Chapter 24

Aleena’s POV

The feeling of blood on my hands will never be okay to me; having someone’s life on the line and I’m the one set to save them that’s just too much pressure. It’s why I wanted out of the roles bestowed upon me back home.

Blood pooled around Ayla’s body. Her mates were frantic and in the way. I had no choice but to take command of the room. Once the brothers were out of my way, I could at least see what I was dealing with, which was bad. Three very long, deep, diagonal gouges crossed the entirety of Ayla’s back. Black sludge oozed from the wounds mixed with her blood, and the smell of sulphur was getting stronger.

“Aleena, please help her”, Michael pleaded, but in all honesty, I wasn’t sure I knew what to do.

Dropping to my knees, I placed my hands in the centre of her back; blood and the black substance coated my fingers in seconds. I recited every healing spell I knew, all the restorative chants I could think of, but nothing stopped the ebb and flow of blood leaving her body.

“It won’t stop; what the hell happened” I shouted, fear gripping me too firmly; I was going to lose her.

“My sister happened” Ayla’s mouth moved, but she was still out cold; Alune could still control her speech, even though her body was gravely damaged.

“Get the hell out of my mate’s mind”, Aiden growled, so much anger flashing through his eyes, eyes that were no longer his but his wolf Blazes.

“Shut up, little wolf. Right now, I am the only thing standing between life and death for your mate; if you want her to stand any chance of ever coming back from this, then you will let me do what I need to do,” Alune hissed at him. It was so surreal to see Ayla lay there like that, plus being in the state she was in, yet her mouth moved, and her voice worked, but it was not her.

“Alune, can you save her? What do you need me to do? How can I help” I scrambled to ask? I needed to be helpful in some way.

“Elf, I need full control of this body to push my power into every fibre of her being. I cannot rid her of my sister’s poison outright until I have a sample of her venom to make an antidote, but I can keep her alive, at least,” the Exalted explained.

I knew she was right, but it still concerned me; Alune was known for taking hold of a host and never letting go. If I agreed to help her, there was a good chance we would never get Ayla back. But if I refused, then we would lose Ayla regardless.

“Aiden, step back; we need the space,” I tell him holding his dark gaze; he was so angry the rage was almost visible.

“I swear to the goddess, if you hurt a fucking hair on her head, I will hunt you down and rip you limb from limb, shred by shred. I will make you wish you never merged with my mate. I don’t give two flying shits how fucking special you think you are; I will destroy you if my love gets hurt,” he practically screamed at the Exalted. His brothers had to grip his arms and hold him back.

“Aiden, calm down, son, we are all worried”, Michael tried to say, but I knew it was the wrong thing instantly.

Throwing myself in front of the Alpha, I spread my arms fast and wide, shielding him from Aiden’s fury. Something had happened to him, darkness seeped from his very being, and I could see the faint outline that lingered around his body.

“Take him outside; now, he is compromised. “I will be there to deal with him soon. Just keep him contained and away from here,” I barked orders at the other two Chase brothers.

“Are we ready now, Elf, or are we going to waste more time chit-chatting” Alune snapped, but I could hear she was struggling to keep Ayla going.

“Yes, I’m ready; what do you need,” I asked.

“You need to detach Ayla’s soul and attach it to mine”, she began, yet I couldn’t hold my gasp in. This was beyond life-altering and very dark magic. “Will that be a problem, Elf? Are you not capable of doing what needs doing” she goaded me.

“I can do it; I just don’t condone this kind of magic; it’s dark and not good for the spirit”, I admitted but readied myself anyway.

“Please save my little girl Aleena” Michael pleaded, and his pain broke my heart. Looking at him and seeing unshed tears in his eyes, I nod and promise to do everything I can.

“Alune, get ready”, I urge, and I take a deep breath and throw all my goddess-given power at the dying girl on the floor. Focusing on everything I have, sweat beaded on my forehead, and my hands tremble; finally, I feel the rip of her soul, giving me mere seconds to guide it towards Alune, granting it the new home it needs for now.

On trembling knees, I sink to the floor, hands shaking and energy spent; I let myself fall the last few feet.

“It is done”, Alune sighs. The wounds on Ayla’s back close up but still look bruised. Her body twitches before she pushes herself up to sit. “Well, this is different; much better to have full control for a change.”

“You promised Alune; you said it was to save her until you get the antidote”, I reminded her. Michael is now at my side on the floor, arm around my shoulder and concern all over his face.

“Yes, yes, I know, but I’m allowed to enjoy the feeling at least” she rolled Ayla’s eyes. It was going to take a lot to get used to this, and the brothers were going to hate it I just knew it.

“You need to rest, Aleena; let me help you up” Michael reached for my hand as he went to stand; I reached up to take it with a smile, but something wasn’t right, his face twisted in pain, and his knees buckled, his eyes glazed over, something was seriously wrong.

“Michael”, I scream as he falls to the ground, all colour drained from his face, and his skin burned to the touch.

“Well, isn’t magic rife in this place tonight?”

Stacy’s POV

Spending time with Mason was exactly how I expected it to be. There was no love from him; I wasn’t even sure if he was even that interested in me. That was something I was going to have to change if I wanted this to all go smoothly. My mother had said the more he wanted me, the easier the last test would be.

My body ached all over. He hadn’t only wanted a quick blow job like I thought. He wanted to take all his pent-up sexual tension out on me. If I refused, I knew I would leave in a lot more pain than I was already in. So I did as he wished and just hoped he wasn’t in one of those moods where he likes to dominate. I don’t think I could handle it today.

Currently, I was taking a breather in his bathroom; I needed a break and an internal pep talk. Propping myself up on the toilet seat, I reach for my phone, flicking through old photos and seeing one of Jacob and me, my heart twisted. I guess the saying you don’t know what you had till it’s gone was true. Jacob never treated me like Mason did, and if I stopped lying to myself, then I’d have to admit I missed him.

Mason had gone downstairs in search of food, no doubt expecting round two; my body hurt more just thinking about it. It was then an idea came to me; reaching for my phone, I scrolled down the list of names, searching for my ex’s number. I know it was wrong, and I knew we both stood a chance of getting hurt all over again here. But I needed a way to push Mason in the right direction, to make him crave me instead of using me.

“Hey, Jacob, I know you probably don’t want to speak to me, but I thought maybe we could chat; I miss that” I typed the words out quickly and pressed send before I could change my mind.

Anxiously I wait for his reply, my leg jigging up and down impatiently. As the time ticked by, I started to doubt he would answer me at all, and I knew Mason would be back soon.

Then my phone pinged, and his name flashed up on my screen. The biggest smile stretched across my face for the first time in ages.

“Hey, what do you want to talk about?” Jacob asked.

Sitting, staring at his simple message, I found myself to be nervous. I told myself it was because I was playing a dangerous game, not that I missed him.

“Anything really; I just miss our conversations” I clicked to send

“Okay, well, I don’t really know what to say, Stace, we haven’t spoken in weeks, plus I’m kind of tired. I have been training all day, and it’s getting late,” his reply came quickly this time. My stomach dropped, I knew he wouldn’t really want to chat with me, and I didn’t really blame him either.

“That’s okay, I understand”, I replied slowly. Sure that that would be the last message I would get from him.

Pushing my tired body off the toilet seat, I stare at myself in the mirror. I looked tired and not like myself at all. I couldn’t lie. I looked like a mess. Then my phone pinged again, and my head whipped around to see Jacob’s name once more; elation flooded me as I snatched up the small device. Clicking on the message eagerly, I almost dropped the bloody thing.

“You know I hate to text; if you wanna chat, you can come over; the garage will be unlocked” I read and re-read the message at least ten times. Excitement bubbled inside. I couldn’t wait.

Running my fingers through my hair, I smiled at myself; my action plan was back on. Pushing the door with purpose, I walk into the room at the same time as Mason returns.

“Right, let’s go again; I still need to work out some frustration” he doesn’t even bother to look at me as he speaks. Expecting me to do as he wished.

“Sorry, no can do I’m needed elsewhere; it was fun though; I’ll catch you tomorrow, yeah,” I say, throwing as much confidence behind my voice as I could muster, and I fumbled with my clothes, ramming my legs into my trousers as fast as I could.

He was across that room so fast I didn’t stand a chance. Pushed up against the wall, pinned by his massive frame, I couldn’t move.

“Who the fuck do you think you’re talking to” he demanded; his left hand gripped my chin so hard, forcing my head to the side so he could growl right in my ear.

Forcing myself to remain calm, this would only work if I didn’t buckle to his nasty ways.

“Take your hands off of me, you may be used to pushing people around, and yeah, I allowed it for a while, but no more; if you want anything from me, you will show me some fucking respect”, I spat back and out of nowhere I was up with my knee and jammed it right into his bollocks, he crumbled so fast groaning and holding himself in shock.

“What the fuck Stacy” he choked out

“Don’t ever threaten me again; if you want something with me, and I mean seriously want something with me, you will treat me better. Otherwise, this isn’t going to work for me” I threw every ounce of confidence behind my voice, and I channelled my inner entitled bitch to the max; even though I was literally shitting bricks, I knew what Mason was like. I knew he had hurt people for less, but I couldn’t back down now.

Stepping around him and picking up my bag, I moved swiftly towards the door; I didn’t look back; I just held my head high and left. Heart jackhammering in my chest and tears pricking my eyes, I sniff and wipe them furiously away. No way would I let weakness show.

The real Stacy was back, and I intended to keep it that way.