Chapter 85: It’s Gone
Her eyes glint as she nods. "I swear on our love, Adrian. Mark me, and I’ll make sure every single one of them returns to Moon-Crest unscathed."
Adrian highly considers it. "Even Nyra?"
"Of course. Once we’re together again, I won’t need to waste my time thinking about her anymore."
---
Adrian doesn’t answer immediately, thinking of all the possible options. If Anna is being honest and has this place surrounded, they probably walked right into her trap.
Knowing how vicious Anna could be, she most likely used Mia as bait. And she definitely wouldn’t hesitate to kill Leah to prove a point.
The clearing is deathly silent, every pair of eyes fixed on him, waiting for his response.
Julian shakes his head furiously, looking rightfully exasperated. "Adrian, don’t."
"Please," Naya whispers through her tears. "There has to be another way." Adrian can’t tell if she’s begging him or Anna.
Lena’s eyes are already wet. "If you do this... Nyra will never forgive you."
Adrian never looks away from Anna.
His expression slowly softens, the murderous rage draining from his face until all that’s left is quiet resignation.
He would rather have her hate him than die in these woods tonight.
"Okay." He sighs. "I’ll do it, Anna. I’ll mark you if you let them go."
"No!" Julian shakes his head frantically.
Anna’s lips slowly curl into a triumphant smile. "I knew it." She laughs breathlessly. "I knew you’d choose me eventually."
Adrian takes one slow step toward her, his wolf form tired and weak as the adrenaline slowly wears off.
He has lost so much blood from the injuries on his fur, and from trying to reach Nyra through the bond. If he’d never unlocked his Enigma potential, he would’ve collapsed hours ago.
When he gets in front of her, he quietly shifts to his human form, hissing at the sting of his wounds stretching.
Anna, possessive and crazy, doesn’t hesitate to push Leah toward her friends, quickly unwrapping the scarf from her neck and wrapping it around Adrian’s bare waist in an attempt to cover him up.
Julian’s anger disappears the instant Leah is shoved toward them. He, Naya, and Lena immediately rush forward, pulling her safely behind them.
"Leah, are you okay?" Julian asks, checking the bleeding cut on her head.
Leah nods shakily, still catching her breath. "I’m fine..." Her voice cracks as she looks toward Adrian. "Please... just save her."
On the other side, Anna quickly pulls Adrian into her arms, crying as she hugs him tight. "I knew you still had a soft spot for me! I knew it!"
Adrian nods. "I never stopped dreaming of the memories of what we used to be." Adrian hugs her back, his voice soft like it used to be when it was just them.
Anna breaks from the hug first, eyes glistening with unshed tears, though Adrian can still feel the press of the metal against his side. "I missed you so much."
"So did I."
Before any of the others can react, he gently cups the side of her face, leaning in.
Julian’s stomach drops. What the hell is he doing?
Anna melts beneath his touch. "I knew it..." she whispers happily. "I knew you still loved me."
Then Adrian leans down and kisses her. Their lips meet, but there’s nothing beautiful about it.
No sparks, no chemistry. It feels completely bland.
Anna doesn’t even blink at the mess around them. She kisses him back desperately, almost hungrily, wrapping one arm around his neck.
"I missed your lips..." she whispers between kisses. "No one else could ever kiss me like you did. No one else could capture your fire-"
Adrian forces his body not to tense. He plays the part, pressing deeper against her as Anna continues to devour his lips.
When they finally pull apart, he rests his forehead against hers.
"I’ll mark you as I promised."
Anna smiles so widely it almost hurts to look at.
"But..." Adrian continues. "...I want Nyra brought here first."
Her smile vanishes so fast Adrian almost thinks he imagined it. "What?"
She presses the gun harder against his ribs. "You’re still thinking of her!? You just kissed me!?"
Goddess, help him.
"I’m not thinking of her." His thumb caresses her face as gently as someone can muster with a gun pressed against his side. "We had a deal-"
"You think I’m stupid, don’t you!?" Anna’s eyes narrow immediately. "You’re trying to trick me!"
She jerks around before he can respond, pushing his hand away and aiming the silver pistol toward Julian and the girls instead.
"I’ll kill every single one of them!" Their eyes widen. "You know these are silver bullets. It’ll kill them in one shot."
Adrian slowly raises both hands. "No, just listen to me, Anna."
It’s a wonder how he manages to stay calm in this moment. Julian almost pities him when he realizes he’d spent the last two years with this woman.
"If I’m really choosing you..." he says gently, "...then I want the past to end properly. I need her to see me choose you."
Anna studies him for several long seconds, different expressions flashing through her crazed eyes.
Then she slowly lowers the gun from the group, redirecting it at Adrian again.
Naya looks like she could pass out any second.
"You promise?" Anna mutters.
"I promise."
"And you’ll mark me?" She leans in again. "You’ll make me yours?"
"I’ll mark you." He brushes his thumb across her cheek. "You won."
Anna practically glows with happiness. She shoots him one more look before lowering the gun slightly and pulling out her phone, dialing a number.
The person picks up immediately, muttering something about the hostage almost passing out.
Adrian hears the conversation as though his ears are pressed to the speaker--must be another perk of his new abilities.
Anna listens to the complaint for a second before impatiently ordering, "Bring the whore."
Then she ends the call, immediately looking up at Adrian, smiling like a lovestruck teenager. "Kiss me again."
Adrian’s jaw tightens as she continues, "I want her to watch while I take you away from her forever."
He lets Anna slam their lips together, ignoring the way his stomach twists with disgust.
He counts every second, ears twitching as he hears the crunching of twigs beneath heavy boots.
The footsteps grow louder and louder until an Alpha emerges from behind the huge trees with Nyra hanging limply over his shoulder.
For one terrifying heartbeat, Adrian forgets how to breathe when his eyes land on her.
She looks barely recognizable.
A filthy oversized shirt hangs loosely over her bruised body, with one sleeve slipping down her shoulder.
Her arms and neck have fingerprints littered all over them, her lips are split, and a swollen bruise darkens one side of her face. There’s dried blood matting her hair near the wound on her temple.
Looks like Anna had jammed the gun into her face several times.
She clutches weakly at her stomach, every movement looking painful, and her legs are shaking from the pain.
These bastards didn’t even let her keep her shoes, and it looks like the soles of her feet are covered in tiny sores.
The Alpha throws her roughly onto the ground when they reach the middle of the clearing, and she falls to the floor with a loud whimper.
She slowly manages to sit up, her unfocused eyes landing on Adrian first, then on Anna.
She watches the way Anna continues to devour Adrian’s lips, moaning exaggeratedly--no doubt trying to ragebait her.
The heartbreak in her eyes can’t be mistaken for anything else, and she quickly looks away, staring down at her thighs instead.
Adrian’s own heart feels like it’s shattering into pieces, and he can’t seem to tear his eyes away from her, even though he’s kissing someone else.
He follows her gaze, his eyes trailing down her lap.
He freezes, realizing where exactly the source of all that blood in the warehouse was coming from.
The blood running down her thighs is evident enough. And the smell... it doesn’t smell like blood from an injury.
He would know, because it smells exactly like it did when he was five.
When he had found his mother at the bottom of the stairs after she had slipped, blood trickling down her thighs.
The reason he’s an only child--a memory that took months for the Blackwood family to finally bury.
His entire body freezes.
His mind flashes backward, suddenly remembering all the strange symptoms.
Her sudden sensitivity to smells, the dizziness, the strange cravings. Her exhaustion.
Every single piece crashes together, and his breathing actually stops. His lips stop moving, frozen in place.
Nyra was pregnant.
She was pregnant with his child. Nyra had been carrying their child.
She was...Fuck!
That’s why they’d tried to mask the blood in the warehouse, so they wouldn’t know what happened.
And now it’s gone. Fucking gone before they even knew it was there.
Nyra... miscarried.
Anna notices the change instantly as Adrian takes a step back, fingers digging into his palm so hard blood begins to well.
"Adrian?"
He doesn’t answer. His pheromones flood the space between them as his eyes change, his wolf completely taking over.
The growl he lets out is so full of despair that even the trees begin shaking.
Every wolf around him instinctively takes a step back. All of them except Nyra.
"FUCK!!" he bellows, sinking to his knees, his gaze locked on the blood staining Nyra’s legs.
Anna, for the first time, starts to panic. Even the gun in her hand seems useless now.
"Adrian, babe-"
His claws extend as he turns to face her. The pure murder in his eyes makes Anna’s mouth instantly snap shut.
"I’m going to kill you." He bares his fangs at her, slowly rising to hit feet. "I’m going to fucking KILL YOU!!"