As darkness crept in at the edges of his vision, he could only think of one person.
Athenа...
If he was going to die, at least let him see her one last ti. But even that was taken from him.
His movents slowed. Then stopped.
Henry’s smug smile finally vanished. He stared at Eryx’s unmoving body, sothing cold twisting in his chest. His gaze snapped to Roland, who still watched with a frightening lack of emotion.
"Dad..." Henry said shakily. "That’s enough. Please."
Even though he hated the shit out of Eryx, he hadn’t wanted death.
Roland exploded. Spit flew from his mouth as his rage shot of of him. "No! This bastard said I have IED!" he roared. "He fucking mocked !"
The whole room flinched. Even the guys holding Eryx down.
"He’s my son," Roland continued, his voice venomous. "No one will question if I kill him."
That was it. Sothing inside Laila snapped completely.
Her eyes burned as fury unlike anything she’d ever felt tore through her. "You’re a fucking bastard, Roland!"
Silence materialised into the room.
Roland turned slowly toward her, murder written all over his face. "What did you just say to ?"
He stepped toward her, his attention fully on Laila now.
That distraction saved Eryx’s life.
Seraphina moved without thinking twice, she lunged at the n holding her son, shoving them with desperate strength born of terror. They stumbled just enough for her to rip Eryx’s head out of the water and tore the nylon off his face with shaking hands.
"Eryx! Eryx, baby... are you okay?"
Eryx’s unmoving body sank into her arms.
Color drained from Seraphina’s face so fast it was terrifying. The world seed to tilt beneath her.
Even Henry froze.
Then he dropped to his knees beside Eryx, flipping him onto his back. Without hesitation, he planted his hands on Eryx’s chest and began pressing down hard, again and again, forcing air into him
Seraphina sat frozen, unable to scream, unable to cry, paralyzed by the sight of her son lying lifeless.
Laila was being struck by Roland, but even the pain didn’t silence her. She scread, cursed at him.
Henry kept pushing again, and again, and again, until...
Eryx jerked violently, sucking in a harsh, broken breath as he coughed water and blood.
Philip rushed forward instantly, unlocking the lock on Eryx’s leg. Power rushed back into his system, as his started healing painfully slow.
Seraphina snapped out of her trance the mont she heard him cough.
She collapsed onto him, pulling him into her arms like she was afraid he’d disappear again. Tears poured freely down her face.
"I’m so sorry, my love. I’m so sorry... my baby boy."
Roland watched them with cold disapproval, his gaze lingering on Eryx for a long mont, then he turned and stord away without a word.
Laila was released next.
The lock on her leg was removed, and she ran straight to Eryx, dropping beside him with shaking hands. She gently stroked his hair, her tears falling silently as Seraphina refused to let him go.
Eryx coughed again, wincing.
"Alright... that’s enough," he rasped weakly. "Don’t choke again."
Henry rolled his eyes so hard it almost hurt and walked away.
Seraphina let out a shaky, broken laugh through her tears and loosened her grip just enough to look at him.
Laila, however, wasn’t laughing. Not even close.
Eryx’s face was red, bruised, swollen, and he was acting like nothing had happened. She stared at him, tears streaming down her face, unable to stop them.
Eryx saw her crying face. He looked at her and opened his mouth.
"You look ugly when you c..."
He didn’t get to finish. Laila threw herself onto him, breaking down completely as she cried into his chest, clutching him like she might lose him again if she let go.
And this ti, Eryx didn’t tease her. He just closed his eyes and held on.
Theodore stood alone in the school laboratory, a white coat draped over his shoulders, glasses perched on his nose as he carefully mixed liquids from different bottles.
He looked exhausted. It had been a week. A full, miserable week since Azrael had mated with Athena.
And nothing, absolutely nothing, had been able to pull him out of the pit he’d fallen into.
He had tried going to the lake, hoping the familiar quiet would numb the ache in his chest. It didn’t. Every ripple on the water reminded him of her laugh, her voice, the way she used to look at him like he mattered.
He tried sitting in the garden too, letting the scent of flowers fill his lungs. That failed just as badly.
He even buried himself in work, work that didn’t belong to him, work he didn’t care about... anything to stay busy. But no matter what he did, she was there crowding his thoughts, poisoning every attempt at distraction.
And now here he was... in the lab. Mixing chemicals. Sothing he hated.
He couldn’t help but wonder, what the fuck is he even doing in this departnt?
It wasn’t that he hated science. He didn’t. But sotis it felt too complicated. Just like mate bonds.
Still, none of it helped. The thoughts of her refused to leave him alone.
With a sharp breath, he ripped the glasses off his face and threw them across the room. They clattered against the wall before hitting the floor.
"Fuck," he muttered, dragging a shaking hand through his hair.
At that mont, the lab door opened. Theo’s head snapped up.
Rhydric stood there with his usual cold expression carved into his face like stone.
"Didn’t know you’d finally develop such a ridiculous love for your number one enemy," Rhydric said flatly, even though the sarcasm was unmistakable.
Theo scoffed, turning away. "Not in the mood."
Rhydric didn’t leave. Instead, he walked closer and planted both hands on the lab table, leaning in just enough to invade Theo’s space.
Theo looked back and suddenly it felt like he was being stripped bare.
The way Rhydric stared at him... it was suffocating. Like the Moon Goddess herself was peering straight into his soul, seeing every ugly thought, every weakness he tried so hard to bury.
"Okay, fine," Theo muttered, shifting uncomfortably. "Stop staring at like that."
Rhydric didn’t move. "Are you going to talk," he demanded, "or do I have to keep guessing what’s eating you alive?"
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