The Rise of Lunar's Light (The Story Before Mateless)

Amethyst’s Pov:

“You’ve met your mate, I see. Trust it was not the meeting I intended, but it is what it is,” the Woman’s voice pulled me from the darkness which engulfed me. “He doesn’t want me,” I whispered.

Suddenly, pain raced into my heart. I waited my entire life for him. I even gave up Timothy and now I faced rejection. “Things are not what they seem. Trust my plan, as you always have,” she continued.

I stared at her, unsure of what she wanted from me. I couldn’t see a way of fixing this. In a flash of light, Joseph appeared before me. Somehow, he was unaware of my presence. His skin was now a dull grey instead of its sun kissed beauty. And his icy blue eyes were now the colour of blood. He struggled for every breath.

The wheezing noises which were coming from his chest wrenched my heart. To my horror, he was tearing at chains, which looked as if they were made of black onyx. They twisted around his head. Thus, holding his mind captive.

Even though we had yet to complete the bond, his pain was overwhelming. I stepped closer to see if there was anything I could do. “Stay back, Amethyst. This is how he appears to me. They cursed him to harm you, to reject you, to cause you emotional pain, and to kill you if needed. Those creatures who still call themselves by my children’s name have done this. Here he is, the monster they wish him to be. In your realm, they underestimated his desire for his mate, for you. Ultimately, this will be the way to free him. You will need to figure out the rest,” the Woman explained with sympathy rich in her voice.

“I don’t feel that is the best of ideas right now,” Timothy stated coldly to someone at the door. “It’s fine,” I sighed. My heart raced in my chest. He stiffened at the sound of my voice, slamming the door. “Timothy?” I questioned his actions. I realized who was asking about me. As he walked toward me, his expression filled with sadness.

“I think it’s for the best at the moment, Thyst. You need to rest,” he muttered, trying to hide the pain in his voice. “This is about us, isn’t it?” I spat, getting out of bed. He rushed to my side, his hands gently placed on my hip and shoulder. “You took a hard hit to the head; you shouldn’t get up out of bed just yet.” His voice was soft, his eyes filled with concern.

“Forgive me,” he whispered, pulling me close. His heart hammered against his chest. Mine couldn’t help but match Timothy’s. For a moment, his eyes filled with conflict before he regained his composure and found my lips.

I gasped at the contact; this was the last thing I expected from Timothy. His arms wrapped around my waist. Lost in the moment, I wrapped my arms around his neck. His hands wandered over my body. An image of Joseph tore through my mind as shame punched a hole in my heart. Unable to handle the emotions coursing through me, I pushed Timothy away.

“Are you ok Thyst?” he asked. “We both understand what’s wrong, Timothy,” I sighed as he pulled me back into an embrace. “Sorry, I needed to say goodbye,” he whispered, stroking my hair. Needing to say it too, I laid my head on his chest and held him tight. “No, it’s me that should be sorry, Timothy. I should have listened; you understood I had a mate. I brought this upon us,” I whispered.

“Don’t be sorry. These few moments we’ve had mean more to me than you will ever realize, Thyst. All I ask is you allow yourself to love Joseph more than you loved me,” he whispered with tears in his eyes.

“I want nothing more than for you to experience the mate bond as my mother intended it to be. And I swear, if he doesn’t treat you well, I will rip him apart. Then I promise I will get the Goddesses to piece him back together so I can do it over again,” Timothy smiled, kissing my head. His words freed me from my guilt, causing me to laugh.

“There will always be a part of me that will love you, Timothy,” I whispered. His heart skipped a beat with those words. It was our last moment of joy together. I only hoped that life from this moment on would be worth what I gave up.

“For the life of me, I do not understand why he denies you are his mate,” Timothy muttered, more to himself than to me. “Normally, even when it’s a different species or conflict, the mate bond wins out,” he continued.

“Timothy, I need to see Joseph immediately. I understand why the Goddess showed me what she did now,” I said. My heart leaped to my throat. “Thyst...” he protested. “No, your mother did not show me this vision for no reason, Timothy. These witches cursed Joseph in the hopes he would reject me. Why, I do not know. But what I can tell you, our bond is fighting it,” I argued. Timothy threw his hands up in defeat.

“Fine, on one condition. You get back into that bed. Madeline hit you hard with her shield to make sure you didn’t kill your mate. I won’t let him get too close to you. Especially if you suspect he’s cursed,” Timothy demanded. I rolled my eyes as I got back on the bed, crossing my arms. “Remind me to give that damn Amazon a taste of her own medicine,” I grumbled.

Timothy stopped just shy of leaving, giving me a worried expression. I quirked my eyebrow at him. This was hard for both of us. As I waited for Timothy to return with Joseph, my heart hammered hard against my chest.

Suddenly, the door burst open, startling me. My heart stopped as Joseph scurried in, locking the door behind him. Dread took over me as anger rolled off him. “Sorry, I can sense you are nervous with me around. I swear, I just want to talk to you,” he growled.

“She assumes she is too good for me, fucking witch. That Elder does too,” his voice invaded my mind. “I do not,” I hissed. “Do not what?” he replied, coldly. “Assume that I am too good for you,” I whispered, suddenly aware he was fighting against himself. “You came here to talk to me, right? Come sit,” I offered.

“Talking will accomplish nothing...” His voice screamed at himself. As if he was locked in a battle. This time, I chose not to engage him. Although it was straining my temper. He sat next to me, his cold hate-filled eyes met mine. For what seemed like an eternity, we sat there in an uncomfortable silence.

After a while, his eyes softened. “I am sorry, Amethyst; truly, I do not understand what’s gotten into me. For as long as I can remember, I have always looked forward to the first moment I would lay my eyes on my mate. I promised myself I would shower her with all my love. I failed you already, and I don’t understand why.” he confessed.

“Because she is a worthless witch. She’s not worth anything, reject her. Lots of other women to bed.” his voice broke into my mind. Only this time, there was something different about it. While it sounded like him, I finally realized it wasn’t. I placed my hand on his and smiled. “You can’t blame yourself Joseph, we did not meet in a very opportune time or way.”

“Lies. She is trying to trick you. Reject her. You can never trust a witch,” the voice hissed. Once again, hate rolled off him. Only now my patience was spread too thin.

“Fine, reject me then. Go fined others, but they will never be me, your destined mate,” I spat. “You are the one that came here to talk to me. And you’re the one who’s denying us, remember?” I screamed, getting off the bed.

“Where the hell do you think you are going?” he seethed, throwing me back down on to the bed. I struggled against him as his hands found my neck and squeezed. His once blue eyes were now the colour of blood. “Amethyst!” Timothy cried, utterly terrified.

I reached out towards Timothy, causing him to rush to my aid.

Tim’s Pov:

My heart was hammering hard against my chest, a cold sweat engulfed me. Something was off. Suddenly, a terrible thought gnawed at the back of my mind, forcing me to swiftly return to Amethyst’s room. Much to my dismay, the door handle wouldn’t budge. “Where the hell do you think you are going?” A male’s voice screamed from inside her room. “Joseph,” I whispered. Scared, I forced open the door. I blinked, unable to process the scene which was unfolding in front of me.

Amethyst was lying on the bed, struggling against Joseph’s grip on her neck. “Amethyst!” I cried out, realizing it only after her name rang through my own ears. Her eyes met mine. To my horror, she reached for me, her eyes pleading. My heart stopped. Joseph was trying to kill the woman I loved. Why in the Goddesses’ name did I leave her alone?

I was going to kill Joseph. Before I could reach her, Thyst conjured a barrier, stopping me from saving her. “Amethyst?” I screamed, beating on the barrier with all my might. Frustration ate at my mind thanks to the images of her fighting against Joseph.

I needed to know what was happening on the other side. Thankfully, my screams alerted Sanders and Jennings, who race to see what all the commotion was about. “You realize she’s fine, right?” Madeline scoffed, announcing her arrival.

“Madeline, she was not fine,” I snapped. “He had his hands around her neck,” I spat, my face inches from hers. To my displeasure, she appeared unbothered and almost bored with what I said.

“You honestly believe she needs you?” she laughed. “My dear wolf, you forget yourself; you forget who she is. No, she doesn’t need you to save her,” she scoffed. “Madeline, she reached out to me,” I insisted.

“Reached out for help, or to stop your interference?” Madeline asked, looking over my shoulder to where Amethyst’s barrier blocked my way. “I don’t believe she wanted help Timothy,” she continued. “It’s you who wants to be the one who saves her. As your love for her has blinded you for far too long with her strength. Wolf, you need to let her go.”