64

I was woken up by Jayden and the first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was the Wialtrama, which seemed like I hadn't seen it for years even though it was only a few weeks.

"Why are we stopping here?" I asked Jayden, yawning to myself. "I'm going alone with Chiara to her grandmother. She certainly doesn't want to have so many people around her."

I nodded to him understandingly, looking to the back where they were both still asleep and then got up to carefully step over them and open the door. I immediately noticed the air here, which was full of familiar smells and smelled so beautifully of the forest. Of course I missed the sea and the warm sand, but this was my home, but the reason why we were here again weighed heavily on my shoulders.

I turned back to Jo and crouched next to her to gently wake her up. "Hmmm," she mumbled to herself, bringing a small smile to my face despite my sadness.

"Get up, spider monkey," I whispered, seeing the corners of her mouth twitch. "Come on." I took her hands and helped her to her feet, where she immediately fell into my arms. "Carry me!" she demanded, yawning, and I picked her up while she wrapped her legs around my waist.

"See you at Lou's," Jayden said when we got out and I had hardly closed the door when he drove towards Lisbeth's house. It hurt me a lot to know that it could be the last time that Chiara saw her grandma and I got even sadder when I thought about the fact that she would never meet her grandchild.

"Where are we?" Jo whispered in my ear and clutched my neck even tighter. "Home, little one." I lowered her carefully and watched her look around curiously until her eyes fell on the Wialtrama. "What does the name mean?" she asked and I followed her gaze to the billboard. "We all wear masks," I answered her and I already noticed the first raindrops falling on us from the cloudy sky.

"Come on, let's go." I took her tender hand in mine and walked the familiar path to Jayden's house, which Lou and Chace had now moved into. "It's beautiful here," Jo said in astonishment, looking at the tall, dark green trees while the rain soaked us, but she didn't seem to mind as much as I did and I immediately realized how perfectly she fit me .

I smiled at her and got the sparkle in her eyes back, prompting me to gently cup her face in my hands to kiss her so sweet tasting lips gently.

It was just breathtaking to touch her while the rain could be heard all around us and the forest gave an atmosphere that couldn't have been nicer. I broke away from her and took her hand again to continue walking with her completely satisfied until we had arrived in front of the hut.

"Here." I handed her a cigarette from my pocket and we stood under a tree to finish smoking. Who knew what was about to happen and it was always good to calm down beforehand.

"Who lives there?" my little one asked me as she stared intently at the hut and stubbed out her cigarette on the floor. "Jayden's sister and her boyfriend. That used to be Jayden's cabin, but when we left he gave it to them. Who would have thought we'd be back so early."

A silent, oppressive mood developed between us and I automatically had to think about Chiara again until Jo took my hand, stroked my wet, black hair from my forehead and then gave me a sympathetic look. I pulled myself together, at least outwardly, and then pulled her after me to the cabin to knock hard on the door.

"Oh my god!" Lou said, looking at me confused while at the same time joy and anger flew over her face. Of course we were never really friends, but I wanted to at least try to make up for the past.

"Chace! It's for you," she called back, then made room for us to enter. "She's not a fan of yours, is she?" Jo whispered to me quietly, looking around the room that hadn't changed at all, except for a few small decorative items.

"I smelled you from afar!" Beaming, Chace walked up to us and hugged me tightly. "I'm so glad you're back!" He broke away from me and showed me the familiar dimples in his smile. "Being alpha suits you," I laughed, ruffling his brown hair, hearing Lou sigh in annoyance.

"And who is that?" Chace then asked me excitedly and stared at Jo, who held out her hand in a friendly way. "This is Josephine, my mate," I said proudly, wrapping my arm around her back to let everyone know she was mine.

The brunette in front of me took my hand and marveled at what Ethan had said, but the girl at his side just gave me a askance.

"If you want to run away, I can show you the exit," she said, and I was startled by the fact that she seemed genuinely serious. My eyes fell on Ethan, who just rolled his eyes and took my hand like he didn't want to see it in Chace's anymore.

"No, it's okay, more than that," I replied, smiling, and she hugged me, making me gasp in surprise. "Then welcome to the family."

As she pulled away from me, she also smiled at Ethan, who grinned back at her. "Have a seat then," Chace said, sitting down in the chair at the coffee table while we made ourselves comfortable on the couch and Lou left the room.

"How did you meet?" the brown-haired man wanted to know, leaning forward curiously. Ethan and I smiled at each other until he turned back to him. "Her car broke down and I picked her up," he laughed and I giggled and I elbowed him in the side. "That sounds like you," Chace grinned too and then looked over at his girlfriend, who was just coming to the table with a tray full of glasses and a bottle of whiskey.

She set the glasses down neatly and then poured each one out before taking hers and toasting us. "To life," she said, and I felt the depressing mood. All of them mourned the loss of the woman I did not know and this gave me the certainty that none of them believed that she could recover.

"To life!" The boys raised their glasses and he picked up mine too. I nodded to Lou, then downed it in one gulp, leaning back with Ethan's arm around my shoulders.

The brown haired sat on Chace's lap and rubbed his cheek soothingly while Ethan placed his hand on mine and gently ran his thumb down the back of my hand.

No one said anything and everyone stared into space as if their thoughts were somewhere else and they probably were too. It was oppressive, like waiting for death instead of protesting it, and I rested my head on Ethan's shoulder, exhausted.

The room got darker and darker until Lou lit some candles on the table and we had already opened the second bottle of whisky. The silence continued and the only comfort was my mate's hand on mine, which he didn't let go for a second the whole time. Only when there was a knock on the door did Chace and Lou get up to open it, but it wasn't Jayden and Chiara, but a blond handsome entered the room, who had a fascinating charisma.

"Have you heard anything?" Chace asked him while he sat back down on the chair and kept his eyes on the blonde. "No," he said sadly, and then turned to shake my hand with a wry smile. I thought I heard a growl from Ethan, but I still gave the blonde my hand and introduced myself to him.

"Josephine, but feel free to say Jo." "Ludwig," was all he answered and then, lost in thought, stood at the window to look out into the night. Lou left the room again briefly, put another glass on the table without a word when she came back and then sat down again on Chace's lap.

"Is there really no hope?" she then asked the blonde, who shook his head, breathing heavily, and then went to the table to pour himself a glass. "The loss of her mate, she hasn't changed to that for so long... I can't help her." Ludwig glanced over at me, looked me up and down and then drank his glass and then went back to the window.

I was really into the substance. I felt so sorry for everyone, most of all Chiara. If so many people felt so much grief, then she must have been a great woman.

"I would have liked to have met her," I suddenly blurted out, not wanting to say it out loud, but it brought a hearty grin to Chace's face, making his dimples twitch. "She was really mean sometimes. I accidentally shot a ball at her window once and she pulled my ears until they were red."

He laughed and the others joined in his laughter. "She once took my bike from me until I promised her to always wear a helmet," Ethan said with a smile and I enjoyed the twinkle in his eyes.

"When I cried over a boy, she gave me a bar of chocolate and said no one was worth making me feel bad," Lou said, looking into Chace's eyes. "But you are worth it."

Hours went by in which I was able to get an idea of ​​this wonderful woman, until Ludwig said that Chiara and Jayden would come and then it was quiet again.