Chapter 97

Sienna’s POV

I couldn’t believe it: my wolf was back full force. I shifted.

Soaring through the air, I landed at the edge of the pit, tearing the King’s ankle into shreds as Alaric grasped my shoulder, hoisting himself up at the last possible second.

Kill him, my wolf snarled, and god, did I miss her voice.

With my teeth clamped deep into the King’s flesh, I threw him straight into the dark pit, releasing my jaws as he lifted into the air.

Like an un-killable leech, he somehow found something to grasp onto, hanging on by a thread, his skin pale and clammy from the poison.

“You can’t — rid of me!” He could hardly form the words, slurring them terribly.

Alaric slipped off my back, kneeling down in front of his uncle, and my breath caught in my throat. Fear wafted off the King, dousing me in its intensity.

It’d been so long since I felt emotions this strongly, forgetting how intuitive our wolves were.

Thank you for making the right choice, my wolf whispered thankfully, making my heart swell.

I missed you, I murmured back to her, a smile in my words.

I focused on Alaric, sensing his hatred, too, the tail end of his fear from nearly plummeting to his death still trickling off of him, too.

“Your time was long overdue, uncle,” Alaric hissed, giving his uncle one small little push, the man far too weak to fight back anymore.

Over the edge he went, the darkness consuming him in a split second, and silence took over all three of us. At the same time he fell over the edge, the electric lamp flickered out, leaving us all in pitch black, too.

As a wolf, I could still make things out exceptionally well without light, watching as Alaric stared over the edge of the pits, his feet carefully braced against the solid ground.

A tear trickled down his cheek, and he turned towards me slightly as I came to sit next to him, a little nervous of the edge.

His fingers tangled into my fur as he took in a shaky breath, the force of this moment rattling him.

The King was gone — dead. He would no longer be around to haunt Alaric or spread dirty lies about the past.

Alaric was free.

I sensed Lucius stirring behind us, and when his eyes found mine, he nodded, shifting into his own wolf and disappearing down the tunnel to give us a moment alone.

“It’s over,” Alaric finally whispered after a few more minutes of silence, his fingers still gripping tufts of my fur.

I leaned over, nuzzling my snout against his cheek, the darkness terrifying and comforting all at once. It hid the scariest things from me, helping me forget we were in tunnels well below the ground, sitting right next to an abyss of a pit.

“Will you stay with me tonight?” Alaric whispered against my fur, and I nodded, nudging him back a little bit. I was very ready to get out of there.

For another minute or two, Alaric and I sit there, his heart rate slowly calming down to normal.

“Care to give me a ride?” Alaric chuckled, a small smile on his lips. I growled at him playfully, graciously backing up from the edge of the pit and turning towards the very solid ground of the tunnel.

Alaric climbed on my back, nuzzling into my fur again, and I took off down the tunnel. The scent of Lucius lingered ahead, and it was obvious he’d went ahead and left us to our own business.

We moved to the east for close to thirty minutes, the smell of fresh air growing closer with every passing second. It was hard for me not to take off running, but my muscles ached too much to even try.

Finally, we exited through another sewer, cool, outdoor air washing through my body, cleansing me of all the horrible toxins down there in the tunnels. It was the middle of the night, the city sound asleep around us.

I looked up to the stars, my fur bristling in the wind as Alaric slipped off me, gazing upwards too.

Slowly, I shifted back, shivering at the nip of the air on my human skin. Alaric slipped his hand around my waist, pulling me closer to him, his exhaustion easy to recognize in the way he moved.

“You shifted,” Alaric whispered, his newly black hair fluttering in the breeze, making my breath catch in my throat.

“Thanks to you,” I murmured back, twisting my fingers with his. “My wolf said I had to make the right choice.”

“And that’s me?” He couldn’t stop the grin that cut across his face, his eyes lighting up.

“It’s definitely you.” I nuzzled against him, his arm fitting the curve of my waist so perfectly.

“The baby,” Alaric started, pausing. “It’s mine, isn’t it?”

My eyes cut to him, an eyebrow raising. “Yes. But how — ”

“When the rogue took you, I — I heard it. The baby.”

My eyes widened, my chest constricting. “You…heard it?”

“It said ‘help us, daddy’,” Alaric croaked, tears brimming in his eyes. Mine instantly watered, too, my hand brushing across my stomach.

“I’m sorry I lied.” I gazed up at the sky, feeling his eyes on my face.

“A part of me never believed what you said,” Alaric sighed. “I knew Lucius had feelings for you, but what I was even more sure of was that you didn’t reciprocate them.”

“I was more…curious than anything.” I finally looked back over at him, my eyes softening. He looked so…free.

“Let’s go back and get some rest, yes? Tomorrow is going to be a big day.” Alaric took a slow, shaky breath in.

“I’m exhausted.” My shoulders slumped as we turned around, making our way back to the eastern entrance of the palace, a quiet, less trafficked one. Especially at three-forty in the morning.

Once we were back inside, Alaric led us to his main quarters, the four post bed looking more welcoming than anything I’d ever seen.

“Shower with me?” He stopped, hesitating by the bathroom door. We were both so exhausted, yet still covered in the disgusting grime of the tunnels, as well as blood.

I nodded, following him into his master bathroom, where a huge, glass-encased shower sat waiting for us.

We stripped down, taking a moment to admire one another, even as sweaty and filthy as we were, before stepping under the water. I lathered his hair up, and he did the same to mine, a smile on his face the entire time.

And then we just held each other, rinsing one another off and stepping out to dry ourselves. I let the towel fall from me as he did, and he took my hand, sliding under the covers of his magnificent bed.

Our bare skin pressed together under the silk of the sheets, and I pressed my face into his chiseled chest, having so badly missed the way he smelled.

“I love you, Sienna Hawke,” Alaric whispered in my ear, kissing the top of my head.

“I love you, Alaric Valmor.”

And I really, really meant it.