h4Chapter 274: Stolen Freedom/h4

i"Where are we going?" Asher asked his mother. They were walking briskly, and he had to keep up with her pace. /i

iThe only thing Maria had on her was a small bag which she clutched tightly to her side. Asher eyed it, noting the shape of its contents—it had to be stacks of cash. He knew where his father kept his stashes, and it seemed his mother did too. She hadn’t packed any clothes which could only mean this was sudden and desperate. /i

i"I don’t know," Maria answered hurriedly, if not anxiously. "But it has to be anywhere other than here."/i

iAsher could hear her heartbeat; it was pounding fast. His own pulse was picking up speed too. He knew what this was, they were trying to escape from his father. Even without being told, he understood how deadly this could turn out if it went awry. If Henry found them, he would punish the life out of him. /i

i"Stick close," Maria warned, pulling him in tight against her side. /i

iAsher didn’t need to be told twice. He pressed himself against her, craving her warmth and familiar scent. She smelled like vani and amber—vani, the taste of the ice cream she had once secretly bought him, and amber, a scent that simply smelled safe. Cozy. Home. /i

iShe must have worked something out with Brian at the gate, because he let her out carefully, no questions asked. The next thing Violet knew, they were inside a car, driving away into the night. /i

iViolet found herself in the car with them, invisible but very much present, hope surging in her chest at the thought of their escape. But then, reality hit her like a truck. Adult Asher still lived with his father. /i

iFuck. What had gone wrong? /i

iIt wasn’t long before she saw. /i

iMaria screamed in terror as a figure stepped into the middle of the road out of nowhere. She swerved to avoid him, but lost control and mmed into a tree with a sickening crunch. /i

iIt was Henry. He had found them. /i

iViolet could never forget the terror on Asher’s face. And worse, the moment when Henry yanked the car door open and began dragging Maria out by the arm. /i

i"Come out right now, Asher!" he hollered. /i

iViolet watched helplessly as young Asher stepped out of the car, his bare eyes blinking against the night. His sses had been lost in the crash. /i

iThankfully, aside from a small cut on his cheek, he didn’t appear to be seriously hurt. But his fate was already sealed. /i

i"You were trying to leave me?! And with my damn son?!" Henry bellowed, his rage uncontained as he struck Maria across the face./i

iMaria fell to the ground from the force of the hit. But even then, she lifted her head, eyes zing, and spat back with defiance:/i

i"He’s our fucking son, not yours alone! And if anyone has a greater right over him, it’s me! I birthed him! I’m his mother!"/i

i"Is that so? Let’s see then." Henry said with a chilly hollowness in his tone that made even the hairs on Violet’s body rise, despite her being nothing more than a ghost in this vision./i

iHe grabbed Maria by the hair and leaned in, hissing into her ear, "You might be his mother, but I’m the one who fucked you dirty and put him in your womb! You’re my wife! That means you fucking belong to me! Him too."/i

i"Stop it, Henry! You’re hurting me!" Maria cried out, struggling in his grip. But of course, he didn’t care./i

iInstead, Henry straightened up and turned to Asher. "You. Come here!"/i

iViolet swallowed, her heart pounding as dread flooded her chest. What sick punishment was he nning this time?/i

iAsher stopped just a few feet away, his smaller body trembling./i

i"Closer!" Henry barked./i

iAsher obeyed./i

i"Closer still."/i

iHe did./i

i"More."/i

iAnother step./i

i"Good," Henry purred with sick satisfaction./i

As werewolves, they could see clearly in the dark with their glowing eyes, and Violet, though a mere observer, saw it all with painful rity.

i"Compel her," Henry said coldly./i

iEven as a passive spectator, Violet felt the blood drain from her body. No. That fucking bastard couldn’t mean it./i

i"I want you topel your mama never to run away. To stay with you," Henry ordered. "Or do you want to grow up without a mother?"/i

iAsher shifted ufortably, his throat bobbing with unease./i

i"Asher, don’t. Please," Maria begged, tears brimming in her eyes. "You can’t take away my free will."/i

i"Shut the fuck up!" Henry hissed, tightening his grip on her before turning back to his son. "Think about it, Asher. Do you want to be left alone with me? Don’t you want your mama here to take care of you? And tell me, who would you obey? Your mama... or me?"/i

iThe maniption was venomous./i

iViolet couldn’t take it anymore. She stormed toward Henry, shouting in his face, "You fucking dickhead! You don’t do this to your wife! Your son’s mother! Stop this madness!"/i

iBut it was useless. Her words dissolved into the air. She couldn’t change anything. She was just an observer caught in a memory that had already unfolded./i

iAsher stood frozen, confusion written all over his young face. Violet didn’t me him. How could she? The poor child was trapped, emotionally torn apart between fear and morality./i

i"I... I don’t know," Asher stammered, "Compelling Mama is wrong... I—I don’t think I can—"/i

i"Fucking do it, you dimwit, or I’ll walk over there and make you!" Henry’s Alpha voiceshed out, thunderous andmanding, making the boy flinch in terror./i

iLeft with no choice, Asher stepped forward. Henry held Maria still, one hand locking her jaw, the other gripping her waist in brutal restraint./i

i"Asher, please..." Maria whispered through her tears./i

iBut Asher, ovee by fear and desperation, shut down his emotions. He clenched his fists, and with all the anger, confusion, and broken trust inside him, hepelled her./i

i"You will always stay by my side as my mama. You will never leave me."/i

iMaria closed her eyes, her heartbreak bleeding from her face as thepulsion took hold, her body stiffening in resignation./i

iViolet let out an anguished roar, pain ripping from deep within her chest./i

iFuck this memory. /i