CHAPTER 119: SAVIORS

*~Hazel’s POV~*

The window was right in front of me. My escape.

I didn’t know how quickly Cyrius would wake.his vampire abilities made that unpredictable—but I couldn’t wait to find out.

I threw it open, and the rush of cold air slapped against my face. My heart pounded. My babies were clutched tightly to my chest. I was ready.

The door slammed open. Aaliyah stood there, her mouth falling open. God..help me.

I didn’t hesitate. I jumped.

The ground hit hard under my feet, but I barely felt it. My arms tightened around my children, making sure their baskets didn’t shift.

That’s when I realized my mistake...Guards.

They were already there, forming a ring around me. Aaliyah’s scream for help brought even more, the thundering of paws and boots as Alexander and the rest of the pack poured into the courtyard.

I scanned them, one by one, counting, assessing. My babies came first...I carefully set them down, baskets nestled safely on the ground.

Then I cracked my fingers. I could take them. All of them.

Flora’s heat burned inside me, our bond thrumming. I didn’t even need to shift to kill them but without my wolf fully out, an entire pack would be harder. Still... there is no rage wilder than a mother’s rage.

The first few rushed me.

I tore through them instantly claws flashing, blood spilling, heads ripped away before they could even howl.

I was so focused on the wolves in front of me that I forgot about those above.

The arrow hit before I could react.

If it had been normal, I would’ve yanked it out and healed—but this one burned. My breath caught, my knees buckling slightly.

My vision blurred, but I kept fighting—until another wolf tackled me from behind, forcing me to the ground.

Pain shot through me, not just mine, but Flora’s. She was suffering inside me, her power dimming.

I tried to rise, but I was too weak. I could feel her slipping away.

Someone yanked my hair back.

Alexander’s voice cut through the ringing in my ears. "How could she do this? How could she turn on her own helper? Someone who saved her life?"

His tone was cold, mocking.

"Take her to the prison. Chain her. Bring the babies to me."

That last sentence tore through me worse than the arrow. My body tried to surge upward, but I couldn’t move. My limbs felt like stone.

"No... not them... not my.."

Darkness swallowed my voice. My consciousness slipped away.

Click. Click. Click.

The sound crawled into my ears before I even opened my eyes. Chains.

My eyes flickered open, adjusting to the dim, cold light. My wrists burned, the metal biting so deep I could feel skin tearing. Not the first time I’d been restrained—in New Orleans, they had chained me for turning off my emotions—but this was different. This time, they had made it hurt.

The links rattled as I tested them. Too tight. Too heavy. Too laced with something foul. My shoulders ached from being pulled at an unnatural angle.

I closed my eyes and reached out with every sense I had, searching for them.

Nothing.

The bond was silent. My babies... too far away.

The realization scraped at my throat like broken glass.

I yanked the chains again, fury bubbling up in me. "Release me!" My voice tore through the room, sharp, raw. "Anybody! HELP!"

No footsteps. No answering voice. Only my own breathing and the cold metal holding me.

My throat tightened, and the only name that slipped past my lips was the one I should never have to say like this.

"Cyrius! CYRIUS, I’m chained here! Do you hear me? CYRIUS!"

Nothing.

No shadow. No blur of movement. No voice. Not him. Not anyone.

A hollow ache punched through my chest.

Argh, Hazel... do something.

I bit down hard enough to taste copper and let a broken sob escape..but it was laced with heat, not surrender. I wasn’t breaking. Not for them.

The door creaked and Alexander walks in.

He came into view like a storm cloud, his expression carved in disdain. He didn’t speak at first, just sat across from me as if taking in the sight of a dangerous animal in a cage.

When he finally spoke, his voice was dripping venom.

"Why would you attack him?" His eyes bored into mine. "Why would you hurt your own helper? The one who pulled you out of the dirt, made you something in my pack? And you..you stab him. Right in the chest. You almost killed him."

"Almost?" I mocked, my voice low and sharp. " He’s more than you think, Alexander. He can’t die. He’ll heal and wake up like nothing happened."

Alexander leaned back, expression unreadable. "Yes. He has healed. In fact, he told me to release you."

I froze, my gaze snapping to his face. "He... told you to release me? Where is he?" My head turned, scanning the air for the slightest trace of his presence. Nothing.

Alexander’s lip curled. "Oh, you don’t want to see him now. Trust me. He’s not in the state you’d want to remember."

Before I could demand more, he moved—unlocking my chains. The weight fell from my wrists, my blood rushing painfully back into my hands.

Freedom lasted less than a heartbeat.

Pain exploded in my side as he jammed a syringe into me—wolf’s bane.

I gritted my teeth against the burning fire racing through my veins. It hurt, but... not as much as before. My vision blurred for a second, but my knees didn’t buckle. My body remembered this poison. It was no longer enough to break me.

And neither was he.

Before he could step back, I lunged. My fingers fisted in his hair, slamming his head into the wall so hard the stone cracked. The thud echoed, his grunt sharp with shock.

I leaned in close, my voice barely more than a growl against his ear.

"Do you really think wolf’s bane still works on me? You tried it before. My body’s adapted." My fingers tightened in his hair until I felt the strands tearing. "Now, tell me where my babies are."

His heartbeat spiked, pounding in my grip..but his lips only curved in a twisted smile.

I slammed his skull back against the wall again. Blood splattered, running warm over my knuckles.

"When you die, your pack will just crown another alpha. But me?" My tone was ice. "I could take your place. I could make every single one of you suffer. I don’t want your pack. I don’t want your city. I just want my children. Where. Are. They?"

His only answer was a quiet, mirthless laugh.

The sound curdled my stomach. He was enjoying this.

POV

"You are a monster," Alexander spat, still slumped against the wall.

I tilted my head, letting a slow, dangerous smile curl my lips. "Oh, Alexander... even monsters are terrified of me." I crouched lower, my voice dropping to a whisper that made his pulse kick against my ears. "You took my babies. Maybe I should kill yours."

His hand shot out, grabbing my leg. He rolled onto the floor, blood still streaking down the side of his face. "Your babies," he gasped, "they’re at the third quarter."

My brows furrowed. "Third quarter? Where the hell is that?"

He lifted a trembling hand and pointed toward a building far beyond the walls of this place. "At that peak... from the window. Go there... and you’ll find them."

I straightened, my eyes tracking where he pointed. "Good."

Without another word, I slammed his head back into the stone. He crumpled instantly, unconscious, his blood pooling on the floor.

I turned and sprinted toward the exit, each step driven by the single thought of reaching my children. The corridor blurred, my vision sharpening only when the cool air hit me outside. My focus locked on that distant peak he’d indicated.

I could make it. I could get there. I could end this.

But halfway across the grounds, a vicious pain ripped through my waist. My knees buckled. My hands flew to the wound as the old burn of wolf’s bane reignited, the poison still threading its way through my veins.

"Damn it..." My voice broke as I staggered, forcing myself forward.

My wolf stirred weakly but couldn’t rise. The connection felt fragile, fraying. My body betrayed me—legs giving out entirely as I collapsed to the dirt. My breath came ragged, each inhale scraping like glass against my ribs.

Then... I felt it.

The air shifted. The temperature seemed to dip.

A shadow blocked the light.

My hair fell across my face, but through the strands I saw him—tall, broad-shouldered, the curl of his dark hair catching the light. Those yellow eyes locked on me like they could see straight into my marrow.

"Cyrius..."

My voice was barely more than a plea. "Sirs... please help me. I’m in pain." My throat ached with the words. Blood filled my mouth, spilling over my lips as I coughed.

He stepped closer, the faintest hesitation in his stride. Then my gaze fell to his hands—and my heart stuttered.

Another arrow.

Its tip glistened, coated in the same cursed poison burning inside me now.

He didn’t speak. Didn’t explain. Just moved with a predator’s precision. The arrow flew, embedding itself deep into my shoulder.

A cry tore from my throat, raw and furious. Blood streamed down my arm as the burn flared hotter.

I lifted my gaze to him, fury igniting even as my vision swam. "Cyrius... why...?" My words were ragged, my breaths uneven. "Where... were you?"

For the briefest moment, I saw something in his eyes—something soft, almost guilty—but then his expression locked back into that cold mask.

Wolves emerged from the treeline like ghosts, one by one, surrounding me in a tightening circle. Low growls rumbled through the air. And he stood right in the middle of it all..

He started to come closer and closer. His presence was no longer calm; this was not the man who had once brought me peace. This was not the man who proposed to me and was overjoyed at our wedding.

His aura was terrifying, and fear gripped me. The thought of him touching me made me feel like standing up, but I fell to my knees instead. Just before he could reach me, a hand pushed him back.

I couldn’t turn to see my saviors, but I could feel it—the soft scent of lavender in the air.

Caspian.