Chapter 99
Chapter 99
Serafine POV
I wake in pain, but the sensation of something covering me has me pause. Are they moving me? I open my eyes and see I’m still asleep on the mat, someone is standing by the door, and I turn to face them.
He’s not one of Gideon’s men, I know that much.
“What’s happening?” I ask. The sound of fighting outside is loud. I’m not tied down anymore, so I move to stand and grimace at myself. I feel sick, physically sick.
“Xander is handling things.”
Xander? “He’s here?”
The man simply nods.
“What’s happening? Where’s Eryx?”
“Who?”
“My son, ,where is he!” I snap.
“Xander is trying to fix it, Gideon has him still.”
Gideon? My body goes cold, and I don’t even hesitate, I shift instantly and push past him. He shouts something about it not been safe and to stay away but I don’t give a crap. I move quickly through the halls, ignoring the mangled bodies and blood.
I keep following my bond to Eryx, and when I come to a door, I can see Xander’s wolf there, facing Gideon, who is just grinning like he’s winning a game.
Xander’s wolf is pacing, and I can see Killian trying to go around the back of Gideon; he’s doing it slowly so that Gideon doesn’t realise. My eyes flick around the room, and I see Gideon’s men standing to the side.
They are clearly waiting for orders, but what do they expect the outcome to be?
“Do you want your son?” Gideon grins, moving to show off Eryx. “Or your mate? Pick one, I’ll let you have one, just one.”
Is he really trying to negotiate?
Killian shifts again, and Gideon notices this time.
“Go ahead, make a move, watch what happens.” He shifts so that Killian is now in front of him. I need to think about this. If I can get to Gideon fast enough, he won’t have time to do anything.
Killian is fast, I know that. People always spoke about how fast he was in his human form. Every time Xander shifts, Gideon makes it known he has the power. He’s so focused on Xander and Killian that he hasn’t noticed me.
His men? They look petrified, like nothing they do can save them.
“Here’s the deal, Xander. You go get Serafine, you take her home, and I keep Eryx, it seems fair. You get my daughter, I get your son.”
A loud growl erupts from Xander’s throat, and he steps forward.
“No, Xander, don’t come any closer. I can easily throw him out of the window before you get close enough.”
My body tenses hearing his words, and Xander’s anger only seems to be growing.
1/3
Chapter 99
“Do you know how special he is? How unique? He’s not a threadborn, he was born from one. He’s not a Veyrathi. He was born from one unheard of.”
He’s just a baby, to me, he’s not special, he’s nothing but a baby.
“Let’s be honest, you can’t protect him. When people learn that his blood mixed with an Alpha’s silences wolves, you’ve got packs coming for you for him. Let me have the burden of him; no one will know I’ve got him, and he’s safe.”
Gideon looks down and smiles.
“Or, make your move, and watch as I kill him, then Serafine just for fun.”
I’m not sure what happens, one minute I’m standing silent, the next, I’m leaping at him from behind. My teeth dig into his shoulder, and he screams loudly, trying to shrug me off. He’s surrounded now. Killian has already grabbed the baby, and Xander is right there, lunging at Gideon
My teeth sink in deeper, cutting through his shoulder, through the flesh, muscle and bone. Blood fills my mouth, but I don’t let go. I bite harder, making him scream louder.
Xander lands on him, his claws raking deep into Gideon’s chest as we both drag him down and pin him between us. He’s got no way out; he’s prey and surrounded. He snarls and reaches for something, but Xander moves and snaps down his arm, stopping him from doing anything.
I hear it snap instantly, and another scream rips from Gideon. It’s raw and desperate, but it only fuels the fire in me. He deserves to hurt, to die. He should have left Eryx out of this, not pushed and pushed. I had left, he sold me, he should have forgotten about me and never come back.
I drag him down as he tries to get back up, my teeth tearing into his back. I want him to feel every wound he ever inflicted on me. I want him to feel the pain Eryx felt from before.
Mostly, though, I want him to feel pain for every bit of betrayal and every lie he told about me that made everyone see me as the enemy when I was no one, just innocent and used.
His blood slicks the stone beneath us, but I don’t stop, and neither does Xander.
Gideon rolls, trying to break free, but he’s too slow now, and too broken. The moment Xander’s paw slams down against Gideon’s back, driving his body deeper into the floor, I leap for Gideon’s throat.
I don’t miss, my teeth close around the soft flesh of his neck, there’s not much resistance left in him, or fight either. I bite down harder and rip at his throat. His body spasms once, twice, then it falls still beneath us.
It’s over, finally, it’s all over.
This should feel like a victory. It is a victory. The issue is, my body is screaming at me now, not with triumph but exhaustion. My strength is slipping, and my breath comes out ragged now and uneven.
The fight, the constant darts, the trauma, and the pain all weigh down on me heavily, and my legs falter.
I try to step back, but my knees buckle and I collapse to the floor, my body shifting back against my will. The fur recedes, claws vanish, and I’m left trembling and naked on the blood–stained floor with my limbs too heavy to move.
Then warmth surrounds me, and I relish in the feel of the blanket, only to notice it’s a coat. Strong arms surround me, and I know it’s Xander.
He’s kneeling beside me, pulling me against his chest. I can feel his heartbeat through his skin, steady and sure. I listen to it and let it guide me.
“You shouldn’t have done this,” he murmurs. His voice is low and rough with emotion. “You shouldn’t have been the one to fight. You need time. You need to heal.”
I want to answer him and tell him that I had to do it, that there was no choice. Eryx was in Gideon’s arms, and I couldn’t leave him there; waiting wasn’t right. The words don’t come though.
The warmth of his embrace is perfect, the safety of his arms is relaxing, and the weight of everything that just happened pulls me down. My eyes close
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AD
09:30. This
Chapter 99
without my permission,
and I feel his hand brush
my hair
before his
slips press softly
against my
forehead
got you,” he
whispers. “Sleep,
Serafine. Get some sleep now,
it’s over and he’s
gone.”
Ido.
Wrapped in his
Ilet arms, t’go and
finally let sleep take me.
