Leaving There

Harlyn

I stand looking at Wayne, needing to hear his words and the truth. Katy is standing staring at him with tears in her eyes.

“I want the full truth,” I say.

“Then let’s go in and talk alone about this.” Wayne steps towards me, and Stefan drags me back.

“Or say it here. Why do you need to get her alone? We already know the truth,” Stefan argues.

“It’s personal, between me and Harlyn,” Wayne states.

“Personal between you and Harlyn?” Stefan laughs. “How can it be personal between you two when it was your brother who drugged us that night and placed her in my room?”

Stefan’s words made my body turn cold.

“How can it be personally between just you and her when you used black magic to make her father hate and reject her so you could get her here?”

Hearing Stefan’s words has me stepping away from Wayne and closer to him.

“Does Harlyn know you had the pups attack me that day I stopped you from marrying her?” Stefan’s words shock me, I turn and look at him.

“What? I don’t remember that, Stefan.” Why would he say that?

“Because you were barely conscious in his arms. Ask the pups, ask Samuel. Or ask Wayne.” His eyes go from me to Wayne. “Ask Wayne why he trained the pups like the dogs of the soldiers, only worse. While the soldiers had a choice in following the whistles, the pups were blinded by black magic and forced to follow.”

Stefan’s words hit me hard.

“Still waiting, Wayne. How is it personal when you included everyone?” Stefan shouts, and I press my body against him as he keeps a tight hold on me.

“Harlyn, let me speak to you alone, please.” Wayne focuses on me, and I feel Stefan’s head lower.

“It’s your choice, but you should know he used magic to make you feel more than you did. That anger towards me was also magic. And your mind isn’t entirely cleared of it yet.” His breath washes over my ear as he speaks.

“No,” I shout. “You can tell me everything with everyone watching. Did you really use the pups?” I ask, unable to remember.

“He refused to let us leave. So yes, I had them attack him,” Wayne shouts back and moves closer. My body tries to melt into Stefan’s to hide from him. “I did it to protect you,” Wayne smiles at me.

“You did it to test if you could use the pups to take down our families and claim back your father’s kingdom,” Stefan replies, and Wayne’s body stills, the rage burning in his eyes.

“Stop talking!” Wayne shouts.

“Or what?” Stefan asks, his hands pushing me behind him.

“Harlyn, I can’t talk to you with him here, please,” Wayne begs, and I don’t move. “I do love you. That was never a lie,” Wayne argues.

I step around Stefan, his eyes glaring at me. I get he’s trying to protect me, but I need answers.

“Did your brother really happen just to find me, or had he been looking for me to bring me to you?” I ask, watching and waiting. His silence is the answer. “And what was your plan, Wayne? Before you fell in love with me, what was your plan?” I ask.

He looks from me to Stefan.

“You want the whole story, the entire plan?” Wayne asks, looking at me.

“Yes, every small detail,” I reply.

“Fine, your father and his took that kingdom from my father,” Wayne announces, and I stand shocked.

“Because his father was trying to use black magic to change an unborn baby into a Lycan,” Stefan explains, and I nod, understanding him.

“Either way, they took it. My father couldn’t get it back, so he had someone give the Earl a cursed object that would make him hate you. The plan was we took you and used you. Only, he didn’t throw you out quick enough.” So my dad doesn’t hate me? I know how I felt like I had no control over how I acted with Stefan. Is that how he felt?

“Ethan saw that Stefan was a Lycan, that he was your mate. So we had a new plan. I knew that your father would exile you if you were pregnant and unable to name who the father was.” Wayne speaks, and I almost want to kill him because of how calmly he says all this. It’s like what he did is normal.

“The plan was to use the pups against the royal family to get back the kingdom. Only they were born and grew, and I realised they were Lycans. So I decided to use that and wipe out both families, including you, but that was before I fell in love with you,” Wayne argues.

He was going to kill me? I stand shocked. My body shakes as I take in what he is saying. I let him use the pups, and I didn’t even notice what was happening. He had used them, if I never went home, then what? Would he have really used the pups to kill everyone?

“I never lied; I love you, Harlyn,” Wayne announces.

“But not the pups, right?” Stefan states, and Wayne glares at him.

“Answer,” I say.

“No, they were the way to get the kingdom back—either by trading them for it at the start or when I saw they were Lycans using them. The pups were just part of the plan to get the kingdom back, but I love you.”

My head shakes at his words. “No you don’t, if you loved me you wouldn’t have used them! At that moment you decided you loved me too much to kill me along with everyone else, you would have stopped using them,” I reply. Feeling myself breaking.

“How can I feel anything for them when they came from that!” Wayne shouts, pointing at Stefan. “The same family that took everything we had.”

“I’m from the same family, Wayne!” I shout.

“You’re different to them! You’re nothing like them, Harlyn, you know that. You never fitted in, you were never really family, or welcome in the pack, in the kingdom or the families,” Wayne shouts.

He’s right, I wasn’t.

“She was. Had she shown up at the palace door that day her father exiled her, she would have lived with us. She was accepted; you just made her feel like she wasn’t,” Stefan argues. “How long until Harlyn finds herself taken, like Katy, and instead of stopping your revenge and saving her, you allow them to kill her?”

“You said she died in an attack,” I look at Wayne, confused.

“I couldn’t ignore what happened and not follow my father’s plan. Saving her meant giving up on the plan. So yes, I told him to kill her as I wasn’t walking away from this,” Wayne argues.

I stand shocked. He really agreed for them to kill Katy, his wife, just so he could continue with his revenge. Who is he, as he isn’t the man I thought I loved, he’s far from that.