Chapter 40

Caleb’s Point of View

I snuggled with Daphne and felt her drift off in sleep. I know that she was stressed out. I felt bad for making her worry about her sister, but there was a lot of truth to her words. In a lot of ways, I do treat her like a child, not meaning to. I must learn to treat her as an equal. In the morning I know thatl need to be honest with her. There are a lot of things I have kept from her, thinking that I was doing the right thing. I need to let her know about the peculiar talents that some of our pack members possess. I need to start showing her the different trades that we are involved with, the storage yards, the winter preparations, and the training schedules.

I look down at my mate, I know that she is strong. I know that she went through traumatic events that have shaped her into the woman she is today. I just hope that she is strong enough to handle everything that is coming. I hope that she knows how proud I am of her. With that thought I kiss the top of her head and snuggle in closer to her. Soon sleep pulls me into its arms.

I wake up before Daphne, all my senses on alert. I do not know yet what has pulled me from sleep, but I know that something is different. I mind link my patrolling guards asking if there is any activity, but I am told that everything is fine. I immediately turn my attention to Daphne; her forehead is beaded in sweat. Her face is pale, but she is still asleep. Her body starts trembling and I know that she is caught in a nightmare. I gently start shaking her to wake her up.

“Baby come on wake up, it is just a dream.” Finally, her eyes flutter open and she seems to be gasping for air. “ Honey it is ok, you were just having a nightmare. You are home, you are safe, and lam here.” ! pull her close to me, laying her head on my chest! start rubbing her back. Trying to give her some comfort. I feel her tears slide down my abdomen. “Do you want to talk about it Daphne? It might help you feel better about it.” I will not make her open up about the nightmare if she does not want to, but I want her to know that lam here to listen if she needs me.

“I was having a dream about the first time I shifted. My father had gotten so mad at me, Scarlet had already moved away finding her mate. He was ina rage, he broke my ribs, had strangled me, ripped some of my hair out. I remember wanting to die, begging the Moon Goddess to just take me away from it all. I refused to cry out though, and I think I just made him even more angry. He had kicked me in the face, breaking my nose.” Daphne’s voice is almost monotone as she recounts the horrific situation, she had been in. “I crawled on my belly using my hands to pull me, because I knew that he would kill me if I got blood on the carpet. I finally made it outside and I was determined to die in the woods. I felt safe there. It was only a half moon that night. I remember that I did not know what was happening to me when I started shifting. It hurt a lot, ] was sure that I was dying. I thought of Scarlet, and how I never got to tell her thank you.” Daphne is barely whispering now.

Hearing about the hell that she had endured breaks my heart. My mate is more powerful that she realizes, and I am starting to realize that she can handle more than I ever gave her credit for.