Chapter 177

Third Person POV

Right after Eric’s meeting with the Bear King, one of his spies contacted him to tell him that he overheard Henry planning an attack on Maeve while Xaden was away. Eric sent his men to assess the situation, and they had just called him to tell him that they were able to stop the attack, but Maeve is upset and wants to leave the mansion as soon as possible.

“I’m on my way there now. Keep her there,” Eric ordered, his fists tightening around his phone. He had a place he was going to take her, but he needed her to hold tight just a little longer.

“Yes, sir,” the man on the other end said just before hanging up the phone.

Eric glanced at the time on his car dashboard and sighed, running his fingers through his hair. It was going to take him a couple of hours to get back there. He just hoped that Maeve would be alone when he arrived because he knew without a doubt, that Xaden would try and stop him from taking what belonged to him.

…..

Maeve’s POV

The shower didn’t seem to be hot enough. Though it burned my skin, and the steam quickly filled the bathroom, it was still not hot enough. It wasn’t hot enough to wash away the hands of those strangers. It wasn’t hot enough to erase their touch and how they made me feel so powerless. My entire body trembled as tears filled my eyes.

The pouring water from the showerhead washed away the tears as they fell down my cheeks. I bowed my head, letting the water rinse through my hair. I tugged at the ends of my hair as I choked back another sob that desperately wanted to escape my lips.

I was lucky those guards had come when they did. They must have heard me scream before they were muffled. When they burst down the bedroom door, I felt a sense of relief. For a moment, I thought it was Xaden, and I just wanted to run into his arms, but it wasn’t. They were warriors and they took care of the men that were attacking me before they could stick me with that syringe.

One of them they had beaten so badly, I wasn’t sure if he survived. The other two were weak and beaten, but they were clearly alive as they dragged them out of the room.

Another guard attempted to calm me and when his attempts proved to be futile, he suggested I take a shower instead. So here I am, taking a shower and trying to calm myself down.

I kept telling them I wanted Xaden; I hoped that by the time I got out of the shower, Xaden would be here.

After what felt like an hour in the shower, I turned off the water and stepped out. I grabbed a towel and wrapped it around my body. I walked over to the mirror and wiped away the fog with my hands. Staring at myself in the mirror, I barely recognized myself. My red hair was soaked around my features, and I had some bruising around my neckline and shoulders from when that stranger grabbed me.

My ankles also hurt when the other stranger grabbed my legs. I had some nail marks on the back of my shoulders and arms and my eyes were red and puffy from crying. My swollen bottom lip trembled; swollen because of how hard I was biting it in an attempt to stop the tears, but it didn’t work. The tears still flowed freely.

I shuddered when I thought about that syringe; what was it going to do, and why were they after me? Did somebody send them after me?

I sniffled and wiped my wet cheeks, hating how weak I was. I should have been able to defend myself and not depend on others to save me. I put my hand on my belly; I knew I couldn’t fight because I was pregnant, and I wouldn’t want to put my baby at risk. But still… I should have been better than this.

I was better than this.

I grabbed my T-shirt and shorts and quickly put them on. I brushed out the knots in my hair before pulling it back into a pony. Once the bathroom was cleaned, I left the room only to be greeted by the guard who attempted to calm me earlier. He stared at me concerned; looking up at him, I realized I didn’t recognize him.

I thought I knew all the guards around the mansion, but this one I didn’t. My brows furrowed and I tilted my head up at him.

“Are you new?” I asked him.

I knew I could trust him because he saved me, so I wasn’t afraid of this stranger’s face. But it was odd that Xaden would get a new guard and not tell me about it. He usually always told me when there would be new faces around the mansion.

The guard nodded.

“Yes, mam,” he told me. “I came from the palace. The king sent me.”

I raised my brows.

“The King?” I asked.

He nodded again.

“Yes, mam,” he replied. “Wanted to make sure you were kept safe, so he sent extra guards.”

The King cared that much about me? He used to hate me so the idea was insane to me… but it was flattering that I was being protected by the royals now. It made me feel a bit more at ease.

“Is Xaden on his way?” I asked, changing the subject and talking about something that really mattered… my mate.

The guard stared at the ground for a moment, trying to figure out what to say which confused me. It was a simple answer that didn’t require much thought.

“He’s been alerted of the situation,” he finally said.

If he was alerted of the situation, then he would be on his way in a heartbeat. Not even his father could keep him away from me knowing that I was put in danger. I knew from the bottom of my heart that I would be seeing my mate soon. Only then would I truly feel safe again.

“I set up the guest room for you,” he continued, changing the subject quickly. “Your room is being cleaned, and the window needs to get fixed.”

I nodded.

“Thank you,” I told him.

He guided me to one of the guest rooms that he had set up and I was pleased to see that he put my bedding on the bed, and it was neatly made. He stood at the doorway as I assessed the room, making sure it was safe despite knowing it was already checked.

“Will you tell Xaden I’m in here when he gets home?” I asked, turning towards the guard who was noticeably studying me.

“Yes, of course,” he told me after a brief hesitation.

It made my brows pinch together as I stared at him; why was he acting so strange?

“I’ll leave you to rest now. You don’t need to worry. I’ll be outside the door.”

I said goodnight to him as he stepped out of the room and shut the door behind him.

That was a strange encounter, but I was too tired to be able to analyze it right now. Not that I would be able to sleep or anything. After the events of tonight, I’ll be lucky if I’ll ever be able to sleep without Xaden again.

I realized I had left my cell phone in my bedroom, and I sighed. I wanted to all Xaden and hear his voice, but I guess it didn’t matter. He would be home soon anyway and then I would be at peace in his arms.

I slid into bed, resting my head on the pillow, and tried desperately not to think about those strangers' hands on me. I hated this feeling, and I wanted the thoughts to go away. I squeezed my eyes shut and pretended to sleep; maybe sleep would come to me if I acted as if I were sleeping. But it didn’t, and I felt ridiculous.

I’m not sure how long I was like that; I was hoping Xaden wouldn’t take too much longer. When I heard the door creaking open, relief flooded me. It was only a matter of time before Xaden slipped into bed beside me and wrapped me in his arms. I waited eagerly for his warm embrace but instead, I felt the corner of the bed near my head dipping as he took a seat.

I frowned; I wanted him to hold me… not sit next to me. I felt warm and calloused hands on my face, fingers running down the side of my cheek. My entire body froze when I took in a breath… this didn’t smell like Xaden and those weren’t his fingers.

Opening my eyes, I gasped when I saw the familiar face in front of me.

“Eric?” I asked, lifting my head to look at him. “W…what are you doing here?”

“I heard what happened,” he told me gently. “And I came to check on you.”

My brows furrowed; who told Eric what happened? He barely spoke to anyone at the palace.

“That’s kind of you… but where’s Xaden?”

“I’m afraid he’s not coming,” Eric replied, his eyes remaining on mine.

“He’s not coming?” I asked, my heart weighing heavily in my chest. How could he not come to see me? I felt sick to my stomach knowing my mate didn’t come to me after something horrible had happened.

Eric smiled at me, and it seemed unnatural; it gave me a weird feeling.

He reached his hand over to me and tucked a loose strand behind my ear, brushing his fingers across my cheek as he did so.

“I don’t know what you see in my brother,” he whispered. “We’d be so much better together…”

“W…what?” I asked, my brows furrowing even more. What was he talking about? Where was this coming from all of a sudden?

I was too frozen to do anything as he brushed his thumb across my bottom lip.

“I need to get you out of here, where it’s safe,” he said gently. “Don’t hate me for this.”

Before I could ask him what he was talking about, I felt a sharp sting on the nape of my neck. It only took a second to realize he stuck me with something… a syringe. Before I could truly process it and panic, everything faded away and I slipped into darkness.