Meanwhile, Logan was still waiting for his mate in the bedroom that they shared, oblivious to whatever was going on. He sat by the bedside after going into the gardens to check up on her. He had wanted to go straight to bed but his broken heart had kept him awake.

It was highly frustrating trying to will his heart not to get too worried. He didn't realise how much he would miss her if she left his presence. It was like he was in physical pain. Even his wolf was whimpering with its tail between its legs. 

He placed his face into his hands and felt wetness. He hadn't even realised he was shedding tears. He stared at his wet hands with disbelief. How could one person get him so vulnerable and emotional? He wanted to cry out and tear his clothes in sadness. He wanted to morph into his wolf form and let out a great howl. His heart was broken, and he didn't know how to fix it.

He resolved to keep her by his side always when next he saw her, damn the consequences. He couldn't keep feeling this kind of pain anytime she wasn't around him. It was against his normal nature. He would get to know her more, get her to stay in his pack forever and never try to escape from him again. He couldn't bear another heart ache like this one, he just couldn't.

It was as though he was fighting a destiny and everytime he tried to fight it, the stronger it got. It was hurting him beyond explanation. He suddenly started to miss everything about her. From her slightly deep voice to her beautiful laughter, her haughty expression and her intoxicating cinnamon and lilies scent. He wanted her back so bad.

He had realised that fighting the mating bond was futile. No matter how hard he fought it, he found himself being drawn even closer to him. He knew now that it was something that could not be pushed away. Once two mates had found each other, that was it for life. Fighting it was like taking away an essential organ or committing suicide. He was feeling the effects of leaving her already. It was as though the Goddess was punishing him for trying to resist the bond. He would never ever fight it again.

A rush of salty liquid filled his mouth and Logan rushed to the bathroom before he could puke all over the bed. He leaned over the bathroom sink and vomited all the food he had eaten that day. He was starting to feel sick all over. After vomiting he peeled off his clothes and stumbled into the shower to take a hot bath, hoping that the bath would calm him down.

But the water only ran down his body without improving his mood. He was already feeling feverish and clammy. He was getting worse and worse and he realised that if he didn't see her soon, he might end up dead. Or worse, like his father.

"No!" He whispered hoarsely, gripping the shower head for support as that thought crossed his mind. "Aella, come back please."

Was this how his father had felt when his mother died? He thought as the water flowed down his back and plastered his hair to his forehead. The feeling was scary as he thought that he could never go back to being happy without Aella by his side. If he was feeling like this just because Aella didn't come home early or probably ran away again, how must his father have felt when his own mate had died? Little wonder the former alpha's heart had been broken forever. He had never recovered from it.

He stumbled out of the shower and grabbed the towel, drying his body haphazardly. His brain was starting to get hazy with delirium. He staggered out of the bathroom and towards the closet, where he pulled on hoodie and sweatpants, then walked back to the bed and sank into it, waiting.

He looked at the bedside clock and saw that it read 12am. He closed his eyes and didn't know when he dozed off, occasionally calling out Aella's name from his dreams. First, he dreamt that she was on the other side of a deep dark chasm, and he was stretching his hand out to save her but she had slipped from his grasp and fallen into the chasm. 

Then the steamed morphed into something scarier. Aella was standing in a forest that looked very much like the one close to his pack. She was so close to him, close enough to touch even, but anytime he moved closer to touch her she seemed even more far away than the last time. She was close but too far away for him to hold.

The dreams woke him up abruptly and le looked around with drowsy eyes. He looked at the bedside clock again and saw that it now read 2am. A hot jolt of anxiety went through him as he realised that she had never been this late outside before. He had never stayed up this late before too, infact it was his personal culture to always go to bed as early as possible, but here he was, up at 2am and worrying about a woman

He stood up abruptly from the bed and walked towards the door, resolving to look for her with any means possible. He walked to the kitchen with a shaky hope that she was back and doing her chores there, but the kitchen was heartbreakingly empty of Aella. He checked the dining room, his library, even his father's room but she was nowhere to be found. With every empty room his heart broke even more.

Then Logan remembered that she usually pestered him about going to the gardens and he decided to check there again. He had checked before and he didn't see her, but he decided to try again. The alpha walked out of the pack house and towards the gardens, where plunged into the flowers like a fish into water and began looking for her.

"Aella! Aella! Where are you?" He yelled at the top of his lungs but nobody answered him. The night was cold and his voice must have gone very far, so if she was here, she would have heard him already.

He was about to turn and walk back to the pack house but he decided to check out the walkway that stretched out over the river. As he walked towards it, he saw something crumpled on the floor.

Aella! His wolf screamed and he ran forward. The whole area of the walkway had blood splattered about. He looked at the crumpled figure and his heart broke again. It was Aella, lying there in a pool of her own blood. She was unconscious and unmoving. She was putting on his hoodie, which was also splattered with spots of blood. 

The alpha bent down and gathered her into his arms, all the while murmuring words of consolation to her ears. "Aella baby, don’t die on me please!" He whispered to her as he looked at her expressionless face. He carried her up and walked towards the pack house, his heart full of fear.