Chapter 48

MISTY

We stood in the middle of the road, the wind whipping around us as we watched the helicopter recede into the distance.

I moved closer to Lloyd, slipping my arm around his waist, seeking comfort in his warmth. Every muscle was tense and coiled like he was ready to act.

Lloyd’s voice broke the silence. His tone edged with disbelief. “The link…it just broke. He expelled me.”

Tanner’s eyes went wide. “He’s afraid you’ll give him an alpha command…”

Lloyd’s grip tightened around me, pulling me closer as if he could shield me from the storm that was brewing. His eyes locked onto mine with a fierce intensity. “You will not leave my side.”

“What did he say?” I asked in trepidation.

Lloyd shook his head, his expression hardening. “He said he’ll end us when we least expect it.”

A cold shiver ran down my spine at his words. I felt a surge of hatred for Axel like never before, a searing loathing that burned like a fire in my stomach.

I knew one thing—Axel would never stop or accept defeat until he was dead or we were.

I had to be prepared because we would never know when he would strike, and without my powers—I was easy prey.

“Let’s find the place and search it,” my dad suggested, and we all piled into the minivan. I winced in pain, my entire body throbbing, and I couldn’t wait for Cammy to heal me.

~“Cammy?”~

Nothing. I hoped the wolfsbane would be out of my system soon.

“My phone is still in the helicopter,” Adam said naively.

My dad let out a derisive laugh. “Unlikely. Axel must have been tipped off by one of the mercenaries, probably well before the attack. They were likely tailing us the moment we left the palace. But wait… How did they know which car to follow? Misty? He didn’t find Adam’s phone while you were still in the helicopter, did he?”

“No, he didn’t. It must have been while I was in the basement or after I escaped,” I confirmed.

“Shit, he has access to the trackers in the vehicles, and all he had to do was check the direction, and he would have known,” Tanner swore vehemently.

We turned into a short, steep driveway partially obscured by shrubs and parked in front of an ugly block-like structure painted cream with a flat roof to accommodate the helicopter.

Tanner pulled up to the entrance, the tires crunching softly on the gravel.

Lloyd helped me out of the car, and as I approached the door, a sense of foreboding settled over me. There was no doorbell, just an ornate knocker shaped like a wolf’s head, its red eyes gleaming ominously in the dim light.

I reached for the handle, but it was locked tight. They were using the roof entrance and had no need for this one. I suspected it was secured with as many deadbolts as the door I had escaped through.

Tanner rapped on the door, his expression serious. “Think we can break it down?”

“Maybe, but it feels solid,” Lloyd replied, tapping his knuckles against the wood.

“Call Adam’s phone,” my dad instructed Tanner.

Tanner didn’t hesitate. He pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed the number, his eyes scanning the area as he waited. A few tense seconds passed before we heard it—a faint buzzing coming from a nearby bush.

We turned toward the sound, and there it was—Adam’s phone, discarded in the underbrush, its screen lighting up with Tanner’s call. Axel had found and ditched it.

This wasn’t going to be easy. The realization settled over me like a cold shadow.

“Is there any point in breaking the door down?” Trent asked in frustration.

I shrugged, my eyes fixed on the imposing door. “I didn’t really get a chance to look around, so I don’t know whether he’s been using this place regularly.”

Lloyd stepped back, his gaze shifting upward. There was no easy way to climb up; even if there were, it seemed pointless.

I placed my hand between his shoulder blades, hoping for the familiar tingles, but without Cammy, there was nothing. “The door on the roof is steel, with a keypad,” I murmured. “You’ll never break it.”

“What do you want to do, Lloyd?” my dad asked.

“Misty needs a doctor, and we’ve already delayed too long. Axel’s gone for now; we need to regroup,” Lloyd replied calmly.

“Agreed,” my dad said, casting a concerned glance at me.

The adrenaline that had been coursing through my body had dissipated, and the emotional turmoil had exhausted me.

“Let’s go,” Tanner agreed.

We got back in the car, and I heaved a sigh of relief and made myself comfortable, my head in Lloyd’s lap.

~“I wish I could take your pain, sweetheart,”~ Lloyd linked me.

~“Me too,”~ I replied with a cheeky grin.

Closing my eyes, I drifted into a light doze, still aware of everything around me. Lloyd’s warm, comforting hand caressed me, but despite our bond—mated and marked—I didn’t feel fully connected to him.

I longed for that connection, but with Axel on the loose, I feared it wouldn’t happen anytime soon.

A deep sadness weighed on me, an emptiness where the magic had once been. It felt as though Kiralah had loaned me her power only to snatch it away, leaving me cheated out of my birthright.

How could she, from beyond the grave, still reach into my life with such influence when she never retaliated to save her own skin?

Why hadn’t the page been visible to me from the start? Who was the crone that healed my mother? So many unanswered questions swirled in my mind, and I wondered if we’d ever uncover the truth about events that happened centuries ago.

I tried not to think about Axel, but deep down, I knew he would stop at nothing to reclaim the throne—no matter if innocent blood was spilled.

I woke when Lloyd carefully pulled me from the seat before swinging me into his arms. I blinked at him sleepily. “Hey.”

“Hello, beautiful.” He grinned. “Let’s get you to the doc.”

I was astounded that he could still smile despite everything that had happened. As I glanced at the palace entrance, a longing to be anywhere but here washed over me.

I didn’t want to live here and wondered how Lloyd felt about it. When Tanner called me Luna, I brushed it off, unwilling to confront the weight of that title.

Chelsea’s shout broke through my thoughts. I watched wistfully as she sprinted out of the entrance and leapt into Tanner’s arms, wrapping herself around him.

He spun her around before kissing her deeply. It amazed me that the events didn’t affect her like they did me and that she had an innate trust that everything would work out.

My mom stood at the entrance, tears shimmering in her eyes, her gaze shifting between my dad and me. Lloyd stopped so I could speak to her.

“Harris told me what happened, and all I want to do is take you far away from here and keep you safe. Lock you in a box.” Her lips curled into a small smile. “But I suppose that’s Lloyd’s responsibility now.” Her hand ran over my head, and she kissed my forehead gently.

“I’m okay, Mom, but how did you get here?” I asked.

My dad rushed up and hugged her tightly. “Chelsea and I drove up together.”

Lloyd shifted uncomfortably, even though it wasn’t his fault. “I will keep her safe,” he replied, a faint growl underscoring his words. “Misty needs a doctor,” he added before striding into the palace.

Unsurprisingly, he knew his way around, and it didn’t take long for us to reach a set of double doors with the inscription ~Infirmary~ on them. He shouldered the door open, and a nurse came running.

“Sire? How can I assist?”

My mouth dropped open. Sire?

“Misty’s been shot, and we need a doctor to remove the bullet,” Lloyd replied, a little dominance sneaking through.

“I’ll call Dr. Hurst, sire,” The woman immediately bared her neck in submission and quickly guided us to a cubicle, gesturing for Lloyd to lay me on the bed before hurrying off.

“Sire?” I questioned as he gently placed me down.

Shaking his head with a sigh, he muttered, “Don’t ask.”

The doctor came rushing toward us, dressed like you’d expect a human doctor to be. He was young with beach-blond hair and light-blue eyes, baring his neck as he saw Lloyd.

“Sire,” he acknowledged respectfully, immediately leaning forward. “Luna? Where have you been shot?”

Ugh, the indignity. “In the buttocks.”

“May I?” he looked at Lloyd for permission.

Lloyd nodded impatiently.

~“Goddess, sire, this is… I don’t know what to call this.”~ I cheekily linked him.

~“Yes, Luna, it’s—something else…” ~he responded.

Our eyes met, and I giggled. This was just too much. A grin split Lloyd's face, and I realized getting to know each other would be fun. All of a sudden, the world seemed brighter.

Lifting the T-shirt, the doctor probed my butt gently. “I’ll have that out in a jiffy,” he promised, “and your wolf can heal you.”

~“I’m back,”~ Cammy said, but she still sounded a little weak.

~“Thank Goddess, my neck also needs healing.”~

~“Yes, you’re quite a mess…”~

Lloyd pulled up a stool and sat at the head of the bed, taking my hand in his. The tingles were back, and I relished them as they crept up my arm.

I could hear Sully nearby, and guilt tugged at me—he should’ve been treated first, but as luna, I took precedence.

The next few minutes were agonizing. I squeezed Lloyd’s hand, biting back the scream that threatened to escape as the doctor dug out the bullet.

Finally, I heard the sharp clink as it dropped into a metal dish, and I exhaled a long, relieved breath.

“I’m just going to disinfect the wound and patch up your neck,” the doctor informed me. It was genuinely inconvenient not to be able to sit.

“Okay?” Lloyd asked, concerned.

I was still clutching his hand, and when I finally let go, he held on a moment longer. “It’s literally a pain in the ass,” I grumbled.

Lloyd barked out a laugh. “I wanted to whisk you away for a couple of days, but with Axel still on the loose, there’s no chance of that happening. I refuse to stay in Axel’s quarters, but we’ll find a bedroom somewhere.”

“I agree.” My voice wavered. “Lloyd, I—I don’t know if…”

The doctor returned with supplies, interrupting me, and I slid off the bed on my stomach.

Lloyd gathered my hair in his fist, holding it up as the doctor wrapped a gelatinous bandage around my neck. The coolness soothed the burns instantly, and I sighed in relief.

“Thank you, Doctor,” I said when he bared his neck.

Lloyd swung me up in his arms and headed out the door.

“What now?”

“Find a bedroom.” He grinned and dropped a kiss on my nose. “It’s after midnight, and as you know, I need sleep. We have a lot to deal with tomorrow, and I don’t know how you feel about waking next to a rogue.”

“Oh damn, I don’t know if I can deal with that…” I wrinkled my nose for effect.

“Yeah? Me neither. Apparently, she-wolves smell worse than males,” he teased.

“Nah-uh, I smell like roses.” I batted my eyelashes.

“You, little mate, smell like azaleas,” he contradicted.

Huh, I didn’t know that. “Is my witch taint gone?” I asked curiously.

“No, there’s still that underlying spicy smell. It’s quite exotic, although I didn’t think that when I first met you. I suspect that’s why you never smelled like a rogue, even though you aren’t affiliated with a pack.”

Crap, he was right, and because no one commented, it didn’t really enter my mind. It was strange that I still smelled like a witch. “I didn’t realize…”

Lloyd headed for the third floor and walked to the last bedroom, passing the one I had shared with my dad.

I wondered briefly whether my clothes and phone were still in there and where my parents were staying, but I assumed Tanner would sort something out for them.

Setting me on my feet, he opened the door, sniffed, and gestured me inside. The room was much smaller but beautifully furnished and included a king-size bed, two nightstands, and a bathroom.

Lloyd locked the door and narrowed his eyes. “I know you’d like to shower, but that’s probably not a good idea. Get on the bed, and I’ll wipe you down.”

“Wipe me down? Are you comparing me to a kitchen counter?”

Amused, he looked me up and down. “The type I’d like to eat off.”