SWNOVELS Chapter 71
Chapter 71
Colt grips the iron mask in
his hands.
“What kind of…how could…”
He can’t seem to finish what
he wants to say.
“Even I am shocked. I don’t
think even father would have
thought of such a thing.”
Victor says.
“I mean, I could see him do it but he never thought of something like this,” Garret says. “So this Zao, he made you fight in this arena?”
“Yeah. It was ridiculous. He
had stupid titles for us and
made us wear ridiculous
things. It was all a show for
sadistic people to watch.
“I
“But cutthroat.” Kanda ads.
I nod. “I only survived
because of Kanda and the
other girls.” I tell them. “The skills that Victor taught me helped me tremendously too
and on that note, once we get back, training must
continue.”
Victor nods.
Colt–who does not seem to
be past the mask issue-
looks up at me. “He…he bolted this on you?”
My hand goes up to my temple, caressing the skin and remembering the pain.
I nod.
“And you killed him…Zao?”
He asks.
I nod.
“Good.”
“We killed him, his son and
we almost had Ezra.”
“Ezra?!”
I nod. “He was there. I had
him. I had him in my grasp but he got away. All because of that witch!”
“Witch?”
I nod. “Took her head off.”
“Who did?” Victor asks.
“I did. I did to her what he
did to Lauren and before I
forget…” I look at Kanda.
“Send it to him in a box.”
I kept it for that purpose.
Colt stares at me and looks a
bit stunned. They all do.
“Don’t look at me like that. I
am not the same person I was a couple of months ago and it is not a bad thing. I have grown, I have learned and I am stronger now.”
I was such a silly naive little thing. I know I still have a lot more to learn and grow but I am starting to see it all. That little child in me is opening her eyes.
As I think this, I look around
and notice Oliver’s picture
on a shelf.
“Any idea where he ran to?”
“No, but I have two guesses,
Garret says. “He either ran to
Ezra or he ran back
overseas.”
F**ker. If I ever get my
hands on him…
“Am I interrupting?” The door slightly opens and
Honora pops her head in.
“Honora!”
She smiles. “You are safe! I’m
glad.”
“What happened?! I saw you being taken by Zao’s men.”
She nods. “Like I told you,
Zao had his men watch
everyone’s moves. He thought that my actions were suspicious so he brought me in but I was
convincing. He let me go and
I did not think twice, I left. I
don’t know if it was luck or
not but on my way, I
encountered them.” She
points at Victor and the
others.
Victor nods. “We had just finished taking over Oliver’s
pack which was easy. He left with a small group and left his pack to fend off for
themselves. After, we went to
get you back but on the way,
we encountered her. She was
resting when we were
discussing a plan to get you
out but that is when you surprised us here.”
“You said you were heading your way to me when you found Honora. How did you
find out where I was before she told you?”
“Crow, the rogue that works
for Father.”
That was him. The face in
the crowd that looked so
familiar.
Honora pats my shoulders. “I
am glad you are all safe now. Those battles were
gruesome. I’ll be getting ready to head back home
now but I would like to talk
to you. There are other things I would like to discuss with you before I leave later.” Her eyes fall down on my stomach and I am sure she
knows. My hands
automatically touch my
belly.
She smiles and walks out.
I have to tell Colt. I know this
but…somehow…I don’t want
- to. It is not because I don’t
think he will be okay with it.
I know him and I am sure he
will be happy. But male
werewolves get
overprotective when their
mate is with a child. And he is already very
overprotective as it is. I love that about him but I am sure he is going to be over the top
when he finds out.
“We should…head back
today. I want to be back in
our pack. I also want to talk
to Father.” I say.
Victor nods. “We need to
leave someone here in
charge.”
“Leave Rodrick in charge of
this place. Move his family with him.” Colt suggests.
I nod. “Not a bad idea. Leave
our generals in control of the territories we possess.”
The thought of Julia moving all the way here with her father and staying away from Colt is also tempting.
“Then it is settled. The Alpha has spoken. ” Victor says.
I wince as I look at him.
“Don’t…call me that.”
I can see he wants to laugh. “Why not, Alpha.”
“It’s…weird, coming from
you. Just treat me normally, please.”
“Sure, sure.”
We all walk out to get ready.
“Where are you heading?”
Colt hugs me.
“I was going to go catch
Honora before she leaves.”
“Oh, okay.” He says but hugs
me tighter.
I am tempted to move away from him. Even though he
has not yet, he could notice
that I am pregnant at any moment. I don’t know how
far along I am but for a she–wolf, as the baby grows in our womb, our body’s scent starts to change and
when the fetus’s heartbeats
are strong enough, he will be
able to hear it. I know it is
only a matter of time before
he notices. Not to mention the dead giveaways like throwing up in the mornings
or because of the smells. I
vomited my insides early this morning but he was still asleep so he didn’t notice. I
know I have to tell him soon
but I want to see what
Honora has to say first.
“Start getting ready. I want to
leave as soon as we can.” I tell
him, pulling away and
quickly walking through the hall not giving him a chance to say anything else.
I find Honora at the front
doors getting ready to head out. “Hey. Don’t leave yet.”
“Ah, there you are.”
“You said that-”
She nods. “There were other things I wanted to talk to you
about.” She cuts me off and I
nod.
“Back in the arena, you said you helped my mother. You could also sense my power. You said that there was a
blockage inside of me.”
She takes in a deep breath.
“Yes. This is all too much to
unload right now but I did know your mother. She
came to me for help. As for
your power…well…I sense magic blocking it.”
“Magic? How…what can I
do?”
“Well, I can help you. But
this would be strenuous to
your body and in your condition…I am not sure it
would be such a good idea. I mean, I have no real proof
that it would hurt what is in
your womb but the
possibility is never zero.”
This is when I hesitate. The
last thing I want to do is hurt my child.
Everyone starts to gather around us getting ready to head home. Colt comes
down too with a bag.
She puts a hand over mine.
“Listen, come to me when
you are ready. You know where to find me.”
I slowly nod, watching her
- go.
If she can help me control my power, that is a good thing, right? But relying on…magic…it’s just not natural.
I don’t know what to do but I
do want to know how did she help my mother and with
what. Was it to escape my father? So many questions
now pop into my head.
“Ready?” Colt asks.
“Uhm, yeah.”
We head home. The drive
there is not silent. Colt and I
talk. He fills me in on
everything that happened, even with Julia and Skye.
F**king vultures! The
moment I am not in the
picture they jump on him.
I also told him about the
girls I met in the arena, how Sheril helped me in the fight,
and about Maribel. He is also
curious to see Kanda in her
werecat which I understand.
When I first heard about
werecats, I almost envisioned
them turning into house cats instead of big ferocious
felines. I am sure he will be
awed by her, everyone will.
Finally, the pack comes into view and I feel a sense of
relief.
Home…this is home to me
now.
When I get out of the car, the tension I felt in my body,
leaves. All this time I was in
the pits I wondered if I ever
get to see this place again.
“Do you want to rest first?”
Colt asks.
“No. I want to see my father.”
He nods. “I’ll take you.”
He takes my hand and leads me to my father’s room. I am immediately greeted by
Lotus.
“I am so glad you are safe!” She hugs me and almost
smees like she doesn’t want
to let me go.
“I am glad to be back.”
I look at the bed where
Father lies. He has pillows
around him to keep him
comfortable. He looks tired
and weak but very much
alive. His breathing is
strained. I can see he has a
hard time.
“Daughter, you are back.”
I nod as I walk over to him
and sit on the side of his bed,
next to him.
“They tell me that you are going to recuperate but you have a long road ahead.”
“Yes. This will be when you will need to step up as Alpha.
Victor will be there to help
you when you need the help but I want you to be the one
to run the pack. Be the Alpha
I know you can be.”
I smile. “You know, you can be a good decent man
sometimes.”
“Don’t make me get up and
take it all away from you,
girl.” He says but then his
body starts a coughing fit.
“I’m just saying…” I continue when he calms down. “If
Mother loved you so much, you couldn’t have been such
a bad or horrible man all of
your life.”
He takes in a deep breath. “I
wasn’t. We were happy when it was just the two of us.”
“Hm…then why…why did you get multiple mates?”
“My father demanded it. He
had multiple mates himself. He believed that an Alpha
was entitled to it. My
mother…she killed herself
because of this. When my
father took other mates, she
killed herself.”
I don’t know what to say.
“But your mother accepted this. She accepted
Lily–Garret’s mother–and then Lotus. Dahlia–your mother Casseopea― was my love. My true mate. I regret
all I did that led to her
leaving. I killed her. It was my fault she took you, it was my fault she lost her life. She wanted to get away from
me.”
I can see and hear the
anguish. This man is not the
man I first met, the imposing man with blood on his hands
and a dead body on his feet.
This…this is my father. The man who loved my mother and in his own way has
shown me he cares about me
too.
I lean down and kiss his
head. “I am glad you are okay.”
I know he has done horrible
things. I know this. But I can’t help but have feelings
for him. He is my father.