SWNOVELS Chapter 79
Chapter 79: Ayla
I woke up to the sound of yelling in the distance. I looked at the clock on the bedside table. It was two in the morning. The yelling drifted up to my room again. It sounded like it was coming from the backyard.
I got out of bed and moved to the window. The second-floor spare room I had moved into looked out over the back of the house. I could see lights moving near the treeline on the other side of the property, but I couldn’t make anything out. Opening the window, I leaned out and could hear Alpha Torin’s voice from the commotion.
I rushed downstairs and outside. I was halfway across the lawn when I froze.
Beta Harry, Luna Grace, and Theo stood near the trees, surrounding an almost feral, half-shifted Alpha Torin. My chest tightened as my heart ski**ed between panicking and breaking. He was flailing around as he tried to complete the shift. I couldn’t tell which direction he was trying to go, but I could hear the pain from both him and his wolf. He would lash out if they tried to get close to him, filling the air with animalistic snarls and human wails.
My eyes were stuck on Alpha. I desperately wanted to help him but wasn’t sure how. My feet led me forward a few more steps. I vaguely heard Theo calling my name when Alpha Torin’s eyes locked on me. We both froze. The rage in the yellow eyes of his wolf shifted to fear as he looked at me.
Fear and anguish.
Alpha Torin lunged toward me with inhuman speed, throwing Beta Harry to the ground. Part of me told me to run, but another part
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insisted I didn’t. Before I had a chance to figure out what to do, Alpha Torin was ripped from his path. A rush of fur yanking him from his feet and throwing him against a tree, Luna Grace’s scream filling the night air.
“Stop,” I rushed, my legs finally moving as I rushed toward Alpha.
Theo had shifted, and Kieran was panting as he stood over his father’s prone form. As I got close, I saw Alpha Torin’s b*dy complete the shift back into his human form. I knelt down by his side. He was alive but unconscious. I could feel Kieran’s and Theo’s devastation rolling off of them. I reached up and ran my hand through the fur of his mane.
“It’s okay,” I whispered. “He’s going to be okay. He wasn’t going to hurt me.”
He whined, pushing against my hand for what little comfort it gave him. My other hand brushed along Alpha’s forehead. Beta Harry and Luna were by us in a few seconds.
“Move back, Kieran,” Harry said. “Let me get him inside.”
I helped Beta Harry and Luna Grace pick Alpha off the ground. Grace squeezed my hand before helping lead her mate inside the house. Kieran and I followed them, stopping just off the porch. I didn’t want to leave him alone like this. He had just attacked his own father because of me. The least I could do was make sure he was okay.
He shifted next to me. I averted my eyes as he went to a storage bin under the porch and pulled out a pair of shorts. His clothes would have been shredded from his sudden shift.
“You shouldn’t have come out here,” Theo said. There wasn’t
anger in
his voice, only worry.
“I heard Alpha yelling,” I stated. “I didn’t know what was happening. I
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was worried he needed help.”
Theo sighed heavily, running his hands over his face and through his hair.
“I know,” he said. “If it happens again, please just leave it to us. If you ended up hurt…”
“He wasn’t going to hurt me, Theo,” I interrupted.
“Ayla, he’s not himself when he’s like that. The pain he’s in…..” His hands clenched and his b*dy tensed. “He doesn’t recognize anyone when in that state. His mind and b*dy betray him.”
I reached out to him. “He wasn’t going to hurt me, Theo. I can’t explain it, but I just know he wasn’t. But I’m sorry if I scared you. I’m sorry got him hurt.”
I
With one smooth motion, Theo pulled me against his chest and wrapped his arms around me. Tingles erupted everywhere. He held me tightly, even though I wasn’t protesting.
“If anything ever happened to you, Ayla…” He rested his face on my head. “I couldn’t live through that again.”
“What?” I pulled away. Confused by his words.
Theo kept his arms around my waist, not ready to let me go. He rested his forehead against mine, taking a deep breath as he closed his eyes.
“The car accident,” he finally said. “I felt you get hurt, Ayla.”
“But that’s not… We’re not…”
“I don’t know how either,” he said. “But I nearly lost my mind when I didn’t know what happened or where you were. Even when I
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thought…”
When he thought I was a bad person.
“I just need you to be safe, Ayla,” he whispered. “I accept that you’re with him. I know I lost you…”
“Theo…”
“I know you want him, Ayla,” Theo continued. “I can live with all of that if you’re happy. But I need you to promise me you’ll keep yourself safe. Please, I just need to know you’ll be safe.”
I fought the tears that threatened to fall at the urgency in his voice. I didn’t understand how he could have felt my pain from my accident. It was strange enough that we could feel it when we were with other people. I couldn’t imagine what I would do if Theo was hurt, and I knew I couldn’t do anything to help him.
I buried my face in his chest, holding him tighter.
“I promise,” I said. “I promise.”
I felt the tension leave his b*dy, but we didn’t release each other yet. His perfect scent engulfed me, calming my mood. His fingers were buried in my hair, and I felt him lightly k*ss the top of my head. He finally loosened his hold on me with a deep sigh.
“I should go check on Mom and Dad,” he said.
I nodded. “Is your dad going to be okay?”
“He shifted. He’s going to be in pain for the next week or so,” he said sadly. “But he’ll get through it. He’s still strong.”
“He is strong,” I assured him. “He’ll be here for a while longer.”
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Chapter 79: Ayla
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The corners of his mouth twitched up as he tried to smile, but I don’t think he had it in him. I followed him back into the house, heading back to my room. I laid back down, knowing I wouldn’t be able to
sleep as I tried not to think about the warring feelings inside me.
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