Chapter 64

The Unwanted Bride Of Atticus Fawn Chapter 64 ~ATTICUS~

I couldn’t get her out of my head: her pretty eyes, inviting lips, and soft skin. Autumn was everything I always knew that she was and more. I couldn’t believe that the woman I’d always wanted, even when I knew it was wrong, was now my wife.

There were many times in the past when I knew thinking about her was wrong. There were so many times that Autumn stood out to me, and I chose to ignore my feelings because of Anya.

I hate that I couldn’t remember all of the details of marrying her; it’s something I would never wish to forget. It’s crazy to think that so many things happened and were all missing from my memory. If I didn’t have these feelings for her, I would have never believed any of the articles I’d read.

I still remember the first day my eyes fell on Autumn. She was always a little clumsy since I knew her, and she’d dropped her book onto the ground. She’d trapped me instantly with her innocence and pureness, but something had changed when Anya tapped my shoulder, and I’d looked up at her.

It’s crazy to me how things have changed so much since then. I sometimes wonder, if I was supposed to choose Autumn since that day, what would have happened if Anya had never tapped my shoulder and I had continued to be mesmerized by Autumn instead on that day?

I kept one hand on the steering wheel while I used the other to trace my lips lightly. That was another thing I couldn’t get out of my head.

Kissing her was like racing through the woods in wolf form; it made me feel wild and free, alive, like I had something wonderful to live for.

I’d never felt anything like it before, and it kills me to know that I must have kissed her multiple times before, but I couldn’t remember a single detail of any of it.

Kissing her, touching her, holding her, talking to her.

How far did we take things between us? I could only imagine the torture of spending nights upon nights in the same bed with her.

I must have crashed and given in eventually.

The thought of the many times I must have tasted her and gotten lost inside her was eating me alive. I wanted to remember it, what it was like to taste her sweetness. I kept trying to find the memory but f**k me; it was nowhere to be found. I knew it was the last thing I should be thinking about, considering everything we’ve both gone through recently but damn in; I don’t know why I kissed her to awaken all these crazy desires. I couldn’t get her out of my f*****g head.

The alert of my phone ringing forces my thoughts away from her. Finally, I didn’t know how much more of this I could take before racing home to her and begging her to let me get just one taste. Anything to help me remember what it was like.

“Hello,” I answer on the first ring. It was good that I could get a distraction right now. I needed anything to stop me from thinking about Autumn and the things I wanted to do to her. It was dangerous to feel like this when my memory was still messed up from the accident.

“Atticus!” Clarissa shouts on the other end.

I pulled the vehicle to the side of the road; the tone of her voice was enough to tell me that something horrible was happening.

There were so many surprises in my life recently that I wasn’t prepared for anything else so soon.

I was only gone for like an hour; what could have happened in that little time?

“What’s wrong?” I demand.

“You need to get home now!” She exclaimed.

“Why?” I ask. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

I needed more answers.

“Our parents found out about Autumn. Anya told them everything. You don’t know the entire truth about her family. She never got the opportunity to tell you. You don’t know who her birth father is, but our parents know the truth now. Get home now before things get worse.”

I don’t need to be told twice; the moment Autumn’s name was mentioned; I’d already spun the car around.

“Atticus!” She shouts. “I know you want to get here back quickly, but please drive safely. We can’t have you getting into another accident. You know what happened the last time you got into one. Autumn had to suffer, don’t push yourself too much. I will be there for Autumn as long as possible until you’re here. You can trust me to try my best to protect her.”

I didn’t know anything about driving slowly when Autumn needed me. I’d promised her earlier that I would protect her; I meant it.

Protecting her was more important to me than anything else.

I hung up the call before Clarissa could hear the engine revving; I didn’t want her to panic. I knew I had to get to Autumn, and I wouldn’t do anything to get myself into an accident before I could get to her a second time.

. . . . . . . . . .

~AUTUMN~

The look on the faces of Atticus’s parents is killing me inside. This was exactly what I was afraid of happening. I had to get used to people looking at me like this from now on; whenever anyone found out that my father was Azai, they would react like this. At least not many people my age knew about him, but their parents, on the other hand, would know.

“Your father is Azai Reign?” His father repeats. “The sorcerer Azai Reign?”

I was becoming sick hearing that name over and over again. There was a time in my life when I didn’t even know a name like that existed; everything was much better back then. My parents did the right thing by keeping the truth from me. I was angry with them because of it, but I now realize they were protecting me from the truth.

They repeated the question, reminding me of where I was. I understand now why they sent Atticus away. His mother never needed him to do anything for her; they wanted to get me alone.

I bite my lip and slowly nod. I wasn’t proud of it. But there was nothing I could do about it; I couldn’t choose my father.

His mother placed a hand over her forehead like she was about to faint from this new information.

“I can’t believe this!” She exclaims. “Azai! AZAI is her father?”

“How is this even possible?” His father demands. “As far as everyone knows, your real parents are the Riveras. How did they even pull this off? She was pregnant with you! We all thought she was. Was that all a lie so they could cover up who you were?”

I didn’t know the exact details. My parents never explained everything to me. They answered most of my questions, but there were still some things that I didn’t know everything about.

“Now that you’ve mentioned that, I remember we never saw her for months. She stayed out of the public eye until they could introduce Autumn as their daughter properly. And she wasn’t even a newborn then. We thought they wanted their privacy, but not once would I have thought it wasn’t even her child.” Mrs. Fawn says in horror.

“Why did your parents keep this lie from us?” Mr. Fawn demands from me.

I didn’t think this was a lie that any parent would ever want to inform anyone about.

“Because it was our secret to keep!” My father says from the entrance. “She’s our daughter. We had a right to keep it a secret to protect her from everyone who would want to hurt her because of her biological family’s background.”

When did he even arrive, and was my mother here as well? Who called them? Who told them that I might need their help? Were they keeping an eye on me? It must have been the guards that follow me everywhere. I almost forgot about them.

“You’re a f*****g liar!” Mr. Fawn roars. “You tricked us. All this time, we thought that she was your daughter, and instead, she was the daughter of an evil, power-hungry sorcerer! How could you do this to us? I thought we were more than business partners. I thought you were our friend! You’ve betrayed us! We trusted you. Are you not ashamed?”

“If we had told you the truth about OUR daughter, could we have trusted you with that information? Would you have treated her the same way you did before finding out who her biological father was?” My father demands.

“It doesn’t matter how we would have responded to the truth in the past. All that matters is that you lied and broke the trust that we once had. We’re cutting all business ties with you and your family.” Mr. Fawn shouts. “I can’t have liars this close to me. I’ve always kept the people I trust close to me and the people that I don’t very far. I never thought you would be joining that side.”

“Do you think I care about that?” My father demands. “We never needed you, to begin with. My business can survive without you like it always has. All that matters is my daughter.”

I couldn’t believe this was happening right now. My world was falling apart in front of my eyes. They were ending their relationship because of me. They were becoming enemies because of me. I didn’t want that to happen. They were supposed to remain friends. How could Atticus and I stay together when they were behaving this way?

“And you.” Atticus’s mother says as she glares at me. It hurt to see her look at me in that way when she was usually very kind to me. “How could you lie to us? Why didn’t you tell us the truth? You kept this to yourself just like your parents did. You lied to us and broke our trust.”

“Don’t you dare bring my daughter into this!” My mother shouts as she joins my father. “She didn’t know anything up until recently. We kept the truth from her for her safety. She never lied to you. She only found out after getting kidnapped. If there’s anyone to blame, blame us, not her.”

“It’s true.” I finally say. “I only found out the truth after Azai’s men kidnapped me. I was just as shocked and disgusted by the fact as you are now. I’m not proud of who my father was. I, too, wish that my birth parents were my adoptive ones. The truth hurts, and I’m sorry that you think we betrayed you, but that was never our intention. My parents kept it a secret from not only you but me as well; they kept it a secret from everyone they knew to protect me from the danger lurking. You don’t have to cut them off because of it. If it were your child, you would have done the same in the blink of an eye.”

The Fawns look at each other for a few seconds, considering my words.

“Is it true that you tried to kill Anya?” Mrs. Fawn asks suddenly.

I knew Anya was selfish enough to bring that up to them without giving them the full details of that night.

I stiffen and slowly turn my attention to her. I hate just looking at her face. How could I have once considered her my friend? Why did I not see the truth like everyone else had so long ago? Everyone seemed to know that Anya was never my friend, to begin with. I hate that I took this long to realize it on my own.

“That’s not true!” Clarissa hissed as she rejoined us. I still wasn’t sure where she had disappeared to earlier, but I’m happy she’s here now.

“I’m speaking to Autumn, not you, Clarissa.” Mrs. Fawn snaps.

“But I’m telling you!” Clarissa insists. “How can you trust Anya? Why don’t you ask Anya what she did for Autumn to react the way she did that day?”

“Clarissa!” Mr. Fawn scolds her. “We want to hear from Autumn. Let her speak and tell us exactly what happened on that day.”

Damon gently held Clarissa’s shoulders, telling her by his actions to stay quiet. I’m happy that he did; I didn’t want Clarissa to argue with her adoptive parents because of me.

“On that day, Anya surprised me by pushing me into the pool outside. I don’t know if my parents ever told you, but I’m terrified of water. I have this great fear of being swallowed by it, amongst many other things. Anya knew this; she knew how scared I was of water, especially from a deep pool. She intentionally pushed me into it and watched me fight for my life. She did nothing to help me; she only stood there and watched me. It was one of the scariest experiences of my life, and she was responsible for it.”

“That’s a lie!” Anya hissed. “Autumn slipped and fell into the pool. She blamed me right after because of it, but I swear to you, I never touched her. Before I could jump into the pool and save her, Atticus jumped into it and pulled her out. I didn’t have a chance to help her. I’m not at fault here. She is. She’s the monster. She’s the one that tried to end my life, not the other way around.”

“I’m telling you the truth. She pushed me. She tried to kill me first.” I snap. “I have no reason to lie to you about this.”

Why would they ever believe Anya over me? I’ve never given them a reason to not trust me. It was hard to accept that they were suddenly treating me like an outsider because of who my father was. My parents warned me that this would happen. Even now, I still wanted to believe that the Fawns weren’t this unreasonable. Atticus’s grandmother would have listened to me. She would have heard what I had to say. And his grandfather, he was away on a business trip, but if he was here, I just knew that he would have listened to me.

“So you did try to kill her?” His mother demands from me.

My eyes widen, “I—”

I didn’t know how to tell them exactly what had happened. They already saw me as a monster like my father was. I couldn’t blame them, even I, at times, wondered if I was just like him.

“You tried to kill her?” Mr. Fawn asks, waiting for me to answer.

“I couldn’t control myself. I never wanted to hurt her. I was only responding to her trying to kill me first.” I confess in defeat.

Nothing I could say would make them think differently about me.

It was true that I tried to kill Anya on that day. Nothing I say or do would change that. I still felt guilty over it. I didn’t want to be just like Anya or like my father. I was never that kind of person; I never liked hurting anyone.

“It was horrible!” Anya cries fake tears. “I’m going to be scarred for the rest of my life. She was so scary. The water behind her in the pool was at her command; her eyes were a different color, and she was forcing me to choke myself. She took control of my body. It was the scariest day of my life, and I would never want anyone else to experience what I had to endure. Autumn needs to be removed from your family. If she stays, she will harm Atticus; your entire family will be in danger because of her. She said with her own mouth that she’d lost control of herself. Autumn can’t control the power inside of her. Everyone is in danger because of her, even her own family. She is just like her father; nothing will ever change that.”

My bottom lip trembles at her words. I don’t know how to respond to defend myself. It was true that I often lost control of my body whenever my emotions got the best of me. It was not something that I was proud of.

“It’s true that you have your father’s curse, then. His power wasn’t just a curse to his family and everyone around him. He threatened the peace of earth, and there is no proof that you are any different from him.”His father claims.

“How can you say that?” Clarissa demands. “Autumn is the sweetest person I know. She would never intentionally hurt anyone!

You’re just angry and surprised. Please think it over before you make any rash decisions!”

“You don’t know how dangerous Azai was, Clarissa.” Mrs. Fawn informs her. “None of us might have even gotten the chance to be here today if he was still alive. Autumn has that same power; I’m not saying she’s just as bad as him, but with power like that, it will eventually take her over; it will consume her just like it did to her father. Autumn cannot be a part of this family anymore.

She doesn’t belong here. I’m sorry, Autumn, but the well-being and safety of my family will always come first. I’ve always made difficult decisions to protect them. It’s what a mother does, she protects her children and her family. I’m sorry that we have to do this to you.”

I close my eyes and fight the tears. I didn’t want to be separated from Atticus again. Whenever we got a chance to be together, someone kept trying to keep us apart. I know that Anya was the mastermind behind all of this. She couldn’t stop trying to take Atticus from me.

I’ve managed to stop her multiple times before; I could do it again.

“Let’s go, Autumn.” My mother tells me as she gently grabs my shoulders. “You don’t need to stay where you’re not wanted.

They will regret their decision later down in life. You’re nothing like your father. I am your mother; I stood by your side and watched you grow into a beautiful young woman. I’ve seen you cry after seeing others get hurt. I’ve seen you fight for what is right. I’ve never met a kinder child than you, do not listen to them; your father does not define who you are as a person. You’re nothing like him. I’m your mother, and I can proudly say that.”

I hug my mother but gently move away from her. I wasn’t ready to leave just yet. There were still plenty of things that had to be said. Atticus’s parents needed to know that I loved him. They needed to know that I would try everything I could to be nothing like Azai. I never had the chance to be around and spend time with him; he never had the opportunity to turn me into him. I was raised to be kind and gentle; they said so themselves many times in the past.

“Please,” I beg his mother. “I don’t want to be separated from Atticus again. His memory is still missing. He’s trying to remember what we had, and I don’t want to leave when he’s already suffering from the accident. Please try and understand that I will try my very best to be nothing like Azai. Ever since I met Atticus, he’s always been the most important person in my life. I will never hurt him. I love him. I love Atticus, and I want to stay by his side for the rest of my life. Please do not separate us because of who my father is. I’m begging you. Please don’t do this to us. Atticus respects you; he always listens to you; I’ve always admired that about him. Don’t give him a choice where he has to choose between his family and me.”

Her gaze softens at my words, and I know she also doesn’t want to separate us. But my words are not enough to convince her.

Her mind is already made up; I can see it in her eyes.

“I’m sorry, Autumn.” She apologizes once more. “I know this isn’t easy for you, and it won’t be easy on him either. Surprising all of us, my son has grown quite attached to you. I know he isn’t going to make this easy for us, but I must try. I love him also; I want what’s best for him. If you truly love my son, you will leave him. I don’t think you understand just how dangerous your real family is. You’re a danger to the people around you. Atticus will forever be in danger because of you. We don’t know the exact details of the accident, but Atticus was chasing Azai’s men when it happened. Maybe they’re somehow responsible for the accident that almost killed my son. That’s the kind of danger he will constantly be involved in as long as you’re in his life. As a mother, I can’t allow my son to be with someone that could hurt him. It doesn’t matter if it’s intentional; I must protect him from you.”

I’m about to respond when I hear something dragging down the staircase, we all follow the sound.

I’m surprised when I see Anya at the bottom of the stair with a suitcase in her hands. “You can take all of this and leave now.

We’re all doing this for Atticus. You claim to love him, but we love him more. We know how to make sacrifices to keep him safe. I wish you would do the same as well.”

I hadn’t even noticed when she’d left to do it. Who told her that she could be in our room? Anya was always behaving like she was his wife instead of me. Apparently, hurting her that day hadn’t done enough to keep her out of our lives. She was still making trouble.

Maybe she was trying to anger me, maybe she wanted me to lose control over my body again. I wouldn’t let her succeed. No matter how hard it was, I had to prevent myself from losing control of my power because of her sly ways.

“It’s time to leave, Autumn.” Mr. Fawn tells me. “I’m sorry it has to be like this. I hope you can understand. Maybe when you have a child of your own one day, you will understand why we made a tough decision like this.”

I look at my parents, and they nod for me to take the suitcase from Anya. I couldn’t give up this easily. I couldn’t let go of Atticus after fighting so hard for him all this time. But talking to his parents without him by my side would be like speaking to a brick wall.

I hung my head as I snatched the suitcase from Anya. I didn’t even want to see her face. I just wanted to leave before this became any more humiliating.

If I got angry and used my power, Atticus’s parents would only hate me more. It would prove their point, and that’s the last thing I wanted to happen today. This had to be settled in some other way. Besides, I didn’t want to hurt Atticus’s family. They weren’t people that I hated. I also cared about each of them. I could never hurt them, even when they were trying to separate me from Atticus.

“AUTUMN!” I heard someone shout.

I freeze. That voice. That beautiful, beautiful voice.

It was Atticus.

“AUTUMN!” He roars even louder when he doesn’t get a response the first time. “Where are you?”

It sounds like he was running towards us. It doesn’t take long for me to spot him, and when he sees me, his eyes are filled with relief.

Did he know that something was wrong? Who told him?

I watch as he runs toward me and pulls me into his arms. The suitcase drops from my hands, and I wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him tightly against me.

I close my eyes as he leans back and kisses my forehead. “I’m here. I’m sorry I took so long.”

He slowly lets go of me and puts my body behind his as he faces his parents.

“What is this suitcase doing here?” he demands after looking around him.

His mother sighs, “we asked Autumn to leave, Atticus.” She informs him. “She was just leaving before you got here.”

His body stiffens at her words, “Autumn is not going anywhere.” He growls.

“I’m sorry, son, but this isn’t your decision. Do you even know who Autumn’s biological father is? Did she tell you where she came from and the danger surrounding her name alone?”

“I don’t give a f**k about her biological father!” He roars. “I don’t care about her past or things she can’t control. I don’t f*****g care about anything except her. Autumn is staying here with me; she’s not going anywhere!”

“SON!” His father shouts. “You know nothing. You’re speaking like this because you have no clue about this situation. Why is it so hard to let her go? You are the one that didn’t want to marry her, to begin with. You were always in love with Anya. We forced you into this marriage because we thought we were making the right choice. We realize now that we made a terrible mistake. We are trying to fix this mistake before it’s too late for any of us!”

The muscle in his jaw ticks, which indicates how angry his father’s words have just made him.

“A MISTAKE? How can you call something as sacred as a marriage a f*****g mistake?” He roars. “I don’t remember anything from my marriage, but you admit to forcing me into the marriage? And now that I want to stay with Autumn, you’re now trying to force me to let her go? What kind of parents are you? You lied to me about her being my wife after you were the ones that wanted the wedding to take place, and now this madness because of who her biological father is? What’s wrong with you?”

I don’t think I’ve ever seen Atticus this angry with his parents before. He looked both pissed and disappointed with them.

“Why are you listening to them?” He asks me. “You’re my wife. No one here can force you to leave. You belong here as much as any of us.”

I didn’t want to leave, but I was also scared their words would come true. I was terrified that my power would consume me and force me to hurt the people closest to me.

“Atticus!” His mother hissed. “Autumn’s father is Azai Reign!”

He looks at her like she’d lost her mind, “am I supposed to know who that is?”

“He’s a sorcerer.” His father explains. “No one could control him. He had uncontrollable power, and he wanted to use that power to overcome the world. He would have done it if Autumn’s mother hadn’t killed him when she got the chance to do it. Listen to us when we say that staying with Autumn will ensure you have a difficult life!”

“I know you always get me to listen to you one way or the other, but this is where I draw the line.” He tells them. “There is nothing in this world that could get me to leave Autumn. Nothing. And this is even without remembering what it was like being married to her. I’m not leaving her side. Ever.”

“Are you not listening to us?” His mother demands. “Azai was so dangerous that all books of him were destroyed after his death.

No one was allowed to even mention his name. In fact, we can get in serious trouble just by saying his name alone. And you expect us to keep his daughter in this house with us? If the relevant authorities find out that we have the daughter of Azai Reign living with us, we will all be in serious trouble!”

I’m surprised that any of this doesn’t faze Atticus. He’s only concerned about me. Suddenly, I couldn’t see anyone but him in this room. I didn’t think I could fall more in love with Atticus, but I was wrong.

I’m falling harder than I ever did at this exact moment. He didn’t remember anything, but still, he was protecting me. Still, he was insisting that his parents don’t try and separate us. He didn’t even care that my father was an evil sorcerer.

This was the Atticus I’d fallen in love with since the start; this was the Atticus that had captured my heart in the beginning, and he was standing right in front of me, but this time, I was the one he was protecting, no one else but me.

My heart swelled with joy at this revelation.

I’m surprised when he grabs me by my waist and pulls me in front of him, capturing me in his arms.

“If you are that concerned over your safety, I will take Autumn, and we will leave. You will never see either of us again for the rest of your lives. You will not have to worry about your safety. Either you allow her to stay with me, or we both leave. . .together.”