Chapter 158: Chapter 158

Chapter 69 – Sweet Sacrifice

“Insanity is relative. It depends on who has who locked in what cage.“–Ray Bradbury

Lady Sanguine

When Jonathan came out of hiding, the world stopped. Osiris” silent command swept through the minds of the witches and hybrids to cease their attacks; focusing their attention on the former Alpha. I heard not a single whimper or exhale.

Still, in his old age, radiates power and dominance that demanded respect and control. If I still was a feeble slave, I’d surely would’ve cowered back into my cell, hoping the darkness would quell the intensity of his glare. Now, with pale blue eyes shifting from Osiris to me, Jonathan didn’t bother to hide his disgust and contempt. To insult an Alpha is to trespass on the land they’re so proud of and cause trouble. Judging by the thickened aroma of death and blood in the air, we practically spat in his face.

Hate cannot describe how I feel about him. The man who destroyed me doesn’t get to be blessed with the luxuries of life. My eyes burned and blood pumped harder in my body to accommodate the bloodthirstiness in my veins.

“I’m the one you want Kiya, is it not?” Jonathan questioned in our exchange of piercing glares. “Instead of destroying my community, you should’ve found me instead.”

“It’s not wise to poke the bear when it is enraged, Jonathan Prince.” Osiris chuckled. Neron held onto me harder as I struggled in his grasp again, ready to pounce on his dad. “The grandson of Titan Prince shares the same face as the madman who set the course of this pack’s fate. It is uncanny.”

“I don’t know who you are or why you know my grandfather, but I won’t allow you to harm my pack any longer!”

“Or what?” Osiris asked, cocking his head to the side. “You’re outmatched, Jonathan. Attack and I’ll snap your body into two. Or my Lady will cut your head off your shoulders. A lone Alpha will never be a match to an

avatar.”

“Then allow me to consider an offer.”

My interest piqued. My struggles in Neron’s arms ceased, his warmth enveloping me once again. Osiris lowered the hand that prepared to attack Diana and gave Jonathan his full and undivided attention. Above me, Neron growled as he jerked his head toward his father.

“What the hell are you doing, Dad?!”

“Doing what you obviously cannot: protect this pack.” Ouch. Even I felt that sting. Neron mumbled something incoherent, but I paid no mind as I’m intrigued by what this ‘offer‘ is. “In exchange for sparing my pack and my son, I’ll surrender myself to you.”

Neron’s breath hitched above me, and my eyes widened. The suggestion sparked a dissonance of conversation amongst enemies and my friends, pondering on Jonathan’s mental state. Why is he sacrificing himself? He was met with opposition from the soldiers and members who were still alive, begging him to reconsider, but his deep growls instantly silenced them.

1/5

“Why should I accept?”

“It isn’t about you, but about her.” Jonathan shifted his focus onto me. “You want revenge? You want me to pay for the years I’ve taken from you? This is your chance. You can have me only if you leave my son out of your madness.”

“You don’t tell me what to do!” I hissed, hiding Diana’s tiny body in a nearby bush. I don’t want her to get hurt because of me. “You think your futile attempt to appease me will stop fate?! Your son and your pack will follow you in your death!”

“Kiya, stop it!” Neron demanded, now clasping his large hands around my wrists.

“Let go of me, asshole! I want nothing to do with you!”

“My Lady.” Osiris‘ voice flooded my mind and the mark on my neck throbbed with his presence. Neron might think I’ve stopped because of him, but I didn’t. “Think about it. The Alphas deserve to suffer, do they not? They collectively caused you pain and suffering. Kill Jonathan and Neron suffers the loss of his family right before his death. A perfect way for him to feel how you lost yours, hmm?”

Puzzle pieces connected to create the bigger picture. It all made sense to me. Jonathan’s death will seal the destiny of Zircon Moon, since most of these bastards would rather follow him than his son. Neron can feel the

last of his familial bond snap before I cut his heart out of his chest, damning the Prince bloodline to an eternity burning in hellfire. Then the pack will cease to exist.

But Jonathan doesn’t deserve to die on the land he loves so much. No. That is a luxury he cannot afford.

Lucky for him, I’ll be the one deciding his fate. Just as he condemned me to suffering, I will do the same to him with him on his knees and my blade above his head.

The former Alpha will bow to the former slave.

Cackling erupted from my lips as I felt the bloodlust consume me once more. Knowing Neron is too damn scared to hurt me, I summoned my newfound powers to pry the both of us apart. The poor man was launched back so hard that he slammed into a tree, grunting in pain. He can resist Osiris, but he can’t resist me–and I’ll use that weakness to my advantage after I take care of his father.

Our touchy connection went on for too long. It had to end, especially when I felt that faint tickle in my heart.

“Very well then, Jonathan Prince.” I spoke, my voice falling to an octave when I returned to Osiris‘ side where he wrapped his arm around my waist. “I accept your offer under one condition.” His eyes widened in confusion. “Ashley and Steven will come as well. Kill three birds with one stone.”

“You can’t do that to your parents.” do that to vo

“You underestimate just how far I’ll go to make you pay.” I snarled at him. For a second there, I thought I saw him flinch. Having power over my abuser, after so long, is exhilarating. I needed more of that feeling. “We’ll be taking our fun elsewhere. Zircon Moon will live, for now.”

On cue, a couple of witches dragged out a struggling Ashley and Steven from the forest, entrapping them with their black magic. They pleaded with me to let them go, but I ignored them. Cerberus got behind Jonathan, knocked him out with a hit to the head, and threw his limp body over his shoulders. Osiris calls for the army

to return to the shadows, dropping whatever they were doing and fading into the thick blackness behind the

vast oak trees.

“Kiya, please don’t go.”

Neron’s voice was like a lance piercing me through the heart. His rising body appeared in my peripherals, ready to grab me back to his side. I should hate him. I do hate him, but I hate the way he is affecting my heart more. Quickly, I created a translucent wall swimming with black and red wisps of energy next to me, separating the both of us. I didn’t want him touching me.

You’re stronger than this!” He shouts, pounding his fists against the wall. He hits and hits until it settles in his thick skull that he can’t do anything about it. Defeated, he fell to his knees, hanging his head low. “This isn’t what you’re meant to do. You have a heart, a soul, and a spirit that can’t be tainted. You belong in the light, not lost in the darkness. I know the real you is somewhere buried underneath all that hatred and I won’t stop until you come back! Don’t walk away from me, Kiya!”

Gosh, I wish he’d shut up!

“Quiet!” I shouted at him. Great, another fucking headache is in the works. “Don’t be so eager to die, Neron; your turn will come sooner than you think. All this begging will get you nowhere, and I guarantee that the only way you’ll get me back in your arms is with my knife in your throat. Be thankful that your father’s sacrifice prolonged the inevitable.”

I didn’t want to be here anymore. Everywhere I turn is a goddamn distraction–Neron, my friends, Diana, and even Raina. Clearing my head is the only option to refocus my efforts on revenge.

“Not to worry, Little Moon.” Osiris‘ voice rung in my head. His hand massaged my upper arm. “It’ll all be over Spon.”

I know it will. The shouts and yells of my tied up friends fell on deaf ears. Focusing on them is detrimental to my mind. I cannot afford any cracks in my resolve. With Osiris holding me close to him, we faded into the darkness, leaving Zircon Moon to pick up the pieces from our attack.

I’ll be back, Neron.

That’s a promise.

Neron

The aftermath of an ambush is always the hardest to deal with. When a pack goes to war, they expect a victory. They expect the reward of bragging to their friends and family about the battle and how they emerged alive. As winners. Tonight, it was anything but. We were the losers. The damage, the blood, the injuries.

The bodies.

Kiya–excuse me, Lady Sanguine, along with Osiris, wiped out about a third of my pack. Many lives were lost because we were grossly under–prepared for the carnage of the goddess of darkness. Is any pack ever prepared to fight against bywords of the gods in heaven?

Hospital staff tended to the plethora of injuries while some rolled bodies towards the mortuary to prepare them for funerals. How many families were torn apart tonight? How many mates lost their partners? What about the children? My heart ripped to pieces tonight, in more ways than one. Onyx hasn’t said anything: likely nursing his ever–growing wound of our lost mate.

I have to save her.

1 sighed, mopping up the last of the blood from the foyer grounds. I don’t want the children to see blood of their loved ones smeared all over the floors. My saving grace is that the Garnet Moon team was here to help my pack in their time of need, despite the sour history. Sadness reeked in their auras, plunging the temperature of the surrounding air to artic chill.

But what’s colder? Their depression or Kiya’s hateful eyes? Those red orbs will haunt me in my dreams and my nightmares.

“We’re finished.” Sapphire announced, strolling in from upstairs. “We cleaned up the blood and debris as much as we could, but the damage is still obvious.”

“Thank you.”

Beta Jacqueline sighed with heaviness in her heart, taking a seat on a stair. The light in her eyes dulled as she entered deep thought. The rest of her pack walked in from outside with my Betas and Gamma at their side. Valerian had thick gauze around his shoulder and Raina, her thigh. Abigail wrapped her arms around Raina for support as she slowly sat on the bottom stair.

“I don’t believe all hope is lost.” Jacqueline whispered, folding her hands. “I don’t believe she’s gone. What happened tonight was…”

“Insane.” Galen finished, propping an elbow on the railing. “But, what can we do? Little Bit is out of her mind and it’s clear that Osiris is calling the shots.”

He is. The master puppeteer and the orchestrator of the chaos. Osiris is a man with the utmost confidence in his superiority and power. Fighting him was like fighting a wall; he was unbreakable and unwavering. How many times had he thrown me around like a rag doll

while Kiya destroyed the pack house from the inside out? The bastard humiliated me and enjoyed every second.

“Your ‘mate” is no longer yours. She is bound to me and therefore, mine. And there is nothing you can do to stop

me.”

How can I kill an enemy that I can’t fucking touch?! How do I get through Kiya’s hatred?

“S–She let me go.” All our heads turned to Raina, shaken up by her attack as Valerian held her. “I–I don’t know why. She was seconds away from killing me until she backed off. She wanted me to die. Why did she let me 80?”

“Kiya still loves you, Raina.” Darien said, but she shook her head.

“I don’t believe it. I saw no love in her eyes.”

‘Mommy! Daddy!” Adonis burst into the foyer, running to his parents immediately. The children have been

released from their bunker and returned to their parents. His head cocked to the side when he noticed the bandages his parents adorned. But that’s not the most shocking thing he did.

He sniffed his mother, blinking in curiosity before touching her stomach. As if his protective instincts took over, he wrapped his arms around Raina’s waist and rested his head near her belly.

That is when it all clicked.

“Raina…” Abigail whispered in shock. “Kiya let you go because you’re pregnant.”

Raina was speechless. Instantly, her hand covered her stomach. “H–How? I didn’t…”

“The intense stress from the past week must have blocked your ability to detect your new pup.” Valerian said thoughtfully. “And I smell orchids in your scent. It is tiny, but there.”

“Guys, don’t you know what this means?” Jacqueline asked, bouncing in her seat with a grin. “Our Kiya is still in that manic banshee! She’ll never raise a hand against children and Raina is carrying. Her morality is still there! If she was completely gone, she wouldn’t have hesitated to kill her sister!”

“That last bit doesn’t make me feel any better…” Raina mumbled dejectedly.

is still

“It’s not supposed to, but this means there We can save our Little Bit.”

“How?” Galen asked, arching an eyebrow.

Jacqueline deflates. “I’ll get back to you on that one.”

Saving Kiya from Osiris will be a perilous journey. With the man being untouchable and my mate being unhinged, there is no telling what could happen. My father and Raina’s parents are in their clutches. We don’t know where they’ve taken them or how long they plan on keeping them alive.

So much is on the line and Lady Sanguine is prepared to take my life.

So be it.

I won’t rest until my beloved is safe and sound with Osiris‘ body bleeding out on the pavement.

I can’t give up.

Not on her

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