Chapter 96
And Then There Were Four
Chapter 96: Uncertain Futures As soon as the party was over and everyone had gone, I helped my mom and Kate move everything I had received up into the nursery. Not twenty minutes into working, Damian found me, and the scowl on his face spoke volumes to his mood.
âDamian, if you have come to yell at me, please donât.â
My mother and Kate stopped in their tracks as they glanced towards where Damian stood off to the side.
My eyes were concentrating on the beautiful mobile in my hand. The celestial crystal was mesmerizing, and as I looked up towards the cribs, I tried to think of where to hang it.
âIvy, we need to talk,â Damian said, causing a sigh to escape me.
âI figured you would want to.â I turned to him. âKate, can you hang this over the twinsâ cribs please?â
Handing the mobile to Kate, I moved towards Damian and exited the nursery making my way towards his room. âLetâs talk.â
When the door to his room closed behind me, I turned to face him, and the look in his eyes was no longer of anger but extreme remorse. âWhy did you interfere today, Ivy?â
âWhat do you mean, why? Youâre my mate, Damian. I wonât let them take you from me.â
Shaking his head, he moved towards me and lowered himself onto the bed. âI donât deserve you, though.
I was willing to go with them in order to protect you.â
âProtect me? What are you talking about?â
As his eyes met mine, I watched the tears build within him he refused to let fall. âThey want to kill you, Ivy. Youâre a threat to them, and if they take you out, they dismantle our pack.â
I hadnât really thought too much about what he was saying before, but honestly, it made a lot of sense. If I was in their position, I would do the same.
âThat doesnât mean that you sacrifice yourself for me, Damian. Youâre needed here, and we have two beautiful children on the way that are going to need you. You donât just try and throw that all away.â
âI wasnât throwing it away,â he scoffed. âPlus, what good am I going to be to them? Iâm broken, Ivy.â
Never had I once seen Damian in the state he was. He was literally sulking, and something deeper was bothering him. Stepping closer to him, I ran my hand over the side of his face and smiled.
âI can see that youâre hiding something from me, and until we talk about it, things are going to remain as they are.â
âIâm fine,â he sighed, moving his face from my hand.
LD âNo, youâre not. Now tell me why you think youâre broken.â
âItâs not something easily explained, Ivy.â He stood to his feet. âIf I tell you, youâre going to look at me differently.â
âDonât assume things, Damian. We have been through hell and back since the moment I got here. If I was going to pass judgment like that, I would have done it already.â
Staring at him, I could tell whatever it was conflicted him, and I hated it. For him to think he couldnât talk to me because I would think ill of him was ridiculous, but I was patient. I would wait if he wanted me to.
âIvy, iâm losing my wolf.â
The words that came out of his mouth were not what I expected. It wasnât possible for him to lose his wolf. He was a werewolf. It was who he was.
âHow⦠that doesnât make sense. Youâre a werewolf, Damian.â
âI didnât notice it before, but since the claim⦠I feel it. Itâs like part of me is slipping away, and I donât know whatâs going to happen to me. Thatâs why I was fine with taking your place for judgment,â he replied as if that was logical.
âDamian, why didnât you tell me this before?â
Throwing his hands up in the air, he gave a soft desperate laugh, âI donât know, Ivy. It isnât like we have ever really had the chance to talk about things like this.â
Staring at him, I tried to wrap my mind around what he was saying. He wasnât making sense, and for him to think he was losing his wolf was crazy.
âI think you need to talk to Priscilla about this, Damian.â I breathed. âI honestly donât know what to say. I mean⦠what would cause you to lose yourself? Like I said.. Youâre a werewolf. Thatâs like telling a human theyâre losing their humanity.â
âMaybe youâre right,â he replied, staring at me. âPriscilla is the right person to talk to.â
The sarcasm was heavy in his tone, and that annoyed me more than anything. âDonât act like that. Iâm only being honest, Damian. This is serious, and if you really think you are, we need to find out from someone why that would be. Sheâs your aunt⦠I mean, she should know something, right?â
Turning away from me, he made his way towards the door. âWell, Iâll go talk to her then. Iâm sorry to have bothered you with this.â
âDamian,âI called after him as he walked out of the open doorway, disappearing from my sight. âAre you f*****g kidding me, man?â I muttered with aggravation.
âWhat was that about?â Hale asked in confusion as he glanced at me, and then back down the hallways where Damian had gone. âDonât tell me you guys are fighting again.â
âNo,â I sighed as I walked towards him. âHe just has some sâit on his mind, and he thought I could help, but honestly, this is something I wouldnât even know how to deal with.â
Pulling me close, he looked down at me with a grin. âSomething big bad Ivy canât handle? Thatâs shocking.â
âHey, I never said I could solve the worldâs issues, Hale. Plus, this is something that needs far more care than I can give him. I donât even know how to fix my own problems. How the hell am I supposed to fix other peoples?â
âYouâre a goddess, Ivy. You will figure it out.â
Rolling my eyes, I groaned. âIâm not a goddess. I donât know why everyone seems to think that I am. Iâm far from godly⦠Iâm a murderer.â
Gripping my chin, he raised my eyes to his and stared intently. âDonât ever say that. Youâre not a murderer, lvy. What you did was to protect your family, and is one of us had been in your position, we would have done it as well.â
âYouâre just saying that,â I sighed. âNo, Iâm serious. If I had been in your position, I would have killed them as well.â
His words were slightly comforting, but my mind kept drifting back to what Damian had said. I was worried, and I had every right to be. The thought I could possibly lose him wasnât one I wanted to contemplate.
âI guess we can only take things one day at a time.â Hale kissed me gently. Hale kissed me gently.
âExactly. So for now, donât let it bother you, okay?â âOkay.â I smiled.
âI have to go down to the training field and help James. I will be back later, though. Are you going to be okay?â
Nodding my head, I pulled away from him with a forced smile. âOf course. Iâm just going to finish helping my mom and Kate put some things up. Iâll be fine.â
âOkay then,â he whispered as he turned and left me standing in Damianâs bedroom doorway by myself.
Watching him walk down the hall towards the stairs, I left an exhausted breath escape me.
My life had become one dramatic event after another, and the only thing I wanted was to move past what I was and become accepted as I should be. From everything I had read in the books Priscilla had given me⦠I wasnât living like a Luna.
Kateâs laughing face came into view as she exited the nursery with my mother. I had to find something-
anything-to preoccupy my mind. âHey, wait up.â
Stopping, they looked at me with small smiles and questioning glances. âEverything okay?â My mother asked softly.
âYeah, Iâm good. Damian was just going over to safety stuff they are going to be doing.â
âThatâs a good idea,â Kate replied. âWith how things went today with the council guys, I donât trust it.â
Looking at her with confusion, I furrowed my brows. âWhat do you mean?â
âIvyâ¦â Kate said with slight hesitation. The council doesnât act upon anything unless they plan to follow through. You may have deterred them for now, but it wonât last.â
âSo youâre saying they will be back?â
The silence from Kate was the only answer I needed, and with a frown, she finally nodded. Of course, they would be back. After all, there was much here they wanted. Me being the primary thing.
Stepping towards me, my mother wrapped her arms around me and pulled me into a hug. âHey, donât worry about it, okay? Let your mates handle this. You only need to worry about those two precious babies growing inside you.â
As she pulled away, I looked down at my stomach and smiled. âYouâre right. Goddess knows they are going to be here in a few weeks.â
âIvy, according to the pack doctor, youâre measuring at almost full cycle. There is a chance you could have them sooner. So you need to be careful. I donât want there to end up being complications, because youâre stressed.â
My mother was the most caring woman I knew, and regardless of the past, she was right.
Unknown POV âHas there been any progress?â I asked, staring at the Alpha in front of me. I was an impatient man, and I had been more patient with this situation than any other I had ever faced. It has been twenty years.
âThey have fortified their defenses.â
âI take it that is something that you just canât fix, is it?â I sneered with disgust. Pathetic ass wolf was getting on my last damn nerve. He was pissed because his son died, but that was his fault. That boy was still attached to his motherâs bosom.
âI will see to it,â he growled low, causing me to laugh.
âNo, you wonât. I will handle it as I always do. Now get out of my face, wolf,â I snapped as I crushed the glass I had been holding in my hand. He didnât hesitate to get out of my sight, which was smart, considering I wanted to rip someone apart.
f*****g pathetic-all of them.
Standing to my feet, I quickly let the surge of power wrap around me, and within a matter of seconds, I was walking across the cobbled floor of damp and dark dungeon. There was one person in particular I had toyed with for years dying for the opportunity to fix her mistakes.
âHello, pet.â
Her blue eyes connected with mine from where she sat on the concrete floor. Tattered in dirt and blood, I found the sight before me enjoyable. She was like this because of me, and yet when she looked at me, she still saw hope and love.
âMaster⦠are you here to save me?â
âPerhaps, pet,â I replied smoothly as I open the cage she was in and watched her stand to her feet. âAre you ready to be a good girl for me?â
âYes, master. Please let me show you I can be good.â âVery well. I want you to do one very important thing for me and if you do, Iâll reward you heavily. You will once again have your life back, and revenge on the one who hurt you.â My teasing comment lit a fire in her eyes as she narrowed her gaze.
âI can kill her?â She asked with a small smile. âOh, yes, my dear. You can help me kill them all.â