Page 34
Mira
When I found Victor’s button, I tried to convince myself it was a mistake.
I tried to find reasons why this could be a setup.
It seemed very unlikely to me that the same man who touched me like I was made of glass and came to my rescue at every point was guilty of such.
Maybe Lilith didn’t want him on the throne in place of Griffin, but the more I tried, the clearer the pattern in front of me became.
I thought about how my car suddenly developed issues from nowhere, and how he was conveniently available despite the stormy weather, and how he was available whenever I was in danger and effortlessly emerged victorious at every point.
Every experience I ever had with him seemed to have been perfectly curated to match the moment, and everything always turned out perfect, a bit too perfect.
Then, I started to pay attention to his movements and noticed how he was always absent.
I noticed how some of the elders gravitated toward him and how he and Lilith seemed to avoid each other like they were scared someone would eventually see through them.
Finally, I summoned the courage to follow him one night, and I saw a part of him I never knew existed.
I watched him treat people like vermin and speak loudly about how it was taking too long to get rid of Griffin in a clean manner and how they might resort to extreme measures.
I knew I had to seek help before it was too late .
What was more difficult was pretending to be all lovey-dovey around him and not slamming his face into the nearest wall and calling him out for who he was.
I didn’t want to marry him. I couldn’t stand him, but I knew the only way to force them out of hiding was to go through with the wedding. Lady Sheila’s informant suspected they might use the wedding as an avenue to strike and advised that we stay alert while he worked on confirming the information.
What I wasn’t expecting was the number of atrocities they were admitting to—from Lilith’s fake pregnancy to planning attacks on me to make Victor look like the good guy and planning a public wipeout during a wedding. It was horrible what the hunt for power could turn people into.
Had I known things would turn out this way, I would have kept Noah as far away from this gathering as possible. I had brought him with me because I didn’t trust anyone and wanted to keep an eye on him myself. I totally underestimated Lilith’s blood lust, which was a huge mistake on my part.
My wedding was merely a ploy for them to lure out the opposition and eliminate them. It was a good thing I came prepared.
At the snap of Lady Sheila’s fingers, everything took a different turn.
I took advantage of the confusion to free myself from Victor’s grip, digging my elbows into his side and twisting out of his hold.
Griffin wasted no time in attacking him, both of them shifting into their wolves and tackling each other to the ground.
Lilith, on the other hand, tightened her grip on Noah, shielding her body with his. “If you take a step closer, I’ll slit his throat.”
It was probably a reckless move on my end, but I knew Lilith wasn’t stupid. She was outnumbered, and she knew the only way to get out of here alive was through Noah. She wouldn’t kill him. To distract her, I needed to be closer, so I took a step closer, my eyes not leaving hers.
“I won’t warn you again. Stay away from me, else I’ll—”
From nowhere, a small knife wheezed past her, causing her to lose her footing. I turned to see Ella smiling at me, and I seized the opportunity to grab Noah from her arms.
“Mama,” he sobbed, clutching my dress, but there was no time for a happy reunion, not yet, so I handed him over to Lady Sheila and faced Lilith, who was currently seething with anger.
“I’m going to kill you,” she snarled before shifting and lunging at me.
Fear and panic tightened my chest as I took in the size of her big, brown wolf.
My white Omega was no match for her, but I had a better advantage on her in my wolf form than I did in my human form, so I shifted, dodging her attack by a hair’s breadth.
The dodge only seemed to annoy her more, and she charged at me in a flash. This time, she didn’t miss. Her fangs dug into my forelimb, tearing a pained howl from me. I struggled to push her off me, but she bit deeper until I could feel her teeth on my bone.
I gathered every ounce of strength in me to slash my claws through her eyes, earning me a growl and freeing me from her hold. I was growing weak from the loss of blood, and she was barely scratched. I was going to lose this fight.
She lunged at me again, but instead of fighting back, I dodged, trying to buy more time for my injury to heal a little.
“Come on, fight me, you stupid bitch. You can’t be both a slut and a coward at the same time,” she said through the link before lunging at me again, but not even her insults could trigger me into a stupid decision.
Around me, a full-blown war was currently ongoing. Lilith summoned some of the rebel warriors stationed at hidden positions in the garden, but they were no match for Lady Sheila’s warriors. Lady Sheila, Noah, and Ella were nowhere in sight. Thank Goddess.
Lilith threw herself at me again, and this time, I didn’t dodge. I slashed my claws through her eyes, blinding her with blood. As she staggered to find a way to wipe her eyes clean, I jumped on her, sinking my teeth into her neck and biting hard.
She began thrashing uncontrollably, trying to dislodge me from her back and wipe the blood from her eyes. She was losing.
I retracted my fangs from her neck and bit into her back, dragging my teeth through her flesh until I hit her spine, and then, I drew back and sank into the bone with every bit of strength in me.
Her loud howl of pain rewarded my efforts, and I bit deeper, not stopping till her moans were reduced to low whimpers.
I tore myself off her back and reached for Lady Sheila’s silver dagger that had fallen off while I shifted. Lilith was a pureblood, and it would take either ripping out her heart or delivering a mortal blow with silver to kill her.
I didn’t possess the strength it took to break through the ribcage and pull out a heart, so I settled for silver.
I changed into my human form and grabbed the piece of steel by the handle.
Lilith’s wolf snarled when she saw me approaching with the weapon, but she only succeeded in landing a blow to my side before I pounced on her, stabbing repeatedly until I couldn’t feel a beating heart.
Relief washed through me before pain from my injuries slammed into me, and I found myself collapsing to the floor. Solid arms caught me before I could hit the floor.
“Hey, stay with me, stay with me.”
“Griffin?” I groaned through pain.
“It’s me, baby. Just hold on a little. ”
I opened my eyes to find him naked and hovering over me. Then, it occurred to me that I must be naked, too. “Did we win?”
He let out a soft smile. “Yes, we did.”
“I'm sorry about Noah.”
His eyes softened. “It’s okay. You’re weak. Don’t waste your breath on me. I understand.”
I tried to sit up, but the pain on my side intensified.
Broken limbs and ripped-out body parts covered the garden.
In the bloody mix, I spotted Victor’s battered body.
His ribs were torn open, and his eyes were wide and lifeless.
My chest tightened at the sight, and a small pang of guilt twisted inside me.
He was a traitor, and his motives were unpure, but he had been my friend when I needed one.
I forced my eyes from him, refusing to mourn the death of someone who only saw me as a means to a selfish end.
“Lay still. You’re starting to heal. It’ll be over in no time,” he said, carefully arranging me into a more comfortable position.
Watching him take care of me brought back every emotion I tried to suppress.
Today took a completely different path. It was my plan to expose Lilith and Victor and leave the palace to a more quiet and mundane life, but everything unraveled, and that wasn’t an option anymore. At least, it wasn’t an option I’d take
“I love you.” I don’t know where I got the courage, but I guess it’s the thing they said about a near-death experience. It forces you to be honest and appreciate everything around you.
Griffin looked at me like I was the most beautiful thing he had ever set eyes on. His eyes were filled with part relief and part disbelief, like he couldn’t believe I was saying that after all that happened, but he was relieved that I was. “Thank you, baby. Thank you so much. I love you, too.”
I managed to force a smile through my pain as I felt his lips press against my forehead. It was all worth it in the end.
“Get me some clothes and call the physicians,” I heard Griffin say as I shut my eyes and let my body repair itself.