Free Web NovelChapter 155: Chapter 155
Elara POV
After dinner, Gabriela and I bathed the kids and put them to bed while the men did the dishes and cleaned up. Now I have the uphill task of convincing Mason to help us overthrow the Council.
“Mason,” I say sweetly when I enter the kitchen. “Would you like to go for a walk?”
“Just the two of us?” He looks at me, surprised.
“Yeah,” I smile. “I think you and I need it.”
“I would love to,” he says eagerly, throwing the rag down and looking at Axel and Kane. “Enjoy, boys.”
“Don’t enjoy it,” Axel mind links mischievously.
“Yeah, hate it,” Kane adds.
“Keep it up,” I reply. “The living room needs vacuuming.”
Mason and I walk quietly through the woods, enjoying the night’s sounds. He slowly reaches for my hand, and I allow him to intertwine our fingers. It does not bother me; we have been romantic in the past, but my heart is no longer involved. I am simply holding the hand of someone I care about.
“So, Quinn invited us to her birthday party tomorrow night,” I finally broke the silence. “Would you like to go?”
“Elara, that’s poking the bear,” he replies startled. “You can bet the Council will hear about it.” freёwebnoѵel.com
“And they’ll come here and find us,” I nod in agreement. “Whether they find out or not, it is time for us to move, anyway. We cannot stay here much longer. Honestly, I’m surprised they haven’t come looking here for us already. We’re leaving Sunday.”
“Why not tonight?” He asks. “Why take the risk?”
“Your date with Rhiannon, remember?” I say softly.
“Right,” he sighs. “Again, it’s my fault that everyone’s in danger.”
“That’s not what I said,” I grunt, incapable of hiding my irritation. I invited him here with the best of intentions, and he is about to ruin it again. “Or even implied. I gave you the reason why we’re leaving Sunday and not another day.” frёeweɓηovel.coɱ
“I know, I know,” he says quickly. “I was reminding myself. Anyway, I don’t think the party is a good idea. Moving or not.”
“Well ....” I inhale deeply, stop walking, and look at him. “I was hoping we could. I was hoping you could talk to some of your old friends and ask them to help us.”
“I don’t understand,” he frowns. “Help us with what?”
“Overthrow the Council,” I say softly.
“What makes you think they care enough to risk their lives for that?” he bursts out laughing, pulling his hand out of mine. “If anything, they’re sitting back with a bucket of popcorn and watching the two entities they hate most in life, wipe each other out.”
“Are you honestly going to stand there and convince me that the entire Stillwood hates Axel and Kane?” I ask, frustrated. “Why? What could they have done that is so bad that everyone hates them?”
“They’re alphas,” he replies. “They’re a part of the hierarchy and part of the problem.”
“So are you,” I point at him. “You’re also an alpha now.”
“But I don’t have a pack,” he smirks. “And I wasn’t an alpha then. I was just another rogue, asking his friends a favour.”
“You rallied a time of rogues to attack Constantine,” I say firmly. “And they were willing. That sounds pretty much like an alpha to me.”
“Mason, please, ask them again,” I plead, taking his hands. “Please. This is bigger than you and me, or you and your brothers. It’s no longer about who’s the Alpha, or who has the bigger dick. It’s about our children. They’re hybrids, and the Council are coming for them. Axel and Kane are no longer the enemy.”
“I’m not comfortable asking them, Elara,” he says softly, “I’m sorry.”
“Really?” I raise my eyebrows. “It was okay to ask them to kill your brothers, but you draw the line at the Council? Even if it can keep your kids alive and prevent another war?”
“They didn’t agree to kill Kane and Axel because they were loyal to me,” he snaps, irritated. “We had a common enemy. And yes, the Council is an enemy, but they aren’t loyal to me. If I ask them, they will have questions. Questions with juicy answers, and I do not trust them enough to keep the information to themselves.”
“Then just tell what they need to know,” I say firmly. “Because the war affects them too, and the only way to stop the war is to stop the Council. Just talk to them, hear how they feel. Besides, most of them have been banished by the Council. I would think they’d enjoy an opportunity for payback. You don’t hate your brothers anymore. If you tell them that, neither would they.”
“You haven’t lived long enough in Stillwood to understand these people,” he says urgently. “They’ll only respond to motivation, not a heartfelt story.”
“And a looming war isn’t motivation enough?” I ask, stunned.
“Fine, I’ll do it,” He yells, pushing my back against a tree and blocking me with his body. “On one condition.”
“And that is?” I ask hoarsely, my heart beating rapidly because I have an idea where this is going, and I sure as hell will not leave my mates for him. Not even for the greater good.
“You and the kids,” he whispers, stroking my cheek. “That’s all I care about. I don’t care if my friends die, or Kane and Axel. I don’t care about a war. We pack up the kids and leave for Canada, Europe, Africa ... I don’t care. I don’t need a pack. I only need you. I’ll make you happy. We’ll love each other like we used to before we returned to Constantine.”
“You want me to run away with you?” I whisper, numb to my core. Expecting it and hearing it are two different things.
“Yes,” he laughs, his eyes sparkling with happiness. He leans over and kisses me passionately while I stand motionless.
“Please say yes,” he murmurs, his lips trailing down my jaw and my neck. “I’ll fight my brothers’ war for them, and then we leave.”
“Mason, I ...” his lips smother my words, and I push him away gently.
“Mason,” I cup his face, looking him in the eyes. “I need you to understand something. I will never, ever be with anybody else but my mates. Even if you drag me across the world, my heart belongs to them.”
His eyes start glowing like when he received his alpha powers, and he steps back as if I had physically slapped him.
“Fine,” he huffs. “I’ll ask them at the party.”
“Thank you, Mason, I ...” My words dry up abruptly when he walks away.
