Chapter Forty Four

Lucian

Lily lies lifeless in my arms. I break down sobbing as I hold her and stroke her long blonde hair from her face. Natalia has just arrived, but seems clueless about what has happened.

“You did good, Lucian. Now, we may live in peace. Not only have you freed yourself from the curse, but you have broken mine and my sister’s from long ago.”

“Peace? You think that I want peace after this? Peace for me is seeing your head on a spike and then I’ll go to be with her.”

She seems to have come to her senses and looks at me with a new sense of understanding. “What?”

I turn around, my eyes focusing on her. “How dare you make me harm her. She is my mate, something to be treasured, and you made me hurt her.”

She laughs, but then her eyes land on my throat. “It all seems so trivial now. You’re alive and she’s gone. It looks like the bite didn’t do anything for you. If it worked, you’d be dead by now.”

Emmeline coughs. “Natalia, I can’t keep them all at bay much longer.”

Natalia turns and shrugs. “Hold them as long as you can. If you die, so be it.”

Emmeline’s eyes widen before she regains her composure. If Natalia thought Emmeline will just do as she says, I guess she is going to learn the hard way. “After all we’ve been through and I’ve done for you, you want to cast me aside like I’m trash. Who cares if I die? That’s really your response? Oh, sister. While you lived amongst the humans and sent me to the realm, I have grown more powerful than you can imagine. Are you sure you want to play this game?”

Natalia just laughs and waves her hand in the air. “Go on. Free them and see who they attack first. You were always the weaker one.”

They turn on each other. Emmeline releases the magic holding my family, Corbin, and Lillian's grandmother, so she can counter Natalia.

Grandmother rushes over and drops to her knees beside us. She reaches out, her hand trembling as she strokes her hair. “This was never supposed to happen. My poor sweet Lillian.”

My parents rush over, my mother leaning over my shoulder. “Is this your sweet mate you told us about?”

“This is her. I wish you could have met her.” My voice becomes softer. We were supposed to be together and live out our lives once the curse was broken, but instead, I’m sitting here holding her lifeless body as the witches duel it out in front of me.

A stray magic tendril reaches out, caressing my back. As I turn to look over my shoulder, I see Natalia dueling with Emmeline with one hand and looking behind her at me, using her other hand. This woman knows no bounds.

“I want her dead. Both of them. Ma, please watch over my mate.”

Suddenly, her eyes focus on my neck and tears form. “You exchanged bites.”

“I didn’t know why she asked me to bite her, but I did and now I understand. It was in hopes I would wake up from the spell Natalia had me under. She was determined to free me, even if it cost her life to do so. It won’t be in vain.”

I rise to my feet and say my goodbyes because once this is finished, I will join my Lily wherever she is.

Without her, there is no life after.

I step forward, preparing myself for what is coming. Natalia and Emmeline both turn their attention to me.

“Oh, does the puppy want to play?” Emmeline asks sweetly, her magic receding into her hands. “Is it our death you seek?”

Natalia smiles. “It looks like I need to wipe your mind again. Then you’ll be mine forever.”

“Why are you so set on having me by your side? If she had taken me as a mate, then maybe she could have given you a drop of her blood to free yourselves. Did you ever think of just asking to be set free?” A low growl escapes as I take one imposing step forward, uncaring that I’m still naked. “None of what you have done makes sense. Do you ever think of how you cast your curses before you do it?”

“You are mine because of what Liam did all those years ago. He should have never rejected me. So what? Your fated mate died. You can take another,” she says calmly.

Grandmother laughs behind me as the witches stop using their magic and look at her.

“I think you have it twisted, Natalia. You gave Lucian a certain condition that affects the curses. He has to take a mate and then kill you and your bonded coven mate or you can use blood from our family line that ends curses. That is the part you left out, but the blood in our family never replaces a fated mate bond. You have doomed yourself.”

Her eyes widen, and I know then she hasn’t thought it through.

“It doesn’t matter. I still won.” She snaps, flipping her hair back over her shoulder. “The blood in your family ends all curses. You're next just to be certain that it works.”

Grandmother scoffs. “Won what? A man who despises you for what you did to his mate? Wow, that’s true love. If Lucian had mated, then it would have satisfied the curse, because her blood would have flowed into his mouth during the mating bite.”

I turn, wanting to ask her how she knows about the rest of the curse, but I refrain. That is something I’ll find out once I’m dead.

When I turn back around, Natalia’s mouth is wide open as she goes into a state of shock. Emmeline even looks at her with disdain.

“What have you done, sister?”

“I have done what is necessary. She had to die for us to truly be free.” Natalia assures her, but the look on her face says otherwise. “That’s the only way their magic works.”

“No, you did what you wanted because you had your eyes set on Lucian. If it was really about breaking the curse, then you would have let Lucian go, but you’re greedy and wanted him for yourself and the only way to do that was to take his mate from him and wipe his mind of her before they claimed each other. You are selfish and look what it has gotten you.” Grandmother stands strong in front of Lillian’s body. “It’s time for all of this to end. Enough people have been hurt or have given their lives because of you.”

My wolf can’t agree more. Without a word, I lunge for her, shifting midair, but she catches me with her magic. The black tendrils wrap around me and squeeze. I struggle in her grasp, but she holds me there.

“So, now that you all are free of the binding, you become brave enough to stand against me. Is that it?”

Grandmother chuckles low.. “You are so delusional. We stood against you, bound and all. Now, we can just be vocal about why we do.”

She shifts into her white wolf and barrels toward her. My parents shift and so does my brother. If she thinks she can escape this time, then she has another thing coming. Today, this witch dies once and for all.

Grandmother lands on her before the magic tendrils wrap around her. Natalia screams as Grandmother’s wolf sinks its teeth into her arm. Her magic drops me to the ground and I’m able to move again.

I lunge for her, and this time I don’t miss. Grandmother moves over and allows me to stand over her.

“Please, Lucian. All I wanted was to have someone. You don’t know about my past life or what they did to me.” She reaches up, her hand almost touching my face, but I pull away from her.

For what you’ve done, you don’t deserve to be happy.

She smirks. “I knew you’d say that, but neither do you and you won’t ever be happy because I took the one thing that would make your life enjoyable.”

My teeth sink into her throat, biting clean through. Emmeline screams and rushes toward me, but stops as I raise up, my jaws covered in blood.

“Easy. I want to ensure she doesn’t come back ever again. Is that okay?”

I shift into my human form, and her eyes widen.

“What is your problem?” I bite out. “How are you not dead?”

She looks at my neck and shakes her head in disbelief. “Your neck. The bite has scarred over. It means the mating worked and our curse ended with yours. I’m no longer her bonded coven mate.” Tears line her eyes and fall down her cheeks as she sinks to her knees. “Natalia is really gone. I thought I could send her to the realm, and we’d just stay there forever, but she’s really gone and now I’ll live.”

“What are you babbling about?” Grandmother says, wiping her mouth. “We thought she was gone the first time, but there she was. She’s probably already piecing back together.”

Emmeline cries out, her head tilted back as if she’s howling at the sky. “No, Natalia is really dead. Lucian’s free of the curse, so we are, too. It means our longevity is gone and we’ll finally be able to die.”

I look down as Natalia’s body disintegrates into a pile of ash, which makes Emmeline cry harder. Her reign of terror is truly over and I’m finally free.

I walk over toward Lillian, my feet dragging against the ground and leaving a trail behind me. Blood is dribbling down my jaw onto my chest, though I’ve tried to clean it up. My mother has my mate’s head pulled into her lap and caresses her hair. “I always wanted a daughter.”

Logan and Pa look broken as they stare at her.

I fall to my knees beside her, reaching to take her from my mother. Of all the hopes and dreams I had for us, none of them will ever happen. “My last wish is for everyone to leave me alone with her. When I’m gone, then come back and retrieve us. Put us in the family plot.”

“Lucian, no, you can’t do this. If you were going to follow her into death, you would have already.” Ma reaches out, but freezes. Her eyes land on the side of my neck. “I know you’re hurting, and you let her claim you, but you have to fight through it. She wouldn’t want you to die just because she did.”

“I’ve waited two hundred years for her. Those woods were so lonely until she arrived. I watched over her, and then once I knew she was my mate, that was it for me. A life without her is nothing. If I live, then I’m dooming myself to a life of misery.”

Corbin huffs out a breath. I know he is here, but he’s been so quiet I almost had forgotten about him.

I glance up at him. “You need to leave the village and let them move on with their lives. Your family’s reign is over. A new alpha should take over. Logan, you'd be great for the job.”

Logan sighs. “It should be you. You have always been stronger than me and they need you to lead. Lillian would want you to take over.”

“That’s what you don’t understand. If she’s gone, then life isn’t worth it. I’ve waited in the shadows all these years to be free from this curse and she is the one for me.” Tears stream down my face as I look down at her. “It’s all my fault. I caused this.”

Ma reaches out and touches my cheek. “You weren’t you. I think I heard her say the same. She doesn’t blame you, so please don’t torment yourself.”

Pa clears his throat. “You might want to ask her about how she feels.”

“What?” I glance down, but there is no sign of life on her face. The only thing that has changed is her skin has healed around the bite mark. “Wait, you don’t heal if you’ve passed.”

Pa shakes his head. “Nope, so she isn’t dead. Now, quit your sniffling and hold her.”

“But she was gone. I saw her take her last breath, and she hasn’t moved.” I gently move her a little and Ma backs away.

Pa shakes his head. “I know and I thought she was too, but just at the last minute, her skin healed. Even the deeper ones are mending themselves and that doesn’t happen when you’re gone. She’s just deep within herself, so it may take some time before she wakes.”

Logan pats me on the shoulder. “Quit being so hard on yourself. Everything will be better when she wakes up.”

“You’re not the one who clawed your mate up. Sadly, I didn’t even feel bad until after the bite. I don’t even know if she’ll ever forgive me for what I’ve done.”

Ma whacks me upside the back of my head. “We heard her tell you she didn’t blame you, but what’s done is done. Now, you just have to make up for it for the rest of your life.”

Pa chuckles. “Oh, here she goes. She still never lets me forget anything. The least thing I’ve done, and she never lets me hear the end of it.”

I hold back a laugh as I glance down at Lillian. They were right. I will make up for everything for the rest of my life and if she never lets me hear the end, I will be thankful because it means she is here with me.

She can be mad or upset, but at least she is alive and mine. Everything else will fall into place over time.

The first thing I am going to do is tell her I love her when she wakes and how happy I am that she chose me.