Chapter 22
Ella’s POV
“Say the word, Ella, and I will dispose of everyone who stands against you.” Elena’s calm voice causes me to tear my gaze away from Oliver to look at her. “No one will be able to touch you because they will be dead even before they take a step in your direction.” Coldness in her voice is enough to freeze the lake.
My eyes connect with her, and for the first time, I truly see a glimpse of her other side... the other side, which ruthlessly killed all the rogues who attacked her and Thea.
Her icy gaze and the calmness of her expression promises nothing but a horrific end for everyone who comes in my way.
Nodding my head, I acknowledge her other side as she makes an appearance. The darkness begins to swirl inside me, and I find myself connecting to Elena in a way that has never happened.
It wasn’t a question that my darkness was making a connection with her. But what confuses me is why this was happening. Even though Blaze is bonded with her, but she has never connected with her in this way. This connection seems deeper and stronger than my wolf and Elena’s.
Realization sets in as I again look at her and see a ghost of a smile dancing on her lips. I recall when once she told me that she was different from Thea and me; I could never guess this is what she meant.
Her dark side is the dominant one.
And now, when I have gained the hold of my darkness, her bond with me becomes stronger as she can connect with me through my darkness.
Oliver is silently observing the interaction between us, and I am thankful for that. I don’t think I would have appreciated it if he interrupted Elena and me.
A few moments pass, and I watch Elena closing her eyes as she takes a deep breath. And when she looks up again, she is back to herself, but seriousness doesn’t disappear from her eyes.
“It is not that easy.” Oliver shakes his head, “You can’t kill everyone who goes against us.” He tries to sound reasonable but careful as even he has sensed the shift in Elena.
“Killing is never easy when you care.” Elena glances at him with the same icy gaze, which I witnessed a few moments ago, “But I don’t care about anyone... not them, not you. So, yeah, killing is easy, just like a piece of cake.” Shrugging her shoulders, she studies her perfectly painted purple nails with indifference.
Her demeanor keeps on switching, and I am surprised that how I haven’t noticed this before. She has a mischievous nature, but the serious side of hers is terrifying, and now I see why it is, because her darkness rules it.
“However, I do care about my sisters and family. And if someone hurt or threatened them in any way, then they don’t deserve to live.” Elena looks at me with her curious yet familiar gaze, but the promise behind her words is evident.
Her other side is curious because this is the first time she has developed a connection with me.
When I give some of the control to my dark side to reach out to her, I watch excited and happy expressions twinkling in Elena’s otherwise impassive eyes. It almost seems like she is reuniting with me. And somewhere, it is the truth because the same light and darkness created us both; however, this is the first time we have connected on this level.
Blaze is beaming with happiness because even Elena’s other side has accepted her. My wolf wants to reach out to her as well, but I know this is not the right time, as we have other things to worry about.
Looking at Oliver, I find a hint of doubt present on his face. But what forces me to make an inevitable decision is the traces of defeat in his eyes.
“Oliver, I need to know the truth.” Walking towards him, I stand in front of him. “I need to know what this bond means to you... what I mean to you. Because I am not going to waste my time fighting for my mate bond if my mate is not strong to fight for it.”
“If this mate bond means nothing to you, then say it. I promise I will free you from this bond.” These words taste bitter on my tongue, but he needs to know I am not going to force him into this bond, “Whether breaking our bond will hurt me? Yes, it will. But this will not break me. I will lose a part of my heart, but I will not lose myself. So, you are free to make the choice which you want.” I want to be honest with him. I can’t lie because my life doesn’t revolve around mate bond.
Breaking our bond will hurt me, but this will not stop me from living my life.
He smiles, looking at me. His smile contains hurt, pride, and something else.
“I don’t have a choice.” Holding my face in his hands, he looks into my eyes, “When it comes to you, I never have a choice. It is always going to be you.”
His words wash a sense of comfort over me, but I can’t entirely trust merely on his words.
“You have to prove this, Oliver... You have to prove by fighting for what we have. But above all, you have to prove this by standing for yourself because you don’t deserve this. We need that Oliver back who protected me against people who were three times more powerful than him, but this time he needs to protect himself.” Holding his wrist, I lock my stern gaze with him.
“I am with you, as long as you want me to be. Just show these people that you are not their Emerson but our Oliver.” Tears spring into my eyes as his wounded form flashes before my eyes.
“I promise, I will be the mate that you deserve.” Clenching his jaws, he nods his head, looking determined.
The Guardians are the strongest of our kind after Lycans, and standing against is almost equal to a death wish.
Only time will tell how much courage he has because I can already feel the shift in the air.
“Why is that wrinkly ass after Handsome?” Elena speaks to herself with a frown, “He is following his orders, but still, wrinkly seems annoyed with him.”
Oliver attempts to look serious, but the hint of a betraying smile on his face gives him away.
Clearing his throat, he turns to look at Elena, who is in some deep thought.
“Being a guardian, we are bonded to our Superior, and that connection forces us to follow their command. My wolf, he never gave in to his commands. We have powerful wolves, but our human side is stronger than our animal side.” Oliver answers Elena, “They say my wolf is wild because he hasn’t been trained from the beginning, and I am weak because Guardians did not raise me.” Traces of hurt present in Oliver’s voice makes my heart twist painfully.
“Are you serious?!” Elena laughs in disbelief, "I could feel your wolf’s powerful aura the moment I passed your territory. At that time, I didn’t know it was your wolf.”
Suddenly, she looks at me as her eyebrows shoot in realization.
“Oliver is a pureblood guardian, Ella.” She looks at me as she shares what already has clicked in my mind, “He is freaking stronger than all of these dickheads combined. They are afraid that once he becomes familiar with his own strength, then he will challenge them.”
“My wolf, he never accepted Superior’s power over us. At that time, I never understood why, but now I know it was because he has already submitted to Ella.” Oliver slowly nods his head as even he realizes what Elena is pointing at, “Since they couldn’t control my wolf, they used to weaken my wolf by giving me a potion to keep my wolf dormant. They made me believe this is the best option; otherwise, my wolf will go crazy.” The pain of betrayal is apparent in his voice. He trusted these guardians, and they have broken his trust.
After learning what Oliver has just told us, Elena and I are in shock. This also clarifies why guardians took him from us when they hate him so much. They never wanted Oliver to attain his true powers because then he would become a threat to them. Just like his parents became a threat to them when they accepted their bond because the mate bond strengthened their powers.