Costin fell to his knees at the mention of Sally. “I miss her,” he admitted. “I miss her so much and I don’t know what to do. I don’t know how to function without her. I lived so long without her, and then boom, there she was, and her light practically blinded me. Her goodness and kindness radiated from her but now she’s gone. She’s just gone.” Costin’s heart felt as though it was going to pound out of his chest as he poured himself out to his Creator. He was so very broken and trying desperately to hold it together.

He felt her hand on his head and the compassion she had for him flowed over him like a raging river. It filled every fiber of his being and he fell forward until he was bracing himself on his hands.

“She is the one I created for you. I did not design you to be an island. I designed you to complement each other. Her weaknesses are your strengths and yours are her strengths. But I also must allow you to go through the trials. Love is never easy. And choosing to love your mate through difficult, painful situations shows what kind of person you have become. You are wise to go to a place where you can control your wolf. Don’t take the easy road and give in. The reward for standing strong is so much better.” She stepped back and Costin stayed kneeling. “Remember you are loved, Costin of the Grey Wolves. I have loved you with an everlasting love and, no matter what, you cannot lose that love.”

Costin felt her presence leave him, but he could still feel her inside of him. He could feel her love. He closed his eyes and let the tears fall. He cried for his mate, he cried for the grace he felt from his Creator, and he cried for all of the lives that would be lost when all was said and done. He phased back to his wolf and once again curled up in the hole at the base of the tree. Morning would come quickly and he would have to push himself to make it to the In Between before Decebel caught up with him. He knew his Alpha felt responsible for his actions. If he could make it to the In Between in time, then he could keep his wolf at bay long enough to explain about the human.

That was his plan, at least. With the way life had been going for the past two weeks, he wasn’t putting a whole lot of stock in it, but he had to do something. He had to hold it together for his mate. Oh, how he missed her.

Chapter 20

“Just when you think life can’t get any weirder. It does. And doesn’t that just make you want to rear back and kick someone in the nuts?” ~ Zara

Skender listened as Alston and Sincaro discussed the best way for the Order to proceed, given that the high fae were apparently aware of their workings in Oceanside. They’d been in touch with the King of the elves, and he’d informed the Order that he was in the process of taking the kingdom back from his son. Skender didn’t see how it could possibly be that easy since Prince Thalion had been leading the elves for many years and they were loyal to him. The situation in Oceanside was much more concerning. Skender had warned Alston that if Peri were involved, then Vasile and his wolves wouldn’t be far behind. Skender knew what would happened if Vasile interfered and it wouldn’t be pretty. Skender had tried warning the Order leaders, but they wouldn’t listen. What pissed him off most is that he was the one who would have to go in and clean up the mess that was left behind when the wolves did come. And if Costin ended up in Oceanside, there was going to be a big ass mess.

Costin reached the bridge that lead to the entrance of the In Between a few hours after sunrise. His wolf was not excited about going back into that hell hole, but he knew the rules of the In Between. If you went there willingly, seeking sanctuary, the experience wasn’t nearly as bad as when you were placed there for punishment.

He phased back into his human form and put on the shorts he’d carried in his mouth that the Great Luna had provided him. He pulled the three gold pieces out of the pocket. He’d found them lying beside him when he’d woken up. His Creator had provided exactly what he needed in order to gain entrance. The gift was confirmation that the In Between would be able to keep his wolf from going beyond the point of no return.

He started across the bridge and, as he expected, the troll stepped up in front of him, coming from somewhere beneath it.

“No payment, no pass,” he barked.

Costin held out the gold pieces. “I have payment.”

The troll stepped forward and examined the gold. After several long moments, the beast decided that the offering was sufficient. He took the gold and stepped aside so that Costin could cross over.

“Have a nice stay,” the troll cackled.

Costin pushed his wolf down, fighting the urge to kill the stupid creature. Since he’d never fought a troll before, he wasn’t sure how he would fare against the monster. He continued forward, his face set and his pace determined. As he entered into the other realm, he immediately felt the temperature drop several degrees. He was in a corridor, which he followed as it grew darker and darker. After about ten minutes of walking, he began to feel something growing inside of him. Those fears that lived inside of him began to surface, but they were different from the last time he was here. This time they were about himself. What if he never found her? What if he found her and she had been tortured? How would his wolf handle it? At that point, the fear that stood out the most was his fear of going feral and never seeing Sally again. He forced his wolf down as he leaned back against the wall and let the images come. It wasn’t nearly as bad as when the pixies had put him there, but it wasn’t a swim in the creek either.

He saw himself ripping into innocent humans and tried to close his eyes to the carnage, but the In Between isn’t that kind. He had to watch it and anything else that it grabbed from the deepest recesses of his mind.

Time was a blur. He had no idea how long he’d been there. He didn’t know day from night. All he knew was his wolf was contained, but the human was beginning to go mad.

Vasile came to a halt about fifty feet from the bridge. “He went in there.” The Alpha pointed to the entrance to the In Between. The three had risen early that morning before dawn and finally picked up Costin’s scent after searching and sniffing for about an hour. Now they were less than an hour behind him, judging by the strength of the scent.

“Why would he go in there?” Decebel asked.

Vasile pondered what Costin could possibly be thinking. Why would Costin go into the In Between unless he wanted to make certain that he was contained—that he couldn’t hurt anyone else if his wolf went feral. If the Beta was able to think that rationally, then he probably wasn’t fully gone.