''Be with you.''

Those were her words, and his heart warmed. It was the first time that she said something like that. Last night, he had received a strange call from Thomas. He met him in the woods, curious to know the reason behind his secrecy and his urgent need to meet with him. Thomas explained his relationship with Laurel and how valuable she was to him. He told him to believe her and understand her because fate and life hadn't treated her fairly.

James, however, didn't need anyone's reassurance. His soul knew that his feelings for Laurel were never gone, not even at his darkest moments. His soul and heart were fighting. The first one yearning for love and ready to take a step towards Laurel. The second one was still in pain and hadn't completely forgiven the young woman.

No matter how harsh she was, he realized that his words had hurt his mate. He called her a monster and unworthy while his darker self was coming out of the shadows.

They both needed redemption and forgiveness. Laurel for her actions and James for the dark thoughts and words that conquered his mind.

If she, the great huntress, could beg for forgiveness and admit her true feelings, then he could accept her back and rewrite their future.

''How can I help you?'' he asked her.

''Every time I use magic, I drain my energy. Every witch is a source of energy, but it's not endless. We get tired after a while, and then we must rest to replenish our energy. Many things can provide us with energy when we need it. Magic stones, ancient monuments, places of importance, or supernatural creatures. You are an Alpha and my mate. Therefore you are the best source of energy right now.''

James chuckled, and his whole face lit up.

''If I knew that an endless climbing on a mountain would make you acknowledge that we are mates, I would make us come here sooner.''

''Don't get too excited,'' she said with a serious face, but her eyes were smiling playfully.

She explained to everyone that there was still a chance that it might not work and made them make some steps behind. She faced the huge wall, she made her muscles relax, and James took his position behind her putting his hands at each side of her head as she instructed him.

She felt her whole body reacting to his touch and his immense energy collapsed onto hers, creating waves of energy that overwhelmed her. She raised her hands in front of her chest, at the height of her heart, and directed the energy there. She saw tiny sparks at first and then a few rays of light. Time had stopped, the earth had stopped moving, everything changed, and everything stayed the same. She saw the sun and looked directly at it without fear of being blinded. His touch was the reassurance and the comfort she needed, and for once, she was grateful that she had let some emotions take over.

Between her hands, a ball of light, a small sun, was created, which got bigger and bigger. The others closed their eyes, but she kept looking at its center. She felt her body heating and a strong fire that ran inside her, but that only made her focus more. She was strong and powerful. She was unstoppable.

A buzz started that gradually became stronger. The next thing she saw was the pile of stones crumbling down and disappearing, leaving no trace that they once stood there.

''You did it!'' Lena cheered and hugged her the moment James took his hands off Laurel.

''I did it,'' she said while letting herself enjoy the moment. Rays and beams of light were all around them, illuminating the cave and pointing towards its core.

''Let's go,'' James said, and they started walking.

Soon they came face to face with another problem. The path was split into three different ones, and they didn't know which to follow.

''We must split. If a team finds an obstacle or a dead end, it goes back here and informs the others through the mind link. One of these paths is the right one. Since Lena, Laurel, and I communicate together, I suggest that the three of us form three groups and the others split up with us,'' Thomas suggested.

''We will go with Lena,'' Alan said pointing at himself and John.

''And I with Thomas,'' Tyler added.

''Then, that leaves the two of us,'' James said.

They were walking side by side, their arms less than a meter away from each other. Laurel had her sword in her right hand, and James was on alert mode. It had been ten minutes, and nothing strange was to be found.

''What did Thomas tell you?'' she asked all of a sudden.

''He came and found me at the borders of my pack. He explained to me who he was and told me that you would go in search of proof about whether your mother was alive or dead. He also told me that you truly regretted your actions.''

''So, you believed him and not me?'' she asked, irritated while tightening the grip on her sword.

''No, I was already convinced. It turns out that no matter how much you hurt me that day, I still love you. I don't know if the curse part of your story should scare me, but I don't care. All I care about is how I feel for you. Look, I didn't have the best of childhood. I almost lost hope on this mate thing if it wasn't for Liz and Alex. I travel around the world, I'm a high esteem member of the International Werewolf Council, and I've eliminated some very bad and power-hungry werewolves. But I always felt like something was missing. I knew you were saying the truth that night, but a part of me was still hurting with the possibility that people don't change.''

''Then why are you here?''

They had now stopped walking, and they were facing each other. He was a head taller than her, his body more muscled and big, but they seemed in harmony together.

''Thomas told me about his dead mate, and how he felt when she died. How desperate he was. How he wanted to burn the entire world the way his soul was burning with despair and pain. But you were there for him, ready to listen and help him heal. He said that he is alive because of you, that no matter what hell you had been through, you proved to be his compass and lighthouse. I was wrong, Laurel. Your greatest power isn't destroying but creating. You created light today. I see your soul, and it's not dark. It's hurt and in pain but not evil. You create light because you are the light. All you have to do is to believe it.''

He put his hand on her cheek and gently caressed it. She put her left hand above his heart, feeling its beat and warmth.

''James...'' she whispered, but he put his finger on her lips and shushed her.

''Don't talk,'' he said.

His voice sounded like the most harmonious melody to her ears. He took a step closer, and with his left hand on her waist, he crossed the space between them and eliminated it. His lips crashed on hers with urge and need and lust. She returned the kiss and grabbed his hair roughly. He brought her close to his body, never leaving her lips, his left hand traveling her back and waist while his right one cupped her cheek.

She felt hot and the energy taking over her body, consuming her, engulfing her, paralyzing her. A ball of light was created around them, but they didn't notice it. They stopped for a second to catch their breaths and their dark with lust eyes stared at each other. She bit her lower lip, their hands never leaving the other's body, and they kissed again, letting the fire conquer them.

Suddenly, they heard screams and weird noises coming from the original path. They broke their kiss and started running. They ran as fast as they could without stopping or thinking. They reached the original path at the same time as Thomas and Tyler. Screams were coming from the path that Lena had taken. They started running there but instead John, who was running in the opposite direction, fell on them, his right arm brutally sliced and his face full of blood.

''What happened?'' James asked while trying to close his wound.

''They attacked us. They are terrible,'' he said.

''Tyler, you stay with him,'' ordered James, and the other three started running again.

They found Lena and Alan fighting some monstrous creatures that seemed to had got out of the worst possible nightmare. They were black and huge, with green eyes and sharp claws. There were six of them still alive and three more lying dead on the ground. Laurel, Thomas, and James jumped into the fight and started attacking the beasts. The fight was brutal, blood, and a weird sticking substance being released from the beasts that burned their skins like acid. They hit them and kept attacking them with their weapons and their claws, jumping and trying to avoid the monsters' fluid.

One beast was left alive. Laurel was in front of it trying to attract its attention, while James climbed on the wall behind it. He reached a point where he could stand, a few meters higher than the monster, and at the right moment, he jumped towards it. With a blade in his hands, he fell on its back and grabbed its neck.

The monster tried to shake his body and make him fall. but James was holding it tight. He took the blade and pierced the monster's eye. He removed it and pierced his second eye, too. The monster stumbled and screamed in pain, and James took the blade, and after slicing its neck, he left it there and jumped to the ground. It screamed more in agony, but it finally fell to the ground and breathed for the last time.

They helped Lena and Alan stand up, and they rushed to Tyler and John in fear of the possibility that more monsters could return. Laurel stopped their bleedings with her healing power, and Thomas informed them that he and Tyler had found out that their path led to a lake and a small waterfall.

They helped their friends walk, and they followed Thomas that led the way. Soon, they were in front of an emerald lake. On the opposite side, there was a small waterfall that seemed to start somewhere inside the mountain. Behind the waterfall, there was an elevated space. Laurel guessed that they had to get there.

They cleaned themselves with the water of the lake, and since there was no other way, they started swimming. It was more difficult with their equipment and their weapons, but they didn't have a choice. After half an hour, they reached solid ground. They passed the waterfall and saw a table made of stone. On top of it, there was a box.

Laurel opened it and found a dark orange stone.

''What is it?'' Thomas asked.

''This is our proof that my mother is alive. She never died. She found a way to trick me again,'' Laurel said while her heart was aching from the betrayal.