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Chapter 317
~Aira’s POV~
My hands were still trembling as I stord down the hallway, my vision blurry from the unshed tears burning my eyes. My breath ca in short, uneven bursts, my chest heaving from the weight of my rage.
I was furious.
At Zara. At Kane. At myself.
But more than anything, I was hurting.
Storm was gone. My son was gone. I should have protected him, but I failed.
Zade caught up with before I could reach my room, his hand grabbing my wrist and spinning around. "Aira, stop." His voice was gentle but firm, his blue eyes scanning my face with concern.
I wanted to push him away, to yell, to let all the emotions I had bottled up explode into the air like a hurricane. But when I saw the raw worry in his gaze, sothing inside cracked.
A sob tore from my throat.
Zade imdiately pulled into his arms, holding close as I buried my face in his chest. My fingers clenched his shirt, my body trembling as my wolf, Autumn, whimpered in my mind.
"I can’t go back to him," I choked out, my voice filled with emotion. "I don’t care what anyone says. If you believe your sister, Zade, that’s fine. But don’t ask to go back to Kane. I’d rather die."
Zade sighed, his chin resting atop my head as he rubbed my back soothingly. "No one’s asking you to go back to him, Aira," he murmured. "And I do believe Zara, but I believe you too. I just want you to be okay."
I pulled back slightly, my tear-streaked face tilting up to et his gaze. "I’m not okay," I whispered brokenly. "I’ve been so focused on my pain, my anger, that I lost sight of what was really important—Storm. I failed him, Zade."
"No." He cupped my face gently, his thumbs wiping away my tears. "You didn’t fail him. You are a mother fighting for her son. That’s the strongest thing you could ever be."
I shook my head. "I was reckless. I should have known better. I should have been smarter. Instead, I let my pain cloud my judgnt, and now my baby is with Kane, and I let it happen."
Zade exhaled sharply before pulling back into his arms. "We’re going to get him back," he vowed against my ear. "I swear it, Aira."
I clenched my jaw, trying to fight the sobs that still wracked my chest. "I’ve been a terrible mother, haven’t I?"
Zade pulled away just enough to cup my face, forcing to look at him. His blue eyes burned with sothing fierce and unyielding.
"You are not a terrible mother. You are a mother in pain. And you’re allowed to feel, Aira. You’re allowed to be scared and angry, but don’t you ever say that you don’t love your son enough."
I sniffled, my throat tight.
Zade leaned in, his forehead pressing gently against mine. "You love Storm more than anything. And that’s why you’re going to get him back."
His words broke sothing in , and for the first ti, I let myself believe them.
Slowly, I nodded. "I just want to do the right thing, Zade. I don’t want Storm anywhere near that monster."
"And he won’t be," Zade assured , his lips brushing against my forehead before he pulled back. "We’ll fix this. Together."
I inhaled deeply, my eyes searching his. "Zade..."
His gaze softened as he stroked my cheek. "Yeah?"
"I’m sorry," I whispered. "I am not torn anymore, Zade. Kane has nothing to offer my son and . I should have realised it a long ti ago, but my indecision is what brought us here today and I may have gotten mad, but Zara made a point in the kitchen where she said I have to break off from Kane for good and cleanly. I’m sorry."
Zade nodded, his eyes glimring with understanding. "You should tell her that yourself."
I looked away, sha curling in my chest. "That doesn’t erase the fact that she kept things from us. That she lost my son."
Zade sighed quietly, his fingers brushing through my hair soothingly. "I know my sister. She can be a lot of things, but Zara isn’t a liar."
I bit my lip, my mind flashing back to the confrontation. "But you heard her back there," I murmured. "She said that—"
"Her words got thinking," Zade interrupted. "If she was ntally locked sowhere, she wasn’t thinking that ans she wasn’t in control. That cancels out everything. If it is Thorned Crescent, I can understand why."
I frowned, studying his face. "You’re sure?"
He hesitated. "There’s sothing I haven’t told anyone yet, not even Snow," he admitted.
I stiffened. "What is it?"
Zade’s expression darkened slightly. "I did so digging one day in my library back at the pack. Zara isn’t just a werewolf. She has our great-grandmother’s bloodline in her."
I blinked in confusion. "What does that an?"
Zade’s voice was serious, almost reverent. "Zara is a witch, Aira. A powerful one."
A sharp inhale rushed through my lungs. My hands clenched. "What?"
"I don’t know the full extent of her powers, but the Shadow Clave wants her. It’s what caused the battle that destroyed my pack years ago. And now, if the Thorned Crescent is involved too..." He trailed off.
I tried to process his words, but my thoughts were cut short when Zade’s phone suddenly buzzed. He pulled it out, his eyes scanning the screen.
His expression hardened. "It’s from Golden God. It’s a video."
My breath hitched. "What kind of video?"
Zade didn’t answer imdiately. "Snow asked him to search for Storm and I believe he wants you to see this."
He clicked on the file and turned the screen towards . A security recording.
My heart pounded as we watched the footage.
There, in the grainy quality of the security cam, was Zara.
She was walking toward the woods, her movents eerily unnatural, almost chanical.
And then, I saw him.
Storm.
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