Changing Fates: A Sons of Satrina Novel (The Sons of Satrina Book 3)

by Kristan Belle

  Ash glanced over at them both. It was unlike Jackson or Trey to complain about any aspect of the training routine. They were the model students, striving to be the best that they could be. Now, Denver, the class clown, had complained the whole time they were out there. He was never going to change. He was always going to be an ass. Denver had his own little group that stayed out of Aisline’s way and she’d seen them struggling to get through the course. She was all for teamwork, but she was happy to see Denver struggling.

  “It was pure hell.” She agreed as she swiped at the snow that had layered on her shoulders, glad that she wasn’t the only one who had hated it.

  “If I never see snow again, it’ll be too soon.” Dylan shivered, rubbing his hands together.

  They walked together in silence towards the gym they usually worked out in. They were too cold and too exhausted to speak, even to bitch and complain how hard it had been. They didn’t need to say the words. Each of them had struggled through it in their own way and all they wanted now was to get warm and get prepared for whatever Kelton had planned on doing next.

  Aisline’s eyes widened when she walked through the door. She’d been expecting more training, more torture, not this. It was like walking into a small piece of heaven after the hell they’d just been put through. The smell had her salivating.

  “Come in! Come in!”

  Someone had cranked the heating up in the room and Professor Fieldman greeted each of them at the door with warm blankets. Gratefully, Ash took one and wrapped it around her shoulders. She heard the murmur of appreciation from the other guys behind her. That’s when the smell hit her again. The lure of the blankets had distracted her for a moment, but now she breathed in deeply. Hot chocolate. Topped with cream. And tiny marshmallows dotted in the cream. Some of the members of the kitchen crew were waiting for them with trays filled with steaming cups of coffee and plates of biscuits. Ash couldn’t believe her eyes.

  Closing her eyes, she wrapped her hands around the boiling hot cup, relishing the intense heat chasing the chills from her aching bones. Moving across the room, Ash moved to sit down on one of the benches that lined the room. Trey followed, sitting next to her and grinning like a Cheshire cat.

  “Can you believe this?” Ash quirked her eyebrows at him. She would never have expected this in a million years. It almost made it worth going through that torture to get to this point.

  “Nope. I’m sure we’re all just dreaming and Kelton will have us running laps any minute now.”

  Ash took a long sip of her hot chocolate and was transported by to her childhood once more. It tasted just like it used to when she and her father would go to their favourite diner when she was a kid. It was the same diner she had worked in when she got older. She really missed the place now that she came to think of it. The diner held a lot of good memories for her and she knew that she was going to have to take Jackson there one day. Their strawberry milkshakes were to die for. She remembered going there when she was a kid, the snow would be freezing outside, but she and her father would be warm inside the diner, with their hot chocolates that were topped with enough cream that you had to eat it with a spoon.

  It was perfect. This was the perfect thing, bringing back a memory that warmed her almost as much as the hot chocolate she had wrapped her hands around.

  They all froze when Kelton walked into the room. The trainees all assumed that their brief reprieve was over and done with, until he grabbed his own mug and blanket and sat down on the end of the bench with a sigh. Noticing that he had their undivided attention, he sat forward.

  “You all did very well today. I know that you hated every second of it and probably thought that I did it just to torture you all,” the trainees laughed nervously, “But, there was a legitimate reason behind this particular training exercise.”

  Kelton waited for the kitchen staff to leave as the tail end of the trainees filed into the room before standing up to address the room. “What we do isn’t easy. It’s not a nine-to-five kind of job. We don’t get holidays or time off. We go out there in all weather. It’s all well and good being at your physical peak, but if you can’t handle the elements, you will fail.”

  There was silence in the gym. It sunk in and made sense to them all.

  “What I do, I do to make you stronger. To make you better. We want the best warriors out there on the streets. We need the best to protect the world from the Lamia Mortuorum.” He paused to let his words sink in. “When I push you, it’s because I know that you can give more. You’ve done me proud today. All that hard work is really starting to pay off. You should be proud of yourselves.”

  “Kelton?” Warrior Dixon walked into the room.

  The warriors spoke quietly together and Kelton’s face remained impassive, giving the trainees no clue to as to what they were talking about.

  “Thank you. I’ll be with you in a moment.” Kelton said to Dixon, shaking his hand.

  He turned to the class, but his eyes were glazed over and he was looking through them rather than at them. Kelton stopped pacing around the room for a moment to pick up his cup, draining the last of the stomach warming liquid. “You’ve all impressed me with how well you’ve come in the last few months. Your training has gone up a level and your commitment is admirable. I think hard work should be rewarded.”

  The guys looked at one another, wondering what Kelton meant by that. None of them were sure. They were a little nervous, thinking about what his version of a ‘reward’ could be.

  “You are all done for today and you all have a free day tomorrow! Enjoy your time off and spend it wisely.”

  The trainees broke into conversation. Ash turned to grin at Jackson, who looked just as shocked and happy as she was. This was the last thing they’d expected Kelton to do.

  “Go and shower and get changed. We’re done for the day here. And once again, well done to you all. You’ve all worked really hard and deserve this.” He nodded at them all before quickly leaving the room.

  Ash laughed as everyone around her exploded into conversation. This was the best thing that they could have wished for after that hell they’d just been put through.

  “Don’t plan anything.” Jackson whispered to her. “I’ve already got the day mapped out for us. Leave it with me.”

  Ash raised her eyebrows in question, but Jackson shook his head and grinned at her. Normally, she didn’t like surprises, but she knew that whatever Jackson had up his sleeve would be fun.

  Kelton hadn’t planned on this unscheduled day off for the trainees, but after what they’d been through, they deserved it. He’d been treating them harshly lately and needed some time to battle up for the next wave of training.

  But more importantly, he’d found Kayleigh.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Kelton felt like a stalker. He was stood cloaked in the shadows of the dawn, his eyes glued to the window like a peeping Tom. He couldn’t help it. He couldn’t stop himself. Now that he’d found her again, he couldn’t keep his eyes from her.

  It wasn’t like she was actually doing anything of interest. She was simply sat in the pale lamp light, reading a book. But, that wasn’t the point. She didn’t have to be doing anything. She was there, in front of him. It was Kayleigh. His soul mate. Everything she did, even the slightest movement, was of interest to him.

  Not being with her was killing him, but now there was a light at the end of the tunnel. He could see her and the memory of her was alive in his mind. The thought that he had driven her away with his deceit was breaking him. He hated how much he’d hurt her. All he wanted to do was storm into the house and wrap his arms tightly around her.

  But, he couldn’t do that. He knew that he couldn’t. Kelton knew that she needed her space to come to terms with what had happened. He had to give that to her. His love for Kayleigh meant that he would do anything she asked of him. Within reason.

  Kelton couldn’t stay away from her now that he knew where she was. It was like an invisible line that wa
s drawing him to her. If only he could spend the rest of his life knowing that she was safe and being able to watch over her, he would. He wouldn’t be satisfied with the distance, but he would do it if that was what she wanted from him.

  He couldn’t leave her alone. Not being with her was killing him. He knew that he would never be satisfied from just watching from afar. That was madness. They belonged together. They needed to be together and he would do everything in his power to get them back to the point where they were happy. That was what she deserved out of life. Happiness. She’d been through so much pain that this wasn’t fair and it killed him to know that he was the one that had put that sadness in her life again.

  She may not know that he was there, but this was the love of his life and the woman that was carrying his unborn child. There was no way that he would leave her unguarded now. Even if she remains oblivious, she would be protected.

  Kelton’s phone vibrated in his pocket. Glancing briefly at the screen, he saw that things were still all good at the academy. He’d left Dixon and Verynai watching over things, not that he really gave a damn about any of that right now. All he could focus on now was that he’d finally found Kayleigh, relishing in the sight of her.

  Sucking in a deep breath, Kelton shrank further back into the shadows. The flash of his phone must have somehow caught Kayleigh’s attention. She was now peering out of the window, looking directly at the spot where he was standing. She couldn’t see him, he knew that, but he held his breath until her eyes returned to the pages of her book.

  As much as he wanted to rush in there and lift her up into his arms and carry her back home where she belonged, he was terrified of what she would do when she saw him. What if she rejected him? What if his betrayal was too much for her to cope with? No amount of apologising was going to cut it. Kelton knew that. But, he didn’t know what to do to make this right.

  If only he had the chance to explain to her what had happened to him. He might be able to make her understand. Not that it was excusable, for it wasn’t, but he hadn’t consciously meant for it to happen. He would never have betrayed her like that willingly. It wasn’t like he had been caught up in a moment of lust. He’d literally been caught up in a spell.

  Kelton knew that he was going to have to speak to the girls when he got back to the academy. He was going to have to make more of an effort with them, but he had no idea how to go about it. How was he supposed to act like a father when he didn’t even know them? They were teenage girls who already knew their own minds and probably didn’t need or want his presence in their lives. Everything in his life was a mess and he had no idea how to mend any of it.

  How was he supposed to act as a parent? He didn’t think that he would ever be a father. Of course the thought had crossed his mind over the years, especially when Kayleigh spoke about her children or when one of the other warriors became a father, but he didn’t see it as a reality. Plus, he thought that when the time came, he and Kayleigh would work through it together. Now he had been sprung with two teenage daughters out of the blue, and Kayleigh was pregnant and not with him. None of it was working out how he had ever imagined in his head. It was all one great big mess.

  It was killing him to think that he wouldn’t be part of his unborn child’s life. When Marion had let him in on the secret, the thought of being a father had shaken him to his very core. It was very different to how he was feeling about the girls. They were already people with fully formed personalities and no need for him. The baby that Kayleigh was carrying didn’t know the situation he or she was being born into.

  As he watched Kayleigh, Kelton tried to push aside thoughts of the life that he and Kayleigh had created together. Love for the woman sitting oblivious to his presence flooded his heart. That was all he wanted, her and the child she carried. He wanted to be a doting father. He wanted the family that they could be. He wanted to make Kayleigh happy.

  Watching as she set down the book on a small coffee table and moved across the room to the window, Kayleigh paused for a moment before slowly pulling the curtains closed. It was almost as if she had sensed that he was out there, watching and waiting for the right time to come to her.

  Kelton sighed. He knew that it was time to leave. If she was keeping to her old routine, he knew her well enough to know that she would be retiring to bed now. There was no point in him staying there and staring at an empty house. A sadness filled his heart at the thought of her being lost to him again.

  Glancing to his left, he could see the leather clad man walking up the street. Patrick, his shifter friend, had come to take over watching the house while Kelton slept through the daylight hours. Not that he thought he’d be able to succumb to sleep any time soon, but if he wanted to come back to her tonight, he knew that he would have to try and rest.

  Patrick was the only other person that Kelton had confided in so far, apart from the warriors who knew and were covering for his absence, and he had been happy to help out. Kelton knew that he was going to have to tell the others when he got back to the academy, but for now, it was only the two of them that knew of her exact whereabouts.

  They exchanged no words as Kelton turned to walk away, however Patrick clammed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, lending him his strength. Kelton nodded sadly before moving towards his car.

  He didn’t want to leave. He wanted to stay as near to Kayleigh as possible.

  Kelton was facing another lonely night away from the woman that he loved and if possible, the pain was even more intense now that he knew where she was, but couldn’t touch her.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Kelton was pacing around his office, waiting for the others to assemble. Master Warriors Dixon and Verynai were sat waiting patiently, watching him as he paced nervously. A knock came at the door and Professor Fieldman and Doctor Phillippe came into the room.

  “Well, we’re all here. Are you going to tell us what’s going on?” Dixon said quietly, wondering what Kelton had brought them all in for.

  Kelton stayed silent for a few moments, trying to get the words straight in his head. He had to get everything out in the open and he needed to tell them all the truth. He had to tell them it all. There was no getting out of it. Sure, he wasn’t going to go over everything that had happened with Cassandra, but they needed to know the truth.

  Marion nodded at him encouragingly. She had an idea of what this was about and she’d been waiting for this. He had to let the other warriors know what was happening with the girls and obviously the time had come.

  “This isn’t easy for me. You know that although I see you as my brothers, I keep my private life to myself. Now has come the time to share some personal things with you that affect the academy.”

  Warriors Dixon and Verynai stayed silent. They knew that this must be serious if Kelton wanted to share private information with them. The professor and the doctor knew more of the situation and sat back, waiting for Kelton to continue.

  “I should have told you about this before, but I didn’t want to believe it. It’s been difficult, but now that the tests have confirmed it, I need to inform you that the twins that have come into the academy, Rhian and Cala, are in fact my daughters.”

  Verynai nearly fell off his chair. “What the hell? Are you serious, man?”

  “This isn’t something I’d joke about.” Kelton replied sternly.

  “Rhian and Cala?”

  “Well, they are twins, dumbass.” Dixon rolled his eyes.

  “But, how?” Dixon looked confused. He knew how solid Kayleigh and Kelton were and couldn’t see him betraying her like that. It was clear to anyone that had seen them together how happy they were and that they completed one another. It shocked him to learn that Kelton had strayed. That wasn’t what he had expected of him. Kelton was a man of worth.

  “It wasn’t intentional. I didn’t ever go out planning to do it. You know what I feel for Kayleigh and I wouldn’t ever willingly do something like that to her.” Kelton may be a badass warrior, but he
never hid his feelings for his woman. In his eyes, it was a sign of strength that he could love so fiercely and the rest of the warriors agreed.

  “So, what? You were drunk?” Verynai scoffed, royally pissed off at what he was hearing. In his mind, when you find your soul mate like Kelton had, you put her on a pedestal and treat your woman like a princess. There was no way he would ever condone cheating and his estimation of Kelton had gone way down.

  “No. I was somehow spelled by their mother. I didn’t even know what happening until it had been done.”

  “Bullshit.”

  “It’s true. Their mother is a powerful witch and I didn’t even know what had happened until it was over.”

  The room fell silent. Verynai regretted his remark, but this simple sentence made more sense. That wasn’t something Kelton would have done willingly. It was easy to see how much he had been hurting since Kayleigh had left. He was her world. Verynai felt bad that he had doubted his brother and knew he shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions. If there was one man he trusted, it was Kelton.

  “I apologise.” Verynai said softly, a tone not often used by him.

  Kelton nodded, understanding his reaction. “I didn’t even know about the twins until that moment they received the mark and came to the academy. Their mother dropped the bombshell on me that night, and Kayleigh overheard. She left me before I could even explain myself. Not that I think it would have made much of a difference. I betrayed her trust by not telling her the truth in the first place, anyway.”

  “If you told her, she would hopefully understand. She’s a reasonable woman.” Verynai said. He held Kayleigh in high esteem, knowing all that she did for Kelton and the academy.

  Marion sat forward in her chair. “Kelton, you know that if you had the chance to explain to her what went on, she would have heard you out. She may not like it, but she would have understood a little better.”

  Kelton heaved in a deep breath. “That brings me to my next point. I’ve found her.”