224

"What did you say?" I whispered half stunned.

Is this all a cruel joke? I thought vaguely. But judging by his expression it didn't seem like Balthazar was joking with me. "I'm Alex's mate?" I muttered slowly.

My shock made it hard for me to digest the information I just heard. It feels like just yesterday I convinced myself that we weren't real mate. "You- You said Leykan doesn't have a mate," I said a little accusingly.

Balthazar did not rebut my words. He just nodded stiffly and ruffled his dark hair briefly with one hand.

"I didn't say you were the mate, Caroline. You know Alex's mark bite has some nasty side effects on your body, too."

My forehead creased deeply while the throbbing in my temple grew stronger. "So ... I'm not his mate, but at the same time I will also die if Alex is paired with another werewolf?"

"Broadly speaking ... yeah," Balthazar muttered grimly. "So far that's all we know."

I couldn't stop the sound of weak laughter that escaped my mouth. Isn't fate too cruel