the building. I'm by the side of it, and I walk towards the front door. My eyes are peeled, and my ears are over sensitive as I scour the place. I stop abruptly when I see the little boys playing in the front yard.

They're the youngest ones from the bonfire, then there's another pup that's a bit older than them, maybe around the age of 9 or so. They all run around with crazy energy, jumping on each other and screaming.

My eyes drift to the porch as I crouch low behind a bush. A sleek woman sits in an old, wooden rocking chair. Her shoulder length blonde hair blows in the wind as the chair creaks while it rocks back and forth rhythmically.

I know beyond a doubt that she's Klepto's Mother, but if I didn't know any better I would never have guessed. She looks nothing like her, not in the least. There isn't even a trace of a similarity on her face.

Suddenly, one of the little pups runs up the porch steps quickly, he's obviously the youngest of them. He races to his mother with tears in his eyes.

"Momma! I cut my knee, Felix pushed me down on accident." He cries, trying to pull himself up onto her lap, "It hurrrts Momma. There's blood, I saw it."

The only way I can describe Mrs.McKay's reaction is absolute disgust as she tries to brush off her distraught child.

"Daniel. You are a big boy. Big boys do not cry, remember?" She scolds him, and I bite my tongue. My muscles tighten with the desire to attack her.

What kind of mother treats her children like that?

The pup wipes his chubby cheeks and sniffles as more tears flow. His face scrunches up as he realizes his mother's indifference.

"But... but Kleppy says it's okay to cry. She said sometimes it makes you feel better."

At his words, the woman visibly stiffens. Her expression turns blank as she stares at him. The rocking chair stops, leaving a heavy silence in the air.

"Well. Klepto was wrong, as she is most of the time."

I bristle and lean forward, soaking in the information like a parched sponge.

The young pup's eyebrows furrow with effort as he tries to stop the tears. His mother looks on with indifference, leaning back in her chair as if she's trying to put distance between the both of them.

"Where is Kleppy? I miss her." He whimpers quietly, biting his lower lip to get it to stop trembling.

I wait on pins and needles as the woman pauses, taking time before she finally relinquishes her answer.

"Don't know, don't care. I'll be glad if she never shows up again."

They continue to talk, but I don't listen to what else is said.

Her own Mother doesn't know where she is, which isn't completely surprising. Klepto is old enough to be responsible for herself, and her dear Mother has lots of children to keep up with.

The fact that she doesn't care what her child is up to, that her whereabouts don't concern her in the least is awfully familiar to my own experiences in life that I've tried to erase.

After sitting and contemplating for several long, drawn out seconds I stand up and slink back the way I came.

Hearing all that I had is unsettling, and I feel dirty. Eavesdropping had seemed like a good idea, but now it all feels too invasive as if I know something I shouldn't.

But the hardest truth I stumbled upon is that Klepto and I have a lot more in common than I thought.

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As soon as I creep into the field, I make eye contact with Hyrum, and I can tell he automatically knows I'm troubled.

Fighters are tussling left and right, the wolves of the pack felt delicate under my lycan's eye. I know I can end any one of them without any effort.

My feet draw me to my packmates like I'm a fish hooked on a line being pulled helplessly to my fate.

The dread pools in my belly when Reid rears back from a fight, likely picking up on my distress in the humid air. Ace follows suit, narrowing his expressive eyes on me as I approach quickly.

"What's the matter now, Shortcake?" He questions, tilting his head to the side in an almost mocking gesture.

"I don't know where she is." I sneer, shoving past Hyrum and I make my way over to the weapons that are laying in the field. They're there to be ready for our use and practice at any time.

"Her? Who is her?" I hear Ace ask from behind me. I choose not to answer while I pick up a knife, feeling the weight of it in my hand.

I adjust my grip on it, tilting it to each side to feel the balance of the blade. My ears pick up the sound of someone standing up and coming closer to me.

"Maybe if you paid any attention you would know where she is... everyone else in the pack seems to know."

My head slowly turns to the side, facing Reid where he stands with his shoulders squared. Determination is painted on his features with expertise.

"What the actual hell are you talking about?" Ace bursts out, his eyebrows pinched tightly together.

All I see is him. Reid. All green eyes and blazing pride. His goofy side has been forgotten ever since we spotted Ryk.

This Reid is foreign to me, and I'm liking the new one.

"You better start talking. Right. Now."

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If you're reading this, I love you:)