Chapter 199

The car ride back to campus was kept in complete silence.

What was there to say?

Aaron had been brutally attacked by his own wife and was basically left there to bleed out...That, in itself, was proof that Cecilia had truly lost her mind. What’s even scarier was that apparently, she’s lost control of her wolf as well.

I had to know more about that. It wasn’t exactly a topic that would come up in normal conversation, that’s for sure. But I needed to know what we were heading up against.

The three of us made it back to campus and headed straight to Arthur’s room. While the silence was ongoing, I folded my arms across my chest and lowered my head in heavy contemplation.

“I have a horrible feeling that this was all my fault,” I said mindlessly.

Both Liam and Arthur turned their heads to glance at me with utter confusion.

“Ella,” Liam started. “None of what happened could be your fault.”

Arthur came up to my side and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me close against his chest.

“How could you think that any of this is your fault?”

The corners of my eyes speckled with tears. “Cecilia must have known that we would have tried to seek help from Aaron, why else would she have attacked him?”

“She’s trying to back us into a corner until we have no choice,” Liam remarked darkly.

That’s just it...We didn’t have a choice.

When I stole a glance at Arthur’s expression, it was evident enough that he knew this too. A cold shiver raced down my spine when some of my earlier thoughts began to resurface.

“How is it possible for a person to lose control of their wolf?” I asked meekly.

I felt Arthur tense up around me while Liam rubbed a rough hand down his face and over his tired eyes. I probably should have waited until the morning or sometime tomorrow to ask this question. I didn’t dare glance over at the digital clock that sat next to Arthur’s bed to check the time.

I knew it was late. Too late to be talking about something this important. After the day I’ve had, all I needed was to lie my head down on a pillow and sleep. But I also knew that sleep wasn’t going to come easy until I knew what it all meant.

“When someone loses control of their wolf, it’s basically like surrendering your sanity over to a dangerous and unhinged creature. You are no longer able to decipher right from wrong. You lose all concept of reality and the surroundings,” Liam explained.

Arthur led us over toward his bed and we all sat down.

“Believe it or not, it’s not something that’s easily achieved; however, it can happen to those that have seriously lost touch with reality,” he added.

“Like, if someone were to live in total denial?”

They nodded their heads. My stomach churned in knots. When I recalled how poorly Cecilia looked earlier, it would have been enough of an indicator to show that the woman was teetering on the edge of insanity.

Hell, I was fairly surprised that she hadn’t tried to physically attack me. Then again, it would have ultimately fumbled with her plans to enhance her son’s status.

...

[Arthur’s POV]

It was foolish of me to think that everything would somehow work out without any further conflict involving my mother. For weeks Ella had been on edge, worrying over the pending threat. I should have listened to her.

I wasn’t sure what caused my decision to crack...Maybe it was knowing that Cecilia had threatened Ella’s mother. Perhaps, it was seeing my own father on the brink of death. My father and I had never really had a decent relationship. After our meeting, it actually gave me hope that we could potentially build something more in the future.

But that chance was almost taken from me tonight. Had we not gone to see him, the man would have been dead.

I can’t let Ella’s mother face the same fate. It needs to stop. All of it.

“Alright,” I said firmly. I reached down to grasp Ella’s hand. “I know I kept saying that we needed to wait until it was the right time but...”

“I think you’re right, Arthur,” Liam said while reaching for Ella’s other hand. “We need to go through with this bond.”

We both felt Ella shiver and tried to remain strong on either side of her.

“What do you think will happen...When we bond?”

“Well, a normal bond...Has a tendency of draining the two counterparts of their energy for a short time,” Liam answered.

“But this isn’t a normal bond, is it?” she questioned lightly.

No, it certainly wasn’t. There was nothing normal about our situation on various levels. Not only were we dealing with a double bond but Liam and I were the mates to a Moon Wolf.

I know Ella worried for the safety of her mother. If Cecilia was capable of attacking Aaron, there’s no telling what she would do to someone else. Someone human...

I raised my hand up to tilt Ella’s head in my direction. “Let’s find out.”

I pulled her forward and placed a delicate kiss on her lips and then her cheek. Lowering my head, I buried my face in the crook of her neck and took in her scent.

“Remember, try and stay relaxed for as long as you can,” Liam advised her. “There will be pain in the beginning but it shouldn’t last.”

I placed another delicate kiss just below her ear before letting my teeth run along the inner curve of her neck. I hear her heart rate picking up with building anticipation.

“I love you,” I whispered to her. The sharp canines of my teeth grew long before piercing into the junction of her neck.

A sharp cry tore from her throat as metallic, warm liquid filled my mouth. My wolf rumbled frantically in my chest. It was like taking a shot of pure adrenaline straight to the heart.

Jesus Christ.

“Arthur, that’s enough,” Liam said.

I snarled in defiance. But the second I heard Ella whimper, I retracted my jaw and nearly tumbled to the floor. The body felt like it was buzzing—my sense of balance was unsteady but the sensation was like nothing I’d ever felt before.

Smells became more defined as well as colors. My hearing deepened with astounding precision. When I heard Ella let another identical cry, I knew that Liam had taken his turn to bite her.

Ella’s features were pinched with pain. Her eyes were filled with unshed tears, causing my heart to clench and ache in my rib cage.

Swiftly, I moved back to her side and enveloped her in my arms. I brought my mouth down to where I had bitten her just moments ago and ran my tongue all along the wound.

“It’s alright, love,” I hushed. “We’re going to make sure that you’re taken care of.”

Liam grunted and slid to his knees the same I had done before. He looked utterly strung out but never lost the smile on his face.

Ella moaned and shook. Her eyes had rolled to the back of her head. “Oh my God,” she gasped.

She became a dead weight in my arms, letting me know that she had passed out. I glanced at Liam whose eyes were glowing with an electric surge of newly found power.

My mouth curved into a vengeful, devious smile.

“Ready to end this?”