Hunter’s POV
How could I look at my Angel and see something else when all I saw was her beautiful face? How could I refer to her as “it” or “the thing”? How could I do it when all I saw was my beautiful mate?
It was simple. I couldn’t. I would want her even if the darkness remained inside of her. I would mark her and make her mine regardless. Nothing could make me hate her. Nothing could make me reject her. I loved her with every part of my body and my soul. She was mine in every shape or form and I would never let her go.
“How is she?” I heard Alpha Drake’s voice as we walked inside Alpha Logan’s office.
“Her magic is blocked,” Luna Emma said as she approached Alpha Drake.
He hugged her tightly and looked at me.
“How are you, Hunter?” he asked.
“I feel like I’m being ripped apart limb by limb,” I mumbled as I sat down on the couch.
I buried my face into my hands and groaned. It was so fucking hard watching her and not being able to touch her. I missed her so fucking much.
The door opened and my mom and Jake walked inside. I didn’t look up at them. I couldn’t. I wanted to cry and scream.
“Did they leave?” Drake asked, making me look up.
“Who left?” I asked before anyone could answer.
“Logan’s mom, Daisy, and the kids,” Jake responded.
My mom sat next to me and rubbed my back gently.
“Harry is with them,” my mom said, making me look at her. “He didn’t want to go back to our pack, and we thought it would be best if he wasn’t here. He left with Mike and the rest of the kids.”
I furrowed my eyebrows. How the hell did they manage to convince Mike to go? He was adamant to go to The Howling Woods with us. We barely managed to convince him to stay.
“We didn’t tell Halley and Hazel what happened,” Jake mumbled. “They are very attached to Sophia and they wouldn’t take it well. Rose left for Drake’s pack a few days after Sophia went missing. Daisy and Luna Gloria left today. It would be good for Luna Gloria to get some space and recover.”
I furrowed my eyebrows again.
“Sophia’s been gone for days,” I mumbled. “Didn’t they ask to see her?”
“We told them that she is in your pack, getting ready for your wedding and the Luna Ceremony,” Jake mumbled quietly.
A knife pierced through my heart. That was supposed to be the truth. She was supposed to be in my pack. We were supposed to be marked and mated already. I was supposed to wake up next to her every day. I was supposed to show her how fucking much I loved her each and every night before we fell asleep next to each other.
She wasn’t supposed to be locked up in that fucking room!
“How the hell did you convince Mike to go?” Alex asked what I was thinking.
“He left because Harry went with him,” Jake said, making me smile a little.
They became such good friends and it made me happy.
“It’s better that they aren’t here,” Alex mumbled as he walked toward the window and leaned against the windowsill.
I suddenly wished that no one was there. I wished that it was just Sophia and me. I wished that I could open those doors and walk into that room without anyone there to stop me. I wished I could hold my mate in my arms and kiss every part of her body. I wanted to remind myself that her body and her soul belonged to me.
The door opened again and my dad and Alpha Logan walked inside. I watched as Alpha Logan rushed toward his mate. He pulled her into his arms and took a deep breath. He kissed her temple and buried his nose into her hair.
Jealousy hit me like a train.
I wanted to do that. I wanted to go to my mate and take her into my arms like that.
My dad sat down next to my mom and hugged her tightly. He placed a hand on my shoulder and squeezed it.
It will be okay, bud. He mind-linked me. I am sure of it.
I looked at him and gulped. I couldn’t answer him.
“Is Aunt Gloria okay?” Luna Emma asked quietly.
“She is better,” Alpha Logan mumbled as he placed another kiss on his mate’s temple. “She will recover at Drake’s pack. I am sure of it.”
Luna Emma smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes.
“How about we get you to bed?” Alpha Logan asked her softly as he caressed her cheek. “You need to rest.”
“I will,” Luna Emma said as she stepped away from him and looked at me. “I need to talk to you about my idea first.”
I nodded. I was ready to do absolutely anything to bring her back.
“What idea?” Alpha Logan asked, furrowing his eyebrows.
“I’ve been thinking about how to destroy the darkness inside Sophia and I think that I have an idea,” Luna Emma said, keeping her eyes on me.
“Tell us, Mom,” Alex said. “We will do everything.”
Luna Emma looked at Alex and gave him a small smile. She approached the armchair and sat down. I could see how tired she was. She looked like she was struggling to walk.
“Sophia’s darkness was created by the curse,” Luna Emma said as she sat down and looked at Anna. “The first curse was broken when I blasted Nathan and myself with my magic.”
My dad told me about it. He and Luna Emma saw and talked to the Goddess.
“We can’t be sure if that would work again,” Beta Andrew mumbled. “Also, you died, Emma. It would be risky to do it again.”
My heart raced and my eyes widened.
“We are not killing her!” I screamed as I stood up abruptly.
Alex growled so loudly that the windows shook.
Luna Emma remained calm.
“We are not killing her,” she said, keeping her eyes on Anna. “Andrew is right. It would be too risky and there is no way to know if it would work. But it got me thinking about another way we tried to break the curse.”
“He needs to mark her,” Alpha Logan mumbled quietly, making my heart stop.
Luna Emma nodded. “We need to find a way to bring Stella to the surface. We need to find a way for Stella to take control of Sophia’s body.”
Luna Emma looked at me and gave me a small smile.
“And then you need to mark her,” she said. “It won’t be as you planned, but it could help destroy the darkness inside her.”
My heart raced and excitement washed over me.
“Let’s do it,” I said. “Let’s find a way to bring Stella to us.”
