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The three of us sat in silence at the table after my mate left the room down the stairs, furious with anger and sadness. Noah got up next and without saying a word went to the front door to open it and get out into the storm. Resul and I just watched him go sympathetically, neither of us knowing what to do. It was impossible to empathize with the two. One of them had lost love and allowed her to be held captive for years. The other realized that night that his own father had lied and cheated on him. How could they ever be happy again? I looked at Resul questioningly, my mind feeling paralyzed. I didn't know what to do, but he didn't look like he had a plan either.

Again and again it thundered loudly, while lightning through the large window fronts let the room appear in a new light. The only other thing that could be heard was the rumbling noise coming from above. Killian probably dismantled the entire facility, but no one could blame him for that.

"I'll go to Damiano. He'll surely know what to do. Until then, stay here and make sure he doesn't hurt himself.", Resul said and got up from his chair while he sympathetically addressed the ceiling, from which sounds of the Alpha's anger could still be heard.

"Go see Noah afterwards, okay? He shouldn't be alone after such a revelation," I begged the curly head and he nodded at me. He pulled the zipper of his black jacket all the way up and took another deep breath. Then I walked him to the door and watched him run down the hill and disappear into the darkness amid the rain and lightning, as if it were absorbing him.

Dejected and hopeless, I pushed the door shut and flopped helplessly onto the sofa. Hours must have gone by just waiting for Damiano to show up and get things back under control. My heart broke again and again when I heard the angry screams and the loud smashing of objects from above.

With a queasy feeling, I got up and stood at the bottom of the spiral staircase. I would love to take away some of his pain, but he wouldn't allow it. He would be uncomfortable looking so vulnerable in front of me and I would probably do more damage than I would take if I went to him.

The loud knock on the door snapped me out of my stupor and I was thankful that Damiano was finally there to help. I quickly ran to the door and yanked it open, only to get the shock of my life, because it wasn't the giant with the calm demeanor, but the petite woman whose sight made me shudder.

I looked at her wide-eyed as if she were a ghost, but it was all real. Her wet clothes made her shiver and I desperately wanted to say something back to her, but I was unable to say anything or move.

"He...he...he didn't-" she stuttered, then collapsed crying in my arms. Her whimpering brought me an indescribable pain that was almost unbearable. I gently stroked her back and tried to calm her down. For half an eternity we stood in the open front door. Behind me was the nice, warm living room, the smell of my mate and the feeling of security that came with it, while behind her lay the thunderstorm, the rain and the cold. My clothes were slowly soaking up the moisture and I was freezing. How cold must she be then, I wondered, and the question of what had happened nagged at me. But I didn't dare to ask, because I wanted to give her time to calm down and finally settle down after so many years.

I carefully pulled away from her embrace and took her hand to lovingly pull her up to my room with me. I hoped Killian would be in the office and wouldn't notice anything for now. He should first become himself again and not stumble into such an overwhelming situation with hatred and anger. But he would certainly smell or hear us at any moment, because his instincts were very well developed.

When I got to my room, I slowly sat her down on my bed and rummaged through my clothes to find something warm for her. Just as I got something suitable between my trembling hands and was about to hand it to her, I noticed her absence and opened my eyes in panic. Shocked, I threw the things on the bed and ran into the hallway, but stopped abruptly when I looked at the stairs.

Linda and Killian were standing there. Her hand was on his cheek and seeing them like this, reunited again, took my breath away and brought me an indescribable feeling of joy. My alpha would be strong again and his mother would be free again. I slowly crept back into my room and quietly closed the door. I didn't want to spoil this moment for them. They should take their time and do it all by themselves.

The moment I flopped down on my bed, pure chaos swept over me. Everything in my body went haywire and I felt sad and happy, relieved and worried, tense and calm at the same time. Of course, her return was the most incredible thing for my mate, but I still worried about Caleb, about Brando, and what was about to happen next. I carefully covered myself up while my eyes fell on the closed white door. I would have preferred to have him with me, because his presence could have cleared up the chaos. I had changed through him and become addicted to his affection and I felt bad about wanting him around because they should be left alone and I had to deal with the chaos on my own.

***

A pleasant caress on my arm brought a smile to my face. He was with me again, but he wasn't lying next to me. I slowly opened my eyes and caught his gaze. In the meantime it was getting light outside and I must have fallen asleep for a moment. Staring into space, Killian sat on the edge of the bed in front of me and looked really battered.

I gently stroked his hand and he immediately looked over at me to give me a wry smile. I finally had to know what was going on and had to bring myself to finally break the silence between us.

"What's going on?" I asked in a sleepy voice, looking into the deep green of his eyes.

"My mother went to Noah's. Resul and Damiano are watching over her in front of the house," he explained and then avoided my gaze.

So Caleb was still alive and might have been around. I sat up anxiously and sought his closeness to feel the security that only he could give me. I buried my face in his chest and wrapped my arms around him tightly. He immediately understood what I needed and pulled me closer, giving me the soothing warmth of his body. We were silent again until he cleared his throat and made a statement that made me freeze.

"Brando is dead," he whispered, then swallowed hard. I broke away from him and studied his face, which seemed devastated and sad despite everything that had happened between them. Brando was the reason I existed at all and Caleb took his life to do it. This shitty world seemed more and more unfair to me and I hugged him tightly again, tearfully conscious of his scent.