Chapter 200
Aria’s POV
I stared into Ethan’s eyes, watching a violent storm of emotions swirl in those green–gold depths as confusion shattered into dawning horror. My heart hammered against my ribs, each frantic beat sending waves of anxiety through my weakened body.
“Wha…?” he stammered, his voice cracking with tension, barely audible over the steady, mechanical beeping of my heart monitor. His fingers gripped the metal railing of my hospital bed, knuckles turning white as the color drained from his face.
I took a shaky breath, wincing at the lingering ache in my chest. “That night,” I began, my voice still rough from disuse, “I entered that elevator thinking I’d completely lost my wolf, but I was still determined to rescue Emma. The broken bond and poison left me disoriented.”
wasn’t
My fingers twisted nervously in the thin hospital blanket. “I stumbled down the hallway, barely making out room numbers. When I found the door, it w locked.” I swallowed hard, the memory sharp and clear after my vision. “The moment I stepped inside, someone grabbed me, and then… nothing. My memory went dark until morning. I woke up no longer a virgin, clutching a strange necklace I’d never seen before.”
head, fingers digging into his scalp. “It was you,” he
rasp his h
Ethan jerked backward as if physically struck, his face draining of color. His hands shot up to grasp whispered, his voice breaking.
“Yes.” I held his gaze, refusing to look away from this crucial moment. “Emma and Bella never revealed who was in that room. They only showed my father the video of me leaving in some man’s shirt, using it as evidence I deserved barishment.” The memory still stung, even years later. “I pawned the necklace after discovering I was pregnant, just for living.”
“Oh God…” Ethan’s breathing grew shallow and erratic, his broad chest rising and falling in uneven bursts. He lurched forward, nearly toppling from his chair as he gripped its arms with such force I heard the plastic creak. It was me who–1 was the one who-?” His voice fractured completely. I could almost feel it radiating from him. “I can’t even…” The words strangled in his throat. All this time… the nightmares you must have lived through because of me-
I reached across the space between us, ignoring the pull of IV lines as I captured his ice–cold hand between mine. “Listen to me, Ethan,” I whispered, squeezing his fingers to anchor him. “My wolf showed me everything.
“Wolf?” His head jerked up so quickly I heard his neck crack, bloodshot eyes wide with confusion. “What wolf, Aria? Your wolf has been gone.”
“That’s what I believed too.” A bittersweet smile touched my lips as I traced my thumb across his knuckles. “When I hovered between life and death, Cassandra came to me. She never truly died–she cut our connection and drew the poison into herself to protect me. She’s been doing the same thing all this time for our children. The memory washed over me with startling clarity–her sleek golden fur beneath my fingers, those knowing amber eyes. “The Moon Goddess herself told me that Cassandra needs more time to heal completely, but eventually I’ll sense her again. Maybe someday even transform.”
“I watched you die,” Ethan whispered, leaning closer until his forehead nearly touched our joined hands. His voice broke with remembered agony. “Several times, your heart just… stopped. His fingers intertwined desperately with mine, as though I might still slip away. “Each time they revived you, I thought…” A shudder ran through his powerful frame, the words dying unspoken, but the haunted darkness in his eyes revealed everything his voice couldn’t express
He continued. “The doctors can’t visualize twins on any equipment. They can only detect heartbeats.”
“My wolf is protecting them, I explained. “The Moon Goddess showed me what truly happened that night, Ethan. Neither of us remembers because our wolves took control. We recognized each other as true mates, and we both consented to the bond.”
His brow furrowed deeply. “If we were true mates, I should have sensed it,” he argued, though uncertainty had begun replacing self–loathing in his expression.
Chapter Comments
Betty Mendelsohn Watson
thank you. sorry I thought it ended for the day.
Visitor
thank God. I was becoming to be a bit concerned how rapey this book was
