Xavier, what are you doing?
His voice is in my head. I’m staying right here to give you all a head start. You have a minute to run as fast as you can. My powers are limitless because of my immortality. Run, Addy, and run hard.
No, Xavier, I can’t leave you.
Trust me, Rosalyn, this isn’t my first time through here. Just do as I say. Please, just run!
For once, I listen to my mate, and my body moves as everything in me tells me this is the worst idea ever. Blowing my cheeks out, I push my body hard to catch up with the others. It’s then I see something up ahead that alarms me.
My hands move on top of everyone as I jump above them, activating my camouflage. Putting my finger to my lips, I say, “Shhh.” My heart pounds against my chest as I say a quick prayer to the voice I heard last night. Victoria is straight ahead, and the last thing we need is a confrontation with her.
Leaves blow by our eyes and tree branches crack as they’re stepped on. “Where are they? I know they’re around here somewhere. They were running right toward, us.” Victoria’s hands pull at her clothes as she sneers.
Quinn and I take a relieved breath because we know it’s working. We’ve hidden the whole group. Nodding, I murmur, “We’re going to get up and slowly make our way past this area. We have to get to Lapshire.” Alaric looks up at me and nods. “We have to continue touching to stay hidden.”
He gets up with me on his back, and we all touch each other by holding hands in some way, carefully watching each step we take. When a Vampire steps in front of us, we stop breathing, waiting to see if he walks into us, but he walks the other way.
Step by slow step, we make our way through that mile of forest until we’re to a part that’s controlled by Lapshire. At that point, I whisper, “Run.”
Grabbing onto his fur, he takes off. Victoria sees us but hits the ward, and slams her hand against it, screeching, “I’ll get you, Rosalyn. Quinn, you’re mine.”
Alaric is panting, so I jump off his back as I put my hands behind my neck. The emotions running through me overwhelm me, and I drop to my knees as I realize that the life I once had is over. It took just this last event with Victoria to push me past my breaking point. I no longer have control of my life. An uncontrollable sob escapes my mouth as I pound the ground. Quinn picks me up and runs away from the ward with me in his arms. I’m broken, finally.
He sets me down and grabs my cheeks. “You said no breaks. Get it together. You’re our leader, you can’t fall apart right now.”
Taking in a shaky breath, I shut off that part of my brain and go numb. We’re almost to Lapshire. He’s right, I have to stay strong for everyone else.
Pushing my hair back, I slowly put one step in front of the other until I’m moving faster. Alaric transforms behind a tree and comes out in shorts, pulling me into a side hug under his arm.
The day has passed, and we’re deep into the woods, but they are so different from the woods in my kingdom. These woods are green and the air is warm. Flowers bloom everywhere, and you can smell pine in the air.
He brings his hand up. “Watch where you step. There are roots everywhere, as well as animals. Respect the woods. Let’s run to Lapshire. We’re almost there.”
Alaric grabs my hand and runs as a man. My thighs burn, and my mouth is dry. I need water. My stride is getting shorter, almost to the point that it’s nothing, and Alaric throws me on his back. Looking to my right, I see Lawrence has done the same with Scarlett. My heart is beating fast, and I’m looking around everywhere for the castle to come into view.
Finally, I see the village and castle. There’s a shout, and I feel us go through the ward. Guards take Jacque away with Thomas following. Alaric carries me straight inside and takes us down the stairs to a big room where he places me on a bed. He kisses me and holds some water to my lips. It tastes sweet.
Immediately, I try to gulp it, but he doesn’t allow me to. He slowly lets me drink it, and I start to fall asleep.
“No, sweetheart, you can’t fall asleep.” I’m shaken, and my eyes snap open. “You have to stay up.”
Looking to my side, I see Scarlett in the bed beside me, Lawrence doing the same thing to her. It looks like we’re both in the same boat.
Looking around the room, I see there’s stone everywhere with several beds set up, but there are other rooms set up that are extensions of this room.
Everyone’s in here but Xavier. My eyes bounce everywhere as I sit up quickly. “Where’s Xavier?” I ask in a panic.
Alaric grabs my shoulders. “He’s not here, Rosalyn.”
Trying to get out of bed I gasp, “No, he promised he’d be right behind us.”
Alizon hisses, “What do you mean my husband promised he’d be right behind us?”
Turning my head, I glare at her. “Do you mean my mate? You seem to forget that you have no right to him.”
She comes to me and slaps me across the face. “You lost all rights to him the minute I said my vows. You better find him,” she threatens, her face close to mine.
A tear slips down my cheek. “Who are you?”
Quinn pulls her away from me. Alaric pulls me to him. “I’ll send some of my men to find him.”
My head just nods on its own. Things only get worse.
“Lawrence,” Scarlett shrieks.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Rosalyn
Quinn jumps over and scoops Lawrence up. I’m off the bed and following them into one of the rooms where they begin to cut off Lawrence’s clothes. Tears stream down my face.
One of the nurses approaches me. “Do you know what happened to him?”
Pulling my head down to my chest in desperation, I answer. “No, we were attacked by Vampires and wolves last night. He was okay until now.” In my mind, I still can’t believe it was just last night. It feels like it was days ago.
Looking over at Lawrence, there are two puncture wounds on his left foot, and angry red streaks go up his legs. He’s moving his head back and forth muttering, “She’s so beautiful, and she hates me.” His eyes are glazed.
It’s low, but distinct. “No, please, no,” I mutter.
Quinn tries to pull me from the room as I thrash my arms. “Let me go. I need to stay with him.”
The nurses mutter to themselves. “It’s blood poisoning.” They cover him with a blanket and leave the room temporarily.
I’m able to extract myself from the arms of my mate and sit down on the edge of Lawrence’s bed. Grabbing his hand, my vision becomes cloudy with tears. “Don’t you dare die on me.” The best I can do is be here for him and wait patiently.
Alaric comes into the room, and his mother stands next to him. Normally I’d stand, but I can’t. My legs have given out, and I’m weak.
Softly, I say, “Your Majesty.”
She comes to me and gets down on her knees. “Oh, my child, you’ve been through so much.” Her eyes soften as she takes in my appearance. There’s still blood clinging to every part of me, but she places a hand on my knee. “You’re so beautiful. I’m grateful my son has you in his life.”
Shaking my head, I softly laugh at the irony. I sit here holding the hand of my husband while my mate’s mother looks at me.
With a twinkle in her eye, she says, “As weird as this is for me to say, I’m here to look at your husband. Would you mind if I spent some time with him while you cleaned up?”
Lawrence’s head moves back and forth on the pillow, and I notice Scarlett standing by the door, tears streaming down her cheeks. She’s been there for him more than I have. Getting up, I walk to Alaric and he grabs my hand and squeezes it.
He leads me from the room, and we walk down the gray stone hallway and up a few stairs. He leads me to a room with bathing chambers. Hanging against the wall is a beautiful green dress.
“I thought you might want to soak in the tub while my mother looks at him,” Alaric gently suggests.
Standing on my tiptoes, I give him a kiss. “I’ll take a quick
bath. Thank you.”
He places his forehead on mine. “I’ll be right outside waiting for you.”
Shyly, I smile at him. “I’m sorry, but my mind is elsewhere right now.”
He kisses my forehead and pushes me into the room. “Go take a bath, sweetheart.”
My mind was distracted from Lawrence for a minute, but as soon as I’m alone, he’s all I can think about. Is this what the voice meant, that I wouldn’t be able to save everyone?
As soon as I’m finished bathing, I pull the dress on. There’s arguing in the hallway, and I press my ear against the door.
“This will break her,” Alaric whispers.
“I’m sorry.”
Opening the door, I walk out into the hallway to find his mother standing by him, and realize our dresses match.
My mouth drops open. “Alaric, why do I match your mother?”
She chuckles. “This is the royal color. Brailyn wears the same.”
Walking around them, I move toward the healing room. Scarlett’s voice echoes into the main room. “I’ve always loved you, since the day I knew what love was.” She takes a deep breath. “You said I didn’t know what love was, but I do. I’ve watched you pine after Rosalyn and love her, but you ignored me.” She sniffles. “We’re meant to be together, Lawrence. I wish you would see that. One day, we’ll be together, the two of us. You have to survive this, so we can have our love story.”
Not wanting to intrude anymore, I abruptly turn around and walk back down the corridor I came down. I’m staring at the ground when I bump into a chest, and a hand catches me. A memory of when our relationship first developed hits me.
“You should watch where you’re going, amare.” Giggling I look at him as I tuck a piece of hair behind my ear. “Stop, Lawrence.”
Alaric cups my cheek. “My mother needs to speak with you.”
She stands behind him with a pained expression on her face. “Come, Rosalyn, let’s talk.”
Stepping around Alaric, I stop short when he says, “Be strong, sweetheart.”
Counting to ten, I take two deep breaths and put one foot in front of the other. I have to believe it’s not bad news, just something Daciana needs to talk to me about. I’ve already had enough taken from me. I won’t lose another thing.
My dress glides against the stone floor as I follow her down the corridor. We arrive at a small sitting room, where I take a seat across from her.
She folds her hands in her lap as her lips press together in a slight grimace. “I’m going to be frank with you, Rosalyn, especially since you’ll be my daughter someday.” Taking a deep breath, she informs me, “Someone took away Lawrence’s immortality.” My heart skips a beat as she asks, “Do you know anyone who would have the motive and the power to do that?”
My mind races as I try to figure out when that could have happened. We were always together, so it doesn’t make sense. “There are only two people who have that power,” I tell her quietly. “My mother and Xavier.”
She puts her finger up to her lip and is silent for a second. Looking me straight in the eye, she says, “I’m going to ask you a tough question since both of them are important to you.” She places both of her hands on the arms of the chair. “Do either of them have the motive to do that to him?”
My eyes water, and I look down. How do I tell this woman about my screwed-up life? Muttering I answer her. “Yes, they both do, especially Xavier. He already tried to kill Lawrence once. My mother likes to play with people’s lives. So, they both have motives.”
She clears her throat, and I look up at her. “I see. Well, one of them is the reason he is going to die.”
Grabbing the side of the chair, my mind races. She’s mistaken. He’s going to be fine. “What do you mean?” Pain spreads throughout my chest.
She looks at me with sorrow in her eyes. “Lawrence has blood poisoning. When the Lycanthrope bit him, a bacteria entered his system. With him running all day, that bacteria pumped through his system faster. The fact that he’s been immortal for so long, he has no immunity to any diseases.”
Getting up from my chair, I fall to my knees by her feet. “Isn’t there something you can do for him? Please tell me there’s something you can do.”
She grabs my hands as tears fill her eyes. “No, sweetheart, he arrived too late. If he would’ve said something to Alaric while you were still out there, or when he first got here, Alaric or you could’ve helped him. There’s nothing more I can do except make him comfortable. Go and be with him. He doesn’t have much time left.”
Tears stream down my face as I get up and stumble toward the door. Staggering down the hallway, I hear Scarlett crying as she continues to beg Lawrence, “You can’t die. I love you more than my own life. I’ll die for you, Lawrence. Just live. I doubt you knew how long I’ve loved you. I worshipped the ground you walked on growing up. Mom and Dad made fun of me because I swore I would marry you one day. When you married Rosalyn, it broke my heart, but I was so happy for you because you finally got to experience love.” A sob rips from me and echoes down the corridor, joining Scarlett’s. “You were always that love for me, Lawrence. You were the man I was supposed to spend the rest of my life with. This should have never happened to you. Please, please don’t go. I can’t survive without you.”
Alaric comes to comfort me, but I push him away. I make my way into the room. Scarlett sees me come in, and we run to each other, holding on tightly, rocking back and forth. Only the two of us understand the pain we’re both experiencing. After a moment, she leaves the room, and I move to sit on the bed. Swiping at my tears is pointless, and I scream at the top of my lungs as I lay my head on Lawrence’s chest. This is all my fault. I should be lying in this bed. This is a nightmare. Out of everyone on this mission, I never expected it would be him that would die.
His breathing is shallow, and I put my forehead on top of his, which is burning up. My tears drip onto his face. Like a little girl, I climb into bed with him and whisper into his ear everything I want to say to him. “You were my first love, and I’ll carry a piece of you in my heart. Every moment, every word, I’ll never forget. We didn’t have enough time together, and it’s not fair.” A sob catches in my throat, but I continue. “You didn’t get enough time. I was such a horrible wife to you, and I’m sorry for that. I’m so sorry that the last thing you’re going to remember is the woman you love with other men. I wish I could go back.” I take a shaky breath. “Remember all the time we spent together falling in love and being best friends. Those were the best of my life.” Pulling my forehead up, I softly kiss his lips. “Don’t go, Lawrence. I can’t imagine my life without your smile, without your hugs. I’m going to miss you. Please don’t die, Lawrence. Please don’t make me go through life without my best friend.” Uncontrollable sobs make it hard to breathe. A hot hand comes up and rubs my face. “Lawrence?” I look at him and see his eyes open bright, with fever.
His voice is weak, but he hoarsely croaks, “Amare, if I’m going to die, I want to see your smiling face one last time.” Tears continue to stream down my face as I try to lift my lips up in a smile. “You need to try to go on.” He gasps, “Don’t stop living because I’m not here anymore. I’ve lived a long and great life.” He cups my cheek and tries to lift his head to kiss my forehead. I bring it to him. “I got my great love for a little while. I get to say that I loved and died a married man. Go make your mates happy, and know I’ll be watching out for you. I’ll always love you, and I’ll always be your best friend, even if I’m not here.” His eyes roll back into his head.
“Lawrence,” a small whisper escapes my mouth. “Lawrence.” It gets louder. “Lawrence, wake up,” I scream. “Wake up, Lawrence,” I plead with him. Arms come around me to pull me out of the room. Slamming my hands on the bed I screech, “Let go of me!”
My voice is raw as I yell, “Lawrence! Lawrence!” My nails scrape across the person’s skin so they’ll drop me. All I want to do is run back to him. “I need to go back to La
wrence. Let me go.”
“Rosalyn, it’s Alaric. Stop,” my mate pleads with me. “You need to stop, sweetheart. He’s gone. Stop fighting me. He’s gone.”
“No . . .” My chest heaves as I sob. “He can’t be gone. My best friend isn’t gone. He can’t be gone.”
Alaric cradles me once we’re out of the room and I can no longer see him. “He’s gone, sweetheart.”
Before, I thought I had hit the lowest point I could, but I hadn’t. You hit rock bottom when everything has been ripped from you. Your life, your family, the people you love. Lawrence was my best friend and the man I loved. I vow whoever is responsible for his death will pay.
Epilogue
Alaric
Rosalyn is sleeping in my bed. It took me a long time to calm her enough to rest. Several things are happening right now and I’m deciding whether I should keep them from her. I’m waiting to hear news back from my men.
There’s a light tap on my door, and it slowly opens. Quinn walks in. I nod at him.
“It’s done,” he quietly tells me with a regretful look on his face.
Pinching the bridge of my nose, I whisper, “We can’t tell her yet.”
“I know, but when she finds out we’ve kept this from her, she may never forgive us,” he informs me. I’m barely able to hear him.
My eyes meet Quinn’s, and I answer him, “That’s a risk we’re going to have to take.”
There’s another light knock on my chamber door, and a guard is there with a few more behind him.
“Did you find him?”
He shakes his head at me. “No, Your Highness. He’s completely vanished. There isn’t a trace of him. Not even a speck of blood. But there’s also another thing.” He visibly gulps as I narrow my eyes at him. “Jacqueline is missing, and Thomas was found unconscious.”
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