Chapter 115
-KANE-
"They're in trouble." Hunter roars. "I can feel Isabella's pain."
He was right. I could feel Maya's pain as well. It was ripping me apart inside. If we didn't get to our mates soon, we would lose our freaking minds. Scratch that, I was already losing my mind. I was desperate to get back to her. To bring her to safety. And then I spot my sister. She has Roman in her arms. A loud howl rocks the forest and sends a message to us. It was Lucy. Our bodies run cold. Multiple other cries follow, reminding us that they needed us.
Austin grabs Roman from Gabriella and kisses his forehead for a few seconds before giving him back to her. He doesn't have time to hold him even though I know he wants to. I know that I would if I was him.
"Let's get moving!" Austin shouts. "Paige, our wives need you. We need to get you to them, and we need to do it now. That's the most important mission at this point."
"It isn't going to be that easy." She says. "They're coming."
"Who's coming?" I demand. We were running out of time. They needed us. Maya needed me, and I wasn't about to let her down again.
My question doesn't take long to get answered because I see them. I know what she's talking about. A f*****g army heading to us. Vampires and wolves that I've never seen before.
How did she get these many people on her side? What did she promise them to convince them to attack us? Only those wishing for a death wish would try and cross this family. Posted by FindNovel.net Just like I was in the past. But this wasn't just Austin and his pack. James's pack was here as well. And Hunter's. Arthur's brothers. The Cross brothers. We were a powerful force on our own.
They didn't stand a chance, but they could hold us back. And maybe that's what Morgan is counting on. She knows she can't kill us all when we're this powerful together. So she's trying to stall us so that she could destroy our mates instead. f**k.
Hunter roars and attacks the first vampire that rushes to our side. Austin takes the next one. The packs join into one, getting ready to take down the others.
My heart burns as I continue to feel Maya's pain. I roar and attack another one of the vampires. I had to find a way to get to her.
"Get Roman to safety!" Austin shouts to Gabriella. Arthur is in front of her, protecting her from any harm. She shouldn't be here while she was pregnant. It was too dangerous. But where could she go? At this point, everywhere was too dangerous.
I push my way towards them, standing to the side of her. She looked surprised that I was trying to protect her from harm. I've avoided accepting her as my sister, but that was long gone. I was done hiding from the truth. I was done pretending that I didn't care. She was my sister. And I will always love and protect her; it doesn't matter that I didn't know her for most of my life. That didn't change a single thing between us.
Gabriella smiles at me, "thank you."
I return her smile, "just make sure you don't get hurt."
She nods, "you don't need to worry about me. Roman is my main concern right now."
I'm surprised that he isn't crying. His eyes are taking in the fight around him. It's insane that a baby has to see something as crazy as this. But this was the life he would have to get accustomed to. Unfortunately, there would always be people out to hurt this group. There were many enemies. But luckily for us, even more allies.
Autumn and Atticus join us. "This is worse than I was expecting it to be." Atticus points out.
"You always have to expect the worst around us," Gabriella says.
Arthur chuckles, "I'll believe her when she says that. It's nothing but the truth."
I grab another vampire by his neck and sink my teeth into his skin before ripping his head from his body. Arthur kills another one beside me. Atticus does as well.
"I'm so happy that you got Roman out of there," Autumn tells Gabriella. "And I'm happy that he's safe."
A vampire launches at Autumn suddenly, and she surprises everyone when she kills him before he can harm her.
"I didn't know you could fight," Gabriella says in shock. "I'm impressed."
Atticus didn't say anything, but he also looked surprised. How much did he not know about his wife?
"We won't be able to make it back fast enough," I shout above all the noise. "This was her plan all along."
I'm beginning to panic. If I can't get to Maya, what will happen to her and my babies? What else could I do to try and reach her?
"There are multiple witches inside the castle," Gabriella informs us. "There is no telling what kind of spells they're using against them. We have to find a way to get back there. If I didn't have to protect Roman I would be rushing back to get to them."
Her words have shocked me even more than before. Multiple witches? Weren't the witches supposed to be out here with the others? When did they change their plan to all be inside the castle with our mates? They must have known Arthur's brothers were keeping an eye on them. They'd just set us up. Once again, we fell for another trap.
~MAYA~
I could barely think clearly with the loud ringing in my ear. My wolf cries out, and I can feel Kane's panic as he hears my cry. I know that he can sense that I'm in trouble. Our wolfs cries are getting louder. I don't want to panic the men; none of us want that, but it's not something that we can control.
This was our chance to prove that we could fight on our own. These witches were powerful, but so were we. I push for mind control, trying to overpower the attack inside my head. And I'm trying to connect with the women. I need them to fight back with me. We had a family to protect, a family to live for. The fact that the men weren't here as yet meant they were also in danger. We couldn't wait for them to save us this time. It was our fight, and we decided to save Roman; now, it was time to save ourselves.
I narrow my eyes and let out a nasty growl; I could feel myself growing stronger as my claws scrape the wooden floor. I focused on Morgan; she was my main target.
She isn't looking at me; that's good. I need to catch her off-guard. I'm hoping when I break the link between the witches, it will be easier on Lucy and the rest.
I position my wolf, ignoring the pain inside of me. I need to do this, or we will all die here today. I've fought death too much to lose my life this way.
When I know it's the right time, I lunge forward and bite her shoulders with my teeth. Her screams pierce the room, and it's like music to my ear. The force of my attack sends us both crashing through a window. My wolf lands on its feet with her body below. That's it, Maya. Finish her. Finish her for everything she's put you through. Finish her for everything she's put your family through. Finish her for hurting Roman, for taking you from Kane.
She tries to use more of her spells on me, but my mind is too strong for her to control at this point. I growl as I sink my teeth into her neck. She screams even louder than before, but it doesn't stop me from ripping her head off her body. There is blood everywhere when I'm finished with her.
Before I can take in my surroundings, more screams rock the forest, and I see Lucy's wolf next to me with another witch's head in her mouth.
I'm proud to see Isabella's wolf with one beneath her and the head of another in her mouth. She gets rid of it and finishes off the other.
There are still screams at the top of the castle. Freya and Eden were still inside, and there should be three more witches, as well as Anna. She was mine.
Lucy leaves to return to Roman; I know she is still worried about him. It was now just Isabella and me. We nod at each other and race up the stairs to help the others and finish what we started.
I find Anna trying to escape down the stairs. I block her exit. I should have finished her off a long time ago. Whenever we gave anyone a chance, they always took advantage of it. She was an excellent example of that. It was never good to leave our enemies with more opportunities to harm us.
Isabella rushes past me to help the others; the two of us are left.
I growl aggressively, and there is unmistakable fear in her eyes. She tries to run, but I grab her by her leg and spin her until she hits the wall.
"Please," she cries, "I'm so sorry for everything. I swear I will never mess with you or Kane again. He is yours; he only loves you. I will not do anything to hurt you again. Please leave me alone. Let me live."
I narrowed my eyes, this may have worked on Kane, but it was not about to work with me. There was not a single good bone in her body. She was not a good person. If I let her live, she would continue to hurt people; if not me or my family, there would be others she would cause trouble for.
She screams when I lunge for her throat. It only gets louder and more desperate as she tries to shove me away. I don't stop until she stops moving beneath me.
This is what she gets for messing with my family. The biggest mistake they made was trying to hurt Roman to get to us. It's why they were all dead. At least I hoped they were.
I rush to the others, relieved to see the other witches are all dead. We drag their bodies to the others on the ground and slowly shift back into our human forms.
Isabella hands us clothes, and we finish the witches off with a fire. The flames became too much for us, and we stepped back. We didn't leave until we were sure there was no returning for them. We didn't want them alive to terrorize another family. "Let's get back to the others," Isabella shouts. "I can feel how restless Hunter is."
She was right. Our mates will be restless. They wouldn't be able to focus on the fight if they still thought we were in danger.
We race through the woods until we see them. They were deep into battle. There was blood everywhere, along with bodies. Thankfully, none of the dead bodies belonged to anyone we couldn't live without.
A few of our pack members were hurt, but as long as we could get them out of there quickly enough, we will be able to save them.
I spot Kane guarding Gabriella and Lucy, who's holding her baby. I smiled; I was happy to see him protecting his sister. And I knew that this little gesture would also make her incredibly happy.
Kane spots me then, and our gazes lock. I can see the relief and happiness in his face to see that I'm alive and well. I can also see the pride in him. But the joy on his face quickly darkens into fear. I don't have time to prepare as he rushes to my side and pulls me in front of him. He gasps and stops moving behind me.
I slowly turn around and feel the blood drain from my face with fear of what just happened. Everything moves in slow motion after that.
"Kane?" I whisper, there is no hiding the terror in my voice. I'm terrified. I can barely move. My hands are trembling as I touch his cheek.
His eyes are wide open with shock, and my heart drops when I see the stake through his heart. It's there, big and scary, staring at me. He's bleeding.
"KANEEEE!" I scream as blood begins to pour out of his mouth. My heart is pounding against my chest, and I can barely find any words. I'm scared, terrified, losing my mind with fear. He clutches the stake with his hand and pulls it out. But it only makes him bleed more. From both his mouth and chest.
I try to hold him up, but I'm not fast enough as he drops to the ground in front of me. He's trying to talk to me, but nothing is coming out of his mouth. It's causing me to panic even more.
"Please," I beg. "Please don't leave me. PLEASE, KANE!"
Gabriella hears my scream and rushes to my side. I listen to her piercing scream as she sees her brother bleeding to death on the ground beneath us.
I can't focus on her pain when I can barely control my own.
I cover his wound with my hand as I try to find the strength to do something, anything. But what could I do? How could I save him? He was a hybrid, and he just got a stake through the heart, the most popular way to get rid of one.
Gabriella screams louder this time and moves with incredible speed to catch the person that did this to him. She kills the vampire before he has a chance to even say a word. I can't pay attention to them. I'm in too much shock. I still can't believe that this just happened. It happened so quickly that my body is not reacting well to it.
This wasn't happening to us. We've been through too much for me to lose him like this. I can't. I refuse to let Kane die in front of me like this. He still had to see our babies. They needed him. I needed him.
"I love you," I cry as my tears drop onto his body. "I love you so much. Our babies love you. We can't live without you, Kane. You can't leave us."
Lucy drops to the ground beside me when I begin to scream uncontrollably as Kane's body becomes unresponsive beneath mine.
The fight is still happening around us, but I don't care. I don't care about anything else but Kane on the ground.
Roman begins to cry as if he understands my pain. He reaches for me, but I'm in too much pain to take him in my arms. He screams louder and pushes away from his mother to get closer to me. I eventually give in and take him into my arms. I'm in shock when he pushes toward Kane. I lean him closer so that he can touch him; Roman surprises us all when he places his hand on the wound on his chest. It's almost as though he knows what he's doing. Which is impossible for a baby. "What is he doing?" I ask.
"I don't know," Lucy whispers.
His body begins to glow but not a bright yellow; it's a shocking dazzling blue.
"Roman?" Lucy gasps. Gabriella, Lucy, and I stare in amazement as the wound begins to close until all that's left is a small scar.
"Did he just heal him?" Gabriella whispers with hopeful eyes. Arthur joins her side and holds hers close to him. He must have been fighting to get to her all this time.
We all wait, praying that by some miracle, Roman just did the impossible. He wasn't a healer, and I've never heard of a child whose parents are werewolves saving someone's life in this manner. It was very unusual, but we couldn't deny what we saw. My hope intensifies when Kane turns his face and slowly opens his eyes. He looks at Gabriella, then at Arthur before his eyes fall on me.
My heart skips a beat when he smiles, "why are you crying, my love? I'm right here. I'm never leaving you again. Don't you know that?"
"Kane!" I shout as I wrap my arms around his neck. "I love you; I love you so much."
My body is still shaking from what just happened. I could barely process it all. I thought I had lost him. I thought everything was over for us. How did this happen? What was Roman? Why was it possible for him to save Kane?
My mate chuckles and sits up, wrapping his arms around me and holding onto me tightly, "I love you more, Maya. My Maya. My sweet love."
I don't want to let go. I'm scarred from almost losing him.
"He's right," Gabriella says suddenly. "You look like your normal self. Why did it take me so long to realize that?"
"It happened after she killed the witch," Isabella informs us as she approaches us with Hunter behind her. "Killing her must have broken the spell completely."
"Just when I was getting used to seeing you as another person," Lucas teases. "Back to the unpleasant sister."
I roll my eyes, "don't let me come up there for you."
"The packs have the rest of the fight from here," Hunter informs us. "Most of the threat is gone. We can go home now."
"What happened here?" Austin asks as he pulls Lucy to his side and kisses her. Roman cries for his father, and he takes him into his arms and hugs him to his body. Austin hadn't seen the miracle his son had just performed. He was too busy in battle. But he must have realized that Kane almost lost his life. My screams were very loud. Anyone would know what was happening even if they were deep in battle.
"My son," he cries. "Don't ever scare your father like that again. He's never getting out of my f*****g sight ever again."
Lucy agrees, "this is the first time I agree with you."
We help Kane to his feet, "what happened?" he asks. "How did I survive? I swear my life flashed before my eyes in those few seconds. I thought that was the end for me. I thought I would never see Maya or our babies again." "Roman saved you," I whisper. "He's an angel sent to protect us; there is no way he's a normal baby."
"Is that true?" Austin asks in disbelief.
"It is!" I exclaim as I kiss Roman's cheek. He giggles and makes cute baby noises.
"It is true," Lucy confirms as well. "You should have seen it, Austin! He was so amazing. It felt like a dream. Our baby is a healer!"
Paige joins us next.
"Did you know he would be this powerful?" Lucy asks her. I know what she's talking about; Paige was the one that prophesied so many things about our lives. She must have already known that Roman would be a powerful child.
"The prophecy is slowly revealing to all of you." She tells us. "There are many more to come. You must protect Roman at all costs. He's just as important as any of you. Many will want to get their hands on him for their greedy desires. You must make sure that he never falls into the wrong hands."
We had to hope that news of what happened today didn't spread. No one must know what Roman was capable of doing. I wasn't even sure if he could do it again after today. This could have been a one-time miracle for all we knew.
"Morgan placed a spell on him," Lucy informs her. "Is there anything you can do to reverse it?"
"A spell?" Austin demands as his face turns red with anger. "What f*****g spell did that which put on my child?"
"How heartless must she be to put a spell on an innocent baby?" Hunter growls. "I hope she's f*****g dead."
"She is," I inform him. "We ensured that she never returns to hurt anyone else. And I also got rid of Anna. It turns out she was the one pretending to be me this entire time. She has always been obsessed with Kane. Not as much as Giselle but she wanted revenge when he kicked her out because she tried to hurt me. She got her revenge but I also got mine."
"Anna?" Kane growls. "Why did I ever let that f*****g woman live?"
"It's okay sweetheart." I tell him. "She's gone now. I finished her. There is no returning for her."
"But if Morgan is dead, shouldn't that mean the spell is broken?" I ask. "When she died, I was able to return to myself; shouldn't it be the same for Roman?"
"Your spell was already broken when you remembered who you were, Maya," Paige informs me. "It just took a little longer for you to return to normal. It had nothing to do with her death. There is nothing that can be done for him. I can't reverse the spell." "There must be something that you can do." Lucy's father demands. "He's just a baby. I won't let my grandson suffer such a horrible fate."
"It's a spell that prevents him from recognizing his mate." She notes without us having to tell her. "I can weaken the spell so that when his mate is revealed at the correct age, she will have the power to break the spell. Once she does it, he will recognize her." "Anything that helps, we will be grateful for it," Lucy says. "As werewolves, our mates are everything to us. I don't want to take that away from him."
Paige nods and takes Roman into her arms; she whispers a few words we don't understand. Roman remains entirely still, almost like he understands she's trying to help him. When it's over, she hands him back to Austin.
"I'm sorry I wasn't able to help you," Paige apologizes. "As it turns out, you didn't need me. Morgan and her friends got what they deserved in the end."
I looked around us; almost everyone was dead or seriously injured. That's what happened when they messed with my family. I hope that others would look at this and think twice before they try to hurt another one of us again. "News will spread like wildfire," Atticus says as he looks around. "Your family lives up to their name." He tells Austin.
Austin shakes his hand, "we are thankful for your help today. You and your wife have shown your loyalty. If you need us for anything, I promise we will be there."
Ermanno lifts Roman into his arms, "it's so good to see you safe and sound little one."
He truly was loved by everyone present. And I loved him even more now that he saved the love of my life; the father of my children, my life.
Austin turns to me now that Roman is busy giggling with Lucy's brothers.
He takes me in for a few seconds before he breaks into a grin, "it's so good to see you back to your normal self."
I smile as he pulls me in for another hug, "our reunion was cut short before, but now I'm ready to host a big party for your return."
James hugs me after, "our parents will be so happy to see you. They have barely slept since you went missing. We can all finally breathe peacefully now that you're safe."
"And we have no reason to kill your mate now that we know he has loved you even though he couldn't recognize you," Austin adds. "I was worried we couldn't trust him, but I think he has finally proven his love."
He did just almost die for me. I knew he loved me; there was no question in my mind about Kane's love. He loved me just as much as I loved him. Our past was behind us; there was no use in bringing it up again after today. "But if you mess up again..." James warns.
I roll my eyes at my brother, "there is no use for any of that. It's time you men try to bond with each other. My brothers must get along with my mate. I won't have it any other way. If you love me, you will learn to love him also." Lucas twists his face at my words, and I pull his ear, "we have plenty to settle between us. And I need a proper introduction to your wife now that I remember who I am."
His face looks uncomfortable at my words, and I wonder if I shouldn't have said anything.
"Freya." He calls her, and she comes forward. I noticed that she looked upset about something, but I'm not sure what it was. "This is my sister, Maya. My real sister."
Freya smiles; she looks beautiful, especially when she smiles, "it's nice to meet you, Maya, finally. Lucas has been miserable since he learned of your disappearance. He loves you plenty."
I smile, "he does, doesn't he? He loves to harass me. I'm happy that you were there for him during these challenging times. My brother is lucky to have you."
"He is fortunate," Arthur says behind us. "I hope he always remembers that."
"And I hope you always remember how lucky you are to have my sister as a mate." Kane joins in.
Gabriella grins and hugs him, "aren't I lucky to have such a caring brother?"
I smile at them both. "And even luckier to have me as your sister-in-law." I tease.
She grins, "you're more a sister than anything else."
"Let's head back home," Austin says suddenly. "I don't want anymore surprise attacks."
We thank Arthur's brothers and Lucy's family for their help. We invited them to the party Austin was set to hold tonight, but they had to leave. Atticus and Autumn, however, can attend.
"Have you noticed that Freya looks unhappy?" I ask Lucy.
"There is plenty you don't know about their relationship," Lucy informs me. "She was in a good mood before, but when she returned from fighting, she saw Lucas protecting her sister. Since Lucas and Avery are mates, it must have been hard for her to see it when her life was also in danger."
"Oh no," I whisper. "I know my brother. He would not intentionally hurt her. They look like they have been fighting."
Lucy nods, "I know he will never be unfaithful to her. But I don't know if he could give her his heart while Avery remains his mate. Only time will tell. I can only hope that everything works out eventually for them both."
We don't talk about it anymore as Lucas joins us in the vehicle.
It doesn't take us long to return home. Not with the way everyone was driving; I could swear they were racing with each other to get home. I wouldn't blame them. I was happy to be home as well. This time it was different because I remembered who I was. I rush inside the house without waiting for anyone else. I couldn't wait to see my parents. All this time, they thought I was someone else. I was sure they were already informed that they had the fake Maya all this time. "Mom!" I shout. "Dad!"
I'm running to their room when I spot them running towards me. I grin and throw myself into their open arms.
"Oh, Maya," my mother whispers as she rubs my hair. "It's so good to have the real you back with us, sweetheart, finally. Home has not been the same without you."
"Don't you dare ever leave us like that again, Maya!" My father tells me, "my fragile heart won't be able to take it."
"I won't, father," I promise him. "You're stuck with me from now on. You're all stuck with me. No one is ever taking me away again."
My mother places her hand on my stomach, "you're pregnant. With twins?"
I nod, "you look smaller than you should look." She tells me.
"Her mate is a hybrid," my father explains to her. "It will be different for her. Give it some time; she's going to be huge."
I didn't want to think about that. While I couldn't wait to hold my babies in my arms, I was terrified of giving birth. Was Lucy like this as well? I would have to ask her more about her pregnancy whenever we could talk about it. "She beat us to you," Austin says as he walks over with Roman.
"Oh my goodness," my mother says as she runs toward them, "I'm so happy that my grandchild is safe."
I let them have their reunion as I see Kane leaning up against the wall looking at me. I almost lost him today. I never wanted to be scared like that ever again.
I couldn't wait to have him to myself. To tell him everything I've wanted to say since the start. This was our chance for that. It was finally our time, and we had the rest of our lives to make up for our past. I couldn't wait for that.