Chapter 128
Leo’s POV
I had never been this frightened before in my entire life. My kidnappers hadn’t said anything to me, but I was certain that they wanted to kill me. I knew that, scared as I was, if I didn’t do something to save myself, they would just do it.
I wasn’t going to just sit here and let them kill me. I had to figure out what I could do to save myself. Dad would come for me, I was sure. But I didn’t know how long that would take. If it was too long..
I shivered in fear. Everything in me wanted me to hide and panic. But, I was an Alpha’s son, someday to be Alpha myself. My Daddy wouldn’t hide, so neither should I. I had to be brave and strong like him and like Raven.
They wouldn’t just sit around, waiting to be rescued. They would try to escape.
To be like them, I needed to try to escape too.
Pressing my ear to the door, I could hear the rogues on the other side of it, moving around. That meant going that way was out of the question. But with that path blocked, the only other way out was through the window. But there were bars there.
Deciding to try anyway, I moved to the window. I gripped the bars with both hands and shook them to test their strength. Most of them were pretty strong… except one. It rattled very loosely. I could see, just looking that the screw holding it in place was almost all the way out.
If I could loosen it fully and remove the bar, then it would be just wide enough for a kid like me to slip out. At once I reached my fingers around the screw and tried to turn it, lefty loosely, just like my dad had taught me.
It started to turn.
Suddenly, the doorknob started to turn.
At once, I released the screw and dropped down onto the ground, sitting with my back against the wall.
As the door opened, and one of my kidnappers stepped in, my heart was racing. Had they seen what I had been trying to do? Was I going to be punished?
Instead, the kidnapper placed a bag of fast food in front of me. “Eat,” he grumbled, then turned and walked out the door.
The fast food was tempting, my tummy was rumbling. But what if it was poison! I’d better not.
Instead, after the door was closed again, I rushed back to the window and continued to try to loosen the screw. Then, finally, it popped out and fell outside of the trailer. The bar hung precariously for a moment, before falling. I held my breath, waiting for a loud noise, but it landed quietly on the grass below.
I exhaled in relief. But now came the hard part.
The actual escaping part.
Grabbing the more sturdy bars, I hoisted myself upwards and pulled myself through the slim opening. It pinched at my sides, but I still forced my way through. The bars creaked loudly.
Too loudly.
Someone must have heart that.
With a labored grunt, I forced myself through the bars then toppled down onto the outside.
1/3
Chapter 138
“What the hell was that said me of the rogues from inside the trailer. The front door was ripmet
I didn’t waste time, knowing they were coming, knowing they would probably kill me
I dashed forward in a rapid pace, must looking back, desperate to get to the forest.
“Hey?” someone called.
Faster, Leo, I told myself and pushed my legs as quickly as they would go.
Claire’s POV
I ran through the forest, surrounded on all sides by my fellow warriors. I could tell when we were getting close i could practically feel Leo’s racing heart beat alongside my own.
When we came very close, I signaled wordlessly for the warriors to fan out. They did, spreading out in several direction so that we cast a wide shadow around the area.
Just as we were finally reaching where I felt Leo to be, I felt a ping of panic so strong that I nearly toppled over with it
Leo.
Something was happening.
No longer caring about stealth, I rushed forward, out of the forest and into the clearing. Leo, at the same moment, was running toward me in a mad dash.
Unfortunately, behind him, was a rogue with a knife. And that rogue was so much faster than Leo was on his small child- sized legs.
“No!” I screamed, as I tried to reach my son before the rogue.
But I was too far, and the rogue was so, so close.
Leo saw me, and his eyes lit up with hope, only for that hope to be immediately dashed and turned to pain.
The rogue reached Leo first, and slashed Leo across the back with his knife.
Leo dropped.
Something inside of me broke wide open. A mother’s pain. A brutal, heart shattering moment.
My mouth fell open and a guttural inhuman noise escaped me.
That was my son. They were hurting my baby
I didn’t remember much after that. I rushed forward, tackled the man that had hurt my child, and then I had blood on my hands. My warriors moved around me, many rushing into the house, a few staying to guard Leo, the rest helping me with this rogue. I watched as the life left his eyes. It didn’t feel like enough for what he had done.
“Over here,” said one of the warriors.
I turned, to see Leo was now on his back in the dirt, looking at me with bleary eyes. Instantly forgetting the rogue, I moved closer to my son and pulled him so that his head was resting in my lap. Tilting him sideways allowed for one of the warriors with some healing ability to inspect the wound. It was bleeding so much there was a pool of blood forming under my knees.
2/3
1:30 pm
Chapter 128
“You came for me… Leo said, lonking up at me.
“I always will.” I told him.
In this moment, I suddenly hated the mask that separate us. I had a deep desire, just in case thes be able to see my face.
Grabbing the mask, I removed it
Leo’s eyes opened a little wider as he seemed to try to take me in. Tears welled and as he blinked, they fell
“I’m scared…” he said.
“Shh…” I hushed him as I combed a hand through his hair. “You are going to be okay. Do you know Weft
He shook his head.
My heart ached so much, I couldn’t keep secrets anymore. Not from him. Not in this moment.
“Because I’m your mother, and I am going to keep you safe.”
“You… you are?”
“Yes,” I told him. “You don’t have anything to be afraid of. I will protect you. Just rest.”
He struggled off the slow closing of his eyelids.
Inside of me, I felt our mother–son bond pull tight, building strength and connection. To be honest like this was building the binds between us, and for the first time since he was a baby, I felt what it meant to truly be his mother.
But then, he collapsed, eyes falling closed.
My heart cracked in half.
