Lucy POV
Rayan eventually woke up and mum had to leave to make a bottle for Ryden. I didn’t want to leave the little bubble of my room, but I missed my mates too and I wanted to go home. As much as I loved being here it was no longer home anymore. Getting up, I grab a bag just as my mother comes back in with Ryden in her arms feeding him a bottle.
“You’re leaving again?”She asks and I nod.
“Well I can help you pack. I replaced most of everything, Ryker kept a detailed list of everything I turfed thank god, but a lot I found in Rayan’s room” She says and I could see the guilt on her face as she placed Ryden down on the bed.
“Lucy, I am sorry for everything, I should have told you about Amanda, I never should have-” I wave her off.
“It’s fine mum, I get it. I really do, I know that wasn’t you and even if it was I understand it” I tell her and she nods before opening some of the draws and pulling my clothes out and putting them in the duffle bag.
“Is Tyson still here?” I ask her and she nods.
“Yes he hasn’t left except to get his car” She tells me and I feel relief flooding me.
“What about Ace?”
“Ryker is dropping him home now, he wants to give you some space” She tells me and my brows furrow.
“What do you mean?” I ask her.
“You will figure it out, not really my place to explain, your relationship is between them and you. I will be here no matter what you choose Lucy” She tells me making me more confused.
I gather a few things and place them in my bag before finding an old photo album and tossing it in with my things. I zip the bag up and my mother grabs it so I grab Ryden before following her downstairs to the living room. Rayan comes over to me before spotting the bag in my mother’s hands.
“You aren’t staying?” He asks sadly and I feel my heart clench.
“No, but maybe you can come for a sleepover on the weekend” I ask looking at my mother, she nods her head and Rayan smiles sadly before agreeing and wrapping his arms around me. I pass Ryden back to mum and I hug him close before kissing his head.
Leaning over the back of the couch in the living room I find Tyson asleep, his mouth wide open as he snored. I jam my fingers in mouth and he chokes jolting upright and I laugh at him.
“What the fuck” He chokes out before noticing me.
“Lucy?” He says and I smile at him before he jumps off the couch in a blur racing around it before engulfing me in a hug. Tingles rushed everywhere so much stronger than before and my mark tingled, making me shiver as I leaned into him.
“You’re ok, you made me worry for a bit?” I nod, hugging him back. I was far from ok but I had my mates and my family.
“Yeah I am fine, I just want to go home” I tell him, pressing my nose into his neck and inhaling his scent.
“You don’t want to stay, I don’t mind staying here?” Tyson says but I shake my head.
“No, besides Ace is at home” I tell him and he pulls away looking at me oddly.
“So you spoke to him?” Tyson asks and I shake my head.
“No, but I want to go home with my mates” I tell him and he nods looking at my mother who shakes her head at him.
“Why are you being strange, what is going on?” I ask them.
“Nothing but we should head home before it gets too late,” Tyson says, taking my bag from my mother. The tension in the room was so strong I could almost taste it. Through the bond I could feel worry eating at Tyson as he grabbed my hand heading toward the door.
“What’s wrong, didn’t they catch Josie and Melana?” I ask now worried. Tyson tenses before stopping and retrieving his keys from his pocket.
“No, but we will. We won’t let them get to you Lucy” Tyson assures me. Knowing they were out there doing god knows what sickened me. Those girls were never going to stop until they break me and I wasn’t sure how much more I could take, what else could possibly go wrong?
We say goodbye to everyone and Tyson puts my bag in the trunk. Just as we are leaving and pulling out. My fathers car stops beside us. Tyson winds down my window, leaning across me and my stepfather winds his window down.
“I just dropped Ace off, we will keep searching tomorrow” he tells Tyson who nods before my stepfather looks at me.
“We will find them” He assures me and I know he will do everything in his power to do exactly that.
“I will talk to you tomorrow, let me know how Ace goes, fair warning though he is in a mood” My stepfather tells Tyson.
Tyson sighs. “I will deal with him” Tyson tells him and Ryker nods before winding his window up and parking his car. We headed home and the entire drive we barely spoke and I could tell something was on Tyson’s mind, feeling it eating away at him. His grip on the steering wheel is a clear giveaway at how tense he is. I felt like everyone was hiding something from me but with everything going on I was too caught up in my own tumultuous thoughts to pry too much just to get answers.
“When we get home please try not to freak out” Tyson suddenly says.
“Huh, what do you mean?” He doesn’t bother to elaborate and I give up trying to understand. When we pull up at the packhouse the porch light is on and I could see Ace’s car in the driveway.
“I will grab your bag, are you hungry I can cook dinner or order out”
“No need, I am already cooking” Ace says as I step out of the car. I smile up at him and he watches me nervously before taking my bag from Tyson and walking inside. I look at Tyson wondering why Ace didn’t approach me, did he believe Josie’s and Melana’s lies, did he think the pictures were truth of what they said? I followed them inside, my stomach growling hungrily at the smell of food, yet Ace’s strange behaviour made me nervous. Ace placed my bag in Tyson’s room and I made my way to the kitchen to see what he was cooking.
“Something smells good” I tell him looking in the oven when he back comes out.
“Yeah pasta bake” Ace says leaning on the other side of the counter. I walk around to him and he steps away from me and Tyson clears his throat awkwardly.
“Come on, let’s go find a movie to watch” He says, grabbing my hand and pulling me away from Ace. I shake his hand free.
“Wait, I just want to speak to Ace” I tell him ignoring him trying to pull me away from him. I walk over wrapping my arms around his waist inhaling his scent. Ace’s entire body tenses and I look up at him wondering why he was acting weird. When it suddenly hit me. I sniffed him, his scent the same yet it wasn’t as intoxicating and where were the sparks and the weird magnetic pull I usually feel toward him.
“It’s my fault,” Tyson blurts out, making me look over at him.
“Pardon?” I ask him, letting Ace go.
“The reason the bond is gone, it can be fixed” Tyson rushes out.
“Our bond is gone, completely gone?” I ask, looking up at Ace. His jaw was clenched and he wouldn’t meet my eye and I stepped back. Is that why he was being weird?
“Yes Lucy it is gone” Ace says and I feel my stomach drop and I feel my face heat at his words, so he was being like this because without the bond he doesn’t want me anymore? I was so confused by this situation and now understood why everyone was acting strange. I didn’t even think it was possible without rejecting someone.
“How?” I ask, looking over at Tyson.
“I marked you again, it weakens the bond when you have multiple mates, Lana told me about it. Ace hasn’t marked you so it forged our bond to become stronger, apparently it wears off but takes time”
“How much time?” Tyson shrugs and I could see he didn’t know.
“So you don’t want to be my mate anymore?” I ask Ace, he finally looks at me, his head whipping to the side.
“No I do, but you can be free of me if you choose, I won’t stop you Lucy,” Ace says.
“Is that what you want?” I ask him, suddenly unsure. Ace also looked uncertain but about what I couldn’t figure out, was he second guessing the mate bond now he wasn’t tied to me? Everything was so straight forward before, the bond made it near impossible to reject each other but with it now gone does that mean he no longer felt as strongly towards me as I still do him. Bond or not he was still mine.