Free Web NovelChapter 120: Chapter 120
Braden POV
Mason and I return just before dawn. Driving to a rogue city, digging a grave, and burying the guard took longer than I anticipated. Mason is fast asleep beside me. If I were not a vampire who does not need sleep, we would have stayed over at a motel.
I leave Mason to sleep a little longer and get out of the car. I sit on the porch’s steps and look at the treetops where the sun will peak over soon. I do not want to risk going inside and waking the babies.
I hear stirring in the cabin a few hours after daylight has broken. My guess is they did not get much sleep, which means tensions will be high. And that is without Mason. I can only imagine the drama when he is around. Thankfully, I have places to be today, so I do not have to listen to them bicker.
Axel’s grumbling voice travels through the front door, and I focus on it until I can decipher his words.
“I’m going to shift to heal my back after sleeping on that hard-ass floor,” he complains.
I roll my eyes, but I guess I am in no position to judge. I cannot remember how it feels to sleep on the floor. But it is interesting that Elara did not share a bed with her mates. After all, they had all the privacy in the world.
Mason gets out of the SUV and stumbles over to me.
“I need coffee,” he grunts, walking past me. “And a shower.”
The cabin’s door closes behind him, and I can practically hear the tension building inside. I must admit, it is a little entertaining, watching these shifters try and fail to hide their jealousy. But I cannot help but wonder if I made a mistake bringing them here, knowing Elara would get caught in the middle of it all.
As if I had conjured her, Elara steps out of the front door, shutting it firmly behind her and plopping down on the porch steps next to me.
She is wearing an oversized t-shirt, tall fuzzy socks, and a black cardigan. Her hair is long and wild. She looks beautiful but exhausted.
“So,” I smirk, looking at her. “You slept alone. Interesting.”
“There was ... uhm, an incident,” she says, blushing slightly. “So, I told them I need a moment for myself to clear my mind.”
“Wait,” I say, amused, turning to face. “Are you telling me the brothers are jealous of one another?”
“I wouldn’t call it jealousy,” she sighs. “Kane and I had more time to reconnect, leaving Axel insecure. So, I decided there will be no more physical contact until the three of us are where we used to be.”
“Good luck with that now that Mason’s back,” I chuckle.
“You couldn’t have put us up in an enchanted high rise or something?” she asks, scrubbing her hand down her face.
“Sorry,” I laugh. “It’s the best I could do on short notice.”
“No, it’s great,” she smirks, placing her hand on my arm. “Thank you for letting us stay here. You’re literally a lifesaver, even though I’m definitely worried they might all kill each other before the day is over.”
We both glance behind us at the closed front door.
“I am, too, to be honest,” I reply dryly, and she laughs. “But it’s still better than the alternative.”
“How bad is it?” She asks, tucking her hands inside the sleeves of her sweater. “How much danger are Stella and I in?”
I could reassure her and tell her that as long as she stays here, she will be safe. But she deserves to know what was going on. They all do.
“I’ve been inside the Council’s testing facility,” I admit softly. “I’ve seen what they do to hybrids.”
“What do they do?” she whispers, with wide eyes.
“They torture them,” I say simply. “Shoot them with silver bullets, stab them with silver blades, inject silver directly into their bloodstream, burn them with torches. You name it. They want to see how immortal they really are.”
Elara shivers, but she does not look away.
“But they’ve discovered that unless a hybrid is born from a pure shifter and vampire bloodline, this kind of torture will maim them at best, and kill them at worst,” I continue, and her jaw drops.
“They don’t know if a hybrid’s blood is pure unless they torture them?” Elara asks in a shaky voice.
“There is one other way,” I say, and I know she will not like hearing this. “If you can smell the vampire blood of a hybrid pup, then that means they are pure.”
“Oh, shit,” Elara mutters, and all the blood drains from her face. “You could smell Stella’s blood.”
“You know your maternal grandfather is a vampire, right?” I ask cautiously.
“Yes,” she nods. “He’s the vampire who sired you.” freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
I nod. There is more to it than that, but I do not want to overwhelm her right now.
“He’s an ancient vampire, born from the original line of vampires who walked the earth,” I explain. “And Kane and Axel are a Constantine, one of the purest wolf bloodlines that exists. Which makes Stella ...”
“The perfect hybrid,” Elara finishes in a whisper.
“That’s why it’s so important that you all stay here and figure out a way to make it work,” I urge her. “If anyone leaves, they’re in danger, and so are you and Stella.”
Through the front door, we can already hear the rumble of irritated voices. Easier said than done.
“Oh, Goddess,” Elara groans, dropping her head into her hands. “I don’t even know if I should be telling you this, but ...”
She exhales deeply before looking at me.
“I can feel my body changing,” she whispers. “I think ... I think I’m going into heat again.”
This time it is my turn to go pale. If she is right, my cabin will turn into a bloodbath.
“Last time this happened, things went fucking crazy,” she admits, her voice dropping lower, her head leaning closer to mine. “Not only will I have my hands full with three men, but will the protective spell on the cabin contain my scent?”
