He Might Not Be Able to Feel The Matebond

••• Arabella’s POV ••• As expected, judging by Rosa’s look, what happened to Lina must have involved magic. But what had that got to do with Max and me? What did she mean by she knew what happened between us? Was she talking about how we suddenly were able to sense that we were each other fated mates? Under our expectant gazes, Rosa then told us of her guess. “The curse that was cast on Max to make him imperceptible to feel the matebond is part of black magic,” she began explaining. “But just now, Lina urgently tried to absorb some of the black magic power from Max to protect herself before she passed out.” We all looked at her in surprise. Did Lina really do that? I frowned and uttered, “I didn't see her doing anything…” “Me neither,” Max echoed me, and Shawn did the same. “She didn't need to do any noticeable action for it,” Rosa tried to explain the process. “She did inconspicuously point her finger at Maz, but I was able to intercept it .” “The red light?” Max asked. Rosa nodded. “Yeah. I was afraid she’d do something to the two of you. Fortunately, I saw through her plan.” Then she frowned. “It seems she is trickier than I thought.” “Will she be dangerous in the future?” I asked with a hint of fear. I had no magical power, and those with black magic could just lift a finger to cast a spell and hurt us easily. It would be troublesome to face them. “Her not so much, but her master is another story,” Rosa said with a thoughtful look. To be able to make a werewolf proficient in black magic, her master must be a powerful black witch or wizard. “We will focus on them when the time comes since we know nothing about this so-called master,” Rosa said lightly, brushing off the matter. “Anyway, back to the matter of the two of you,” she directed her words at both Max and me. “Since she was able to get some black magic from Max, and when she fainted, the curse around Max was corroded a little bit, and he was able to feel the matebond with you,” Rosa explained and added, “And Lina was able to escape because she had enough magical power from Max.” I nodded because her explanation sounded a little bit reasonable for someone who didn't have magical powers like me. “Does it mean my curse is considered to be lifted now?” Max suddenly asked. “No.” Rosa shook her head and said, “I don't think so. The curse is very powerful, after all, and Lina was only borrowing part of the power. It wouldn't be that easy to break off your curse.” “So what does it mean? Max is able to feel our matebond now, but the curse is not lifted yet?” I asked in confusion. “It means Max may still return to the state of not being able to sense his mate bond with you at any time,” Rosa answered. I was shocked hearing her words. We had just been able to sense each other as fated mates, but it might not last forever? “And also,” Rosa continued. “The second half of the curse is still in place.” The second half of the curse? My eyes widened as I realized the meaning of her words. It meant Max might still die before he turned twenty-six because he wouldn't be able to find the matebond with me. I felt sad for Max… and me. As well as Iris and Cyrus… Max seemed to know what I was thinking. His hold around my body tightened slightly as he comforted me, “It’s okay, Arra. It’s okay, even if I can't feel the matebond with you. I already know that we are fated mates, and that’s enough. Furthermore, it shows that my curse can be broken. I won't die, Arra. I won't leave you alone.” The more he comforted me, the sadder I felt. I should be the one comforting him, but in the end, he was always the one who comforted me. I hugged him tightly, not wanting to let him go, scared he would be gone. After knowing we were fated mates, my feelings for him had become stronger, and I knew for sure that I had given my heart to him and depended on him entirely, not caring about showing my vulnerability. “Let’s go up,” he said softly. “Jaxon and the rest are waiting for us upstairs.” I nodded, and we all ascended the staircases with Rosa in the lead and Shawn behind us. Once upstairs, I saw the familiar surroundings of the Battleclaw Banes Pack’s main house and got one of the biggest shocks of my life as I saw Beta Jaxon and some werewolf committee members apprehending Abigail and a man who looked identical to Max. I looked at the man, and then Max, and back to the man to compare them and saw no difference between the two of them. His face, figure, build, and even his hairstyle and clothing were identical to Max's. Max looked at his ‘twin’ and sneered in disgust. Abigail smirked triumphantly at me, but her expression changed into one of disbelief and confusion when she saw Max standing beside me. Rosa casually strode toward Max’s ‘twin’ and lightly touched his face. The man’s appearance instantly reverted back to his original face, which was far worse than Max's. He wasn’t handsome at all and couldn't even be compared to Shawn, not that Shawn was ugly. He was, after all, one of the most eligible bachelors due to his gentle appearance. Still, Max was way more handsome with his arrogance and dominant aura. The man who had slept with Abigail was… so-so with no special distinctive features on his face. There were lots of average-looking he-wolves like him. Seeing the changes that happened to his face in just seconds made me shudder. I never thought my life would be troubled by black magic. “These impersonators were the dark witches' experiments, obeying their every command,” Rosa said. Abigail screamed in horror when she realized she had slept with a stranger instead of with Max. “This can't be right!” she shrieked like a madman, not wanting to believe she had slept with an impersonator. “I slept with Maximillian! I know I slept with him and not this ugly thing!” Suddenly, she stopped screaming as her gaze fixed behind us. “S-Shawn…” I glanced back for a second, seeing Shawn watching us with a gloomy face, before pulling Max to the side so the adulterous couple could have each other. “Shawn…” Abigail stepped toward her ‘mate’, reaching out her hands to grab Shawn’s hand, and said with a trembling voice, “Shawn, I’m sorry! I didn't mean to sleep with someone else! I was tricked by my mom and didn't know what was going on!” Seeing Shawn being quiet and cold, Abigail’s tears fell from her eyes, making her look as pitiful as usual. “Shawn, you have to believe me! I will never betray you! You are the only man I love, and I’m carrying your baby! I would never risk the life of our baby!” I sneered in my heart. Did she think no one could see her triumphant smile and smug expression when her gaze landed on me just now? Did she think no one heard her unmistakable shrieks of saying that she knew she had slept with Max? And saying she wouldn't risk the life of her baby again? If she really wouldn't risk it, then she shouldn't have kept creating trouble or provoking me! Did she think escaping from her detainment was not considered as risking her baby’s life? Did she think everyone was stupid and would believe everything he said as long as she shed some tears and appeared pitiful? Maybe Shawn was the only stupid one since he fell for her act so many times before. But knowing his ‘chosen mate’ had slept with another man and was caught in the act would be humiliating for an Alpha, right? And Shawn was an Aloha with great pride, so… As expected, Shawn wasn't happy about it. He sneered coldly at Abigail and shook her hands away with enough force to send her tumbling to the ground. “Ah!” Abigail screamed in pain as she landed ungracefully on the ground and managed to curl her arms around her stomach to protect her baby inside it. Seeing how protective she was toward her baby, even if it meant she would be hurt, made me feel uncomfortable. It wasn't because I sympathized with her, but because she was still pregnant and the baby in her womb was always innocent no matter what she had done wrong. Shawn shouldn't be that heartless, especially since the baby was his, too. It seemed when Abigail said Shawn had become cold and ruthless was true. Shawn didn't seem to care about the baby in Abigail’s stomach. I felt fortunate once again for having rejected him. Goddess knew what would happen if I had married him and made mistakes during our marriage. I might be abused since he was only with me for the advantages I could give him, and he didn't really love me. “Let’s go!” A member of the werewolf committee pulled Abigail upward gently from the floor and took her away. “We will investigate how she could escape the hospital where she was kept in confinement and why she did all these things, and we will take good care of her,” the werewolf committee member said before they left the Battleclaw Banes Pack’s main house.