Chapter 102

Killian:

I wrapped my arms around my mate, hugging her tightly as she entered the house.

The fact that she was finally home was something that I was more than just a little thankful for, and the thought of everything that we have gone through was one thing that kept playing in my head.

“Welcome home, malyshka.” I whispered to her.

The kiss that she gave me amidst everything that we were going through played in the back of my mind, and though I was sure to be careful right now. I didn’t know what she went through, and I knew that being with Elton meant hell for her; therefore the slower that I took things, the better it was going to be.

“I missed you.” She whispered back, pulling away from my arms. I wiped the tears that fell from her eyes before cupping her cheeks and kissing her forehead. I let my lips linger there for a few seconds, inhaling her scent as I did before pulling away to look her in the eye. Her heart raced, and she smiled when she saw Vladimir standing beside me.

She looked at me for a second, silently asking for permission from me to move, and I smiled, stepping back. She ran into his arms and he hugged her tightly, kissing the crown of her head as he did. She fisted his shirt, and he ran his finger hand over her lower back gently. 

“Welcome home, sestra. You have no idea how much we all missed you.” He said, his voice softening as he spoke to her. She pulled away to look him in the eye, and he smiled at her before kissing her forehead. “Your mate drove us somewhat crazy, but don’t worry, I managed to keep him out of trouble.”

Eleanor laughed despite the pain that I heard in her voice, and the man chuckled. 

“I need to tell you something,” Eleanor turned to look at me, and I shook my head in question. “It’s about Nikolai…”

The pain that I saw in her eyes confirmed to me that she didn’t know that I was aware of Nikolai and his betrayal. I had to admit, it tore me apart to know that one of my best mates and men, a man that I called a brother, a man that I grew up with and one that my mother raised as my brother by my side, would do this. It was something that made my heart throb, but I knew better than to dwell on a person who didn’t know what he lost.

Flashback:

“What are you doing?” I asked, shaking my head at Nikolai. The two of us were thirteen at the time, and I have been seeing him come to the same forest on a yearly basis on this day in specific. “Everyone is looking for you.”

“Did you tell them that I am here?” He asked, shaking his head in question, and I shook my head.

“They don’t even know that I am here, but we are going to be getting in trouble with mom, Auntie Lena, and Liana when they find out where we were.” I said, and his eyes widened in surprise before he jumped to his feet.

“You are not going to tell anyone about this place.” He said, making me frown in confusion. “I don’t want them to know that I came here on my birthday.”

“What is here to begin with? And why would you isolate yourself on your birthday when you can come and sit around with your family. You know, Liana does make the best cakes, and you always end up missing most of it as we look for you.” I asked, shaking my head at him. By this time, I was already learning how to manage myself and my family. My father was sure to teach me how to take care of things to ensure that I grew to be the pack leader that he wanted me to be.

“My father is buried here.” He said, making me frown. “I know that you are going to tell me that he betrayed the family, but he is my father no matter what happens. And I can’t find myself thinking of being somewhere else when I know that I am alone and have nobody.”

“You have us, I don’t understand what you mean by you have nobody when you have a whole family who is not only willing to stand by you, but also fight for you.” I said, looking at him before taking a seat beside him, knowing that it was going to mean a lot to him if I did. “As for him being a traitor, he is dead, and there is nothing that would be changing that. The least that I can do is pay my respect along with you.”

His eyes widened in surprise before I put my hand on his shoulder, squeezing it. “I don’t know how you may be feeling right now, but know that you have a brother by your side. As for your secret, it is safe with me. I neither saw or heard of where you are, but you have to be quick. Otherwise, the pack members are going to be sending search parties for you and the last thing that you would need is to have them find you here. We still have our rules, and I am to be Alpha to change them.”

“Change rules?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.

“He is your father, isn’t he? The first rule that I would be changing is allowing you to visit him whenever you want, and it doesn’t have to be in secret.” I said, and he chuckled, shaking his head. 

“He doesn’t have a grave. He wasn’t allowed one…”

“We can mark his place with one, and I believe that the older we grow, the stronger that we will become, and the easier it would be for us to identify where exactly he was buried. You know, he may not be an Ivanov, but we can give him a grave to honor you, your bloodline, and family. At least, we can keep the memory of what we knew of him before he died.” I said, and he smiled. “We always change history depending on how we see it. Why not change it now?”

I walked back toward the pack only to stop when he got up and walked toward me, putting a hand on my shoulder as he did, making me smile. I wrapped my own arm around his shoulder as the two of us walked back together.

“Thank you, Killian.” He said, and I turned to look at him.

“Brothers do not thank one another, Nikolai.” I said, and his eyes softened. “I don’t want you to forget that…”

End of Flashback.

“We know of what he did.” I said, and Eleanor’s heart raced as she put a hand on her stomach. She frowned, and I could tell that she grew more concerned right now. Everything was jumbled up, but at this point, I was ONLY thankful that she was back home, and was safe within her pack.

“Where is Natasha?” Eleanor asked, looking around. “Does she…?”

“She’s in the infirmary.” Mom said, catching our attention. “You all need to be checked up on before you can see her. But first, I have to welcome all of you home. It was about time that our little dove was back in her place…”