Fated to a human

JC POV  

I stood there, trying to make sense of everything in my head. The spirits had taken Haylie's body, and only she could return in her own way and time. Frustrated, I ran my hand through my hair and looked at Klinton. 

"There's nothing we can do, JC," he said with a heavy heart. 

"You know she's just a human, and she's barely sixteen," I said, my voice laced with frustration. 

I didn't know how long it would take for Haylie to find her way back. All I knew was that I missed her terribly and wished she were here. Wherever she was, I hoped she could feel how much she meant to me. The only thing I had left were the memories—precious moments we had spent together in that wooden house in Greenland. 

"JC, let's head back to the camp and wait there," I heard Klinton say. "There's nothing more we can do here." 

I let out a heavy sigh, my heart weighed down with grief, and looked at him. "Okay, then," I said reluctantly. I hated every moment of this, feeling like the world was pressing down on my shoulders. All I wanted was Haylie back. 

We began moving out of the cave, but just as we were about to exit, Klinton froze in his tracks, his gaze fixed straight ahead. I stopped as well, following his line of sight. 

Two wolves stood there, snarling with bared teeth, their growls reverberating through the cave. My heart sank. "Liam," the thought flashed through my mind. 

The last thing I needed was him now. My eyes locked on his wolf—grey and white, unmistakably Liam. 

Liam POV  

The pain in my neck had subsided slightly, and I could finally breathe again. I turned to Titan and said, "Let's keep going. She must be here somewhere." 

We were nearing the mountains, and something deep inside told me we were close. Titan gave me a firm nod before transforming back into his wolf form. 

"Okay, Ace, let's go," I said to my wolf, allowing him to take control of my body once again. Within moments, my wolf instincts took over, and both Ace and Titan's wolf, Skull, continued their determined path toward the mountains. 

Ace was restless, his focus razor-sharp. He was determined to find Haylie, no matter the cost. I never thought a human could get into his heart. He had been against the idea of being fated to a human from the beginning, but now Haylie had clearly grown on him. His protectiveness over her was unshakable. 

As we reached the mountains, Ace suddenly stopped, his nostrils flaring as he picked up a scent. 

"What is it?" I asked, trying to decipher his reaction. 

He didn't answer, only lowered his head to sniff the ground more intently. Skull halted beside us, his ears perked and alert. 

"Ace, what do you smell?" I pressed. 

"Something I hate," he murmured darkly before continuing to sniff the ground. Then, without warning, he began following the trail, his heightened senses locking onto the source. I trusted Ace's abilities—his keen sense of smell could pick up even the faintest trace miles away. I let him lead, allowing him to do what he did best. 

Ace followed the scent with Skull close behind, their movements calculated and deliberate. The trail led us to what looked like a cave. 

Without hesitation, my wolf stepped inside. But as we entered, he froze abruptly. 

Standing before us was the man I despised most—JC. 

This was the man who had claimed Haylie's body and sworn to bring her back. Yet here he stood, empty-handed, with no sign of Haylie. 

Ace's immediate reaction was to growl low in his throat, his fur bristling with rage. The scent of Haylie's death lingered heavily on JC, a scent Ace couldn't ignore. His instinct was primal and unforgiving, and I could feel his disgust through every fiber of our shared being. 

"Where is Haylie?" I asked Ace. 

In response, I felt him relinquish control, and in the blink of an eye, my body shifted back into human form. As soon as I was standing on two feet, I strode over to JC, grabbing him by the throat and slamming him against the cliff wall of the cave. 

"Where is Haylie?" I demanded angrily, my voice low and trembling with fury. My grip tightened around his neck, my eyes locked onto him with unwavering intensity. 

"Where is she?" I pressed through gritted teeth. 

JC had promised to bring her back, yet here he stood, empty-handed. Worse, Haylie's death clung to him like a ghost—a scent I could neither ignore nor forgive. 

"Haylie is not here," JC rasped, struggling against my grip. 

"Then where is she?" I shouted, the sound echoing through the cave. "I swear, if you've done something to her, I'll kill you!" 

Every vein in my body pulsed with visible intensity as anger surged through me. My heart pounded so fiercely that my vision sharpened, and my wolf, Ace, bled through. My eyes shifted to the brilliant blue of his, an undeniable sign of my rage. 

But then, a deep, calm voice interrupted. 

"The spirits took Haylie's body. JC doesn't have her," said the voice from behind me. 

I turned my head slightly, not letting go of JC, to see who had spoken. The man was tall, with long, dark hair draped over his shoulders. He looked slightly older than me, his demeanor commanding attention. 

"Who are you?" I demanded, my hand still gripping JC's throat. 

"I don't trust any of you," I added, glancing between the two men. 

"What do you mean, Haylie has been taken?" Titan asked from beside me, his tone sharp and questioning. 

The dark-haired man's piercing gaze settled on me. "I am Klinton, a spirit wolf," he said. Then his eyes flicked to my neck, his expression softening slightly. "And by the look of you, Liam, it seems Haylie's wolf, Snow, has already chosen you as her fated mate. The mark on your neck is proof of that." 

My grip on JC faltered, and I released him, taking a step back in shock. My hand instinctively brushed against my neck, feeling for the mark. 

"You know where Haylie is, don't you?" I asked Klinton, my voice low and unsteady. 

He nodded. "I went down to the spirit world to see her. She's regaining her memories. By now, she has already remembered you—that's why her wolf's mark has imprinted on your neck." 

Without realizing it, my hand went to the side of my neck, brushing over the mark Haylie's wolf had left on me. Could this be true? I questioned myself. Even in death, even though her wolf side had been taken from her, she had chosen me. 

"He's telling the truth, Liam," Ace, my wolf, said, his voice echoing faintly in my mind. "A spirit wolf cannot lie. They always speak the truth, no matter what." 

My eyes darted between Klinton, the so-called spirit wolf, and JC, who had stepped away from the cliff wall. 

"He's telling the truth, Liam," JC confirmed, his voice rough as he cleared his throat. "I saw him take Haylie under the water, and when he returned, she was gone." 

I let out a heavy sigh, the weight of the situation pressing down on me. Turning to Titan, I saw the same shock mirrored in his expression. 

"Haylie will return in her own way, once she finds her path back to the real world," Klinton said, his tone steady but laced with an otherworldly calm. "All we can do now is wait." 

This was far from what I had expected—far from what I had even considered. Haylie was gone, trapped in the spirit world. The reality of it hit me harder than I thought possible. I felt more lost now than I ever had before.