Chapter 313
[ 1,243 words ]
~Samantha~
“You think I need you?” Lila laughed but it wasn’t friendly. “I survived ten years without your help! I found the vault without you! I decoded the scrolls without you! The only reason I’m here is because your mate’s mother asked mine to protect her daughter! That’s the only reason!”
“How convenient that you can’t prove any of that because everyone involved is dead!”
“You want proof?!” Lila yanked her shirt up. Turned around. Showed her back.
The Silver Claw markings covered her skin. But now I could see something else. Words. Carved into her skin beneath the markings. Scarred over. Old.
Protect Elena’s daughter. At any cost. – Sworn by blood.
“My father carved this into my back when I was fifteen.” Lila’s voice shook. “Right before he went to help your mother fight Black Moon. Right before he died. This is my proof. This is my oath. Written in my own flesh.”
Dominic stared at her back. His expression suddenly lacking any emotions.
“That doesn’t prove anything. You could have done that yourself. Created a fake oath to gain our trust.”
“ARE YOU SERIOUS?!” Lila spun around. “You think I carved words into my own back just to trick you?! Do you know how painful this was? I’m not that crazy!”
“I think people do desperate things to achieve their goals!”
“The only desperate one here is you!” Lila pointed at him. “Desperate to control your mate! Desperate to keep her from making any decisions without you! Desperate to be the hero even when you’re acting like the villain!”
“You don’t get to speak to me like that! This is my pack territory so tune your voice down!”
“An Alpha who can’t discern what’s wrong and right. You see me as a threat whereas there are so many people that hate you but still you trust you.” Lila’s voice was acid. “Sam is trying to save her children and she is going to do it with or without your approval!”
“She only listens to me!”
“Why? Because you put her under some blood oath or spell? She’s not that stupid.”
“Lila, that’s enough.” I broke off the fight just for them to continue.
“You know what? Forget it. Forget all of it.” Lila headed for the door. “I don’t need this. I don’t need to be accused and insulted while I’m trying to help. I’ll find the relics myself. You can sit here and wait for Black Moon to come kill you all. See if I care.”
“Wait!” I grabbed her arm. “Don’t go. Please.”
“Why not? Your mate clearly doesn’t want me here. Thinks I’m a liar and a traitor. What’s the point of staying?”
“The point is we need you.” I looked at Dominic. “We need her. Whether you believe her or not.”
“Sam, let her go if she wants. We will fight this battle our own way.”
“No. Dominic, we can’t just resist help and pick struggles.” I kept my grip on Lila’s arm. “You can be suspicious. You can watch her closely. But we’re doing this. We’re finding the relics..”
“You’re choosing her over me.” Dominic’s voice was flat. “Again.”
“Is she the female version of Killian now?”
“Can you stop dragging his name into this?”
“Why not? Isn’t he in support of her? They are plotting against us.”
“No, they are not. They are equally victims of Black Moon. Killian is under a curse because of them which means his pack is in danger as well. You already know Lila’s case.” I was ready to fight till he became reasonable again.
“I don’t want you spending the rest of your life in regret because you didn’t listen to me.” He said.
“Then I would be the one living in regret, not you.”
“Do you really don’t care about the consequences?”
“Cut it out already! We could have been planning already with this time we are using to argue. I don’t care if you believe me or not. Sam believes me. That’s enough.”
“Of course, she’s your main target of manipulation.”
“Sam is standing right here and can make her own decisions!” I moved between them. “Both of you stop talking about me like I’m not in the room!”
“Then make a decision!” Dominic’s voice was hard. “Her or me. Her plan or safety. Choose.”
“Why do you always have to make things so difficult? I’m doing this for our own benefit.”
“You’re sacrificing your blood and that of the children so I need to be overprotective.”
“Then come with us!” I was yelling now. “Come and keep an eye on Lila if you don’t trust her! But stop trying to stop me from doing this!”
“If I come, will you actually listen to me when I say something’s wrong? Or will you side with her like you always do?”
“I don’t always side with her!”
“You do! Every time! Whenever it’s my caution versus her action, you pick action! Even when caution is the smart choice!”
“Because caution has kept us running in circles! We need to actually do something!”
“We are doing something! We’re protecting our children!”
“By locking them in a cage? By hoping the walls hold? That’s not protecting them! That’s just delaying the inevitable!”
Killian, who’d been silent this whole time, finally spoke up. “I’ll go with them. If you don’t trust Lila, fine. But trust me to keep Sam safe.”
“I don’t trust you either.” Dominic didn’t even look at him. “You’re just as fucked up in the head as she is.”
“Then you’re coming.” I made the decision. “We would do better as a team.”
“Some team.” Dominic’s voice was bitter. “Two people who hate me. One person who’s dying. And me trying to keep everyone alive while they take stupid risks.”
“If you hate it so much, stay here.” Lila had moved to the door. “We’ll manage without you.”
“You’re not taking my mate anywhere without me.” Dominic grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair. “I’m coming. I’m watching. And you better pray nothing goes wrong.”
“Fine.” Lila opened the door. “Meet in the entrance hall in one hour. Bring weapons. We’re going into contested territory.”
She left. Killian followed her without a word.
Leaving me alone with Dominic in his office.
“You really don’t trust her at all.” I said it quiet. “Not even a little bit.”
“No. I don’t. And I don’t understand why you do.” He looked at me. “What does she have to gain from helping us, Sam? What’s in it for her?”
“Maybe she just wants to stop Black Moon. Maybe she wants revenge for her clan. Maybe she’s exactly what she says she is.”
“And maybe she’s leading us into an ambush. Maybe those relics don’t exist. Maybe she’s playing us all.” Dominic put his jacket on. “But fine. We’ll do this your way. We’ll trust her. We’ll follow her plan.”
“If it goes wrong, you can say I told you so.” I moved toward the door. “But if it goes right, you owe her an apology.”
“If it goes right, I’ll apologize. I’ll throw her a parade. I’ll name my third born after her.” Dominic’s voice was heavy with sarcasm. “But it won’t go right. It never does.”
“Try to be optimistic for once.”
“I deal with logic as an Alpha, not delusions. How do you think I built my pack this far from getting sold off or destroyed?”
If you find any errors (non-standard content, ads redirect, broken links, etc..), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.