Chapter 0292

I never thought I'd find my mate. Certainly not in some backwater town tucked deep in the Sierra Madre Mountains, a place I was just passing through. The biggest shock wasn't just that she was human—it was that she was barely eighteen, half my age.

The bus ticket had been a parting gift from an old enemy who wasn't quite a friend anymore. The envelope of cash he'd shoved into my hands was buried in my backpack beneath the new clothes he'd bought me, tags still dangling.

When the bus stopped for a two-hour break, I stepped off to find food. The town had one diner, a shabby little place with peeling paint. The moment I walked in, her scent hit me—cherry blossoms, sweet and floral with an edge of something wild.

She came to take my order, and something about her felt... off. The faintest trace of forest clung to her, but none of the heavy musk all werewolves carry.

Magnus, does she have a wolf? I asked my wolf.

In my mind, he tilted his head, ears pricked forward. No. But...

But what?

There's power there. Not a wolf, but something else. Maybe wolfless? I can't tell.

"Afternoon," she said, flashing a practiced smile that didn't reach her eyes. "What can I get you to drink?"

"Just water. Thanks."

She was gone before I could say more. The most stunning woman I'd ever seen—caramel skin, dark chocolate eyes, short black hair that framed her face like a portrait. Every werewolf claims their mate is beautiful, but she was something else entirely.

The bell over the door chimed. She looked up, grabbing extra menus before returning with my water.

"Hey, Theo," she greeted the newcomer, her smile suddenly warm and genuine.

Magnus snarled inside me. Ours.

Easy. She doesn't know us yet. No wolf means no instinctual pull. We'll have to stay, win her over.

But it was the conversation after she walked away that set my nerves on edge. The humans were whispering about "animal attacks" in the area. I knew better. Those were vampire kills. And if the pattern held, they were moving south—toward the packs that had just cut me loose. Toward Sebastian, the son of the woman I'd failed to protect years ago.

I owed her. Even if I owed them nothing.

I left without ordering, sprinting for the nearest trees and shifting. Magnus ran full tilt, eating up the miles. I had to warn Sebastian. For Isolde, I had to make sure her son survived.

After delivering the warning, the pull to return to her was unbearable. Like a hook in my ribs, yanking me back.

I found the town's only motel and booked a room. Needed to learn everything about my little mate—her birthday, her family, why she smelled like a werewolf but had no wolf of her own.

Once my things were stashed, I went back to the diner. Through the window, I saw her behind the counter, working the night shift. I took a seat, breathing in that sweet, wild scent.

Then she stepped out from the kitchen—and froze.

Her nostrils flared. Her spine straightened.

When her eyes locked onto mine, they weren't just brown anymore. Gold blazed through them, the unmistakable glow of a Guardian.

"Mate," she whispered.