Chapter 678

Chapter 679: They Don’t Know Him
​Olivia’s POV

​The girls froze. For the first time in their lives, they were looking into eyes that were an exact mirror of their own. Brilliant, piercing sea-blue. But Levi’s eyes were clouded with confusion and a deep, ancient pain.

​He groaned again, his head rolling slowly to the side until his gaze landed on me. He squinted against the sunlight, his voice sounding like it was being dragged over broken glass.

​”O… Olivia?”

​”I’m here,” I sobbed, leaning over him and cupping his face. “I’m right here, Levi. You’re okay. You’re home.”

I didn’t hesitate. “Lennox! Louis!” I screamed, my voice echoing off the walls of the mansion. “He’s awake! He’s back!”

​I didn’t have to wait long. The sound of thunderous footsteps echoed in the hall, and within seconds, the door was nearly torn off its hinges. Lennox and Louis burst in, their chests heaving, their eyes wild.

​They skidded to a halt at the foot of the bed. For a moment, neither of them moved. They stared at Levi—really looked at him—seeing those sea-blue eyes open and focused for the first time in four years.

​”Levi?” Lennox whispered, his voice cracking. He looked like the boy he used to be, stripped of his Alpha mask. “Brother?”

​Levi’s head turned slowly toward them. A flicker of recognition sparked in his dull eyes, and a single tear escaped, rolling down his temple. “Lennox… Louis…”

​Lennox let out a choked sound, half-sob and half-laugh, as he threw himself toward the bed. He didn’t care about his strength or his pride; he grabbed Levi’s shoulders, his forehead pressing against Levi’s. “You bastard,” Lennox sobbed, his shoulders shaking violently. “You kept us waiting for four years. Four years, Levi!”

​Louis was on the other side, his massive hand trembling as he gripped Levi’s arm, his head bowed. “Don’t ever do that again,” Louis growled, though his voice was thick with tears. “Do you hear me? Never again.”

​Levi let out a weak, rattling breath, his fingers feebly trying to grip their shirts. “I… I’m so sorry.”

​”Shut up,” Louis breathed, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. “Just shut up and breathe, Levi.”

​It was a beautiful, heartbreaking reunion. The Trinity was finally whole again. I stood back, tears streaming down my face, watching the three brothers cling to one another. But then, I saw Levi’s gaze drift. He looked past Lennox’s shoulder, searching the room.

​His gaze shifted, wandering away from us until it landed on the two small girls standing at the foot of his bed. He stared at them, his brow furrowing. He looked at their black hair, then at their faces, and finally, he saw their eyes.

​He tried to sit up, but his muscles were too weak, and he fell back against the pillows with a huff. “The… the girls?” he wheezed. “They’re… so big.”

​He reached out a shaky, skeletal hand toward them, a look of pure, heartbreaking longing on his face. “Come… come here.”

​Lana took a step back, her face going cold. She didn’t look happy. She looked at his reaching hand as if it were something strange and unwanted. Lyra just stood her ground, her arms crossed over her chest, her expression hard and unforgiving.

​”We don’t know you,” Lyra said, her voice chillingly flat for a four-year-old.

​Levi’s hand faltered in mid-air. The light of joy that had started to flicker in his eyes dimmed instantly. He looked at me, his heart breaking right in front of me.

​”They… they don’t know me?” he whispered.

​”They’re just shocked, Levi,” I said quickly, though the coldness in the girls’ scents told me otherwise. “It’s been a long time.”

​Lana grabbed Lyra’s hand. “Can we go now, Mommy? He’s awake, so you can stop crying. We want to go find brother Liam.”

​Without waiting for an answer, the twins turned their backs on the man who had died to save them and walked out of the room, leaving a deafening, painful silence behind them.

​Levi watched them go, his hand falling limp onto the sheets. Lennox reached out, squeezing Levi’s shoulder. “Give them time, Levi,” he said softly, though his voice was heavy with regret. “They’re four. To them, the world is small and simple. They don’t understand the sacrifice… they just see a stranger.”

​Levi didn’t look up.

​I stepped forward, wiping my eyes, and took his other hand. It was cold, so cold. “They’re stubborn, Levi. Just like you. They’ve spent four years hearing about you, but they’ve never felt you. We have to show them.”

​I looked at Lennox and then at Louis, a small, sad smile touching my lips despite the ache in my chest. “And honestly, Levi… it’s partly Lennox’s fault. He and Louis have spoiled them rotten. They’ve been pampered since the second they were born. They aren’t used to things being difficult or sad.”

​Lennox gave a dry, sheepish cough, looking away. “I couldn’t help it, Liv. They have his eyes. Every time they looked at me, I saw him. I couldn’t say no to them.”

​”He’s right,” Louis added, his voice low. “We turned them into little princesses because we were trying to fill the hole you left behind. We gave them everything they wanted because we couldn’t give them their father.”

​Levi’s gaze finally moved to his brothers. A flicker of his old, dry wit sparked for a split second before the sadness returned. “So… I wake up to find my brothers have turned my daughters into terrors?”

​”Not terrors,” I corrected, smiling, sitting on the edge of the bed, and brushing a stray lock of hair from his forehead. “Just… protective. They’ve seen me cry over you for years. They’ve seen this room as a place of sadness.”

​Levi closed his eyes, a single tear leaking out. “I missed it all. The first steps. The first words. I missed their whole lives.”

​”You’re here now,” I whispered, leaning down to press a kiss to his temple. “That’s all that matters. We will fix this, Levi. I promise.”

​But as I looked at the closed door, I knew it wouldn’t be easy.