He knew that they never spoke of anything official and really, they had only met a little over a day but still, there was that spark. She brought out something in him, a need to protect, and all he craved from her was her companionship. She was sweet and pure and he didn't care that she had children from another wolf. The male was no longer in the picture back then and he wasn't there to challenge anyone's possession, anyway. He only wanted to help.

But in the end, he had failed her. He used to stay up at night playing the image of her face drawn in disappointment and maybe even anger and hatred later on. He was sure she would no longer think of him after he left, discard him like garbage for pretending to care and then disappearing.

He knew that eventually she would find someone else. How could someone so beautiful ever truly stay alone? But still, seeing her heavy with child was a quick reality check and it left a bitter taste in his mouth. He could only imagine what their relationship must be like. Did she love the father? She seemed to be well fed but she also seemed to have a weariness about her. Her body was fat and happy but her fur was a little dull and her eyes...they held so many secrets.

He didn't just leave to see the sights but he didn't think he could ever really tell her what he'd been up to. How would she understand that he'd chosen to follow a connection to a past he wasn't even aware of at the time? It seemed that everyone knew who Devil May Cry truly was in his lifetime except for his own son. He was an assassin, a cold blooded killer, and Exodus was always in the dark, it would seem. When Devil would go away, Natalya would just say that he was running errands and when he showed up one night smelling of blood, Natalya took him off to get clean and assured River and him that nothing was amiss. Like a young fool, Exodus had believed them.

So when a wolf approached him seemingly out of nowhere one night after he told Malleah he would meet with her and her child, Exodus was taken aback by what the wolf had to say. He was a secret society and he had known Exodus' father. He said that Exodus had to come with him now to learn the true trades of his past. It seemed that his size was well sought after and they wanted him to know how to use it. Exodus was all for protecting others but he didn't like to start fights. The assassins brought him into the fold and changed all that for him.

He wore many new scars now and though his thick black fur hid most of them well, he could feel them burning like reminders of his treachery even now. They had trained him and made him into a weapon and he was told never to go back to Moladian. They sent him to other lands and eventually he got his first mark. He remembered that first kill like it was yesterday. The wolf's eyes stil haunted him in his sleep but over time, he grew numb to the feeling of guilt that wracked his body.

He couldn't stop thinking about Malleah and he knew he had to go back. He couldn't ignore it anymore, and so he left. Like the ghost they had taught him to be, he escaped the territory and set out with determination. He used what they taught him to cover his own tracks so he wouldn't be followed. He knew that eventually they might come for him and maybe he would have to kill a few of his own teachers and friends, but then again, maybe they wouldn't come at all. Maybe they would leave him to his own fate and say that he made his own bed. Maybe they would forget about him...but he doubted it.

Her question took his breath away and he tried to hide the hurt that flooded his gaze but he knew that he deserved it. She tried to re-word it but he knew that she meant it exactly as it was first asked. She started to step forward but he could tell her growing offspring was weighing on her in more ways than one. His face softened, wanting so badly even now to go to her and help her. She tried to tell him that he startled her before asking where he went and he looked away for a moment. How much could he truly tell her without putting her in harm's way of whoever might come after him?

"IT'S FINE. I CAN BE BLUNT, TOO. I'M BACK BECAUSE OF YOU. I COULDN'T STOP THINKING ABOUT YOU, MALLEAH. I WAS CALLED AWAY TO CHASE A PIECE OF MY PAST BUT IN THE END, I COULDN'T STOP MYSELF FROM COMING BACK. I'M SORRY IF THIS COMES AT A BAD TIME. I CAN SEE THAT YOU'VE MOVED ON AND I DON'T BLAME YOU. I JUST HAD TO SEE YOU."
Exodus_male_9 years_41in_195#_no mate_unable to imprint_no children_loner