Maxwell POVThe pack doctors spent what felt like hours trying to resuscitate Laura as she lay on the cold floor. Ava held me back as I handed them over to the healers. I didn’t want to let her go. I didn’t want her to be alone.My entire body turned numb.Never have I ever felt so empty in my entire life.No matter how hard they tried, she wasn’t taking a breath.I watched beneath glassy eyes and through a shattered heart. Her body twitched with each compression, but she remained lifeless.Realization started to dawn on me.They can’t save her. I was too late.I failed her.But then finally…finally she took her first breath, and I sagged in relief and agony all at once. I barely remember how we got home. All I cared about was that she was safe and receiving the best care. She deserves better than this. She deserves the brightest future with endless joy. Not this fate. Not at the hands of someone who deceived me for three years.My fingers grip Laura’s hand gently, running my thumb
Maxwell POVOnce I’m upstairs, I shower and get dressed into fresh clothes. Guilt races through me like a river, and when I think about eating, my stomach flips. I head down to the kitchen and make myself a coffee and caffeine being my best friend right now.I stare out of the window and into the back garden. The trees sway in the wind as the sun ducks behind a sky of dark clouds. I gulp down my coffee, allowing the liquid to burn my throat.Before I can think about my next decision logically, I walk out the back door and head into the trees. When I reach the rotting building surrounded by endless guards, I shove open the door and head down to the basement.Adrenaline pumps through my bloodstream as I walk towards the barred cell. Julia sits against the back wall with her legs stretched out and her ankles chained. She hasn’t noticed me yet. I haven’t seen her since we captured her.I didn’t trust myself not to kill her. But now, I want answers.My knuckles bash on the metal bars, m
Laura POV This time, I attempt to curl my fingers as they twitch in desperation to move. I groan internally, which makes my chest burst into heated flames. My nostrils flare.One eye cracks open, and a few seconds later, the other. It’s like I’m seeing for the first time and which is definitely made worse when I’m met by blinding bright white lights. I whimper and shut them again. The soreness makes me wince. I squeeze them tight and try not to focus on the pounding inside my head. The beeping beside me isn’t helping either.Turn that shit off. It hurts.My throat attempts to swallow, but my mouth is bone dry. I almost choke. Instead, I peel my eyes open again with all the strength I can muster. This time, I take a drowsy sweep across the room.I’m in a bed. I’m…in a hospital bed.Wires hang out of my arms, and there is something funny sitting between my nostrils. My skin becomes highly sensitive, making me twitch.“Laura.” I hear my name and glance at the sound. Ava leans up from
Laura POV Anything you need, I’m right here.”I drag my tongue across my lips and part them. “J-Julia,” I croak. “She?”“Mindlink,” he whispers. “Save your strength for your recovery.”My throat swallows around the words as I hold his gaze. Julia, she faked her death?Maxwell nods slowly. “She was never my mate, Laura. She cast a spell to make me believe we were mates for revenge. She faked her death to make me suffer.”I close my eyes trying to digest all this information. Why?“It doesn’t matter. I’ll explain another day. I want to focus on you and your recovery. Nothing else.”Where is she?“She’s been taken care of. She’s not coming back to hurt us ever again.” His voice is rough around the edges. “I know you have a lot of questions, but I don’t want to overwork your brain.”I manage a nod. My entire face is melting from exhaustion, but I’ve been in the deepest sleep for days. I sit back while Maxwell and Ava help me with eating and getting into a comfortable position. Yet, ther
Maxwell POV The dark, musty smell of the church vanishes, replaced by the frigid winter air as stars suddenly gleam and twinkle around Valen and me as we plummet through the night sky. Wonder and awe fill me as I brave a glance around us. Valen's solid, warm body is flush against mine, and every curve of my body is pressed to the hard-muscled lines of his own. The air whooshes around us, tossing my matted and dirty hair into my face and eyes; if I weren't clinging to the man like a damn lifeline, I would try to contain it.I feel Valen tense under my hands and curse, and I squeeze my eyes shut, gripping him even tighter as my stomach lurches. “Hold on,” Valen yells over the roar of wind and snow around us, and his arms move so that one is looped around my waist and the other grips the back of my neck, keeping my face pressed firmly to his chest.“Valen!” I can’t help but scream as I peek an eye open and watch as the snow-covered ground comes toward us.“It’s okay,” he yells back, h
Maxwell POVThe need to move forward, to run my fingers through his soft looking hair, is almost painful as the need to be closer to him, to dive into those depths and reassure him I’m unharmed, comes full force.“Maxwell, please!” he practically begs, eyes fluttering shut as his jaw tenses like he’s in pain. “I just need to make sure you're unscathed. Just let me take care of you for a moment. Please,” he whispers again, hands trembling on my belly as he shakes his head the smallest amount. Magic swirls around us, and I feel a blessed warmth curl in my chest that I hope stays around since I’m currently freezing my tits off here.“Fine. But can we find somewhere warmer? I’m freezing, and I’m worried about how much you're shaking,” I point out, wanting him to physically evaluate himself since all he seems to be doing is making sure I’m okay. I mean, sure, I have a raging headache, and my hand is sore from falling and cutting it open during my frantic escape to the church, but beside
Maxwell POV I angle myself so we go down the mountain rather than up. From what I can tell, we are close to the Castle, maybe an hour or two hike away from it. I don't necessarily want to get close to it, but I know I can’t leave the mountain without Jordan.“That's rather tragic. Tell you what, if we make it off this mountain alive, we can do a Star Wars movie-thon.It’ll probably take a few days to watch them all, though,” I warn as I start walking again, ignoring the snow making its way into my boots and how my toes are going numb.“Oh, we will,” Valen mutters, his step wavering for a moment, tugging on my arm as he sways to the side and sinking an inch or two in the snow before he rights himself, and we keep walking.I can’t help but smirk as he regains his lithe footing along the top of the snow. Squinting, I strain my eyes for a place we can shelter in, and smile when I see a marker near a tree in front of me. It’s similar to the markers used during the relay race the Senior
Maxwell POVMy stomach growls, and I belatedly realize I haven't eaten anything since before I went looking for Alex, but the exhaustion I feel far outweighs my hunger.Valen slowly moves around the small room to make sure the wooden shutters on the windows are secure. Then he stumbles over to the door, latching it and nodding in approval before moving back to the side of the bed and sitting with a heavy sigh. Exhaustion radiates off him as he rests his head in his hands and releases a deep breath.Turning up the wick for a larger flame, I move toward him, my eyes taking in every detail of the beautiful man before me, soaking in his presence, and, for the first time, actually grasping the concept that I’m in a room with Valen! Not a dream… but a room… in real life. We are both awake and together. I can't tell if I'm excited, nervous, or going to be sick. Valen's head lifts when he hears me approach, his tired eyes catch mine as I move toward the bed and sink to my knees in front of