Chapter 15
When the morning of the press conference arrived, Aislinn had serious doubts. She stood behind the makeshift platform as the last few reporters gathered and wondered if it was too late to back out. Would this really worked the way she’d planned? And did she have the guts to go through with it?
A few minutes later, Aislinn and her family ascended the platform. Mom had finally returned from Tierney’s that morning but they hadn’t had any time to talk. Which was for the best; Aislinn had no idea what to say to her. At least Tierney was okay and had a beautiful baby boy to show for her trouble.
Her father had wanted to do an introduction but Aislinn had convinced him to let her handle it. She could only imagine what he would say. So as soon as they were situated, she stepped up to the microphone.
“I’m Aislinn Cavett, daughter of General Fergus Cavett. I’m the reason for the recent discord between the Humans Firsters and the werewolves.” She had decided not to mention her father’s attempt to kill the wolves with poison. The more she could make it sound like neither side was at fault, the better. “I’ve been asked to describe my treatment at the hands of the wolves.”
In the pause that followed, it felt like every reporter held his or her breath. She felt the tension from behind her, from her family, and knew that when she spoke again, nothing would ever be the same.
“Darius Bishop didn’t take me from the Humans First compound because he was trying to foment war or get something over on my father. He took me because when we met, he realized I’m his mate. And he doubted he’d ever get to see me again if he didn’t take me with him.”
Furious whispers broke out all around her.
Aislinn held up her hand. “I’m not done. During my time at the Holding, I fell in love with Darius. But because of the discord between our two peoples, I had to leave him, to prove that I am unharmed and that I have not been coerced. I had to try to bring peace between us.”
“Aislinn!” Her father stepped up beside her and grabbed her arm. “We’re going to have to end this here,” he called to the reporters. “My daughter isn’t feeling well.”
Aislinn shook off his hand. “I feel perfectly fine.” She tightened her grip on the podium and leaned into the microphone. “I’m going back to Darius,” she said clearly. “Of my own free will. Considering my father’s statements a few days ago about not attacking the wolves, I expect my return to the Holding to have no repercussions.” She looked her father in the eye. “No fighting, no war. My marriage to Darius Bishop can be an opportunity for us to mend our differences. But if it cannot be that, then at least it should not divide us further.”
“Aislinn.” Mom put her hand on her shoulder. “Don’t do this.”
The General’s face turned a slight shade of purple but he gazed out at the reporters, each eagerly waiting for him to explode, and said nothing.
“And for the record,” Aislinn said, “I was treated quite well while at the Holding. Like a guest, not a prisoner. Many have told me they believed I would be tortured while in the hands of the wolves, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth.”
And now came the hardest part. If she went back to the compound, her father would never let her leave to go to Darius. So she’d packed up the few things she needed most and stuck them in the trunk of the vehicle when no one was looking. “I’ll be going straight to the airport from here. Is there anyone who could give me a ride?”
Several reporters immediately raised their hands, though she didn’t know if they wanted to ask a question or were trying to give her a ride in hopes of getting a scoop. Before she could find out, her father pulled her away from the microphone.
“You’re not going to the airport,” he hissed. “You’re coming back to the compound so we can get your head straight. No daughter of mine is going to mate with a filthy wolf.”
“Aislinn, how could you?” Mom said.
This was the moment she’d dreaded. But as she’d reminded herself many times, what kind of parents would try to keep her from the man she loved? And why would she side with them over him? “I love him. And I’m going to be with him.”
She nodded toward the crowd of reporters still milling around and watching them. “If you don’t let me go, they’ll tell everyone. If you force me back to the compound, it’ll be on the nightly news. Far better for you to gracefully release me and act like you care about peace, even if you don’t.”
“And later, when you’re thinking about attacking the Holding with the excuse that you want to rescue me, remember that you blew up the charges thinking I was still inside.”
Mom gasped. “No, he didn’t. He wouldn’t do that.”
The General’s hand loosened on her arm. “She’d be better off dead than tortured and raped.”
“They weren’t torturing and raping me,” Aislinn said. “But you were willing to kill me anyway.” She wrenched her arm away from his grip. “If you ever want to have anything to do with me again, you’ll leave the wolves alone from now on.” Like that would happen. Still, she had to try.
Aislinn turned back to the crowd. “Now, who can give me a ride?”
***
Darius didn’t know how long he’d been asleep. Asleep was easier than the gnawing pain that ate at him every time he was awake. He’d wake just long enough to drink some more alcohol and put himself out again.
But now, a pounding at the door woke him. Killion’s voice shouted something, but Darius didn’t want to know what it was. He didn’t care. Without Aislinn, nothing mattered.
The door opened with a bang. Darius knew he’d locked it...well, he thought he had. Then again, what difference did it make? He rolled over and faced away from his brother. Already consciousness brought the howling pain rushing through him and his eyes filled while his wolf began to claw at his insides.
“You have to see this.” Killion pulled at his arm, but Darius shook him off. “Damn it, you have to see this.” Killion let him go.
A few seconds later, the television clicked on and blared into the room. Darius recoiled. “Turn it off!”
“Not until you see this.” Killion flipped through channels and finally settled onto one. “Look.”
Darius closed his eyes tighter. Killion had been trying to engage him all week, thinking if Darius could find interest in something he’d make it through this. But there was no ‘making it through.’ Half his soul was gone, and he couldn’t live without it.
A man’s voice spoke, but Darius didn’t hear what he said. Then after a pause, he heard the sweetest sound in the world.
Aislinn.
Darius pushed himself to a sitting position. When he saw her on the TV screen, he knew he hadn’t been imagining things. She looked beautiful, more beautiful than ever. But what was she saying?
She leaned into the microphone. “I’m going back to Darius of my own free will.…”
He didn’t hear anything else. Immediately, two thoughts warred inside his head–on the one hand, she shouldn’t come back. She couldn’t come back, or the war would start all over.
On the other hand, he’d never heard more beautiful words in his life.
“Did you hear her?” Killion rounded on him.
“She’ll start a war.” Darius pushed the words out of his throat.
Killion jerked to a stop. “No, she won’t. Did you listen to what she said?”
Darius swallowed. “If she comes back, the General will attack again.”
“No.” Killion flipped through several more television channels until he found another one reporting the news about the General’s daughter and the North American Alpha. “Listen to the whole thing this time.”
Darius listened, his head clearer than it had been in days. He saw the way she refuted all the claims about the wolves deftly, saw how she set it up so that it would be the Humans Firsters’ fault if hostilities started up again, saw how she appealed to the public with her story about star-crossed lovers.
She’d really done it. She’d told him she’
d find another way, and damned if she didn’t do it.
At the very end, she walked off with a reporter to go to the airport. “She’s coming here now?” he said.
“We got a call from her half an hour ago. She’s got a flight this afternoon and will be here in a couple of hours. She wanted to see if we’d pick her up at the airport.”
“Of course.” Darius’ voice sounded harsh from disuse. “I’ll pick her up myself.”
Killion grinned. “I knew you’d say that. You have just enough time to get showered and eat something.” He scrunched up his nose. “But shower first. You stink.”
Darius pushed himself out of bed, his muscles aching from being in the same position for so long. “I love you, too, brother.”
Punching him lightly on the shoulder, Killion said, “One more thing. Tonight after you get back from the airport, you’re going to become Alpha again. I wasn’t kidding when I said I wasn’t ready for this. And I hope you live a very long time and have lots of sons.”
“You’re saying you don’t ever want to be Alpha again.”
“That’s what I’m saying.”
Darius could live with that. But there was one thing he couldn’t live with. “You’re going to have to hang onto the position for one more day. When I get back from the airport, my mate and I have other plans.”
“They can wait—”
”No, they can’t.” Darius gave Killion a brotherly shove as he walked by him toward the bathroom. “Now get out of here. I need to shower.”
“I’ll have Ivy send up some food.”
As Killion headed for the door, Darius said, “Thanks.”
Killion stopped short. “It’s us who owe you thanks. A lot of wolves will live because of what you did. I’m just glad it worked out in the end.”
“It didn’t just work out. My mate made it happen.”
“Then she’s the one you owe thanks to.”
Darius grinned for the first time in over a week. “Believe me, I’m already thinking of ways to thank her.”
Killion left the room, laughing.
***
Aislinn couldn’t wait to board the plane. She’d gone to the airport with a reporter who had been more than happy to hear about her romance with Darius. The man had also tried to get her opinions about her father and the Humans Firsters but she had kept things on point.
But when Aislinn reached the airport, her parents had beat her there. At least the airport police were keeping the reporters out of the terminal. Her father was already haranguing the poor woman at the ticket counter, trying to get her to cancel Aislinn’s ticket. And Mom latched onto Aislinn as soon as she walked through the door and heaped on every bit of guilt she could. If Mom were to be believed, the fate of the entire Western civilization rested on whether Aislinn made the “right” decision or not.
Aislinn pried Mom’s hand off her arm. “I’m going.” She crossed to the ticket counter. As she handed her driver’s license to the ticket agent, her father tried to grab it out of her hand.
“You don’t know what you’re doing,” he bellowed.
Aislinn pointed toward the glass windows at the front of the airport. “Reporters.”
As the General looked toward the windows, Aislinn got her license into the agent’s hand. “You’re not going,” the General said. “I forbid it.”
Aislinn felt tired. What could she say to him? There was nothing left to say. “I’m going.” She got her license and boarding pass from the ticketing agent and headed for the security line, both parents hurrying after her.
Luckily for her, the line was short, maybe ten people ahead of her. As she stood waiting, her parents pleaded with her. Then Gideon pushed through the throng of reporters and strode through the airport toward Aislinn. That’s all she needed–one more voice begging and threatening.
Gideon stopped next to her parents. Only a thin fabric guide hung between two posts stood between them. “Does he make you happy?”
Both her parents paused.
“Yes,” Aislinn said.
“If things change, if you’re unhappy, you can always come back,” Gideon said.
“No, she can’t,” the General said. “If she leaves on this plane she’s cut off forever, no longer my daughter.”
Aislinn didn’t even look at her father, instead focusing on Gideon. “He won’t ever treat me badly. But if he does, there’s a whole world out there where I can go.”
Mom sucked in a shaky breath. “Don’t leave. I don’t want to lose my little girl.”
Aislinn moved forward a few steps. Just four people in front of her now. “You don’t have to lose me, Mom. You can come visit me or we can meet someplace neutral. But I will never go back to the compound. And it goes without saying that the General of the Humans Firsters is not welcome at the Holding.”
“As if I’d ever debase myself by going there.”
Three people in front of her.
“You can still change your mind,” Mom said.
“No, I can’t. I love Darius. I’m miserable without him. All this week while you thought I was crying because I’d gone through some ordeal–that wasn’t it. I’ve been crying because I miss him. I don’t want to be without him.”
One more person passed through taking the line down to two. Aislinn held her license and boarding pass in her hand, waiting to give them to the TSA agent. Mom threw her arms around her. “I’m going to miss you. You still have your cell phone?”
Aislinn hugged her back. “Of course.”
“I’ll call you.” Mom kissed Aislinn’s cheek.
As they pulled apart, the General said, “You’re dead to me.” He walked away toward the glass doors leading outside.
She didn’t feel the kind of pain she might have expected at hearing those words. Instead, she felt numb. After everything her father had put her through, what was one more jab? It might be a good thing to be disowned. At least he wouldn’t start a war over her.
Only one person in line in front of her. Gideon stuck out his hand and she shook it. “I’m going to miss you,” he said. “We were good together.”
“Yes, but never good enough,” Aislinn said. “Find someone else. Someone better for you.”
Gideon clenched his jaw but nodded. “Take care of yourself.”
Front of the line. Aislinn stepped up to the TSA agent and handed her her license and boarding pass. Once the agent had inspected them, Aislinn stepped through and put her bag onto the conveyer to go through the x-ray machine. She turned for one last wave then walked into the scanner herself.
As soon as she got through security, she’d call the Holding to make sure they knew she was coming. She supposed she should feel sad about leaving her past behind but all she felt was relief and a growing excitement about seeing Darius.
***
On the other end of her flight, Aislinn left the secured area of the airport and entered baggage claim, looking for a familiar face. When she’d called earlier, Cael had told her how bad off Darius was. She didn’t expect to see him, but hoped that whoever they’d sent to get her would be someone she knew. Cael himself, maybe? She’d even be happy to see Jennalynn, no matter how much the woman disliked her.
But she saw no one–well, no one she knew. With no luggage to pick up, she headed for the door, checking the few people with signs to see if her name was on them.
Suddenly, a hand on her shoulder stopped her. Before she could say anything, another hand came around her body holding a large bouquet of flowers. The first hand squeezed her shoulder just as she felt a body coming closer to her back. A deep voice whispered, “Aislinn.”
A shiver ran through her, a visceral reaction. She spun. “Darius!” Aislinn threw her arms around him. “I didn’t expect to see you here.” She spoke into his shirt.
“Of course I’m here. I couldn’t be anywhere else.” He kissed the top of her head, and then her temple.
“Cael said you weren’t well.”
A low growl came from Darius�
� throat. “I felt fine as soon as I heard you were coming back to me.”
She gazed up at him. “I told you I’d find a way.”
His eyes met hers, his fingers stroking her cheek. “Yes, you did. And I didn’t think it was possible. I’ll know to believe you next time.” He leaned and kissed her.
A light flashed and then another. A voice called out her name, and then she felt a press of bodies around them.
Darius seemed to understand what was happening before she did, because he broke the kiss and tucked her into him. “Do you have luggage?”
“Just my carry-on.”
“Good.” He pushed through the throng of reporters for the door. Apparently airport security here hadn’t thought to keep the reporters out. Once the two of them reached the door, Darius turned them around, putting his hand up. “I’ll make a brief comment, and then my bride and I need to go.”
The crowd quieted.
“You’ve already gotten the full story from Aislinn. All I can say is I’m very glad she’s back with me, and I hope our union can help the peace process move forward.” He stepped backward, triggering the automatic door, then turned and pushed Aislinn in front of him as they moved away from the reporters.
She remembered the last time he’d walked her like this, hands on her shoulders, protecting her. She could never have guessed what was coming, but now she couldn’t imagine being anywhere but with Darius. He helped her into a car waiting at the curb then climbed in beside her. The same man who’d driven the SUV when she’d first been kidnapped drove them now. Everything had come full circle.
Darius pulled her into his arms and kissed her. “I missed you.”
“I missed you, too.” She touched his cheek with her fingertips. “It’s done. My father disowned me. I doubt he’ll come after us at this point.”
Darius rubbed her arm. “Are you all right?”
Aislinn tucked herself against his chest. “As long as I can stay with you, I’ll be fine.”
Darius closed his arms around her, holding her tight. “That’s exactly what I want too.”
Finally where she belonged, Aislinn relaxed in the arms of Darius, her protector, her defender, her one true love. As long as they were together, she knew they could make everything turn out right in the end.
Her Forbidden Alpha Page 13