Chapter 54: The Aftermath

STORM

The silence in the common room was eerie. The warriors had begun cleaning up after the battle, but you could hear a pin drop in there. Everyone sat in silence.

Gianna sat in the corner, a blanket wrapped around her shoulders, staring off into the distance, her eyes bloodshot from crying, and empty.

“The scent disappeared just as fast as we picked it up. Wherever they’ve gone, it’s far from here. I’m sorry, Your Majesty.”

The king nodded to the guard, his attention solely on his daughter. The guard dismissed himself, leaving us all alone in the room, closing the door with a soft clack.

Raphael cleared his throat. “Well, today has been rough, but we will get through it—”

“Shut up.”

“—We just need to pull ourselves together and devise a plan to get Axel back—”

“I said, shut up.”

Raphael seemed oblivious to Gianna in the corner. Or if he wasn’t, he was doing a good job at pretending he was.

“Gianna darling, I understand your pain, but your son is missing.”

“~Shut up!~” The power from her roar knocked us all backward. “You don’t get to stand there and pretend that nothing has happened! My mate is dead, and it’s all your fault!”

I looked up at Gianna while she spat her words at me. “You, you led them here. You let them kill my mate and take my son, and now you sit there pretending to grieve?

“~Where are your tears? Why won’t you cry for my son? My mate is dead because of you, you stupid bitch!~” She lunged at me, and I just barely dove out of the way.

I spun around to look at her. Her eyes shone bright blue like she was fighting her wolf in shifting.

“I lost everything because of you. ~Why did you come here?!~”

“I—I—I, uh… I—” I struggled to get any form of a sentence out. She growled a low and menacing growl. If I didn’t say something, she was heading straight for my throat. “I came to warn you about the Blood Moon Pack.”

“You mean the pack that is actually fine? Turns out that psychopath was after you, not the throne. He wants you, and if it means getting my son back, he can have you.”

She sneered at me. I didn’t need a mirror to know my face had gone white.

“Gianna darling, Kol would not have wanted this. We need to hold it together right now to find Axel.” Frieda approached Gianna slowly, her hands out in front of her, gently reaching out.

I nodded my head frantically, hoping her mother would knock some sense into her.

No such luck. She let out such a growl that the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. Her fingers turning into claws, she lunged at me again. I scrambled out of the way.

It didn’t take a genius to figure out that if I went up against the white wolf, I wasn’t coming out alive. She’d march me straight through to death herself if it gave her peace of mind.

“Gia, listen to me. I know you’re distraught, but killing the only witch strong enough to take this nutbag down isn’t the wisest idea right now,” Diego barked at her from across the room.

I was growing concerned that the king hadn’t even attempted to calm her down.

I'd known Keir was crazy, but I hadn’t thought he was this crazy.

“Gianna, listen to me, please. He wants you to believe he is here for me, but I promise you he’s not. If he really wanted me, he could’ve taken me just after he slaughtered my parents!

“I was injured so badly I couldn’t even move properly! He wants you all to turn on me, then he will use Axel to get to you. That’s why he took him.

“He’s—He’s going to hurt him, change him, and then send him back, and he’ll get in that way. We need to get to Axel… ~Now!~”

“I don’t think you are in any position to be making demands, Miss Storm,” Raphael threatened from the corner.

I gulped, trying to remove the lump building in my throat.

Reign and Milly glared at me, whispering frantically to each other. Milly drew her sword and stalked over, pointing the tip under my chin, her eyes dancing with fury.

“If you are lying… If my cousin dies because of you, I will remove your head from your shoulders myself. One of us has already died because of you.”

“I tried to save him,” I whispered, a single tear falling down my cheek.

“Crocodile tears won’t work on us, bitch!”

Gianna took a swing at me again, this time making contact, her claws swiping across my chest, drawing blood. I winced but bit my lip to keep from crying out. She got down into my face.

“You don’t get to cry. You don’t get to pretend that you ~tried~ to save my mate. You stood by and did nothing while that bastard ripped my mate in half and took my son!

“If anything happens to Axel, I am holding ~you ~personally responsible. Do you hear me? You!” I nodded my head, tears flowing thick and fast this time.

She stood up straight and turned her back on me.

I looked around the room, trying to find comfort somewhere, but all I saw was a family of angry wolves ready to rip me apart and a witch who looked like she would curse me into oblivion.

I looked back down at the ground. If Axel were here, this wouldn’t have happened. He wouldn’t have let them… Would he?

I cursed myself for even allowing this to happen. I should’ve known Keir would’ve grown more powerful by other means. I should’ve known once I found out his plan that he would turn to the dark arts.

Forbidden magic always came with a price… Clearly, his price was his sanity.

I scoffed internally. He was always insane; what was I talking about? Only an already-mad man would turn to the dark arts to get what he wants.

I let the blood from my gashes ooze out, dripping onto my clothes and the floor.

I didn’t dare ask if I could clean myself up or make a healing solution. At this point, I didn’t want to draw attention to myself at all.

If Gianna wanted me dead, I would be dead by now. Was she waiting until we got Axel back? Would she be so cruel as to put her son through what she’s been through?

I felt fingers tenderly working herbs into my chest. I came back from my daydream, refocusing my eyes. I looked right at Freida. Her eyes were gentle and compassionate, almost apologetic.

“Disgusting behavior,” she muttered.

I winced as the herbs stung. “I’m sorry,” I whispered, not able to stop the tears from falling.

She cupped my face gently. “Not you, darling… ~You!~”

She turned on Gianna, her face full of fury.

“How dare you injure a child like this! Do you think I raised you to be like this, you stupid girl?! What example are you setting for your children?! You selfish girl!

“Yes, Kol is gone, and we are all devastated for you, Gianna; we really are! But don’t you dare blame a poor young girl, who for all you know has also lost her mate! You inconsiderate little bitch!”

The entire room looked on in shock as the once-always-calm Freida lost it at her only daughter. Gianna opened her mouth and closed it again, swallowing.

It was very clear to see that Freida never usually shouted, let alone called her child selfish or a bitch.

“Freida darling, is this necessary? Gianna has suffered a great loss.” Raphael tried to reason with her, but she silenced him with a look. He nodded, retreating back into the corner.

Everyone just stared at the floor. Gianna finally worked up the courage to speak. “She did nothing while he stole Axel and killed Kol.”

Freida shook her head. “No, Gianna, she did everything she could while you sat and wailed on the ground like a little child. Do not project your own guilt onto someone else.

“And I can assure you if Kol were here now, he would be disgustingly disappointed at how you treated a child. As am I.”

She turned on her heel and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her, making us all jump.

“I’m twenty,” I whispered, not sure if anyone heard me.

I slowly got to my feet, wincing slightly from the pain across my chest. I dismissed myself, leaving them alone with their thoughts, Freida’s words hanging in the air.

Do I blame Gianna for lashing out at me? No, not really. Truth be told, if the roles were reversed, I’d probably have done the same thing.

I walked outside. Sitting on the steps to the pack house, I stared off into the distance at the spot where Axel got taken from me.

My pairing. It’s never easy when a wolf and a witch mate. Two worlds coming together. Neither one knows much about the other, only the basics that they get told growing up.

And yet we were paired together.

But we never sealed it. We never had a chance, really. He never marked me as wolves do. So I didn’t have that joint connection with him. I couldn’t feel him like others could their mate.

Was he okay? Was he even alive?

I shook my head. No, Keir would keep him alive until he’d overthrown the throne. He would need Axel to get back in.

“Oh Axel, where are you?” My eyes glowed purple trying to find signatures, old remnants of a portal, a freaking door…something.

“Storm?”

I jumped at Reign’s voice behind me, wincing again at the pain in my chest. I looked up at her as she went to sit beside me

“Yes?” my voice came out a bit harsher than I had intended.

She sat beside me, her small frame folding in on itself. “Do you think he’s okay?” Her voice was barely a whisper.

“I hope so,” I replied.

We both looked out into the distance, my eyes still searching for something…anything.

“We will find you, Axel.” The wind carried my voice off into the distance.

I just hoped it would reach him…wherever he was.