Chapter 123

Sebastian

Sebastian stared at his luna for a long while as she processed her own thoughts. He wasn’t sure where this nonsense was coming from. She was saying he was supposed to marry Amy, but he knew for a fact that it wasn’t true. The elders would have told him long ago that he made a mistake.

“I lied to you,” she said, keeping her tone low and soft. “I’m so sorry.”

“I’m still not understanding,” he said, placing his hand on her back. She seemed to relax under his touch as she glanced back up at him. He could see the tears threatening to escape from her eyes, but she held them back. This was difficult for her to speak about, and it tugged at his heart.

“Amy was the one who was supposed to marry you,” she repeated. “She was too afraid and refused to do so. They told me that I needed to marry you if she wouldn’t. I initially refused but they told me they would stop treating Liam if I refused.”

He understood now what she was trying to say, however, he also knew that the elders wouldn’t have allowed him to make this mistake.

“She was supposed to refuse,” he said, keeping his tone as low as hers. She looked confused for a moment, causing him to smile. “The elders don’t make mistakes like this, Hannah. They would have told me if I married the wrong one. There’s something I haven’t told you as well.”

She frowned and he could see the slight worry on her face.

“What would that be?”

“I went back to the elders after we married and told them I no longer wanted to fulfill the prophecy,” he admitted; now it was his turn to feel the shame.

She looked puzzled by his words.

“What?” She gasped.

“What do you think you’re doing, you idiot?!” Erik growled from within him. “Are you trying to hurt her?”

“I’m telling her the truth. She needs to know everything,” Sebastian retorted to his wolf.

“I don’t understand,” Hannah said. “What are you talking about?”

“You were miserable, and I thought you were only after my fortunes. I didn’t think you would actually like someone like me. Let alone love. So, I went to the elders and told them I wanted out.”

She looked sad at those words, and she looked down at her hands.

“What did they say?” She asked.

“They told me that you, Hannah, are the key to saving and protecting our kingdom, and I that I couldn’t let that go.”

She looked back up at him with wide eyes.

“I’m the key?” She asked. “How could that be possible? What do they mean by ‘the key’?”

“I’m not too sure,” he admitted. “But I was hoping to find that out together.”

Something unfamiliar flashed through her eyes, and for a moment, he wasn’t sure what to make of it. But then a small smile spread across her perfect lips, and she kissed him. Erik felt overjoyed by her nearness, and he just wanted to soak her in. Their mate bond seemed to be strengthening and she was only a chosen mate. But he guessed that didn’t matter now that she was marked and officially his.

“I love you,” she whispered to him. “And I miss our daughter. We’ve been away from her for way too long. Can we go upstairs now?”

He couldn’t help but laugh as he looked around at the banquet. Arnold and Raya were mingling with the guests. They kept Wren with Valerie for the evening.

“I think Arnold got this handled,” Sebastian agreed as they stood.

They managed to leave the ballroom undetected and made their way up the stairs until they reached Wrenley’s room. Valerie was rocking her when they entered.

“I wasn’t expecting you back so soon,” she said in a whisper.

“We just missed her,” Hannah said, taking Wren from her arms.

“You are dismissed now, Valerie. Thank you,” Sebastian said to her.

She bowed before she left the room. Despite being back with Wrenley, Hannah still seemed to have a worried look in her eyes. There was something else that was bothering her.

“The full moon is only 4 days away,” she said, holding Wren close to her chest. “What happens if we can’t figure out how to save Liam?”

“I don’t want you to think about that,” Sebastian said, sitting down beside her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. “I’m going to do whatever I can to protect you and Wren. I’m going to do what I can to help your brother.”

“If it comes down to it…” she whispered, tears welling in her eyes. “If my brother is too far gone, we might not have a choice.”

He sat with her for a long while, processing all that has been said. He felt sad thinking about having to kill Liam if it meant saving him from the underworld. He knew something like that would destroy Hannah. The last thing he wanted was to hurt her.

“There might be someone who can help us,” Sebastian said slowly; he was hesitant about bringing this up because he wasn’t sure how he felt about it himself. But if it would help Liam, then he had to try.

She glanced at him, surprised by his words.

“Who?” She asked.

“The witch who gave me the dagger, Gemma, she’s a family friend. When I was there, I had the feeling that she knew more than what she was saying. We looked through her crystal ball and into the underworld and she recognized it like she’s been there.”

“You think she was there the night you battled the vampires?” Hannah asked with wide eyes.

He gave her a single head nod.

“I think she knows what happened that night. I think she might be able to restore my memories.”

“Is that something you’d want to do though? Get your memories back? I know how painful it is for you to think about…” she said in a hushed tone. He held her tighter, allowing her scent to calm his body as he pressed his lips against the top of her head.

“I’m not making any promises about anything. But I would like to try,” he answered.

“Our mate needs our help. If that means contacting Gemma, then that’s a small price to pay,” Erik agreed.

The last time he showed up at Gemma’s doorstep, she didn’t seem pleased to see him. In fact, it seemed like it scared her. He was used to those around him being frightened of him, but not Gemma. She was always a family friend; she was close to his mother and practically watched him grow up. But he hasn’t seen her in years, up until the other day.

By morning, Sebastian disappeared into his study. Hannah hadn’t woken yet, but he wanted to provide her with some kind of news for when she does wake. He just hoped it would be good news. He grabbed his phone and called Gemma.

“We need to talk,” he said into the phone.

“You shouldn’t be calling me,” she said quickly; he had a feeling she would be saying something like that.

“It’s important Gemma. After I last saw you, I feel you must know what happened the day I battled the vampires.”

“We can’t talk about this,” she said firmly. “Especially not over the phone.”

“Then we should talk in person,” Sebastian suggested. “I can either go there, or you can come here.”

“It’s not a good idea,” she said; she sounded nervous.

“We are trying to figure out a different way to help Liam besides killing him…”

“There isn’t another way,” she nearly snapped. “I told you this already. That dagger is the only way to…”

“I know you were there the night I battled the vampires,” he said again, more firmly, cutting off her words. “You know something you aren’t telling me, and I need to know what it is. I need to protect my kingdom, Gemma. I need to protect my family.”

She was quiet for a moment.

“You are walking on dangerous waters,” she warned.

“I need my memories back and I think you can help me. At least you can fill in some of the missing pieces. If you can’t help me, then I will find a way to help myself. Which might mean finding the portal to the underworld…”

“Don’t!!” She said quickly and harshly into the phone. “I will be there this evening. Don’t do anything stupid until then.”