RULE 73: KEEP CHILDREN AWAY FROM THE BORDER. IT CAN BE A DANGEROUS PLACE.

✷ C H A P T E R T W E N T Y - N I N E ✷

I never gave any serious thought to the idea of Ma leaving the Borderlands voluntarily. I mean, of the handful of people who left the Borderlands, only Eva left of her own free will; or, that was what had been told to us. No one would leave the Borderlands permanently unless they were under the spell of the Supernatural.

Regardless, why would Ma — if she was still alive — go through so much trouble to hide her identity? Maybe she was ashamed of being dragged over. Maybe she wanted to run away from it all. There were countless different possibilities, but they didn't linger in my mind as long as the kiss between Theo and me.

    Admittedly, our kiss was not my first. When I was younger and more vulnerable, Si confessed he had a crush on me. I was so flustered by his confession that I couldn't conjure up the words to say I saw him as a friend. So, when he went in to kiss me at age fifteen, I didn't pull away. The kiss was so sloppy and full of tongue I swore off kissing. At the time, I hadn't thought kissing could feel so good, so right.

    A month ago, I would have been convincing myself that Theo put some sort of spell on me to feel that way, but I couldn't help but know that wasn't true. It was the bond that pulled us together. But, had I accepted the bond? I knew I hadn't truly accepted it. At the same time, I hadn't written it off either. I would be a shame to the Borderlands. But why did being a shame feel so... good?

    I tried to shake off the warm contentment floating through my body, but it was hard to wipe it off when the thought would pop right back. I couldn't keep Theo off my mind, and I had little reason to, anyway.

    I had teased  Theo earlier when I said he was worse than what I had been taught in the Borderlands. I liked to poke and pry at him, and I knew he didn't truly believe my words. Otherwise, he wouldn't have pulled me into a kiss, but how would I answer the question honestly? I determined I was still figuring out that answer.

    Unfortunately, soon after we got the result there was no match for Ma, a storm started to brew, which meant Theo's warriors had to quit searching the Border for the day. Theo assured me they would resume searching if the storm cleared, but the strike of lightning that illuminated the room told me they probably would not be out surveying the Border anytime soon.

    While sitting in Theo's office, I concocted a plan. Originally, I was dead set on Theo not learning of my interest in witches. I thought it would bring unwanted questions. However, at every turn, we were hitting a dead end with the search for Ma. It would be the perfect opportunity to bring a witch into the mix. Then, maybe they could help locate Ma and then help secure the Border.

Admittedly, it was an impulsive idea, but it felt like the right idea. Nevertheless, I was nervous. I bit my lip, opened my mouth, and then shut my mouth faster than I opened it. Theo looked up from his computer with curious eyes.

"Yes?" he questioned, staring me straight in the eyes. Currently, Theo was sending out a scanned version of the sketch I drew of Ma to all his alliance packs to see if anyone would recognize her. I did not think we would be so lucky to find her this way with our track record.

Quickly avoiding eye contact, I looked down, sighed, and then looked up again. "Do you think we should... do you think we should bring in a wit–"

Before I could finish my thought, Theo abruptly said, "no."

"No? You didn't even let me finish my ques–"

"–no," his face was blank.

"Why not?" I inquired, crossing my hands over my chest. My curiosity spiked; why was Theo so adamant against finding a witch? Did he know the true reason I was in search of one? Surely not, but my anxiety skyrocketed, regardless.

"I said no," he was unwavering in his answer, eyes narrowed.

Squirting my eyes at him, I pushed harder. "Why did you say no?"

I hoped I was not being too obvious in my desperation to use this opportunity to find a witch. I didn't want him to be any more skeptical of me than he already was.

"They are more trouble than they are worth," he finally reasoned. "We do not need to resort to such drastic measures yet."

Leaning back in my chair, I huffed out, convincing myself to let it go for now. I did not want to push him too hard. I knew if I did push harder, more questions would be raised, and I was not ready to answer them. Plus, while he was not enthusiastic about my idea, he did not write it off completely. I would hold onto the small sliver of hope that he would eventually give in.

"You have any other ideas, then?" I asked, eyebrows raised.

While Theo sent out the sketch of Ma, the places where we could potentially find more information on Ma were wearing thin. He was still thinking of the next move if the sketch proved to be a fruitless endeavor.

"I do, actually," a confident smirk made its way onto his lips.

"Care to elaborate?"

"Come with me," Theo got up and made his way to exit his office. I quickly followed behind.

No matter how hard I pried, Theo would not disclose where he was taking me. Eventually, we got into a car and Max started to drive. Turning my attention towards Max, he also would not tell me where we were going – it was against Alpha's Orders, he told me.

Once the speed of the car slowed down, I could tell we were getting close to our destination. Old, brick buildings surrounded us. All the buildings were connected through footpaths with several people wearing backpacks walking around. Many of them were soaked by the summer rain that started to lighten up. A flash of lightning appeared in the distance.

Confused, I asked, "what is this place?"

"I admit, it is a bit confusing to see it so busy during the summer, but enrollment rates are high this year," Theo explained as if I was supposed to know what he meant.

"What?" I gave a dull expression while Max finally parked the car.

"Welcome to Bridger University."

I blinked at him.

"Do you not have colleges in the Borderlands?" Max turned around to ask.

"No, our formal schooling ends after eighth grade," I responded slowly.

"Well," Theo turned to me. "You'll be an honorary University student today."

Theo did not let me get another word in before he hopped out of the car. Exhaling, I opened the car door and followed behind Theo, who appeared to know where he was going. I kept my head down and my distance from Theo so as to not be so easily connected to him. There weren't a ton of people out walking the pathways, but there were enough to make my skin crawl at the thought of being identified as Theo's mate. Raindrops started to pelt my skin as we all picked up our pace. A crack of thunder made me jump, and I picked up my pace.

Luckily, Max parked close to our destination. We only power walked for about three minutes before we entered the building labeled psychology. Once we got inside the old building, it appeared abandoned. No one lingered in the halls. Again, Theo knew where he was going and navigated us to the second floor.

As quietly as he could, he opened a big, heavy door before he turned around and placed a soft finger over his lips to signal we should be quiet. Rolling my eyes at Theo's dramatics, I followed him into the room.

I was about to speak when a man's voice boomed throughout the room. The room was set up almost like the coliseum at the Pack's Fair. Many chairs circle around the front of the room, where the man was speaking. Only a few of the chairs were occupied, each with someone scribbling down fervent notes.

"Can anyone tell me what the different Attachment Styles are?" the man asked. No one responded, so he waited a while longer before proceeding to answer his own question.

Theo took a seat in the very back of the room. I took a seat next to him and whispered, "what are we doing here?"

"We're going to talk to Levi Weller. He teaches psychology here at Bridger University, but he specialized his studies in the psychology of the Borderlands. He might be of some help to us."

I nodded my head. We would have to wait until the man was done giving his lesson for the day. Theo preoccupied himself by scrolling through his phone. I was not so lucky to have anything to distract me other than the man – who Theo explained was Levi – in the center of the room.

He looked quite young, maybe a year or two younger than Theo. His hair was a dusty brown color, and his jaw was strikingly sharp. He had a pair of black, square glasses on, and he spoke with so much fervor, I could not help but listen to his lecture about Attachment Styles.

A twinge of jealousy coursed through my body – was this lecture a common occurrence on the Outside? There were so many opportunities on the Outside, it was hard to imagine going back to my simple way of living in the Borderlands.

Stop, I told myself, more does not always mean better.

I was so caught up in my own thoughts, Theo had to nudge me when the lecture was over. Theo strode down the steps towards Levi while I trailed behind.

Levi's face lit up with recognition as he pushed his glasses back into place. He greeted, "ah, Theo, nice of you to visit. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"We – this is Sage. Sage, this is Levi," Theo began but quickly introduced me to Levi before he could explain why we were here. Levi extended his hand out, and we shook hands firmly before Theo continued. "We've heard rumors that someone left the Borderlands twelve years ago, but, so far, there is no record of them. Is that possible?"

"Certainly," Levi's bright blue eyes lit up as he leaned up against a table. "If they have the right connections on the Outside, that is."

"How could they have connections on the Outside?" I asked with scrutiny. Theo briefly mentioned he was well versed in the way of the Borderlands. Well, as well versed as anyone on the Outside could be, I supposed. I would ultimately be the judge of that.

"Family," he said nonchalantly. "Every Borderlander has a family on the Outside. On the other hand, there are also rumors of an underground tunnel from the Borderlands to the Outside. If that's the case, the possibility of connections would be endless. But, if you're asking my opinion, I would start with the family."

He paused in thought, his grip on the table tightening. "If there is no family, I would look if there was any unusual activity during the days before or after the person left the Border. People don't just leave the Borderlands on a whim."

Sucking in a deep breath, I asked, "what if the person was dragged over the Border?"

Weller started to laugh but quickly stifled his laughter with his hand. "That's highly unlikely."

I almost took a step back. This man had – presumably – studied the Borderlands, but he did not have first-hand knowledge. The arrogance that radiated off of him was repulsive, and my every instinct was telling me to run away. I peered over at Theo, but he did not seem to share my same thoughts, his face free of any tension.

"What?"

"Well, you said this person left twelve years ago, correct?" he sniffled, crossing his ankles over each other.

"Yes," I said in a short tone.

He nodded his head. "You wouldn't have been able to drag someone over the Border twelve years ago. Today, yes, in the right circumstances but not twelve years ago."

A lump started to form in the back of my chest. When I was younger, I was never allowed near the Border's edge. It was strictly prohibited. As I grew older – and more knowledgeable of the guards in the Borderlands – I had been up close to the Border before, but that was only a couple years ago. By then, the Border had long since started to fade. What Levi was saying could be true.

"So the person must–"

"–they must have left willingly," he said, unaware of the impact this news would have.