My skin prickled with nervous energy. I saw the humans. So where was my mate?
"Come on, omega. Go and find him."
Every hair on my pelt stood on end. I jerked my head over my shoulder. There was that voice again. Frustratingly, just like every other time, nobody was there. I was starting to think I was losing my mind. Did finding your fated mate come with a side effect of hearing voices in your head?
And even more baffling, how did the voice know I was an omega?
I narrowed my eyes. Even if the woods weren't drenched in shadows, the voice-owner would probably still be hidden. I had a feeling he didn't want to be seen yet. Fine by me. A strange recurring voice wasn't going to distract me from my task. At least he seemed to be... oddly encouraging?
I listened to the weird voice and went to find my mate.
My ear twitched. Mixed in with the crackling fire and raucous human sounds was a soft, musical sigh. It came from a short distance away from the camp. Despite only hearing it a few times, I'd recognize my mate's voice anywhere. I rushed towards it.
My paws skidded to a halt when I saw him. Away from the light and warmth of the fire, sitting there curled up miserably inside the cage, was the One.
The cage was empty except for my mate and a ratty old piece of fabric that might've been a blanket. He wore it over his bare shoulders as he stared listlessly at the ground.
As silently as possible, I hurried over to the cage. My mate noticed me and his eyes lit up. He stifled a gasp.
"Castor!" he cried out.
My heart skipped a beat. Not only did he remember my name, but it sounded like music on his tongue.
"You came back," he murmured, still shocked to see me.
I smiled. "Of course I did. I promised."
My mate's lip quivered. He looked like he was about to cry.
"How are you? Are you okay?" I asked.
He shrugged. "I'm as okay as anyone who's kidnapped can be."
"Is that blanket keeping you warm?"
He frowned, holding up the ratty fabric like it was a piece of garbage. "This isn't even a blanket. It's a tarp they threw on top of the cage."
My heart broke for my mate as my suspicions were confirmed. The humans were treating him like property after all.
"I'm sorry," I murmured. "I'm going to rescue you, I promise it."
Hope flickered in his eyes. As I opened my jaws to start biting the bars, he said, "Wait. Not to sound ungrateful, but why are you doing this for me? You don't even know my name."
I could already tell he had a bit of an endearing attitude. "Well, what is your name?"
He met my gaze evenly. "River."
A pleasant tingle rippled through my fur. So that was my fated mate's name. I was right—it was just as beautiful as him.
"River," I began, loving the way it felt to say his name, "as much as I'd like to discuss that right now, we don't have time to waste. I want to get you out of this cage before the humans figure out I'm here."
River cast a cautious glance towards camp, then turned back to me. "Can you even bite through steel?"
"I don't know, but I have to try," I admitted. "Unless you know where the key is."
River's shoulders sagged. "I don't."
"That's okay. Just hang on."
